Chantria“We don’t have any big styrofoam here,” Erin said on the other line.“Okay,” I replied. “Lorreine and I will look for some here. We already completed our purchases. So, is that the only thing you still need?”“Yes, that’s all. We have some here, but they’re small. They won’t be enough for what we’re going to do.”“Alright. I’ll call you again once we find some.”After I hung up the phone, Lorreine and I immediately searched for styrofoam. I tried calling Gab to ask if he needed anything else, but he didn’t answer. Maybe he was still busy looking for and organizing the things we needed from him.“Oh? Alright. We’re still at the mall. We’ll try to look for one.”I glanced at Lorreine, who was talking on the phone. I approached her. “Do Erin and the others need anything else?”She put her phone back in her pocket before answering me. “That was Gab on the phone. He said they no longer have small screws, so he’s asking us to buy some for him.”I sighed. I’ve been trying to call hi
ChantriaWhen I arrived home, I changed my clothes first. I promised Aling Tryna that I would have dinner with them, so I hurried my actions. Although I always eat at their house, so I don't know why I still needed to make a promise.I saw Iwatani outside with his back facing me. I didn't immediately see what he was doing, so I called his name. When he turned to me, he had just thrown something on the ground before stepping on it.I bit my lower lip. "Are you smoking?"He briefly scratched his head. "Sometimes. Only when I'm tired.""You know that's not good for your health, right?"He nodded. "Yeah."For some unknown reason, my blood suddenly boiled. Why did he seem indifferent to what I was saying?"You know that already. So why do you still do it?"His mouth dropped open when I suddenly raised my voice. "Uh... sorry. If you're worried about second-hand smoke, I won't smoke in front of you."I gasped. "That's not what I meant. Smoking is bad not just for my health but also for yours
ChantriaWhile waiting for Iwatani, who was called to the teacher’s office, I chose to stay in the car instead. It's very hot today, and I don't want to be far away from the car's air conditioning. Now I realize how hot it really is in the Philippines.There's summer in Canada too, but it's not this hot. It's also very humid, so it feels sticky when you sweat.While playing on my phone, I looked outside and immediately got out of the car when I saw Gab heading towards his car. But before I could get close, a man came out of the driver's side.I stopped approaching when I saw Gab's father up close. It was only then that I realized how big he was. He had a large build and was tall. He had a dark complexion and blue eyes.His forehead seemed to be permanently creased as he looked at his son. This was the first time I had seen him up close, so I wasn't sure. But his aura was intimidating, as if he would hit me for one mistake.And as if he heard my thoughts, he punched Gab on the right ch
ChantriaI watched myself while lifting weights. I could see the improvement in my body after a few months of weightlifting. Not only that, even in shooting, I am becoming better than before.I even took a video of myself before and tried to compare it now. That's when I noticed how big the change was in my body. At first, it wasn't really noticeable. If not for the video, I might lose hope because it felt like nothing had changed.After finishing my set today, I asked Iwatani if I could just use the comfort room quickly. He was still talking to some of his friends here, so I didn't want to disturb him too much.When I finished fixing myself up, I went out. But then my things fell when someone bumped into me. I quickly picked up my bag and the scattered combs. Even my phone wasn't spared.But what surprised me more was that the person who bumped into me just left without even saying sorry. I gasped and shouted at him, but he seemed deaf because he didn't even turn around."Wow!" I exc
ChantriaI sighed while staring into space. I couldn't get the image of the man who attacked Gab out of my head.I'm worried about Gab. What if the man comes back and does something even worse to him? What if no one else comes to help him? What if it's not just one man who corners him, but a dozen? How will he defend himself then?I looked down at my food when Iwatani placed a piece of chicken on my plate. "Eat," he said. "You've been staring off into space since earlier. Our break time is almost over.""Sorry," I said."Why are you apologizing?" he asked."We're supposed to be spending this break time together, but I've been zoned out. Sorry. I was being rude.""I don't care about that. Even if you don't talk to me, it's fine. What's important is that you eat because we still have classes this afternoon."I smiled and started eating. I couldn't help but glance at him while he ate. Am I being too shallow if I get happy just by looking at him like this? I just find him cute no matter w
ChantriaLorreine seemed to be jumping up and down with excitement when we arrived at the mall. She was the only one who was overly excited about our shopping trip today.Well, I was excited too, but not this much. She was like a child taken to an amusement park, jumping in the middle of the mall. Some people were looking at her and laughing, so I couldn't help but feel embarrassed. We looked like we brought a preschool student to the mall."What should we buy first?" Louella asked."Hey!" Lorreine protested. "We shouldn't plan like that. We'll go wherever the first shop we pass by is."I sighed. "Looks like we'll be going around the mall a lot today." I looked at Iwatani, who was just quietly following us. "Is it okay with you?"He nodded. "I'm fine here. Just enjoy yourselves.""You should enjoy too!" Lorreine exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "You're the first one we're buying clothes for and you need to look like someone who's going camping, not just someone who's going to school."Lou
Chantria"Hi!"I turned around when someone called out to us. I saw Aaron, Gab's friend, shyly approaching us. He also looked at Lorreine, Louella, and Iwatani before greeting them."Hi, Aaron!" I greeted him. I've talked to him before since we sometimes participate in the same activities, but he's too shy so we can't really talk properly. That's why it was surprising when he approached us."Um...I would like to ask a favor from you guys," he scratched his neck while speaking. "Gab's birthday is coming up and we thought of surprising her. Actually, it was Makino's idea and I was asked to talk to you guys."I don't know if I should laugh at Makino or not, but if it's for Gab, I'm sure even Lorreine would agree even if it's Makino's idea."What can we help with?" Lorreine asked, sounding a bit annoyed. "It seems like Makino can do everything for the surprise party for Gab. She won't need our help, unless she plans on holding the party in an expensive hotel and needs money. I know she ca
ChantriaMakino and her friends are preparing the hotel they reserved for the surprise party. We were assigned to do the grocery shopping for the food, so we went to the market early in the morning.It's a good thing that Gab's birthday falls on a Saturday and there's no work. Iwatani and I were assigned to do the shopping and cooking, while Lorreine and Louella will help with the preparations while we're at the market.We'll be cooking at the hotel and everyone will be helping out there. Some of them will pick up Gab and invite him to play basketball, but the truth is they will go straight to the hotel for the surprise.Makino and Aaron will message each other to let us know if they're on their way. We're here at the hotel waiting with the cake that Makino baked herself.I picked up some balloons to hold while Gab's male friends have party poppers. Lorreine and Louella also have balloons like mine.When I noticed that Iwatani didn't have any balloons, I quickly looked for one that he
ChantriaI slowly opened my eyes, but quickly shut them again due to the pain in my head. But when everything came back to me, I quickly got up from my bed. I ignored the throbbing pain in my senses because there was only one thing I wanted to see right now."Carleigh!" I exclaimed as I entered the living room of our house with Chanel.Chanel and Iwatani, who were playing Xbox, both turned to look at me. Iwatani immediately stopped playing to talk to me."She's in the kitchen," Chanel replied. "She said she wanted to cook for you."I didn't finish what she was saying and ran to the kitchen. There I saw her back turned on me. She was mixing something in the pan.Tears once again fell from my eyes. I can't believe that she's really here. It wasn't a dream. She's really in front of me."Carleigh..." I said.She turned around briefly, surprised at my sudden speech. "Chantria, you're awake. How are you feeling? I'm cooking soup."I didn't pay attention to what she was saying and ran to her
Chantria"Woah! Woah! Calm down, princess," Lance said with both hands raised in the air."You said you're friends with Iwatani. You lied to me!""I didn't lie, miss. Iwatani is my best friend.""If he's your friend, why are you with this guy?" I pointed the gun at Gab, who was calmly standing near a car. He leaned on it, looking at me as if he wasn't scared of what I was holding."Isaac? Why? He's not my best friend, but we're friends too. Do you know him?""I don't just know him. I know him well."Lance turned to his friend when he asked, so Gab answered. "She's Chantria, Lance. Or you might know her as Seanne."Lance's jaw dropped and he seemed frozen in place. "This is the girl you're crazy about? I didn't expect this from you."I tried not to react to what Lance said. He might be lying. No. He's definitely lying. Iwatani isn't even here, as he said. How can I trust someone like him?"Great," I said. "We're already here anyway. Why don't you answer my questions, Gabriele? Where's
ChantriaAfter a long day at work, I went straight to our house with Chanel. And yes, we’re still living together. However, we rarely see each other except in the morning before we go to work. But I was surprised because she came home early today."You're early," I greeted her. I also slumped on the sofa and grabbed the chips she was eating."Just for a change. I need a break," she replied.We were quiet for a while, watching TV when she suddenly spoke. "I heard the one who killed Carleigh is caught." Her voice was low, just enough for me to hear."I don't know yet. But according to Lorreine, the man they caught had something to do with what happened. I don't know if he's the one who killed her or if there's someone else involved.""Why do you seem hesitant? This is what we've been waiting for, right? To find the killer.""I don't know. I don't think I can face him yet."She turned off the TV before facing me. "Let me ask you something. What do you want to do? What kind of revenge are
ChantriaI lowered the cap I was wearing to hide my face a little bit. I also adjusted my fake glasses to see where I was going more clearly.I continued pushing the cleaning supplies towards the elevator. I greeted some people I passed by and they greeted me back, but they didn't ask any further questions.I needed to act as natural as possible. I didn't want to get caught after everything I had done for this mission. I wouldn't leave the hotel without finding any evidence against them.When I reached the twelfth floor, I got off and continued pushing the cleaning supplies towards Gab's room.I looked left and right before inserting the key card and swiping it. I held my breath until the lock clicked, indicating that the door had opened. Lorreine was really reliable in these kinds of tasks.And Chanel would surely scold me if she found out. Iwatani didn't want me to do these things either, so I didn't tell him about my plan. It was better if only Lorreine knew.When I got inside, I l
ChantriaI was staring into space while lost in thought. The encounter we had at 7/11 earlier is still on my mind. I can't believe I saw him again after several months.And he wasn't looking for me, he said. He wouldn't show up if I didn't want to see him. I don't know if I should be happy about what he said or not.But one thing is for sure, he still loves me. Chanel is right. He loves me. Well, he's not sure if he really loves me or not, but he said his feelings haven't changed.There's something inside me that hopes he's telling the truth. There's a part of me that believes he really had nothing to do with what his dad was doing. He was just caught in the middle.Now, I just have to wait. Wait for whatever plan he has in mind. I don't know what kind of plan he'll make, but I will believe in him."Let me have your ice cream." Chanel snatched the ice cream from my hand before I could react and licked it."Chanel!" I tried to take it back from her. "That's mine!""You're not eating it
Chantria"Congratulations on passing the interview," said HR Manager Ms. Dianne Gutierrez. "From here on out, you'll be assigned to different leaders to guide you. I want to introduce you to Miss Anna Marshall, the head of the marketing department."A tall woman with glasses introduced herself. Afterwards, Lorreine and Louella were introduced as Miss Marshall's apprentices."And Miss Yao Lu, the head of the general management." She was a shorter woman with glasses, but with thicker lenses.Chanel and I nodded as she called out our names. We were assigned to her. Only Ma'am Dianne knew who we were to avoid favoritism in the company.We didn't want any privilege as apprentices here. It was already a big help that we were able to get in despite still being in college. We didn't want to abuse our influence. It was also fortunate that we were allowed to bring Louella and Lorreine.It's been a few months since we graduated. We've been busy taking care of our apprenticeship here. Luckily, Da
Chantria"Why are you so surprised to see me?" he asked. "I told you I'm coming today, right? Did you forget?"I forced myself to smile, but it came out awkwardly. "I-I'm just... yeah. I forgot."He chuckled softly. "That's okay. I'll wait for you here so you can freshen up. We're going somewhere, and you're going to love it."He turned to head back to his car when I called out to him. He faced me with a questioning look."What? Is there a problem?" He walked towards me. He reached out his hand to touch me, but I didn't accept it."Let's not go today. I'm not feeling well."Ignoring my rejection of his hand, he touched my forehead. "You don't have a fever. But if you're feeling unwell, we can go there next time. Wait, I'll buy you some medicine."Before I could stop him, he had already left. I let out a sigh before going inside. I needed to figure out a way to get rid of him without him suspecting anything. I knew it was only a temporary solution, but I needed more time to think about
ChantriaI sipped my coffee before facing Iwatani. We were in the living room to introduce me to the important people in the business world. This was the first step in my revenge.Of course, I needed to know who I was going to face. I couldn't just bump into them without knowing anything."First of all, the Zima Company. Your dad's company." I was about to object, but he didn't let me. "Even though you're the heir, I know you haven't met all of your dad's staff yet. Am I right?"I thought about it, and he was right. I didn't know anyone. I knew Joaquin was my dad's secretary before he disappeared, but I didn't know who replaced him. I also hadn't met any of the board members yet because of what happened.He placed a photo of my dad on the table, which I immediately looked at. "Philippio Geronimo Zima. The president and CEO of Zima Corp. As you may know, he owns hotels, restaurants, condominiums, and other residential properties both in and out of the country."He then placed another p
Chantria"So, who's the other guy?" she asked while looking at my friends who seemed to have breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that the tension between the two of us had subsided.I looked at my friends because I wasn't sure who she was referring to. "Who? Iwatani?""The other one. The cute one." My eyes twinkled because both Iwatani and Gab were cute. "The new one. I already met that Japanese-looking guy. The other one. The Spanish-looking one."I nodded. "That's Gab. My boyfriend."She raised an eyebrow in my direction. "I thought the other one was your boyfriend.""No, he's not. He's my bodyguard. What about that guy? Your boyfriend?"She rolled her eyes. "My bodyguard, Chantria. Dad didn't just assign a bodyguard to you. And he's annoying. There's no way in hell he's my boyfriend."I laughed at what she said. "You two look cute together."She grinned at me because of what I said. "You and your bodyguard look cute together too."I gave her a stern look. "He rejected me already.