"We messed around until we found the one thing we said we could never ever live without and not allowed to talk about it but I gotta tell you. Cause we are who we are when no one's watching," I Won't Mind, Zayn

I didn't know why I came back.

I really had no reason to be here. I had nothing left here except for a few things. I had no purpose here, other than to just get that money and bounce but it was highly apparent that I just couldn't stop sticking my nose in things and I wasn't even sure where it got me. I uncovered a lot more secrets about each member of this family and how their staff just swept it under the rug because they were too scared to confront it. I didn't know if that made me brave or just plain stupid.

But I came back nonetheless. 

"Good morning, Ezra!" I felt an arm around my shoulder as I swept the trash up into a pile. "Oh, hey Natalie," I smiled softly, seeing her look a lot more radiant than the last time I saw her, which was a week ago. "Where are you headed to?" I asked as she slipped on some flats, reaching for her purse on the hook. "I'm going to a group session. I should be back later," I nodded as I watched her walk towards the door, feeling oddly pleased with myself. She had taken my advice and gone to therapy and group sessions with other women in the same predicament as she. Because she did, she was a lot happier.

I checked the time, seeing that it was after seven. Eve had asked me to stay until 10 PM for an additional grand and my broke ass accepted. Bills ain't pay themselves, you know?

Everything around here was different, even the air. Before, it felt stifling and suffocating as if one was afraid to take a deep breath and let it resonate. Now, it seems as there was a scent of flowers that permeated the room, no matter which one you walked into, and one could breathe without fear of choking.

"It seems as if you just couldn't do what you were told," I heard a voice to the left of me and I turned to see Michael standing there, a small grin on his face as his eyes softened upon the sight of me. "Well, I suppose that it was a good thing that you came to work here," It was no secret of what happened around here. People listened through the walls and now the entire house knew from start to finish the events of what took place. From Easton to Naomi, and Natalie's miscarriage, to Nishan's sexual assault, Leon's abuse, and Eve's behavior, everyone knew, though they didn't expect for there to be any change.

"I never thought I'd see the day where Eve and Leon go out into the public together," He whispered and I nodded, fully realizing what a phenomenal change that was. "So you have my endless gratitude, Mr. Moore," Michael gripped my shoulder and I snorted. "Thanks, Michael, but I did nothing," Sure, I gave them the push that they needed in order to get this family fixed, but the rest was all on them. They had to want to, and they did.

"Ah, ever so humble, Mr. Moore. Your time here really has helped you grow, didn't it?" He let out a breath of relief and I stared at him, questioning what he was talking about. Nevertheless, I let his words go to the back of my mind. "You know, Michael, the craziest thing happened to me on Monday!" I put the broom against the wall as he readied himself to listen to me. I took a step back to recall the great news that my professor told me. 

"Good afternoon, Mr. Moore," Professor Keaton found me loitering in the hallway after class was dismissed. "I hope you took some time to think about my offer," She asked, reminding me of the new president of the fraternity position. I nodded, knowing that I'd be an idiot to pass up something like this. "Yea, yea, I decided to go with it," I was extremely nervous because I had never done something like that before, something so out of reach of my comfort zone. But even I knew that this was an opportunity that would help my career.

"I knew that you would come through, Ezra," Professor Keaton looked so happy as her face crinkled up. "I couldn't think of anyone else but you. Speaking of which," She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "I got something else. This morning, I got a call from Grant Kristofson, the P.A to Lucia Bianchi—I see you know who she is," She smiled knowingly and I couldn't stop the grin that consumed my entire head. 

Everyone in all of Texas knew who Lucia Bianchi was. She was at the top of the scale in all things Fortune 500. She made it big with her company AGM, a technological and multinational information establishment, stationed right in the heart of San Antonio. She was even higher than Bradley Constantino, and she was a remarkable woman at the age of 50. I admired her and her work ethic. 

"Apparently, she heard about you and your upcoming skills and knowledge, and she wants to interview you for a possible shadowing internship." No words could describe the amount of shock, disbelief, and happiness that shot itself through my core. "B-but how?!" I sputtered because it was too unreal. It wasn't your everyday life where the all-time, most popular businesswoman of the state sought you out.

That kind of thing never happened.

"I know. Maybe she heard about you through someone else?" Professor Keaton offered and I stared, not knowing a person who had that kind of connection with her. "Anyway, I took the interview for you because I knew that you've been looking for something like that. Good luck, kid," She smiled at me before she walked away, leaving me smiling.

"Yea, I still don't know how she knows about me," I shrugged to Michael, who just stared with a small smirk on his face. "Oh, you don't?" He chuckled to himself, fixing his bow tie. "I guess it could be someone's gift to you as a way of thanking you," He muttered cryptically and for someone who was so book smart like me, I understood nothing he said. "When is your interview?" He questioned and I sighed. "It's next week, Tuesday, at 2:30. I told Eve that I'd be a little late coming in."

Michael nodded in understanding, rubbing his hands. "No need to rush in. Take your time. You deserve it," He flicked his gaze at me, rubbing his salt and pepper hair. It was hard to believe that this was the atmosphere of the 70 million home, compared to what it was when I first got here. It was incredibly hard to believe that everything had changed. All it took was a little snooping, it seemed. 

"When you first came here, I thought that you would've run off because of Eve's harsh words and stern attitude, of how many secrets everyone seemed to have. When you work here as long as I have, you learn to ignore the severity of such issues," Michael began, looking less old and stressed. "But it seems that you have broken through those issues and got to the root of it and despite what has happened, you changed the family for the better so I thank you for that, Ezra," He praised and I blushed, knowing that I did absolutely nothing. 

"Things are looking up for the rest of us," Sure enough, his words were true. Everyone seemed to be smiling and carefree. Eve took to having dinner with Leon on the patio with candles and roses, their conversations sweet and light like nothing before. Natalie took to watching Noelani whenever I couldn't, a large smile on her face as she told her about her plans with her future daughter. Nishan was a lot more bearable to be around, and the staff, including Michael, got a lot of comedy by watching him and I go back and forth about nothing. 

He was just so infuriating, always causing me problems. Just yesterday, he purposely spilled some juice on the floor that I had just got done mopping and he watched with a shit-eating smirk as I yelled at him while cleaning up his mess.

Fucking bastard.

All of a sudden, a loud boom resonated in our ears. Michael looked over to the window as the lights started to flicker as if we were in some horror movie. "Was that," I gulped, hearing the mansion rattle. "Was that thunder?" I sighed, completely nervous about driving in that harsh rain. "Yes, tonight called for a bad thunderstorm," He sighed, pointing to the drowning of the house outside. "I'll phone Ms. Natalie and tell her to make haste." I watched as he walked away, continuing to look out of the window. 

There was flooding everywhere and I couldn't even see through because the glass was so foggy from the cold rain. It was hard to recall the light in the dark night with the howling winds swirling around the house, mimicking the unrest that sat inside of my heart, not allowing me to comprehend what was happening. I couldn't smell it, but I knew that the scent of rain was dark and heady, staining the windows and everything beyond.  

A stillness fell over the area, and in the silence came a low crackle of thunder, rolling across the rooftop to the pattering of tiny raindrops. For a moment, everything stopped, even the beating of my heart. The wind held its breath, murmuring silent secrets into my ear from outside. A streak of hot silver split the sky and the downpour continued, meeting the thunder as one.

It reminded me of how I felt. Before, I was so nervous. I was scared to do anything, to talk to anyone but now, I felt relaxed. I still felt paranoid about Easton, but Eve reassured me that she was doing everything she could to put him in jail. I was still paranoid about Nishan and his attitude towards gay people, but three days ago, he shot me with a water gun and drenched my entire outfit.

He was annoying and I made sure that he knew. 

"Hmph," I rolled my eyes, wondering when this boundary between us ceased to exist. Before, he wanted nothing to do with me. He literally hated me from the moment that he found out that I was the maid and he literally made life hell for me for no reason. Now, he made life hell for me by constantly irritating me while I was working. Though, it didn't bother me as much as it should because he wasn't doing anything to be mean. 

He was doing everything he could to get my attention.

But I didn't know why.

I shook my head, slapping myself. "Stop it right now, Ezra!" I felt flustered and jittery for no singular purpose. I didn't want to admit it to myself that I was thinking about him, but there was no way that I could lie to myself. Not when I caught myself longing for him.

"Just ignore it..." I told myself, biting my lip as I fought the compel of my heart. I had no idea why I was feeling this way, but I was. I had no idea what this feeling was, but it became more prominent after he touched my chin, forcing me to look into those eyes as he told me that there was nothing else that he could do because he couldn't leave me alone.

Jesus fuck, what the hell did that even mean?

For someone seven years older, he made it his personal mission to toy with my mind ever since I told him that I would come back. Not minding the fact that so much had happened to me. "Just stop it," I grumbled to myself, walking towards the kitchen. It was nearing 8 on the dot and it was only two more hours until I could go home and forget about everyone.

I stepped inside of the kitchen, hearing the clang of dishes as the chefs barked out orders. They had gotten used to my unplanned visits and they took to calling me the 'resident cutie', whatever that meant. "Hey, Ezra!" I saw my friend and I walked over to her, watching her plate a tray with delicious morsels of food, though I didn't see any pizza. "Glad to see you, cutie," She closed the tray, blowing me a kiss.

"Here's Master Nishan's dinner. He didn't eat yet, so please take it to him," Chevonne winked and I almost choked on my saliva. I forgot that I had an addition to my job. "He didn't eat yet?" I questioned and she shook her head. "He's been napping for a while," I took the tray from her and descended from the kitchen and down the hall, the walls creaking from the onslaught of rain. It was really coming down and I wasn't even sure if I was able to drive home or not. It was becoming more and more evident that I was going to have to wait out.

I let out a sigh as I reached his door, a tentative hand coming out to knock on the door. There was no response, so I assumed that he was still sleeping. I bit my lip as I turned the knob, taking a step into something I had never seen.

I crept in the room slowly, closing the door behind me. The light was dim but from where I was standing, I could see that Noelani was completely knocked out, tiny little snores filling the room as her music played softly over her. I could feel my heart thumping at the sight and how cute it was, but a soft yell startled me.

"No, no, no!" I looked over to see thrashing in the bed, wild curls all over the pillow as the covers moved with every forcible throw. Nishan was having a night terror. "Shit!" I cursed quietly, setting the dinner on the back table, slipping off my shoes quickly. I didn't want him to hear my shoes and think that it was someone trying to hurt him. I walked over to him with a glass of water in hand. "No!" He yelled, a clear coat of sweat on his figure. Even someone who was 27, the Chief of Police, a model on the side, a pillar for the city could have his own problems that he had to hide. 

I bent down next to him, tapping him slightly in order to wake him up. I didn't want him to wake Noelani up without him trying because then he would get even more nervous in his sleep. "Hey," I mumbled softly, rubbing the sweat away from his forehead. This was dangerous territory that I was casually strolling onto. "You're okay." I frowned slightly, seeing the look of fear on his face. It made me want to hold him, to tell him that everything was okay, that Eve was working on Easton, but I didn't want to step over boundaries. 

Nishan jolted, then his body came to a still upon the gentle tap of my hand, his mismatched eyes looking into mine. He took a deep breath, licking his dry lips as he nodded, taking the cup of water from my other hand. He didn't look the least bit bothered that I was in here and it was weird. When he was finished slurping, he handed the glass back to me and I put it on the nightstand, standing up to take my leave. "Hey, stay with me," I felt a tug on my arm as the tie to the apron came undone. 

"I'm not sure if we should—" Nishan cut me off by yanking my body forward, ignoring my distressed pleas. "Yea, yea, yea, shut up," That was what he said in that husky sleepy tone of his, tremors shooting up my spine involuntary. "I want you to," He drawled as he pushed me down on the pillow, making sure that I was comfortable and calm, oblivious to my unraveling emotions inside of my mind. "So stay," He pulled the blanket up, his hair sprawled all over me as he settled in between my legs. I was completely at a loss of what to do, if that was normal, but I was caged in with nowhere to go.

I was sure that this was some sort of conjured up dream. It had to be. Nishan uttered it one more time as his arms came to wrap around my waist, his head safe and secure in my chest as he let out a content sigh, closing his eyes. The smell of his cologne and body soap coiled itself around us in the moment, the small cracks of thunder as the lightning lit up the sky and suddenly, it was okay. 

"Stay."