Pieces Of You

Chapter 3

Patricia

Three days had passed since that breakfast conversation.

Three days since Jez and I sat across from our families and told them what they probably already knew.

That neither of us wanted a marriage built on expectations.

Life, however, had decided not to stop and give me time to process any of it.

Which was rude, honestly.

By seven in the morning, I was already dressed for work and standing in front of the dining table with a cup of coffee in one hand.

Mukhang busy ang mga tao sa bahay.

One of the staff members hurried through the hallway carrying a stack of documents while another disappeared toward the garden with fresh flowers balanced carefully in a basket. Somewhere deeper inside the house, I could hear Mama talking to someone on the phone about an event she was organizing next month.

The conversation sounded serious.

The flowers probably weren't.

I took a sip of coffee and reached for my phone.

A message from Jez waited on the screen.

Jez: How's the battlefield?

I smiled before I could stop myself.

Me: Depends. Are we talking about work or our families?

His reply came almost immediately.

Jez: Both.

Maikling sagot niya.

Me:So far, so good. Work's been a little hectic, but nothing I can't handle and family hindi naman na binabanggit nina Mama at Papa.

Jez: Mabuti naman.

I shook my head.

Me:Ikaw kinukulit ka pa rin ba ni Tita?.

Jez:May ipapakilala daw siya sa akin bukas, anak ng kaibigan niya.

Me:Goodluck.

Sinamahan ko pa ng smiling emoji.

Jez:Hey..

Natawa ako ng mahina.

Some things never changed.

No matter how complicated things became, talking to Jez still felt easy.

Maybe because we'd spent years doing exactly that.

No expectations and awkwardness.

No need to explain half the things we were thinking.

Just familiarity built over time.

"You're smiling."

I looked up.

Papa had entered the dining room without me noticing.

His tablet was tucked beneath one arm, and judging by the expression on his face, he had already started working before breakfast.

"Good morning too papa."

He took the seat across from me.

"Jezreil?"

Apparently, my smile had betrayed me.

"Yes."

Papa nodded as if that explained everything.

To be fair, it probably did.

For years, most stories involving me somehow involved Jez as well.

School events,Family vacations,Birthdays,at Graduations.

If one of us was there, the other usually wasn't far behind.

The thought made me pause.

Not because it was unpleasant.

Because it reminded me of how difficult the conversation three days ago had been.

I knew we made the right decision.

That didn't mean it had been easy.

"You're thinking too much again."

I blinked.

Papa was looking at me over the rim of his glasses.

"I haven't even said anything."

"You don't need to."

I looked away and laughed quietly.

There were moments when having observant parents felt deeply unfair.

Before I could defend myself, Mama entered the room carrying a folder thick enough to qualify as a weapon.

She placed it on the table and immediately reached for the coffee pot.

"You're leaving early?."

Tanong ni Mama,tumango ako pero yung mga mata ko nasa mga pagkain sa harap ko.Kaya lang parang wala ako sa mood mag almusal.

I checked the time.

"Alis na po ako mama,papa."

Binalingan ko sila at nginitian.

Pinanlakihan ako ni mama ng mata."Huwag magpapalipas ng gutom at sagutin ang mga tawag ko okay?"

"Ma!,hindi na po ako bata"

Napasimangot ako.my ghad!

Tinaas ni Mama ang dalawang kamay na parang sumusuko.pero aba yung ngiti niya nang aasar pa nga!

Papa failed completely and laughed into his coffee.

For a few minutes, conversation drifted toward schedules, meetings, and whatever event Mama was currently planning.

The topic never returned to marriage.

Nobody brought up Jez.

Nobody asked if I had changed my mind.

And for that, I was grateful.

Not because I regretted our decision.

I simply appreciated being treated like the conversation had happened instead of being treated like it hadn't.

When I finally stood to leave, Mama reminded me not to skip lunch again.

Tumango nalang ako.

Papa reminded me to drive safely.

I reminded both of them that I was twenty-five years old.

Neither looked convinced.

Honestly, neither was I.

A little over an hour later, I stepped into the lobby of Sagun Holdings.

The familiar rush of activity greeted me immediately.

Employees moved between elevators carrying laptops, folders, and cups of coffee. Near the reception desk, two members of the marketing department appeared to be having a disagreement over something displayed on a tablet. A few feet away, one of the interns was trying-and failing-to keep several documents from slipping out of her arms.

Monday morning.

Nobody ever looked fully prepared for it.

I had just reached the elevators when Claire from reception called out my name.

"Good morning, Ma'am Patricia."

"Morning, Claire."

She handed me a folder.

"I was told to give this to you the moment you arrived."

I looked at the folder.

Then at her.

"Should I be worried?"

"Probably."

Well.

That was encouraging.

The elevator doors opened before I could ask anything else.

Pagkarating sa executive floor, Benjamin was already waiting outside one of the conference rooms.

Not a good sign.

Benjamin never waited outside conference rooms unless something had gone wrong.

And judging from the number of department heads gathered nearby, whatever had happened wasn't small.

There went my peaceful morning.

Benjamin walked toward me the moment I stepped off the elevator.

He wasn't the type to panic, which was exactly why I paid attention whenever he looked even slightly concerned.

"Good morning," I said.

"It started as one."

That wasn't reassuring.

I adjusted the folder Claire had handed me earlier and followed him toward the conference room.

"What happened?"

"The contractor assigned to the Cebu development pulled out."

I slowed.

"Today?"

"This morning."

A few people standing near the glass wall glanced in our direction before quickly returning to their conversations.

No one was raising their voice. No one was running around.

Still, there was a difference between a normal Monday meeting and a room full of executives who had just learned one of their major projects had lost a contractor.

"Do we know why?" I asked.

"Financial issues."

"Do we know that for a fact?"

Benjamin handed me a document.

"We're still verifying it."

I skimmed the first page while walking.

The figures weren't great.

Then again, most problems looked worse during the first hour.

People had a habit of presenting disasters before presenting solutions.

The conference room doors opened before us.

Several conversations stopped the moment we entered.

Not because of me.

Because everyone wanted updates.

Unfortunately, I wanted them too.

I took the empty seat nearest the screen and set the folder down.

"Alright," I said. "Let's start from the beginning."

For the next several minutes, everyone took turns explaining what they knew.

The contractor had notified the procurement department shortly after eight.

Work on several phases of the development would be affected if a replacement wasn't found soon.

Finance had already begun reviewing possible adjustments to the budget.

Legal was checking existing agreements.Pagkatapos nilaa, the screen looked like a collection of deadlines, numbers, and bad news.

I leaned back slightly and studied the timeline.No one interrupted.A few waited with pens poised over notepads.Others simply watched the screen.Trying to solve a problem too quickly usually created another one.

Something I learned during my first year in management.

Back then, I thought leadership meant having answers immediately.

Turns out people trusted you more when you took the time to understand the problem first.I stood and moved closer to the screen.

"How many areas are directly affected?"

One of the project managers answered.I asked another question.

Then another.Little by little, the picture became clearer.The project wasn't stopping.Parts of it would slow down.Parts could continue.

Some schedules would need adjustment.The situation was inconvenient.Expensive, potentially.

But not impossible.

I picked up the marker resting on the ledge beneath the screen.

"What happens if we separate these phases?"

A few heads turned.One manager shifted forward in his seat.Benjamin was already reviewing figures on his tablet.

The discussion changed direction after that.Not because I had magically fixed everything.Because people finally had something concrete to work with.

Suggestions started coming faster.

Possible replacements,Alternative schedules.

Resources that could be reassigned while procurement searched for another contractor.

By the end of the meeting, several pages of notes covered the table.

There was still work to do.A lot of it.

But at least everyone was now discussing plans instead of repeating the same problem.

As people gathered their documents and began filing out of the room, one of the senior managers paused beside me.

"I'll have the revised projections sent before lunch."

"Thank you."

He nodded and headed toward the door.Benjamin remained where he was.The room had emptied considerably, leaving only a few scattered folders and half-finished cups of coffee behind.

"Not bad for a Monday."

I looked at him.

"You're setting the bar very low."

"I'm being realistic."

"That's not helping."

A laugh escaped him as he picked up his tablet.

"Welcome back."

I blinked.

"What do you mean?"

"You spent the last three days answering questions from two families."

I stared at him.

He stared back.

Then he shrugged.

"People talk."

I couldn't even argue with that.

News traveled through family friends faster than company announcements.

Benjamin headed for the door.

"Try not to schedule another life-changing conversation this week."

"Get out."

His laughter followed him into the hallway.

I looked around the now-empty conference room and finally allowed myself a slow breath.

The day had barely started.And somehow, I already needed another cup of coffee.again