She would never be poor again

She had found something that would mean she'd never be poor again - but there was a catch. She had to go work for them. 'Them' meant her relatives. Her cousins, who were always scornful and insulting whenever they possibly could.

Her life had taken a turn when her parents passed away when she was young but not too young to work. So, she decided that she would work part-time and study so that she could get a good job. She had searched for options but none of it seemed good enough. Either the rent for accommodation was high or else the work was too heavy.

It was then that her cousins who knew about her condition offered to help. She had told them that she would reply within a few days and thought about it. Living with them meant working for them as a cook and maid besides getting treated with contempt which was part of the package.

She thought hard about it. Refusing them would take about a minute of conversation but accepting their offer would mean living in a safe place, food, and other facilities and the freedom to study. She did not want to risk her life by living with strangers and so she called her cousins to tell them that she accepted their offer.

Her cousins were happy mainly because they would get an unpaid servant whom they could taunt for free. They knew they were sick but they could not help it. The cousin who was going to live and work for them had had a beautiful childhood which they had envied and now it seemed to be the perfect time for payback.

She packed her bags and went to her cousins' house. There were four of them. All middle-aged and unmarried. When you studied them from their point of view, they were not actually bad. It was their difficult childhood which made them sadistic and often sarcastic. She thought that whatever happened, she would not retort or reply back. She was grateful that they had no problems with having her.

She was quite happy with her job of cleaning and cooking for them. It was not so hard as she had imagined. She also found time to study. In fact, her cousins found that she was very kind and also very respectful unlike the younger generation of the time. She made sure that they all had their food and meds on time and also helped them with the garden.

The cousins felt grateful and they stopped chiding her and insulting her. They all agreed that she was a blessing to them and decided to tell her that she was free to live there as long as she pleased.

She felt happy that her cousins had a change of mind. She studied well and passed with flying colors.

The time had come for her to leave for another city and a new job with lots of perks. Her cousins were sad that she was leaving but happy that she got a good job. She told them that she wanted them to continue having helpers and wondered if they would take on a person like her. She brought her friend who was also her junior in college to her cousins' home and asked them if they would mind having her. They were happy and her friend was too because it was rent-free accommodation besides being a safe haven.

She walked towards the bus stop. Her mind was full of emotions. Happy, relieved and free and a little sad too.

image source 1

image source 2

written by @sayee