Rancho Castillo #3 : ELCZAR "THE GREAT" SALAZAR

Part 10

ELCZAR POV

I was surprised to hear that Carrel had dropped by. She used to come to my office when we both started working for our family companies. She used to curse at me for winning the projects. But as time went by, she stopped doing that and started cursing me behind my back instead.

I saw her leaning against the receptionist's table. When was the last time I looked at this person without any hatred? Ah, it was more than a decade ago.

Elczar: What brings you here?

And she stands firmly when she hears my voice.

Carrel: Oh... ahm.. Napadaan lang ako. And ... yeah just want to say hello.. Oh yeah. Hello there!

She smiled. But surely a smile with gritted teeth on it.

Carrel: What about some snacks? Ahmm.. My treat.

Elczar: Are you not feeling well, Ms. Garcia?

I now walk past her as I head towards the exit of the building, and she follows me closely.

Carrel: Ha-Hahahaha. Mia told me to be good to anyone. Nangongolekta din kasi ako ng ligtas points.

Elczar: Well, you should do more good things on me, since you owe me a lot.

I smiled at her, but she just rolled her eyes.

"Hey guys!!!"

The heck!

Carrel: Oh, Hi!

"Yow bro! Hi, Ms. Garcia, right? I'm Simon."

Carrel: Oh, nice to meet you. And this twinny is ...

I just glared at the twinny, scanning her movements to see if I could tell if she was Raya or Aaya.

Elczar: That is Aaya. Because I'm sure that Raya will not even care to stop by in my office.

Raya: Bad guess, bitch! Unfortunately, I'm Raya! And FYI! Hindi naman ikaw pinuntahan ko dito.We went to Carrel's office, and the receptionist told us, nagkasalisi daw kami. I asked Simon if he can check where Ms. Garcia would be heading, and we found her here in your so ... so .. building.

Carrel: How do you find me here?

Simon: Hmm. Technology?

Raya: Anyway, since we found you, now let's go and have some snacks first before talky-talky.

Carrel: But —

I took Carrel's arm from Raya's grip.

Raya: What's your problem, bitch?

Elczar: We have plans. You two can have snacks without us.

Raya tried to grab Carrel's other arm, but I held on tighter.

Carrel: Uh, why don't we all have snacks together instead?

Simon: That's a great idea. I'm in! Let's go, Raya.

Thankfully, Simon understood the situation and took Raya by the hand, leading her ahead of us towards their car.

Simon: Bro, just follow us!

Simon shouted as he started the engine of their car. As I was still holding Carrel's arm, she asked,

Carrel: I'll give you a ride. Shall we go? Can you let go of me now, Mr. Salazar?

I stared at her for a second and sighed deeply.

Gusto ko mainis.

Gusto ko magalit.

(babbmai: insert Sethyboy tone here Hahahaha)

I don't know what came over me, but I suddenly let go of her arm and held her hand instead. She looked surprised, but I quickly led her to another car parked nearby, still holding her hand. I noticed the key in her other hand and took it from her. She stood there, looking blank.

Elczar: Hey, what's wrong?

Carrel: Oh yeah, uhm, the key... Oh, there it is. You can drive, right? I'll just go now.

Seeing her panic and not in her usual beast mode reminded me of the past when I first told her that I liked her. Her reaction back then was the same as how she was acting today.

It was cute.

I let go of her hand and opened the passenger seat for her to sit. I started the engine and followed Simon's car in front of us. Carrel remained quiet throughout the whole ride, staring out the window in silence.

Mendokoro Ramenba

My jaw dropped looking up on the store name.

Raya: I want to try their food. Napaka-trending ng branch na to sa Tiktok. And since malapit lang ang office mo dito, I decided to go with you here.

Carrel: Oh, I see. Yeah, I've heard a lot of good reviews about this place. Wait, diba sabi mo nasa out of town ka?

Raya: Yeah, I just went back to Rancho Castillo this morning to get some papers that Aaya forgot to bring. Then, I'll bring them back to her later. We will be back maybe after a month or two. Working really makes me feel old.

Simon: So, let's place order now. 4 hours din ang byahe namen makarating lang dito. Gutom na talaga ako, guys.

When I returned from the comfort room, their food had already been served.

Simon: Oh, bro. We couldn't wait for you, so we went ahead and placed our orders.

Elczar: Its fine.

Raya: Oh, ayaw mo kumain? You can leave now.

I gave Raya a glance, hoping she would melt under my gaze.

Carrel: Oh, what do you like? No worries, it's my treat.

Raya: You dont like ramen?

Elczar: It's okay. I'm fine with just having a drink. You guys can enjoy your ramen. I'm allergic to ramen.

Simon: Hahaha. Oh come on, bro! Ikaw pa lang ang tao na nakita kong allergic sa ramen.

Carrel: Huh? Kailan ka pa naging allergic sa ramen?

Elczar: A decade ago, someone dumped me in a ramen store.

I saw the surprise on Carrel's face and she even dropped the chopstick she was holding.

Simon and Raya laughed so hard that it made them tear up.

Raya: Sounds interesting. What a brave girl, huh. Hahahaha. Oh my!! Hahahaha.

Simon: So after she dumped you, what happened then?

Elczar: Just eat your ramen and dont mind my past.

Carrel dont say anything and continue to eat.

As they chatted and ate, Elczar couldn't help but notice how Carrel had changed over the years. She seemed more confident and assertive, and he found himself admiring her in a way he never had before after Carrel dumped him that night.

I still drove the car and went back to my building. Carrel still didn't say anything during the ride. After I parked the car, I glanced at her.

Elczar: So, is that it?

Carrel: Ah.. Huh?

Elczar: I mean, did you really just want to treat me and not say anything?

She looked back at me and for a few seconds, we stared at each other.