A Task For A New Cleaner

"For starters, you must know that you only have a maximum of 30 minutes to clean the room. We get lots of customers because of the nearby bar, and we don't want to test the patience of our customers, right? So it's best to work fast while maintaining the room spotless of dirt."

Blaire nodded as she was being oriented by the head of the cleaning team. "By the way I am Margaret, but everyone calls me Marge, so you can also call me by Marge or Margaret, whichever you prefer. Follow me"

They both went inside a room that looks like a tornado passed by. Linens are scattered everywhere, pillows are found at every corner of the room, trash bin is spilled, resulting to trashes like tissues and used condoms to fill in the floor, and the bathroom is full of muddy footprints. Blaire was astounded for a second.

I know I'm in an orientation, but is it really necessary to give a room this kind of representation? Who would be in their right mind to make this mess? She thought to herself.

Margaret immediately saw the shock in Blaire's face upon seeing the room.

"Now, now. Blaire, you may not believe this, but such cases like this are common in this lodging inn. So remove that kind of expression in your face and you better start working. Remember you only have 30 minutes. Okay?"

"Y-Yes, Margaret"

"Remember. Start with removing all the linens and puff off the dust. Then take all the trash in the plastic before removing all the dust on the floor. Mop the toilet area of the bathroom and place a new air freshener on it. Then you put a new set of linens on the bed before spraying the room with air conditioner. Do all of that in a span of 30 minutes. You ready?"

"Yes, I am."

"Okay. I will wait for you in 30 minutes outside the door and will rate your work after. Got it?"

"Got it"

"So you may start.... now"

Just like what Margaret has said, Blaire started removing all the linens from the bed and the floor and folded them nicely before putting in her cleaning cart. She mopped the floor of the toilet area of the bathroom and cleaned the floor of the shower area. While cleaning, she admired the design of the bathroom. This isn't like an ordinary bathroom of a cheap lodging inn, she could tell since she saw photos of cheap lodging inn rooms from her friends who used to checked in with their "meet up friends".

After cleaning and mopping the floor of the room, she started putting the new set of linens and making sure they were placed neatly. As a final touch, she sprayed the room with a lemon-scent air freshener before opening the door to let Margaret know that she's done.

"Wow, you're 3 minutes ahead the time limit. That's incredible for a starter," Margaret exclaimed. She then went inside the room to check whether she really did it nicely or not.

"W...Wow, I'm...I'm speechless." Margaret said upon entering the room. The room looks magnificent. This is the first time for Margaret to see a room that looks dashing.

"Have you ever worked for a cleaning company before?" Margaret asked Blaire, to which the latter responded no.

"Really? You were excellent on your first try. Most newbies weren't able to finish in the given time and they don't look like this... so delightful."

Blaire bowed her head as she doesn't know how to respond.

Truth be told, her parents were actually the ones working for a cleaning company. They have been part of the cleaning company that were sent to clean different clients' requests so they were accustomed to cleaning big rooms in a small amount of time. Blaire considers her parents as "tidy monsters" as they hate to see any dirt clinging on surfaces and things, that's why at such a young age, she and her younger brother were taught how to clean. She doesn't hate it though; in fact, she actually loves cleaning as it gives her comfort and peace of mind.

That's also how she managed to survived while in the prison. Thankfully, all her bullies and cellmates always leave the task of cleaning to her.

"Anyway, you passed on your task. You may start later. Go to the staff's office and look for Jen as she will give you your uniform and cleaning materials. She'll also give you a walkie talkie. If you don't know how to use that, just ask Jen for help. Understood?"

"Understood, Miss Margaret"

"Good." Margaret then sighed and looked at Blaire. "Silly girl, where have you been all this time? I have been looking for the greatest employee that might increase the rate of our establishment!"

Then Margaret laughed before leaving Blaire. The latter couldn't contain her happiness that she shed some tears while extending her arms as her sign of victory for a task completed. She then used the nearby elevator to go down to the ground floor to prepare for her shift.

-----

"Hey. You new here?"

Blaire stopped on her tracks in the lounging area at the 5th floor when she heard someone. She looked back and saw a woman, probably a year or two older than her. She got a nice haircut which is a pixie style and has 3 large clips on each side of her hair which suits her round face. The girl also wears the same uniform as Blaire's, but she didn't saw her awhile ago when Margaret was introducing her to other staffs.

Blaire bowed her head slightly as an answer to her question. The girl looked at her from head to toe before rolling her eyes and walked past her, making sure that she bumped Blaire's shoulder.

The old Blaire would've picked a fight on that girl and would call her names as an insult for bumping her and rolling her eyes for no apparent reason. However, Blaire just continued bowing her head and even made way for the girl to pass through.

Technically, the girl who bumped her is much taller than Blaire and she also had promised Kendra not to cause any problems. Besides, she's already used to being shoved aside by people who she even hadn't made anything wrong.

She just continued putting all her materials in her cart, making sure that all the things she had used upon cleaning the room are put in the cart. She then proceeded to a small shaft located near the elevator and started putting the used linens inside. That shaft is directly connected to the laundry area so the cleaners won't tire themselves from going up and down the floor whenever they transfer the used linens into the laundry room.

While waiting for any work, Blaire sat on a stool beside the fire exit and glanced on her watch. It's 9:30 in the evening. She still has a long way to go before her shift ends at 5 in the morning.

As she has nothing to do, she thought about her family. At this quiet times, whenever she doesn't have any thing to do, her mind wanders to her family. How are they right now? Are they still eating? Does her family still remembers her? Are they still healthy?

Ever since she went to prison, her family was prohibited by Rainier to have any contact with her. They once visited her, helping her to prove her innocence on the case. But then she received a letter from her mother that they were threatened by Rainier to have their jobs lost if they still continue to communicate with me. Even though it pains her, she informed her parents not to worry about her, and they could still communicate secretly through handwritten letters.

Their communications lasted for months until on the 6th month, she did not receive any letter from her family since. Blaire also sent a letter to her parents, informing them of her release but she did not hope to receive any response from them. She never stopped sending them letters; and she never will.