When The Orphan Meets The Mafia Lord

Layla's POV

"You're late," my boss yelled as soon as I walked into the locker room. All eyes were drawn to me, causing me to look down in shame.

"I apologize, I-" When my boss told us to hurry and get to our assigned stations, I was cut off. He stormed out of the locker room, muttering to himself. When I looked around, everyone was scurrying around, unsure whether they should put on their uniforms or rush to their stations. I awoke from my trance and quickly changed into my uniform.

I hurried to the front of the restaurant where I work to begin taking orders. I've been busy taking orders and serving customers. I was returning to the kitchen halfway through my shift when I felt someone grab my back.

I turned around and smacked the perpetrator across the face. He rose to his feet immediately, an intimidating expression on his wrinkled old face. I looked over to the other side of the table and saw that he was dining with a lovely young lady who seemed unconcerned about what was going on.

My boss apologized for my behavior before anything else could happen. He even invited them to eat at his house. The guy had a disgusting scowl on his face, his eyes shooting daggers at me.

"I'll explain. He was-"

"I'm not interested in your explanation. You assaulted a customer and did not even bother to apologize. You've been fired!" I stared at my boss, who had accused me of being incorrect. The guy who had assaulted me smirked triumphantly at me.

"But he was the one who groped my back," I grumbled, feeling as if the entire world was against me.

"What do you think? I apologize... I apologize for not allowing you to touch me with your old, wrinkly hand "I spit at the filthy old man.

When I turned around, I didn't notice that everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch the scene unfold in front of them. Embarrassed by the attention, I kept my head down and went to the back to retrieve my belongings. I sighed and exited through the back door after looking around the empty changing room.

I let the frustrated tears flow as I stood outside in the alley. I was now unemployed and would most likely be homeless soon because I couldn't pay my rent. The universe seemed to enjoy seeing me like this.

My father abandoned me first, and then my mother died, leaving me alone. I'm not sure if I have any other relatives because I only knew my mother, who never mentioned her family. I felt completely alone at this point. Working at the restaurant with my best friend, Avery, brightened my day. She wasn't at work today, which made things even more difficult. At the very least, she would be there to console me.

This was my only source of income, and the little money I made barely covered all of my expenses. When my mother became ill, I had to drop out of high school so that I could work to pay off her medical bills because we didn't have insurance.

As soon as I stepped inside the bar, I went straight for the restroom because I was drenched. Because no one else was in the restroom, I removed my shirt, wrung out as much water as I could, and then replaced it. I noticed a hand dryer on the wall next to the sink and decided to crouch beneath it to get as dry as possible.

I wasn't completely dry after ten minutes, but I wasn't that wet either, so I wasn't complaining.

I left the restroom and went straight to the bar, where I ordered six Kamikaze shots. The bartender gave me a puzzled look but still served it. I finished all six shots in under a minute.

"Whoa, slow down there," I hear someone to my right say. I turned to the side and saw the most stunning man I'd ever seen. He had silky hair, sapphire eyes, a straight nose, and a full rose mouth. He was dressed in a suit with a dangerous aura around him.

I'm not sure how long I stared at him. I heard him clear his throat before his mouth tightened into a smirk. I quickly averted my gaze, blushing furiously. I'd been caught eyeing a complete stranger. I dared to look at him again, only to find him already staring at me, and I quickly averted my gaze.

"Umm... I-I-I," I stutteringly said. He chuckled, which made my face even hotter.

"It's fine. People constantly give me that look "He cockily smirked. I rolled my eyes and ordered a drink for him.

"What is a beautiful girl like you doing drinking alone?" He inquired, his brow furrowed. I'm not sure if the drinks affected me, but I began telling him about what had happened earlier. He sat quietly and attentively as I rant about my sad, pathetic life.

I burst into tears after my rant. I reasoned that my behavior was probably due to the drinks. As he stared at me with wide eyes, he appeared panicked and uneasy. He appeared to be at a loss for what to do next. It's not every day that you run into an emotional lady in a bar.

I quickly wiped away my tears, putting him out of his misery, and he sighed. I laughed when I remembered his expression when he saw me cry. It was hilarious, and I had forgotten why I was crying in the first place.

Weird. The shots are most likely effective.

I sat there laughing my head off as he gave me a strange look. He looks silly when he scrunches his nose like that. This made me laugh even more than usual. 'Oh my god, I think I'm drunk,' I thought.

"You think?" he inquired, his brow furrowed.

'Did I just say that aloud?' I wondered.

"Yes, you did," he said with a chuckle.

'OMG! He has the ability to read my mind!' I thought to myself once more. He gave me a funny look before bursting out laughing.

Before he could finish his sentence, a man whispered something to him. He stood up abruptly and walked out of the bar, his face solemn. I frowned at his back as he walked away without acknowledging me.

I paid my bill and rose from my seat. I was disappointed that he didn't even say goodbye. As I stumbled to the door, I tried to collect myself and shake off the drink.

I looked around, unsure where to go, and decided to take the road. I tripped over my two feet and fell to the ground as I started walking. Because no one was around, I just lay there and laughed like a lunatic.

After a minute of struggling to stand properly, I was able to get back on my feet. I resumed my walk, this time trying to stay upright. After what felt like an hour but was actually only a minute, I heard grunts from an alley a few steps ahead of me.

I'm not sure if it was because I was drunk or stupid, but I thought it would be a great idea to sneak a peek at what was going on. This happens all the time in movies. How difficult could it be?

I leaned against the wall and smiled evilly. I began sliding against the wall, almost to the edge. I took a deep breath and pushed my head past the edge to see what was around the corner.

Three men stood over a man on his knees pleading for his life. The man was badly injured and covered in crimson liquid. One of his eyes was swollen shut, and his mouth was busted. I'm not sure what I was expecting to see, but it wasn't that.

When one of the guys standing there pulled out a gun, all of the heads snapped in my direction. They were all staring at me, who was standing just a few feet away in full view; I'm not even sure when I came out from behind the wall.

One of the men standing there stood out to me. It was the same as in the bar. Before he began walking toward me, that lovely face gave me a stern look.

I stood there like an idiot for a second before convincing my legs to move. I took off running as fast as my legs could carry me. I heard footsteps and curses behind me. I dared to look over my shoulder and panicked when I saw how close he was.

As I refocused my attention to the front, I collided with a brick wall and fell on my back. 'What was the point of having a wall in the middle of the sidewalk?' As I rubbed my brow, I reflected. A pair of hands grabbed me from behind and yanked me to my feet. I began to panic when I realized he had cornered me.

As he held me against him, I began hitting and thrashing wildly in his arms. When a cloth was placed over my nose, I screamed and shouted for help.

I tried to hold my breath for as long as I could, but the hand never moved. I couldn't take it any longer and inhaled whatever was on the cloth. My eyes started to close slowly on their own before I passed out.