Waitress At Billionaire's Club

Ava Delaney.

"I'm here! Sorry for being late!" I shouted, rushing into the hotel where I worked, struggling with a bag on my shoulder.

I dashed into the lobby, paying no attention to the stern look I received from Ashley, the receptionist. She sat behind the front desk in our staff uniform, a white shirt and a blue pleated skirt, with a pair of blue glasses perched on her nose. She was around my age but carried a more mature aura.

"As usual," she muttered, and I chuckled softly while bypassing her desk to stash my bag underneath.

"Help me hold on to these. Is the boss around yet?" I asked, frantically scanning the lobby. It was a beautiful room with a shining silver chandelier above us, two sofas, and Ashley's workspace.

"Not yet. But hurry, he should be here soon. Just get changed. You have about ten rooms to clean, but you need to start on the top floor. Brandon is already working on the ground floor," Ashley said, typing rapidly at her computer.

"Okay, which rooms are clear?" I inquired, looking around before crouching behind the desk, removing my shirt. I brushed back my brown hair from my face and put on the white shirt I wore every day.

"Suite 206, 210, and 230 on the top floors. Oh, and I think suite 228 is also vacant. The guests have checked out, and today is Friday. You need to be as quick as possible since we usually have more guests on the weekends," Ashley concluded, glancing down at me with wide eyes.

"Are you really changing here?" she asked, and I smirked, buttoning my shirt and pulling down my skirt.

"Watch me," I said confidently.

"I'd rather not. Just be quick. I told you, Brandon is working on the ground floor today, and he can walk in at any moment. How's Avery doing, by the way?" Ashley asked, looking away to resume typing at her computer.

I swiftly put on my skirt, which wasn't difficult because the table was high and I was on the shorter side. I slipped on my flat shoes from my bag and stood up to straighten my skirt.

"She's fine. The doctor said she's getting better after her last chemo session," I answered, closing my bag and pushing it further under the desk.

"That's good to hear. Did your landlady fix the drainage issue this time?" Ashley said sympathetically, unzipping her bag to retrieve a rubber band, which she handed to me.

I placed it between my lips momentarily, sweeping my hair back into a bun before securing it. I grabbed my name tag that read 'Ava' with the title 'Housekeeping' written in italics underneath and pinned it to my shirt above my breast.

The name tag was the most degrading part of my uniform, but it was mandatory because my boss didn't want guests to mistake us for one of them. He was that particular about professionalism.

"Not yet. The hallways were flooded last week too," I replied sadly.

"She's horrible. Honestly, you don't deserve this kind of life. A drunken father who got shot, a mother who committed suicide, and a twin sister with cancer," Ashley said, looking at me with sorrowful eyes.

"Nobody does," I shook my head and forced a smile, avoiding delving into the past. I looked down at the table to catch my reflection. My brown hair was neatly tied in a bun, and my bright brown eyes stared back at me. A beauty mark sat behind my right ear. I smiled, remembering that my sister had hers on her left ear.

Ashley gave me a sympathetic expression, but I grinned, stepping out of her space to stand in front of her, first taking out my headphones and wearing them around my neck.

"Gotta go now!" I declared, snatching the master key card from Ashley's desk and winking at her before leaving the lobby and heading to the janitor's closet to gather my cleaning supplies.

I retrieved them and began walking toward the elevator when I caught a glimpse of Brandon, the only other male cleaner. I quickly dashed for the elevator, not wanting to engage in conversation with him at the moment. He was always so inquisitive, and I didn't have the time to answer all his questions. I pressed the button for the top floor and stepped out when the elevator reached its destination. I dropped my cleaning supplies and put my headphones in my ears, taking out my phone and playing 'Monster' by EXO.

Korean pop music blasted in my ears at the loudest volume, and I started down the hallway, glancing at the suite numbers on the doors. What were the vacant suites that Ashley mentioned again? I tried to recall them as I nodded my head to the beat of the music.

"I think she mentioned suite 200 was free, right?" I muttered to myself.

I looked at the brown door that read suite 200. Yes, she did mention it, I concluded, taking my key card, swiping it on the reader, and opening the door.

The suite was one of the largest on the floor, and the hotel itself was exclusively for the extremely wealthy. It cost a fortune to spend a night here. I closed the door behind me and surveyed the room. A massive bed stood in the center, adorned with a gray duvet. A glass of whiskey sat on the table beside it. A large TV was mounted on the white wall, reflecting the light from the grand chandelier above me.

I walked further into the room, passing a door that led to a sitting area, and approached the immense glass wall that acted as a barrier between the breathtaking cityscape and the opulent room.

Outside, the sun shone mercilessly on the people bustling about, heading to work. I sighed and picked up my mop to begin cleaning the room, the music still blaring loudly in my ears.

The song changed to BTS's 'Boy with Luv,' and I brought the mop close to my mouth, singing along at the top of my voice. The room's walls were soundproof, so I wasn't disturbing anyone.

"Oh na na na!" I belted out the only part that wasn't in Korean. I wished I had played the remix with Halsey so I could sing more of it.

RM's solo began, and I kicked off my shoes, jumping onto the bed with the bottle of soap in hand, continuing to sing gibberish at the top of my voice. I was a terrible dancer, but that didn't stop me as I moved and leaped around the massive bed.

However, when I turned, my eyes caught a sudden movement, and I looked to see someone emerging from the bathroom.

A towel was wrapped around his slender waist, water droplets cascading down his torso. He had well-defined six-pack abs, and the water trickled down them like a maze, disappearing into his lower region. My gaze continued upward, taking in their face—a sharp jawline that could cut through diamonds, rosy lips glistening with moisture, and piercing blue eyes. Their black hair clung to his forehead, wet strands dripping down his temples and onto the floor.

He was breathtakingly handsome, like a Greek god stepping out of the pages of a mythology book.

My jaw dropped, and I fumbled to remove my headphones, still faintly hearing the music blasting through them as I stood frozen on the bed.

Was someone staying in this room?

Had I misunderstood Ashley, and this suite wasn't actually vacant?

Had he seen me dancing? On his bed, no less?

Oh God, what was I going to do?

It was when he spoke that I snapped out of my thoughts. His voice possessed a deep baritone that sent shivers down my spine. There was something commanding, cold, and harsh about it.

"Why is a filthy cleaner standing on my bed?" he uttered.

Please, let the ground open up and swallow me along with his bed, I silently pleaded.

Today, I had found myself in deep trouble.

Ava.

As I stood frozen on the bed, my jaw dropping in disbelief, I quickly fumbled to remove my headphones, still hearing the faint echoes of the music blasting through them.

Panic surged through me as I tried to gather my thoughts.

"Oh God, what am I going to do?" I whispered to myself, my heart pounding in my chest.

It was at that moment that he spoke, his voice commanding and filled with icy disdain.

"Why are you even in my room? I didn't request cleaning service."

I scrambled off the bed immediately, my leg getting caught up in the blankets and causing me to lose my balance. I fell to the floor with a loud thud.

"Ow!" I yelled as I fell on the bucket of water, splashing it everywhere and soaking the floors completely.

I was a walking disaster!

But despite the scene I was making, the man didn't even come to my rescue. I managed to get up, groaning in pain and holding onto my waist.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly, noticing the man standing there with an expression of disgust.

He said nothing, and I moved to get my supplies and clean up my mess. As I reached down to pick up my broken headphones, a silent cry escaped my lips. They were beyond repair, and I didn't have the money to buy another pair. However, I grabbed my mop and began cleaning the wet floor, being careful not to slip again.

I could feel his eyes on me, and I was tempted to look at him. I peeked out of my eyelashes and noticed he had picked up a phone.

Who was he calling? I was curious to know, but he glanced at me, and I quickly looked away, cleaning the floor vigorously to escape his hateful glare.

"Hello, it's me, Mikhail," his deep voice said, sending shivers down my spine. I listened intently. "Yes, Tony, I'm at your hotel," he continued sharply, and I turned my attention almost causing a whiplash.

Tony was the name of my boss, Tony Matters!

Don't tell me he was calling him because of me. Oh God, please!

"One of your cleaners just invaded my privacy and messed up my room," he said, and I gasped out loud, dropping the mop and running toward him. But he took a step back, and I clapped my hands together, silently pleading with him.

"Please," I whispered, but he smirked at me before looking down at my name tag.

"Yes, her name is Ava," he said over the phone, and my eyes widened.

Was he seriously reporting me to my boss?!

How did he even have Tony's number? I guess rich people are only associated with other rich people. Of course, they would be friends.

I couldn't lose this job! I needed the money for Avery's medical expenses. This was the only good-paying job that would cover the expenses.

I got down on my knees immediately, tears welling around my brown eyes as I pleaded with the man, but he didn't look at me. He finished speaking, dropped his phone on the table, and walked away from me.

"Please, sir. I can't lose this job. I need the money. My sister is—" I started to plead when my phone rang in my pocket.

With shaky hands, I retrieved it, noticing the cracked screen. But I could make out who was calling. It was my boss, Mr. Tony!

I picked it up immediately, placing it to my ear. His voice sounded through the speakers, filled with anger.

"Ava! What the hell did you do?!" he yelled, and I started to explain.

"It was an accident, I mixed up the rooms Ashley gave me. I didn't mean to."

"Get out of there now. Call Brandon to clean up the mess!"

"Mr. Tony, sir, I can quickly clean it up. It was all a misunderstanding. I ca—" I pleaded, wiping at my tears, my heart beating faster, and my hands becoming sweaty despite the wetness around me.

"Do you know who that is? Do you even have any idea whose room you just messed up? You're a cleaner, Ava. You're there to make things tidy, not the other way around. Pick up your stuff, you're fired!" he shouted before ending the call.

I didn't move for a while, trying to process what he had just said. I was fired! I was fired! How was I going to pay Avery's bills? My house rent! It was already the end of the month, and my landlord was a mean old lady. I didn't even have any savings. Everything went to the hospital.

I wiped at my nose and took out my phone. Maybe if I could just beg my boss, he would let me stay. He was probably just angry at me and making harsh decisions. I wiped my eyes and dialed his number.

It rang, but he didn't respond.

I dialed again, and he still didn't respond.

I dialed once more, and it went straight to voicemail.

I took the phone away from my ear and glanced down at it. The cracked screen almost made it difficult to recognize my wallpaper, but I could still make out the photo. It was a picture of me and Avery, identical twins. We had the same brown wavy hair, brown eyes, and straight noses. Even the way our eyes twinkled when we got excited was the same. Our walking steps were the same, the same smile, and everything. In school, we pranked the teachers a lot because it was hard to tell us apart.

Until someone found out about the beauty mark behind our ears. I had mine at the back of my right ear, and Avery had hers on her left.

As I looked at the picture, I realized a lot had changed since it was taken. Avery was bald now, her hair had fallen out completely. There were dark circles underneath her dull hazel eyes, which had lost their spark a long time ago. Her once pink, plump lips were now chapped and almost white. She was pale too.

She had lost a lot of weight, and her bones were poking out of her hospital gown. But she managed to smile as she held onto a card that read "It's our birthday." In my hand was the same card. It was our birthday that day, and I had celebrated it with her at the hospital.

I remember that day like it happened yesterday. I had just received my paycheck and paid my rent, so I decided to get a small 5-inch cake for us. There was no party or surprise birthday celebration because we had no friends anymore.

At first, our school friends had come to visit, but many of them were out of the city, attending colleges and universities. Some had traveled to other countries to further their education, while some had simply moved away. It became worse when I was forced out of our home and had to live outside the city.

So we celebrated alone, with only the nurses to wish us a happy birthday. The day ended with us laughing about old jokes and reminiscing about our school days before night fell and Avery fell asleep.

A tear escaped my eyes, and I switched off my phone, putting it back in my pocket. I was suddenly tired of everything. Most days, I wished everything would go back to normal, but it never happened. I was still stuck in this nightmare of a life.

I looked down at the mop and bucket in my hands and threw them to the floor. I took off my name tag, stared at it for a while, and threw it on the floor too. Then, I left the hallway and got into the elevator.

When I reached the ground floor, I saw Brandon hurrying towards me, heading for the elevator as I stepped out.

"Ava! What happened? The boss said you should clean suite 200, that you messed it up and you were fired. What happened?" he asked quickly, but I didn't spare him a glance as I walked past him.

I felt too sad to speak and walked to the lobby. Ashley was still sitting there, typing away at her computer. She raised her head to look at me, a sad gleam in her eyes. She must have heard the news too.

I was glad when she said nothing, and I went behind her table, picked up my bag, and placed it on my shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Ava," she muttered, and I didn't look back as I left the lobby and stepped out into the blazing sun.

I guess I was really jobless now.

I looked up at the sky and wanted to offer a silent prayer to God. I didn't ask for this life, so why did I end up this way?

Another tear escaped my eyes, and this time, I didn't wipe it away. I turned to look back at the hotel. It was a big, tall building with glass walls, but I could hardly see anything inside.

This time, I couldn't stop the sob that racked through my body as I started to walk away from it.

There was only one person I needed to see right now, and it was Avery.

I walked away, and all this time, I felt someone watching me, but I didn't turn to look