His Girl Friday 2

Chapter 18: Hands Off

Chapter 18: Hands Off

Everly: LEILA

Leila: What?

Everly: You should've seen

Everly: what just happened!!!

Leila: What happened?

Everly: AHHHHH

Leila: Ano nga???

Ara: Diba may kasal kang inaayos???

***

Arms linked together, Everly and I walked among the churchgoers and exited the church. It's just 8 AM so we didn't have to hurry to go to the Food Fair yet. Also, I'm not ready to let her go. Na-miss kong maka-tsimisan itong kaibigan ko na sobrang busy.

"Did you get everything you needed, Everly?" I asked her after successfully sending her the pictures I had taken of the church's interior earlier.

"Yup. I'm all set, pwede ka nang pumunta sa Food Fair," she said with a grateful smile. "Is Apollo waiting for you?"

I shrugged."I don't know. Baka nauna na siya." Wala naman kaming napag-usapan kanina kung sabay kaming pupunta, so I'm just gonna go there on my own. "Nandiyan lang naman sa tapat 'yung Food Fair. I can manage. Saan ka na after this?"

She pointed at the school and office supplies store across the CDH plaza. "Magpapa-print lang ako ng flyers, then I'll have two of my staff give them away sa fair mamaya."

Speaking of her business... "May vacancy na sa B&B mo?"

Everly pouted in dismay. "No vacancy still." Then she proceeded to explain what the flyers were for. "The flyers are for my upcoming holiday promos. Nandito ka pa ba nun?"

I leaned back in surprise. "Wow, ganun talaga kataas ang demand ng accomodations ngayon dito sa Hermosa?"

"Yup," she answered proudly. Then she looked at me like I was weird like I was living under a rock for not knowing things. "Hindi mo ba alam na may vlog na nag-viral about Hermosa's hidden gems? Kaya tumaas ang tourism numbers dito ay dahil sa video na 'yun."

"I'll look it up later," I said, noncommittal.

Nagulat ako nang bigla siyang pumalakpak. May iba rin tuloy na nagtinginan sa amin, pero walang pakialam itong kaibigan ko.

"Also! May naisip pala akong idea for Hacienda, maybe you can drop hints kay Apollo kasi mukhang sa'yo lang siya makikinig."

I frowned at her logic. "Bakit sa akin siya mas makikinig? You own your own business, Everly. I am the bum who's literally leeching off his property. Sa'yo siya mas makikinig."

Everly rolled her eyes before she started explaining her side. "First of all, can we stop all this shit about you being a leech or a user? I don't want to hear it anymore," she said, ticking off one finger, and then raising another one. "Second, Apollo listens to you because he's too embarrassed to decline you. Hindi mo ba nahahalata? The man literally can't say no to yo."

Apollo? Embarrassed of me? That's just ridiculous.

"Why would he be embarrassed? Lalo na sa akin?" I'm literally the fuck-up. They're all successful business owners, while I am the newly unemployed single woman who was cheated on by her husband and doesn't own a place she can call her own home.

"Do you really want to know the answer?" she challenged, raising her brow.

I rolled my eyes at her. "Yes, since apparently wala akong alam."