Chapter 3 A slap, A cheque, and A lot of resentment

Two days later, Auston was still wallowing in pain in his chunked up room when he got a phone call from the manager at his workplace, his hands were occupied as he was treating his wounds with a bandage when the call came in.

" Hello Mr. Denzel, " Auston said calmly, as he picked the phone, his voice laced with concern and tiredness, " Why haven't you been answering your calls Mr. Auston? " The manager quarried.

Auston sighed and kept the bandage to concentrate on the phone call, " Actually sir I got into a terrible accident the last time I came to work and I've been on medics ever since; I'm sorry I didn't call ".

The manager scuffled, " Look Auston, Let me tell you something, Auston. This company has rules and expectations. And your prolonged absence without notice or explanation is unacceptable. said the manager, " Your priorities can wait! ".

Auston sighed again, "I understand, sir. I apologize for any inconvenience. I've been dealing with a personal matter myself, I couldn't even walk right...

"A personal matter? Auston, you've been out for days. Days! Do you know how much work you've missed? How much your team has had to pick up the slack?" Argued the manger, his voice exploding, his temper mounting.

"I'm aware, sir. And I'm grateful for their support. But I assure you, I'm doing everything I can to get back on track." Auston replied, his tone overwhelmed by the manager 's outburst through the phone.

"Get back on track? Auston, you need to get back to work. Period. We can't have employees taking extended leaves without proper notice or documentation. It sets a bad precedent." The man continued.

"I understand, Mr. Denzel. And I'll do my best to get back to work as soon as possible." Replied Auston.

"See that you do, Auston. See that you do." he cut the call before Auston could muster another word.

Auston sat back and shuddered, he kept his phone on the wobbly table and took a moment to think about how his life was spiraling and he could do nothing about it.

He picked up his briefcase on the floor, dusted the thing as months of overtime work had left it worn to a frazzle. He brought the files again only to feel something narrow, to his realization it was the pen he thought was at the workplace which had actually burrowed through a hole in the bag and hid there, he brought it out and nearly snapped it out of despair but he kept, he brought out the files and sneered.

He started filling out the deposits, the genuine feeling that his family owned shares in the bank that he worked in as a low-level clerk boiled his blood, shares he would have inherited, shares worth billions of dollars in exchange but then his current situation was worse than a church rat, Auston hissed and tossed the pen aside, he leaned back and relaxed, thoughts clouding his mind, after a few minutes he slept off.

The evening came quick as Auston woke up a couple hours early to finish his transcriptions and prepare for work tomorrow, of course he needed to go to work, Injured or not, he knew that skipping a single more day would result in something ironic.

Once he was done with his preparation, he took his bath and was getting ready to for a stroll, maybe visit the mini market when he heard a soft knock on the day, the first time was inaudible but the second time wasn't.

Auston wiped fume on his face, tired his towel when the knock came again, " Gimme a minute! " he said.

He slowly walked towards the door, left fist clenched tightly and his sense sharp. He placed his right hand on the door and asked, " Sorry, who are you? " asked Auston.

" Open up man, it's Chris " . The voice responded.

" Chris?, well that's strange, " He unbuckled the straps on the door, unlocked the nob and slowly pulled the door open, and it was actually Chris but someone stood behind him but the lights were so dim Auston couldn't see through.

They both shaked hands, " What a consistency man, I was even getting ready to come to your place and grab some food stuff– wait, how did you find my place? " Auston paused and asked.

" I asked around the block and I got some good responses, especially the old man downstairs, he was useful ".

" Aight, so who's the friend? ".

Chris side stepped out of the way and the reflection of the dangling bulb highlighted the lady behind Chris and it was Eve, the girl that got him beat up, atleast that's what Auston believes.

Auston lowered his head and gritted his teeth, " was this necessary man? " Asked Auston, his voice going sober, " You know what this louse girl did to me and you still brought her to my place ".

" I know, Auston. But she's come to apologize and make things right. And I know how you feel, trust me. But I've always been about peace, you know that. Let's just hear her out ". Chris said.

Auston replied, " Fine ".

"Alright, I'll leave you two to talk. I've got to get back to the shop. ". He pats Auston on the shoulder and went downstairs.

Eve starts begging and pleading but this only added salt to the wound because Auston didn't really care, he wasn't comfortable with her being here, he'd always look down to know if someone else was watching them

" Look uhm, Auston, I'm really sorry, I know you were tryna help but– it backfired and I haven't had the opportunity to ask for your forgiveness...

" Make it quick please, I've got things to do before nightfall " Auston intercepts, he locks the door behind him, arms crossed as he rested on the door and lowered his head.

Eve noticed how uncomfortable he was getting and retracted her steps, " I can really make it up to you, i seriously can".

Auston raised his head and scowled, he felt disgusted but his words were too heavy to be spoken hence he dropped his head again and kept listening instead.

" I wasn't talking about sex, " She paused, " No one has ever stood up to me before nor since; " she said " I couldn't stand neglecting the one who did and it would only make sense if I helped you back in exchange, the same way you help me...

" And who asked for your bloody help?! " Auston spat her words back to her face, " I'm poor, yes, but I don't beat around the place, getting laid off and on... " the whole place went black in a instant as Eve gave him a resounding slap, shifting his broken nose.

" I'm not a slut!, " she angrily said, " i can't believe I even bothered coming here! I thought I was doing the right thing by apologizing, but you're just going to stand there and accuse me of who-knows-what?! You're so twisted! I said I was sorry, take it or leave it! Don't pretend like you're so innocent, Auston...

Auston would never hit a woman, he knew better not to try, he caressed his cheek as that part of his face went numb from the slap, he shook his head with a belly filled with aggression, unlocked his door behind him, stepped in and slammed it on Eve's face.

Eve stood there, speechless and sobbing. " Look I'm sorry, okay " she said, she heaved, brought out her purse and slid out a cheque from it, she bent down and slided it beneath Auston's door, " I'm sorry " she repeated with a pout and left.

Auston stood at the door for nearly twenty minutes, he could see the cheque in-between his feet but his hands were hesitant to grab it, after a while, he looked around as if someone was watching and snatched it, on seeing the content, he gasped, " Ten thousand dollars ", he sneered, " An apology that comes with such hefty price should keep coming everyday , this was definitely worth the beatdown " he said to himself, a mix of amusement and sarcasm in his voice.

He opened the door again to make sure she was definitely gone, and she was, he closed it and went to finish his shower.