Chapter 14
With one arm full of freshly-washed bedsheets and the other on the railing she carefully balanced herself on the stairs. Her foot had slipped once already and she was sure that a second time would certainly make her tumble all the way down.
Ava eventually reached the top and breathed a sigh of relief before carrying on. Why the bedsheets had to be washed when no one slept in them she didn't know, and it wasn't really her place to question such things.
If Lauren asked her to do something, she would.
She entered the first guestroom and started working on getting the bed sheets back on the bed before working on making the bed again. After finishing she stepped back to inspect the bed.
Perfect, she thought. It always was; she'd been making beds for years and it had become the one thing she was good at. Content with her work she grabbed the basket and made her way towards the next room.
Downstairs, she could hear the door open and close but she paid it no mind.
Mr. Chastain had gone into the nearby city earlier that morning and he probably came back just now.
She continued on with her work before heading over to the next room, and then the next.
Soon her basket was empty again and she had to go downstairs to get the next load of laundry.
She made it all the way to the end of the hallway when she ran into Lauren, all red and huffing from walking up the long stairs. "Ava," she greeted. "Mr. Chastain will be leaving for his new york home tomorrow, I need you to make sure he's packed everything."
The message hit her like a pound of bricks. He was leaving?
When he'd just arrived she'd silently hoped that he would leave soon but now...
Now she wanted him to stay. She didn't know why, though. The house just wouldn't feel the same without him. Maybe she'd even miss him.
"Oh, right," she squeaked. "I'll help him pack, then."
She didn't really know what else she could say but Lauren didn't seem too bothered by it and nodded. "Very well, dear," she said before taking the empty basket from Ava. "Go on then, his plane is leaving in a few hours and he still needs to go to the airport."
"Right," Ava replied while stepping back. "I'm already gone."
She quickly walked into the other hallway towards Mr. Chastain's room before stopping in front of it. There was shuffling on the other side as he'd probably started packing already.
It took him a second to respond after she knocked but a muffled 'come in' could be heard from the other side of the door. Slowly, she opened the door and stepped inside.
His usually casual attire had been traded for a neat suit and tie. It made sense since he'd spent the day at an office but she couldn't help but admire how well it fit him. The only thing out of place was his hair, which was sticking out in all directions as if he'd been pulling on it.
Admittedly, he looked good in anything he wore. Maybe it was just his handsome face that made everything look good.
"What?"
The irritation in his voice threw her off, she hadn't heard him talk like that since that first time he'd spoken to her and it took her a moment to compose herself.
"Lauren asked me to help you pack," she replied as steadily as she could. If he was in a foul mood she didn't want to do or say anything that could set him off. But it was odd seeing him this way, especially since he'd been so nice to her.
She hadn't seen him mad yet, but that didn't mean he couldn't be.
"Everything I need is already there, I don't have to pack anything."
"Oh," she replied weakly while thinking of something to say. He seemed to be in a pretty big rush to leave so this might be her only opportunity to say bye to him. She just had to find the right words to do so.
Should she wish him good travels? Or just for a casual 'see you again'? Maybe thank him for the things he'd done for her?
But she didn't know if she'd see him again. If the years had taught her anything it would be that everything could change in a heartbeat. It pained her to even think about never seeing him again. Being around him felt good for reasons she hadn't discovered yet so she hoped he'd come back soon.
"Ava?"
"Hm?"
"Don't you have work to do?"
"Oh, yes," she said as she felt her face heat up. She'd been thinking too long and he obviously wanted her out of his room.
It was stupid to think he'd want to say goodbye to her, she was just the maid after all. She felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes but she quickly turned around to walk out of the room so he wouldn't see while closing the door behind her.
What had she been thinking? They weren't friends. There was no reason for him to care about her.
But what had changed? Maybe it was opening up at the restaurant that made him think of her differently. Maybe he'd realized she was just a dirty orphan girl as opposed to whatever respectable woman he thought she was before.
Maybe he finally realized she wasn't worth all that much.
She knew she wasn't, but maybe she'd somehow fooled him for a while into thinking she was. No one had truly cared all that much about her before so how could she have believed, even for a little while, that someone like him would?
She forced the tears from her eyes and took a few big breaths to steady herself. She'd been stupid, but it would be best if she stopped thinking about it for now. If she wanted to cry about it she'd have the entire evening to do so, but right now she was working.
After walking briskly down the stairs and into the laundry room she took the next batch of bed sheets from the dryer and carefully folded them into the basket Lauren had put down.
The laundry room was on the other side of the stairs and her ears picked up on the unmistakable sound of Mr. Chastain walking down the stairs, followed by the door opening and closing.
She sighed to herself. He really hadn't wanted to say his goodbyes to her, then.
At least she wouldn't have to bump into him knowing how he thought of her now.
With the basket in her arms, she made her way back up the stairs again for her last round of changing bedsheets of the day. There was still a little time left before dinner so she decided to take a quick shower in the meantime.
Upon reaching her room she locked the door out of instinct before removing her shoes. They started to look worse every day but as long as the damage was on the underside she'd keep using them. The most important thing was that her employers didn't notice the torn footwear.
It probably wouldn't be long before the soles would come off entirely and it pained her to know she'd soon have to get new ones.
Next, she started to shake off her uniform dress but realized just in time that the expensive phone was still in her pocket.
It didn't make sense to keep it on her anymore, Mr. Chastain had left after all. He'd only given it to her so he could call if he needed something but he probably had staff at his other place as well, rendering the phone useless for now.
The box it had come in still sat neatly atop her desk and she walked over to it to put it back in.
She almost closed it but then remembered the charger and put that back in as well.
Packing things in advance would come in handy if she had to hand everything back over when she'd be let go eventually.
For the first time ever she didn't want to leave. She liked this place and the people in it.
George, Lauren, and even Mr. Chastain. Even if he didn't care much about her.
But good things weren't meant for her, and it didn't matter how much she liked being there.
She would probably be let go within a few months. She always was.
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