The Janitor's Payback

Chapter 2

The pain in Leo’s arm throbbed all through the night. He had wrapped it with an old towel and tried to sleep, but every time he closed his eyes, Clara’s words echoed in his head —

> “You’re just a cleaner. I need a man who can give me a future.”

He turned on his small bed, staring at the cracked ceiling of his tiny one-room apartment. The bulb flickered weakly, and the fan rattled as it turned. It was hot, humid, and full of mosquitoes, but Leo didn’t have the strength to care.

He had worked all day, gotten dumped, and bled — all in one shift.

By morning, his arm had swollen. The cut looked bad. The hotel manager noticed and sent him to the hospital.

“Make sure you bring the medical bill,” the manager said coldly. “We’ll see if it’s your fault first before deciding who pays.”

Leo just nodded and walked out.

At the hospital, the nurse frowned after cleaning the wound. “You should’ve come sooner. Luckily, it’s not too deep. But you’ll need an injection and some medicine.”

Leo sighed. “How much will that cost?”

“About three hundred dollars,” she said.

Three hundred. That was almost half of what he made in a month. His throat tightened, but he forced a smile. “Okay. I’ll pay.”

After the injection and treatment, he limped to the front desk and handed over the money he had been saving for food. He watched the nurse count it, every note feeling like a piece of his soul leaving.

When he finally walked out of the hospital, the world seemed colder.

He made his way back to his small house in the poor district a one-room space with a leaking roof and walls stained by years of rain. Before he even reached his door, his landlord, Mr. Briggs, stepped out from the next building.

Mr. Briggs was a short, bald man with a round belly and a habit of chewing toothpicks. He spotted Leo immediately and grinned in that annoying way that made Leo’s stomach turn.

“Leo! I was just about to knock on your door.”

Leo forced a weak smile. “Good evening, sir.”

“Don’t good evening me,” Mr. Briggs snapped, folding his arms. “Where’s my rent? It’s already three weeks late.”

Leo’s heart sank. “I… I had an accident at work, sir. I had to go to the hospital today, and it cost a lot of money. But please, give me a few more days. I’ll—”

Mr. Briggs interrupted him with a loud laugh. “Hospital? You cleaners always have one excuse after another. Do you think I collect pity instead of rent?”

Leo lowered his eyes. “Please, sir. I’ll pay soon.”

“You said that last week!” Mr. Briggs stepped closer, his breath smelling of cheap beer. “You think I’m running a charity here? Look around, Leo. Everyone here pays on time. But you—” he jabbed a finger at Leo’s chest — “you’re always broke. What do you even do with your money? Drink it? Gamble it away?”

Leo clenched his jaw. “No, sir. I don’t gamble. I just—”

“Save your lies!” Briggs barked. “I’m giving you two days. If I don’t see my money, I’ll throw your things out on the street. Got it?”

Leo nodded silently.

“And one more thing,” the landlord said, smirking. “Maybe if you weren’t chasing after girls who want rich men, you’d actually have rent to pay.”

Leo froze. Briggs laughed and walked away, humming loudly.

Leo unlocked his door with shaky hands and stepped inside. The small room was dark and quiet, except for the ticking of his cheap clock. He sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor.

Everything inside him felt heavy the humiliation, the pain, the loneliness. It was like the whole world was laughing at him.

He looked at his wallet. Empty.

His stomach growled, but he ignored it. He leaned back against the wall and sighed.

“What am I supposed to do now?” he whispered.

After a long moment, he pulled out his old phone, the one with a cracked screen. He decided to check his balance, just in case there was something left from his last salary. Maybe enough for food, or at least rent.

He opened his bank app and entered his password.

The screen loaded slowly, and when the balance appeared, his mouth dropped open.

Balance: $10,000,000.00

He blinked hard.

Then again.

He rubbed his eyes and stared at the numbers. “No way…”

He closed the app and reopened it. The same number appeared. Ten. Million. Dollars.

Leo jumped to his feet, his heart pounding. “This can’t be real.”

He scrolled down to the transaction history. A large deposit had been made just that morning. The note said: Funds received — verified.

“No name, no message, nothing…” Leo whispered, pacing the small room. “Ten million dollars? From where? From who?”

He laughed nervously, still half believing he was dreaming.

He quickly opened his messages, expecting a bank alert explaining it. There it was:

> Credit Alert: $10,000,000.00 has been deposited into your account.

His hands trembled.

“Did someone make a mistake?” he said aloud. “Should I call the bank? What if it’s a scam?”

But he checked again. The money was really there — not pending, not on hold. It was his.

He sat back on the bed, his mind spinning.

For months, he had lived like a dog — cleaning floors, getting insulted, watching his girlfriend walk away, getting yelled at by his landlord. And now, suddenly, ten million dollars sat in his account.

He let out a shaky laugh. “If this is a dream, I don’t ever want to wake up.”

Still, a small voice in his head whispered: What if this isn’t luck? What if it’s a mistake?

He thought about calling the bank, but fear stopped him. What if they realized it was an error and took it back?

He leaned back, staring at the ceiling. For the first time in months, he felt something strange — not happiness, exactly, but a spark of hope.

And yet, deep inside, he was also scared. Because he knew money could change everything — and everyone.

He looked at his cracked mirror, his tired face, his worn-out clothes. “Ten million dollars,” he said softly. “What am I supposed to do with that?”

Outside, thunder rumbled, and rain started to fall. The roof leaked, water dripping near his bed. Leo sat there, lost in thought, not knowing that his life had just changed forever.