Numbered

Chapter 3: Josie Loaise D'lear

Josie couldn't believe it. She still couldn't believe that Amber would really stand up for her like that. She knew what was expected of servants and she had many friends who were treated the way a servant would normally be. Awfully.

She sat on her bed contemplating this (she had decided to go home at a normal time today) when she heard a knock at the door. Kenny was finally home. She called for her older brother to come in and she heard the loud Creeeeak of the door followed by soft footsteps and felt the dent in her "bed" indicating that someone had sat down.

"Looks like someone finally came home at a reasonable time today" came her older brother's voice from next to her.

She just stared at her hands still contemplating in disbelief how Amber could so easily stick up for her, a person who was way down at the bottom before saying "Amber made me. Said I should be spending time with my family. I would've worked longer otherwise."

"Good, I don't like how you're constantly overworking yourself. You could get hurt... or worse" Kenny said and when Josie looked up at his face she could see stress and worry wrinkles on his forehead.

"I know" she mumbled quietly, "how's Dad?"

"Not good. The second he walked in he collapsed and Navaya had to carry him to his room so our brothers wouldn't panic. He's overworking himself you can tell. And he won't accept any financial help either even though we all make money and are financially stable." Kenny stated the worry lines increasing.

"I suspected as much, it's been hard since Mom passed" Josie said.

"I got Charlie to watch Marcus, Darius and Andres while I was at work and she made some wicked brownies. I had some" Josie paused and smiled before continuing, "but you came home too late and now they're all gone. Those three have a bigger appetite than you during the Bright festival."

Kenny responded by lightly smacking the back of Josie's head and mumbling something about the one time he had to work overtime. When she teased him about it he used his "oldest child card" as he called it and told her that she should go to bed.

The next day Josie had Navaya Watch her little brothers when she went to school at 10:00 in the morning. She would have to go to work immediately after so she was grateful for her older brother and her in-laws. That still didn't stop Kenny from going on a worried rant over the speaker about taking a break and seeing family.

When she got to work she started with the the walls because that was the easiest in her opinion. They weren't dirty but you also couldn't have crystal clean houses for the nobles without the servants cleaning them quite frequently.

A part of Josie's job was to clean Amber's section of the house. As she was ringing out the hand towels Teressa was tidying up even though she didn't have to considering today was supposed to be her day off.

Josie was grateful for her, she has been working at the DeVoune estate for over 20 years and had been a mentor to Josie as well as a mother figure to Amber since both Amber's father and stepmother have been busy with work most of the time and Amber's biological mother, well whenever Josie had tried to ask what happened to her Amber got a distant look in her eyes and shut down.

The second time that happened Josie just dropped it and hadn't mentioned anything since. Speaking of Amber, Josie turned around once she heard the sound of her footsteps.

She could tell it was Amber due to how the wind swept around her feet when she walked and how the air responded to her presence. According to her father this was a rare trait that only the strongest 1s had. Both Josie's father and older brother has this trait and her father said it was because they had come from a strong line of 1s.

Josie dried off her hands and walked up to Amber asking if she needed anything. Amber reached into her pocket and Josie physically felt her mouth drop open at what she pulled out.

It was a bracelet and a ring. Made of real White sapphire as Amber explained it. And it looked more perfect than Josie had ever seen. And she had seen plenty of snooty nobles wearing beautiful jewelry and how their houses were decorated in the stuff.

"The bracelet is 32 carats and the ring is 2. I made it myself. I am a 5 after all and jewels are apart of the earth. The ring is a sign of our friendship and the bracelet you can sell, I know how little 1s get paid" Amber said.

When Josie asked if it took Amber forever she replied that it was actually fairly simple and easy. Josie was in a state of joyous shock. She could finally get some money for her family and she had a friendship ring, that was made out of real jewels something that 1s never got.

She smiled at Amber, she would make sure to cherish this ring for all her life.

887 words.