Chapter14 - No Fan Girling
1217 Words
Micah leaned back in his leather chair, his fingers steepled under his chin as he studied Alondra, who stood nervously on the other side of his desk. The faint hum of the air conditioning filled the tense silence between them.
“You know a lot about Reign7,” he finally said, his voice even but his eyes sharp with curiosity. “How?”
Alondra fidgeted with the hem of her blouse. “I… I’m passionate about them, Sir.” She let out a nervous laugh. “I’ve been a fan since they debuted. They were on the verge of disbanding once, but then that one video of them singing in a rainstorm went viral. It changed everything. People finally noticed their talent.”
Micah tilted his head slightly, his eyes narrowing, not in annoyance this time, but in a way that unnerved her. “You are indeed a fan,” he murmured. “So that’s why you knew exactly how to position their story in the pitch. It wasn’t strategy, it was sentiment.”
“Y-yes, Sir,” she admitted, her cheeks warming. “Their journey inspires me. That’s why I knew how to frame the ad’s message. It’s… personal.”
“Personal doesn’t always sell, Miss Enriquez. But this time, it did.” His words were sharp, yet there was the faintest flicker of approval in his eyes.
“C-Can I join the shoot?” she blurted out before she could stop herself. “I—I’m fine even if it’s just to wipe their sweat.”
Micah raised a brow. “No.”
She blinked. “Serve them drinks?”
“No.”
“I… I can be helpful! I know their habits, their preferences. Even which side of their face they think is more photogenic.”
He let out a low sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as though trying to summon patience. “I don’t want you fangirling during work, Miss Enriquez. It’ll compromise professionalism.”
Alondra gasped theatrically, clutching her chest. “You sound like a jealous boyfriend.”
Micah’s eyes widened slightly, his stoic mask cracking for the briefest second. “What?”
“Just kidding!” She threw her hands up in mock surrender, laughing nervously. “You’re too serious. After all, my fangirling helped with the pitch, didn’t it?”
His lips twitched—whether from irritation or amusement, she couldn’t tell. “Don’t be too cocky, Miss Enriquez. One successful idea doesn’t make you irreplaceable.”
She straightened, smiling timidly. “I’ll take that as a maybe, Sir.”
“It wasn’t a maybe.” He picked up a file and waved her off. “Go. I have work to do. And so do you.”
As she turned to leave, she could still feel his gaze on her back. Her heart pounded, half from the thrill of standing up to him, half from fear she might’ve gone too far.
ALONDRA was smiling when she went out of his office. She was even humming as she went back to her table. All her fear had vanished. Micah gave her a chance to prove herself, and it looked like he was trying to prove to her that he wasn’t as grumpy as she thought. She would also make sure she wasn’t just seeing things when she caught his eyes smiling at her.
She stretched her arms and yawned. She was surprised to see it was past seven in the evening. She hadn’t noticed how fast the time passed. Tracy had already gone home to take care of her baby, leaving Alondra to take over the remaining tasks.
She felt her stomach grumble when someone placed a plate of chicken pesto pasta in front of her.
“Dinner. You’ve been so serious working there for a while.”
She couldn’t help but gape at him when she saw Micah standing in front of her. “T-this food is for me?”
“Yes. Didn’t I tell you not to skip meals? It’ll be harder for you to work if you’re running on fumes.”
“Thank you, Sir. You shouldn’t have bothered.”
She felt warm inside at his gesture. For a fleeting moment, she even thought she might be special. Of all the women there, she was the one he was serving.
“Sir Micah, thank you! You remembered my favorite lasagna,” Chabita, one of the creatives, chimed in cheerfully.
“I love you, Sir. I’ve missed you,” added Nona, the sultriest one in the Creative department. She didn’t have any qualms about expressing her feelings to Micah.
“Just make sure you all do your best. I want to nail that ad for the golden anniversary of Angel Food Corporation. I expect good results, team.”
Alondra’s brief dream shattered into pieces. She thought she was the only one he was taking care of, but it turned out he was feeding the whole team. Dream on, Alondra.
She started gathering her things.
“You’re going home?” he asked.
“I’ve finished all the work Miss Tracy left behind. Do you have any more orders, Sir?”
“If you’re going home, then we could go together.”
“Our places are in opposite directions, Sir. Mine’s out of your way.”
“I’ll bring you home. I want to see where you’re staying now. In my condo, you were safe. It’s only natural that I check where on earth you’re staying. Be ready in ten minutes. Just continue whatever you’re doing tomorrow.”
“Y-Yes, Sir.” He didn’t leave her any choice. And she didn’t want to say no to his offer—not when she could save money on transportation.
She hurried to the restroom to freshen up. Remembering Micah’s comment about disliking thick makeup, she washed her face and fixed her hair into a neat ponytail. She felt refreshed. It was time to rest after a long day of hard work.
Micah was already waiting outside the office. He was watching her intently as though she were an apparition.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-three, Sir.”
“You look like a teenager without makeup on.”
She touched her cheeks. “It’s because I have a baby face.” Was that a compliment or not?
“That kind of look gets easily swooned by boys.”
She gawked at him. What did he think she was—naïve? Good thing he was her boss and good-looking, or she might have whacked him with her bag.
“Sir, are you sure about sending me home?” she asked as he opened the passenger-side door for her.
“Of course.”
“I’m ashamed of my simple home.”
“Are you? Or is your boyfriend waiting for you there?”
She grimaced. “I don’t have a boyfriend. So that means no man has ever made a fool of me. I just don’t want to be a bother to you.”
“You will be a bother if we keep having this discussion in the parking lot. So get inside the car now.”
Her lips curled into a reluctant smile. She found herself doing as he said. She couldn’t argue with him when he used that tone. Bossy!
- Writer
