Hope: Simple Love

Chapter Four

I remembered experiencing something. Someone help me and I borrowed is phone. I called Lynangel and she said she will go to me. Then, after that, what did happened?

My head suddenly aches in thinking. I didn't know but my whole body seems like tired and exhausted even though I just woke up.

I tried to composed myself. I got up and went to the bathroom to wash my face. I looked at myself in the mirror. My hair is a mess as if I did a catfight with somewhere. I looked stressed and.. a poor and hopeless victim. I stared at myself for more than seconds before shaking my head and wipe my wet face with the face towel.

After making myself look normal, I headed out to the kitchen to see Lynangel's back. I looked to her. She was cursing at the pan in the stove while making a funny stunt to avoid the oil going to her body. She was wearing an apron and her face was bear with a sprayed of sweat on her forehead. She screamed when she turned her head to me. The spatula on her hand was hanging in the air. She looks so funny.

"Just what the f**k dude? Are you in some horror movie? Say a word if you're there! You almost make my heart burst, geez," gasped and suddenly hit my head with her stainless spatula.

Luckily, I dodge her hand. She frowned at me and scream when the pan suddenly make a loud noise.

I just silently watched her. I think she feel my gaze that's why she glances at me multiple times before sighing.

"You really looked like a kid now. Look at your eyes, it's so swollen like hell. Are you okay?"

I tried to smile to assure her that I am fine but ended up sighing,"What happened when you came?"

She looked at me with those pitiful eyes. She looks like a mom that's worrying about her daughter. She sighed before telling me the details.

Unfortunately, that nightmare really happened. She told me the things that happened when she arrived at the restaurant's parking lot.

"Markaire called me because he your phone is out of reach. Don't you know how nervous I am when he called me? Dude, I almost faint just to not tell him what happened to you!"

I sit down on chair and scratch my cheek. If I tell hef about my dream right now, she might think that I'm losing my mind. I tried to smile at her and just watch her back while she nagged me.

She keeps on talking about how she got mad and crazy at the police station while I am sleeping on the car of the man who saved me. I was about to asked her when she said she meet the man who saved me and even got his business card.

She turned off the stove and hurriedly went to her room and handed me a pure black card with gold cursive letters. I read the letters on it while she put the pancake she cooked on the plates.

"Alpheaus Tacios Ezquierdo. Chief Executive Officer of Asian Focus Group Inc.?"

The black business card fall down to the glass table as my fingers lost it strength to hold on it. He's a big person? Just what the hell did he do in that kind of place then?

Plus, he is the CEO of my dream company? Just...what in the world is this?

"Right? When he gave it to me, we had the same reaction," Lynangel laughed as she put the plates on the table.

"Fortunately, he was chasing Arnold Roberts because of his unsettled agreement or account or..whatever he call it. Anyway, he was chasing Arnold so when he saw you, it's a very big coincidents," she put some honey on her pancake while explaining to me.

I frowned at her and get a fork to cut my pancakes.

"Arnold? Who is that?

"Seriously?" she looked at me with a very funny face and rolled her eyes, "That bastard who almost r***d you! At least, remember his name as a commemorative on what happened to you."

Images of the smiling shadow in my dreams crept on my mind after hearing what she said as my mind drew a face on it shadow. It makes me tremble in fear now.

I closed my eyes tightly. I'm sure the dream won't be a problem for me if I just composed myself. I've gone through a hard and rough childhood, this at least, is nothing.

I eat the pancake she cooked. I almost puked it when I taste the burn side. I grabbed the juice on her side and drink it all and cough.

"Just, what did you cooked?"

I turned the pancake she cooked and almost passed away when I see that dark color. She laughs at my reaction and I almost prick her eyes with the fork I am holding.

Days passed by and I almost forgot the feeling of almost being r***d by that bastard. I went to my normal life. My normal life was just the same as others. I go to work as an Executive Accountant to a big bank in the Philippines. I went bar hopping with some of my closest friends outside of work. Or eat in a fancy restaurants with some higher ups clients. And go home and sleep and go to work again. It's just a normal week for me but I noticed the difference.

At nights, when I went home to my condo and lie down on my body, the smiling shadow always pops up when I close my eyes. It always showing itself when I'm laying on the bed and comfortably sleeping, ruining my whole night. Most of the nights, I'm afraid of sleeping because of it. That's why I decided to sleep with all the lights on in my room. I stuffed my bed with pillows on both side just to make sure there's no space in my arms. I also experience seeing the smiling shadow often at nights. And often, it will speak. Which makes everything a mess.

When I woke up in the middle of the night, sweating and breathing heavily, I would close my eyes and Alpheaus face always drew in my mind. It was very detailed and vivid that I doubt my memory if he was really that handsome. In that small memory, I would always calm down. When I was outside, I keep on looking around the vicinity to see if he was around or what. I also always brought the business card he gave to Lynangel. I, most of the time, look at it and wonder what he was doing. And when I was about to sleep again, I can hear his soft yet manly voice echoes in my ear. It makes my whole body calmed down and I will sleep soundly after that.

I searched his name on Google and found some information from exclusive magazine website. It only has a few sentences so I went to mall and asked the assistant of a magazine store to look for the magazines I saved in my phone. I, then, read them when I went home and on every magazine I read, I just realized how amazing he is as a business man.

He has a good looks. He made it to the top 20 of most handsome business man in the world for the last three years. That gives evidence to my vivid memories of him. Plus, he was succesful at the age of thirty-one. Although, his father has a big and known company of multibillionaire biotech owner, he made his own name on the business industry. Now, he has five accounting firms, two investment banks in London and New York, and he is still currently working as a CEO in a prestigious investment bankers in the Philippines.

With that criterias and almost perfect status, I wonder why there is no articles in the magazines about his relationship status. True enough that he had some issues of dating different famous and beautiful ladies in different dates but it was all published in cheap news website.

"So, do you know him?" I peaked my face on Lynangel who was staring at her phone and swirling the lollipop on her mouth.

"Why are you asking me? You should have asked him when you two are hugging each other," she wraps her arms around her body while grinning at me.

I snorted at her and get the pillow on the couch and slap her face using it. She giggled like a horror doll. I rolls my eyes and turn off the tv that was been on this whole time. But since, this is the only time we got together like this after a week, we can't stop talking to each other and ignore the tv show.

"For the I-don't-know-how-many-times, we were not hugging. He just supported my body that was weak because of what happened. I explained it to you over the phone for so many times!"

"Yeah, yeah. I believed you, like I didn't saw the CCTV footage."

I puffs my cheek in annoyance for her conclusions that I've been trying to make right for the last days. When she called me to inform that she was going to a abroad meetings with her boss, she can't stop calling me every time she got a chance.

She also asked for some questions at what she saw at the footages she found on the parking lot, and she can't calmed herself over the phone saying it looks like a movie film. She also told me that she broke up with her boyfriend two nights after the incident. She didn't seem down so I just ignored that statement just as usual.

"I was trembling and he was just a gentleman who has a sense of responsibility to protect me because he witnissed something terrible! So, if you would just respect him a little bit, don't jump to conclusions."

While I am explaining my side, she just nodded her head without looking at me. She keeps herself busy in her phone as if my explanations can't change her mind. I rolled my eyes on her and stand up to go to my kitchen counter.

Because my condo is just a regular size, from the living room, a few steps away, kitchen is visible. The kitchen has a island counter with three standing chair, a medium size sink, and three cabinets on the ceiling. It was quite big for a solo person like me since this condo have two bedrooms, one master bedroom, and one guest room. Each room has their own bathroom and showerroom.

It is rather small as a long time asset, but for me, this was from my very first decent investment after my promotion at my work.

"Why don't you just call his office? You got his number on the business card for the whole week."

I poured some water on the glasses and went back to the couch. I offered the other glass to her and drink on the other one.

"Why will I called his office? That was some embarrassing thing to do."

Lynangel rolled her eyes on me. She put down her phone on the center table and looked at me.

"Just tell him that you wanted to thank him. Is that a bad thing to do? The bad thing was to looked at his business card like some crazy girl!"

"Crazy girl? Really? You will tell me that? Not to you?"

She groaned at my words and hit me with her pillow. The glass I was holding almost fall down because of that. I squealed as we both watched the water to move and fell down to the carpet.

I slowly turned my head to her and glares at her. She smile awkwardly and surrender her hands in the air.

"I will clean it!" She offered but she was still sitting.

"Now!" I shouted at her that makes her run to the bathroom and get some cleaning materials.

I can't believe that girl. She just went home this morning and now, she messed my house within an hour.

I shake my head and just put down the glass on the center table. I saw my phone near my glass. I reach for it and open. I went to Phone app and looked at the numbers I saved a few days ago.

It was Alpheaus' office number.