The Right One

Four

Tayo hadn't been bluffing when she'd assured Hope she was getting the job. On Friday, Hope went for the interview as scheduled. She was directed to the manager and once he confirmed she was the one that had been referred to him, he informed her she could start work on Monday and that was all.

Although she hadn't been expecting much of an interview considering she was applying for a cleaner's job in a hotel, she hadn't expected it to go that smoothly either. The Royals was no doubt one of the best hotels in the state so getting even a cleaning job wasn't supposed to be an easy feat. Hope kept it in mind to ask Hope just who her link to the manager was.

Getting the job however was the easy part. The real hurdle was how she was going to work without her family finding out, especially now that she had to live with her cousin. Val had called while she was still at the hotel to let her know she was ready to move in so Hope had to rush back home and about ten minutes after she got back, she heard a knock at the door.

"It's open!" She called, knowing it was Val.

As expected, the door opened and Val walked in, wheeling in a large traveling box.

"Hey coz," Hope greeted, getting up and taking the box from Val. She gestured around dramatically with her free hand. "Welcome to our humble abode."

Val chuckled. Playing along, she looked around like she was seeing the place for the first time and said, "Thank you. It's a nice place you've got here."

Hope laughed, shaking her head wryly. "Well, thank you madame. Come on, let me show you to your room."

Since theirs was a three bedroom apartment and two of the rooms were already occupied by Hope and her mum, Hope had prepared the third room for Val. She led Val along the narrow hallway and into the room that was directly opposite hers.

"So here we are. Does it suit your taste, ma'am?" Hope teased, a smile playing on her lips. They'd both known beforehand which would be Val's room 'cause it was the same room Val had occupied the one time she had been around for Sophie's wedding.

"If it doesn't, will you let me have your room instead?" Val asked sweetly.

"Haha, dream on," Hope scoffed, earning another chuckle from Val. "Settle in, alright? I'll be in the sitting room if you need anything. There's food if you're hungry as well."

"Thanks, Hope. I'll be out in a minute," Val replied, her smile showing her gratitude.

Hope nodded and left Val to settle in. She went back to the sitting room, settled back in her seat and began flipping through channels on the TV although her mind was occupied with different thoughts.

Growing up, Hope and Sophie hadn't been close to Val or any of her siblings so Hope wasn't especially excited at the thought of living with her. She didn't doubt Val was a nice person, she just wasn't all that familiar with her.

They were actually second cousins since it was their maternal grandmothers that had been sisters and for some reason unknown to anyone, their grandmothers had fallen out so their children hadn't grown up close, much less their grandchildren. It wasn't until a few years ago that Hope's mum reconnected with Val's parents.

Hope finally found a channel she deemed worthy of her attention and was already hooked when Val found her way back to the sitting room. Hope took notice of her presence only when she felt the seat next to her dip.

"Hey, so are you hungry?" Hope asked distractedly, her eyes still plastered on the TV screen.

"No, not yet. I ate not quite long ago," Val replied and Hope nodded, still absentminded.