Chapter 118 08: Abdul (eight updates)

"Hello, I'm a maintenance worker from Alloy Wrench Company. This is my work ID. May I ask if you have an appointment for the pipe repair at 10 o'clock?"

District 19.

Somewhere in a residential community.

Abdul, carrying a tool bag, held up his work ID to the surveillance camera. Today was his seventh day on duty alone.

"Oh, yes, my grandfather made an appointment."

The door was opened and Abdul's eyes lit up. The person who opened the door was a very pretty young woman.

"Please follow me in."

"Okay, do you want me to change my shoes?"

"Ah? No need, just come in."

"Ah."

Abdul entered the room and saw many photos of buildings hanging around. The most prominent one was an overhead photo of the Eiffel Tower.

Without looking too closely, he followed the woman to the kitchen.

She pointed to a puddle of water on the ground and said, "The faucet is leaking a little bit. I can't close it tightly. And I don't know why water is always seeping out of the ground."

"There must be a water pipe leaking at this location." Abdul rolled up his sleeves, opened his tool bag, and prepared to start checking his work.

The young woman brought some fruit and milk and put them on the table: "Don't worry, you can eat something first."

Abdul looked at her sincere smile and nodded subconsciously, smiling shyly: "Thank you so much."

"My name is Caroline. I saw your name on your work badge is Abdul?" Caroline took the initiative to chat.

"Yes, nice to meet you, Miss Caroline." Abdul responded a little awkwardly.

Caroline said, "You can just call me Caroline. I'm a student majoring in architecture. My recent project is related to the study of immigrant housing difficulties, so I want to talk to you about life. Do you mind?"

Abdul thought of the difficulties he had faced over the years and smiled bitterly: "If you ask, I can tell you everything I know."

"How old are you today?"

"Twenty-five. I have obtained the junior certificate and can handle most situations. I also consult some senior employees on a regular basis."

".So that's how it is. Companies are suppressing wages like this."

".We can't do anything about it."

"As for the security, the implementation situation."

"Those who came to power a few years ago have improved the situation."

Abdul was not busy chatting. He answered the other party's questions while working. Most of them were personal experiences and insights, so there was no need to think about them too much.

"Hey, I'm back. Is the plumber here?" A voice suddenly came from the door.

"Yes, I'm working on it now," Caroline replied.

Coincidentally, Abdul had also completed the repairs and inspections.

"Here's a tip, thank you for your help." Caroline handed over the money and tip and marked "satisfied" on the questionnaire.

"Thank you, thank you." Abdul took the money, glanced at the old man who came in, and put on his tool bag. "Hello, sir, the water pipe has been repaired."

The old man stopped him: "Wait."

After saying that, he went to check it out.

"Grandfather, I've checked it." Caroline said.

The old man nodded, but continued to check. After a few minutes, he said to Abdul, "It's OK. Thank you for your help."

"Bye." Caroline waved at him.

"Bye-Bye."

"Grandfather, aren't we going to the Eiffel Tower tomorrow?"

"Honey, I have something to do tomorrow."

Abdul left the house, the noise inside gradually faded away, and after walking for a while, he returned to the car.

The inspection was necessary, and he didn't take it to heart. Instead, he was happier that he had met a friendly beauty today and received a nice tip.

Tuk-tuk-tuk.

There was a knock on the car window. He turned around and clenched his hand holding the money instantly. His heart seemed to skip a beat.

Standing outside the car window were two little black guys.

Abdul instinctively wanted to drive away, but when he looked closely, it seemed that he had seen these two people before?
It’s not about recognizing faces, that’s a bit difficult, but about their clothes.

"Hey, brother."

The car window was lowered carefully, leaving just enough space for a palm to fit in. The hip-hop black guy didn't mind and instead approached him.

"Hey, I remember you. We are from the same community. Don't worry, we have rules. People from the same community are all brothers."

Abdul’s expression was stiff: “Thank you, thank you.”

"But, we need your help with a small matter, brother, is this okay?" Another serious-faced Xiao Hei raised his hand casually, revealing the gun at his waist.

Abdul clenched the money in his hand: "Sure, please."

"The old man in the house you just came out of is a scumbag. He looks down on immigrants like us all day long. It's naked discrimination. I want to rob him. Of course, I just want to teach him a lesson and let him remember that we can't mess with him." Hip-Hop Xiao Hei pointed vaguely at the house where Abdul had just repaired the water pipe and said with a smile.

Abdul swallowed his saliva, feeling a little dizzy, and his hand unconsciously wanted to reach for the gearshift, but out of the corner of his eye he saw another black man already holding his waist, as if he was ready to pull out a gun and shoot at any time.

Although he didn't seem to be qualified to say this, from what he had seen and heard, most of these people were very emotional, and sometimes they would even turn against each other and start a gunfight over which TV channel to watch. Therefore, he didn't dare to gamble.

But Caroline's face flashed through his mind. At least, she didn't discriminate against us.

"Brother, did you misunderstand? There was a woman in that family who was very friendly to us and was working on some immigration project."

Hip Hop's little black eyes seemed to light up: "Oh, you mean, this family only has an old man and a woman?"

Abdul's breathing stopped.

Oh my God! What a stupid thing he did!
"I, I, I don't know. Maybe there are others." He tried to make amends with sweat on his forehead.

As if he felt that the information was enough, Hip-Hop Xiao Hei gave a look to Serious Xiao Hei, and the two of them waved to Abdul and left.

Abdul stood there in a daze for a long time before he was awakened by an urgent phone call.

"Do you still want to do it?!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'll be right back!"

For the sake of work, he suppressed all his thoughts and drove back to the company.

At seven o'clock in the evening, Abdul rode his bicycle back to the northern part of District 17, an old apartment building that is now the base camp for these mediocre immigrants.

But he knew that they could only share the joys and sorrows here, but not the prosperity. When he saved enough money, he would have to move out, at least to the 19th district.
Thinking of District 19, the memories that he had deliberately avoided surfaced again. He sighed, carried his bicycle back to his door, and looked at the room at the end of this floor with some concern. He vaguely remembered that was where the two black guys lived.

Open the door and enter the house.

"Mom, I'm back."

The room is not big, which is a common phenomenon in slum apartments. Compared with those rooms where seven or eight people live, my home only has three people living in it, which is already pretty good.

"You've worked hard today. Come, the moussaka is just ready. Fahd, stop looking at your phone and come and get the pocket bread."

Fahd is Abdul's younger brother, who is only a teenager. Some time ago, he took advantage of the opportunity to participate in some activities and stole some things, but they were snatched away by others and he was beaten. He is now recuperating at home.

The living room in the house is also the dining room. There is a small TV on the shabby TV cabinet. Next to the TV cabinet is an iron tower ornament and a family photo. It is a photo of a family of four under the iron tower. It was taken not long after Abdul and his family arrived in Gaul.

A family of three sat around a dining table that was missing a leg and was propped up by a wooden stick.

"Taisimi."

A few people were talking about some family matters, such as which neighbor had found a good job, the price of vegetables had gone up again, and whose daughter seemed to be old enough to get married.
"Mom, I'm here today."

During the conversation, Abdul could not hold back his worries and spoke frankly to his mother.

The mother frowned. "Is it the Martin brothers? They are not good people. I heard that. Oh, remember, this is none of your business. No matter what happens, just say you don't know and don't meddle in other people's business."

"What does the life and death of those white people have to do with us? Only when they die can we find jobs." Fahd said vaguely while eating bread.

The mother looked at Fahd with a complicated expression: "Your thoughts are becoming more and more radical. Have you joined the chat rooms of those 'noble' organizations again?"

Fahd's cheeks were puffed with food and he shook his head wildly.

After dinner, after watching some TV with his mother, which he didn't like, Abdul found an excuse to go out for a walk.

This old apartment building is very much like a student dormitory. There is a corridor outside the door, and you can see the scenery outside from the corridor.

He made an excuse to come out just to smoke. He didn't know how to smoke originally, but his workplace had this kind of social demand. Many locals liked to smoke while talking during conversations. In order to better integrate with them, Abdul learned to do so.

This is still a relatively mild harm. After all, some young people smoke more vigorously, and he dare not learn from them.

After finishing the first cigarette and just about to have another one, he saw the Martin brothers downstairs.

He couldn't see the expressions of the two men in the dark, and they were wearing gray and black clothes. If it weren't for his good eyesight, he would not have noticed them.

Abdul could only tell from their steps that they seemed a little flustered and hurried, and that they were holding a bag in their hands.

He quickly put away the cigarette, turned back to his room, leaned against the door, and took a deep breath.

"Abdul? What's wrong?"

"No Martin, they're back."

The mother nodded, leaned against the wall, and looked at the door nervously.

Before long, they heard hurried footsteps approaching and passing by.
"call"

Tuk-tuk-tuk.

Before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, a knock on the door startled them.

There was no peephole in the door, so he could only hope that the people knocking on the door were not the Martin brothers, but perhaps neighbors who came to visit and borrow two pounds of flour.

"Hey, I'm Martin, open the door." The words from the person outside the door shattered Abdul's fantasy.

Taking a deep breath, he gave his mother a reassuring look, fastened the safety chain of the anti-push door, and slowly opened the door to the side.

"Brother, haha, I don't have anything special to ask you. This little money is to thank you. Take it."

Hip Hop Xiao Hei stuffed a handful of banknotes into his hand through the crack in the door.

Before Abdul could reply, he heard the other party continue, "Remember, we didn't look for you this morning, and you didn't see us either. Is that clear?"

He looked up and saw that Xiao Hei's smiling face had cold eyes.

Looking at the other serious Xiao Hei who didn't say anything, he seemed to have no choice.

"Well, I haven't seen you. We don't know each other."

"Okay, very good. Say hello to your brother and mother for me."

Hip-hop Xiao Hei threatened calmly, then left with serious Xiao Hei.

After closing the door and comforting his mother, Abdul returned to his room in a daze. He lay on the bed, staring at the crumpled and blood-stained banknote in his hand, in a daze.

(End of this chapter)