Chapter 4: Maria’s POV

#### **Chapter 4: Maria’s POV**

Sipping her iced coffee, Maria watched as Keisha paced back and forth in their favorite café. The usual calm atmosphere of the small coffee shop was disrupted by Keisha’s frantic energy, but Maria, as always, kept her bright, easygoing smile intact.

_"Hindi ko talaga maintindihan kung anong problema ng taong ‘yun! Ang kapal ng mukha! Akala mo naman, siya na ang pinakamagaling,"_ Keisha fumed, her voice sharp with frustration.

_"Sino pa ba, Jarren Villarreal?"_ Maria asked, half-joking as she took another sip of her drink. She already knew the answer.

_"Of course si Jarren! Sino pa ba?"_ Keisha snapped, her brows furrowed with anger. _"That guy is insufferable! He thinks he can boss everyone around just because he's the CEO."_

Maria chuckled softly, her bubbly laugh cutting through the tension. _"Alam mo, I think you're overthinking it. Parang si Jarren lang ang nagbibigay ng stress sa'yo these days. Baka naman may iba pang reason bakit ka ganyan?"_

Keisha shot her an incredulous look, but Maria just smiled wider.

_"Maria, seryoso ka ba? You've seen how he acts, right? He’s arrogant, controlling, at walang pakialam sa opinion ng iba. Kaya nga hindi ko na kayang makipagdeal sa kanya!"_ Keisha dropped into the chair across from Maria, her arms crossed over her chest. _"Basta, I swear, never again. I will avoid him like the plague."_

_"Hmmm,"_ Maria hummed playfully. _"Good luck with that. Pero sa tingin ko, the universe has other plans."_

_"Ano namang ibig mong sabihin?"_ Keisha asked, raising an eyebrow.

_"Eh kasi naman,"_ Maria said, tilting her head to the side. _"Every time you swear never to see him again, you somehow end up in another meeting with him. Fate, maybe?"_ She winked, teasing.

Keisha scoffed, rolling her eyes. _"Fate? More like bad luck."_

Maria smiled knowingly, her eyes twinkling with amusement. She had been Keisha’s friend for years, and while she knew her best friend’s temper well, she also knew that Keisha was more affected by Jarren than she wanted to admit.

_"Anyway,"_ Maria changed the subject, her voice turning lighter, _"I’ve noticed something about Jarren’s friends."_

Keisha’s frown deepened. _"Sila pa talaga ang napansin mo?"_

Maria shrugged. _"Well, bakit naman hindi? You know, not all of them are like Jarren. In fact, I think one of them is kinda nice."_ She twirled the straw in her drink, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Keisha narrowed her eyes. _"Who?"_

_"Gabriel,"_ Maria said with a grin. _"He’s charming, funny, and honestly, parang iba siya sa mga friends ni Jarren. He doesn’t take everything so seriously, at hindi siya kasing arrogant ng iba."_

Keisha snorted. _"Charming? Don’t tell me you’re actually interested in him."_

Maria waved her hand dismissively. _"I’m just saying he’s different. You can tell he’s not like the others. He listens when people talk, and he’s not afraid to laugh at himself. Plus, he always makes you feel comfortable."_

_"Hmmph,"_ Keisha grumbled. _"I still don’t trust any of them. Lalo na si Jarren."_

_"Yeah, but si Gabriel is not Jarren,"_ Maria pointed out gently. _"Don’t let your hatred for one person cloud your judgment about the others. Besides, parang interesado siya sa ‘yo—na intrigang-intriga siya sa ugali mo."_

Maria watched Keisha’s face soften just a little, and she couldn’t help but giggle. _"Admit it, kahit papaano, you’re curious about Jarren. I mean, why else would he get under your skin so easily?"_

_"Maria, you’re impossible,"_ Keisha muttered, though there was a faint smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Maria leaned forward, her expression suddenly serious. _"But in all honesty, Kei, baka naman you’re just scared of what you’re feeling. Minsan kasi, yung tao na pinaka-ayaw natin, sila yung may kakayahang magpabago sa atin."_

Keisha opened her mouth to argue, but before she could, her phone buzzed on the table. She glanced down, frowning as she read the notification.

_"What now?"_ Maria asked, noting the frustrated look on Keisha’s face.

_"It’s another meeting... with Jarren,"_ Keisha sighed, leaning back in her chair. _"Great. So much for avoiding him."_

Maria couldn’t hold back her laughter this time. _"See? I told you! Fate!"_

Keisha gave her a half-hearted glare, but Maria knew her friend well enough to see that, deep down, Keisha wasn’t as upset as she pretended to be. There was something else there, something Maria was certain even Keisha didn’t fully understand yet.

_"Fine, sige,"_ Keisha finally relented. _"But I’ll handle it professionally. I won’t let him get to me."_

_"Of course, you won’t,"_ Maria teased, standing up and grabbing her bag. _"But just in case, let me know how it goes. I have a feeling it’ll be... interesting."_ She winked before turning to leave.

As Maria walked out of the café, she couldn’t help but think about Gabriel again. There was something about him that stuck in her mind. He wasn’t like the typical guys she’d met through Keisha’s business connections. While most of them were either too focused on their careers or too arrogant to care about anything else, Gabriel had a lightness to him—a sense of humor that made people feel at ease.

Maybe that’s why she found herself thinking about him more than she expected.

_"I wonder if he’s single?"_ Maria thought with a small smile, feeling a blush creep up her cheeks at the thought. She brushed the thought away, shaking her head. _"Get a grip, Maria."_

---

Meanwhile, back at the café, Keisha scrolled through the details of the upcoming meeting on her phone, her thoughts clouded with frustration. She couldn’t believe she had to face Jarren again so soon. It seemed like no matter how hard she tried, circumstances kept pushing them together.

_"Bakit ba siya laging nandyan?!"_ Keisha muttered under her breath.

Her mind flashed back to their last encounter. The way he had dismissed her concerns, the arrogance in his voice as he insisted on sticking to his unrealistic timeline—it made her blood boil just thinking about it.

But despite her irritation, there was something else she couldn’t deny. Jarren had a way of getting under her skin, not just because of his attitude, but because of the way he carried himself. There was a confidence about him that both infuriated and intrigued her, and as much as she hated to admit it, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.

_"Ugh! No, stop it, Keisha!"_ she scolded herself, shaking her head. _"Focus on the work, not on him."_

But even as she said the words, she knew it wasn’t going to be that easy.

---

Maria, on the other hand, had always been the kind of person who saw the good in people, and it was no different with Jarren’s friends. While Keisha focused on the tension between her and Jarren, Maria had started to notice the dynamics between the others—especially Gabriel.

_"You know, maybe there’s more to him than just being the CEO’s best friend,"_ Maria mused to herself as she strolled through the park, the sun casting a warm glow over the city. _"There’s something about him... something different."_

She thought back to the way Gabriel had smiled at her during that last meeting. It wasn’t flirtatious, not exactly, but there had been a warmth to it, a genuine interest that made her feel seen, not just as Keisha’s friend, but as herself.

_"I wonder if we’ll see each other again,"_ she thought, her heart fluttering slightly at the idea.

As she wandered through the park, Maria realized that despite the chaos surrounding Keisha and Jarren’s business rivalry, maybe there was a silver lining for her. After all, life had a funny way of bringing people together, even in the most unexpected circumstances.

_"Maybe Keisha’s not the only one fate is playing with,"_ she thought with a smile, her mind drifting back to Gabriel once more.

---