Love at the Door

Samuel sighed. He didn’t want to bully a young lady like Melina. Then, he saw Melina carry the bucket and pour the fish into the tank without breaking a sweat.

Samuel was impressed. Melina moved more effortlessly than a burly man like him did. Wasn’t she way too strong?

Watching the scene, Helena remained silent.

Business was booming in the morning. Melina butchered the fish while wearing an apron.

Samuel was an earnest and kind man. Helena had a bad temper. She would scold Melina over minute mistakes from time to time.

But Melina wasn’t upset. It was her first time working in the city. If someone said she wasn’t doing well, it must mean she wasn’t doing good enough.

However, Helena was upset. “Melina, don’t splatter water all over the floor when you’re cutting the fish. Are you trying to kill me by making me slip and fall?”

“Melina, I already told you to sell the fish which are dying first. If the fish dies before it’s sold, I’m docking your pay!”

It went on until Melina got off work at 6:00 pm. Helena said rudely, “Melina, clean up all the leftover organs on the floor before you leave.”

Melina replied earnestly, “I got it.”

Even the lady who sold roast chicken next door couldn’t take it anymore. “Mr. Henderson, hurry up and stop your wife. You shouldn’t bully someone so earnest Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Samuel looked embarrassed.

Upon hearing her words, Helena yelled, “You’re such a busybody! How is this any of your business? If you can’t take it, clean up the trash yourself!”

The lady yelled back, “You witch! You have children too. Don’t you feel embarrassed abusing a young lady like her?

Seeing that a fight was about to break out, Melina quickly stopped them. “It’s alright. I work fast. I’ll be done very soon.”

The lady asked in an upset tone, “Don’t you have a temper? Can’t you see I’m trying to help you?”

Melina smiled calmly. It wasn’t like she didn’t have a temper. She just rarely had the right to throw

tantrums.

She started living by herself when she was five years old. Other kids could throw tantrums in front of their parents, but she couldn’t because her mom was dead and her dad was missing.

Other kids could be naughty and mess around, but she couldn’t because she needed to work hard to survive. She was simply used to keeping a smile on her face.

Melina swiftly cleaned up the leftover organs and even wiped the oil from the roasted chicken stall next door clean before she left.

“A week passed in the blink of an eye. Andrew never appeared before her. Melina worked happily.

Most of the people who shopped in the supermarket were the elderly who lived nearby. They liked to come early, so there wouldn’t be many people left after 10:00 am.

When no one was around, Melina would tidy up. She scrubbed until the stall was shiny. Even a person as critical as Helena couldn’t make a single complaint.

When Melina was leaving to go home, Helena threw a fish at her and said coldly, “This fish is dying. Dead fish aren’t worth much. You can take it if you want it or throw it away if you don’t.”

Melina’s eyes widened. The fish wasn’t dying at all. It was still moving! She looked at Helena, confused.

Helena looked uncomfortable. She said fiercely, “Since you’re off work, hurry up and leave. I won’t feed you even if you stay.”

Melina’s nose tingled. This entire time, she had only brought bread and jam for lunch.

After renting the apartment, she only had 200 dollars left. After deducting the money for public transport, she didn’t have enough to buy meat or anything tasty. She could only buy a bag of flour and eat bread every day.

Helena noticed. It wasn’t that she didn’t want the fish anymore. She was giving it to her.