Will’s morning started with a bad sign — a loud “rip” and a huge tear in his pants. Rachael, his sister, noticed and offered to help. “Let me fix that for you,” she said.

Glancing anxiously at the clock, Will replied, “No time, Rachael. It’s my first day, and I can’t afford to be late.” He tried his best to cover the tear with his shirt, insisting, “I’ll be fine,” as he dashed out, feeling self-conscious under the gaze of onlookers.

At the cleaning company, Will listened intently as Jacob, the manager, assigned tasks. The mention of a job at a creepy mansion made everyone hesitate. But Will knew the job paid about five times the regular tasks, so he volunteered, albeit hesitantly.

“I-I’ll take it!” he said, and everyone turned to look at him.

“Remember, no takebacks, kid,” the manager said, and Will nodded.

“Just so you know, that place is a mess. Dead animals and all,” one of the workers, James, told Will as the gathering dispersed.

“And the old lady, Mrs. Freeman, the owner of the mansion, she’s no longer with us. Rumor has it her house isn’t just old; it’s haunted,” James’s friend, Mike, added.

“Ease up, Mike. Don’t freak him out.”

But Mike couldn’t help himself. “Just saying, keep an eye out for ghosts!”

Despite the eerie warnings, Will remained undeterred. He didn’t believe in ghosts and was determined to face whatever came his way for the right price.

Later that morning, Will approached the large, eerie mansion shrouded in darkness by towering trees, feeling an unsettling chill. The mansion, which looked like it had come straight out of a ghost story, seemed to watch him as he moved closer. Shaking off his fear, Will walked up to its imposing gates.

“Who’s there?” a gruff voice called from behind the gate.

“Just the new pool guy,” Will replied, his voice steady despite his nerves.

The gate creaked open, revealing an older man who greeted Will with a knowing look.

“Seems like this place spooked you, huh? Happens to everyone at first,” Walter remarked, leading Will through the grand, yet welcoming interior.

Their passage was abruptly halted by Philip, the new owner of the mansion and Mrs. Freeman’s son, who eyed Will with suspicion. “And who might this be?” he asked with an air of disdain.

“He’s here for the pool, sir,” Walter replied.

Philip’s expression remained unimpressed. “Well, don’t dawdle. Get on with it,” he commanded. “At first, I thought he was here to beg for something!”

Will was stunned as Philip walked away. How could he just insult someone like that?

“Is he always like that to people?” Will couldn’t help but inquire, seeking some reassurance from Walter.

Walter simply shrugged. “Pretty much. But you get used to it,” he admitted as they arrived at the neglected pool. Will donned his mask, bracing himself for the daunting task ahead.

When he turned briefly to talk to Walter, he saw the man had already left. No wonder, he thought, this place stinks.

Will looked at the huge, dirty pool with dead animals and green, algae-filled water and sighed. He put on a stronger mask to block the bad smell.

After working hard for hours, Will took a short break to eat in a secluded spot. A group of fancy ladies spotted him and started talking.

“Who’s that guy?” one asked.

“He looks good, even with all that sweat,” said another, eyeing Will’s work clothes.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Will stood up to leave, but then Mr. Philip showed up, and he had that disdainful look in his eyes again. Will didn’t want to be insulted. He collected his things and returned to the pool. Needless to say, his break was ruined. He stuffed his leftover lunch in his bag and returned to work.

Will worked hard the entire day, cleaning the pool and draining its water. When it got dark and the pool was empty, he noticed a strange door handle at the bottom.

He was curious and tried to open the door, fighting with the handle until it suddenly opened, and water came pouring out.

Trying to get away, Will slipped and fell right into the muddy bottom of the pool.

“Curiosity really kills the cat,” he groaned as he tried to get up. But every time he did, he’d slip, except one time, his hand caught the small door handle. When he pulled it, more water splashed on him, but behind the door, he found something amazing — stacks of what looked like gold bricks in a hidden compartment.

Shaking with excitement and a bit scared, Will quickly filled his bag with the gold, ensuring nobody saw him. At home, his family wrinkled their noses in disgust as he entered. He stank from the pool dirt. Nobody even bothered to ask about his heavy bag as he hurried to the bathroom.

Will wasn’t there to clean up; he wanted to cut a piece of gold to make sure it was real.

Later, Will was at a jewelry store, handing over some gold pieces to the jeweler, Joe. “Can you check if this is gold?” he asked, his voice shaking.

Joe examined the pieces and then said, “Yes, it’s real gold.”

Will’s face broke into a huge smile. He was so happy, he kept saying, “Thank you! Thank you!”

Joe watched, wondering why Will was so thrilled about some gold bits. “Okay, how about $500 for whatever you’ve brought?” he offered, trying to keep a straight face.

“$500?!” Will’s eyes sparkled with surprise.

“Deal!” Will didn’t waste a second before agreeing.

Joe, puzzled by Will’s enthusiasm for what seemed like peanuts, handed over the cash.

“Take care, sir,” Joe said as they parted ways.

“Hope your day gets even better,” Will chuckled, pocketing the crisp $500 note, feeling on top of the world.

The next day, Will put on his nicest, though worn-out clothes, and headed to work with a spring in his step. He nodded to Walter, the gatekeeper, and made a beeline for the mansion.

In the parking lot, Mr. Philip nearly clipped him with his fancy car, but Will jumped out of the way just in time.

Walter shrugged from afar. “He’s like that sometimes.”

Will paid no mind to Walter’s lack of interest in the pool cleaning that day — the man didn’t follow him, and Will was glad. He was focused on secretly hauling away all the gold for himself.

That evening, Will was in a rush, stuffing his bags with as much gold as he could carry, even camouflaging himself with gunk from the pool to avoid raising eyebrows.

At the exit, Walter eyed the bulging bags. “What’s in there?” he inquired, a bit too curious for Will’s comfort.

“Just some nasty stuff from the pool,” Will blurted out, hoping the thought of the grime would keep Walter from prying.

Disgusted, Walter didn’t ask any more questions and quickly let Will through.

“Thanks, Walter. Catch you tomorrow,” Will said, already dreaming about the gold waiting for him at home and hoping to get the remaining gold from the pool the following evening.

But the next day, Will was bummed out. The spot where he’d been finding gold was totally empty. Just as he was double-checking, Philip popped up out of nowhere.

“What’s going on here?” Philip shouted, thinking Will was up to no good.

“Uh, no-nothing, I just found this while cleaning the pool,” Will managed to say, his heart racing.

Right then, Walter came by, saying someone was there to see Philip. Will saw his chance. “That’s it, I’m done!” he yelled. “I keep getting disrespected here! I quit!”

Philip’s rage knew no bounds. “Then get out! Don’t expect to get a penny from me. Do you know how many people would gratefully take your place? Open the gates for him!”

Will had a pissed-off expression as he stormed through the gates. Only after he was out of Philip’s sight did he allow himself to smile with pride.

Little could Philip have guessed Will would be back.

A week later…

Will adjusted the designer suit he wore the second he parked and got out of his brand-new car. In front of him was Philip, who stared at him like he was seeing a ghost.

Philip kept looking back and forth between Will and the car, totally shocked. He had just found out that Will, who he knew as a pool cleaner, was actually the billionaire who bought his mother’s mansion.

“You! It’s impossible,” he yelled at Will, his eyes bulging with shock.

Will just grinned and walked over to Philip.

“Get out! Your presence is a dent in the luxury of this grounds,” he told him before entering the mansion.

Watching Philip’s face swell up in anger and disbelief as he got into his car and drove off was a pleasure for Will.

“He probably thinks I’m rich and was merely pretending to be a pool cleaner,” Will muttered as he scrolled through his phone, looking for more mansions online.

He kept the little secret about the gold to himself. Life hadn’t been easy for him, and the world wasn’t always fair anyway. Keeping the gold felt right to him, a reward for all the hard work. It changed his life, and he deserved the wealth — at least that’s what Will thought.

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