My head was filled with many thoughts at the same time, I tried to imagine how I could balance out the order of events that were going to take place tomorrow.
I didn't have anything decent or good looking to wear to this fancy job of being a personal assistant to a billionaire.
I zoned out on them and Lucia had to pinch me before I shocked myself back to reality, my dad laughed a drunken laughter and Lucia just smiled at me with her teary eyes.
"I don't have anything to wear." I remarked at last, I thought that this excuse was enough for me to escape the dreaded job at hand.
"No need to worry about that, Madame Catalina got it covered, she informed me that she will provide your uniform when you arrive."
I was again baffled at the length my father had actually gone for me in making all of this happen, I was proud of him for once.
"Thanks Dad, I won't let you down, I promise." I told him with a lump growing in my throat.
He stood up to hug me and I was engulfed in a coat of whiskey stench but it didn't matter, nothing mattered now as long as I got my family out of this dump.
"I know you won't, you take after your mother in a lot of things, mostly her virtues."
I felt a sharp pain in my heart as her face flashed in front of my eyes for a few seconds, this usually happens whenever I see, hear or touch something that reminds me of her.
"Is there something wrong with your chest?" Lucia asked me worriedly, my hand had instinctively gone to my heart as soon as I felt the pain and I didn't notice that I was gripping my shirt too hard, almost as if I was in pain.
"No, my dear, your big sis is just soooo hungry." I emphasized and she laughed comically, my dad led me to the small dining area, our trailer was by far the biggest and the neatest one among the lot because me and my sister can't stand the sight of litter.
"Then, come to the table, my dear." My dad offered in a cheerful voice, we ate, we sang and we reminisced about our mother.
It was the best dinner that I have had ever since my mom died.
I always wanted to see my family happy.
I usually wake up before the alarm clock and this time I got ready before six o'clock.
I tried to look fancy, so, I put on my best outfit and I packed my hair up in a ponytail.
Some people compliment my looks whenever I have the style on.
I waited for my dad to wake up so that he could give me directions to my new workplace but I heard a knock on our door.
I opened it to see a man dressed in an all-black suit, he wore dark glasses and he wasn't wearing any smile at all.
"Are you Miss Diana Rodriguez?" he asked me sternly, I was about to quake in my boots but I gathered my courage and I steadied my voice.
"Yes, I am." his face brightened up as I said so, he stretched forth his gloved hand for me to shake and I did.
"Nice to meet you, my name is Raymond and I am the chauffeur of the Ramirez family, I am here to take you to the fortress to see our Madame." he turned around and I followed him quietly without saying another word, we walked outside the trailer park and I saw a black Chevrolet parked outside.
We got in and I saw the same person that had been staring at me in the funeral service, he was wearing a simple T-shirt that hugged his biceps and he looked at me with a stern look, I felt overshadowed by his presence and I was trying to keep my mouth shut but I just felt like I needed to know more about the person I was going to work for.
"Good morning." I greeted him politely, he didn't even smile at me.
I noticed that he had longer hair than the last time that I saw him and he had grown a stubble that was freshly shaven.
"Whenever you want to address me, always add 'sir' at the end of your statement." he warned me before he went silent again but he had already told me more than I needed to know, he was a cold, spoilt brat with a nasty attitude that I needed to stay away from.
I sucked in a deep breath and I tried again.
"Good morning, sir" I said slowly and indifferently, he scowled at me but he still gave me a small nod as an answer to my greeting.
"Is she the one that my mother was talking about?" he asked his driver as if I was an invisible entity all of a sudden.
"Yes, she is the one that Madame was talking about, sir." Raymond answered him without taking his eyes off the road, he looked back at me with his empty eyes and he questioned me directly as if we were in the middle of an interview.
"What is your name?" he asked in a cool voice, he was much calmer now.
"My name is Diana Rodriguez, first daughter of Romeo Rodriguez, sir." I added the last part just to be safe, he didn't say any other word until we entered the beautiful manor.
A woman in expensive looking clothes stood at the front porch waiting for us, he came down from the car and he hugged the woman with a big smile on his face but it faded quickly when he turned to face me.
"I will call for you in thirty minutes, be ready before then." he said in a grim tone before he walked away with Raymond close at his heels, I looked after him in dumbfounded shock before I remembered the woman standing in front of me.
"Good day, Madame, my name is…" she silenced me with a raise of her hand.
"I know all about you, apparently your father will tell me anything as long as there is alcohol in his system." she said with a chuckle, I smiled at her and she stared at me for what seemed like an eternity.
"Let us get straight into the business, I see that you have met my son?" I nodded my head in response, I did it without enthusiasm because he was already ranked as my least favorite person.
"Well, I cannot tell you all about him because there are some things that you were meant to find out by yourself, he is quiet and reserved even to his own mother so please speak to him with utmost respect and don't anger him because he is going through a phase after mourning his father for almost a week now, you were there at the funeral, right?" she asked me the question while looking straight into my soul with her piercing gaze, I could already see a lot of similarities between and the resemblance was too vivid.
"Yes, I was."
I thought I was being polite enough by answering her in a calm and understanding tone but instead she was instantly irritated.
"Whenever I ask you a question you must always add 'Ma'am' at the end of your sentence, you do not speak to me in the same manner that you speak to other women, have I made myself clear?" she said to me sternly and I felt a pang in my heart because her words had just hurt my pride even though he was my employer and all.
There was little to zero difference in the way she and her son spoke to people.
"Yes, Ma'am." I said in a small voice and she hugged me all of a sudden with a nervous laugh.
I was surprised by her quick change of mood so I didn't know how to act.
"I was demonstrating the side of the Ramirez family that only comes out when we sense any hint of disrespect of our family name or status, my late husband had it and it rubbed off on me over the years but my son, he has just become a different being entirely, he was born into the family and he swore to carry on the family name, even to the grave."
I felt a cold chill up my spine as I remembered the kind of look he gave to me at the funeral service and the little experience with him in the car was not encouraging at all, I was starting to feel that he was not going to be the kind of person I would want to work with.
"That aside, let's get into the main details of the job. Do you know the basic duties of a personal assistant to the CEO of the Mateo company chain?" She asked me as if there was a handbook for these kinds of things.
I had zero experience and my last job was being a waitress at a restaurant that lacked proper staffing and hygiene.
'If only I had a clue." I lamented mentally.