Her Parents Death

Celestine's Point of View

"Meeting adjourned! You may now leave." I commanded my executive officers in my company.

They packed their papers and bowed their heads on me before turning their backs and left. I sat on my chair and closed my laptop. I looked at my black watch on my left wrist and it's already 12:24 at noon. No wonder I'm hungry. What should I eat today?

I stood and walked towards the telephone and dialed my secretary's office number.

"Good noon Ma'am! Do you need help?" she asked me directly.

"Would you  bring me food here in the conference room?" I commanded her and I pose myself comfortable in my swivel chair.

"Ma'am. Your father told me before that you have to go to the canteen by yourself so that you will be independent." she reminded me again about my father's rules.

Argh! Here we go again! Yeah. It's my father who commanded them to act like that towards me. And they are still under his commands even though he's already dead  last year. See? That's how powerful and bossy my father was. Even though his body already lived on this earth, it feels like his presence is still there because of what he did before.

And his death with mommy?

I was at home back before, studying about my father's company on how to handle it since it focuses more on real estates. While him and my mother were going to the party and suddenly they were hit by a 10 wheeler truck. That was a disaster for me...for us.

My parents are kind even though they are strict. They always secure my safety first before theirs. They don't even have enemies to take their lives. And it's so impossible to believe that it was an accident, because that street is private. People who didn't live there in our street  are not allowed to enter.  And as far as I know,  from the information that my investigator gathered from his deep investigation, it stated there that it was hit-and-run. And when the police came and checked the CCTV and the truck left by the driver, they found out that it was either the truck was borrowed and paid the driver to hit my parents'car , or the driver was just drunk and lost his control.  But what makes me confused is that, where is the driver now? After the  accident, the truck was left and the driver was nowhere to be found now. And I am thinking, did the driver run away because of the guilt? Did he ran away because he's afraid he might get in prison? Or did he run because there's someone big behind of  the accident?

"Ma'am are you still there?" I snapped from my consciousness when my secretary interrupted me in the other call.

"Yes. I'm still here. Okay, I'll gotta go by myself in the canteen. You may now eat, Miss Suarez." I commanded and off the call.

She's been my dad's secretary for almost 5 years. She's Miss Viviane Suarez, she's a graduate of Information Technology. I'm happy that after my daddy died, she never filed a resignation paper. Because, there's no one I can trust for helping me to handle the papers in the company but only her. I know she's a trusted person because even my not sociable mother trusted her so much.

I stood up and fixed my black blazer. I put my laptop inside the bag as long as the papers I signed and put it inside the  folder. While I'm fixing my things, I feel the cold breeze coming from the air conditioner that slowly embraced me from behind.  I cannot help myself  but to give myself a hug a second.

"Ow gesh. I feel like I am getting a high-fever today."  I mumbled to myself and grabbed my bag before leaving the entire office clean.

I directly walked towards the canteen. As I walked into it, I smelled the fresh new cooked pork sinigang?  While smelling the pork sinigang in the hallway inside the canteen, I heard from behind my back the noise coming from the employees and staff working in our company and a sound created by the utensils.

"Oh...my little intestines are craving something sour but delicious." I said while laughing a little while walking straight to the counter.

Some of my staffs and employees are greeting me and told me to join their lunch.

I smiled at them at waved my hand as a sign of 'pass'.  "Sorry, but I'am craving Ate Sabeth's pork sinigang!"

Manong Tomas grinned. He's sitting in one of the first row table in front of the counter together with the other staffs. He's one of  our two company's driver. "If that's so Ma'am, join us here in our table when you already have your food."

I laughed and nodded my head as a reply.

Ate Sabeth is standing now in front of me with a smile on her face. She is wearing a white t-shirt while her hair is on a clean bun with a net on it. "The same order Ma'am?"

"Yes. And will u add 1 cup of rice in my usual order?" I told her and she nodded her head.

"Sure iha. Just wait for a minute iha ah. I'll prepare your rice first." she said and I nodded.

She turned her back on me and walked directly inside the kitchen to prepare my rice. I grabbed my wallet and picked 100 pesos from it.

Ate Sabeth and other staffs/employees here are calling me 'iha'. It doesn't mean that calling me 'iha' means being feeling close or forgot to acknowledge my position here in the company. It's just I told them so. I told them to call me iha for those who wants to call me that because that's the only way for me to make them feel comfortable on me.

Ate Sabeth went outside the kitchen while bringing the tray with my order. When she got to the counter, she immediately put the tray down. I gave her the 100 pesos.

And when she took the money, I also took the tray of food when I heard her talking. "Iha. You still have change."

I heard my stomach again that's why I closed my eyes for a second. "Just keep the change Sister."

"Thank you. Enjoy!" she shouted to my back while I directly walked towards Manong Tomas table.

There were three of them. Manong Tomas and the other janitress. I put my tray on the table and sat. I felt them staring at me that's why I looked at them. Manong Tomas is still wearing his driver's uniform, white t-shirt with collar and a black slacks. While the other 2 women who are in their 30's I guess, are wearing their uniform as well, blue t-shirt and blue slacks. For a while, I feel happy and appreciate that they follow the little impactful rules in the company.

As I began my food, they also continued their food. The silence fills our table and only the sound of the utensils and the voices of the other workers talking on the rest of the occupying tables. Not until Manong Tomas initiated the conversation that stopped me from eating.

"Iha, aren't you afraid that the death of your parents might be planned and maybe they can follow you?" Manong Tomas said.

I saw from my peripheral vision that his two janitors were scolding him.

"Don't ask anymore, Tay To. Ma'am has forgotten about it for a long time." said one of them.

"Couldn't I have just been worried about Celestine? Our Ma'am is too young to have experienced that kind of accident and her parents were involved." he protested.

I calmed myself first and looked at them. I fake a cough to get their attention and I succeed. They looked at me when the janitress earlier began to speak. " Ma'am. My apologies about what Manong Tomas questions earlier."

"There's nothing for you to say sorry and be worried about Manong Tomas question about my parent's accident because it's true. My parents death weren't just a simple accident. For me it was all planned. And yeah, I am a little bit afraid that the man behind my parents'death might kill me sooner. But what makes me confuse is that, what are there intentions? Why did they killed my parents?"