Key to You

Chapter 3

Found You

KINABUKASAN, I went to find Kriz at work right away. She was busy typing something furiously when I found her and I dropped into my seat across her desk.

She glanced at me and immediately noticed my frantic mood.

“Oh anong nangyari sayo? You fine?” Kriz asked, her eyes reverting back on her monitor.

"Gosh, Kriz. You will not believe what happened last night." Sensing the tea, she stopped typing and instantly abandoned her workspace to come close to me. Seriously, it is so easy to get this girl's attention.

"So eto na nga. The moment you left, I was practically cornered last night by a guy who I think was the manager and a bouncer of the bar. The manager thought I was trying to pull some sort of scam or something! The bouncer was glaring at me like I was going to do something wrong!” reklamo ko.

Kriz's jaw dropped. "What? Why would they assume such a thing? I thought it was clear that we're only looking for barf guy? And all this happened when I left? I should've brought you with me then.” she said, her voice laced with concern. "So what happened next?"

"Of course I tried to explain that I am only looking for a friend. Yun naman kasi talaga ang pakay natin. But they were so skeptical and I panicked. So I improvised a bit.” I said. “So, I told them I was there because... I wanted to apply for the accountant position.”

Kriz’s jaw dropped the second time. Mamaya wala na tong panga.

She covered her mouth a bit as if she was lost for words. But then she started laughing out loud.

Our colleagues were side eyeing us so I had to shake her to keep her voice low.

"Ano? Ikaw? Applying there? Oh, girl, what kind of a teleserye plot twist is this." Kriz commented while wiping the tears forming in her eyes.

"It’s not funny, Kriz! Now I actually have to submit my resume, or they'll think I was lying! I’m going there later, at noon, to save face."

"Oh you better. If you don't want to be blacklisted from a bar that is.”

"Please cover for my shift later?" I asked Kriz.

"Sure will. But I want banana fritters for this favor though." Kriz demanded.

"Deal." I'm glad that she always has my back.

A FEW hours later, I made my way back at After Hours, but this time in the middle of the afternoon. Nakakapanibagong makita ang bar nang walang neon lights at late-night crowd.

I took a deep breath, smoothed out my coat, and walked up to the receptionist to submit my resume.

The receptionist greeted me as if she already knew the reason for my visit. "Ah, yes. The accountant position. You’re… Olivia, right?” she asked the moment I handed her my resume.

Wow, the rumors sure do spread fast here. Hindi niya pa nga nababasa ang resume ko alam niya na agad ang agenda ko.

“Yes, that’s me,” I said, giving her a polite smile.

She took my resume and scanned it, then looked back up at me. “Actually, one of our silent partners is free right now. How about we do the interview today?”

My heart did a flip. “Oh… today?”

Ine-expect ko lang naman magsubmit ng resume ngayon at umexit na, not actually go through an interview session on the spot.

But I couldn't back out now or else they'll see right through my lie. “Sure, no problem!” sabi ko while faking delight and excitement.

I followed ate receptionist to a room at the back. I felt uneasy as I noticed some of the staff giving me curious glances. Great. Ako na siguro ang laman ng chismis dito. Engaging in chismis surely is fun but it gets uncomfortable when you yourself becomes the topic.

We stopped in front of a door, probably where the interview is going to take place. She gestured for me to enter the room, and I took a deep breath preparing myself before stepping inside.

I am still feeling nervous as I am not prepared for this and when I looked up to see who was going to interview me, I stood frozen in shock.

Surprise surprise.

Sitting there, casually leaning back in his chair with an amused grin, was none other than barf guy.

He looked far from surprised, unlike me who stood in front of him completely frozen. He must've known I was coming.

"You’ve got to be kidding me."

His grin widened, and he gestured for me to sit. “Fancy meeting you here, Miss. I believe you were looking for me?"

I felt my cheeks blush. So he really knows.

"Well, looks like my reputation precedes me," I said as I sat down on the chair in front, trying to keep my cool.

He chuckled, apparently enjoying this. “You know, you’ve been quite the hot topic around here. I heard about the theories the employees here are forming and thought I’d come see for myself who this ‘suspicious girl’ was.”

“Well, in my defense,” I began, crossing my arms, “this wasn’t exactly planned. The guards thought I was some kind of criminal. I had to apply just to get them off my back. I am just actually looking for you.”

“Oh, I know,” he replied, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “However, the staff is convinced you’re either a really dedicated admirer or… well, something more suspicious.”

I groaned, covering my face with one hand. “Ugh, I was just trying to return something, okay? I  found a key in your jacket. I figured it could be something important, so I kept coming back to try and find you.”

He looks genuinely surprised by the news. "The key was in my jacket?”

I rolled my eyes at that, though I couldn’t help but smile. So he didn't know he left his key in the jacket. “Yes, Sherlock. That's the reason I kept coming back. So all this is your fault, you know.”

“Oh really? I thought you decided to hang around here every night because of my irresistible charm?” he teased.

"Please,” I scoffed. “You threw up on me. Any so-called ‘charm’ was cancelled out right then and there.”

He laughed hard, and I felt myself relax. For all the trouble he’d unknowingly caused, he was easy to talk to and had an easygoing sense of humor that made the whole situation feel a lot less mortifying.

“So, let me get this straight,” he said, still grinning. “You will not proceed to applying here?”

“Nope.” I admitted, popping the p sound. "These is just to clear my name."

"Ok. I can now let you off the hook. Hate to get you blacklisted from my bar over a misunderstanding." Such assuring words. Not really.

"Alright. Enough messing around. Do you have the key with you?" He asked.

Napalabi ako. "I actually left it in my condo. I didn't necessarily think we'd be meeting today."

"Then how about we set a date so I can finally get my key? It's actually the key to my condo. I haven't been able to get back since."

"What a problem you've there, huh?" I teased.

"Yes, a huge problem. So could you be kind enough to help this guy out?" Pacute niya.

"Well I'm morally obligated to give it back. But the jacket? I will stay true to my word to keep it."

He chuckled. "Fair enough."

What an odd man.

"I can drop by tonight to finally give you your key back." I suggested.

"That sounds like a hassle for you. I can just pick it up. If you're not comfortable with me knowing where you live, then maybe a landmark that's near your place?" He countered.

"Cool." Then I told him the cafe where we'd meet later tonight.

Maybe, just maybe, my trips to After Hours had finally paid off.

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