It was the year 1997, Happy Hearts Day to most and Valentine’s Day to all lovers, when the song "As Long as you Love Me" by the well-known boy band of the 90's came out. The most played songs at the time were playing on the radio. Annika’s favorite song is one she loves to sing and dance to while putting on her cosmetics to get ready for work. She wears her pink lipstick as she feels cute and flirtatious wearing it. Annika makes sure she has her mascara on because it enhances and accentuates her beautiful eyes. Her long wavy hair gives off a sensual vibe, emphasizing her prominent shoulders. Should I put on this olive-green dress today? Or perhaps I mix my black jeans with an orange blouse along with a pair of boots? " As she spoke to herself. She is excited to get ready for work as it is Friday, and Bruce, an American customer with whom she had a big crush, will come to dine at the Mediterranean Restaurant where she works as a receptionist.
Bruce, a Motorola the big boss will be coming that night with all his close colleagues, John and Blake, plus some other friends. Annika was born and raised in the heart of Manila. She is a dreamer and wanted to help her parents race her small siblings. Despite all the hardships in life, Annika is always happy, full of energy, she is the life of the party, loved by her family, friends, and colleagues, and she is a gift to anyone who knows her. "I’m going to wear this orange top and black jeans with my black boots today," she thought. The weather is beautiful; the sun is up, and there's a cool breeze in the air. "Oh! how beautiful this day would be!" was in her mind as she left home on her way to the bus station. "Annika is anxious to come to work today, as it is Valentine's Day and she will be greeting all the guests tonight in her beautiful red gown that her boss bought for her to wear. She will have all the red roses in the reception that she will hand over to their female guests that night, mostly couples, lovers, and partners, and tonight is a very special night as Bruce will be her very special guest. She is hoping that somehow, Bruce may notice how pretty she looks in her red gown and gold pumps. She wore red lipstick to complement her gown and had her hair up on one side only with a very small gold hairpin with some sparking stones. All the guests started to come around 8 in the evening. They were all dressed nicely. Women mostly wear elegant, nice dresses, and so do men. Annika was delighted to greet them, check their reservations, and walk them to their assigned tables, hand them the menu for their special dinner, and call the waiter and introduce them to their guest to inform them that the waiter could take their orders. The night runs busy for Annika. And around past 10 pm, at last, the man she adores so much, Bruce, came in with his colleagues from Motorola. Bruce and Annika met before Annika started to work at the Mediterranean Restaurant La Gondola. She used to work as a bar waitress at the club Industria, one of the top clubs for elites to enjoy fermented beers, other alcoholic beverages, and music. One On Monday night, Bruce came in around 7 pm when the club didn’t have any other customers yet. It was Annika who welcomed him. Is there some kind of poisoning here? How come no one here tonight? " Bruce asked. Annika laughed and thought how much she loved the humor of this guy. "Where are you from?" This is the first time I've seen you here. Are you waiting for more friends to come over tonight? " Annika asked with a smile. "I can keep your company while waiting for your friends." Bruce thought it was a very nice gesture for a young lady to approach him. Annika was never a shy type and she could converse in English in such an easy manner. Annika learned that Bruce came from America. He was an ex-pat in the Philippines
leading a team for the Motorola Company. Bruce was dressed in a black shirt with the words "I am an Irish. “Annika asked him, "Why does your shirt say "I’m Irish when you are an American?" Bruce liked the way Annika had so many questions and was not afraid to ask questions and start a conversation. "I love your company." Bruce says, "I think I will enjoy coming to this club every night after work. Will you be here every night?" Bruce asked Annika. And Annika answered, "Well, I won’t miss a night working if you will come here." Later that night, after an hour of waiting for his colleagues, John and Blake, came in and joined Bruce with some beers and laughs.
Bruce introduced Annika to John and Blake, all of whom are American ex-pats from the United States of America who work here for Motorola. Night after night, Bruce became Annika’s regular customer. They became friends, so close that Annika started to have a big crush on him. Bruce is such a good-looking guy. He stands not so tall, around 5 feet 10 inches in height. He has this US Army look with muscles and a nice torso. He looks great even in a simple t-shirt. He gave you the sweetest smile you can see, with gray eyes and that look of a freshly shaved beard. Annika loves how fresh he smells every time. And most of all, Bruce's got this big sense of humor. He can make Annika laugh. Annika’s night at work becomes enjoyable as long as Bruce is around. One night, for some reason, the DJ played the song "As Long as you Love Me" by the Backstreet Boys. Annika finds the song so interesting that she sings it with Bruce in her mind.
Though Annika enjoyed her work so much, it has not been an easy process to deal with the owner of the company. The business owner has not always been straightforward. Pay is occasionally late and wages are too low. The workday is longer than the typical eight hours. Months after month, Annika has had her decision to leave the company and look for another job as a receptionist in a five-star restaurant or to work in a five-star hotel. Annika thinks she needs a more decent job than working in a bar or club. It was very hard for her to just leave Industria as she knew Bruce would come one night and she was not there anymore. She did not tell any of her club colleagues where she will be transferred for her new job. She doesn’t even know if she can find work. All she knew is that she wanted to apply for a job as a restaurant receptionist in a hotel or a five-star restaurant. And what’s hurting her is how much she will miss Bruce as her customer, as her friend. Annika always asked herself,
Arriving at the La Gondola, it appears that everyone is busy getting the restaurant ready for the day. Waiters are setting up the tables, and the workers in the galleys are all busy preparing all the ingredients that will be used to prepare food for any upcoming food orders for the day. It seems like no one noticed her entrance at all. Then the owner's secretary, Pipa, came down from the office, welcoming Annika and accommodating her. "Hey Annika, come and follow me. I’ll show you around and introduce you to everyone." Annika just followed Pipa is a tall woman with light brown skin, a very slender build, and very short, curly hair. She showed her the locker room, where Annika could leave her belongings and keep them, as well as the employee's comfort room, the employee's pantry room to eat lunch or dinner, and the nap room, where employees could take a nap in the afternoon because they work a split lunch and dinner shift. Afterward, Pipa showed Annika where the bar is for before and a
Another day, another dollar, "Annika whispered" as she woke up early in the morning. She's anxious to come to work as she'll be meeting one of the owners today, Chef Bill. He is an Irish native who came to Manila to work as a chef in a five-star hotel and eventually opened his own Mediterranean restaurant, which is popular among celebrities, politicians, and ex-pats. "I need to look my best today." Annika thought. As she prepares to come to work, she arrived early at La Gondola and checked to make sure all her reservations were confirmed. She helped the waiters assemble the tables and verify that the quantity of chairs matched the number of reservations. One guest per table. The flowers are then prepared and placed on top of each table. Before her lunch shift began, she went about her typical morning routine at La Gondola. Ensure the placement of the chairs and tables and all the flowers are aligned and look elegant.Then a tall, white man in a white t-shirt and faded pants who appear
It’s six o'clock in the evening. Annika is prepared to welcome all of the night's visitors. She has a lot of reservations again. La Gondola is constantly crowded and filled, especially at night. Annika walked all the guests in, and when all were seated and everyone was enjoying their dinner, she went back to the reception area to see if any other guests would be arriving after dinnertime. "Nope! everyone is here already." So, she sits in her high chair and checks her reservation book for the next day. For some reason, Annika noticed that it became silent as the other guests were eating their dinner. It seemed like she was not hearing anything at all. She became quiet and thought about Bruce, just looking at a blank wall with the hanging picture towards the entrance stairs. Suddenly, a man appears, going upstairs in a pink Lacoste polo and a pair of jeans. He had all his gray eyes straightly looking at Annika's eyes in astonishment and hesitation. He was climbing up the steps slowly w
As night falls, Annika gets ready to head home, but the memory of that particular moment has stuck with her. There’s something about Bruce she adores so much, but does he feel the same way about her or is he merely friendly? He is new to the country and trying to be nice to everyone else. Maybe soon he will explore the city and maybe meet a person and forget about her. But tonight, it feels different He was so intimate with her in a way that she couldn’t explain. It was the first time a man made her feel this way. He made her feel so special. He made her miss him and yearn for him. She waited this long for this moment, but she is afraid for some reason. She asked herself, "Am I good enough for him? I was just a waitress, but now a restaurant receptionist. " She didn’t know what to say. Suddenly she felt down and scared. She is scared to fall in love because she has never fallen in love before. "Is this love?" she asked herself. She is happy, but at the same time she is scared and worr
Annika is a lady with a head full of ideas. She is witty, intelligent with an outgoing personality. She can easily talk to people, is definitely not shy and very clever. There’s one quality she always inherited from her old boss, that she is a people-skilled person. Despite the fact she never finished college owing to poverty, she manages to land a job she likes. She hopes to complete tourism and eventually work as a flight attendant one day, but sometimes life can be unfair.She arrived at work early the following day and went about her usual routine at work. She arrived early to discuss with Larry, her boss, and the owner, Chef Bill, how she wanted to share with the guests of the Irish Pub. She spoke to Larry first when he arrived. She asked if she could have a little of his time and shared her proposal of advertising Chef Bill’s other business. Larry thought that was a very good idea and thought that Chef Bill would love it. Larry gave Annika a tap on her shoulder and commended her
He was almost done in the kitchen at La Gondola preparing lunch. He then relayed to his assistant, making sure his assistant understood exactly what the guests were asking for their food. Chef Bill stepped out of the kitchen and walked towards Annika in the lobby and told her, "Annika, do you think you need any posters or handouts to advertise the pub?" "That would be very helpful, Chef!" she fondly responded with a smile. Annika feels happy that her boss actually acknowledges her ideas. She thought even though she doesn’t have the hands out yet, she’ll start now to introduce the pub to their guests and make it popular just like La Gondola. She is just not helping out Chef Bill’s boosting the business, but she is also helping out her new found friend Jessica.That night, when she was doing her dinner shift, some nice guests arrived, and you could see how much the diners loved and enjoyed the food. There are many people seated at the round bar, largely Americans and Europeans, who are
"La Gondola, this is Annika. How may I assist you?" asked Annika, taking the call prior to her lunch shift. Most of her visitors make reservations for lunch or dinner by calling La Gondola. "Annika, it's Bruce. What time did you finish your work tonight?" It was Bruce calling Annika. She was in disbelief at first. She could not believe she was hearing Bruce calling her. She had assumed it was someone else's call for reservation. She was unable to respond right away because she wanted to record Bruce's voice in her head so she could remember how it sounded. He seems to be flirting with Annika by speaking in a bedroom voice and teasing her ear."Hey Bruce, how are you? I’m not expecting this call from you." Annika responded. Bruce told Annika, "I want to surprise you; I know you are shy to call me, so I will call you first." Annika then informed him that she had finished her work at 10 o'clock that evening. Would you be available for a late supper tonight? Those are the sweetest words A