The Housemaid [in edit]

The Housemaid - Chapter Twenty-One

Note: Please please PLEASE forgive the long wait for an update! Thanks for being patient!! After my week long vacation things kinda got stressful and whatnot...but this week I was able to get back into the groove of writing....and this was what I came up with. 

PS. Sorry if it's crappy.

OUT

It was 6:30am the next morning and already Christine was awake. She only slept for a few hours, but the revelations about Tom kept her waking up every half hour. Since she couldn’t go back to sleep, she decided to get out of bed and head to the backyard to watch the sunrise.

She sat in the same porch swing as she did yesterday afternoon with her knees pulled up against the armrest of the swing and wrapped a warm blanket around her from the chilly air. There she saw the sun slowly rising from the distance, the sky brightening blue, and heard the echo of a rooster’s call.

It was tranquil, it was calm; she wished she could have slept here instead if she remembered that the view could ease her mind. It was too late to sleep in now.  

Christine realized that this was much better than what she has to face today. She wanted to stay out here all day with no interruptions, no boy bands, no work, nothing. Maybe tomorrow she can have her own mental health day. 

“Ah, I knew it was you.” But then there was Nathan.

He stood before her in a solid white shirt and gray sweatpants. His hair was fluffy and uncombed, his green eyes tired, but he had that cheerful smug on his face. A smile on Christine’s face appeared when she noticed he was holding two mugs of freshly brewed tea—the way he made them. Despite that she wished to be alone, she could never deny tea…with a side of Nathan.

“You’re up early,” Christine started to say while she carefully held the mug Nathan handed to her.

“Well, last night’s outing made me miss our late night chats,” he replied smoothly, “After you declined I almost wanted to stay in with you.”

Christine nearly choked on her first sip of tea. She was immediately flattered. “Aww, Nath…”

But soon she noticed the change of expression on his face; the look of disappointment, sadness. “I’m not a big fan of group outings myself…and last night reminded me why.”

“Wha…what happened?” Christine sat up and crossed her legs comfortably facing Nathan, with the blanket now covering both their laps. 

He let out an exasperated sigh, staring into his tea mug. “The lads considered it a joke, but I didn’t. They decided to treat the new girls to Pinkberry…the same Pinkberry where I had my first date with Lyla.”

“Really?” She raised her eyebrows, lifted the mug to her lips, and took another sip.

“What’s worse—she’s working there now.”

Christine sprayed the tea that was in her mouth away from Nathan and onto the grass. “Oh, my God.”

“Right?! And Jay, the damn fool he is, thought it’d be brilliant to strike up a conversation with her, which led her to restrain from spilling profanity!”

“Jay?...Fuck.” Christine uttered. She was familiar with the fact that Jay was a prankster, but she didn’t realize he could be a crude one…

“It was difficult to have a chat with Faye.” Nathan continued. “I didn’t know what to do so I walked; I left. But then Lyla followed…

Christine gripped on the handle of the mug tightly, her attention fully on Nathan’s encounter. It was evident he didn’t have a nice night either.