Headspace family

A mysterious new job

There was a mistake. It was impossible that this was the place. That's what I told myself when I looked up at the gigantic house in front of me, the house of my new employer. Apparently. But there was definitely a mistake, the employment agency must have given me the wrong address. I stood in front of the London version of the white house. Actually, it was probably even bigger than that. The person staying there was filthy rich, that was for sure.

The house was designed in a modern way, made of perfect squares and rectangles. It was pure white and looked brand new, even though I knew it wasn't. It was simply well-maintained. The door was white also, with small glass windows on it. A very plain door compared to the rest of the house if you ask me. Although, the lock was a code instead of a key, so it must have cost much more than a basic door. There was an upper level and a basement from what I could see, plus four garages. I presumed that there were luxurious cars in them.

I sighed once more as I looked around, wondering why a man that could afford all of this would need help from an employment agency to find an housekeeper/ babysitter. But well, I guess you need someone who you can easily find. Working in such a house, it wouldn't be surprising that people stole things before. If I were to steal, they would find me easily because of the agency.

For now, I did not know much about my new job. Only this address, the very short job description (housekeeper/babysitter), and the name of my new boss: Simon. No last name, just Simon. Thankfully, I had been expected because when I rang at the gate to come over here, I was asked the reason of my presence. Let's say my story did not seem very believable. But I was let in, so it must have been somewhat okay.

Now I stood in front of the door, trying to convince myself to knock or something. But I was anxious. I was not at my place here, and I wondered how I would be able to work in such a nice house. I would constantly be on edge, afraid of breaking or staining something because I would not have the money to pay it back. However, I had no choice. I had already been chosen and, if I seemed fit for the job according to Mr. Simon, I would be officially working here. I needed the money, I could not go back. This had been the only job available according to the lady of the agency, I could not refuse it. My school fees depended on it. University wasn't cheep, and I had to pay it all by myself. So for this year, I was on break to work and save money.

Before I even managed to find the guts to knock at the door, it opened and revealed a small ginger haired woman. She smiled brightly at me and opened the door wider to let me in. "Hi! I was wondering why it took you so long, so I went to get you!" she spoke up, closing the door behind me. "I know the house looks intimidating at first, I felt the same too when I was hired," she added, giggling. The young woman seemed older than me, but not very much so. She was probably in her mid twenties or something. "I'm Libby, I cook. I've been working here for two years so if you need anything you can ask me. You're Ava, aren't you?" she introduced herself as we walked to the living room. "Simon is busy with a phone call for the moment, but he should join us shortly."

"Huh...yeah, I'm Ava. I'm here for the... housekeeper job?" I said, unsure about my job's title. I thought a housekeeper cooked and cleaned, but there was already a cook so I wasn't sure anymore. "There was not many details in the job description..."

"Oh yeah, you'll understand why shortly. Don't worry. Simon will explain the unclear parts, I'll explain the general part of it," Libby replied, smiling. She sat down on the couch and I did the same, sitting down on a black armchair that faced the couch. "I cook, so you don't have to worry about that. Except on my rare days off. However, you'll need to do the cleaning. Well, some part of it. We have cleaning ladies coming once every two days who do most of it. So you'll do the laundry, wash the counters after using them, cleaning up messes, things like that," she explained to me, and I nodded to show that I understood even if she spoke extremely quickly.

"Slow down Libby, you wouldn't want to scare her off right away," said a voice that came from the hallway. A man soon walked out of it and sat down beside Libby, smiling at me. "Nice to meet you, Ava Michaels. I'm Simon, your new employer," he introduced himself. "Sorry for not welcoming you at the door."

"Oh, huh, it's fine. I'm sorry, I'm still a bit overwhelmed by all this. I was expecting... a smaller house," I said, explaining my speech difficulties. Simon chuckled.

"Don't worry about it, I know very well that this is surprising. But let's get to it, shall we? I'm sure you want to know what you're gonna be doing here," he told me as he stood up. "Thanks Libby, I'll take it from here."

"Alright Boss!" she replied with a smile, walking towards what I suspected to be the kitchen. I also stood up and followed Simon as he started walking.

"I'll give you a tour of the house as I explain, is that alright with you?" he asked me. I nodded and so we kept walking. He showed me the kitchen, where Libby indeed was. He also said that it would be one of the only times I would ever come here. The kitchen was Libby's realm and no one was to disturb it. Of course, if I wanted a snack in the middle of the night, I was allowed to. But cooking was off limits. Then we went to the backyard, which had a humongous pool. I loved to swim, so I was really happy when I was told that I was allowed to use it.

After thirty minutes, we had visited all the common areas. Or well, I think we did. The house was so big that there were probably more rooms I was not aware of. We were now back to the living room, standing by the hallway Simon had come out of in the first place. "This is where you will begin to understand what your job here is. If you change your mind, you are always free to leave. However, you signed an agreement not to tell anyone what you learn here back at the agency, so you would have to keep quiet about all of this," Simon warned me. Honestly, it was kind of scary. What could be so bad? He spoke like Christian Grey, when he showed Anastasia his red bedroom. And I doubted that I was hired for that kind of things. It doesn't fit a housekeeper or a babysitter at all.

"Alright Sir," I replied. "But I doubt I will change my mind, whatever's in this hallway."

"I sure hope you won't. Come on, let's go," he said, starting to walk once more. I followed him, looking around at the walls. There were many paintings on them and they were all beautiful. The walls were white, but with the paintings it looked much brighter, made it more personal. "It's in this hallway that is your room, it's the last one on the right. Libby's is the one right in front of it. The one I use when I come over is at the opposite of the house, near the gym room that I showed you earlier," Simon explained, making me raise an eyebrow.

"'When I come over?' You don't live here?" I asked, looking up at him. "If you don't, then who does? Do I have another boss?"

"No, just me. I come over once in a while, but I'm the owner of this house and your only boss. However, it is not me that you are going to watch over," he declared, looking at me. He then pointed at the doors. "But the ones that stay in these rooms. They aren't my kids, but they're like family. They are in a...particular situation."

"Okay...and what does 'particular' means in this case?" I ask him, walking closer to the first door.

"I think it's better that you see for yourself," he replied, pointing to the door. I knocked and opened it, stopping in my tracks at what I saw. 

Hi everyone! As promised, here is the first chapter. The second one will be posted on next Monday, which is May 2nd. I will do my best to keep up with that update schedule during the whole summer. I hope you like it. Also, I'm having trouble to decide between Molly Quinn and Bonnie Wright to be Libby, so please tell me what you think! Comments and votes are always welcomed :)