Luiz froze.The face looking back at him wasn't just anyone's — but his mind couldn't place it. Not yet.
The woman's expression hardened. "Do you even know how much this costs?" she hissed, flicking water from her sleeve. "Get out before I call security."
"I'm sorry, ma'am," Luiz said quickly, grabbing the rag and trying to wipe the spill."Don't touch me!" she snapped, stepping back. Her voice carried through the studio, drawing a few heads from the hallway.
Mr. Giles appeared at the door moments later, breathless. "What's going on here?"
"Your cleaner nearly ruined my outfit — and this set!" she said sharply. "If this gets into the cables, that's thousands in damage."
Luiz lowered his gaze. "It was an accident, sir."
Giles' jaw tightened. "Apologize and get out. I'll handle the rest."
Luiz nodded. "I'm sorry."
He picked up the bucket and left, ignoring the eyes following him.By the time he reached the basement, the laughter from above felt like static pressing into his skull.
The other cleaners didn't ask. They'd already heard.One of them, a woman in her forties, shook her head. "You won't last long here, kid. These people eat pride for breakfast."
Luiz gave a tired half-smile. "Good thing I'm not hungry."
He went back to work in silence.
Hours later, as the night shift thinned out, he slipped to the empty break room and sat near the vending machine.His hands still smelled faintly of bleach. His phone buzzed once — a message from the finance office:
Reminder:Outstanding tuition balance due in 5 days,before the Continuous Assessment Tests start.