Finding Carla

Chapter 1 - Tennessee Whiskey

Her

It's already 11 PM and I could still hear the loud "Whiskey Song" that has been playing three nights in a row! Whoever is my new neighbor across my flat, he better be ready. Nobody wants to mess with Carla!

I've been exhausted these past few weeks. Since I became the lead architect of our firm, I was swamped with work. Don't get me wrong, I love my job. But recently, it has been taking a toll on me. We have tons of projects that I oversee, and the comfort of my cozy apartment has been my refuge. I was looking forward to crashing in my bed every night since I stay in the office overtime just to beat all the deadlines for our clients.

However, I was even bringing projects at home to do revisions on blueprint designs that our junior architects drafted.  I was hoping that I'll be able to focus and finish those designs, but I've been totally out of my element! And that's all because of the "Cold and Whiskey Songs" that have been blasting loudly from my neighbor's apartment! It messed up my concentration and I'm dreading that I won't be able to deliver the expectations of our clients.

I thrive with creating design projects when I listen to jazz, lounge music. But the soft music in my apartment has been drowned by those country songs that have been playing repeatedly for the past couple of nights! So, I gave up! Since, I couldn't focus anyway, I decided to go to bed. But the nerve of that person, the music won't stop! He's still not done with his broken-hearted playlist! I'm about to lose my sanity! He's going to kick me out of work and deprive me of sleep!

I already felt frustrated a while ago that I won't be able to finish all these projects. I don't want to let my boss down. Our boss, Mr. Archer, has great faith in me. He said I was the only one that he saw fit for the job.  At first, I didn't want to take the position since I know I have bigger shoes to fill. My best friend Alecx was our lead architect before, but she resigned when she met her Prince Charming. She followed her heart.

When I told her that I was being tapped for the position, she was the one who encouraged me to take it. Even though we're thousands of miles apart, we still communicate with each other. She has great belief in me and Alecx thought it's about time that I handle this kind of position.

I miss my best friend so much. She's the only family I've got. When I say she's the only one, I literally meant it. I had a tough life growing up but that didn't stop me from pursuing my dreams. I was raised single-handedly by my mom. She was a very strong-willed woman. My dad left her upon learning he got her pregnant. I guess he was one of those assholes who doesn't know the meaning of responsibility.

My mom tried her best to raise me on her own. I remembered her having two jobs in order to make both ends meet. She was a fighter and taught me to persevere whatever odds and difficulties come my way. When she saw that I had a passion for drawing, she encouraged me to harness that talent. She said at least, I inherited something good from my dad's genes. He was an artist/painter. She said that's what made her fall in love with him.

However, he fell short and ran away when he knew she was pregnant with me.  What a coward! I'm grateful that my mom had the guts to carry me for nine months even though she was all alone.  But what I greatly look up to her is how she was able to raise me on her own without the help of anybody.  She was a real trooper and I love her so much. She taught me to be strong like her.

Eventually, I ended up going to college and studied architecture with a full scholarship. I graduated Summa Cum Laude in my class. Unfortunately, a few days just before my graduation, a terrible accident happened. My mom was in a bank to withdraw some cash when robbers came in. From what the police told me, there was an altercation between the security guard and one of the robbers. Unfortunately, my mom got accidentally shot in the process.