10. Chapter 10
LUNA
It’s safe to say my first day as a Live-in Nanny has been full of surprises, like how I get my very own en-suite bathroom and a walk-in closet so big it was bigger than mine and LJ’s childhood room combined.
I swear, if I could put a little kitchenette in the corner, I’d live here and pay Surly Bastard rent for the rest of my life.
Speaking of him, I half solved the mystery of how he knew what was stuck to my cheek; apparently, his best friend Joonie (that’s what Theo called him) used to make the same dish from time to time.
That means Oliver’s best friend was either Korean or a well-cultured person, whom I would very much like to meet one day.
That aside, Theo and I have dinner, just the two of us. Where he makes the convincing argument that since he’d already eaten Kimchi Fried Rice before, the Bulgogi dumplings can count as his new food and another sticker on his food chart.
This little boy is smart; I’ll give him that.
After we ate, we headed upstairs, where Theo had a much-needed bubble bath, giggling the whole way through, me trying to get the red kimchi stains off his face and arms.
Don’t ask how they got there; they just did.
Kimchi fell out of his top, too; we just don’t talk about it.
Then, he waited for me to fetch my electric toothbrush so we could brush our teeth together and head back to his room, where he was in the middle of picking out what storybook he wanted to read tonight, when I sensed Oliver’s presence in the doorway.
“Thank you, Luna. I have it from here; you may retire for the night.” I nod in response, giving Theo a big hug, goodnight and went to my room, which I had only just realised was exactly next to Oliver’s, the same way Theo’s was next to the bathroom; how curious.
Which brings me to now, searching for a pair of pyjamas. I can faintly hear Oliver reading Theo his bedtime story. I can’t help but creep towards the door and listen in as Theo laughs loudly with delight, always muffling Oliver’s voice.
“Thank you for hiring Luna, Ollie. Love you.” Theo hums so sweetly that it tugs on my heartstrings. I was so busy gushing over the mention of my name that I almost missed Surly Bastard’s reply.
“You’re welcome, bud, love you too.”
Who was this man, and what did he do with the Surly Bastard I knew about?
I mean, Oliver Walters saying the words ‘I love you’ to a child, no less, the world wouldn’t believe it.
Macy wouldn’t believe it, but you best believe I text her anyway.
I know I’m under contract, but she is my only friend and the only one who knew how big this was, and she’d never tell anyone else if I told her not to.
Not even my brother, who she scared the crap out of whilst she screamed when my text went through, which quickly turned into a video call whilst I was doing my skincare routine.
We spoke about the potential softness Surly Bastard could have locked away somewhere in the house and went through the few baby names she added to the never-ending list before she could no longer keep her eyes open.
With her fast asleep, I ended up giving LJ a summary of how my first day went before hanging up.
I hadn’t heard a wink from Gran, but she did send me a wink emoji earlier, along with the words ‘good luck on your first day’ when I was in the middle of cleaning, but that was enough; I didn’t dare try to call her because I wasn’t the least bit curious as to what she was doing or who she was doing it with.
Before I knew it, it was approaching 11 pm, but I was still wide awake, so I decided to try and work on my Dream Diary a little more.
When I realised I’d left it downstairs, I’d put it on the TV stand before Theo and I started playing Mario Kart and told myself I’d come back for it later. Later is now.
I carefully tiptoe down the stairs even though I knew Theo was fast asleep by now and head down into the living room to see my Diary right where I left it and make a stop towards the kitchen to grab a bottle of water, when I remember I didn’t clean up that embarrassing mess I made when Oliver came home, was still there to deal with, I was so busy running through Theo’s bedtime routine and gossiping with Macy that I completely forgot.
Feeling really guilty for being so sloppy on my first day, I walked into the kitchen, flipped the light on and placed my Diary on the counter, but to my surprise, the kitchen was spotless.
There was no indication of the hours I spent cooking earlier, no dishes in the sink, no rice grains scattered over the kitchen, and even the food on the ceiling was gone; only the sound of the dishwasher surrounded the room.
How did-
I walked over to the microwave, where I left Oliver’s food. The contents were gone, and I even checked the bin to check he didn’t just throw it away.
The unsettled stomach I had earlier made an appearance.
I wasn’t sure whether to feel guilty that Oliver cleaned up my mess after working all day or be grateful.
Because I did spend the last few hours winding down with Macy and my brother, and right now I couldn’t sleep, but I was still tired from today’s endeavours.
He’d cleared away my mess without nary a complaint.
Feeling conflicted, I grabbed my diary and shuffled my way towards Oliver’s office. But as I was standing outside and could see the light peeking out from under the door, I couldn’t bring myself to knock.
The fact that he was still working even at this hour was my fault; he was most likely catching up on the work he would have finished had he not spent the last few hours cleaning up my mess.
I’ve done enough damage for one day, and I head back upstairs, where I don’t end up working on my dream Diary, feeling too unsettled by what I saw downstairs.
Instead, I wrote an email to Oliver as his number was only for emergencies, apologising for not doing my job, that I would make sure it wouldn’t happen again, and I am more than happy for him to deduct an hour from this month’s pay for insubordination.
Then the whoosh sound of the email being sent filled the darkness of my room as I ended up falling asleep, waiting for a reply.
****
The next morning, the first thing I do is check my email.
I admit I feel a little deflated when I don’t see a reply, but I can see that he did open the email, meaning he didn’t feel it was necessary to respond, and he must have taken the offer of taking what happened yesterday out of my pay.
It’s just gone past 5:30 am. I still have an hour before I need to get up, but after my mistake yesterday, I can’t allow myself to stay in bed any longer and need to do something productive.
Pulling myself out of bed and towards the bathroom, I have a quick shower, get dressed and slip my headband on to keep my hair and bonnet away from my face.
After finishing my morning skin routine, I remove my bonnet and style my hair for the day, wetting my curls before brushing through them and scooping them back to pin them in place with my favourite mint coloured claw clip, part of the set Ji-ji brought me for my birthday a few years back and make my way downstairs.
I head to the kitchen, taking my time, still tired and listening to the sound of my pink slippers squeaking against the tiles, and my beige oversized jumper dress and tights combo swish as I walk.
When I reach the kitchen, I unload the dishwasher and look over Theo’s schedule, so I’ll have an idea of what to make him for breakfast, but I’ll still give him the choice of what he wants.
Then I make his packed lunch and an early start on my daily chores, determined to stay on task today when it approaches 7 am, when I hear the sound of little feet opening and closing doors upstairs.
Theo is probably looking for me. I stand there listening to him open another door for a few minutes before he shuts it again and comes running down the stairs.
I’m half tempted to call out to him, but it was kind of fun waiting and listening to him check every room before belting his way to the kitchen.
That’s when he comes in, eyes wide and crashes into me with his usual big smile on his face.
“Good morning, Luna. I was looking for you,” he beams, pulling me into a tighter hug as I pick him up and hug him back. This is just what I needed first thing in the morning; the day was definitely looking a little brighter now, thanks to Theo.
After agreeing with Theo that this hug should be our everyday morning routine, we went to brush our teeth. Then we had breakfast, consisting of one slice of toast with marmalade, accompanied by a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.
Oliver didn’t come downstairs until an hour later, dressed in a suit. I already have Theo ready for school. We are in the kitchen; I hand Theo his packed lunch when Oliver walks in and offers a grumpy “Good Morning,” a painful nudge that he was exhausted from working all night, thanks to me.
I offer a good morning back, asking if he’d like a glass of Orange juice, but he declines, then goes rummaging through the cupboards for the ingredients to make himself some kind of vomit coloured protein shake, then checks his watch, and with no idea what to do next, I just watch him.
Time to leave for school is quickly approaching, so I guide Theo to the door, and I help him into his coat and shoes, topping it off by handing him his book bag. Then my eyes fall on Oliver.
He hadn’t said anything other than his mumbled good morning, but did accept my offer to hold his protein shake while putting his coat on and reaching for his briefcase by the door; I already had it and his shake in hand, ready for him.
“Thank you, Luna,” he nods, opening the door as Theo hugs my legs and bolts out to the car. His Primary School is only a ten-minute walk from here, but it made sense for Oliver to drive him since he heads to work straight after.