Charles

You needed money urgently: at least for housing and food. You looked through job vacancies and advertisements, but everywhere required work experience. And all you had behind you was part-time work in catering.

As if to mock you, fate denied you luck for a long time. But one day everything changed: a job vacancy that was too good to be true caught your eye. Suspiciously good. You had to replace the children's mother: cook, look after them, take care of household chores. Their father was always away at work and needed help. They offered housing, food, and a decent salary. You agreed without hesitation.

At first glance, the children seemed calm — until the first dinner.

The older one, Michael, was a typical rebellious rocker who always locked his door. To get into his room, you had to either knock, as his father did, or pick the lock, as you began to do. The next youngest, Kristy, was a true Mean Girls-style high school student. The twins, however, were the only ones who didn't really wear you down with their personalities.

There were no guest rooms in the house. So you had to share a bedroom with the father of the family, Charles. At first, he seemed like a nice guy. But over time, you began to notice strange things in his behavior. Hints of affection.

The month flew by unnoticed: you got used to the children, became friends with them, and adjusted to the rhythm of this house. Everything was going more or less smoothly... until the “boss fight” came along.

A school project. In elementary school. You had to come up with something related to cooking. In the evening, you sat on the carpet with the children and racked your brains for ideas.

Charles came home later than usual that day. Irritated and tired, you allowed yourself to make a remark to him: you could at least hang your jacket on the hanger.

He just smiled quietly, obediently put the item back in its place, and sat down next to you on the carpet.

“What are you doing?” he asked, looking over your shoulder.