"Sir! They delayed the meeting from 10 to 3 pm. Is that ok with you? The car was still moving at its usual speed when I turned to him while holding my phone with both hands.
"Hm. I suppose so." He said as he stayed focused on his Ipad.
Time-12.00 Pm,
My jaw and cheeks were throbbing from the forced smile I had to put on for the six guests that came by.
Acting as a receptionist to greet those six clients who arrived for conferences was already hard enough. In spite of that, I had to help them get settled and bring refreshments as per their preferences.
During the whole time, I felt Ethan's gaze on me as he kept talking with them while staring at me with that provoking smirk.
"He's enjoying this! That fucker!" My brows twitched as I smiled at him.
Time-03.00 PM,
"Be prepared! You'll take over the meeting today." All of a sudden, Ethan informed me.
"What? But sir! I never submitted a presentation. I don't think I can pull it off." I brushed off the bangs from my forehead in panic and frowned at him.
He slowly moved towards me and softly caressed my forehead to set my bangs properly.
"Have confidence. I know you can do it. Consider this your practice for the future." For a second, I thought I saw the past Ethan and his affectionate gaze. But it disappeared like the breeze that's felt for a moment.
__________
"Compass mortgage's sprint reviews and sprint retrospectives have very distinct functions. The amount of sprint review is more of a presentation of completed work. It can be an internal exercise, or it can include stakeholders and it can be as relaxed or formal as deemed appropriate. It's meant to demo what was achieved through the project and to determine if the results match the scope and requirements....." I kept my composure while presenting the reports and graphs in a huge room with all eyes o me. My eyes caught sight of Ethan's nod every time I glanced at him.
I was proud of myself for being able to hide my shaky legs during the whole presentation.
I could hear it all. All the whispers and gazes on the re-known CEO's secretary, who never accepted anyone as his secretary, not to mention his phobia of women. At least, that's what the rumours said. "Phobia of women, my ass! He used to cling to me 24/7 before. Am I a man?" Being irritated by all these crowds I found an empty spot to relax a bit.
"You did well today. Good work, secretary Irene!" I flinched back to see Ethan.
"Uh! Thank you, sir. But shouldn't you be with the clients now?"
"Go treat your legs. They are bruised, in case you didn't notice." I stared at his back as he walked away after saying that. My mind couldn't stop thinking about that until I reached home at 10.00 PM.
Yawning, I dragged Myself on the way to my bedroom. My eyes drooped shut with each step from exhaustion as I relaxed my head, thinking tomorrow's the weekend.
_________
My eyes snapped open at the sound of my ringtone as I squirmed over and checked the phone to see my mother calling.
I sighed as I felt my chest getting heavy.
"How're you doing, sweety?" The static sickly voice over the phone said.
"I'm fine, mom. How's your health now?" I pulled myself out of bed and stood beside the window.
"I'm doing well but your father isn't that good. Come home today, sweety. Your sister and brother-in-law are also coming." My lips curled inwards as I exhaled while looking at my feet and thought how traumatic these sweet words were to me.
"Mom, how many times do I need to tell you, I don't want to enter that house."
"Please, sweety. It's been so long. Your dad wants to see you too. We're getting old. That could be our last moment."
"Sigh...Fine! I understand. I'll be there by 12."
________
The huge dinning room with it's stiff atmosphere broke it's silent by my father's words,
"I arranged a blind date for you today."
I froze at the time, I was about to put the spoon in my mouth by my fathers statement
"I heard you have a job. So today is perfect since it's the weekend. The son-" Before he could finish, I slammed on the table as I looked at him with rage and disgust.
"What? Blind date? If you wanted me to get married that much then why did you forbid me from dating? Why did you make that scene when I dated Ethan?" I raised my voice as I felt my heart getting crushed inside.
"You dated a junior, not to mention he was someone from school. I would've considered if he was someone qualified with proper age."
"So you want me to be a gold digger? My life has nothing to do with you now! If this is the reason you asked me to come here then, yes! I'd love to go on this blind date, my dear father." Grabbing my bag, I stood up and stormed out of the table to get out of there as soon as I could.
"Irene!" I felt a hand grabbing me as I turned around to see my sister with her guilty face and my mother, who was about to cry.
"I kept the money on the dressing table. Don't worry." I removed her hand from my arm and left.
The road looked like a smooth black empty river to me. A few cars made their steady way alongside me as I kept walking with my head down. Feeling a vibration from my purse, I froze in one place and eased my mind to check my Phone.
It was Ethan. For some unknown reason, I felt irritated and resentful towards him.
"Sorry to bother you on your weekend, Ms Irene. Are you free this afternoon?" His voice over the phone squeezed out my soul as I closed my eyes to hear more.
"Ms Irene?"
"I'm sorry, sir! I have a blind date today and I won't be able to cancel it." I lied since I was aware that I would fail to control myself if I saw him that time. After a short time of silence, I heard him say, "I see. Then have fun, Ms Irene."
Was it raining? I couldn't tell if it was raining since I could see the clear sun right above me yet my cheeks got wet.