John followed Jeffrey into the house, each step deeper into the familiar surroundings, stirring up memories. It had once been his sanctuary, a home he painstakingly built with sweat and tears for himself, but then it all crumbled away, slipping through his fingers like sand. "Hey, babe, you're back." Stephanie's voice crashed into John's ears as they entered the house."Yes, baby," Jeffrey responded, embracing Stephanie and planting a passionate kiss on her lips.A sword of anger pierced John's heart as he watched his ex-wife tenderly embrace his best friend, their intimacy stinging like salt on a wound. He clenched his teeth and balled his fists in frustration."Who is that?" Stephanie asked, her face twisted in disdain as she pointed a finger at John, her once-beloved husband."You won't believe it," Jeffrey chuckled, casting a satisfied smirk in John's direction. "Guess who that is?""I don't know, but he looks like some kind of madman. Why did you bring a lunatic into our house?"
The next morning, John was dragged out of the dog cage, confused about his whereabouts."Where are you taking me? Why aren't we going into the house?" John asked, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.Before he could finish his statement, water was forcefully poured over him, blinding him momentarily."What the hell..." John snarled, using his hands to shield himself from the deluge."What... what's going on here?" John demanded, still trying to comprehend what was happening as water cascaded over his face and body."You're taking a shower." Stephanie's sarcastic voice cut through the chaos.Stephanie, dressed in a classic white cotton gown, stood nearby, her hands folded together with a smirk playing on her lips. Beside her, Jeffrey wore the same demonic smirk, their dark intentions gleaming in their eyes."What?" John asked, struggling as the water forcefully scrubbed his body, his confusion and perplexity evident."Pay attention to his armpit. He nearly killed me with the smell that
"What are you talking about? Is he rich?" Stephanie asked, looking at her mom, completely perplexed.John's face instantly turned rosy as he feared his secret would be revealed. He wondered how Modelisa managed to find out."Yes, he's not as poor as he appears. He's actually very wealthy," Modelisa insisted, her eyes fixed on John. "Or am I mistaken, John Beckham?" she added, shrugging and giving John a stern stare."I'm in trouble," John thought to himself as Modelisa insisted he was rich. Stephanie and Jeffrey narrowed their eyes and raised their eyebrows, looking at John suspiciously."I don't know what you're talking about. I think there's a misunderstanding. I don't know anything about what you're saying. I can't be rich and here begging for a job," John finally spoke after taking a deep breath. He made sure to maintain his composure so Stephanie and Jeffrey wouldn't realise he was scared and tense from lying to them.The tension between them escalated by the minute. John was afr
"Welcome, the newest member of the company," Stephanie said, a smile lingering on her face as John walked into the office.Every eye was on him, some with curiosity, others with disdain, and a few with genuine interest. People looked at him disgustingly, and some began to murmur as they watched him walk in wearing those dirty and drenched clothes."Welcome," the members of the company said unanimously as John stood in the middle of the circle."I'm sure you all might know that he was the former owner of this company, right?" Stephanie began and stood up from the chair she was seated on. That was clearly one of the embarrassment schemes she was playing out. It was clear that she never got tired of embarrassing John at each opportunity that came her way. "I guess we are even," John scoffed, a little smile tingling around his lips."Most certainly," Miss B said. "So, what happened?" she asked.John sighed before saying, "A lot, actually."Just before John could speak further, he heard a
"James, what are you doing here?" John asked, his bright eyes widening in shock as he saw little James standing scared at the door of his house.James looked up at John, his eyes filled with innocence. "Daddy," his voice sounded sweetly in John's ears.James was a very handsome and cute kid. His eyes alone could capture the heart of anyone, and even though it was cloudy, his eyes still sparkled like the stars in the sky."Are you here alone?" John asked as he grabbed James around the waist and lifted him into the air, clasping him on his shoulder, so now James was looking John eye to eye."I came alone." James's voice sounded calm and tender. His black eyes were beautiful to stare at.John, on the other hand, was uncertain, so he looked around and saw that there was no one before quickly going inside with James. He knew that if anyone had seen him with James outside, it would have brought more problems to him."How are you, buddy? You look bothered. How did you even know I was here?"
"What are you doing with my vault?" Stephanie’s question repeated itself in John's head. He bowed his head low with his eyes closed, his heart pounding rapidly."What was he going to tell Stephanie now? She had clearly busted him," he thought to himself, his lips tightly clasped together as sweat started to form on his forehead, even though the room was air-conditioned.John had no other option but to turn and face the fiend. Stephanie looked him dead in the eyes, her gaze as deadly as that of the devil. There was tension firing between the both of them, and with each second of silence, it simmered even more."I was just cleaning." John eventually broke the ice, trying to maintain composure while looking Stephanie dead in the eye as he lied to her.Stephanie was silent, her eyes fixed on John, but as John looked at them intently, he couldn't decipher anything from her eyes. It was as if she had an encryption, and so John was left in the dark, wondering whether she believed his lie or
John gazed at Stephanie, a round of thoughts swirling in his head as he observed her ample figure. He attempted to maintain eye contact.“Why did you keep me waiting outside knocking on the door for so long?” Stephanie inquired, moving closer to John as if she wanted him to have a clearer view of her body.“What trick is she trying to pull now?” John wondered to himself, taking a step backward.“And who gave you permission to turn away while I’m speaking to you, PA?” Stephanie snapped, her voice piercing John's ears.He glanced at her, his face tense with a frown. The tension in the room intensified. John was clearly not enamored by her physique; he felt only discomfort. Anything involving Stephanie repulsed him, and her attempts to get close to him were even more repulsive.“I’m sorry, ma’am,” John said politely, feeling a knot in his stomach whenever he addressed Stephanie as "ma’am." “I apologize for taking long to answer the door, but no one usually visits me, so I thought it was
"What the fuck? What the hell is five hundred dollars doing in this suit?" John exclaimed in shock. His eyes stared dimly and widely at the money in his hand, which had fallen out of the suit he held."What, five hundred dollars?" Miss B asked, on the other hand, her mind rolling with different thoughts as to what was going on.John stared at the money, confused as to why Stephanie would add that amount of money to the suit and that too without telling him, and she didn’t tell him she had placed such a large amount in the suit. What was she trying to play with him? The same person had told him that she wouldn’t be able to give him more because she doesn’t run a charity organisation, and then all of a sudden this amount? There was surely something blowing up that John was yet to know."John!" Miss B snapped at the other end, as John was too caught up with what was before him. "What is going on? Why are you all silent? Are you fine?" Miss B bombarded John with a lot of questions as her