The shape of love

being fired .Chapter 2

Shape of love

That moment when he said I'm fired, I felt my world crumbling around me. The world I knew became still for a moment. Tears streamed down my cheeks, and I whispered to myself, "You are stupid, Senora; how could he have known that you are pregnant when that night he was drunk, but you let him take advantage of you just because you are God-sent?" "Tell me, what am I going to do?" I asked myself as I gazed around his office, wiping my tears, thinking of that night three months ago when Herbert was drunk. It was like he was drugged because he said he was feeling hot.

My mother has been working at his house as a servant for years. At that time, I was staying with my aunt in California, then my mother got sick. I had to go to New York to take care of her and my siblings. So, Herbert's mother offered me to take my mother's shift at the party, and I agreed as I needed it. That night, I didn't know Herbert; rumors said he was staying on, and he didn't get along well with his family, even my mom. When she visited me and my aunt, she used to talk about him not caring about his mother. She used to say, "What kind of son would abandon his mother for years, even though they are rich? At least he should show his mother love." But she wouldn't say much. She would even say how heartless he is. She would even say that when his father died, he didn't even show up at the funeral. I myself was even shocked to know that they were that kind of person on earth who was that heartless. But seeing the way he is treating me after I helped him with my job made my heart ache to an extent that I crouched to the floor, crying. I didn't even care if I was in his office or not.

What was I going to say to my mother? She was already struggling to take care of us, even though she was sick, she was trying. And my stepsister was still in the hospital; she needed medicine, and I was being fired just because someone thought I made up a joke about being pregnant. I don't even know how many minutes went by while I was crying, crouching on his marble floor. But I had the mahogany door open, and I shivered from the sight of him standing, looking straight into my eyes. Clenching his jaw as anger emitted from his eyes, and he said, "What are you still doing here?" His voice was filled with anger. I shivered, my lips parted and trembled while trying to muster the courage to answer him. The only word that could come out of my mouth was "I." As tears streamed down my cheeks, he said, closing the door with a bang, "Do you want me to repeat myself, Senora? I said, what in the hell are you still doing in my office? Didn't I fire you an hour ago? Get your things out of here before I fire you again." He said, stomping his feet, pointing his hand at the door.

He was angry; I didn't even know why he hated me so much. Ever since I started working in his office, he only treated me like trash. I could see that he didn't like to see the sight of me. Knowing that being fired was the end of me, I started begging, saying, "Sir, please don't fire me. Yes, I might have said something to upset you, but it was only a joke. Give me a chance, and I will never joke around." I said, crying. He crouched down to where I was, looked me deep in the eyes, and his breathing became heavy. He said, "Sinora, don't give people a chance, especially someone like you, whom I hate the most. So, get out of my office now before I lose it."

I felt a pain in my heart as I looked at his angry face. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I decided to leave his office. I packed my things in my cabin, taking one last look at the beautiful space I'd been using. 'Such a pity,' I murmured, 'to leave this office in such a short time.'

As I walked out, all eyes were on me, but no one dared to interrupt their work to ask what happened. They were all scared to lose their jobs. I took the elevator down, memories of my first day flooding my mind. I was so excited, and so stupid.

Herbert had told me to make his tea, but I'd made black coffee instead. The moment he saw it, he threw the cup away. I was terrified, jumping from one place to another as he gazed at me with furious eyes. 'You don't know the difference between tea and coffee? Are you trying to kill me?' he'd said.

I'd known then that he was allergic to coffee, and he'd even threatened to fire me one day. And today was that day. I was jobless, and I didn't know how I'd survive. I wished I wasn't so clumsy and stupid."

"I walked down the street, unsure where to go. The weight of my recent firing still lingered, and the thought of going home to break the news to my sick mother was daunting. I considered reaching out to Herbert's mother, hoping she might intervene on my behalf, but I didn't want to add to her stress - she had already done so much by getting me the job.

As I wandered, I found myself at a nearby park, where memories of happier times with my family flooded my mind. Weekends spent playing and laughing with my step-sister and mom seemed like a distant past. The reality of our current situation hit me hard - mom's illness, Evelyn's battle with cancer, and the responsibility of caring for our family now rested on my shoulders."

"It was past 12 in the afternoon, and I decided to visit my sister Eve - she was the only one I could pour my heart out to. I took a train to the hospital, and as I arrived, the smell of medicine hit me. Nurses and doctors bustled around, and I made my way to Eve's ward.

She was resting on her pillow, laughing with another patient. Her eyes had dark circles, her skin was pale, and she'd lost a lot of weight. Her hair was balding from chemotherapy, and an IV drip was attached to her left hand.

When she saw me, she smiled, and I saw tears forming in her eyes. 'You're a bad sister,' she said, making an angry face. 'Why didn't you come see me?'

I smiled, moving closer, and nodded to the other patient, greeting her. 'Your sister was crying yesterday, saying you don't want her anymore,' the patient said. Her name was Maria, a lovely lady around 36.

I looked at Maria, then at Eve, who had her back to me. 'Maria, do you see me as the kind of sister who'd ditch her sis? I got a job, Eve - that's why I couldn't come. I was going to come on the weekend.'

Eve looked at me with teary eyes and hugged me. 'I was just angry. I know you'd never do that. I'm so happy you got a job.' She pulled back, looking at me. 'By the way, if you have a job, what are you doing here?'

"I sat near Eve's bed, struggling to find the right words. The question still lingered in the air - what was I doing here? I forced a smile, trying to buy time. Eve's eyes searched mine, and I knew I couldn't hide the truth. I took a deep breath, and the words tumbled out, 'I got fired.' The silence that followed was deafening."