Kabanata II: Marcus (Completed)

Chapter 27

MARCUS

"Tom."

I heard the name echoing to my ears over and over again as I sat at my office.

Damn it!

I slammed my fist on the table at the thought of Miss Koala cuddling with someone else.

I started this nervous tick of tapping my fingers on the table whenever I am annoyed. Eduardo calls it my insane wake up remedy, something that never happen to me often. I do not get annoyed always.

Although, Eduardo says something else.

But what does the old man know.

Apparently, I am doing it right now.

I looked at my right hand betraying my thoughts as it started the tapping movement. I tried to stop it with my left hand.

I got myself busy with some Rubik's cube I have on the table and started to breath in and out.

Calm.

I need to stay calm.

*Beep

I heard myself curse stupidly at the shock a phone gave me.

"Signor Dominic on line one, young master." Mrs. Thompson, my secretary said.

"Let him through." I answered back as I pressed the designated button.

"Dom." I grimly said.

"Hey bro!" He answered cheerily. Too chirpy if you asked me.

"What is it?" I had no time for gentlemanly discussions when it comes to people who are close to my family and I.

Business means business.

"Why so serious, Marc?" I heard him say.

"Can you cut the crap and start spouting out what you want." I yelled.

I can see Mrs. Thompson shaking her head from her connecting office on how loud I used my voice. She's like my grandmothers and Manang Rosa all rolled into one with constant reminders on how to act with etiquette especially when I am in the office.

I breathed in and out again.

Calm.

Serenity.

Peace.

"What I meant to say is, what were you thinking bringing Samantha in the same restaurant I was in last week? What if she recognized me?" I said as I raked my hair that was getting longer every minute. I need a haircut, badly.

"But she didn't!" Dominic said.

"And isn't it time she knows about who you truly are." He continued. "I mean, let's just stop this stupid façade you are trying to do." He said some more.

"You like her. She likes you." He finished. "Now, get together!"

"As if it's as easy as that." I muttered. Then I backtracked on what he said a few moments ago.

"Hold on." I said as I leaned forward on my chair and get myself closer on the speakerphone for better clarity.

"Did you just say she likes me?" I asked cautiously while I was nervously awaiting the response of my honorary cousin.

"Yep!" He said.

"And may you pray tell me on how did you know that?" I skeptically asked. "Did she say it?" I was tapping my fingers again. Argh!

"Nope." He answered.

The tapping is getting worse.

"Then how could you assume she likes me." I leaned back in annoyance.

"Because I showed her my charming irresistible side, which you do know is notorious in catching women of all ages, and yet she showed no interest to me. Nothing at all." He egotistically said.

I would slap him right here and now if I could just teleport on where he was at.

"And then I thought, maybe I am not her type." The logic is getting stupider every second.

"So I let her meet several of my friends along the way." Dominic said. "And you do know my friends are really hunks, you know, model-type front cover GQ magazine materials..."

"Okay! Okay!" I cut him off. "I get your point."

"Anyways," He continued. "She still did not show any interest in them."

"And so I used the last resort." He said. "I tracked you down, oh great young master, and showed her the 'real' Marcus Angeles Reyes at work."

"For a moment, you guys had great chemistry especially when you caught her again." He said. "Ho! Ho! Was that timing perfect! And then we had this cliffhanger ending on whether you guys will get together as the non-grungy penniless artist and a cute little lady, so close but no cigar."

I heard him let out a long sigh.

"She did not pay attention to you after that." He said. "And you know what we talked about the whole dinner time?" He was waiting for me to ask the million dollar question.

"Who?" I have to admit this is better than any Korean drama.

"You." Was all he said. "You grungy penniless dread wearing Marcus you."

"No kidding!" I exclaimed although I was blushing furiously.

"Heck yeah!" My honorary cousin does not sound so stupid anymore.

"So what did she say about me?" I asked as I saw that my annoying tapping seized by itself.