To get from the Tenderloin to the Inner Sunset, you had to take the subway—no joke. Luckily, the church had given her a small stipend, otherwise Jolene wouldn’t even have been able to afford the fare.
It was about 7 kilometers from the church to the Inner Sunset. The Tenderloin was in the city center, while the Inner Sunset was located on the west side of San Francisco.
The church area was a notorious slum, but the Inner Sunset was a quiet, safe, and well-policed neighborhood.
Most of the people living in the Inner Sunset were young professionals and working adults. The area was close to Golden Gate Park, the botanical gardens, and museums, with convenient public transportation and tree-lined streets.
Stepping out of the subway station, Jolene held Emma’s hand and walked along the street. She fell in love with the area at first sight.
If she and Emma could land this job and live in this neighborhood, she wouldn’t have to worry about safety issues anymore.
But there was one major problem: she had gotten this job opportunity through the alcohol treatment center. Would the employer really want a nanny with a drinking problem?
If it were her, she certainly wouldn’t want someone who drank.
Nervous inside, Jolene kept a calm exterior, constantly telling herself that the original owner had indeed been a professional live-in nanny, and had personally raised her own daughter for five years—added together, that was a solid eight years of experience, right?
The employer’s house was at 2045 16th Avenue.
This three-story single-family home had an off-white exterior and a red pitched roof—a classic American-style house.
Jolene didn’t have a watch, so she asked a passerby for the time. Figuring it was about right, she walked up the steps and rang the doorbell.
A young man opened the door—he looked to be in his mid-twenties, with clean-cut blond hair, handsome and refined features, deep-set eyes, and a straight nose. Upon closer inspection, there were a few light brown freckles beside his nose, which made him look approachable and natural.
He smiled politely, yet with a hint of distant formality: “Hello, are you Ms. Bell?”
“Yes, hello. I’m Jolene Bell, and this is my daughter Emma. I’m here for the live-in nanny interview,” Jolene replied, pulling her gaze away from him.
So young—surely a man like this couldn’t be the father of the children. For a three-story single-family home like this, maybe he was some kind of intermediary helping with the interview.
“Hello,” the man greeted Jolene, then looked down at Emma and said, “Hello, Miss Emma. Welcome.”
“Hello, sir,” Emma nodded obediently.
After the greetings, the man led the mother-daughter pair to the living room on the first floor.
The living room was very spacious, with a view straight through to the backyard lawn. It connected to the dining room and an open-concept kitchen.
Mother and daughter sat on the dark brown leather sofa, facing a solid wood coffee table. The dining table and chairs, as well as the flooring, were all made of natural-grain solid wood.
“Let me introduce myself—I’m Hugh Raymond,” the man said with a smile, though his expression remained serious—clearly, this was a formal interview. He paused briefly before continuing, “So, shall we begin the interview officially now?”
“Of course, Mr. Raymond,” Jolene nodded.
“Could you tell me about your past work experience?”
Jolene tried to recall what the original owner had done while working for Congressman McCallis in L State, and said, “I worked as a live-in nanny for a Republican state legislator in L State. He had a son and a daughter—the younger son was five and the daughter was seven at the time. I was mainly responsible for picking up and dropping off the children from school, playing with them, and helping with their homework. Cleaning, meals, and other tasks were handled by other staff…”
Raymond nodded, appearing to be thinking. After a moment, he asked, “Did you raise your daughter yourself?”
Jolene glanced at Emma, who was sitting obediently beside her, curiously watching the two adults talk. No wonder Mr. Raymond asked that—it was rare to see a five-year-old this well-behaved.
Jolene felt a flicker of joy. Wasn’t Emma the most convincing proof?
“Yes, the child doesn’t have a father. I raised her entirely on my own. She’s very well-behaved—she can feed herself, bathe herself, and she even helps me sort donated items at the church…”
Mr. Raymond across from her seemed to find this amusing, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips: “Emma really is impressive.”
Emma, who had been trying hard to follow the adults’ conversation, was surprised to hear her name suddenly mentioned. It seemed this uncle was praising her.
“Thank you, sir!” Emma’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Hugh, her face beaming with joy, but she remembered to be a well-behaved child and sat up even straighter.
Raymond was amused by the child’s reaction, and his gaze toward Jolene grew more approving.
“I see you have eight years of experience and have raised a child of your own—that’s very good. Additionally,” Raymond paused, looking thoughtful, “I believe I received your resume from the alcohol treatment association. So, one last question—can you guarantee that you’ve already quit drinking?”
Sure enough, the question came up. Jolene understood completely—if it were her, she would have rejected such a candidate immediately. But since the referral came from a nonprofit organization, perhaps the employer was willing to give her a chance to work again, as long as she could prove she had stopped drinking.
“Yes, I went to the treatment center on my own. They said my condition wasn’t severe, and because my willingness to quit is very strong, I only need to attend a weekly group support session and regular follow-ups—there shouldn’t be any issues,” Jolene assured him immediately.
She didn’t know if there were other candidates, so Jolene felt a little nervous. She also thought that this man would probably call for a background check, which made her a bit anxious.
But she didn’t show it on the outside and came across as very sincere.
“I heard you’re currently staying at a church?” Raymond didn’t show any suspicion and continued asking.
Jolene: “Yes. Because of my drinking, I spent all my savings and had nowhere to live, so I went to the church. Thanks to their help, my daughter and I have a temporary place to stay. Now, as long as I find a stable job, Emma’s and my life will get better and better…”
The man looked up and gave Jolene an unreadable glance.
“My younger brother is five years old. His name is Ben Raymond, and he goes to Sunset District Public Elementary School. Your main responsibilities will be picking him up and dropping him off from school, spending time with him, and helping with his homework.” Raymond turned and looked again at the mother and daughter sitting before him, his gaze landing on Emma. “Emma can also enroll in a public school nearby.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Jolene’s eyes lit up, and she exchanged a glance with Emma.
Emma had never been to school before—she’d always stayed at home. The original owner had been out of it most of the time and rarely took the child out, let alone sent her to preschool.
A few days earlier, Jolene had been wondering where Emma would go to school if they had no place to live. She hadn’t expected this job to solve three problems at once: housing, living expenses for both of them, and even getting Emma into school.
Emma, however, only looked confused at hearing her name. She didn’t understand why her mom seemed so happy—but if Mom was happy, then it must be something good, so Emma’s eyes also filled with joy.
“That’s great! Wait, so—does this mean I’m hired?” Jolene’s face broke into a smile.
Raymond nodded solemnly. “Yes. I hope Ben can be as well-behaved as Emma. You’ve raised your child well.”
“When can I move in?” Jolene asked directly.
Realizing she was currently staying at the church, Raymond understood. “You can move in tonight. The room on the left side of the second floor is for you and Emma.”
If this man weren’t a stranger, Jolene would have picked Emma up and spun her around. Just as she was about to speak, the man suddenly added:
“By the way, there will be dedicated staff handling meals, shopping, and cleaning for the whole household. Also, I’d like the house to stay quiet,” Raymond emphasized.
For such reasonable requirements, Jolene naturally agreed quickly: “Okay, understood. Emma and I will move in tonight—we need to let the church know.”
Raymond didn’t seem to care either way.
For Jolene, landing such a great job filled her with nothing but happiness.
With Emma in tow, mother and daughter took the subway back to the apartment in the slums.
After all, Jolene still had some documents and clothes there.
“Knock, knock, knock—”
Jolene knocked on the downstairs door. The landlord who opened it was the one she’d met on the first day.
Sure enough, the landlord frowned at the sight of Jolene. “Your room has already been rented out. I can’t rent it to you again.”
“I know. The thing is, I’ve found a job—a live-in nanny position. Thank you so much for looking after us during this time,” Jolene said with a smile, patting Emma’s head. “May I ask—you didn’t throw away my things, did you? Can I take them?”
The landlord paused, furrowing her brow as she looked at Emma. “This is Emma? Her hair looks clean today. Seems like you’ve been doing well these past few days. Wait here—I didn’t throw your things away. I stacked them in the corner. I’ll go get them for you.”
Jolene didn’t step inside. When the landlord brought out a large cardboard box, she took out a few clothes and her documents on the spot and put them in her backpack. As for the pots, pans, and other grimy items, she didn’t even glance at them. “Do you need any of these things?”
The landlord waved her hand and told her to leave the box at the doorstep, in case anyone wanted the old stuff.
After saying goodbye to the landlord, mother and daughter made another stop at the church, then took the subway back to the Sunset District.
This time, the person who opened the door was the household chef, who was in charge of all the family’s meals.
“Are you Ms. Bell?” the chef asked.
Jolene was about to nod when she suddenly heard a little boy’s voice:
“I don’t want to eat! Where’s my brother? Why isn’t he coming home for dinner? If my brother isn’t coming home, I’m not eating!”
Hearing the noise, the boy came running to the door: “Is my brother home?”
“Hello, Ben. I’m your nanny, Jolene, and this is Emma—”
“I don’t want to! I don’t want to! So annoying! I don’t want a nanny! Why isn’t my brother home yet?” The little boy ran back inside, tripped, and fell flat on the floor, wailing at the top of his lungs.
Jolene: “…” Sure enough, this was what a normal child was like. Emma was definitely the exception…
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