Ikaw pa rin ang Pipiliin

Epilogue

     "Miss Kels, hinahanap ka ni sir Ignacio," sabi sa'kin ni Rachel. "Ingat po kayo ha? Medyo wala siya sa mood eh. Baka sa'yo ilabas init ng ulo niya."

     "May sinabi ba siya kung bakit niya ako pinatawag?" tanong ko, medyo kinakabahan na.

     "Hindi mi-," Rachel replied but was cut off.

     "Kelsey! Kanina pa kita hinihintay. In my office, now!" sir Ignacio interjected.

     "Yes sir," sagot ko.

  I immediately grabbed my notebook and pen then walked briskly towards his office. Dahan dahan ako pumasok sa office niya at umupo sa tapat niya.

     "What seems to be the problem, sir?" I asked in a very gentle voice.

     "First of all, I apologize for screaming at you outside a few moments ago. Medyo busy and stressed lang sa bahay," sir Ignacio explained. "Second, how are you? Recently I saw so much improvement in your work, both personality wise and performance wise. And I must say, you exceeded all of my expectations from you, Kelsey. That is why, congratulations on your promotion to Finance Comptroller. You truly deserve this position."

     "Finance Comptroller? Pero 'di ba 'yan po posisyon niyo ngayon?" I asked, confused. "Promoted din po ba kayo sir? Kaya binibigay niyo sa'kin posisyon niyo? Congratulations, sir!"

     "Not at all. I'm resigning from work, Kelsey," he informed me. "I have until end of this month to turn over everything you need to know. Pero alam ko naman na you have the proper knowledge about my work description already kaya hindi na tayo mahihirapan sa pag turn over."

     "Pero sir, bakit biglaan?" I wondered. "I know how much you love your job, sir. Kaya medyo nagulat lang ako sa balita niyo. I'm sorry for being nosy."

     "It's okay. I'm not getting any younger, Kelsey. And my children are growing older every single day," he started to explain. " I've been so busy with work that I failed to focus on them and their growth. Ayokong tumanda na may mga panghihinayang regarding my children. I want to be a father that they could be proud of."

     "I see, sir. Alam kong napakahirap ng ginawa mong desisyon but you did the right thing, choosing your family," sabi ko. "Hindi dahil sa nagpapasalamat akong nag resign ka para ako na papalit sa'yo sir ha? Pero nothing can beat the happiness our own family could give. Take that from me, sir. Because at our lowest points, pamilya lang natin ang andyan para sa'tin. Although, not everyone has that. Kaya treasure your family before they're all gone."

     "Indeed, Kelsey. Anyways, congratulations on your promotion! This decision wasn't made solely by me, actually," he said. "When I informed the other executives regarding this matter, they all agreed to it because they saw how passionate you are with your performance. So keep up the good work, okay?"

     "I'll surely do, sir. Thank you!" I chirped.

  Sir Ignacio shook my hands and I thanked him again before going out of his office. Pagkatapak ko sa labas ay tumili ako ng napakalakas, making everyone look at me.

     "I got promoted!" I mouthed.

  Agad naman na gets nila Rachel at Kenneth kaya tumakbo sila papunta sa'kin at niyakap habang kino-congratulate ako. Pinasalamatan ko sila at tsaka bumalik na sa lamesa ko. I quickly grabbed my phone from my bag at nag compose ng group message to my family and work friends.

[TO: Mama, Papa, Bunso, Mands, Ims, Perlas

Me

Dinner's on me because, fam!!