Chapter One

It has been thirty minutes since Milton arrived. He pressed the doorbell again and still no one answered. Milton was a part-timer cleaner. A few days back, he got a booking to come here. “Ding!” Milton pushed the bell again.

Frustrated, Milton gave up. Just when he was about to leave, someone asked harshly from inside, “who is the imbecile who has disturbed me for more than an hour.”

Before Milton could tell the person it hadn’t been an hour, a fat middle-aged woman opened the gate. She snarled at Milton angrily, “what do you want?”

Afraid, Milton took one step back, “ma’am, I apologize for the disturbance. I am here for cleaning service.”

“Don’t call me ma’am.” The fat woman snarled. She eyed him from up to down, “call me, Sadie. Who are you?” 

Milton replied. “I am Milton. Milton Jackson, ma’am.”

The old woman narrowed her eyes at him, “what are you waiting for? You lazy thwart? Come in.”

Milton thanked her. In the house, everything was scattered everywhere, it looked like a junkyard. Even the smell was disgusting. Milton covered his nose with his hand, regretting why he didn’t carry his mask.

This was too much, more so, they were paying him peanuts. He wanted to leave. However, he couldn’t since he needed this money to buy Natalie, his girlfriend a gift.

Milton gathered the food leftovers. The terrible smell from it made his stomach churn. He started coughing. 

“Who is this, and why are you spattering your dirty breath all over this place?” A mean voice asked from behind.

Milton turned around, he knew the woman, she was his neighbor. She was Mrs. Gladys. Milton started greeting him but the woman waved at him, “move along, you idiot. Stop slacking.”

Milton rubbed his nose, Mrs. Gladys grabbed a rotten paper and threw it at his face, “stop pretending you are too clean for this. Clean.” 

“Yes, ma’am.”

Sadie returned with two glasses of wine, which she handed to Mrs. Gladys. Mrs. Gladys’ hand was shaking, she dropped the glass down. Sadie shrieked, “moron, you need to clean here first, don’t you see?”  

Milton picked the broken glass from the floor, Mrs. Gladys rose and pushed him aside. He washed the utensils, cleaned the sinks, and washed the house. Meanwhile, two women were gossiping about how lazy he was and everything he touched, he left dirt on them.

In the toilet, Milton almost puked. The toilet was disgusting. Nevertheless, he scrubbed it. 

Upon returning to the sitting room to inform Sadie to leave, Mrs. Gladys touched the floor, and she mockingly told him, “there is dust everywhere.”

“I told you, he only knows how to take money for free.” A mean voice said from the door. 

“Hi, Mr. P.” Milton greeted him. He was his neighbor. 

“Don’t greet me, boy. Not when you have ill intentions regarding my friend here. We need the house to sparkle clean and not this.” 

Mrs. Gladys laughed sarcastically, she calmed down, and mocked, “exactly, repeat. Are you blind or deaf? Or simply stupid? Move.” 

Milton cleaned again.

“Now leave. You moron.” Mr. P said.

“Yes, sir,” Milton replied.

He started calling, “Sadie, excuse me.” 

Mr. P appeared out of nowhere, he hit him with his walking stick, “your voice is so loud, did someone send you to break my earbuds?”

“I am sorry…”

Mr. P didn’t let him finish, he threw him his backpack, “leave now.”

Milton sighed, he needed to be paid for Natalie’s gift. He arrived outside and found the gate closed. “Where is she?” He asked internally.

Disappointedly, he waited again for thirty minutes till he heard keys jiggling from outside.

“Why are you slow?” Saddie eyed him with disdain. “What now?” She fired. 

“Ma’am, I have finished cleaning,” Milton responded.

“So?” She inquired, rolling her eyes.

“My payment, ma’am.”

Saddie walked to her house. Confused, Milton didn’t move from where he was.

A few minutes later, Saddie returned accompanied by Mr. P. They looked pissed. “You stole my favorite blouse.” 

Milton rubbed off the saliva from his face. This gesture angered Saddie, she stepped out to the road and yelled. “This man is a thief. He is a thief.”

“Ma’am. There has been a misunderstanding.” Milton said meekly, hoping she would down it a bit.

However, she didn’t.

Her screams caught people’s attention. Mrs. Gladys came, “I told you, he is nothing but a loser who robs people.” 

They pointed out, “how dare he steal from an old woman?” “I heard he steals and then sells to other people.” “Look at him. He smells like a dirty old rag. Is this how you have managed to manipulate and steal from us?”

Shot after shot was fired. 

Milton raised his hands for them to stop. Those words hurt deeply. When one of his neighbors tried to defend him, they shooed her away. Saddie now had her hand on his head, still insulting him. 

He was utterly humiliated and embarrassed by how his neighbors accused him without asking.

“Please. I didn’t steal.” He said meekly.

“Liar. Let us burn him. There is no place in the world for someone like you.” Mr. P shouted. 

“Yes.” Everyone agreed.

Milton took a step back and hit someone, the person pushed him in front. Hissing, “don’t transmit your disease to me.”

Milton shuddered under everyone’s gaze. He kneeled in front of her and begged. “Please, you have to believe me. I didn’t…”

She interjected, dabbing his forehead. “I need you to pay me. Right now.”

“Please, deduct it from my paycheck,” Milton begged.

“Your paycheck? You are insane! The blouse costs fifty dollars, I need it now or you will end up in prison.”

He panicked.

Milton didn’t want the authority to be informed. Saddie’s voice was dripped with pure hatred. Milton only had fifty dollars for his dinner and tomorrow’s fare to and fro school.

“I will call the police now.”

“Please, don’t. I will pay.” He said, fighting the tears that were threatening to fall. He rose, opened his worn-out wallet, and took out the only money he had.

While Milton handed the cash to Sadie, he didn’t notice a group of people hiding while taking pictures of him.