Company Closed

Alice shook her head. "There is no hope, for the time being, let me handle it alone. I'm going to find a way to get this company back to its former glory, Zelle's Beaute. But I don't know when that time will come." The Alice they knew was the most optimistic person with a burning spirit, not a pessimist who this time looked hopeless in front of them. "You can go home, I have transferred your last salary. Thank you for your hard work all this time, huh."

They hugged each other and cried in Alice's arms, Alice tried to be strong by patting them on the shoulder. Trying to strengthen, while she was supposed to be strengthened too. Stretching out an arm, even though she needed a hand that would convince her that this storm was only temporary. Employees left the company that had been their second home for years.

This time, Alice went around. Looking into the packing room, the noisiest and most crowded place, the precious opportunity that Alice had missed this time. Alice was in the employees' room which was empty this time. Where she stood was her position every morning, advising employees to be enthusiastic about work, but this time what she faced was an anomaly. No good morning greetings. No coffee aroma. There was no sound of running shoes. There is only emptiness that feels suffocating. Alice lowered her head, letting a single tear fall freely to the floor.

****

The thing that confused Noah the most was when he came home from work and arrived home, the sight before he was hundreds of pairs of shoes filling the living room. Huge cupboards, awards splattered on the floor, bottles of alcohol on the table, and snacks are strewn everywhere. Until finally Noah's attention was focused on the perpetrator. Alice fell asleep on the sofa with the empty wine glass still in her hand. The girl was even still wearing five inches of high heels.

This wasn't what Noah wanted, he wanted to go home in peace. Instead of finding a house in a condition like a broken ship. Noah was about to leave, wanting to go back to his room. After all, whatever happened to Alice was none of his business either. He had more important work waiting to be done.

"Mom… Mommy…," he heard Alice delirious followed by sobs like a child who had lost her mother in a shopping center and feeling frightened, Noah stopped his steps to turn back. He looked back at Alice, taking the glass in the girl's hand. Put it on the table and open the high heels on her feet. The back of her leg looked scuffed and scratched.

Noah unbuttoned his shirt, rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, and prepared to clean up Alice's mess. Cleaning the house is not a difficult matter, he is used to cleaning at Aunt Nur's house. Noah put the trash snacks in plastic. Throwing away empty bottles of alcohol while grimacing his nose. He didn't like the strong smell of alcohol that made his head spin. Even when there's an office event that calls for drinking, Noah chooses to reassure himself not to try.

One job is done. Noah turned to sort out the awards lying on the floor. Tomorrow he would buy nails and put them back on the wall. Then Noah washed the dishes and swept up the remaining food grains on the floor. Well done. The work was completed within an hour and a half.

Alan took the first aid kit from his room. Intends to treat the back of Alice's leg with hansaplast. The girl woke up, she glanced at Noah and spontaneously pulled herself to sit up straight on the sofa even though her head still felt wobbly. "What are you doing?"

"Your leg is injured."

"You don't need to treat it, it will heal itself later." Alice was used to enduring pain, realizing that someone was bothering to treat her wound made Alice feel confused. "Who cleaned everything up?"

"Lizard on the wall."

"You?" Alice wasn't in a good condition to joke around.

"Who else?"

"Oh, men can clean the house too?"

"Is it only women who can? Sorry, I'm not a patriarchal man who adheres to the concept that housework is only done by women. I was taught by Aunt that cooking properly is the way for humans to survive."

Alice flashed a sarcastic smile.

"What's with the shoes up ahead?" Noah asked again.

"Want me to sell out at the fish market. Ten thousand get five, don't you sell it?"

"Serious?"

"No! My designs are too expensive for me to sell in the fish market." Even if it was on the edge, being arrogant was Alice's middle name. "My shoe company went bankr—error, temporarily closed, so while I'm in the process of collecting the coffers of money. My house is a stopover for those shoes."

"Your company closed?"

"Hmm."

"May I know the cause?"

"Excuse me, you already feel that close to me huh? I have no right to tell you anything!"

Noah nodded. "Yeah, sorry. Here is your leg, it's very bear. I've already healed half of it." Alice finally complied, letting Noah pull her leg up to rest on the man's thigh. He dripped red medicine and blew it dry. Something seemed to touch the corner of Alice's heart, for the first time, when she was growing up, there was someone who wanted to treat her wound.

****

It was eleven o'clock in the afternoon, Alice had just woken up to find a plate of sandwiches with an omelet and a glass of milk on the table. Alice didn't find Noah there, leaving only her scent, of course, the man had already left for work. The doorbell rang, Alice decided to open it and saw Rachel and Sofie standing there wide-eyed at the mountain of shoes. "Alice, this is serious… your company closed? Is your car for sale? Your assets too?"

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To be continued . . .