“May hinihintay ka ba?” Sheryl furrowed her brows at Fran. They were at the coffeeshop one afternoon and it was one of those rare occasions that Sheryl accompanied her.
“Ha? Wala naman, bakit?” Fran was surprised.
“Eh kanina ka pa tingin ng tingin sa pinto, parang may hinihintay ka.”
“Wala, napapatingin lang sa mga tao… masama ba yun?” Fran took a long sip at her latte. She wasn’t aware that she was doing what Sheryl pointed out. But it has been almost a week since her last encounter with her uninvited coffeeshop “guest”.
“Hmm, parang may nase-sense akong kakaiba sa ‘yo, Fran.” Sheryl gave her a knowing smile.
Fran raised her brows. “Ano naman?”
“Kailan ba yung last encounter mo with Mr. X? Hmm?”
“Anong encounter naman yan?” Fran remained evasive.
“Pansin ko lang naman lately tahimik siya… hindi nagpaparamdam, kahit sa project meeting natin kahapon, wala siya --- pinadala lang yung mga staff niya. Nakaka-miss na nga yung mga clashes niyo eh.”
Fran laughed faintly, sneaking a peek at the door. “Talagang hinahanap-hanap mo mga encounter namin ha. Eh baka naman busy lang yung tao.”
“Uy, dapat sa Thursday andoon siya, di ba?”
“Oo dapat. Doon na natin malalaman kung Go or No Go ang project natin. Tara na nga, tatapusin ko pa ang presentation ko.”
Fran stood up to leave, taking one last look around the coffeeshop.
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Thursday morning. Fran surveyed her wardrobe and pulled out her outfit for the day.
It was the day of reckoning. She had to present their finished project to senior management for their final stamp of approval. Henry told her that it was just a formality --- but still, there was a 50-50 chance they would disapprove the implementation, for whatever reason.
“Well, kahit hindi sila mag-approve, babawi na lang ako sa looks.” She laughed at her own sassiness as she gazed into the mirror. Her red sleeveless blouse tucked into her charcoal gray pencil-cut skirt that fell just above her knees gave her that subtly sexy but respectable air. She slipped into her black stilettos, tied her hair into a neat bun above her nape, and donned her charcoal gray blazer for that complete corporate look.
“Wow! Dressed to kill tayo ha.”, Sheryl exclaimed as Fran entered the office. Even her team gave her appreciative glances. Fran smiled faintly.
She fidgetted as she went over her Powerpoint presentation for one final review before her 10:30 meeting. She had done this countless times before but she couldn’t help getting nervous about it.
Slowly inhaling then exhaling, she counted her breaths to steady her nerves. There was no denying it. Other people could be fooled but not herself. There was only one person causing these jitters. She just hoped he’d give his approval without questions asked, but seeing how he’d been treating her since that first execom, she was starting to expect the worst.
“Fran, set up na daw tayo sa boardroom.” Sheryl peered into her cubicle.
Fran nodded. “Let’s do this. Sana ma-impress sila!”
