CHAPTER 5

AFTER FIVE YEARS...

Lenie had grown frustrated with Alice after waiting for so long. She originally thought her friend would return within a few months or at most, a year, but after several years, Alice still hadn’t made contact.

Lenie had accepted that Alice may have completely abandoned her child. That wasn’t a problem for Lenie because Javi had grown up to be a good child.

“Baby, come on, hurry up and eat. You’ll be late for school. Also, Mama’s early for work. Let’s move, okay? I’ll wait for you here,” Lenie said to Javi as she prepared his meal.

“Lenie, I need to ask you something. Haven’t you heard from Javi’s mom? Didn’t she say she would come back? Poor Javi, he hasn’t even met his real mother,” said Hasmin to her child while having breakfast.

Lenie’s face showed frustration upon hearing this from her mother. She looked around to make sure no neighbors were listening. When she saw that no one was around, she replied to her mother in a whisper.

“Mom, please, don’t bring that up. Javi might hear you or a neighbor might. He doesn’t know I’m not his real mom. And about Alice, I don’t care if she never comes back. I treat Javi like my own son. You know that, right?” Lenie responded, then sat down to have her breakfast.

“Lenie, what if Javi’s mother suddenly comes back? What will you say to the child? I don’t want to be distant from Javi, but we must face the truth that he’s not really your son,” Hasmin continued.

Lenie ignored her mother, knowing it would only lead to an argument. She dropped Javi off at school and then went to work. Lenie was afraid of Alexis because he didn’t like people who were late.

Lenie hurried because when she looked at her watch, she realized she was already late. She prayed to God, hoping that Alexis would be in a good mood so he wouldn’t scold her for being late.

“Hey, Zyra! Is Sir Alexis already there? I hope I’m not too late, right? I dropped Javi off at school. You know how slow that kid is,” Lenie hurriedly said.

“Oh, yes. He’s already in his office. He’s been asking for you. Hurry up, or Sir Alexis might get annoyed with you. You know he doesn’t like late people,” Zyra replied.

Upon hearing Zyra’s words, Lenie rushed. She grabbed the papers from her cubicle and headed up to the fourth floor to find Sir Alexis’ office. She became annoyed when she realized she hadn’t combed her hair before heading to work.

She felt embarrassed when she entered her boss’s office, as Alexis looked her over from head to toe before speaking.

“Good morning, Miss Santos. You seem to be in a hurry. Is there a problem?” Alexis asked.

“Ah, no, Sir. I had an urgent task at home, so I was late. I’m sorry,” Lenie answered, bowing to apologize.

Afterward, Lenie placed the papers on Sir Alexis’s desk. She remained standing, waiting in case her boss had any further instructions. A few minutes later, Alexis spoke.

“Miss Santos, it seems you’ve been using the same excuse for me. Don’t you have anything else? Anyway, please give this to Ms. Bermudez and tell her I need it done by 12 noon. Is that clear?” Alexis said authoritatively as he handed her new papers.

“Got it, Sir,” Lenie replied.

Just as Lenie was about to leave, Alexis called her again. She wondered why but still turned to face him.

“Miss Santos, are you free tonight? I just want to have a date with you. I have no plans after 8 pm,” Alexis said with a smile.

“Ah, I’ll check my schedule, Sir Alexis. I’ll let you know if I’m free by that time. Thank you,” Lenie answered, about to turn away when Alexis spoke again.

“I already asked Ms. Bermudez to clear your schedule for me. All your tasks for today will be handled by her,” Alexis said, smiling. He knew there was no reason for Lenie to refuse.

Lenie’s lips parted in surprise. She wanted to run out and scold Zyra for allowing Alexis to clear her schedule.

“What? That doesn’t sound right, Sir. I don’t want to trouble Ms. Bermudez. If I can do it, why should I give it to her?” Lenie responded, still shocked by her boss’s request.

“I’ve already told Ms. Bermudez about it. You can ask her. Anyway, I’ll wait for you at 8 pm. Also, a hair and makeup artist will pick you up here at the office. They’ll bring the dress you’ll wear tonight,” Alexis ordered.

Lenie was confused by Alexis’s words. She couldn’t help but feel annoyed at how easy it was for him to say all of that. But of course, Lenie knew she couldn’t show her irritation.

“Sir, may I ask what’s happening tonight that I need to go with you?” Lenie asked, still bewildered.

“You’ll only know when you come with me tonight. I hope you’ll accept it. This night is important to me,” Alexis replied.

Lenie nodded and then turned to leave her boss’s office. Once outside, she sighed in disbelief.

“You’re in big trouble with me, Zyra Bermudez!” she whispered while walking back to her cubicle.

Lenie sat down angrily at her workstation, prompting Zyra to ask what was bothering her.

“Hey, are you okay? Don’t tell me you had a fight with Sir Alexis? Is this a love quarrel?” Zyra teased, laughing.

“A love quarrel? When were you planning to tell me that Sir Alexis cleared my schedule for today?” Lenie asked, her frustration evident in her voice.

“Oh, you already know. Well, I came in before you, so I didn’t get a chance to tell you. He told me to clear your schedule because you have something important to attend to tonight. Who am I to refuse, right?” Zyra explained to Lenie.

“Even so! You shouldn’t have agreed. You know how many eyes are on us here at the office. Zyra!” Lenie replied.

Though Lenie knew she couldn’t do anything about it, she was still very upset. This was not the first time Alexis had asked her out, but this was the first time he cleared her schedule and asked someone else to do her tasks.

“Next time, if he says something like that to you, you better tell me right away, okay? Even if I’m late for work. Do we understand each other, Zyra?” Lenie said, her voice calm when she said that.

“Yes, Ma’am. I’ll do that,” Zyra replied, still teasing Lenie. Lenie decided to ignore it, not wanting to argue with her friend.