Don't Look Back

Chapter 4

Twenty-four items were listed on Khel's job description and it made his eyebrows furrow. Now he understands why this position was paid a huge salary.

He was the personal accountant of the president and his main job was to account for transactions entered into by Mr. Vassinov himself in relation to his function.

Pero hindi ugali ni Khel ang magreklamo sa trabaho so he tried to be optimistic about it.

Kasalukuyan siyang nakasakay sa elevator paakyat ng building. Nasa top floor din ang opisina niya ayon sa HR nila. It was seven-thirty in the morning and he's still feeling a little bit sleepy.

After he got home last night, he couldn't stop thinking about Yvan's last statement before they parted ways. He feared that he might have misunderstood his boss.

Nang makarating siya ay naabutan niya ang iilang lalaki na nagbubuhat ng mesa at swivel chair papasok ng opisina ni Yvan na siyang ipinagtaka niya. Agad siyang sinalubong ng isang babae.

"Hi! Good morning! Ikaw ba si Mr. Arellon? My name is Leila, but you can call me Lei. I'm Mr. Vassinov's secretary." Inabot nito ang kamay niya na agad naman tinanggap ni Khel as a sign of courtesy and professionalism.

She was around thirty and looked really beautiful. She was also a bit energetic and happy, but knowing that their boss is a literal devil, it was hard for him to believe that someone in this office would be this optimistic.

"Yeah. Ako nga. Good morning. Saan yung table ko?" Agad niyang tanong.

"Ah, about that. Mr. Vassinov asked me to have your table moved. Ayun ipinasok na sa office niya, bale makakasama mo siya sa iisang room. Scary, isn't it?" Pabiro nitong sabi.

Napataas na lang ang kilay ni Khel sa narinig.

'Why would he even move my table?', Khel asked himself.

"Medyo weird nga. Mahigit isang taon na ako nagtatrabaho dito at base sa pagkakakilala ko sa kanya, hindi niya gusto na may ibang tao sa office niya kapag nagtatrabaho siya."

Medyo may pagkadaldal din si Lei kaya nakinig na lang si Khel sa kanya. The good thing is that marami siyang natututunan sa mga sinasabi nito, lalo na tungkol sa boss nila.

Patuloy na nagsalita si Lei about sa office set-up nila at itinuro sa kanya lahat ng meron sa office nila tulad ng pantry, espresso machine, comfort rooms, printers at iba pa.

"Wala pa ba si sir?" Khel asked.

"Wala pa nga eh. Pagkakakilala ko sa kanya palagi iyon maagang pumasok. It's a miracle he's late today."

"How is he as a boss?"

"You want the honest answer or the euphemistic answer?" Lei was flashing a weird smile.

"The honest one?" Khel was unsure if he wanted to hear what Lei was about to say.

"Well, he's a descendant of the Lord of hell. He's rude, foul-mouthed, ruthless and his attitude is just unbearable." Khel observed how Lei described their boss and he can tell that she's being serious about it. "Kaunting pagkakamali lang ay grabe na agad siya magalit. I experienced being shouted at by him one time noong nalate ako for just five minutes during a meeting. It was painful, but I needed the job so I just took it. Actually si Rav, yung pinalitan mo, nasisante kasi nagkamali lang ng isang numero sa sinumite nitong report."

Khel couldn't believe what he just heard. Napalunok nalang siya.

Kung simpleng pagkakamali lang ay maaari nang maging dahilan para matanggal siya, mukhang kailangan niya talagang magfocus sa trabaho nang maayos at mag-ingat sa mga ginagawa nito.