Chapter 3: Finding Nate

Cela woke up effortlessly despite having very few hours of sleep.  They say old habits die hard but it's a good thing that the early morning sky is worth waking up to.  It's a treat.

"Good morning, Ms. Cela," Hyun excitedly greeted her on the phone while looking at himself in the mirror.  He hates that he fell asleep without putting his facial mask on.  "I'm sorry, I only saw your message this morning," he explained.

"Good morning, Hyun," Cela greeted him too.  "I'm the one who should be ashamed for bugging you after I told you yesterday that you should ignore work related matters during this break."

 

"It's okay, Ms. Cela.  By the way, the team went clubbing last night and we had so much fun. You should join us next time," Hyun said.

"That's good to hear. You deserve to have fun.  You should have told me about it early on so I could contribute," Cela said.

"I'll take note of that for next time. By the way, what is it about?" Hyun asked.

"Oh, actually I have a favor to ask from you," she said.

"What is it? Is it something related to the third book?" he asked excitedly.

"What's with the third book?  Did Ivy go through about it already even without me?" she asked.

"Oh no, Ms. Cela.  It's not like that. However, she told us to be ready for anything that you might need that is connected to the preparation of the third book," Hyun explained.

"I'm telling you, there's no third book yet," Cela said firmly.  "I haven't agreed to write another one.  I'm still exhausted from the last one. And why do you sound so excited about it?  Weren't you the one who strongly swore that he would go on a long break without interruption once the second book was out?" she asked.

"Well, the truth is Ms. Ivy already converted to cash our supposed vacation," Hyun said shyly.  He knows it won't sit well with her.

Cela is speechless.  She couldn't believe Ivy would go as far as monetizing the vacation of the employees for the sake of another book that she believes will be best for the company.

"Ms. Cela, are you still there?" Hyun asked to check.

"Yeah, I'm still here.  I was just amazed by what I heard from you," Cela answered.

"May I know what is the favor that you want to ask from me," he asked to change the topic.

"Actually, I need your help in finding a person," Cela started.

Hyun got curious instantly.  "Is someone missing, Ms. Cela? Maybe we should involve the authorities," he asked.

"Oh no, don't be silly.  No one is missing.  I just want to reach out to someone I knew from way back," she replied.

"You mean to reconnect with that person?" he clarified.

"More likely," she said. "I'll send you the name and other possible names he might be using on social media.  I tried last night but couldn't find a match and I am not really into social media so I definitely need your expertise," she explained.

Hyun understood the instruction.  "I'll let you know right away once I find even a close match. By the way, can I ask my friends to help me out too or is it confidential?" he asked.

"Oh no, it's not confidential.  It would be great if you could get help from others.  Appreciate it, Hyun" she said before hanging up.

Cela takes a moment to look at the beautiful sky outside her window.  It is so calming in her eyes and it seems to promise her that nothing will ever go wrong today.

And for some reason, it brings back some good memories.

"Did you really design your team's uniform?" Cela asked Nate.  She tried to keep it casual with him by limiting the topics of their conversation to things and activities around them.

Nate took his portfolio from his bag and proudly showed to her all his designs.

"Wow! These are amazing.  You sketched all these?" she asked.

Nate smiled.

"You're so talented.  You play basketball, you design, and you are a scholar on top of everything.  You are sure to have a great future ahead of you.  It's guaranteed," Cela said sincerely.

"My future is nothing compared to yours. You are sure to have a greater life ahead," Nate said.

"What do you want to do after high school? What course are you going to take up in college?" Cela asked.

"Well, I really want to study graphics designs but Mrs. Serrano, you mom, wants me to study architecture," Nate shared.

"Really, Does she have to choose that for you too?  What will happen if you don't?" she asked.

"She will continue my scholarship up to college only if I take up architecture," Nate said.

Cela felt bad for him. Her mother's controlling nature knows no borders. She wanted to console him but she noticed that some students were looking at them.

"Are you okay?" Nate asked.

"Yeah, I am.  Sorry, something just came across my mind," Cela said.

"Are you always like that?" Nate asked.

"What do you mean? Cela asked.

"Pardon my asking but I noticed that you're always thinking of something," Nate clarified.

Cela didn't know how to react upon knowing that there's someone who actually notices what she's doing.

"You are right. My mind always wanders.  I have a thing for writing and sometimes scenarios play in my head naturally," she explained.

"That's amazing!  Where are these stories? Will I be able to read anything that you wrote?" Nate asked.

Cela was flattered. Her sweet smile came out naturally.  "Believe it or not, I haven't written anything yet.  It's all here," she said while pointing to her head.

"Oh, you have to put that in writing.  Don't let it stay there.  You have to share it," he said.

The phone rings bringing her back to the present. It's her brother.

"Hi. I'm sorry I forgot to reply last night.  I got home safe and sound," Cela said.

"I'm relieved to hear that," Rolan said.  "Can we visit you this week?  I heard from Nanny Rita that you are finally on a break."

Cela thought for a moment.  "Sure but not this week.  I need to do a lot of arranging and organizing here first before I can welcome any visitors," she said.

"We're not visitors. We don't mind if it has clutters. Actually, Nanny Rita would love to help.  Can she come over to help you?" he asked.

"I prefer to do everything by myself here in my own place and enjoy it alone for now," she said firmly.

Rolan understands that her sister wants to enjoy her new found life and privacy.

"Alright. Let us know when we can come to visit.  We'll have a nice housewarming.  Nanny Rita and I are both happy for you," he said

"Thank you. I'll cook for you next time," she said.

"I'll look forward to that, sis," he said.

The clock shows 12nn.  Time does fly and she feels unproductive because she hasn't done anything yet.  However, she can't help but love the break from all the deadlines and wishes it stays this way for a longer period.

Hyun calls in the middle of the afternoon.  Cela can't explain the feeling while thinking what he will tell her.

"Ms. Cela!" Hyun seems excited.  "We found him!"

There's a moment of silence that brings a lot of thoughts. She can't believe Nate is already found.  The possibility of reuniting with him is inevitable.

"Ms. Cela? Are you still there?" Hyun asked.

"Yes, yes, I'm still here," Cela answered.  

She's excited and it is clear in her voice.  "How did you find him?" she asked.

"I told you I would ask some of my friends to help out and one of them found him," Hyun replied.

"But..but how?  That's fast.  That's amazing!" she said in a mix of nervous and happy voice.

Hyun sent a screenshot of the profile picture of a graphics shop's social media account.  It only shows an artwork and a little caption that says, "honored to have this design from the master @etanromero".

"Do you think that's him?" he asked.

The artwork looks familiar and the backward spelling of Nate's name to "etan" now makes sense why she could not find him through different searches she did the night before.

"It's definitely him," she said.

"Well, I'm so happy my friend found him for you," he said

"Well, tell you friend that he or she is brilliant for thinking of a way to search for his name. Please thank your friend for me.  Let's arrange lunch with him or her soon," Cela said.

"It's nothing, Ms. Cela.  We are all happy to help…" Hyun said but suddenly realized that he had to be careful with his words.  Ivy strongly instructed him to refrain from mentioning or implying anything about the third book at least for now.

"The account is private.  You should send a friend request or a private message to connect.  If you want, I can send the request and probe some more," he asked.

Cela could not answer right away.  She gets more excited by the minute like a young girl who just learned new information about her crush on campus.  The graphics design is certainly Nate's and she's just a friend request away to finally reconnect with him after so many years without a single word from each other.

"The account owner who I assume also owns the shop knows him for sure.  Actually, they could be business partners," Hyun said.

Cela remains silent.  Hyun sensed that she's thinking again.

"Ms. Cela, just send me message if you need me to help you further," he said.

"I'm thinking if we can we come to that shop tomorrow?" Cela asked.

"Oh, tomorrow is Sunday, they're probably closed.  Most shops in that area don't open on weekends," Hyun said sadly.  He didn't expect her to be that excited to go to the shop.

"Monday then?" she asked.

"Monday it is.  Let's go meet him!" he said.

"Okay, let's do this.  Who knows, that third book is already on its way," Cela said.

Hyun's eyes grew bigger.  Thankfully, they are just talking on the phone and Cela can't see how excited he is to hear the news first hand from her.

Tomorrow will be perfect.