Chapter 13
Chapter 13: Don’t Leave Me
“Scarlett, I‘m sorry. You know, our apartment only has Greg as security and he is old. He was not able to stop those men from
entering your apartment. We tried to threaten them by calling the police, but they weren’t scared at all. They said that you
offended a capable man,” said her landlady, Misses Gray.
“It‘s not safe for you to live here, Scarlett. Forget about the lease, but – but I don‘t know if you can manage to at least pay for the
broken doors and cabinets. It was a good thing they left when they realized you were not home. I don‘t know what would have
happened if they found you here.”
Scarlett was staring blankly at the insides of her messy apartment. The doors were all broken, including the doors to the closet.
Now, she regretted kicking Mister Sander‘s nuts!
She turned to Archer, the same security personnel whom Kaleb insisted to accompany her home. He was
ith Kaleb. She could tell, Kaleb was making arrangements for her, but as to where? She was unsure. She could only hope it was
somewhere safe... and not too expensive, especially since... She was out of a job.
After the call ended, Archer came up to them and said, “Misses Gray, my boss will be paying for the damages to the apartment.”
He presented the old lady a check worth five thousand dollars and said, “I hope this is enough to cover the cost.”
Scarlett’s eyes beamed as she silently screamed, ‘Five thousand dollars for the freaking doors!’
Then again, Scarlett thought, Misses Gray probably had a near heart attack, following last night‘s incident. She let it go, thanking
her landlady for her kindness.
Turning to Scarlett, Archer said, “Mister Wright said, while he finds an apartment for you to say, you are welcome to stay at his
penthouse.”
It took a few hours for Scarlett to pack her things. While she did not have a lot, she and Archer had to buy a few boxes and
packaging tapes to keep her possessions secured. Another vehicle, belonging to the Wright Diamond Corporation, arrived to
pick up all of Scarlett‘s things.
After meeting up with her previous co–worker, Archer drove her straight to Liam‘s school, where she was meant to care for the
boy like a mother would.
***
Arriving at Braeton International School, Boris met Scarlett. He had been lingering on the premises the whole day.
Together with the rest of the parents and guardians who were there to fetch the students, they settled in a huge waiting area that
was conveniently connected to the school‘s cafeteria on one side.
The sound of the school bell eventually caught their attention and students came rushing down to the lobby. It took some time to
find Liam. Boris explained that he often played with his friends at the playground before heading out.
“He comes out sweating, gasping for air, and his cheeks all flushed,” said Boris. “Cute little fella.”
He turned to Scarlett and revealed, “Then he would tell me to bring him inside the car. He never lets me change his shirt in front
of his classmates. I did not know there was a gender-biased as to who could change children‘s clothes.”
Scarlett understood why. There was not a single male parent that was around. Boris was obviously a bodyguard. He was in
uniform and he was all muscles.
Most of the guardians who were present were mothers or nannies.
“Mister Wright tried hiring nannies.” Boris nearly choked before he added, “But, it was either Liam didn’t like them or the nannies
would try to seduce the boss. Haha! Fuck. Like they had a chance.”
“So the boss ended up hiring a bodyguard slash manny. Get it? Manny? Haha!” Boris said, chuckling at his words.
Scarlett,“...”
“As you probably have noticed, at home, only the male hotel staff helps Liam out. If there are any female hotel staff who are
allowed to attend to him, she would be a married woman or an older woman,” explained Boris
“Oh, look! There he is.” Interrupting their exchange, Boris pointed to a group of three kids, walking down the stairs
Scarlett saw the young girl named Charlotte rush to the waiting area ahead of the two. Liam and Jake took their time, chatting as
they moved down the stairs.
“Liam! Liam!” She called, and that ultimately made Liam turn in her direction.
Scarlett saw Liam, utterly shocked, frozen in his stance, and the sight of it made her smile, knowing he probably did not expect
her to be there. He was so rooted to the floor, Jake had to pull his hand, bringing him to where she and Boris sat.
“Good afternoon, Miss Scarlett. It‘s nice to see you,” said Jake. “I‘ll go to my mommy now. Bye!”
“SC – Scarlett?” Liam stuttered as he said her name, his eyes fixed on her. “You are here?”
“I thought, I‘m your Beauty?” She teased as she offered her hand to him. “Come here, let me change your top.”
In the next few minutes, Liam felt he was on cloud nine. He scanned the waiting area where his friends were also attended by
their mothers. A proud smile reflected on his face as he felt Scarlett unbutton his uniform. Everything at that point played in slow
motion for him.
While Scarlett wiped his back with a towel, he was silent the entire time.
When Scarlett helped him put on a new t–shirt, his smile was from ear to ear and when she put prickle powder on his back, he
giggled, saying, “This is nice.”
After feeling refreshed, Liam turned to Scarlett and embraced her tightly, his cute face landing on her shoulder. He weakly said,
“Thank you, my Beauty. Thank you for coming back for me... I‘m so happy.”
Scarlett did not miss how Liam appeared emotional in his words. She embraced him too, caressing his back. She answered, “I‘m
happy to be here too, Liam. You make me happy.”
It took some time for Liam to settle his emotions. Even Scarlett was feeling teary–eyed herself. When Liam pulled away, he put
up a happy face and announced, “Now that you are here! How about we go on a date, my Beauty?”
“Eh? A date?” She asked, leaning back in her seat, her eyes widening. “And what will we do?”
Liam thought back to his ideal date with Scarlett and then he announced, “We will eat ice cream and then! We will build a LEGO
race track!”
Scarlett was smiling from ear to ear at the young boy’s eagerness. After Liam gave their itinerary, she answered, “That sounds
exciting.”
“Great! Let‘s go!” Liam said, grabbing Scarlett’s hand.
For the rest of the day, Liam achieved most of his goals. He had ice cream with Scarlett, made a LEGO
race track with her in his playroom, and in the evening, they not only had dinner together, but they also had milk and cookies
together before going to bed.
He really wanted that bedtime story, but because he was too tired that day, he decided it was time for sleep.
“You often don’t wait for your daddy anymore?” Scarlett asked as she pulled up the blanket over the boy.
A yawn escaped Liam‘s lips as he replied, “Sometimes, daddy is busy. Sometimes, I sleep in his office.”
His eyes could not help but shut, but his little hand reached for Scarlett‘s hand. Under his breath, he said, ” My Beauty? Please...
don‘t leave me too.” Scarlett wound up putting a hand over her mouth. Tears stung her eyes.