Almost couldn't take it

Next day ....

Tuesday Morning

8:00pm ....

The elevator door opened and Eleanor careful looked around before she stepped outside gingerly.

She looked quite pale, her face had lost it's color, like she was carrying the burden of the whole world on her shoulders.

"Wow wow and wow!" She heard someone say behind her and she stopped in her tracks immediately, she slowly turned back to face whoever it was.

She sighed in frustration as her eyes went momentarily shut, Arthur had been the last person she wanted to see today, even though she knew she couldn't avoid seeing him.

After threatening to quit her job yesterday and she couldn't, she had no idea how to face him.

"You're here to drop your resignation letter right, since I didn't get it yesterday and you left quite early!" He said, her grip on her bag tightened, she swallowed hard as her head slowly bent to look at her knees, she bit the insides of her cheeks in embarrassment.

"I'm talking to you, answer me!" He snapped.

"I'm - I'm - I'm " she stuttered not knowing the right words to say.

"I'm - I'm - I'm , you're what!!" Arthur yelled and she flinched backwards.

# *FLASHBACK*

"Get me my coffee Eleanor!" Eleanor grumbled as she walked into her office and slammed the door shut.

"Can you imagine! Too bad someone as good-looking as that has a disgusting behavior!!"

Eleanor took out a pen from her desk, took out a plain typing paper from underneath the printer and began to write her resignation letter.

"Dear sir," she began, but there was a break in her train of thought as her phone rang.

"Mom?!" She murmured as she picked up the phone "Why would mom be calling me at this time?!" She picked up the phone and placed it in her ear.

"Eleanor, your father is at it again, this time worse!" Her mother said immediately she picked up the call.

"What do you mean?!" She asked as she turned her chair to face the louvers

"The tumor grew bigger and he's gone unconscious!" Eleanor abruptly stood up from her chair, 

"I'll be right there!" She said, carelessly dropped her phone in her bag, grabbed it and dashed out of the office, without taking permission of any sort from anyone, she raced down the staircase, flagged down a taxi and headed for the hospital.

Eleanor's heart raced as she sat in the back of the taxi, her mind consumed with worry for her father. She tried to push away the image of him lying in a hospital bed, unconscious and helpless. She couldn't bear the thought of losing him.

Her father had been battling brain cancer for months now, and she had thought he was getting better. But now, hearing her mother's frantic voice on the phone, she realized that things were much worse than she had thought

As the taxi pulled up outside the hospital, Eleanor threw some money at the driver and jumped out, racing towards the entrance. She pushed past people, her eyes frantically scanning the faces of the doctors and nurses rushing past her.

Finally, she spotted her mother standing outside a hospital room, her face twisted with worry. "Mom, what's happening? How is he?" Eleanor gasped as she reached her.

"He's still unconscious, they're doing all they can," her mother replied, her voice shaking with emotion. "It's just a waiting game now."

Eleanor's heart sank. She felt helpless, not knowing what to do or say. She took her mother's hand and they sat in silence, waiting for any news.

Hours passed by and finally, a doctor emerged from the room. Eleanor's heart raced as she stood up, her mother's hand still tightly in hers.

"I'm sorry," the doctor said, his voice low. "We did all we could, but the tumor was too aggressive. I'm afraid he didn't make it."

Eleanor felt the world around her come crashing down. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her father, the man who had always been there for her, was gone.

As she and her mother wept, Eleanor couldn't help but think of the petty argument she had had with her boss just hours earlier. She realized how insignificant it was in the grand scheme of things. Life was too short to waste time on trivial matters.

Reality sort of dawned on her again, her father was their family's largest breadwinner, quitting her job means definitely setting them up for a very difficult life after his death.

She thought about what she had said to her boss and her tears intensified,she could only hope and pray that God hears her prayers through her tears and make Arthur still accept her.

There and then she made a promise to herself to never let Arthur petty actions get in the way of what was truly important. 

Atleast he was right, people like her depends on people like him to survive and navigate their ways through the world, if he accepts her back in the company, she was determined to take in all of his bullshit!.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

"Are you even listening to what I'm saying?!" Arthur snapped, Eleanor shook as she slowly looked up at him, a streak of tears fell down her face and she wiped it off immediately.

"No" she whispered.

"There's no resignation letter!" She whispered.

"I'm so sorry for talking back at you rudely yesterday," 

"It was so impolite and thoughtless of me, I shouldn't have done that!" She murmured and bowed in front of him.

Arthur's face twisted into a look of mischievous triumph as he watched Eleanor apologize. His lips curled into a smirk, and his eyes glittered with a hint of malice. He knew that he had her right where he wanted her.

Eleanor, for her part, looked down at her feet, unable to meet Arthur's gaze. She knew that she had been backed into a corner, forced to apologize for something that she had not even done. But she was too tired to argue. Too tired to fight.

Arthur cleared his throat and stepped forward, menacingly close to her.

 "That's better," he said, his voice low and menacing. "I thought you might be trying to pull a fast one on me. But it seems that you're not quite as clever as you think you are."

Eleanor gritted her teeth, feeling a surge of anger rise within her. But she bit back her retort, knowing that it would only make things worse. Instead, she simply nodded, mutely acknowledging Arthur's victory.

Arthur chuckled, a dark sound that echoed through the hallway. "You know," he said, leaning even closer to her, "I almost feel sorry for you. You really don't stand a chance against me."

Eleanor felt her face grow hot with anger and humiliation. She wanted to lash out at Arthur, to tell him that he was wrong. But she knew that it would be pointless. Arthur was too smug, too confident in his own superiority.

So instead, she simply nodded, hoping that Arthur would get bored and leave her alone. But she knew that he wouldn't. Not until he had thoroughly broken her spirit.

"However for ever action, there's an equal and corresponding reaction!" He continued as he slowly stepped away from her and placed his hands in his pocket.

"For what you did yesterday, there's no going scot free!" He said and she nodded slowly.

"I understand, I'll do whatever you ask of me!" She stuttered.

"You don't have a choice!"

"Come to my office after work!" He said and with that, he turned around and walked away leaving Eleanor to stare at his retreating figure in anguish.

"Bestie?!" She heard someone whisper behind her and she slowly turned to see Tyler- her work bestie behind her.

They had met here at their place of work and over time they had become eachother's best friend.

"Are you okay?!" He asked as she slowly turned to him.

"Oh Tyler!" She wailed as she bursted out in fresh tears, and pulled him to a tight hug, her tears falling carelessly onto his shirt.

"I lost my Dad!" She kept whimpering repeatedly.

After work ....

4:30 pm ...

Eleanor stood tiredly in her chair and stretched out, she could hear her bones pop as she stretched.

"Eleanor! My office now!" She suddenly heard through the intercom she had with Arthur's office.

Throughout the day as she rushed to get her job done, she was looking forward to going home,she had completely forgotten that she still had a commitment with Arthur.

She quickly, arranged her dress and her table, picked up her bags, locked everything she needed to lock and rushed out towards Arthur's office.

"Let's go!" He said as she walked into his office, throwing his bag at her.

"Ahnn!" She groaned as she caught the bag struggling to make sure it doesn't fall to the floor. 

"Where are we going?!" She asked as she rushed behind him. He simply brought out his sunshades and put them on, she swallowed her words and took that as a cue to not question him further.

Several minutes later, they were at his house, Eleanor slowly stepped out of the car, wondering why on earth he would bring her to his house!.

What exactly was the connection between her job and his house, she couldn't help but wonder.

"You would go over to the back of the house, fetch water there and wash all of these cars!" He said breaking her way from her train of thought.

Her eyes widened as she looked at the cars in the garage, there were three of them and she slowly turned to look at him.

"What are you waiting for!!" He asked as he snatched his bag from her and headed inside.

"You will wash all three today, so the earlier you start, the better for you!" 

1hour later ....

Eleanor wiped the tears that had just fallen down her face as she scrubbed the metal outer feature of the car, she began with taking out the foot mats inside,and Washing them, now she was on the second car, scrubbing it to make sure it was shiny.

Life hadn't even given a break or a pause to mourn her dad. Right now she was supposed to be by her mom, helping her to cope with their huge family loss, because she knew her brother wouldn't, that's if he is even aware their father had died.

But here she was doing something that wasn't even in her job description.

Life was very had for her and she almost couldn't take it.

She heard the door suddenly open and she looked up towards the entrance to see Arthur walking out, his footsteps depicting deep anger and his eyes bloodshot red.

Immediately he got to her, he grabbed her hair tightly and slammed it against the window of his car.

"You slut!" He seethed.

Although the glass didn't shatter but her head bursted out in blood.

She slowly raised her hands to her face as she felt a warm liquid slosh down her face, she looked at it and as soon as she saw it was blood, she turned to look at Arthur as tears fell down her face.

"What did I ... " She murmured almost inaudibly and before she could complete her statement, her legs gave way and she fell to the floor.