I followed Greta as she led me into the living room. The passage was dark, with creepy art pictures which were dull and boring. Pictures were meant to be full of colour and brightness, but everything was just the opposite. On normal circumstances, I would analyse the paintings and look carefully at the intricate designs and patterns, but these pathetic geometrical figures were no where near my ideas.
Greta wore her cool shades and said, "Clark is upstairs in the corner, left room. He is probably taking a nap. Wake him up and do not let him out of your sight. He's a troubled child."
I nodded and watched her disappear into the dark passage. I heard the door shut and sighed. The curtains hid all the light which would enter into the room. I pulled the curtains and smiled internally when the sun rays kissed my tanned skin.
This house definitely was not a little kid's home. There were no milk bottles or toys to be seen around. I looked over the shelves and saw some bills. I read the name and was surprised to see it said 'Clark Brown.' I simply shrugged and decided to go upstairs and ruin the little kid's sleep.
"Brownie. . . Brownie, your nanny is coming!" I shouted merrily and hopped on the stairs.
I arrived at the corner left room and yanked the door open without knocking. There was a long figure sleeping with blanket over his body. Maybe the kid is sleeping with his soft toys. How cute. . .
I pulled the blanket and my jaw hung wide open like a crocodile. What a pile of shit! The person I saw in front of me was no child. The boy, no, he was a fully grown man and by the looks of his perfectly, chiselled, handsome face, I estimated him to be of my brother's age.
He seemed like he was in his early twenties. His dark brown hair fell over his head like waves. He had pale skin as if he had never been out under the sun. He was shirtless and was sleeping on his stomach. He looked quite tall and intimidating. I was average height for a girl and his height made me jealous. Why couldn't girls grow taller like guys? I meant he was big. . . By body size, I meant.
Strange that even while sleeping he was wearing glasses. He had that cute nerdy look, but in some magical way, he defined power. I could make out he was indeed a troubled man. The vibe around him was sad and my new motive was to just make him happy.
I saw a note on the stand and picked it up. It read :
George, sorry for not mentioning Clark's age. Hope you wouldn't mind.
Love, Greta.
I should have been furious reading this note, that someone fooled me which was rare. However, when I looked over at Clark sleeping peacefully, all I wanted to do was to annoy him. I smirked when an evil idea struck my mind. I sang cheerfully and jumped downstairs. I needed to wake him up, didn't I?
I entered the bathroom and thought of pouring a whole bucket of water over Clark. I held the tap until my eyes met with a familiar packet so I let go of the tap and reached for the packet. I held it tightly against my chest and sprinted out of the bathroom.
"Wakey, wakey Brownie!" I giggled and walked into his room like a thief. I could imagine the famous Pink Panther tune running in the background. I climbed on the bed beside him and tore open the packet. I muffled a laugh and stuck it on his leg and pressed it ever so gently and slowly.
His leg was smooth and tough, but still a bit hairy. He was a deep sleeper and thankfully didn't get affected by anything. I held the edges of the wax strip and pulled it hard.
"WHAT THE FUCKING SHIT!" He yelled and got up quickly.
In an instant, he pushed me off the bed. I fell down on my butt with a loud thud. I rubbed my behind and burst out laughing. His entire face and body was red and I was clutching my stomach, my laughter echoing in the entire house.
I looked up and met with his dangerous light brown eyes which were hidden behind the odd glasses. I gulped in trepidation and blinked at his tall figure. For a moment I was silent, until I saw him scratch his leg. A loud laugh escaped my lips and I somehow stood up while hold onto the wall for stability.
"Get out," Clark whispered in a dangerously, low voice.
I bit my own hand to keep me from laughing. I grinned and took a few steps towards the door. He shoved me out of the room and slammed the door shut.
I stumbled backwards and sneered, "You sleeping beauty! Did you expect a Prince Charming to do kissy-kissy and wakey-wakey?"
* * *
Three entire minutes passed by and I was already bored. I rolled on the floor doing nothing. The tiles were smooth and cold to roll on a very hot day. It was fun to trouble Clark, but since then he didn't open his door. I heard some banging noise but thought some other stuff might be happening, after all he was in his reckless twenties.
Our first encounter was not so impressive, from my side at least. I had found Greta's wax strips in the bathroom and that really struck a bright spark in my mind. It was so much fun and I felt like a little devil.
The door of the house opened and I immediately shot up from the floor. Greta came in and looked around, puzzled. She asked, "Where is Clark? I told you not to lose sight of him."
"He's older than me Greta. It's been hardly five minutes. Besides, he shut the door and wouldn't let me in!" I whined.
Greta's eyes grew wide like saucers and she hurriedly ran upstairs in panic. What was wrong with her? Clark was a fully grown man and what could he possible do wrong? I shrugged and followed her. Greta banged the door and shouted, "Clark! Open the door! It's me, Greta!"
The door creaked open and I jumped three feet high! Greta rushed in only to see the whole room was destroyed. Clark stood right in the middle of the mess. His face was unreadable and devoid of any emotions. The paintings hung loose and the tables were turned. The bed's one leg was broken and I didn't know how. Clark held a damaged, antique radio in his hand. Greta was mumbling something incoherent. I just stood there, scanning the whole room.
"George, go away. We will talk about this later," Greta muttered and was about to shut the door.
I quickly placed my foot in between and stopped her. I felt horrible as I smiled sheepishly and asked, "I will still get the money, right?"
"Yes! Now, go!"
* * *
"Greta?"
I opened the door and saw Greta in her earlier clothes. She looked pretty, but tiredness was evident on her face. She fiddled with her tote bag and asked nervously, "Can you continue your job tomorrow also?"
"What the hell! That freaking psychopath will kill me too!" I yelled and I knew I had been a bitch earlier. I should have been concerned about Clark, but I was also going through a lot of shit in my life. I needed money. However this time, I was surely going to deny to be his caretaker. He destroyed the entire room and I wasn't keen on becoming his victim.
"He wouldn't harm you, I assure you that. I'm his personal caretaker."
I thought Greta was his aunt or something. Sure, she looked young to be his mother, but never did I expect she was this mysterious Clark's caretaker.
"See! That freak needs a full time caretaker! After the prank I pulled on him, I'm sure he will take revenge. No way in hell would I even want to see his perfect, handsome face---"
"I will pay you double."
"Okay, Done."
"George, your friends are over here!" my dad shouted and I heard Kyle and Peaches' hurried footsteps on the stairs. They flung open the door of my room before I could even start making space for them in that messy hell. My stuff was strewn all over the place and I hadn't bothered to clean until my four year old friends made an entry.I didn't really know why I hung out with four year old, adorable kids but it was fun. They were from my neighbourhood and I used to babysit them when they were tiny. I realized that I enjoyed the company of these kids more than the grown up ones. They were always happy and never really salty. I was friends with more than half the population of my school, but they all were scared to be around me. They knew what trouble I caused, so they never really mingled with me much, although they would be nice to me all the time. That was just a façade and I loathed that.Besides, I preferred playing hide and seek over hanging out in the mall or a club and pretending
I slowly crawled behind the dark curtains to somehow reach Clark. He was still throwing random stuff here and there like a lunatic. I was shit scared, but I was paid to take care of him, wasn't I?I slid from behind the curtains and he sensed some movement behind him, for he suddenly stopped destroying all the articles. His whole right hand and the place where he stood was covered with blood. It was such a horrendous scene to witness. My legs wobbled and my hands were slightly trembling.At first, I thought of pouncing on him from behind and hold him tightly to prevent any further destruction. But when I pondered over my plan again, I realized that neither I had so much strength to hold Clark nor I would do so, since it would hurt him even more.I gulped in trepidation and took a step forward. He cocked his head slightly, but his back was facing me so I couldn't see his face. I shut my eyes and took two, long strides and stood a few feet away from him. He let go of the broken bottle a
"Oh my god! What happened here?" Greta asked and was stunned by the whole mess in the living room."You came early? Well, I guess I can explain what really happened here. I know I'll be fired because of all this chaos, but at least pay me for today," I rambled and Greta rushed towards Clark to examine him. My mind was racing through all the terrible thoughts. What if she asked me to pay for the damage? That bitter excuse of a Brownie would be clearly taking revenge.But to my astonishment, Greta came and hugged me. "Oh, thank you honey. It was my fault, I assured you that Clark wouldn't do any harm. But he did, so I'm sorry. I never expected you to actually take great care of him.""I'll take that as a compliment," I said and smiled smugly. I helped Greta with all the stuff scattered on the floor and all the while Clark was shut in his room. After spending some time cleaning the floor, I stretched myself and yawned. "Greta, I should get going. I'm soo hungry and tired!""You can stay
"You two can always go out, you know what I mean Clark?" Greta suggested him and I giggled unnecessarily. Clark was sprawled on the couch and I was lying sloppily on the cold floor. Greta stuffed things in her tote bag and looked at me. "I'm going for some work now, so come on honey, get up and take Clark along with you. Show him the town."I whined, "It's so hot outside . . . I'll probably get a heatstroke and die!""Nothing of that sort is going to happen. Besides, Clark will buy you icecream, won't you?" Greta said and Clark groaned. It seemed like he didn't want to be outside either. This made me want to go out and gobble up some free icecream just to annoy him. Before I could inform Greta about the change in my mood, she kicked us out of the house."Well then, we should just walk around and besides I have to buy some stuff from the grocery store. So let's go there," I stated and Clark nodded. While walking, I asked him, "You want to know the history of this town?"Clark looked ho
We talked for hours and had lots of fun. I did not dare try any antics further and kept my hands only on food. Unfortunately, both fate and date were not on my side. I accidently bit my partner's middle finger thinking it was sausage. The rest of the night I ate salads and desserts to avoid any further embarrassment.I controlled the urge to burp and I was now waiting outside to find out who my date was. I leaned on the wall and tapped my feet impatiently. The waiter came out and I laughed awkwardly. "Please don't tell me you were my date.""No Madam, I just wanted to inform you that your date is the next person who walks out. He should be in his early twenties," he stated and disappeared into the restaurant. I fixed my wig and ran my hand over my lips to ensure that my lipstick wasn't smudged. I really wanted to change and look beautiful like a decent lady.I heard footsteps and I straightened my wrinkled shirt. I looked up and saw none other than Ian approaching me. He was dressed s
"How can you two be best friends? This is really a small world, isn't it? Wait . . . let me guess." I tapped my chin thoughtfully and glanced at Clark. His face was unreadable and stoic, but something was wrong, I could sense it. It seemed as if Clark wasn't pleased with what Ian had said about them being best buds."Aha! You both have faint British accent so you may know each other. Ian, you came from England to this town a few months ago and Clark just shifted over here, from England!" I punched my own palm in excitement and Ian chuckled. "I'm right, ain't I?"Ian nodded and I smiled in victory. I was such a genius to figure it out. I dug my hands into my pocket and my skin felt smooth, crisp money. I suggested them, "Guys, I'm damn hungry. Let's go for lunch at Macpie's. And don't worry, I'll pay for my own lunch.""Alright let's go," Ian replied. We both looked at Clark expectantly and he shrugged. So off we three musketeers went for lunch.* * *We were now sitting and waiting fo
A couple of days passed by and my usual routine was to eat and sleep. Also yes, taking care of Clark was another job. Greta insisted Clark and me to go out again and take some fresh air so that was what we planned.The entire evening I was going to hang out with Clark though he didn't seem much enthusiastic about this idea. On the other hand, I was extremely excited to irritate Clark. Greta threw us out of the comfort of the house once again and we ended up in Clark's car. Clark was driving and I sat beside him rambling about all the random news but not malicious gossips since I strongly detested that. He wasn't keen on replying, although he did nod his head occasionally, but did not divert his attention from the road.To my astonishment, he wasn't rude or tried to shut me up either. Instead, he listened to me obediently which made me suspicious of his intentions. Eventually, I became quiet because of the ridiculous change in Clark's behaviour. I chewed my upper lip and gazed out of t
"Let's walk," Clark stated and proceeded to his car."Inside the car?"Clark rolled his eyes and locked the car. Then we both tramped silently, until I started teasing him. "You secretly like to spend time with me Brownie? Don't you---""If I buy you a chocolate bar, will you shut up?" Clark asked and my eyes lit up immediately. I rotated my head conveying a big yes and Clark looked amused. We headed to the local grocery store and on the way, I stopped rambling shit and started to imitate him. It did not take him long enough to figure out that I was copying his every move.He pocketed his hands and since I did not have any pockets in my pants, I just acted like there was one for real. All the people in the street gazed at us since it was clear that I was imitating him. Clark groaned and kicked a stone in annoyance. There was no stone around my area, but I spotted a tin can. I kicked it leisurely and before I knew, I fell down in pain. My toes hurt from kicking that cursed can! I looke