Chapter 44: Feels disgusted at himself.
Feeling humiliated, Charles and Freda made their way out of the department office in silence, the weight of the encounter pressing heavily on them.
They walked straight to the cleaners’ storeroom, placing the cleaning supplies back in their proper places before heading toward the company lobby.
Neither spoke a word, the sting of the moment lingering between them.
In no time, they stepped out of the building, the cool air outside offering little relief from the frustration simmering within them.
"Freda, where are you headed?" Charles asked, arching a brow.
With their clothes still drenched, he considered following her home to ensure she felt safe and comfortable.
Freda took a deep breath, steadying herself before responding. "I was planning to go to my boyfriend’s place," she admitted, her voice laced with hesitation. "But if he sees me like this, drenched from head to toe, he won’t be pleased. So it’s best I head home first, get changed, and warm up before I catch a cold."
Though Freda tried to sound casual, there was a hint of exhaustion in her tone—a sign that the events of the day had worn her down more than she cared to admit.
Charles understood Freda. From her words, he could tell she needed some time alone.
"I’m sorry for everything that happened earlier, Freda," Charles whispered, hailing a cab that pulled up beside them. "If you ever need someone to talk to, don’t hesitate to call me," he added, opening the car door to help her inside.
Sigh!
A sigh rolled out from the mouth of Freda as she stepped inside the car, not bothering to utter any words out of her mouth.
Charles shut the car door and with that, the cab drove away.
’This is all my fault.’ Charles mused within himself as he fluttered his eyelashes, trying to steady himself.
He was frustrated at himself and Augustine.
Charles hated that he hadn’t been able to stand up to Aubrey, to put her in her place the way she deserved.
But more than that, Charles resented the way Augustine had handled the situation, his cold behaviour cut deeper than Charles cared to admit.
Augustine’s cold gaze, his dismissive words, and the way he seemed to have looked down on Charles and Freda immediately made his blood boil in rage.
’Anyone would think Augustine and I are nothing but strangers,’ Charles mused bitterly. ’But in reality, we’re contracted partners—two people bound by an agreement, who nearly had sex with each other.’
Sigh...
’How could someone who once looked at him with desire now look at him with such cold gaze?’
Charles sniffed, his chest tightening with unspoken frustration.
Without a second thought, he decided to walk down the roadside, searching for a new job.
After everything he had endured at Gyapm Corporation—the humiliation, the way Augustine had looked down on him—he knew he couldn’t keep working there.
He refused to let himself be treated like he was insignificant.
It was time to find a place where he was valued, where he wasn’t just another cleaner to be dismissed without a second thought.
’Besides, working as a cleaner in another company won’t make people look down on me,’ Charles thought to himself.
After a moment of walking, his gaze suddenly fell onto a small poster that was attached to the glass entrance door of a restaurant.
^ A waitress/ waiter needed ^
As Charles glanced at the poster, a glimmer of hope sparked within him.
He stepped into the restaurant, the familiar sound of clinking dishes and soft chatter around him grounding him for a moment.
Approaching a waitress, he took a deep breath, his voice calm but with an undercurrent of quiet desperation.
"Good afternoon," Charles began, forcing a polite smile across his lips. "I saw a poster saying you’re looking for a worker. If you don’t mind, could you direct me to the person I should speak with about the job?"
The waitress excused herself, disappearing into the back room to fetch the manager.
Charles stood there, trying to keep his composure, his hands nervously clutching the edges of his long sleeve.
Moments later, the young female manager, likely in her mid thirties appeared, and after a brief exchange of pleasantries, she gestured for him to sit, her tone warm yet professional. "Let’s get started," she said. And just like that, the interview began.
The interview took a while but eventually, Charles was able to secure the job of a waiter.
"Since you’ve left your phone number, I’ll send you your work schedule," the manager explained. " But for now, you’re to resume tomorrow by noon."
Charles firmly nodded his head, a warm smile beaming at the side of his lips as he thanked the manager before excusing himself.
Stepping outside the restaurant, Charles glanced up at the darkening sky, noticing the heavy clouds gathering.
He sighed, shifting his gaze down as he mumbled to himself, "Seems like it’s about to rain."
Charles adjusted his medicated glasses, pulling his phone from his pocket as he quickly checked his account balance.
A bitter thought crossed his mind: I’m fucking broke.
He sighed, hailing a cab that pulled up by the side of the road.
Charles gave the cab driver the address to Augustine’s mansion, his voice flat as he relayed the details.
Half an hour later, the car pulled up by the side of a big to gates, and Charles paid the driver through mobile transfer.
Charles stepped inside the compound and sluggishly headed over to the mansion building.
Opening the entrance door, he made his way over to the bedroom and lay down on the bed.
Although his wet clothes were starting to dry, Charles didn’t feel the need to take them off.
All he wanted was to cry out his sorrow.
He shut his eyes tightly, and soon, tears flowed freely down his cheeks, soaking his face.
Charles felt disgusted at himself and the more he cried, the more he recalled the faces of Augustine and the workers who were present at scene.
Sigh...
He had no idea how long he’d been crying, but as the tears began to slow, a sense of exhaustion overcame him. Slowly, he drifted into sleep, the world around him finally feeling still and calm.
Until... the cold lingering fingertips of a stranger crawled beneath Charles’s long sleeve as they made their way towards his nipples.
"Arrghhh!"