Self Love • Christopher Velez •

chapter 19; excited and nervous

Chapter 19 - Excited And Nervous

"Andrea, Christopher, you two are up," Richard said as we sat on the couch and on chairs. They were over at the apartment and we were now playing 'try not to laugh'. Andrea and Christopher were losing and they were now competing to see who was the loser. 

They sat in front of each other and shut their eyes. Before Richard could even tell them to open their eyes, they had already started laughing but I wasn't surprised. The two of them were always laughing and now when they were together, they would laugh even more. 

"Okay okay, give me a second," Andrea said as she breathed in, trying to not laugh. Christopher nodded and he did the same. Andrea burst out laughing and Christopher joined in, causing the rest of us to sigh but still laugh a little. 

"We'll stop laughing in a minute," Christopher said and Andrea nodded. The two of them laughed for an entire minute before breathing out. 

"Okay," Christopher said but still laughing slightly. 

"Christopher you need to stop laughing because I will laugh if you laugh!" Andrea exclaimed and Christopher nodded, taking a deep breath. 

Andrea made a weird noise and the rest of us burst out laughing alongside them. Andrea had tears in her eyes while Christopher's face was turning red.

"The two of you will share the title of the loser," Joel said and we, excluding Andrea and Christopher who were still laughing, nodded. 

"I don't even know what's funny," Andrea said through laughter and Christopher nodded, both of them trying to stop laughing but failing.

 Andrea took a pillow from behind Zabdiel and put it on her face, trying to stop laughing. After a while, she removed the pillow from her face and she had her usual calm smiling face. 

"I think I need to use the bathroom," Christopher said and I stood up to show him where it was. 

"Thanks," he said and I nodded, walking back to the living room. They were now talking and when Andrea saw me, she had a smirk on her face and I sighed. I already knew what she wanted to say. I shook my head and she stuck her tongue out at me. 

"I'm finally not the worst," Andrea said and I nodded. Even though she was usually the calm one, she was always smiling and laughing. It was contradicting but true. Christopher walked to the living room and Andrea shut her eyes and clenched her jaw. When he and Andrea made eye contact, the two started laughing slightly. 

"Bro, stop," Erick said and he and Andrea nodded.

"I have no idea why we're laughing," Christopher said once he and Andrea had finally calmed down.

"You're laughing because you're not supposed to be laughing," Zabdiel said and I nodded.

"You two also laugh a lot on your own," I added and they nodded.

"What do you guys want for dinner?" Joel asked and everyone started saying different food places.

***

"See you guys when we see you!" Andrea said once we reached the lobby of our apartment building. They had walked us back to our apartment before heading home.

I waved at them and they smiled, turning to walk in the direction of their house. Andrea and I waited until they were out of sight before turning to walk to the lift. She linked her arm with mine and sighed.

"I'm excited to start work but at the same time I'm not," she said and I nodded.

"I understand, I'm excited but nervous," I told her. This was my first full-time job and it was at a big company. I also did not know anyone there and I did not know if I would be good at what I would be doing. To add on, I was already one of the main analysts. 

Just great. 

"You'll be fine. We might be in different departments but we would still be in the same company. I know you'll be fine. I believe in you," she said as she took out her keys to open the door.

"I believe in you too," I told her and she smiled at me. The two of us walked in and we showered and relaxed on the couch.

"I think I am going to try to get some sleep," Andrea said and I nodded.

"Buenas noches," I said to her and she repeated it before going to her room. I decided to call my mother since it was not that late back in Ecuador.

"Hola mama," I said as she picked up the phone. 

"¿Hola mija, cómo estás?" she asked and I replied. We continued chatting for a while, catching up on what was happening at home and how everyone was doing.

"Mama, it's my first day tomorrow," I told her.

"I remember, I'm proud of you. You have always done well in everything," she said and I could hear sniffles.

"Gracias mama."

***

My alarm went off and I groaned before turning it off. I sat up before realising that today was my first day. Oh my god. This means that I was officially an adult because I had a proper job. 

I got out of bed and into the shower before getting ready for work. Oh my god that sounds so adult. I put on a white blouse and a pair of back pants before adding a grey blazer. It was business casual yet still smart. I had spent the night before on Pinterest, looking for some outfit inspiration and I hoped that it would not make me look like a fool.

When I went to the living room, I saw Andrea in a formal blue dress. I smiled at her before walking to the kitchen to make myself some tea. 

"I made some eggs, I think we should have breakfast before going to work," Andrea said as she walked into the kitchen behind me. I nodded and she took the eggs and placed it on a plate. We moved to the counter and sat there, eating our eggs and drinking our coffee and tea.

"Can you believe we're going to work?" Andrea asked and I shook my head.

"I can't believe it. We're going to be adults with a proper full-time job," I said and she nodded. 

"To having a great first day," she said and held her mug out.

I clinked my mug with hers with a smile as we both drank our drinks. My phone that was in my pocket beeped and I took it out.

From Christopher:
Hey Nila! Good morning and have a good day!
Good luck on your first day :p

I smiled and typed out a reply.

From me:
Good morning Christopher! Have a great day today and thank you!

Just as I was about to keep my phone, mine and Andrea's phone beeped. I took it out to see that I was added into a group chat with Andrea and the 5 boys. They had all sent us messages and wished us good luck for our first day.

"That's cute," Andrea said and I nodded. 

From Andy:
Thanks for wishing us good luck! Have a good day!

From me:
Thank you guys! Have a good day :)

We kept our phones and continued with our breakfast, talking about how excited we were to be starting. When it was time to go, I took out my phone and booked an Uber. We had decided to leave the house early in case the traffic was bad. It was better to be early than late.

When we reached the building, I paid the driver and we got out. Andrea and I shared a look before tapping on the matching ring we had with a smile.

First day of work, here I come.