Heartbeat of the Sunrise

52

"Good morning everyone!" I greeted the shareholders with a smile.

They all stood up and acknowledged my arrival. Napatingin ako sa nakangiting si Mr. Stevens, na siyang kapatid ni Craig. Hindi na ako masyadong nagulat na makita siyang narito.

Poor Amelia. She's beginning to lose everything again.

After the secretary called everyone's names, I approved the agenda in the name of my dad. Isa-isa na nilang iprinisinta ang mga supposed-to-be-projects. In their eyes lies the hope that I'll be accepting their offers. I glanced again at Mr. Stevens, who's confidence seems shaky at this point.

The sales obviously soared within the past four months. Siguro'y Malaki ang epekto ng mga nagdaang issues sa biglaang pagdoble ng mga turistang dumarayo sa resort... sa lahat ng branches ng villa.

When it's his turn to speak, I purposely clapped my hands loud.

"I know, Ms. Gomez, that you didn't expect my presence. So I'm not expecting much appreciation from you either," he explained. "But I can assure you. I can be competent despite what happened."

I laughed. "Go on..."

He started playing on the slides one by one. It was on how to attract more tourists using combined social media and word of mouth. Despite the pointless explanations (Because I'll surely hire him anyway), his ideas were impressive and I admit, dope.

"One final question, Mr. Stevens. How are you certain that ads will help boost the sales of the company?" nagtaas ako ng kilay. "People are annoyed everytime an ad surfaces on their screens. And the financial areas? Is this idea, will be financially healthy for the corporation?"

"Then we'll catch the interest of the masses. We'll not settle for mediocre graphical user interface features. It will be eco-friendly as much as user-friendly strategy. So I'll hope you'll consider this. "

Nangibabaw ang masiglang palakpakan ng lahat.

"I told you, Mr. Stevens. I'm better than you think." I winked at him. "Kung maaga ka lang sanang lumapit sa akin, 'di sin sana'y noon pa tayo nagtutulungan. Where can I sign?"

Nagkatinginan muli sila sa isa't isa. His eyes widened in shock. My decision was too sudden for him he stood there like he witnessed a ghost approving his ideas. Pero sigurado na ako. The inner child in me didn't leave... at eto! Making Donya Amelia's saliva ooze because of envy.

And for me? Another mission accomplished.

Agad kong tinapos ang meeting pagkatapos magkasundo at magpirmahan ng kontrata. I am the last one to leave the board room, at hindi pa man ako nakakalabas, isa na namang bisita ang sumugod papasok.

"How dare you!" the bitch Kristina tried to slam her palms on my cheeks, but I caught her hand.

"I'm daring, isn't it?" I mocked her, smiling.

"What did you do for Mr. Stevens to invest in your shitty hotel, huh? May gayuma ka na rin ba?!" nanggigigil niyang sigaw.

"Excuse me, siya ang kusang lumapit sa akin, Maria Kristina! It's not my fault kung wala na siyang tiwala sa inyo!"

"This is not gonna happen!"

"It happened, finally!" I laughed. "We are official partners in business! Want to celebrate with me?"

"Walanghiya ka!"

"Why can't you accept defeat, Kristina? Pagkatapos ng lahat ng kasinungalingang nalaman nila tungkol sa inyo, in-e-expect niyo pa rin na hindi nila kayo iiwan? The pure and sweet Maria Aurora... may anak pala sa pagkadalaga-"