Chapter 5 Beholden
Chapter 5 Beholden
“Why? Is it painful? Just bear with it for a moment and you’ll be fine.” Hannah was startled by Johnny’s
yell and comforted him.
“No, it’s alright, go ahead with it.” Johnny ground his teeth and endured.
“It’s done. Just remember that this arm should not come in contact with water for the next few days.
You should change the dressing and reapply betadine on it daily. You will be fine in a few days.”
Hannah reminded Johnny after bandaging his arm.
“Have you eaten? Hannah, get him a bowl of rice and a pair of chopsticks.” Jasmine said.
“Why? Do you feel guilty? Are you trying to relieve my hatred for you with these little favors? No way!
As the saying goes, a warrior would not eat with the enemy and shouldn’t accept any pity from
strangers. Let me tell you, I won’t eat anything that comes from your home!” Johnny said stoutly.
“Hannah, have your meal and return to your room to rest. I have something to discuss with him.”
Jasmine said to her maid as she ignored Johnny.
“Yes, Missus,” Hannah answered and returned to her room.
“You really don’t want to eat?” The lady turned to look at Johnny.
“No, I won’t take pity from you. I’m here for some justice today. How can I continue to vent my anger if I
were to eat at your table?” Johnny persisted but his temper had already waned since he barged in.
“Up to you, if you won’t eat, I’ll have Hannah throw them away.” The lady calmly said.
“Don’t, how wasteful is that. What a sin it is to waste.” Johnny said and started to eat. He was really
hungry and started to salivate when he saw the table of dishes. He only had breakfast in the morning
and was busy the entire day. He didn’t even have the time to eat lunch. He only ate two buns and drank
a bottle of water for the entire day. He was famished.
“I just want to ask you. Why did you have to get me fired? Why should you be so mean? What good is
it for you that I’m fired? Although I was not so polite to you back then, that doesn’t mean that you
needed to get me dismissed. There wasn’t any grudge between us at all.” Johnny grumbled as he ate.
“Was this job so important to you?” The lady had already finished eating. She sat opposite Johnny and
calmly asked him.
“Isn't this nonsense? Whose job isn’t important? There is no salary without a job. How will I eat without
money? Do you think that everyone is like you with luxury cars and a house? You have enough money
to spend all your life without even working!”
“Are you short of money?” The lady asked.
“Can you stop asking stupid questions? Who on earth wouldn’t want more money?”
“How much do you earn a month?”
“Why do you want to know?” Johnny became cautious as he looked at Jasmine.
“Why? Are you worried that I have intentions on what little money that you have?”
“Five thousand plus. I may touch six thousand when I’m busy. You shouldn’t be impressed with this
amount!”
“Are you married?”
“No, single.”
“How old are you?”
“Are you conducting a census?” Johnny almost lost his temper.
“Why? Are you so secretive about your age?”
“I’m a man, twenty-eight this year. Do you have to ask so much just because I used some of your
ointments and ate your food?” Johnny said with annoyance.
“How about this? It was wrong of me to cause you to lose your job and I apologize. I happen to be
looking for someone to work for me. You may start tomorrow. What do you think?” The lady asked.
“Work for you?”
“Yes!” The lady nodded.
“Not on your wildest dreams. Why would I want to work for a woman like you? Anyone who works for
you would die early from your antics. I can’t afford to work for a person like you.”
“Your salary at the courier agency is five thousand. I’ll pay you ten thousand a month. You’ll only work
one or two days a week. It’s up to you if you accept this. If you don’t, leave after you’ve finished your
meal.” The lady didn’t get angry with what Johnny said.
“How much did you say? Ten thousand a month?” Johnny glared with his eyes wide open.
“Yes, as long as you do a good job, we can negotiate again in the future.”
“Work two days a week?”
“It’s a day per week for now. To be precise, you’ll only need to work for three hours a week.”
“Are you kidding me? How can there be such a good job?”
“Are you willing to accept it?” The lady started to get impatient.
“Don’t tell me that you want me to print counterfeit money for you? Let me tell you. I won’t do anything
illegal regardless of how much you pay me.”
The lady finally couldn’t endure it any further, who glared at Johnny and said, “Do I look like a
criminal?”
“Who knows? You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Johnny said directly.
“You… fine. Get lost if you’re not willing to. Otherwise, I’ll call the security guards to drive you out.” The
lady finally got pissed off.
“Wait, wait! I’ll do it. I didn’t say that I won’t do it. But you need to at least tell me what you want me to
do.”
“You’ll know when the time comes.”
“No, but you don’t even tell me what you want me to do. How can I be assured?” Johnny became
flustered.
“Didn’t I tell you that the job is not illegal? You only need to help me settle some personal matters. But
you need to guarantee several terms. Firstly, you must come whenever I call for you. You must arrive
immediately after I call you.” Jasmine said.
“I have to come even at midnight?”
“Of course! Listen carefully, you must come right away whenever I need you to handle something.
Secondly, you must keep it a secret. No one can know about this apart from you and I. Thirdly, you
cannot have any other job. You can only serve me.” Jasmine told Johnny her three terms.
Johnny stared at Jasmine with his eyes wide open as he listened to her terms. He then stood up and
remarked, “You… woman! I’m a stand-up guy with my pride and dignity. I will not become your gigolo!”
Jasmine was stunned when she heard Johnny and was digesting what he had said. After a moment,
she pointed her finger at Johnny as it trembled and yelled, “Get lost, get the hell out!”
Johnny was taken aback when he saw that Jasmine was furious. He scratched his head and asked,
“So you’re not asking me to be your gigolo?”
“Are you that handsome?” Jasmine said furiously.
“No, except… except… perhaps some people have some fetish and somehow like my type,” Johnny
mumbled.
“I won’t waste my time with you any further. If you are willing to do it, then wait for me at eight-thirty
tomorrow morning at the entrance of this complex. If not, I’ll look for someone else to do it. Okay, you
can leave now.” Jasmine said angrily.
“Wait a minute.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Can I have another bowl of rice?” Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.
“Eat as much as you want,” Jasmine said, got up, and went upstairs.
Johnny didn’t stand on ceremony and filled his bowl with rice and ate his fill. He took a napkin to wipe
his mouth and then picked his teeth with a toothpick before swaggering out of Jasmine’s house.
As he was riding his rickety bike home, he became puzzled with what had just happened. Wasn’t he
there to look for trouble and seek justice from Jasmine? How did it turn out to him eating at her house
and now he was hired by her? Johnny didn’t take it seriously that Jasmine’s job offer was real. He
always believed that there was no free lunch in this world.
He only had to work several hours a week and he would be paid ten thousand a month? Where on
earth could anyone find such a good deal? Either it was illegal or it was just a joke. But Johnny didn’t
reject it. Regardless, he would be there the next morning to see if it was real because he really needed
the money and could not afford to be jobless.