After they visited the hospital, they dropped off Angelo's mom in Stars Salon to meet her friends there. It is an establishment catered to the rich and famous.
Back at the company, the two resumed working. They were so engrossed with work that they stayed till 7 pm, which rarely happens. Usually, by 5 pm, they are already packing their things and getting ready to go home.
Upon seeing the time, Rod knocked on the President's door to inform him of the time. With that, they decided to go home. Angelo took some of the folders back home, including the black folder that was given by the New Face Modelling Agency. Just in case he has still some energy left to review them that night, or, he might do it early in the morning. Whichever works best for him.
Most people think that all successful men - especially CEOs, have perfect lives. But the reality is not like that, they work harder than most because of the immensity of their responsibility. If they slack off, they might lose everything that they have built and with that.. most, if not all people that worked for them, will lose their job. Most of them lack and/or even neglect their health, social life, and love life. What only separates them from ordinary people is that they do have money - lots of it.
Rod drove his car back home since his home is in a different direction than where the president's place is.
Angelo doesn't live in Tan's ancestral home. He has his villa which is situated on the outskirts of the city. He officially moved out after his graduation. In case you didn't know, he studied at Wharton, so technically, he stopped living in the ancestral home the moment he stepped into his university life. He chose to have a villa that is not too big, but not too small either, at least based on what a rich and powerful person should live in. It wasn't as grand as the Tan ancestral home, but it is still a luxurious home compared to others. The villa might be 'small' but the land it was sitting on is the complete opposite of it.
It is a lakefront view villa that is of a rustic contemporary design. It has two storeys, a basement with an indoor swimming pool, a mezzanine and a rooftop deck. Although it isn't particularly a tall house based on the number of floors, it has high ceilings and the villa is wide. To bring in as much natural light, the windows installed are floor to ceiling. Also, the villa has its greenhouse, an orchard and a flower garden. Since Angelo is a car enthusiast/collector, his garage is huge. It is an attached underground garage that is equipped with a car elevator. The villa is gated and is mostly automated. Due to his environmental awareness, solar panels are installed. He also installed a rainwater catcher that is connected to a sprinkler that automatically waters the orchard, greenhouse, flower garden and lawn. For security, he has the best of the best security system that alerts him, their family's security team and the police, if ever someone trespasses his villa.
Angelo doesn't hire live-in helpers because he thought he doesn't need any. He can cook and he has his trusted cleaning robots. Besides, two helpers from the ancestral home clean the villa once a week.
Life in the villa is peaceful and it is what Angelo wanted in the first place.
Upon arriving at his villa, he went straight to the kitchen to cook teriyaki prawns and broccoli with buckwheat noodles. It is easy to cook, healthy and delicious. After the meal, he watches tv for a while before heading to his bathroom to take a bath. He slipped in a loose white t-shirt and loose grey sleeping pants. He towel-dried his hair and began reading the folders he brought home. On his 5th folder, he could feel himself feeling sleepy as he yawned for the nth time. He took his recent yawning as a sign to go to bed and just read the rest tomorrow.
Usually, he wasn't this exhausted even when work is heavy. There are only times when he found himself too exhausted: certain events - especially the socializing ones and certain people - especially his mom. His mom can be really a handful at times.
Morning came fast, and our dear handsome president is still asleep. In his defence, it is still early. It was five in the morning. The villa is quiet that you can probably hear a pin drop. But the silence didn't last long, an alarm clock suddenly rang. A toned arm suddenly stretched out and flung the irritating alarm clock. Despite being thrown, the alarm clock did not stop ringing. He used his pillows to block his ears but another alarm clock rang. He flung it again, but another one rang too. He rose from his bed and grudgingly turned off four alarm clocks. Yes, you heard it right four alarm clocks plus his phone.. a total of five.
In case it wasn't so obvious, our dear president is not a morning person. He hated waking up early, but who told him to live in a villa that is far away from his work? No one but himself. He stretched and decided to jog around the property. He lifted weights and exercised to maintain his figure and also to wake him up completely. After exercising, he went to the kitchen and made smoked salmon avocado toast, he brewed coffee - black and paired a chocolate chip banana oatmeal muffin. Done with breakfast, he took a bath and did his usual hygiene routine. He chose a navy blue set of suits and clipped a silver tie bar. He went downstairs and sat in the living room.
While waiting for the clock to strike 8, he decided to read some of the folders he brought back home. He picked up the black folder and opened it. The moment he did, he saw a photo of a woman with a distinctive beauty mark on the left side corner of her mouth. Her almond-shaped eyes were as if she was looking straight into his soul. The woman in the photo is the enchanting woman he met 'that' day. He was speechless for a second. He read through the information that is given with focus. Her name is Anne Crystal Sy Clarke, a mixed race of Chinese, Filipino, and Canadian descent.
Anne… finally, he now knows her name.
By 8, he got in the car immediately. He is still looking at the photo of Anne. She is a beauty. He read again her information. She's 5'10" in height, which he thought complemented his 6'2" height. She loves and eats a lot of food which is different from the typical stereotype of a model. She is also multilingual. The more he read, the more his attention is caught, the more he got curious, and the more he wanted to know everything about her.
When he arrived at the corporation, he is still looking at Anne's photo. The chauffeur informed him of their arrival and opened the door for him. The moment he stepped out, the chauffeur was shocked and stood rooted in his place. When Angelo stepped into the building, everyone who looked at him was in disbelief and utter shock. The president is smiling, albeit not as wide as what a smile should be.. but it is undeniably a smile. The corner of his lips is raised a bit and the gleam in his eyes is undeniable too.
Somehow, seeing the president smile is very terrifying. They were used to seeing his poker face and this uncharacteristic smile is giving them goosebumps. Those who knew the president's nickname, 'smiling hooligan' got chills down their spine. They moved out of the president's way.
Who on earth made the president mad early this morning?
Angelo stepped into his private elevator and caught an image of himself smiling reflected on the elevator door. He was shocked.
"What are you doing to me?" He softly muttered under his breath as he looked down at the folder in his hand.