Chapter 2
1038 Words
Chapter 2
"No, no Francesca, you know I really love you and I can't cheat on you. This girl is just my client," Marco De Luca gulped nervously, his belly shaking as he tried to explain.
Francesca's eyes narrowed, her voice dripping with venom. "Don't even try to explain, you disgusting pig. You think you can just cheat on me with this... this... slut?"
Francesca turned around, her hands clenched into fists, ready to pounce on Alessia, but she was already gone. Alessia had quickly taken advantage of the distraction to make a run for it.
"Strega!" Francesca cursed, using the Italian word for "witch" to describe Alessia. "I would have killed her today if she hadn't run away."
Marco De Luca was still shivering, scared of his wife's fierce temper. "Thank God that my friend informed me that you are here, or else I wouldn't have known. I will cut away your manhood myself, foolish man," Francesca shouted, opening the car door and pushing Marco inside.
Meanwhile, Alessia was catching her breath at a corner, her chest heaving. "Grazie a Dio che sono scappata," she thought, thanking God that she had escaped. She didn't know what Francesca, that "strega", would have done to her.
Just then, her phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and sighed. It was the man who had given her the job. She reluctantly picked up the call.
"Hello, did you get the job done?" the person at the other end asked.
Alessia smiled cunningly. "Of course, I've already told you to trust me. Have you sent the balance?"
The person at the other end gritted his teeth. "You pathetic liar, you weren't even able to do that little job, and you're still asking for the balance. Don't ever let me see you. Balance, my foot!"
The person at the other end shouted angrily and disconnected the call.
"Farabutto!" Alessia cursed him through gritted teeth, using the Italian word for "scoundrel". "It's your father I will seduce next, bastard."
Alessia sighed and thought about her grandmother's predicament. Her grandmother was diagnosed with a critical heart condition and required urgent surgery. Alessia had already used the half payment given by the man to pay the piling hospital bills, leaving her with barely enough to cover the remaining expenses.
Her phone rang, breaking her thoughts. She checked the caller ID and saw that it was her friend Laura. She picked up the call, and Laura's cheerful voice greeted her.
"What's up, girlfriend? Did you get the job done and get the payment?" Laura asked.
Alessia's face fell, and she replied, "I'll explain everything when I'm back."
She looked down at the clothes she was wearing, remembering that she had borrowed them from someone and still owed them money. She counted the little change in her bag - fifty dollars. She needed to take a cab, but that would leave her with barely enough to buy food for her grandmother.
"Hell, life is really cruel to a poor girl like me," she muttered to herself.
She flagged down a cab and gave the driver the address of the hospital where her grandmother was. As she sat in the cab, she thought about how she would handle everything. Her life was a mess, and her grandmother's life was at stake.
When they arrived at the hospital, the cab driver turned off the ignition and turned to her. "Madam, the fee is $40."
Alessia gasped, shocked. She only had fifty dollars, and the driver was asking for almost all of it.
"Is he okay?" she thought to herself. "Doesn't he know I'm struggling?"
She opened her bag and counted the money again, then reluctantly handed over $30. The driver took the money and counted it, looking at her with a strange expression.
"Madam, I said the fee was $40," he insisted.
Alessia nodded and scoffed, "Of course, I'm not blind. I know exactly how much I gave you."
The driver looked at her in shock, clearly not understanding. "But madam, it's $40."
Alessia smirked and pointed to the hospital. "You see, ward 4 of the hospital is my destination, but you didn't take me there. So, the $10 is my trekking fee to the hospital."
The driver stared at her, confused. "But this is the address you gave me."
Alessia glared at him. "Hey, mister man. If you don't want the thirty, you can kindly return it back to me."
The cab driver shouted, "Crazy woman!" and drove away angrily, leaving Alessia to burst out laughing.
"You're crazy, lady!" he yelled out the window as he drove off.
Alessia laughed even harder, feeling a moment of release from her struggles. She used the remaining twenty dollars to buy a burger for her grandmother, trying to find some small joy in the midst of her struggles.
As Alessia entered the hospital, the nurse greeted her warmly, familiar with her frequent visits. "Hey Alessia, how are you today?"
Alessia smiled and responded, "I'm doing okay, thanks. Just worried about my grandmother."
The nurse smiled and reassured her, "Don't worry, everything will be fine."
She made her way to her grandmother's ward, where she found Laura pacing restlessly. Her grandmother lay in the bed, connected to machines and breathing slowly, her eyes closed.
Laura turned to Alessia and sighed in relief. "Alessia, thank goodness you're here. I was getting worried."
Alessia smiled and hugged Laura. "Hey, I'm here now. Let's go outside and talk."
Laura nodded, and they both stepped out into the hospital corridor.
"So, how did it go?" Laura asked, her eyes filled with concern. "Did you get the money?"
Alessia hesitated, not wanting to reveal the truth in front of her grandmother, who was a light sleeper. "Let's talk about it outside," she said, glancing back at her grandmother's room.
They walked to the hospital cafeteria, where they found a quiet corner to sit and talk.
"So, what happened?" Laura asked, her voice low.
Alessia sighed and rubbed her temples. "It was a disaster. The man's wife showed up, and I had to run out of there. I didn't get the money."
Laura's eyes widened in shock. "Oh no, Alessia. What are you going to do now?"
- Writer
