Chapter 8 008

Someone suddenly started clapping, and Ara turned to see who it was...~ Ara's eyes widened in shock as her mother, Janet, approached her. Janet's sudden movement prompted Ara to grab her hand, leading her to a private restroom. There, Ara confronted her. "What do you want, Mom?" she asked, her tone firm. "I see you've really changed. You even dare fight your friends." Janet sneered. "I wouldn't have done it if they didn't cross the line. I didn't do anything wrong, they started it first." Ara rolled her eyes. Janet raised her hand, but Ara stood her ground. "You wouldn't dare speak to me in that manner," Janet said. "Who are you? As far as I can remember, you're no longer my mother but the devil incarnate. You lost every right to tell me how I speak to you, that right now belongs to my husband." Ara countered. "I see, your husband is giving you wings? You were once rags, but I upgraded you to riches. You're ungrateful." Janet snapped. "Why are you here, Janet?" " Ara asked. Janet was shocked that Ara called her by her name without any maternal title. "Since you're married to the billionaire, it's high time you start taking care of me and your father. We're broke and need financial help, only you can give us that." Janet explained. Ara chuckled, then laughed until her stomach hurt, tears almost welling up in her eyes. But her face turned stern. "Like when I was still living with you both, you helped me? You maltreated me, Mom, made me look like trash. What gave you the assurance that I'd want to help you?" Ara asked, her voice firm. "Because I'm your mother, and I carried you for nine months in my belly." Janet fired back. "You stopped being my mother the day I left your forsaking house." Ara snickered, walking closer to her. Ara's voice turned cold. "As long as I'm alive, you and your silly husband will plead for food but receive blood. You'll beg for money but receive insults. That's my word, Janet." Ara said, turning to leave. "Ara... Ara... Come back here... Ara.!" Janet shouted. But Ara didn't look back. She walked out, determined to make those who treated her like trash suffer, starting with her parents. ___ BACK IN FRED OFFICE* "What! You??" Adriana blinked in shock, and Fred chuckled. Her mind was racing like a tap. Was he the same person she had smashed a bottle on, kicked in the groin, and called a pervert? Adriana thought to herself, ~You've already lost the job!!. ~He can't employ someone like you!!. As she turned to leave, Fred spoke up... Where do you think you're going, princess?" Adriana halted, and Fred asked again... "Aren't you here for an interview?" She turned to face him, and he was already sitting in his swivel chair, rolling a dice in his hand. Adriana walked up to him with a scoff and dropped her CV on the table. "I'm here for the interview," she said, as if forced to utter the words. "Don't you recognize me, the same guy you smashed a bottle on and kicked in the groin?" Fred muttered with a chuckle. "I don't feel any remorse about it because you were wrong to me. Sorry, but no sorry. You can go ahead and interview me, or I'll just leave." Adriana retorted. "Are you trying to threaten me?" Fred asked. "I don't make threats, I gave you a condition. It's either you interview me or I leave." Adriana replied. "Because you threatened me, I'll give you the job. You're now my personal secretary." Fred said. Adriana was surprised and asked.. "Just like that? You won't even interview me?" "You and I have a score to settle. I won't let you go that easily." Fred explained. He stood up, hands tucked in his pockets, and walked to her, smiling, showing his white teeth. "Now that you're my secretary, sign this," Fred said, handing her a file. Adriana didn't bother reading it and signed it. Fred released an evil smirk and congratulated her, stretching his hand for a handshake. Adriana ignored his hand and asked.. "When can I begin the job?" "Tomorrow, but Dennis will show you around the company." Fred whispered. "Oh okay." Adriana mumbled. ___ WSC COLLEGE* Ara emerged from the restroom, surprised to see Holly and Sofia waiting for her. Her mother had already left. Sofia's eyes widened in surprise when she saw her. "Wait, is this Ara?" she asked, and Ara nodded, smiling. Sofia rushed to hug her. "What's with the change? You didn't come to school for days, and you came back with a shocker, your dress, your transformation." Sofia said and broke the hug. Ara couldn't reveal her marriage, so she fabricated a story. "Actually, you saw my mother, right?" Ara asked, and Sofia nodded. "I saw her leaving." Sofia whispered. Ara thought quickly, trying to come up with a believable lie. "You know how my mom seized my phone and didn't let me come to school? But after that day, she came to apologize and said she was sorry for how she treated me. To show me she's changed, she took me shopping and got me a new phone. She even brought me to college." Ara said hoping they would believe her lie.. "I never expected her to change." Sofia nodded, seemingly buying the lie. "I thought so too." Ara made a pity smile. Holly looked doubtful, and Ara noticed. "And what you did to Stacy and Michelle, I didn't expect." Holly asked. "I just put them in their place. I didn't know what I did to them, but they have this hatred for me, especially Stacy. I don't know what I did wrong." Ara shrugged. Holly knew the reason for Stacy's hatred, it was because of him. "They're going to go blind from the spicy water." Sofia chimed in. Ara scoffed, feeling no remorse. They started it, and they got a dose of their own medicine. "Let's go to the cafeteria," Sofia suggested, and Ara nodded. As they walked, Ara hung her arm around Sofia's neck, and Holly followed, his gaze fixed solely on Ara. ___ JENKINS COMPANY* Vesper was engrossed in documents when his secretary, Monica, entered. Her attire was striking, a halter top and jacket that barely concealed her breasts, a short purple skirt with a shimmering design, and heels that accentuated her height. However, Vesper was too absorbed to notice her arrival. "The executive producer is ready to launch the new game, boss," Monica said. "What's the game's name?" Vesper asked, still not looking up. "Power Bike," Monica replied. Vesper nodded and finally glanced at her. "Tell them to launch it. That's what we'll present at the conference meeting." He said. Vesper expected Monica to leave, but she lingered. "Do you have anything else to say to me, Monica?" he asked. "I... Uhm... No," she shook her head. "Then leave," Vesper said, returning to his documents. Monica turned to leave but stopped in front of the restroom mirror. "Am I not pretty? Ain't I cute?" she asked herself. *You obviously are," her subconscious mind replied. "But why wouldn't he notice me? I dress like this for him, but he won't even glance at me." *His eyes must be paining him, he's blind not to notice your beauty," her subconscious mind retorted. Monica rolled her eyes. "Arggg..." she ruffled her hair in frustration. ____ SCHOOL INFIRMARY* After being rescued from the pool of water, they were rushed to the hospital, where their eyes were on the verge of blindness due to the excessive amount of spicy pepper added to the water. Stacy was the first to regain her sight, albeit blurry at first. She couldn't believe what Ara had done to them. They had once bullied Ara, but Holly's intervention had saved her from further harm. Ara hadn't fought back then, but now she had. Stacy wondered who had given Ara the courage to stand up for herself. She recalled seeing Ara with the latest iPhone, which was suspicious since Ara couldn't afford such an expensive phone. Stacy was determined to investigate further, even considering the possibility that Ara might be involved in prostitution. Michelle opened her eyes and sat up on the bed, glaring at Stacy. "Look what you've done! My eyes almost got blinded because of you," Michelle said, to which Stacy scoffed. "Shut up! Have you wondered how Ara has suddenly changed? Her new clothes, her phone... it's like she's trying to be like us," Stacy said. "So what?" Michelle asked, groaning in discomfort. "Maybe she's into prostitution," Stacy muttered, and Michelle's eyes widened in shock. "What?!" Michelle exclaimed, and Stacy nodded in suspicion. ____ GOLDEN CLUB* Adriana entered the club after leaving Fred's company, but before she could head to the changing room, Paige stopped her. "Where do you think you're going?" Paige asked, her arms folded across her chest. "I know I'm late, and I'm sorry. Something unexpected came up, and I forgot to tell you before leaving yesterday. It was on my mind, I swear," Adriana explained. Paige cut her off. "Enough of your lies, Adriana. I'm tired of constantly deducting your pay for your mistakes. As of today, I no longer need your services." "But this is the first time I've been late since I started working for you. I'm sorry if I didn't ask for an excuse. You can't just fire me like that." Adriana pleaded. "You're fired." Paige firmly said. Adriana scoffed and turned to leave, but then stopped and turned back to Paige. "You haven't paid me for the work I've done so far. You owe me," Adriana said, her voice firm. Paige hesitated before pulling out her wallet and counting out the money. "Here," she said, handing it to Adriana. Adriana took the money and said.. "Goodbye. I'm glad to be leaving anyway. I already have another job lined up, so I wouldn't have stayed even if you hadn't fired me." With that, she walked out. Paige was shocked. She had expected Adriana to beg and plead for her job back, but instead, Adriana seemed relieved to be leaving. Paige regretted her decision to fire Adriana, especially when a customer walked in and she realized she had no one to attend to them. She held back from calling out Adriana's name and instead went to serve the customer herself. ____ JENKINS EMPIRE* The car screeched to a halt in the parking lot, and Abby quickly jumped out to open the door for Ara. Ara stepped out, looking exhausted. "My lady, should we escort you inside?" Ruby asked, but Ara waved him off. "Thank you, Ruby, but no need," she muttered, starting to walk towards the entrance. Inside, she found Nanny Celia reading a newspaper. "Good evening, Nanny," Ara greeted her, and Nanny Celia looked up. "How was your lecture today?" she asked, concern etched on her face. "It was exhausting," Ara replied, dropping her bag onto the floor. "Oh, sorry to hear that," Nanny Celia said sympathetically. Ara trailed off, hesitant to ask her next question. "Is... uh... he back?" she finally asked, referring to her husband. "Your husband? No, he's not back from work yet. He's a bit of a workaholic, you know." Nanny Celia understood immediately. Ara nodded, looking disappointed. "Please notify me when he gets back," she requested, and Nanny Celia nodded. "Dinner is ready, would you like me to have the maids serve you?" she asked, but Ara declined. "No, Nanny, I'll be in my room," she said, heading upstairs. ___ Ara emerged from the bathroom, wearing a transparent singlet and short pants. Her phone chimed, and she walked over to see who it was. Holly had sent her a message on IG. She climbed onto the bed and clicked on the message. Holly Pee: Did you get home safely?" Holly asked. Ara smiled and typed a response. Ara: Yeah, and you?" she replied. Holly Pee: Same! So, what are you doing?" Just then, a knock sounded at the door, and Mira entered. "Master is back," she announced. Ara's eyes widened in surprise, she hadn't expected Vesper to return so early. Ara dropped her phone, forgetting about Holly's message. She gathered her assignments and headed to Vesper's room. She knocked, but there was no answer, so she let herself in. She could hear the shower running and sat quietly on the bed. Vesper emerged from the bathroom, wearing a short trousers and shirt, his hair dripping wet. He was taken aback to see Ara. "What are you doing here?" he asked, and Ara stood up. "My lecturer gave me assignments, but I didn't understand them," she explained. "Did you not pay attention in class?" Vesper raised an eyebrow. "I was there, but I just didn't get it." Ara pouted. "Do you think I can help you?" Vesper asked. "Because you're my husband." Ara replied. "I mean, you're older than me, so you should know this stuff." She quickly corrected herself. Vesper told her to sit, and Ara handed him the assignments. As he began to open the books, her stomach growled. "Haven't you eaten?" Vesper noticed and asked. "I figured my husband doesn't eat dinner, so I won't either from now on." Ara said. "You'll break if you don't eat. I'm used to skipping meals, but you're not." Vesper chuckled. "I'll get used to it." Ara insisted. "Just go and eat." Vesper ordered. "Unless you eat with me." Ara said and looked at him. Vesper raised an eyebrow. "I'll prepare it if you eat with me. Please, try my food first." Ara continued. Vesper stare at her....