My Life As A Maid

A.N. Ah, it's been a while. I think. But I'm here now! ^^ So, this is Chapter 6! I hope you all enjoy it, as usual! And sorry for the slow updates lately.

I awoke to find myself on my stomach. A sharp pain seared through my hands, and I was quick to get up. I'd been lying on them, and they were in worse condition now than they were last night. Flippy's game had ended around 2:00am, when he decided it was getting late. I remembered he said: "Time's running out for me now, sweetheart. It's getting late, and we both need our sleep, right?"

The fact that he mentioned he was running out of time bothered me. It was probably nothing, but I wondered about it. Whatever it meant, I was still grateful that it was an excuse for him to leave.

I got changed into my work clothes and made my bed. When I opened the door, none of the cleaning equipment was there. I looked to both sides, to see if they'd been misplaced. They were nowhere to be seen. I sighed and put a hand on my hip, wondering if the butler had forgotten. I explored the basement first, and then decided that finding the butler would probably be the most sensible thing to do.

I found him bustling around with two large packages on the second floor. He caught sight of me and put down the packages, rushing over.

"Flaky, I'm sorry," he said. "I should have told you earlier. The Master of House is holding a party this evening. It starts at eight sharp. You'll be acting as a sort of waitress for the night. We'll have to find something more decent to wear for you, I suppose. Ah, I know. The old things are usually thrown into Flippy's wardrobe since there's more room. You can go and ask him for something to wear."

He rushed off, leaving me standing like an idiot. Going to Flippy was the last thing I wanted to do. But I didn't really have a choice. I walked down stairs to Flippy's room, arriving at the wooden door. I lifted my hand to knock the door, and looked around the corridor. There wasn't any way I could stall. I knocked twice, quietly.

Flippy opened the door, dressed in a light green shirt and khaki bottoms. His feet, again, were bare and his hair was everywhere. He smiled when he saw me.

"Hi, Flaky," he greeted me, gesturing inside with a wave of his hand. I walked inside, and looked around at the room. It seemed different to when I'd last been there. For one thing, the knife was gone. The room seemed to be brighter, although I could see the curtains were still drawn. There was something about it that looked less sinister today.

"Is everything all right?" asked Flippy.

"O-Oh, yes," I assured him. "I-I just need something t-to wear for to-tonight."

"Ah, yes. The evening party. There's some leftover things in my wardrobe. You can take whichever one you like."

I walked into the wardrobe and he pointed to the back. There were four dresses to pick from. One was a long, low-back pink. The other was a lilac mini with a white trim. Another one was a long, elegant pale green. The last one was a red silk one-shoulder, with a black waistband. It seemed to be the right one for me. I found a spare corner in the back of the room. I excused myself and shut the door.

The dress was a perfect fit. I did a little twirl in it, smiling, and looked at myself in the mirror. I wasn't beautiful, but I wasn't ugly either. I was just me. Big brown eyes, long red hair and a timid, pale face. I was fairly thin thanks to my upbringing, but I wasn't unhealthily thin. Wearing the dress made me feel a little taller, but in reality I was quite small.

I had never gone to any type of party before, unless you included my birthday parties, which would just mean I got extra milk at dinner time. I remember as children, Petunia and I used to sneak into the gardens of rich people and look through the windows, at the stunning dresses and mountains of food. It never failed to amaze us.

I sighed regretfully as I remembered Petunia. Her family wasn't exactly rich, but she wasn't poor either. Nevertheless, she had played with me every day until my Mother died. I remembered Petunia had the most beautiful blue hair, always pinned back with a pink flower clip. She had blue eyes too, crystal clear and shining. She wore lovely clothes, denim dungaree-dresses over white long-sleeves. Blue frilled shirts and pleated skirts. I missed her.

I opened the door, and blushed when Flippy did a double-take. I pushed a loose strand of my hair behind my ear self-consciously. Flippy was dressed in a green shirt, dark green tie, black waistcoat, black jacket and matching trousers.

"Wow," he said to me. "You look... Beautiful."

"Th-Thank you," I replied, feeling my face going red. "Y-You look well t-too."

"Ha, thanks," he laughed.

"Well," I said, starting to feel more awkward. "I'd... better be g-going, then."

"Oh, okay," said Flippy, looking a little disappointed. "I'll see you out."

He walked me to the door, and I politely waved good-bye. As soon as I heard the door swing shut I started power walking. I liked Flippy when he was... normal. But even then I still felt paranoid around him. Every movement would make me jump. Every word was noted. I felt like the worst person in the world for being like that. Maybe I was.

I passed the butler on my way down the corridor. His grey suit had been replaced by a blinding white suit, making his ageing hair look duller than it was. He stopped me when I passed by.

"Flaky, perfect. I suppose I should tell you what you've to do tonight," he said.

"Yes, sir," I replied.

"You won't be cleaning and stuff tonight. Instead you'll be acting as a sort of waitress, serving food, helping guests if they need anything. It should be simple, so do your best. You're to be at the kitchen at seven fifteen. I trust you won't disappoint."

"No, sir."

"Very well then. I'll be on my way."

I arrived back at my room to find I had nothing to do. I sat for a couple of minutes in silence. I looked blankly at the walls, at the door. I looked at my uniform and chest of drawers, which had been empty since I'd arrived here. I decided I should take a shower, so I got up and went to Flippy's father's office.

I knocked three times on the large door. After a few seconds, Flippy's father said, "Enter."

I took a step inside and Flippy's father sat up straight. "Hello, Flaky. What brings you here?"

"Please, can I have a shower, sir?"

"A shower? Yes, you can. Is that all?"

"Yes sir."

"Okay then. You are dismissed."

I nodded and left for the bathroom. It was annoying having to ask for a shower, but at least I wasn't washing myself in a stream behind a tree. Back at home I used to drape my clothes over the branches to hide most of myself while I washed. At least here I had a locked door and warm water. Even so, it made me miss home more. I shook myself and got washed. When I'd first had a shower I'd been surprised they had girl's shampoo and conditioner. But I knew the reason why after Flippy had explained about the two previous maid.

I found myself thinking about who the two girls were, if I had known them beforehand. I wondered if Flippy had kissed them too. I blushed just thinking about it. Even so, I couldn't shake the thought out of my head. I imagined them in my head. Both were pretty, wearing the uniform I'd worn. I wondered if they were pretty in real life too. Prettier than me, most likely.

When I was done I wrapped a towel around my body, and another one around my hair. I dried my feet and put on my shoes for good measure. When I returned to my room, I got changed into my old clothes, the rags. I didn't want to be sitting around with the dress on.

I shook my hair out and let it dry on its own. I got rid of a couple of little pieces of dandruff. It had been with me practically all my life. Mother had tried to scrub it out, but it stuck with me. She once said it was funny how she'd named me Flaky, only to have me get dandruff. She said she'd cursed me. But I never believed that. I didn't believe my Mother could curse me.

I lay around like this until I had to pick up my dinner. It was only a small one, since the party was a couple of hours later. I swept into the kitchen, keeping away from Madame Talbot's watchful eye. Quickly, I scooped up the plate and was gone.

At 6:30pm, I heard Flippy walking around upstairs. I moved over on my bed and listened, holding my breath.

"Go away!" Flippy was saying. "Leave me alone!"

I wondered if his father was up there, or the butler. But I didn't hear anyone else. I listened closer.

"Get out of my head!" Flippy said. He was practically begging now. "Leave me alone, please!"

There was a pause and I heard Flippy breathe in shakily. "Leave her alone. You monster! Don't touch her!"

I frowned in worry. Leave her alone? I glued myself to the laundry chute.

"No... No! Don't..."

There was a snarl, followed shortly by triumphant laughter. I sat shaking at the end of the laundry chute, paralyzed with fear. I looked up and saw Flippy standing close to the chute. I jumped back when he turned around. The sound of Flippy's voice only made me shake more.

"Were you eavesdropping, sweetheart?" he asked. When I didn't answer he said, "I know you're there. Answer my question."

"I-I wasn't e-eavesdropping."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Y-Yes," I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Promise?"

"P-Promise."

"Give me your hand."

I did as he asked. Flippy linked our little fingers together and shook them twice.

"Now, if you've been lying, you'll regret it," said Flippy. "I look forward to seeing you at the party, then."

"Th-The pleasure is a-all mine."

A.N. Yeah, awful ending, I know. But Microsoft Word was freezing up and restarting all over the place :( Anyway, until next time!