Star Girl (Tanjiro X OC)

Audrey Harding: Thriving Willpower - Chapter 2

I smell the filthy waste as I walk along the street that leads to the factory. That is the stench that makes my nose sick. I got used to it since I first started working in the factory. Pollution is a major problem in this town. It hurts the environment and human health. People throw out their trash into the streets because there is no proper sanitation. Factories emit lots of smoke in the air, and rivers become polluted from all the filth being dumped into them by property owners. My town is literally a dump if you ask me.

I see people throwing trash and filth out their windows, making an uncomfortable splat sound as they land on the street. I pass by many rundown tenement houses before arriving at the factory on time. I enter, take the elevator to the third floor, and step into the room.

I go to my working station and see Sarah sewing together some gowns. "Hi Sarah," I say. "How are you?"

"Oh, hi Audrey. I'm fine," She replies. "And you?"

"I'm fine, too," I reply.

Since the factory overseer is here right now, we keep our mouths shut for as long as he stays here. I do what I do every single day, sew together lots of gowns while at the same time bearing the stress that comes with the job. I don't take my eyes off the work I'm supposed to do. I ignore the overseer's loud gruff voice commanding every worker in the room to do their jobs seriously. I put all my effort into sewing these gowns perfectly. I have no intention of giving up yet.

Day after day, I keep working to fuel the business and earn as much money as possible for myself and my family. I get more exhausted, more stressed, more hungry, and more thirsty every day. My poor hygiene gets worse every night without a hot bath. I've been using my hands too much to do the unbearable job, and I don't have the time to move around outside.

My parents get more fatigued by their harsh work in the fields. They keep bringing less and less clean water, and they worry that we will not be able to survive the next couple of days. And we're running out of food, too.

One day, I hear a girl screaming in pain, and that diverts me from my work for a moment. The factory overseer curls his hand into a fist and delivers a blow to her head, knocking her down violently. The other workers gasp in shock, and some girls begin crying frantically. However, their cries don't stop him from landing a couple more hits on her. The girl keeps screaming and begs him to stop, which he doesn't.

I watch the disturbing scene with distraught eyes, not bothering to step in and defend her. The girl covers her head with her arms as the overseer stomps on her with much force. Her cries become more unsettling and hysterical with every hit she takes. I stand in my spot unable to move a muscle in my body. The overseer continues stomping on her until he feels like he's had enough.

"Learned your lesson already, little brat?! Next time, don't snatch forty winks unless you're looking for some more pain! Ya got that?!" He yells in anger, and the girl moans loudly in agony.

"Oh my God, he's super scary," Sarah whispers next to me. "Poor little girl."

I can't say anything at all after what just happened. That's what happens if we break the rules here.

"What are y'all bitches looking at?! Get back to work! I don't wanna see any of ya slacking off, ya hear me?! Ya do that, ya get a beating from me! And ya will be fired!" He screams while pointing at everyone around him. The women are breathing uncontrollably and the girls are whining with dread. He grits his teeth and glares at them.

When my work for today is done, I dash straight home without bothering to turn back. I go to my room and slam the door shut before sinking down onto the floor with my knees up to my face. I stay like that until my parents come home and I let them in. They notice my distraught face and my mother asks me, "Is something wrong, sweetie?"