Darren was leading Rhea through the dark, dimly lit streets on his way back to his home. The night was cold, and a little windy, Darren could feel the cold through his jacket, he could only imagine how cold Rhea was feeling in her shirt and shorts. He glanced back at her to see how she was doing, she was shivering. Is he supposed to do something about that? “Whatever, its not my problem if she is cold.” He thought to himself.
Rhea was following behind Mr Murphy, feeling extremely cold. She notices him look back at her, so she averts her eyes a bit, trying not to make eye contact. “This feels awkward.” she thought to herself. “Should I talk to him? Now that I think about it, we haven’t spoken at all yet.” She thought back on her conversation with Johan, perhaps she can draw from that to make an introduction.
“How should I refer to you from now on?” Rhea asked pensively. Mr Murphy did not answer for a few minutes, they just walked in silence, until he finally spoke up.
“My name is Darren Murphy; you may refer to me as ‘sir’ or ‘Mr Murphy’ when we are around people.”
“What about when were not around people?” Rhea asked anxiously.
“Then Darren is fine, I guess.” Mr Murphy began to walk slightly more briskly.
“Alright, Darren, what would you like me to do for you for now on.” There was a long pause after this, an awkward silence.
“I don’t need help with my work right now, so I would like you to help my maid around the house, in a couple of weeks I will have a job for you however.” Rhea had a lot of thoughts running through her head. What is a maid? What does a maid do and how can I help? What job will he have for me? She wasn’t taught what a maid was during her time at the facility, in fact she wasn’t taught much of anything. Rhea reflected on the place she was leaving behind, remembering what she went through, the experiments done on her, the people she lived with, the stress she had to endure. Sadly, she can’t remember anything from before her time there, it’s like her life began at the facility, but she knows she is missing years of her life.
The two of them eventually arrive at Danton Manor, the home of Darren Murphy, and now the home of Rhea. The front garden was fenced off by dark metal bars, and a low wall, even so, the flowers in the garden were beautiful. Darren and Rhea followed down the path to the front door, Darren unlocks the door and slowly opens it. Darren turns to Rhea, holding a nervous look on his face, saying “Stay behind me, and don’t reveal yourself until I say so.” Seeing Darren look nervous made Rhea feel nervous as well, why does she need to feel this tense, isn’t this his home? Darren lights a sconce near his front door, revealing the entry way into his manor, within the entryway, stood a figure. The person stood forwards into the light, revealing the form of a chubby looking woman with brown curly hair, wearing a maid’s outfit. “You’re late, Mr Murphy.” Darren tensed at the sound of his name, “I was expecting you back here hours ago.”
Darren tried to force a smile, attempting to sound casual as he replied to his maid, “There was an unexpected development at the meeting, it turns out I had to take care of a few things to commemorate my new position.” The maid furrowed her eyebrows slightly, “Is that so, and I had all sorts of things prepared to celebrate you, though some of which has now gone to waste.”
“I assure you, Mrs Wilby, it was not my intention to ruin any kind of preparation you made for me.” Darren nervously began scratching his neck. “But I assure you that it was important, as I am now in charge of a new…” Darren reached behind him to try and grab Rhea but was left grabbing onto air. He turned in surprise to see that she is missing, then turning back to Mrs Wilby, trying to think of a different excuse. Upon a proper viewing of his maid, he sees that she is petting the head of his new ward in glee. “Oh, she is adorable, you have brought home such a cute person!” Both Darren and Rhea share a dumbstruck look on their faces, “Her hair is so soft! What is her name?”
Darren clears his throat and says, “Yes well, this is my new ward, sevent-… Rhea, she is going to be helping you around the manor for now on if you please.” Darren closes the front door behind him and takes off his jacket, seeing this as an opportunity to exit the conversation. “If you could find the time to run me a bath before I sleep, I would appreciate that.” Darren begins to move towards the staircase. “Yes of course Darren, but where is Rhea sleeping tonight?” Darren pauses at the question, taking a moment to think. “Put her, in Rhian’s old room I guess.” Mrs Wilby’s petting slows, and she gains a look of concern. “Are you sure you’re fine with that?”
“I…I’m…” Darren hand clenches the bannister.
“Are you okay with that?” Mrs Wilby asks again.
“Yes, it’s fine, it’s just an empty room now, I have no use for empty rooms in this house.” Darren quickly moves up the stairs, and into his room, locking the door behind him.
Later that night, after having given Rhea a short tour of the manor, their final stop is at her new room. Inside is a room fit for a young girl, with a chest of toys, a wardrobe of pretty dresses, and a large soft bed. There was no dust to be seen in this room, Mrs Wilby cleans it often. “This is your new room now dear, not so bad right? And the bed is really soft.” Rhea wasn’t sure how to feel about this as she began to walk into her new room. “Take your time familiarising yourself with the room, I will come fetch you tomorrow, feel free to sleep in, it’s been a busy day, I’m sure.” Mrs Wilby slowly closes the door, leaving Rhea alone with her thoughts. Rhea moved towards the bed, resting her hand on the sheets, they felt so soft and warm, she couldn’t help but feel melancholic. “This is a bed huh, a real bed, who knew they could be so soft.” Rhea looked around in the dark, everything in this room was new hers, she hated it, she should be happy, but she hated it. Well, what she hated was that she had to live without something like this, while other people had things like this, things that seemed so basic in this house that this room has been empty for ages.
She didn’t think she deserved this, she didn’t think she deserved anything that was happening to her now, there are others that need this more than she does, everything here was wasted on her. Rhea sat down on the ground against the bed, perhaps as a protest against herself, or a protest against the bed, she didn’t know. Maybe just for tonight, she was sleep like how she was supposed to, on the ground, in the cold. She didn’t know why, but the thought let tears stream down her face, but it was okay to cry her, no one could see her.
