"Thank you," Celina said, quickly wiping a tear of relief from her cheek. "I needed to hear that more than I thought."
"I'm just glad I could be of some use. And about friends, you should know that he had quite a few of them. No doubt he had his lonely moments, we all do, but he was rarely alone," Hutch replied to in which Celina's hand found its way into his, and gently squeezed.
"Truly, thank you," she said, before releasing him. "Ever since he's reconnected with you, I've had this underlying worry that he's going to disappear on me again. I keep imagining that he's going to go back to his other family and friends, and this time, he never comes back. It's foolish, I know that, but I can't help but worry. That amulet took him away for a reason. I'm afraid it will do the same thing again, whether he wants it to or not, once he finds a way to put it back together."
"I think you have every right to worry," Hutch mused as they got closer to the city. "None of us really knows what that amulet is or where it comes from. You really do love him, don't you?"
Celina's smile stretched from ear to ear. "Since the first time I laid my eyes on him. He was the weird guy on the university campus, his face always buried in a book. He was attractive, in good shape, but it was like the world didn't exist to him. I swear the only time he ever looked up was to zoom in on the door to the lecture hall he was headed to and off he'd go like a missile right on target. People would just get out of his way for fear of being runover. There was something adorable about the way he ignored everything, and I found that, and him, to be fascinating. I just couldn't understand what had him so focused that nothing else mattered, and that drew me in even more. I became determined to get him to look up, even if it was just to notice me. I'm going to bet that he never told you that I approached him first."
"He did not."
"Or that I was the one to ask him out for our first date?"
"Skipped that too."
"That man," she huffed. "Did he at least tell you that I was the one who proposed to him first?"
"Nope, never mentioned it."
She hmphed. "Probably for the best since he turned me down."
"What? Why?"
"Because I may have jumped the gun a little. We had plans for dinner the following day, and that was when he proposed to me. He had been planning it for months, and I had nearly spoiled it. But, in my own defense, given how our relationship had been going to that point, I was positive that if I didn't do it, we'd still be dating to this day. I was wrong, and never so happy to be. Now that you know some of my story though, I want to hear yours."
"Sorry, but he never proposed to me. I don't think I was his type," he replied causing her to swat playfully at his arm as she laughed along with him.
"Hutch! Really now. I meant tell me the story about you and your wife. Xalgar, sorry. Regale me with your sappy romance tale."
"Yeah, can't say it's all that sappy," he said, rubbing awkwardly at the back of his neck. "Now that I know your story though, I have to say, you remind me a lot of Kahlala."
Hutch hadn't spoken much about Kahlala to anyone. Even Ren didn't know anything beyond the basic, we meet, fell in love, and got married. But unlike Ren, who didn't want to know those kinds of details, and Cherry, who didn't want to know anything at all, he was happy to share his love story with someone who truly wanted to hear it, regardless of how unimpressive it was.
"Sounds to me like she knew exactly what she wanted. She was as fascinated with you, as I was with Casimir," Celina concluded once Hutch had finished his tale.
"And I still don't understand it. Not with her and me, and not with you and Cas," he replied as they pulled into the underground parking garage of Cascel Tower, Celina using a security badge to activate the gate.
"It's because women love differently than men. In order to get to our hearts, you have to get into our heads. Somehow, you got into Kahlala's and her heart ran directly for you. At least that's what I like think," she replied, parking the truck in the spot reserved just for her. "Anyways, I know today might be a bit on the boring side, but that's just how life is going to go for my potential future butler. I brought us here because we need to get you set up with your own security badge, and I need to go over a few things with my assistant for the New Year's Eve party, of which you will be attending. No arguments, it's mandatory."
"Yes, ma'am," he said with a bow of his head.
"And then we're off to the vendors, followed by a bit of shopping. And since we're going to be eating out for lunch, you need to start thinking of what you want to eat, because aside from keeping up, this is literally your one and only job today. So, you ready to get your feet wet in the wonders of being a butler to the Cascel Tower CEO?"
"Not at all. Not even a little," he replied with a deadpan stare.
Celina's smile brightened as she told him, "I believe in you, Hutch," before she opened the door and got out.
Following suit, Hutch met her around behind the back of the truck, where she grabbed him by the arm and lead him towards a door, the sign above reading, 'elevator.'
"Try not to worry too much," she attempted to reassure him. "I promise not to be too critical of you on your first day."
"How comforting."
They shared a bit of laughter as she opened the door using her security badge, and once they were on the elevator, they went up two levels to the ground floor and got off directly in front of a security desk, where an older gentleman dressed in uniform, greeted them with a friendly smile.
"Good morning, Mrs. Salvador. How are you doing today?"
"Excellent as always, Franklin. How's your daughter doing?"
"Any day now, Mrs. Salvador. But I must admit, I'm hoping for a new year's grandbaby," he replied with his fingers crossed.
"Well, everyone here can't wait for the chance to call you grandpa. You keep that HR number close too. The moment you get the call, if you're here, you use it, and when you get back from your leave, you'd better have an entire album worth of pictures to share with us."
"You can bet on that," he replied, tapping his hands enthusiastically on the top of his desk. "Now what can I do for you and your friend?"
"My friend here, is in need of a general-purpose security badge. Franklin, I would like for you to meet, Jules Hutchinson, but he goes by Hutch."
"Well, it is nice to meet you, Hutch," Franklin remarked as he stood up and offered out his hand.
"It's nice to meet you too, Franklin," Hutch replied, taking his hand.
They shared a strong, solid handshake, which seemed to delight them both.
"And now that the two of you are acquainted, any chance Bransil is in today?"
Franklin gave Celina a nod and picked up the phone from his desk. "He sure is. I'll call him out for you."
"Appreciated," she replied before turning to face Hutch. "I'm going to head up to my office and get started, while Bransil and Franklin here get you all set up. When you're finished, Bransil will bring you up to me. Okay?"
"I'm sure I can manage," he replied, as Franklin spoke to someone on the phone.
"I am certain you can too."
"Bransil's on his way," Franklin informed her as she leaned over the desk and grabbed a pen and piece of paper from the bin next to the phone.
"Excellent. Could you tell him, that Hutch is to be brought to my office once the paperwork is done, and yes, he has the right address and phone number. If he has any other questions, have him call me."
"Of course," he replied, and Celina handed Hutch the paper she'd been writing on.
"Thanks, Franklin," she remarked, tossing him a pleasant smile as Hutch took the paper from her.
"It's our address and the phone number at the house. We can add your cell phone number to the security record once we get you set up with one. Everything else, I'm certain you can figure out on your own. This is the bare minimum of what it will take to become my butler."
"I won't let you down, ma'am."
"I'm counting on it," she replied, before turning and walking away, leaving him with a slip of paper and a vague idea of how the rest of the day was going to go.