My Life As A Maid

A.N. Chapter seventeen! All of a sudden I really wanted to continue this. So, yeah, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Also, TikTock, go ahead! You should link me to it when you're done! I'm honoured!

I was running through long, unlit corridors, completely alone and absolutely terrified. I could only see whatever was an arm's length away from me, which was no use at all in my situation. I continuously tripped over pieces of wood and various other unseen objects as I ran blindly. I didn't want to think about what they were. I couldn't afford to be distracted now.

I'd been running for hours upon hours, willing myself to stop and breathe, to rest my lungs. They burned, every muscle in my body was at its limit. I couldn't keep up this pace much longer without fainting. But my body wouldn't let me stop. My legs kept moving of their own accord. When I tripped, I would immediately pick myself up. It was torture; I was so exhausted. However, my fear greatly outweighed my

And all the while, there was another set of footsteps behind me, faster and lighter than my own. A sinister chuckle echoed against the walls, relentless and mocking. My pursuer knew this was all coming to an end. I was going to lose. I was going to die.

And then I tripped again, with a yelp, and fell to the floor on my knees. I could feel his stare from above. I turned to look up, knowing that I would meet those eyes that had followed me everywhere. Those eyes that could only belong to one person. I knew already that I was doomed, that I would never see the light of day again. He lifted the knife up with a grin, and-

"Aaaaaah!" I screamed, eyes flying open. I turned to look behind me and was surprised to find myself looking at a blue wall. I looked down and realized I was in someone else's bed. The sheets were a mess, tangled around my legs; the pillow I had been lying on had fallen to the floor. Petunia watched me carefully from where she sat at the end of the bed in blue pyjamas.

"Take it easy, Flaky," she said. "Bad dream?"

I nodded, and curled up into a sort of ball, hugging my knees against my chest and resting my chin on top of them. "Y-Yeah... A bad dream."

"I tried to wake you up a few times," Petunia told me. "You would just kick out and shout at me to leave you alone. Unless it was someone in your dream. It wasn't Flippy, was it?"

"A-Ah, no, no...Sorry, Petunia," I said quietly. "I'm just a little... out of it, I guess."

Petunia smiled sympathetically. "It's okay, really. You should have something to eat. I'll go make breakfast, okay? Don't you move."

I started to protest, but she put a finger to her lips and left me sitting there with my hand outstretched like a fool. I slumped back against the pillow and stared unhappily at the blankets, decorated with blue flowers.

Despite all that had happened, I still felt the urge to get up and clean. Not that Petunia's house was in any way dirty, but simply because I was so used to it now. I scowled.

"Not anymore, Flaky," I told myself. "No more cleaning."

And yet, even as I told myself I was done with that house, thoughts of it whizzed around my mind relentlessly. No matter how hard I tried to think of something else, the images refused to disappear. Flippy's face seemed like it had been glued to the inside of my eyelids. I couldn't ever escape his captivating stare.

Petunia returned with breakfast, toast and eggs. We ate in silence, neither looking up from her plate. After finishing, I decided to speak up at last.

"Petunia, could we go to town today?" I asked.

Petunia raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? Already?"

"I don't think I want to keep wearing this uniform."

"Hm... Okay then. I know some good places."

Shopping with Petunia felt strange after being cooped up for so long. The streets were wide, and I was constantly throwing suspicious glances at people. Petunia, seeing my discomfort, led me into a shop lined with racks of clothing.

I barely paid attention to anything she said, just let her hold up clothes against me and examine prices. I nodded whenever I felt like I should, always wary of my surroundings. I glanced down at what Petunia had in her bag. Lots of red shirts and three pairs of jeans, as well as a few pairs of matching shoes.

I froze when I saw who was in front of us, leaving the store and walking in an awkward fashion. Giggles. There was no mistaking the large ribbon in her pink hair. I moved to tap her shoulder, and she whirled around.

"What..?"

Her eyes fell on me, and her face twisted into a disgusted look. I stopped myself from talking, and watched her, heartbroken.

"Giggles, I-"

"Don't come near me!" she interrupted, storming away. Petunia frowned.

"What's with her? She won't let it go?"

"I-I didn't want to go along with him, Petunia," I said. "I really d-didn't mean to hurt her."

"Sh," said Petunia, taking hold of my arms. "None of this is your fault. She just misunderstood the situation, is all."

I shook my head, and looked down at the ground. Petunia kept her hand on my arm and we walked home in silence. She left me alone to get changed into the clothes she bought. I pulled on a plain red shirt and black jeans.

I almost smacked myself for jumping at the sound of the doorbell. I heard Petunia go to answer it, and after a minute she was knocking on the bedroom door. I opened and she gave me an apologetic look.

"Ah, Flaky," she began. "This is a little awkward. My boyfriend just came over and I forgot we'd made plans for today. Do you mind if I leave for a little while? My mother's away with work but there's tons of food if you get hungry."

"N-No, it's fine," I assured her with a hasty smile.

"Here, you can come and say hi," she said, leading the way downstairs. Petunia's boyfriend was tall, with ginger hair and brown eyes. However, the first thing I noticed were his arms, which stopped just where his elbow would have been and tied up with bandages. He gave me a warm smile.

"I'm Handy," he said, with a dry laugh. "Ironic, right?"

"I'm Flaky," I said, and had to stop myself from moving to shake his hand. "Um, I'll talk to you sometime, then."

"Yeah, see you around!" he said, taking Petunia's arm. I watched them until they were out of sight and then shut the door. Not knowing what to do, I decided to take a look around at a real house. One where the people weren't corrupt or had split personalities. A normal home.

Instead of taking a look around, I ended up sitting on the couch and watching television for the first time. The news reports only sent bad thoughts whizzing through my head, but the other shows were enjoyable, if somewhat predictable.

After a while I got up and made some dinner, eating in silence that seemed to press down on me. By now, though, I was used to feeling uncomfortable and alone. I cleaned up afterwards and returned to the living room, curling up on the couch again.

I froze at the doorbell, then relaxed, again wanting to slap myself for being so silly. Petunia was back from her date, then. At last; it had been getting too lonely here by myself. I got up, ready to greet her. I just hoped she hadn't brought Handy. Nice as he was, I wanted to talk to Petunia in private.

I wasn't quite tall enough to see through the peephole. I opened the door hesitantly.

And screamed in terror.

"Wait!" Flippy called, but I was already halfway up the stairs. A million frantic thoughts race through my mind as I run.

How?! How did he..?!

"Please, Flaky! Listen to what I have to say!"

I locked myself in the bathroom, and finally felt the tears streaming down my face. I was breathing too fast, but there was no chance of me calming down now. Flippy was already up the stairs, pounding the bathroom door.

I knew one thing that might keep me safe for a while. If I stayed quiet, he couldn't switch to his psycho side. Even so, Flippy was still pretty strong.

I watched, traumatized, as the doorknob rattled, the lock straining. After what felt like an hour, it gave in and Flippy threw the door open.

"Oh God," I breathed. "L-Leave me a-alone, please! J-Just-!"

"I'm not going to hurt you," he assured me. He moved to put his hands on my arms and I kicked out immediately, fighting against him and knowing it's useless.

"P-Please, just l-l-leave me alone!" I begged him, managing to push past into the hall. I ran to Petunia's room and slammed the door shut, despite it being useless at this stage. I looked around for anything I can use as a sort of weapon. I picked up a white chair and held it in front of me, waiting for Flippy.

He opened the door, and I felt myself freeze up completely. He had that demented look in his eyes. My worst nightmare stood before me grinning.

"You're in trouble," he said in a sing-song tone. "Little maids such as yourself shouldn't run off, you know. Especially when they're carrying valuable information like yourself. I do hope you haven't told anyone about my dear Mother, sweetheart. It'd just break my heart if I had to go to jail. My father wouldn't be too pleased either."

I couldn't stop myself from shaking; every fibre of my being was trembling with fear.

"I-I didn't t-tell anyone," I whispered. "I-I swear."

He gives me a smile that almost looks friendly, spreading his arms. "It's not too late to come back, dear. You can come back and we'll forget all this ever happened. And so long as you never mention my Mother to anyone, we'll be on good terms. We can carry on the way we did before. What do you say, sweetheart?"

I knew that I should. That I should take his hand and let him lead me back to his house. And much as I hated myself for it, I really was tempted to. But I couldn't. I couldn't give in and put myself through that torture. I couldn't take any more of it. So I tell him.

"I-I can't, F-Flippy," I told him. "I c-can't go b-back with you."

His smile vanished, all traces of kindness wiped away. "What? Why on earth wouldn't you want to?"

He took a step forward, and I instinctively moved back, bumping against Petunia's bed post. He waited impatiently for my answer.

"I-I can't s-stand any m-more of..." I trailed off, and looked at him worriedly.

"Of what?"

"...O-Of you, F-Flippy. I-I can't stand y-you."

A.N. And I'm gonna stop right there! I hope you enjoyed it, I'm not sure I like it all that much. Tell me what you think!