Chapter 67: Anonymous boss
1850words
I shuffled back home, more exhausted than someone who had been on an around-the-clock workout. The moment I walked in, I saw Mother and Kristine, my younger sister, watching a movie in the living room. The room was lit with a blue glow, giving off the vibe of a cool movie night. The regular jasmine incense burning on the table near the wall filled my nostrils.
Our father died many years ago when we were still toddlers. We have little to no knowledge about him except for the photo frame on the wall.
The resemblance between Kristine and Mother sometimes made me jealous. I was the first daughter, yet I looked nothing like my mother. I'm always the black sheep of the family.
Mother is the epitome of beauty. A perfect example of forever young. Despite our social status, my mother always looks her best. Her sleek black hair was always tied in a ponytail. She has the shape of a model; tall and elegant, with hazel eyes that seem to whisper secrets. As for Kristine, she is the carbon copy of Mother. Except that her hairstyle never stays the same like Mother's.
'Good evening, Mother," I greeted without stopping while heading to my room.
'Where are you coming from?" Mother's question halted me in my tracks, and I looked at her.
'What do you mean? I told you I was going to work this morning, didn't I?" I responded, yawning loudly.
'Who in their right senses would want to hire someone like you as a personal assistant?" Her words were as hot as hot water searing down my throat.
'And what do you mean by someone like me?" I asked, moving over to them.
'I thought you had a mirror in your room. Did you break it?" Mother said.
'She is indirectly saying you are too ugly to be someone's PA," Kristine read into it.
'I will break your head if I hear another silly word from you," I warned Kristine in a tight tone.
'Don't you dare threaten my daughter," Mother defended, standing up.
'And what the hell am I? Your enemy? What has come over you, Mother? Why do you always watch Kristine insult me without scolding her? And why in God's name would you call your first child ugly?" I sought to find out.
'Telling you the blatant truth is better than giving you false hopes, Scarlett. The stupid star mark you call a birthmark on your temple is disgusting. Your sense of fashion is terrible. You have terrible attributes. Tell me, what do you call someone who is way out of the beauty standards?" Mother scorned. Her words made my eyes glow with tears.
'Ugly, Mother," Kristine backed her up.
'Back to your new job, don't you guys have a wall clock there? Are you working with a wretched company, Scarlett? Have you no shame? Look at the time you are coming home on your first day at work. How is it going to be when you're promoted to a higher position? Are you going to sleep there? Overall, didn't it occur to you to call to inform us that you would be coming home late?" she scolded.
'Enough, Mother," I tried to fight back my tears. 'You know how much I hate you scolding me. We closed from work about an hour ago, and the company is far from this place. I had to walk home, which took me this long to arrive. I'm sorry for making you worry, but it's not too late yet. It's just 8:45 PM," I explained, and walked out on her.
***
I sat in the office, moping. Mother's words kept rumbling in my head. Was that why my boss didn't react normally to me? Because he thinks I'm ugly? Was that why the staff murmured at my sight while I was coming to work this morning? Why do they have to look at me differently because of a birthmark? Was that even their reason, or something else?
'What's your name?" my boss asked, appearing in front of me.
I gasped, and unplugged my earbuds. 'I'm sorry, Sir," I apologized, wiping the little tears from my eyes.
'Why are you crying?" he asked, making my stomach churn.
'I'm sorry, Sir. It won't happen again."
'Whatever. What's your name?" he repeated.
'Why are you interested in my name all of a sudden?" I asked, getting back into the mood of argument.
'And you think it's inappropriate for someone to know his assistant's name?" he asked, placing his hands on the desk before me, and staring into my eyes.
'When done as early as the first meeting, no problem, but after 24 hours, it's inappropriate. Besides, it's not bad if we remain anonymous. You can call me assistant, and I will call you boss," I suggested.
'Do you normally drink before resuming work?" he asked.
'Of course, I take a hot cup of black coffee every morning," I replied cheerfully.
He lifted his hand and palpated my forehead. His hand made shivers run down my spine.
'What do you think you are doing?" I protested, swatting his hand away.
'I thought as much. You are sick. You need to be in the psychiatric hospital right away," he sneered.
'We are going there together because you also take a cup of coffee before resuming work," I retaliated.
Before his comeback, my phone started ringing. 'Can I take this?" I asked for permission. Without a word, he sat opposite me. I shrugged in confusion.
'This is my office. I sit, and listen to whatever I want," he declared.
Without a word, I answered the call. It was Juan calling; I couldn't afford to miss it.
'Hello, babe," I smiled into the phone. My boss relaxed his back against the chair, staring at me. 'Yeah, I'm fine…what? You know that's not possible. What happened to the one I sent last night?" I asked. Juan was demanding more money. 'Okay, calm down. Don't get worked up, okay? I'll send it when I have…love you too," I ended the call. My boss was still staring at me expressionlessly.
'Do you need anything, boss?" I asked.
'It's breaktime, you can go out," he said.
'I very much know it's breaktime, but I'm not going out. Thank you very much," I appreciated his offer and tried plugging in my earbuds.
'You dare not do that while I'm still talking to you," he warned, getting pissed off.
'What do you want, boss? It's breaktime as you said, and I can do anything I want with my breaktime since you need nothing," I retorted.
'Are you always this ugly?" His question twisted my stomach. My forehead creased as I glared daggers at him.
'Is anything wrong with an ugly person trying to work in some firm with a boss that knows nothing about his employee? Who the hell do you think you are to judge my physical appearance?" I was seething now.
I can take in my mother's constant reminder, but I certainly can't take someone else telling me directly to my face that I'm ugly. And that too, from the man I admire and respect.
'So, you think so low of your appearance?" he asked, confusing me.
'And what's that supposed to mean? Do you think insulting me is appropriate?" I tried to calm myself down.
'No, I wasn't insulting you. I was telling you the obvious, but you read more meaning into it than I meant. I was talking about your attitude, and you misjudged me for your appearance. Only those who have the impression of themselves being physically ugly react the way you do. So, tell me. Why do you think you physically look ugly?" he stated.
'Because that's what everyone is saying about me. When you don't meet the beauty standards of society, you are officially ugly to everyone else," I said.
'Jeez! It baffles me that people still care about what others say about them. The impression you have of yourself is the best description of you, and not what everyone thinks is the standard beauty or conformity of society," he explained.
His words made me have second thoughts about myself, but when my mother is among the society that criticizes my appearance, it's hard to accept the impression I have of myself.
'That's by the way. I want you to go out there and try to relate with other staff. You can't get stuck in here with me without getting to know those you work with," he added.
'And who will I tell is my boss?" I asked. 'Mr. Anonymous?" I suggested.
'Nathan, the name is Nathaniel," he specified.
'Mr. Nathan. God has given, right?" I asked.
'I don't know."
'You don't know the meaning of your name? Are you that shallow?"
'Don't say that to me," he warned.
'Well, the meaning of Nathaniel is 'God has given.' Nathaniel was a court prophet in the time of King David. He was introduced twice in the Bible as being an advisor to King David. Now you know. Don't tell anyone you don't know the meaning of your name; it's awkward," I explained to him.
'Do you go to church?" he asked.
'I'm a Christian, indeed I should go to church," I declared proudly. 'Don't tell me you don't go to church."
'I won't tell you now that you don't want to know."
'That's not what I mean. How can you be a Christian and not go to church? Where's that done?"
'I don't have a religion. I'm not a Christian, so stop questioning me," he declared, and stood up to go to his desk.
'That's weird, Mr. Nathan. You have to go to church, at least once a year. You can't be religionless," I told him. He ignored me and wore his headphones.
***
We closed early today, so I decided to pay Juan a visit. The door was left open, so I entered with a plan to surprise him. In the living room, I began hearing sounds from the bedroom. The urge to shout his name and ruin the surprise was near, so I pressed my lips together. Nearing his bedroom, the sound became clearer. They weren't normal sounds, but moans. My heartbeat suddenly escalated to the point that it was drumming in my ears. I felt a headache instantly. Tears filled my eyes, but I tried to calm myself down, thinking it was a prank. Their words came to me.
The lady, breathlessly and seductively, said, 'I wonder what she would do when she finds out about us."
'Who cares about an ugly girl's reaction?" Juan replied in a pleasured tone. I felt my brain spinning right in my head.
'You are going to cripple me, please, Juan," the lady moaned.
'I want myself buried deeper," Juan groaned. 'Shit, don't do that. Leave your thighs open wide."
I couldn't take it anymore, and pushed the door open so hard that the collision with the wall shook the whole building.
'What the hell?"
I couldn't believe the lady I saw Juan with.
