My Angel

CHAPTER 15

BECKY

The smile on my face must be looking so foolish right now, but that's not really my concern at the moment. The most important thing right now is the fact that I'm able to sit right next to her, which I wasn't able to do in the car because her mom insisted on sitting next to her and I didn't dare oppose. This time, her mom sat on her left while I sat on her right, so I have no complaints.

The conversation that was momentarily put on pause was once again resumed the moment the rest of us found our seats. Not long after, the waiter came to take our orders and left respectfully once we were done, and once again, the conversation went on. The topic varied from all sorts of things, from the food she ate to the house she lived in, places she went to, and activities she did, but it was all mostly about her well-being, which was everyone's top priority and concern.

Everyone was so engrossed with the conversation that no one noticed how much time passed by until our food finally arrived and was served to our table. "Have some of these" Freen's mom said as she pushed forward the plate of sautéed vegetables closer to her daughter "I know you like this" she added with a wide smile and eyes full of love for her only child. "Thank you, mom" was Freen's heartfelt reply to her mom's expression of love for her.

"Have some meat too" was my mom's words as she pushed the plate of meat dish closer to Freen, making the latter look in her direction "Thank you" Freen said gleefully as she looked from the plate to my mom. Not wanting to be left behind, I took the prawn dish placed right in front of me and put it closer to her plate "This too" I said eagerly, flashing the biggest smile I could muster, which made Freen look my way and return a smile that I've grown used to seeing, but for some reason it looks much more beautiful today. "Thanks, Bec" Freen said as she reached her hand out and slightly ruffled my hair. Unbeknownst to her, such an action slightly ruffled my heart as well. I could feel my face heating up, but I didn't care, I was just happy that she's back and I can be close to her again.

"Alright, alright" Richie said all of a sudden, successfully and effectively attracting out attention and all eyes turned to him. "Here" he said with a resigned tone of voice as he hands over a plate of rice to Freen "I know you like this too" he added with a tone of mischief in his voice "Go ahead and eat your fill" this time with a tone of mockery that is obviously directed to me resulting with everyone present in our table to burst into laughter "I know you missed this?" he continued with a hint of exaggeration that brought the rest of us to another round of laughter, heightening the already happy atmosphere.

"We should start eating or the food will get cold" Freen's dad said in between his laughter and everyone agreed immediately and started putting food in each of their own plate. Freen did accept the plate of rice from Richie and started putting some onto her plate before turning to me, asking me how much rice I want and putting the said amount to my plate. I gave her my sincere thanks once she was done, glad that nothing seems to have changed, she's still the same caring and loving Freen that she is before she left. It made me truly happy that despite the four years of being away, Freen is still Freen and nothing has changed.

Once again, the conversation continued in between the meal. "What do you plan to do now?" mom suddenly asked Freen, changing the topic of the conversation instantly. "That's right, are you gonna start working in the company?" my mom added, bested by her curiosity. Everyone else started focusing on Freen, obviously waiting for her answer.

"I did talk to dad about it and I will be starting work next week after settling in back home" she answered after swallowing the food she was chewing and drinking a bit of water. "What position will you be taking?" mom asked Freen after a moment. "She's gonna start from a relatively low position for her to be able to grasp the flow of the work and slowly make her way to the top" dad managed to answer before anyone else was able to talk "I agree" it was my dad this time "When Richie first entered the company, he also started from the bottom" he continued, giving dad an acknowledgement with his decision.

"That's right" Richie interjected, catching our attention. "That just means that whenever you see me, you have to address me as your senior" he showed off against Freen, obviously proud of himself. "Just because you are one rank higher, doesn't necessary mean that you're already superior" dad said, immediately bursting his bubble. "That's right" I second the motion immediately "You never know, Freen might be able to surpass you sooner than later" I added, making sure to tease Richie as the chance was already placed on a silver platter. Richie only replied with an exaggerated laugh.

"Stop it, Bec" Freen said with smile on her face "Stop teasing each other or you two would end up fighting again" she said to the both of us which resulted with laughter of agreement. "Anyways" mom said, catching everyone's attention to herself "I hope things will go smoothly from now on. Enjoy the rest of the week before you start working and I hope that you will find work to be enjoyable and productive as well" she said to her and everyone can feel her sincerity.

The conversation continued further until we were done with our meal and finally decided to leave, heading straight back home to enjoy the rest of the night.

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