Chapter 5: One More Day
1221 Words
The alarm rang at six in the morning.
Elenia opened her eyes immediately.
For a few seconds, she remained still, staring at the ceiling.
Then she remembered.
The De Luca estate.
The uniform.
The work.
Her aching body.
She slowly sat up.
Every muscle protested.
"Again?"
She looked toward the broken phone on the table.
She had tried charging it several times during the night.
It hadn't worked.
She picked it up and pressed the power button one more time.
Nothing.
A sigh escaped her lips.
She placed it back on the table.
There was no point wasting time.
She had to get ready.
Elenia dressed quickly, tied her hair back, and left her room.
This time, she didn't get lost.
She had memorized the route to the main hall before going to bed.
When she arrived, several workers were already there.
Clara stood at the front with her clipboard.
Her eyes moved across the workers.
Then stopped on Elenia.
"You're early."
Elenia blinked.
She wasn't sure whether that was a compliment.
"Yes, ma'am."
Clara nodded once.
"Good. You're learning."
Those two words gave Elenia a strange sense of satisfaction.
Yesterday, she had been twenty minutes late.
Today, she had arrived early.
It was a small thing.
But it was progress.
Clara began assigning duties.
"West wing."
"Kitchen."
"Garden."
"Kennel."
"Greenhouse."
The workers moved as their names were called.
"Elenia."
She straightened.
"Yes?"
"You're assigned to the east garden this morning."
Elenia nodded.
"Yes, ma'am."
Clara handed her a pair of gloves.
"Water the flower beds, clear the pathways, and collect the fallen branches."
Elenia looked at the gloves.
"Is that all?"
"For the morning."
She nodded.
"Okay."
"And Elenia?"
"Yes?"
"Don't water the flowers directly from the hose."
Elenia remembered yesterday.
She had almost flooded an entire section of the garden.
"I won't."
---
The east garden was quieter than the western side.
Elenia found the watering equipment and stared at it.
There were several hoses.
Different nozzles.
Different containers.
She hesitated.
Yesterday she would have simply chosen one and hoped for the best.
Today she stopped to observe.
A gardener nearby was watering the flowers.
Elenia watched him for several minutes.
Then she copied the way he adjusted the nozzle.
She tested the water on the soil.
Not too strong.
She smiled faintly.
"Okay."
She moved to the next flower bed.
This time, she didn't make a mistake.
It wasn't much.
But she was learning.
She continued until her shoulders began aching again.
Around her, the estate slowly came alive.
Workers moved between buildings.
Gardeners pushed carts.
Maids carried laundry.
Security personnel walked along the outer grounds.
Dogs barked from the kennel.
Somewhere in the distance, an engine started.
The De Luca estate was like a small city.
There was always something happening.
Elenia had barely finished watering the second flower bed when she heard shouting.
"Move!"
She turned.
Two workers were pushing a large cart toward her.
Elenia quickly stepped aside.
The wheel suddenly hit a stone.
The cart tilted.
One of the containers nearly fell.
Elenia instinctively reached out and caught it.
The worker grabbed the other side.
"Got it."
He looked at her.
"Thanks."
Elenia nodded.
"No problem."
The man smiled before continuing.
It was the first time someone at the estate had thanked her.
She watched him leave.
A tiny warmth settled in her chest.
Maybe this place wasn't completely terrible.
Maybe.
---
Later that morning, Elenia was sent to help clear the garden paths.
She gathered fallen branches and leaves into piles.
This time, she remembered where the leaves were supposed to go.
She also remembered that the smaller branches were collected separately.
Yesterday she would have mixed everything together.
Today she didn't.
When Clara passed by, she stopped briefly.
She looked at the garden.
Then at Elenia.
"You remembered."
Elenia nodded.
"Yes, ma'am."
Clara gave a small nod.
"Good."
Then she continued walking.
Elenia smiled.
Another small victory.
She wasn't good yet.
She wasn't fast.
She still made mistakes.
But she was beginning to understand the work.
---
At lunch, Elenia sat beside Mira again.
Mira looked at her.
"You're looking less miserable today."
Elenia laughed.
"Thank you."
"I meant it as a compliment."
"I know."
Mira pushed a piece of bread toward her.
"Take it."
Elenia looked at it.
"You don't want it?"
"I'm full."
Elenia accepted it.
"Thank you."
Mira lowered her voice.
"You know, you're lucky."
"Lucky?"
"You got garden duty."
"How is that lucky?"
Mira glanced toward the kitchen.
"Kitchen duty is worse."
Elenia smiled.
"I believe you."
Mira laughed.
For the first time, Elenia didn't feel completely alone.
---
The afternoon brought another lesson.
She was assigned to the kennel.
Her job was simple.
Feed the dogs.
Clean the area.
Replace their water.
She approached the largest dog carefully.
It growled.
Elenia froze.
"Okay."
The dog stared at her.
She took one step backward.
"I'm not trying to hurt you."
The dog growled again.
A worker nearby laughed.
"He's not going to eat you."
"He looks like he wants to."
"He doesn't like strangers."
Elenia crouched slowly and placed the food down.
The dog continued staring.
She stood.
Then walked away.
Five minutes later, she returned.
The dog was eating.
Elenia smiled.
"See? We're friends already."
The worker laughed.
"Give it a week."
Elenia shook her head.
"Fine."
She continued cleaning.
---
By dinner, Elenia's body was exhausted again.
But something was different.
She wasn't crying.
She wasn't wondering whether she could survive.
She simply ate her meal, listened to Mira talk about the estate, and thought about what she had learned that day.
She had arrived early.
She had remembered her instructions.
She had avoided repeating yesterday's mistakes.
She had learned how to handle the garden equipment.
She had even survived the kennel.
Small things.
But they mattered.
When she returned to her room, she looked at the broken phone on the table.
She still couldn't contact Alexandros.
That hurt.
But she would find a way eventually.
Elenia changed into her night clothes and sat at the small desk.
She opened the notebook she had started the night before.
Under her list, she added new points.
Learn the garden.
Remember the equipment.
Ask when I don't understand.
She paused.
Then wrote:
Don't be ashamed of being new.
She stared at the sentence.
That was something she needed to remember.
She had spent her entire life being afraid of looking weak.
But being inexperienced didn't mean she was weak.
It only meant she had something to learn.
Elenia closed the notebook.
Outside her window, the De Luca estate was quiet.
Somewhere beyond the walls, the world continued moving.
And somewhere in that world was the life she had lost.
She didn't know when she would get it back.
Maybe she never would.
But she was beginning to understand something.
Survival wasn't always about escaping.
Sometimes...
It was about staying long enough to become strong enough to choose your own way out.
Elenia turned off the light.
Tomorrow would bring another day.
And she would face it.
One more day.
Then another.
Until one day, she was no longer the frightened girl who had arrived at the gates of the De Luca estate.
Until then, she would learn.
She would endure.
And she would never give up on herself.
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