For the first time that month, she had a totally boring, unproductive and idle day at work!
And she was miserable.
Her body is already too used to working that it absolutely sets her system off the moment she doesn’t do anything. Nakatunganga lang siya sa loob ng opisina dahil advance niya nang natapos ang ilang paperworks, at hindi kayang tanggapin ng sistema niya na wala siyang ginagawa.
Her intercom beeped, followed by Mia’s voice.
Finally, work!
“Line five.”
She furrowed her brows. Bakit ma tumatawag sa kanya galing sa linya’ng ‘yun?
Dali-dali niyang pinindot ang telepono, “Asia speaking.”
“Miss Awa, this is from J Publishing.”
“Yes, I know. What is it?”
Isinalaysay ng tao’ng kausap ang nangyari. At bawat salita’ng lumalabas sa bibig nito, mas lalong siya’ng nagngi-ngitngit sa galit. She’s so close to tearing the chord apart.
“Arnold, you say?”
“Yes po.”
Her jaw clenched. Napapikit siya nang mariin sa sagot nito.
“Why is he deciding over something na hindi naman sakop ng trabaho niya?” nagtitimpi’ng tanong niya sa kausap. “And is it his job para pakialaman niya ‘yun? Does the Big Boss know about this? And why the fvck is he doing stuffs without consulting me first?”
“Sorry po, Miss Awa, as per request din po kasi ni Sir Arn ‘yun. I’m just here to relay the message.”
That Arnold Reymundo has been getting into her nerves since the moment he stepped into the company. He’s a colleague from the same publishing company she’s signed a contract with. He’s currently the production assistant, but is, evidently, aiming for a much higher position in the company.
Pero wala pa itong right para magdesisyon sa final outcome ng libro.
But alas! The Great Arnold just decided to edit and revise one of her stories that the publishing house is currently working on. He even had the audacity to tell them to limit the story into a fifty-thousand-word count, dahil baka raw hindi kayanin sa binding.
Of course, the editorial department rejected the idea, but the guy insisted. Plano pa nito, babaguhin at tatanggalin ang ilang scenes at parts para lumiit ang word count.
Just. What. The. Fuck.
“I’m coming over.”
She was seething in anger when she stormed out of her office.
“Call me if something urgent comes up,” walang lingon-likod siyang naglakad papunta sa direksyon ng elevator, “may hayop lang ako’ng kakadenahan.”
“Have fun!” sigaw ni Mia sa kanya.
Mabilis niyang tinahak ang daan papunta sa publishing company. Awa’s been in the company for a couple of years now, she’s published her first ever written story under the company, while Arnold had only been working in the company for a year, and yet…?
This is not about superiority, but she demands respect for something she’s worked real hard for almost a year. Iniiyakan niya ang mga sinusulat na kwento, especially kapag hindi na malinaw ang takbo ng kwento at kapag tinatamaan siya ng writer’s block; she cries over it, feeling inadequate every time she couldn’t write anything at all.
Tapos ay ganito ang gagawin ni Arnold?
No, hindi siya papayag. Talaga’ng makakatikim na ang lalaki sa kanya this time. Dati pa kasi niyang napapansin na mainit ang dugo nito sa kanya, for what reason? She doesn’t know. Halata lang sa mga kilos at pagpaparinig nito sa kanya kapag nagpapang-abot sila sa kumpanya.
Well… same, dude
She took quick strides to the elevator and pressed on the up button relentlessly.
Pagkarating niya sa floor ng editorial department, gulat na gulat ang lahat nang makita siya. Reyna, the head of the department, who was just coming back from the comfort room, came to immediately assist her.
It’s true, she never comes to the company unannounced― to protect her indentity from the public, but she told the person who called her that she was coming. Hindi ba nito sinabi sa kanila ang pagdating niya?
“Awa,” nakipag-beso ito sa kanya, “what’s going on?”
“Hindi mo alam na darating ako?” takhang tanong niya. “At hindi mo rin alam anong nangyari rito?”
“I don’t think I understand what you mean, Awa.”
She brushed her fingers through her hair and sighed exasperatedly. “Goddamn that douche!” she cursed under her breath. “Where is he, Reyna?”
Reyna, stunned and flustered by her sudden outburst, asked. “Sino’ng hinahanap mo?”
“Si Arnold!”
“Okay, calm down.” Nilingon nito ang tao’ng nasa pinaka-malapit na cubicle. “Please call Arnold Reymundo over, tell him I want him here ASAP. Thank you.”
Iginaya siya ng kaibigan papunta sa opisina niya.
“Ba’t hindi mo alam?”
“Ang alin ba?”
Ikinuwento niya ang sinabi ng kausap kanina, na hanggang ngayon ay hindi niya kilala kung sino.
“He’s not totally helping, at all!” she gritted her teeth in annoyance. “Marami akong inaasikaso sa kumpanya ko, Reyn.”
“That asshole.” Hindi na maipinta ang mukha ng kaibigan. “I’m so sorry about this, Awa, hindi ko alam. Nobody told me about this.”
“Haven’t you been in the company lately?”
“Kakauwi ko lang last week from Italy. Lolo Chito had a mild stroke, Will had to take over the company temporarily, walang magbabantay kay Lolo, so nag-presenta na ako.”
“How is he then?”
“After a month’s worth of therapy, medyo okay na siya. He’s fast recovering.”
“Good to hear that then.”
Reyna is one of the few friends closest to her. They met during college, along with Myra and Mia― whom she’s been friends since diapers. Sa sobrang close nila, kilala rin sila ng pamilya ng fiancée ni Reyna. So it was only natural that she got a worried after hearing Lolo Chito had a mild stroke. Super kwela pa naman ng matandang iyon.
“We’ll fix this Awa, pasensya na talaga.” Hingi’ng paumanhin ulit ng kaibigan. “That guy had been a total headache lately, hindi ko ba alam sa isang ‘yun.”
“I’ll give him a piece of my mind later.” Naiinis na sabi niya. “Oh, he better show his face before I totally lost it.”
She threw herself onto the couch when she reached her unit, the sudden trip to the publishing company had exhausted all of her energy.
Ang tanging naiisip nalang niya ay matulog. Fvck shower!
Pero nanlalagkit na ang katawan niya, and exhausted as she was, she still prefers to sleep with her body clean. Even her dinner only consisted of reheated binagol and her own coffee blend.
Her phone chimed, following a notification on her screen.
Ella Wp
May pa-games sa F******k page soon, sumali ka HAHA
With a frown, she went to the author’s page and, like what she said, may palaro nga’ng nangyayari.
She typed in a message for Ella:
Asia
What’s happening?
Intrigued, she clicked on the post that was garnening comments after comments.
It was Ella’s recent post, may picture ng isang mystery guy na kasama, and with a caption that said: get to know the chief and catch his heart, take the quiz!
Ella Wp
we’re doing something for the new characters
na-isip naming through games nalang, so readers
would get to at least know a little deets about them
before they’re finally out in the book
Oh.
Asia
Natatawa ako, parang marketing strategy lang LOL
She checked on the comment box and read the first ones she saw.
Annie: OMG! I need to have his heart!
Ella Wp: baka mamatay siya beh kapag kinuha mo puso nya amp
Leslie: NOOOO! HE’S GOING TO BE MINE! MINE! MINE! MINE!
Christa: may boyfriend na ako kaya sige, sa inyo na ‘yan lol!
Daisy: ipa-ubaya niyo na sa’kin ‘yan. ako rin pipiliin nyan, makikita niyo!
Marie: woy, ‘sy Daisy, ‘wag masyado’ng makampante, nandito pa si ako HAHA
Jacky: tapos sa huli, wala sa inyo mapipili sads. matindi kalaban nyo, si Nikki
Ella Wp: galingan niyo sa quiz, maganda ang prize LOL!
With a shrug, she typed in a reply and sent it to the comment section.
Asia: I’d like to try.
Kahit hindi siya sure kung ano talaga pinagkakaguluha nila, it looked fun to her, so she might as well try it out. Anyway, wala naman mawawala sa kanya kung sumali siya sa mga ganito’ng paandar nila.
She needed a break from an exhausting day at the publishing company, anyway.
Ella Wp replied to your comment, her notification said.
Albeit confused, napangiti pa rin siya sa reply na nabasa.
Ella Wp: that’s the spirit! you go girl, goodluck hahaha!
Eh? Good luck saan naman?
When the time for the quiz has come, tinitigan niyang mabuti ang pangalan na naka-display sa screen ng phone niya.
Liam Skye
The name looked strangely familiar to her.
“Saan nga ba?”
Then it dawned on her.
It was the same name she saw on her friend suggestion from F******k, na pinag-send-an niya ng friend request nung nakaraan.
And it was the same name she read from Ella’s story, sa last chapter na in-update nito. It was the last line from the chapter, na hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa pala na-u-update ulit ni Ella.
For whatever reason, her heart thumped lightly against her chest.
The dinner meeting she set up with the HD team went well, they finally narrowed down the comeback’s concept into two and are only waiting for the group’s say on the options. Na-ayos na rin nila ang expenses at ang mga details at inclusions para sa album. Ang desisyon nalang ng grupo ang hihintayin before she finally gives them the go-signal. With the comeback coming in two months’ time, they’re all cramming things up for HD. Sa ngayon kasi, ito ang pinakamalaking gagawin ng buong team at kumpanya niya. “I want the final decision by tomorrow morning,” she told the group’s manager. “And as soon as we get the answers, I want you guys to immediately start everything.” 
“Have you think of a gift for Krissy?” Was the question she heard the moment she sat at the only vacant seat around their table. May isang venti-sized latte at isang serving ng blackout cake na nakalatag na sa pwesto niya, and her cousins seem to have been in the café for some time now dahil masyado na silang cozy sa mga pwesto nila, and the halfly eaten pastries kind of give it away. She sipped on her latte first before asking, “What did I miss?” “We were just talking about Krissy’s birthday party.” “Yea,” kumuwit siya ng cake bago tingnan si Rich, “you were just asking about gifts, right?”&nbs
There are people who naturally have an aversion to crowds and successfully shuns away from it; and then there are some who, unfortunately, are forced to like it despite being a hermit. Last and Aye were dragging her out of the building the moment she stepped out of the elevator, nasa sasakyan na raw sila White at kanina pa naghihintay sa kanya. “What took you so long, Ate?” agit na tanong ni Aye habang hatak-hatak siya nito. “We were waiting for you forever!” “Ang OA mo.” She clicked her tongue and pulled her arms away from her cousins. “Makakalas ang mga braso ko sa paghatak niyo, ano ba?” “Kasi naman, Ate, ang bagal mo, e.&rdquo
Her day to laze around basically means people’s time to disturb her at home. Asia initially planned to sleep off until ten in the morning, she hasn’t that much of sleep indulgence since fifteen. But alas! That didn’t go as planned because a certain Ada Acosta-Sandoval barged into her unit and bombarded her with her pregnancy cravings. “I’m so sorry for this, Awa.” that was the thirteenth time her brother-in-law said that. “Gusto ko man pigilan ang Ate mo, pero masama raw sa buntis ang hindi pinagbibigyan sa mga lihi.” “So they say, Kuya.” Bagot na sagot niya ri
With barely a recollection of what happened the previous night, Awa buried her face deep into the pillows and screamed. As smart as she was, alcohol is probably the only thing that makes her forget… about everything. Her bedroom door creaked open, followed by a few pairs of steps making their way to her bed. She didn’t bother checking who they were, dahil alam niyang mga pinsan sa kabilang floor lang naman ang pupunta sa unit niya unannounced. But when Awa heard them singing happy birthday to you, bumalikwas siya mula sa pagkakadapa at gulat na tumingin sa mga pinsan, pare-pareho pa’ng nakasuot ng pantulog, na may dalang sinindihang cake, party popper, birthday hats at banner made out of cartolina and cutouts from magazine pages, probably. Sinuotan siya ni Aye ng isang birthday hat bago tumayo ulit kasama ang apat na
It wasn’t until the next morning did Awa finally got to read the file Ella sent, she skimmed through the document and visited the facebook link to the character she was holding. As soon as the page loaded, she received a message from Ella. Ella Wp You finally opened her acct! Yey!  
What’s meant to be a blind date turned out to be an impromptu counseling sesh with Drew. Plot twist:she was the one doing the counselling this time. How quickly the tables have turned, she would've wanted to say; preferably with a smirk on her lips. But she decided against it. After having dinner at the restaurant, they decided to visit a different place albeit their formal wears. She suggested they try for dessert, kaya dinala niya rin ang binata sa malapit na ice cream parlor na pag-aari ng pinsan niyang si Lianne, kambal ni Liam. (Not Liam Skye, though.) “Hello Rica,” she greeted the lady in the counter. Rica beamed at her and greeted her back. “One chocolate mud pie and— ano’ng sa’yo?”&
Liam Skye is waving at you. Tap to wave back. She left him on seen; she’s as immature as she’s childish— especially when she’s got alchohol in her system. But, of course, Liam Skye seemed to have another idea. Liam Skye: don’t ignore me I’m just concerned, ok?&nb