Getting A Mom: Baby Sitting His Daughter

Chapter 1

Genesis

Pearl had sent out ninety-three job applications in the past three months.

Ninety-three.

And every single one had finished the same way.

We regret to inform you...

She slumped deeper into the worn armchair, her thumb rhythmically clicking the remote as colours flashed across the television screen.

None of it mattered.

The shows, the noise, the laughter tracks—they were all just background noise for the quiet panic tightening around her chest.

“Why is everything so soul-crushing?” she sighed, her voice echoing in the small apartment. “Not a single thing worth watching.”

Truthfully, it wasn’t the television that frustrated her. It was the silence between the channels—the empty hours of the day that reminded her she was unemployed, unwanted, and slowly becoming invisible.

She was about to press the power button when a sleek, high-definition news graphic caught her eye.

“This is CBN News. Coming up at 5 p.m., an exclusive sit-down with the man behind the empire: Ace Warren, CEO of AW Group. Join us as we talk shop with the world’s most influential billionaire and reigning celebrity icon. Stay tuned for a look into the life of the man who has it all.”

Pearl rolled her eyes.

“Ugh, rubbish.”

Of course, the world had time to celebrate another billionaire.

She stood up, crossing the room to grab a bowl of strawberries, trying to distract herself with a comic book. But before she could finish the first page, the screen went black.

“What the—? I was actually using that!” she yelled.

From across the room, Ella looked up with a dry scoff.

“Using it for what? To torture yourself?”

Pearl pouted, though the frustration behind it was real. Her eyes stung with the pressure she’d been holding in all day.

“At least it was a distraction,” she muttered. “Do you like seeing me sit here like a ghost, staring into space?”

Ella’s expression softened. She ran a hand through her blonde hair and let out a long breath.

“Pearl, honey, I didn’t mean—”

“Do you think I’m happy?” Pearl interrupted, the dam finally cracking. “I sit here all day watching useless movies because I’ve become a liability. I don’t have a job, Ella. I have nothing.”

The words echoed in the apartment, heavier than she expected.

“Pearl, stop.”

“Don’t ‘Pearl’ me!” she snapped, standing up so abruptly the strawberries nearly tipped over. “The rich just keep getting richer while the rest of us are stuck in the mud. Can’t you see it?”

Her voice trembled.

“My degrees, my certificates… they’re just expensive paper. And those bosses? They don’t even look at my CV. They just look at me like I’m a prize to be won in exchange for a paycheck.”

The memory of certain interviews flashed through her mind—lingering stares, inappropriate smiles, the subtle suggestion that “cooperation” could open doors.

Her stomach twisted.

“It’s disgusting.”

She sank back into the chair, sobbing into her hands. The frustration, the humiliation, the exhaustion of trying and failing—it all crashed