A Lifetime of Adventure

Chapter 2

Shantelle's POV 

I am currently on a meeting with the department managers regarding the final designs, materials, and colors of the new line of products that we plan to launch early next year. One of the unique edge that sets this line of products apart from other the competitors in the market is its customizability. The parts of the product are common across multiple designs, thus, customers could choose their desired color and purpose for the furniture that they would be purchasing. 

This is our company's strategy to combat the increasing market share of the newly opened furniture store in the Philippines. As they offer readily available and DIY products which piqued the interest of many customers in the country. 

The designs that was presented to me looks very sophisticated and suitable to the preference of the target market that we wanted to serve. Before approving the final color catalog that will be used for the products, I wanted to first meet with the suppliers to finalize the details of our supply contract with them. 

I then raised my hand to get the attention of my personal secretary, who is currently standing in one corner of the room, and signaled for her to come forward. She slowly approached me and sat down on the empty chair beside me. I then instructed her to contact our suppliers and schedule a meeting with them and eventually left the room as my job in the meeting is already accomplished. 

While waiting for the elevator to arrive, I reached out to my phone inside my handbag and unlocked the screen to check for missed calls and pending messages that were left during the time of the meeting. After scrolling for a while, Tiara's message popped up telling me to call her during my free time. In no time, I pressed the call button and the phone started ringing. 

Tiara shouted "UYYYY, I have good news!! The meeting was a success and I now have an exclusive contract with them to sell selected travel packages!" as soon as she answered the call.

"Congratss!! Update mo ako kapag meron nang travel dates ahh. Pupunta talaga ako. HELLOO FINLAND!!" I said 

"Syempre naman hahahaha, bibigyan pa kita ng exclusive friend discount." Tiara said and added "O, ano na ginagawa mo ngayon?"

"Nasa elevator na ako ngayon paakyat sa office ko. Kakatapos lang ng meeting ko sa finalization of designs sa ilalaunch na product line" I said

"O wag ka nanaman masyadong mag party party diyan mamaya ah. Alam ko ang ginagawa mo after ka makasecure ng deal. Baka kung ano nanaman ang mangyari sayo." I added 

"Yes po, mama. Di na po mangyayari saakin yung nangyari sa Italy dati." She said

I felt my phone vibrating and saw that my mom is calling on the other line. I told Tiara that my mom is calling and I would need to end the call with her.  She agreed and before we ended the call, she reminded me to call her again during my free time. 

I immediately answered the call on the other line and said "Hi mamii! where are you!"

"Telle, your grandfather is inviting us for lunch this Sunday. Are you free?" Mom said

I then then recalled my schedule for the remaining days of the week for a while and told her that I am available since the meeting time with suppliers are not yet finalized. For the remaining time of the day, I stayed in my office to finish the tasks and contracts that were placed in my table. 

Sunday came by so fast. I am now in my closet picking my outfit for the day. Picking out the light yellow sundress and white sneakers, I headed to my vanity table and started to put light makeup on. Few hours have passed, I am now sitting beside a long table with my grandparents, family, siblings, cousins, and some of my aunts and uncles. 

While waiting for the food to arrive, my two younger sisters and some older cousins were sitting side by side talking about our crushes and love lives. Most of my cousins are already in their late twenties, so they already found someone who they want to spend their lives with. However, in my case, I haven't really had a serious relationship with anybody since I am an introvert who is scared to approach anyone and is focused on improving my career life in order to achieve higher goals in life. 

Although I have already learned a lot in terms of interacting with other people, as part of my career, and the level of being introvert in me is already significantly reduced. There is still a part in me who is scared to fully trust other people and to open up to them regarding who I really am. 

After realizing that I was not listening to their conversation, my cousin who is a little older than me called me out of my deep thoughts. She then randomly asked me if I wanted to do blind dates since she has a lot of bachelor friends who are searching for capable women to be part of their lives. As an initial fight or flight response, I declined her offer. But she still reassured me that if I ever want to find love, she can introduce me to her friends. 

While eating, the older members of the family are talking about their own businesses and their current plans for expansion. Meanwhile, here I am looking at my dad who doesn't look happy caused by the long-term intake and dependency of his body to mental health medications. 

Till this day, every time I see him in this state, it still hurts something inside of me and makes me want to cry. After a few minutes of silently eating, I couldn't suppress my feelings anymore and decided to excuse myself to go to the restroom. 

As soon as I locked the cubicle door, hot tears started to flow down my cheeks. I couldn't stop myself from crying despite multiple attempts of calming myself down. A mix of uncontrollable emotions are climbing up to my consciousness. 

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