A 60-year-old man works as a security guard at a shopping mall to make ends meet until his boss fires him. However, he learns a secret about his boss’s personal life that very night. Will it help him get his job back?
“Have a nice day, honey!” Catherine hugged her husband, Jimmy, before he left for work.
“Why did you wake up so early for me? You know the doctors told you to rest as much as possible,” Jimmy scolded his wife. “I don’t like it when you sacrifice your comfort for me.”
Jimmy got a job as a security guard at one of the best malls in town. The job gave him enough money to make ends meet until Catherine suddenly fell sick. She couldn’t work anymore because the doctors told her to rest at home. So he scrambled for extra work, despite his own exhaustion taking a toll on him.
Catherine woke up early every morning to prepare Jimmy’s breakfast despite her illness. While she loved seeing him off every morning, Jimmy didn’t want her to work because of him.
“My shift will end at midnight today, but I won’t return home until morning,” Jimmy said while holding his wife’s hand. “I found another job to help us save money for your treatment, sweetheart.”
Catherine was almost in tears. Having him by her side made her feel like the luckiest woman on earth. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner, she would tell herself daily.
“You’re fired, Jimmy!” Alex emerged from his office.
A few hours later, James was sitting in his cramped cabin, monitoring the mall via CCTV cameras. Everything went as usual until he noticed something strange on his computer screen. A woman parked her car right outside the mall’s entrance.
“Ma’am!” James rushed towards the woman’s car. “That’s a no parking area. Please park your car at the right place.”
“Who do you think you are?” the woman yelled while exiting her car. “Stop bothering me, or I’ll get you fired!”
“I must ensure the visitors park their cars properly,” Jimmy explained. “I’m sorry if that offends you, but you’ll have to move your car. No one’s allowed to park their vehicle in front of the entrance.”
“Oh, for God’s sake!” the woman grumbled while sitting back inside her car.
Then Jimmy helped her park at the right place, unaware that his honesty towards his duty would soon get him into trouble. He returned to his small office and monitored the live CCTV footage until he received a call from the mall owner.
“Come to my office right away!” Alex instructed Jimmy over the phone.
“Be right there, sir,” Jimmy replied before he hung up and left his cabin.
However, he stopped outside Alex’s office when he heard him argue with a woman inside. I’ll wait here, Jimmy thought. Inside the office, Alex was arguing with his wife, Alice. Jimmy could hear their conversation and sense that his boss was not in a good mood.
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“You never have time for me!” Alice complained. “You’re always busy at work or golfing with your friends. Why don’t you spend time with me, Alex?”
“I don’t spend time with you?” Alex frowned. “You never have time for me because you are always busy shopping or pampering yourself at beauty salons! You don’t even know how to cook food or clean the house. You’re a spoiled princess who only wants to spend her husband’s money!”
“What else should I do when you are not at home?” Alice shouted.
“Am I supposed to ask you before spending money? Are you going to control me now?”
“Well, that’s exactly what I am going to do!” Alex yelled. “I’m blocking all your bank cards and taking your cash and car! You need to stay at home and learn how to cook and clean. Understand?”
“That’s ridiculous!” Alice rolled her eyes. “I won’t let you take my car!” She held the car keys in her hand and walked towards the door.
“Wait, Alice!” Alex tried to stop her to no avail.
As soon as Alice stepped outside her husband’s office, she saw Jimmy standing right next to the door.
“Here he is!” she pointed at the security guard. “This filthy employee of yours stopped me from parking my car in front of the entrance. Who does he think he is?”
Jimmy was shocked to learn that the woman he met a few minutes ago was his boss’ wife. Feeling afraid of Alex’s reaction, Jimmy began apologizing. “Ma’am, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know who you were,” Jimmy begged her.
“You’re fired, Jimmy!” Alex emerged from his office. “Get out, finish what’s left of your shift today, and do not come crawling back tomorrow!”
Jimmy’s heart was restless. He felt helpless as his boss slammed the door shut, and his wife stormed out of the building. What would Jimmy do now? He badly needed the job to pay for his wife’s treatment, but he couldn’t do anything to make Alex rethink his decision.
Jimmy returned to his cabin and continued monitoring the mall’s entrances and exits through the CCTV footage. He continued fulfilling his duty honestly, unaware that he would soon stumble upon something that would help him change his life.
Towards the end of his shift, the 60-year-old man left his cabin to patrol inside the mall. Like every evening, he visited each floor and checked every corner of the mall to ensure it was empty.
Despite knowing it was his last day at work, Jimmy chose to fulfill all his responsibilities sincerely. He was walking on the second floor of the shopping mall, checking every stretch before he reached the toilets in the corner.
No one uses these anymore, he thought. But I should still check them.
Jimmy started walking towards the toilets when he suddenly heard a child’s voice from inside. “Who’s there?” he mumbled to himself and rushed inside.
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Nothing prepared Jimmy for what he saw upon entering. Alice—the boss’ wife who cost him his job that day—was sitting on a blanket spread on the floor, with her back resting on a wall. She cried uncontrollably while her daughter looked at her and asked, “What’s wrong, Mommy? Why are we sitting here?”
When Alice raised her head to look at her daughter, she was shocked to see Jimmy standing at the doorstep. “You?” Alice asked while wiping tears off her cheeks.
“Please don’t tell my husband that I’m here. Please!”
“Calm down, please. I won’t say anything to him.” Jimmy said. “Let’s quietly go to my cabin so you can tell me what happened.”
Feeling helpless, Alice agreed to follow Jimmy into his office. She picked up her daughter and went to the ground floor, trusting the security guard she had insulted earlier that day.
Once they reached his dingy cabin, Jimmy took a pack of biscuits from his bag and offered it to the little girl. “I’m not hungry because I ate the sandwiches Mommy gave me,” Alice’s daughter said. “But you should give these biscuits to Mommy. She hasn’t eaten anything.”
Jimmy smiled at the little girl and then turned towards Alice. “What happened? Why were you hiding in that abandoned toilet with your daughter?”
“It all began when Alex returned home from work today,” she recalled. “He started arguing with me again, telling me I’m not a good wife and mother and that I should cook and clean. I yelled right back at him, telling him it was his responsibility to look after my daughter and me. He kept accusing me of never supporting him…of only caring about myself…”
“Oh!” Jimmy looked at Alice and shook his head. “That sounds…traumatizing.”
“Yeah, he just wouldn’t stop yelling, you know?” Alice recounted. “Then, he said something that left me frightened.”
“What did he say?” Jimmy was curious.
“He said, ‘Now I’ll show you what I think about all this!'” Alice replied. “Then he left the house, and I watched him enter the garage. I watched him through our bedroom window, and you won’t believe what he did next. I saw him rushing back towards our house, holding a big axe! I could not believe my eyes, Jimmy. I was shocked!”
“An axe?” Jimmy looked at Alice with eyes wide open.
“Yes!” Alice nodded. “I was so scared! I quickly picked up my daughter, grabbed my bag, and ran out of the house. I even switched off my phone, so he couldn’t track me. I came straight here because I knew this was the last place he would think of looking for us. I’m so scared!”
“Ma’am. I don’t think he could do something like that. He’s not that kind of a person,” Jimmy replied.
“I thought I knew him. But I saw it. I saw him come out of the garage holding an axe, Jimmy!” Alice shook her head while staring at her hands.
“I don’t know what was going on in his mind.”
After thinking for a while, Jimmy told Alice he had an idea. “I am going to talk to him about this. I want you to stay here with your daughter until I return, okay? I promise I will sort out everything for you.”
Alice hesitated, but she listened to her inner voice. “Okay,” Alice heaved a sigh of relief. “We will wait for you, but please be safe.”
A few minutes later, Jimmy was sitting inside Alex’s house, listening to his side of the story. He had planned to call the police if Alex confessed he intended to hurt his wife. However, Jimmy’s perspective about his boss completely changed upon learning about his feelings.
“I admit that I went into the garage to fetch the axe, Jimmy,” Alex explained. “But I had no plans of hurting her or my daughter! That axe belonged to my late grandfather, who worked hard as a lumberjack to feed his family. My dad passed it down to me as a reminder to stay humble and work hard. I’ve lived by those words, and whenever it got tough, I went down and held the axe, remembering my grandpa’s legacy. I just wanted to show it to Alice and tell her something.”
“But she thought you wanted to hurt her! You can’t blame her for thinking that,” Jimmy said, shaking his head.
“I can’t even think of doing that!” Alex said. “I just wanted to tell her how my grandmother cared for my grandfather when he returned home with bleeding calluses on his palms. Grandma wrapped his palm with bandages and served him warm milk…”
“That’s so sweet of her,” Jimmy said.
“I know. She was the sweetest woman!” Alex exclaimed. “When grandpa used to leave for work, Grandma cleaned the house, milked the cows, and watered the plants. She used to cook delicious meals for her husband instead of visiting beauty salons! Of course, I understand that Alice needs her personal time and space. But sometimes, I need her, too. The kids need her, too…was I too harsh on her, Jimmy? Have I made things worse with the axe gesture?”
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Jimmy’s perception of his boss immediately changed after learning his side of the story. At that point, he came up with an idea to help Alex reunite with his wife and daughter. “I have a plan!” Jimmy said.
“What plan?” Alex’s brows furrowed as he looked at his ex-employee.
“If you allow me, I can let Alice and your daughter stay at our place for some time,” Jimmy said hesitantly. “My wife and I will slowly make her understand. I mean, she doesn’t want to talk to you or live at your house, so I think this is the best solution for your problem.”
Alex thought Jimmy was much older and wiser than him, so he decided to accept his suggestion. “Also…you can come to work tomorrow, Jimmy. I’m un-firing you,” Alex smiled.
After leaving Alex’s house, Jimmy returned to his office and asked Alice to come home with him. “My wife and I live in a small house, but we have a spare room where you both can sleep peacefully,” Jimmy said.
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At first, Alice felt skeptical, but her doubts vanished when she met Catherine. Alice thought Jimmy’s wife was a lovely woman because she gave them such a warm welcome.
“This is the secret to a successful family life, child,” Catherine smiled.
“Please have a seat,” Catherine said while pointing her hand toward the couch in the living room. “I’ll be right back.”
Catherine excused herself and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner for everyone. Then, Alice watched the old lady bring a fresh pair of pajamas for her husband, put his dirty clothes in the laundry basket, and give him a warm glass of milk. Alice was moved to see how Catherine cared for her husband despite being weak and unwell.
Alice and her daughter stayed at Jimmy’s house for the next few weeks. During that time, she felt inspired watching Catherine look after Jimmy, so she learned how to cook delicious meals and clean the house. She thought it would help her improve her relationship with Alex.
Meanwhile, Catherine treated Alice as her daughter and advised her on how to live a happy life with her husband. One day, Catherine was teaching Alice how to bake a pie. While they waited for the oven to heat up, Catherine told Alice a wise thing.
“Look, child,” Catherine said. “When your husband will be sitting at a bowling alley one day, you message him saying, ‘Hi sweetheart. I made you dinner and left it on the stove. I have also cleaned the house and put our daughter to sleep, and I feel exhausted now. I just wanted to let you know that I am going to bed. I hope you enjoy your time with your friends. Love you!’ He would be so happy to read your text, and it wouldn’t let him stay with his friends.”
“Really?” Alice asked.
“Yes, honey,” Catherine said. “He will tell his friends that he needs to go home. And when he wakes up in the morning, he will take a day off from work and go shopping with you because he appreciates your hard work. He will take your daughter to the amusement park after that.”
“How can you be so sure?” Alice asked.
“This is the secret to a successful family life, child,” Catherine smiled. “When you live for your loved one, you will see them living for you!”
A few days later, Alice returned to her house when she knew Alex was with his friends. She cleaned the house, cooked dinner, put her daughter to sleep, and then wrote the same message Catherine told her about.
To her surprise, Alex returned home within 15 minutes of reading her message. He entered the house and hugged her tight, asking her to forgive him.
“I’m sorry for doubting your intentions and leaving the house,” Alice said while holding her husband close. “You’re the best husband I could have asked for!”
The next day, Alex met Jimmy at work and thanked him for changing his wife’s perspective on life. “I can’t understand how your wife changed Alice’s perspective so quickly! Thank you for bringing Alice back to me!” Alex said.
After looking at Jimmy’s sincerity, Alex promoted him and hired Catherine as a nanny for his daughter. Alex also paid for Catherine’s treatment as a token of gratitude.
What can we learn from this story?
- Love can solve many problems. When Alice expressed her love to her husband by doing what he expected, she saw him change and love her even more.
- Never judge a person based on his looks. When Alice saw Jimmy for the first time, she insulted him, unaware that he would help her change her life for the better.
This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only.
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