The Housemaid [in edit]

The Housemaid - Chapter Nineteen

THE STORY

Christine started walking towards the living room, without telling Jay. She stared into the couches where she, Nathan, and Siva sat while watching Star Trek last night. She saw that they mindlessly left three empty cups of tea on the coffee table, and a half-finished bowl of buttered popcorn on the couch. 

Jay was closely behind; he had a concerned look on his face. “I know how upset you must be after what he did last night…”

Christine leaned onto the couch and reached for the bowl. Siva and Nathan made her night last night by keeping her company. She was grateful to have them as friends, unlike Max who reminded her of every guy she briefly met in the past. 

She didn’t answer Jay, but she walked around the couch and added the cups on top of the popcorn. Jay continued. “I just wanted to see if you were alright.”

“I’ll manage.” Christine replied bitterly as she carried the bowl and turned to him; she wasn’t sure why she was acting standoffish with Jay, when she was mostly upset with Max. She walked over to him, stood on her toes, and kissed his lips softly. 

When she stood on her feet again, Jay kept his gaze on her. His facial expression shows confusion, but it made Christine smile. “What was that for?”

“For sticking up for me…from him.” She shrugged. “Never had anyone besides my family who would genuinely do that for me.”

He narrowed his eyes. “…I find that hard to believe.”

She exhaled a sigh. “To be honest, you might find what I’ve been through hard to believe. What Max did last night, I know you guys wouldn’t think it was personal…but it was; it was very personal…”

Jay stood there, listening. It was one of the greatest qualities she liked about him, Nathan, and Siva—they were all intense listeners whenever she’s with them. Noticing this made her feel at ease.

Christine scoffed to herself. “Who knows how I will react when I see him…”

“Chris…” Jay moved closer, slowly. “…Was this as personal as it was with Matt?”

He was catching on. She gazed into his tired eyes and nodded. “Yes.”

“Oh Chris…I’m so sorry.” Jay pulled her into a warm embrace. She wrapped her free arm around his back, closing her eyes. At this point, Christine wanted to tell him what she had confided in Nathan the other night; she wanted to tell him everything.

“Don’t be,” she replied softly as they pulled away from the hug. Surprisingly, she didn’t cry. Instead, she felt grateful for Jay always being there for her. “…You didn’t do anything.”

“I’ll have a long chat with him later if you want.” He offered.

“What I want for you now, Jay…is to get some sleep.” She raised her free hand up to a side of his scruffy face and stroked it softly. He frowned and placed a hand over it. “We can have a chat later during one of my breaks.”

“Okay.” He nodded slowly, took her hand from his face, and kissed her knuckles. Just as he did, she pulled him for another kiss that reminded her of the “wake up kiss”. 

“Thanks, Jay.” Christine breathed before letting him go. She felt some of the weight fall off her shoulders after that brief talk with him. Even though she had a nice bonding moment with Siva last night on the Ferris wheel, and later with Nathan, there was no better feeling than to spill her thoughts to Jay.  

Jay gave her a little smug smile, pecked her forehead and shared another embrace with her. As they pulled away, they noticed three figures, all averaging Christine’s height, standing between the staircase and the kitchen with their eyes on them. Christine immediately recognized one of them with the long brown hair and her rose colored cheeks, which was the same exact color when she met Nathan yesterday before she fainted. The three of them were already dressed in their respected uniforms.