HOW YOU LIKE THAT | JENLISA

Chapter 1

Jennie

I stared at my bag pack. There were some clothes inside, a toothbrush, toothpaste, some makeup, and my almost empty wallet that comprised of two fifty-dollar bills and a hairbrush. I looked around my room and knew that I wouldn't miss a thing about being in this place. The past six years that I'd lived here were nothing worse than a nightmare. I descended down the stairs of the house, hoping to put it all behind me.

Nothing in this house was worth remembering, anyway. If it was possible, I wanted to forget everything; starting with my Uncle Jiyong and his son, Jay. The only reason that I stayed for as long as I had, was only for my aunt, who was critically ill and passed away last week.

Now, I had absolutely no reason to live in this place anymore.

Not a day went by after my aunt's passing that I hadn't planned on escaping. I tiptoed down the hallway and threw a glance at the living room. Uncle Jiyong sat on the raggedy old couch. A puff of smoke permeated the air, and the ashtray was decorated with cigarette butts. For a forty-five-year-old man, he looked at least ten years older.

He was intently watching something on the TV and chugging a large can of beer when his eyes rested on me and his face contorted into an ugly smile. "Where are you going, honey?" He slurred the words.

I dropped my bag on the floor out of his sight as I answered him, "I'm just going to Jimin's house. Forgot my notebook there." I let the lie roll naturally out of my lips.

"Alright, but don't be late. I hate to be kept waiting." He sneered at me before looking back at the television screen.

I masked the look of pure disgust as I pocketed some money that was lying around on the table. I opened the door to the old rickety house and sniffed the air of freedom as soon as I stepped outside. My cousin, Jay's old beat-up truck was parked out front, but he wasn't anywhere in sight. I assumed that he was working on one of his useless cars in the garage.

The trees whooshed as I walked past them. I looked once at the cornfields and tried not to think of all the vile stuff that has happened back there. The scarecrow standing alone in the dark looked like a prop right out of a macabre horror movie, and like it was going to follow me.

Cars zoomed past me, some men passed dirty comments, and others offered me a ride. I was dressed appropriately in jeans and a loose fitted tank top. I'd also pulled on a jacket to cover myself, so there was really nothing scandalous to look at here. I guess it didn't matter just as long as a woman was walking alone on the street; men were going to whistle and cat-call.

Twenty minutes later, I found the bus stop that was going to take me to my final destination. I had to wait for another thirty minutes before a bus pulled up before the station. I climbed in and took the very first seat that was vacant by the door.

Goodbye fucked up past, and hello bright future! This felt like an adventure, and I tried not to feel depressed about the fact that I didn't have much cash on me, or that I had lost a permanent home. If I wasn't hired for this job as planned, I was going to be practically homeless.

I opened the app on my phone and checked all the jobs that I'd marked important and only one of them was in the same location, which I was heading towards.

One ad read:

FULL-TIME BABYSITTER NEEDED URGENTLY.

Should be beautiful with a curvy body and no scars. Interested candidates, kindly send your details : )

I rolled my eyes. Why did a babysitter need to have a curvy body? I knew this ad looked very sketchy and there was no doubt in my mind that this man was a pervert trying to bait unsuspecting teenage girls. I reported the ad and scrolled through some more. A few minutes later, I finally found the one that I was looking for.

The advertisement on the app read:

LOOKING FOR A LIVE-IN NANNY WHO CAN WORK FULL-TIME FOR A FAMILY
• Education: At least a high school degree
• Minimum work experience of two years.
• Accommodation and food will be provided.
We will allot an extra allowance whenever necessary.
Interested candidates, please forward your CV to the below email.

I'd applied for this job a few weeks ago and was surprised when I'd heard back from them. The person on the phone said that the family wanted to meet me before they offered me the job, and something in the man's tone and manner said that I could indeed get selected for it.

The signage for Damyang County came into view and I asked the driver about the address of the house that I was visiting. His brows hit the roof when he read it and asked me if that's really where I had planned to stop and when I said yes, he laughed mockingly, which was a little strange. I mean, it's not like I'd asked him to drop me off on Planet Mars or something. When I inquired what was funny, he shrugged it off like it was nothing. It's when he dropped me off the bus that I realised why he seemed to think that I was crazy.

In front of me were two huge metal gates with the letters 'M' on them. I stared at it in awe and into the far distance, my eyes focused on the very large and daunting house, a mansion that looked right out of an Architectural Digest magazine, or a horror movie. You take the pick. The opulence and the grandness of it were nothing like I'd ever seen before.

I decide to call on the number that was provided on the app.

"Hi, this is Jennie Kim. I've applied for the nanny job and received a call to come for the interview." I said, while feeling a little anxious and shaky, "I've just arrived by bus. Is this the right address?"

I heard a deep masculine chuckle on the other end of the line. "I see you, Ms. Jennie Kim. Please come inside."

He could see me?

Just then, I noticed the surveillance cameras surrounding the area. The gates to the mansion opened smoothly, and I entered them, completely unaware of the horrors that awaits me.