Chapter 5 DO YOU PITY ME

Aaron's eyes fluttered closed, his mind surrendering to the darkness. But instead of peace, his subconscious conjured a nightmare from the depths of his past.

Aaron walked in the blinding darkness following a sound in the dark. It was faint and distant but he walked through the dark until he came to a door. Behind the door was equally dark but the air here got different, heavy in some kind of unsettling fog.

Suddenly, he heard the creaking of floorboards, echoing through the hallway. His mother's soft sobs followed, growing louder with each step.

Aaron moved toward the sounds, his legs trembling. A large mirror stood at the end of the hallway and in it, he course himself, only that his reflection was not Aaron the adult but his sixteen-year-old self, powerless and scared. He stumbled through the darkness, desperate to escape.

His heart pounded as he navigated through the hallway in the dark, still in search of the voice when he found another door, this one leading to the terrace he recognized from his childhood home. Just as he was about to open the door, a voice... through his head causing a searing pain that brought him to his knees and then it stopped just as suddenly as it started.

As he stood back up, he opened the door and right before him was his mother, illuminated by the beam of the moon. She stood at the edge of the terrace, her back to him, poised to fall.

"Aaron, run!" she whispered, but Aaron's feet seemed fixed to the spot.

"Aaron, don't look!" she cried, her voice desperate, but his eyes refused to turn away.

Something like rain dropped on his face and he brought his hand forward, wiping it, only to see it was blood. Soon what started as showers became a storm, and when he glanced back to the edge where his mother stood. Aaron's mind recoiled, horror rising like a tidal wave as he ran to the edge and peered below, there was nothing but a puddle of blood that had formed from the blood bath.

No, no, no...

Is too okay

The scene shifted, and Aaron found himself in the same spot just was, tittering over the edge of the terrace.

"Aaron,"

His heart leaped as he heard his name echoing from beneath the terrace and a smile spread across his face as he leaned over the edge and fell to what awaited him below.

Aaron's eyes snapped open, his chest heaving. Sweat had drenched his sheets, his heart still racing from the nightmare.

He lay there, gasping for air, trying to shake off the fear. His body was hot like he'd just stepped out of a furnace and his vision was a little wobbly

Aaron threw off the covers and rose from his bed, his mind reeling. His sleepy gaze wandered to the clock by his bed.

12:46 am

He sighed before pouring himself a cup of water, searching through this drawer blindly until his hands touched the small medicine bottle. He brought it out and opened it in succession, pouring out tiny tablets in his hands.

He hesitated before taking the drugs, aware he was taking a little more than the approved dosage. He'd listen to his doctor talk over and over about why using the sedatives extensively might have a detrimental consequence on his health. But he'd barely slept an hour and now he was awake. If he didn't use the drugs, he was likely to be less effective in the morning, so he gulped down the drugs with water before lying back on his bed, waiting for the induced sleep to take him.

###

Merida stood at the walkway, waiting for the cars to stop. She had just heard of a janitor vacancy in a company and was going to check it out. She has two days to pay her father's debt and no bank would loan her the money if she didn't have a stable job. This was her last chance at making something out of her life and if she messed up, she could not imagine what Martin would do with her. He had told her he'd take something aside money and she didn't think her heart could bear the possibilities of what he wanted.

In a bored glance, she looked at the people standing on both sides of her, all waiting for the traffic light to go off. Most of them were dressed in perfect suits and work wear and even though she was in office pants and a shirt, she still felt inferior to them. They had their lives in order, from the outside anyway, while she barely had anything going for her. Merida thought that at age twenty-five, she'd be a wealthy businesswoman, hitting major achievements by then, in a beautiful marriage with beautiful kids but nothing has gone according to plan, her dad had not followed the script of a good father and her mother had not spoken to her in ten years before her father's death. All she tried to build and do with her life turned into a failure. Her mind raced back to when Aaron had seen her seated behind the rails on the bridge, the first time in ten years that she had seen him, the day the thoughts of jumping had really crossed her mind. He didn't know but the second time he'd seen her on the bridge, she was at the very edge of her existence, wanting to end it. He had casually called her name and her resolve melted. He was no longer the shy boy she used to know and even though she was happy for him, nights passed with her imagination questioning what went wrong with her life.

A small gasp escaped her lips as her gaze fell on Aaron on her side of the walkway, a couple of steps away from her. His brown hair was radiant in the morning sun as she watched him with his gaze was fixed on his phone. When the lights turned green, she took a step before another as a small panic welled up in her chest.

What if he turned and looked at her, he'd see what the nights his from him. She didn't want to see him and more than anything, she didn't want him to see her the way she was, the pathetic thing she had become, so she walked faster, getting to the other side of the road before him. Merida quickened her pace, her heart racing. She only composed herself when she finally got to the security gates

"Good morning sir," she greeted

"Good morning ma'am, how can I help you?" The security man asked.

"I heard there's a vacancy open for a janitor's position here."

The guard's expression turned sympathetic MD he gave her a polite smile. "I'm sorry, ma'am. You'll need to apply online."

Merida's frustration simmered. "I know, I've tried but I have not gotten a feedback."

The guard's polite smile faltered. "You'll have to wait-"

"Let her in," A voice spoke from behind her.

Merida immediately froze at the sound, her thoughts reeling beyond control. She spun around, her eyes locking onto Aaron's figure.

He strode toward the gate, his gaze and stride commanding attention.

"Good morning, Mr. Hades," the guard said, hastily opening the gate.

As Aaron approached, Merida's thoughts reeled.

What was he doing here?

Was he a staff member here too? With his commanding time, he couldn't have.

Their eyes met, and for an instant, the world froze. But Aaron's expression revealed nothing, completely devoid of recognition and he didn't meet her eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered to the security man as she walked in, her voice barely audible.

Without sparing her a glance, he nodded curtly. "Follow me." He said, leading the way.

She followed him silently as he walked in long strides towards the company's building.

As they entered into the opulent building, Merida's gaze swept around the large space and realized the building was way bigger and deeper from the outside. She watched as staff members in clean cut suits hushed conversation colliding in a...harmony with the clack of heels on polished floors. It was a perfect place where people with ambition and achievements thrived- a clear contrast to Merida's life which felt like a rough draft.

As he walked past them, two men in similar suits followed behind him. In a second, she was no longer walking next to him but feet's beside him as the men engaged him in a conversation.

"Good morning Mr Hades, what brings you here today?"

One asked, matching Aaron's stride perfectly.

"Gerald Corporation moved their appointment to this morning out of the blues. I would have refused but we need the deal," He answered curtly without pausing as they turned a corner and walked into a private elevator. Meanwhile, Merida struggled to keep up with their pace as they continued their conversation.

"And Mr Austin?" The other asked.

"He had to see to some investments out of the country, he'll be back tomorrow." he said as the elevator came to a stop. He stepped out, leaving the other men behind. Pausing outside, he turned to look at her, still standing inside the elevator.

"Will you remain there?" He asked, speaking to her for the second time that day.

"No," She whispered, hurriedly exiting the elevator while muttering brief greetings to the two men who had not noticed her presence the entire time.

As they walked towards their destination, Merida could not help but be embarrassed by the deafening silence between them. The last time they'd me, she had asked him to leave her alone, now she was following his to his office like a fool. What if he was not taking her to his office?

What if his plan is to take her to where a crowd is and expose her life to them?

She shook off the wild thoughts from her head, he didn't know what was happening with her after all.

They walked into a large office and Aaron gestured for her to sit, but Merida hesitated, her eye searching for any sign of ulterior motives. When his expression revealed nothing, she lowered into one of the plush chairs beside her.

"What brings you here?" He asked, settling into the leather office chair behind the mahogany desk.

"I heard there was a vacancy here." She answered softly.

He nodded his head before replying, "What's the position?"

She hesitated, embarrassment flushing through her as the difference between his status and hers set in her head. She bit back the cringe and answered, her voice almost breaking. "A cleaner."

He paused for a while making Merida's anxiety spike. The two times they had met before this were not the best, she had lashed out at him and he had gotten angry at her. Two options raced through her mind - he was either to deny her the job and send her away, or pity her and offer her the job.

But Merida knew that as much as she needed the money, she could not stand being pitied by Aaron, that was the last but if dignity in her. And if he was going to deny her the job, he wouldn't have told her to follow him. The two options conflicted her in every way possible.

"There's another vacancy here, you can have that." Merida's hope deflated as he spoke without sparing her a glance.

This was too easy. Too convenient.

"Pity?" she asked softly, her voice barely audible.

"What Miss Collins?" The way he called her name seared her in the most painful way. He had really given her the job out of pity.

She asked again, trying to calm the ache in her chest as she watched him work still without sparing her a glance. "You're offering me a job out of pity."

He finally looked up, his face unreadable. "Yes." He replied nonchalantly.