INTOXICATED (GxG)

05: fwb

SAINT

"No, no, no... not this. I don't like the interior, something about it just looks and feels cheap. It doesn't work with our whole brand. I want it plain and sleek. Come on, you can do better."

"I understand, Captain Vos. We'll continue to work on it," he said and promptly excused himself once I had dismissed him. I was always grateful of how well he could take criticism despite already being the best at his job.

Tumigil ako sa paglalakad at hinarap ang secretary kong kanina pa nakasunod sa 'kin. Napaatras siya bigla at mukhang nagulat sa biglaang pagharap ko, muntik pang matapilok. I hid my laugh by clearing my throat. "You good?"

"Ah, opo. Sorry, jet lag lang po." Napakamot siya sa ulo.

"Right. I won't keep you long, but before you go, I want you to call Engineer Jimenez about the progress of the in-flight testing on the newer planes. Set a deadline, I want it by the end of this month." Dire-diretsong sabi ko. "What's on my itinerary?"

"Uh, you have lunch with Architect Mejia, dinner with the Walters and a virtual meeting with Mr. Damian at 10 PM. Also, mayroon din po'ng tawag nang tawag sa personal phone n'yo kanina pa kaso unknown number," sambit niya at pinakita sa 'kin ang number noon. "Should I block it from your cell?"

"Don't." Agad kong sabi dahil unang limang numero pa lang ay alam ko na kung kanino nakarehistro 'yon. "Just leave it to me. Cancel the dinner with the Walters, say the flight was delayed or something and have it rescheduled for breakfast tomorrow," I told her. "You can go now. Magpahatid ka kay Dave sa hotel at kumain na kayo. Use the company card. Just say my name at the front desk and alam na nila 'yan and remind Dave na balikan ako rito around eight."

"Alright, ma'am. Tumawag lang po kayo kung kailangan n'yo ulit ako."

"Will do, thanks. You may go."

After that, I met with a bunch of other engineers to look at the computer simulation and the wind tunnel models of the plane to assess its aerodynamic characteristics upon takeoff, landing, and cruising configurations. I have to admit, I've been doing this for a long time now, but it never fails to make my head hurt. I have so much things to get done and over with in such little time.

I am an engineer myself and I run my own multi-billion dollar airline. We own all the aircrafts that are in use, which I know is uncommon since some airlines usually lease planes from aircraft leasing companies, but not us. Although we do have plenty of affiliations in order to make this happen, but unlike some operators, I have a say in the manufacturing of my planes; of its exteriors and interiors, its engines, the location where the materials are sourced and produced etc.

I basically know how its done through and through dahil iyon naman talaga ang pinag-aralan ko. I have a degree in Aerospace Engineering from MIT, and even got an offer from NASA once, but I had to turn it down to run my own airline.

I've been so busy these past few weeks that I almost forgot about Maeve.