Cinderella's Ghost

Chapter 19: Golden Love

Chapter 19

The first thing I saw in front of me was a golden rose, and I immediately remembered. Jarell. I got up from my bed, then went downstairs, expecting him to greet me like every other morning. He was nowhere to be found — but I definitely smelled burning coming from the kitchen. I closed my eyes and sighed as I made my way there, to find Carrie making breakfast. I turned to the source of the smell. The eggs in the pan were charred. When she turned and saw me standing there, she glared at me, as though her burning up those eggs was my fault. I returned it with a blank look.

"I'm almost done with it. You can use it later," she muttered indifferently as she moved around the kitchen, getting bread into the toaster.

This was common occurrence now that I wasn't their maid. The past few days, Jarell had told me to ignore them, to let them get a taste of their own medicine, let them know how unappreciative they had been, but something had been nagging at my mind constantly. If I continued to stay here, it would only be right if I did my part too, wouldn't it? Plus, it wasn't like Carrie had left me to die. She did give me an allowance. So I went forward and chucked those eggs into the bin before Carrie could stop me.

"What are you doing?" she hollered furiously, then pulled the pan from my hand. "Don't you go thinking you can do anything you want now. The twins may be terrified of you, whatever you've done, but I am not, and I will not succumb to any of your threats."

I remained mum as I moved to pick up four eggs from the carton and washed them under the tap before putting them in a bowl. With enough force, I yanked the pan from Carrie's hand, and moved to the stove.

"I'm going to make breakfast, one egg for everyone of us in the house, okay?" I eyed the overgrowing basket full of clothes uncomfortably. "And I will do any housework two times a week. If you want the house to be cleaner, tell the twins to come home early everyday to do their part. The way I see it, it's about time they learnt how to care for themselves instead of becoming freeloaders."

"How dare you!"

I poured some oil over the pan. "And we can take turns to make breakfast. Let's not trust the twins just yet with cooking. The house might burn down. So, here, we wait for the oil to be a little hot, and then we put the eggs in. You have to constantly check the underside of the eggs. Once it's brown enough, turn off the fire and remove them." I demonstrated it to her. Carrie watched silently by the side. Considering her personality, I assumed she was learning quietly.

The rest of the morning went on quietly, apart from the twins' usual complaints, and for once, they were reprimanded for it. When I took the toast to my bedroom with a smile, finally, it was for an entirely different reason.

~*

I headed off to school eagerly, wanting it to be over. I yearned to see Jarell soon. Life had turned a little boring without him around, although I did better appreciate my alone time now and again. I could collect my thoughts better as I saw the twins eating at a canteen table all by themselves. Simon had gone on to join the others yesterday, and although the others had been unwilling to accept him at first, they finally let him into their group. I decided to leave the twins be for now. Times like these, it would be good for them to learn from their mistakes properly, and if what Jarell said was correct, that their once-friends had matured, it shouldn't take long for them to approach them, to give a second chance. Or better yet, for the twins to have the courage to apologise to them, and ask for a second chance.

After school, I rushed to the hospital. The nurse at the counter saw me and gave me a smile, allowing me to head in. I took the smile as a good sign.

When I reached the door, I took a deep breath and knocked. Almost immediately, Mrs Anderson opened the door with a wide grin on her face.

I returned the smile and asked brightly, "Is he... awake?"