the Makati Transfer

Part 16 "Shock times 2"

A full week had passed, I still struggled with Jin's departure, but we slowly got used to live with the 4 of us.

There was some extremely good news this morning from as Jean texted me that she got accepted to work in my company. I was very happy for her, and decided that this was a reason for a small celebration during our dinner tonight. It was my turn to cook tonight.

As I arrived home Dan, Jean and Daisy were all watching a local TV show in Tagalog. I didn't understand much of it and got to work in the kitchen straight away.

At 8 pm I was ready with the beef, the vegetables and the tacos. We still had some left-over Champaign from last week which would come in good use.

As we sat down Dan mentioned that his shop would open with a big party on the next Saturday. He had invited all his suppliers, customers, family and friends, and hereby extended his invitation to us.

I was excited for Dan.

Dan was at times arrogant and to overconfident, but he was extremely hard working and had a good business sense. The one thing that made Dan stand out from the other roommates is that he would never speak about his family or parents. I respected this but it did make me wonder about his upbringing and background.

Dan suddenly mentioned: "Oh yes let's not forget to congratulate Jean with her new job!"

I looked at Jean, she looked at her plate and was silent.

"I have been in the army for a long time

The table suddenly went quiet.

I looked at Jean. Jean looked at me, at Dan and finally at Daisy.

"I have been in the army for most of my adult life. My fellow soldiers were like my brothers and sisters. I loved the structured approach the army environment provided me. But I have to be honest, I was scared to transition out of the army back into a civilian life. It was my goal to find a job in the corporate world. Thanks to Stan and with the help Dan I gave a good interview this morning. I have been offered and have accepted my first role in the corporate world"

A tear rolled of Jean's left cheek before she continued "I will be leaving the Makati Transfer tomorrow morning"

I was shocked and surprised at how fast things were moving now.

As with Jin and Mike we stood up and applauded Jean's achievement.

I was not prepared for what happened next.

Daisy said "I have an announcement"

She continued; "I have been invited by my agency for a 6-week trip with 12 other models to the Caribbean. This is a great opportunity for me to get exposure to the European and North American modelling markets. I joined the Makati Transfer with a goal to make a career out of modelling. I think I have achieved it and therefor will be leaving the Makati Transfer tomorrow morning as well"

We all looked at each other in disbelief. We applauded Daisy for achieving her goal.

The Makati Transfer was at full speed. 4 became 2 in a matter of hours.

That evening I invited Daisy for a drink in the bar downstairs. I felt that some things were left unspoken, I didn't want Daisy to leave before some things were cleared up.

"It's been a wild ride the last couple of months Daisy" I said as we enjoyed a cold beer.

"Stan, wild would be an understatement, we all have grown and learned a lot about ourselves and each other. I wouldn't want to have missed a thing Stan, including our trip to Boracay. I know that things didn't work out well thereafter, but I think we both feel that we are not a perfect fit"

She surprised me with her candid attitude.

"I am sure that you will find what you are looking for soon, it might be around the corner. And the girl who will become your wife will be a very lucky woman"

We continued our conversation to deep into the night. It was what we need to part as friend and acknowledge the contribution and impact we have had on each other's life in the last couple of months.