From Squalor To Splendor

Chapter 3

“Yes, Liam. If he tries it, I will definitely do that. But I do not doubt that he will not act in that manner. Anyway, let us carry on from our previous position. I'm craving your touch, you know,” said Isabella to Liam, even though the cleaner was still in the room, trying to tighten up every angle of the room.

There were bloodstains on the floor in addition to glass fragments.

Liam refused to comply with Isabella's request; instead, he waited for the cleaner to complete and depart so they could pick up where they left off before Justin arrived and stopped them.

A few onlookers started making fun of Justin after he was hauled from the hotel and thrown into the crowded street.

Still, the guards made sure to beat him up until they were satisfied before kicking him out of the hotel.

As he sobbed bitterly and wondered what to do next, Justin found himself dragging his feet along the street.

He covered the cut on his hand with his handkerchief to stop the bleeding.

He starts thinking back on all the wonderful times they used to have with Isabella as he strolls down the street.

He chose to push the thought of Isabella from his mind to prevent going insane after realizing that the more he thought about her, the more he felt hurt.

His tiny phone started ringing inside his pocket as he was strolling aimlessly.

After the call rang for a while, Justin decided to answer it even though at first he wanted to ignore it.

The reason he called was obvious to Justin—it was his landlord.

“Justin, I have got a new tenant who is ready to pay double for the apartment you're occupying, so he could move in there. Because you did not pay the rent for the previous month, I called to let you know that your luggage is waiting for you outside." the landlord's voice echoed from the phone.

"Sir, you agreed when I said I would pay you when I received my salary. Why the abrupt shift in perspective, then? This wasn't what we discussed,” Justin sadly explained, regretting why he used the money he was supposed to pay his rent and bought an expensive necklace for Isabella as a birthday gift.

Rather than astonish her with the present he had already purchased for her, Isabella surprised him.

The landlord asked, "Are you done talking?" which confused Justin.

"Sir, what do you mean? Did we not agree on that? Why didn't you wait for me to return before bringing my luggage outside the apartment?" His landlord hung up the phone before Justin could finish his statement.

He looked at the tiny phone he was holding as if he should smash it to pieces and scowled.

Another call came in as Justin was standing there considering his next move. His face was buried in the screen as he swiftly raised the phone.

It transpires that the individual in question was a coworker from his part-time delivery job.

Justin took a quick sniff and used the back of his hand to wipe away the tears on his face before answering the phone.

When Justin answered the phone, he said, "Hello, bro."

"Hi, Justin. The caller stated, "The company manager asked me to call you because he wants to see you and discuss something crucial with you."

"Oh?" With a quick mouthful, Justin inquired, "What happened? The manager had never made such a strong demand for my presence, so I hope everything is good."

"Well, I am not sure why he wants to see you. Just make sure that you don't keep him waiting, okay?”

Before ending the call, Justin gave the caller his assurance, "Okay, I am already on my way to the company."

To avoid keeping the manager waiting, Justin took a taxi with the last cash he had in his pocket.

He reached the company in a matter of minutes. He stood before a tall building, ready to enter it.

He went into the company as soon as he paid the cab driver.

"Hi, Justin. What happened to you? Why is there a blood stain on your shirt?” one of his colleagues asked after spotting the blood stain on Justin's shirt.

"Well, since he did not pay the rent on his previous house, I am sure that he got beat up by his landlord." Everyone started laughing heartily when one of his coworkers made a mocking statement.

Though embarrassed, Justin would rather not respond to the young man because he was one of the people who constantly made fun of him. He believes he has more important tasks to complete than to argue with the young man who was attempting to make him look foolish in front of his coworkers.

It was neither time to return to work nor time to get paid, so Justin walked past them without saying anything on his way to the manager's office to find out why he was needed.

Justin knocked on the office door, and a voice said, "Come in."

With a nod, he grasped the doorknob and rotated it to unlock it.

Justin greeted the manager as he entered the office. “ Good morning, sir. I was informed that you needed to see me.”

“Yes, Justin. Here, take this and read what's there,” said the manager as he extended a brown envelope to Justin.

He took the brown envelope from the manager without a second thought. Using two fingers, he reached into the little brown envelope and pulled out a piece of paper with several scribbles on it.

He went on to read the writing on the paper. Immediately he read a few lines, his jaw almost dropped to the ground.

"S-sir," Justin stumbled in shock."What have I done wrong that I am getting a nasty letter from you?"

"Well, your coworkers have complained about you a lot, so I think it is time I fire you," declared the manager.

"But," the manager interrupted Justin before he could finish speaking.

“Hey! Hey! I don't have to tell you the complaints they laid about you, okay?” the manager angrily spoke. "Leave my office now!" he exclaimed.

Justin could not focus on what was going on. He could not remember having offended anyone in the company; on the contrary, they were the ones impeding his advancement.

For what felt like an eternity, Justin remained silent as he tried to process what he had read earlier.

Justin nodded and stormed out of the office, clearly understanding that the manager had meant what he had said.

"Any good news, Justin?" Four of his coworkers laughed out loud as they asked in unison.

Justin's hand balled into a fist, as if he wanted to fight them, his blood boiling. But he was sure that because they were so many, he could not defeat them.

He gave them a fierce look for a few minutes before saying, "I can see how happy you are because you got me fired without cause. But I assure you all that you will regret it soon.”

He did not wait to leave the company after saying that; he left right away, followed by their laughter.

A message appeared on his phone as soon as he stepped outside.

Since the end of the month was approaching, he was curious to find out what it was, believing that the manager felt sorry for him and sent half of his pay.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, he pressed his face against the screen. He was shocked to discover that it was a message from his boss at his part-time cleaning job.

One more depressing update. He was fired for no apparent reason. He appeared to be the target of someone's daylong plan.

Since he was already experiencing pain, he was not overly concerned about the message.

He was scared when a convoy of commanding bodyguards in gorgeous black cars pulled up in front of him as he was ready to leave his part-time delivery job.

The thought that suddenly occurred to him was that Liam Grayson had sent his boys to retrieve him so they could deal with him.

Watching the men with the dark glasses and black suits come out of the cars, Justin froze in place.

He was desperate to escape, but he was unsure of what was stopping him. He stared at them without making a single movement.

The men all held their guns in unison with their left hands as soon as they got closer to him. They bowed before him, each with one knee on the ground.

“Young master, we were sent to bring you home,” they said in unison.

Together, they uttered, "Young master, we were sent to bring you home."