[~Song Recommendation: Natalie Taylor - Come To This~]
Layla sighed before locking the door after Robert left. Taking out an ointment from the drawer she tended to Elysia's elbow that bruised badly. Robert's face filled with amusement and satisfaction still lingered in her brain.
She offered her a glass of water which Elysia gulped down in one go. Layla could see her mom's forehead getting filled with beads of sweat, the reason best known to her.
"Why did you do that?" her mom asked feeling dejected.
"Did we have a choice? But Mom if I may ask, why do you need money, and why do you believe that stranger's words of getting your money doubled in the first place?" she asked sitting adjacent to her.
"To offer you a better life child. There is no dignity in the life of a maid and you need to get out of this place to earn yourself respect. I know you're quite intelligent in academics so I wanted to support your further education from a reputed university… But it seems fate has its own mind," she shook her head in pure grief.
"Oh Mom…" Layla embraced her mother tightly as her heart squeezed at the thought of the sacrifice this woman made even not being her birth mother. 'I won't let anything harm you, Mom, I promise. For that even if I needed to sell myself I'll do it!' she thought before releasing her.
"Now tell me how will we manage to gather that amount in one month?... Till now I owe him three months installments including this month's."
"Don't worry I'll manage something but now it's already quite late and we need to head to the mansion to serve the Park family." Together they set foot outside the mansion after finishing breakfast.
The day went by as usual where Layla and Elysia got engrossed in accomplishing different tasks of the mansion with other maids and in no time the clock struck half past one. It was time for lunch in the Park household.
The Park mansion was brimming with life with its members along with the maids and workers catering to their needs. David Park was a middle-aged man married to Selena. They had a younger son Trent and a daughter Angelina close to Layla's age.
Layla was about to enter Angelina's room with the food tray in her hand. She was directed to deliver her lunch in her room itself as Angelina was busy with her studies.
"Ahh!..." Layla shrieked as she felt a burning sensation beneath her right foot. Quickly she leaped away to find a live immersion heater lying on the floor just by the door. It was obvious that someone placed it deliberately. A few food items spilled on the floor while Angelina was enjoying the view in front.
"What have you done bitch?" she remarked to Layla who was still feeling immense pain from her burnt feet resulting in she was struggling to remain standstill. Layla didn't respond to the girl's remark as she was well acquainted with her antics to hurt her on purpose.
She left the half-empty plate on the table nearby and limped on her way to fetch a bucket of water and duster. When she arrived back, Angelina didn't let her in.
"Answer me why you did this; I'll call Mom!"
"It's not my fault miss. Please let me clean this," she tried to get inside by sliding from the little space beside her but got rewarded with a tight slap on her cheek. She wanted to fight back, maybe she could defeat that brat but lowered her gaze and left the room without uttering a single word as she's just a maid.
"I'll tell Mom how you left my room without cleaning your mess. Just wait and watch!" she heard her bawl but she paid no heed to her words as she continued down the staircase. Her eyes were stinging with tears that she managed to hold back.
'Mr. Park is so nice; it's a shame that his daughter is such a brat… Anyway, I need to find a way to pay the debts. But how?' she thought as she kept rubbing the ointment beneath her feet discreetly to avoid anyone's attention.
Later that night when it was time to return to the servant quarters, Layla entered the room without limping much not to let her mother know about her condition. Since Elysia served a different part of the mansion, she was unaware of Layla's situation.
After having dinner, Layla surfed the internet from her cheap smartphone which also acted as her study partner. She was feeling heartbroken as she couldn't find any job regarding her designation that offered a higher pay rather she discovered what she was getting currently is the highest.
"I need to talk to Mr.Park tomorrow," she uttered followed by a sigh completely unknown to the fact that her mom was standing behind her.
"No…You won't ask for anything from him Layla," she said quite sternly and Layla jolted from her seat to face her.
"Mo—"
"We already owe him a lot for his generosity."
"Yeah, I know that Mom; don't worry I won't ask for money rather I'll request him to find me a decent job that offers a higher pay. I hope he'll keep this little request," Layla said before her eyes drifted to the clear night sky filled with sparkling stars. Elysia, at last, permitted her to have a few words with David Park before they slept side by side.
The next morning…
Layla expressed her concern regarding the matter at hand to David and he paid full attention to her plea. She lowered her gaze as David didn't offer her an immediate reply rather he kept massaging his temple. 'I should have spoken more politely,' she thought while fidgeting with her hands.
"Look at me, Layla," his tone holding authority.
Layla thought he might be displeased. "I know it's quite selfish of me to ask you for a better job but I need this, Mr.Park. It's not like I don't respect y—"
"What are you saying? It's the least I can do. I care about you Layla; I'll definitely look into it… Don't worry… If you allow me I'll even—"
"No need for that sir. I already owe you a lot," she denied gently. With that, she left to carry on her tasks.
*******
The following day Layla was engrossed in her task of peeling vegetables when she got prompted by one of the maids that David wanted to see her. Leaving her stuff she reached him in a hurry to notice him smiling at her.
"Congratulations, Layla!"