AFTER I left the house, nag-drive thru na ako agad sa Starbucks para bumili ng breakfast on the way sa office. Hindi naman kasi gaanong kalayuan iyon.
"Good morning ma'm!" Masiglang bati ni Manong Lando- security guard siya sa may parking. Nginitian ko siya at saka pumasok na din sa may elevator. I automatically smiled nung narinig ko yung relaxing music. I actually wanted this, nabasa ko kasi na nakakabawas ng stress kapag may gantong music.
DING!
Bumukas ang pinto ng elevator at nakita kong pumasok si Ms. Alano while rubbing her- maybe 5 or 6 months belly. She immediately smiled when she saw me.
"Good morning Ma'm!"
"Good morning din." Maikling sagot ko. "Kamusta ka na? Ilang months na siya ulit?"
Parehas kaming napatingin sa tiyan niya at saka siya nagsalita ulit. "Nako 5 months na po. Ang bilis nga niya lumaki eh." mahinhin niyang tawa.
"You should take a break you know? Bawal ang stress for you."
"Ayos lang po iyon, mas naaalagaan pa nga po ako dito sa office kesa sa bahay." She laughed and looked at the mini screen. "Sige po ma'm enjoy your day po! Mauuna na po ako." I gave her a sincere smile before she left.
WHEN I was on my to my office, madami-dami ang bumabati sa akin na tao. I smiled and greeted them back. Who says that the CEO needs to be serious and scary? I believe that as a leader, you don't have to scare those people for them to follow you.
"Ma'm? Akala ko po next next month pa balik niyo?" tanong sa akin ni Melody habang sinusundan ako papasok sa office. I removed my coat and hanged it on my swivel chair before seating down.
"What? No I just got sick pero balik trabaho din ako agad." Tinignan ang tambak ng folder na nasa lamesa ko. Bigla kong naalala na may mga folder din ako sa bag kaya kinuha ko yun at pinatong sa table. Even though I got sick, I still brought home some work to pass some time. Ayoko ng nauubos lang ang oras ko para sa wala.
"Pero Ma'm sabi po kasi ni Mrs. Samora na hindi po muna kayo papasok." She wrote some things down on her ipad- as if she's making changes.
"It sucks to work at home, I prefer here in the office. Besides paano uusad ang company kung wala ako?" Sasagot na dapat siya kaso biglang may kumatok.
"Come in please!" I shouted. Bago pa mabuksan ni Melody ang pinto, pumasok na agad sila mama. I stood up to give them both a kiss on the cheek then went back to my seat to check some emails. Melody greeted them and offered snacks and drinks for them. Since meron naman akong mini fridge dito, it's easier for my secretary to get some.
"Nako sabi ko sayo Melody wag mo hahayaang magtrabaho tong si Abcde diba?" Sabi ni mama habang nag-iikot dito sa office checking for dusts. Mga nanay nga naman. Umiling ako at nilipat ang tingin kay Thedore na kinakalikot lang ang cellphone niya. He was wearing a suit- chusero kala mo siya CEO.
"Pasensya na po ma'm, makulit din po kasi itong anak niyo eh, sabi niya kaya daw po niya magtrabaho." She gave me a small smile before talking again.
"Eh kasi ma kaya ko naman talaga, I was just sick. I'm fine now". My mom glared at me so I sighed as a sign of defeat. Kahit gaano pa ako katanda, hindi talaga mawawala na nag-aalala si mama sakin. Syempre dahil na din nakahiwalay na ako sakanila at wala namang mag-aalaga sakin.
"Oh sige nga sino naman magmamanage habang wala ako?" I asked my mom and crossed my arms to my chest. I watched her carefully saka niya tinuro si Theodore.
"Ako." Proud na sabi ni Theo. He winked at me kaya madali kong kinuha yung tsinelas sa ilalim na nasa may cabinet at ibabato ko sana kaso bigla siyang nagtago sa likod ni mama. Tsk duwag.
"Ano ba yan Abcde! Matatanda na kayo. Anak you need to rest. Ilang years ka nang dire-diretso magtrabahabo, you don't even have a boyfriend for gods sake!" Mom masagged her forehead bago magsalita ulit. Napangiwi ako sa nung narinig ko ang salitang 'boyfriend'. Ano yun? Nakakain ba yun?
"And besides 2 months lang naman, Theodore needs to practice din para sa isa pang company. He needs the experience before the real deal. So please?" Again, I sighed as a sign of defeat. Tumango ako at saka ngumiti. Parang nabunutan ng tinik si mama nung nakita niya na payag na ako.
"Fine you win. But! Make sure that he will treat my employees right, expecially my secretary. Nako kung hindi kukutusan kita Tiyodoro!" He gave me a nod and gave me a kiss on the forehead. Palibhasa nakuha ang gusto- joke! Ofcourse nag-aalala ako para sakanya pero natutuwa din ako kasi talagang malaki na siya.
"So kailan ang start niya?" I went back on checking the folders on my desk. Madami-daming trabaho ito. Sana kayanin niya. Pwede ko din naman bawasan bago siya magsimula. I don't want him to be pressured- like I was when I was starting. "Today". Seryosong na sabi ni mama.
Agad akong napatingin kay mama. Ngayon ko lang napansin na nakabihis pala siya. Simple lang kasi si mama, I guess today is a special day. Nilipat ko ang tingin ko kay Theo. "Sure ka bang kaya mo? Kakabalik ko lang sa trabaho medyo madami-dami akong naiwan na gawain".
"Oo naman ate kayang-kaya ko 'no!" He held his chin high and smiled at me with pride. Nilagay niya ang phone niya sa bulsa dahil nasa kanya ang usapan. Sandali akong nag-isip. Tama ba talaga 'to?
I sighed and retouched my make-up. "Okay fine, basta if you need me you have my number and my address. Lagi din akong maghahanap ng updates mula kay Melody". I grabbed my bag and my coat. Halos kakarating ko palang aalis nanaman ako. Nag-ayos pa naman ako ng bongga! I texted Hyacinth before leaving, I'm asking her if she can have lunch with me.
"Anak nga pala may dumating na letter para sayo! Sa lumang bahay ito dumating eh." Nilagay ko sa bag yung phone ko bago kinuha ang bigay na envelope ni mama. I smiled at her and gave her a kiss. "Thank you po".
Ginulo ko ang buhok ni Theo na ngayon ay nakaupo na sa swivel chair ko at nag-iwan ng utos kay Melody because of the changes in the office. Gusto ko makilala ni Theo lahat ng staff as much as possible, and vice versa. Dapat makilala niya ang nga taong makakatrabaho niya sa araw-araw at matuto na pakisamahan sila.
I CAN only hear the sound of my heels echoing across the whole parking lot. When I got into the car, I checked what's inside the envelope. It has a pretty blue card with gold and silver glitters. I felt my phone vibrate and saw that I recieved a message from Hyacinth. Hindi ko muna pinansin ang text niya dahil sobrang curious na ako sa laman nung envelope.
"Oh an invitation?" Binasa ko ang mga nakalagay sa card and it is indeed and invitation to a...
... reunion?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BINABASA MO ANG
Chasing Butterflies
General FictionMaeveric Abcde Samora always believed in happy endings and fairytales. Eversince she was a kid, she knew that someday, somebody will come into her life and be her knight and shining armor - just like in the stories! That is until.. Augustus Craige...
