The Girl Named Mirage

Manila, Philippines

Christmas and New Year passed in a blink of an eye. Elven didn’t have time to celebrate as he was too occupied with lots of work as the General Manager of MAZE Hardware. The new name of the company he’s working with.

The one that Nicolo bought under Mirage’s name.

He was busy going around to check and supervise the stand-alone stores and the stores inside MZ Supermalls, the chain of malls where Esquibels were one of the major shareholders and they own 5 supermalls at the least throughout Manila and nearby provinces.

All successfully transferred to Mirage’s name.

He’s schedule was always so hectic that Nicolo asked Attorney Mendez to hire an assistant for Elven.

” Good morning, Mr. Sanford. ” Attorney Mendez greeted casually.

Elven quickly glances up behind the tons of reports he was reading. He stood up startled upon seeing the smiling attorney in front of him. The attorney decided to give him a personal visit in his office at MAZE Hardware’s main office located just above the main store.

” Attorney! I’m sorry I didn’t notice your presence. Please sit down. Can I get you something? Juice? Coffee? ”

Elven was flustered. He’s so preoccupied that he misses out on simple things.

Attorney David Mendez chuckled.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

” You’re so absorbed in your work that you didn’t hear me knock so I decided to just go in. Sit down and breathe, man. You’re overdoing it. ” David said with a smile.

They sat down on the couch in front of Elven’s table facing each other.

” Well, I’m just doing my job. ” Elven smiles thriftly.

” You’re doing an outstanding job. You really deserve the position. Why don’t we get you an assistant? To lessen your work load a bit. ” David recommended.

Elven touches the back of his neck. He’s not comfortable letting someone else handle things he could do alone. But, he also knows that he can’t do everything all by himself so maybe this would make him feel a little less stressed? His mind has been a mess ever since the incident.

” And so that I don’t need to let you make coffee for me, I guess? ” David added humorously.

Elven smiled. He thought long and hard about it until he finally nodded.

” Let’s do that, attorney. I’m not too confident about how I make coffee. ” Elven answered jestingly.

Attorney David laughed.

” I’ll ask the HR to do the hiring process. Is there anything you want in particular? ” David asked while holding out his phone ready to make a call.

Elven thought carefully about what he wanted. He wants someone who can be efficient but also carefree at the same time, he doesn’t want to sound like he needs to work too much but could still get the work done. If that makes sense?

” Well, if it’s possible, please hire one that could easily learn and follow. Someone who will work with or without supervision. ”

” Okay then. That’s a given. We’ll see about hiring a person for you next week. ” David replied as he put his phone away after making a call.

They talked for a while longer before both of them had to go and get their respective jobs done.

–

A week has passed and today’s the final interview for the assistant position. Elven’s gonna facilitate the interview. There were a total of 5 individuals who passed the screening.

They all looked very familiar to Elven as he looked at their resumes. Like he saw them somewhere before. He tried hard to recall the faces but nothing came out of his head. But, a somewhat familiar name piqued his interest.

Josh Lambert.

The ship’s crew that saves him. He smiles sadly. But then he asked the receptionist to call for Josh.

The young man entered his office awkwardly. He looks quite uncomfortable.

Elven cleared his throat.

” Hey Josh, right? I’m the General Manager of the MAZE Hardware.”

Josh raised his head upon hearing his voice. He looks confused.

” Yes… Sir… Elven? ” Josh said hesitantly. Then his face lightened up. ” Oh! What a pleasant surprise! ” He exclaimed.

Elven smiles warmly now.

” I’m looking for an assistant and we have a lot of applicants, you’re one of the 5 professionals who passed our screening. But, for someone who saves my life, would you like to become my assistant?” Elven asked calmly.

Josh’s eyes widened slightly, he didn’t say anything but nodded vigorously in response.

” Thank you. It means a lot to me that you accepted. Now we’ll talk about the details about our work relationship. You’ll have the responsibility of being my assistant and taking care of my daily duties and schedule. Will this be alright?” Elven explained.

” Yes, Sir! ” Josh answered excitedly.

Elven made a call to the Human Resources Department to advise them that he already hired an assistant. The other applicants were informed accordingly.

It seems like Josh already knows what he likes so that shouldn’t be a problem. Elven continued his conversation with Josh. About his experience from his former works, his skills and his family situation. Everything about Josh is just as normal.

” Josh, I hope you’ll like it here. ” Elven said with the orientation coming to its end.

” I’m sure I will, Sir! ” Josh confirmed.

He sounded like he couldn’t wait to start working.

He thanked Elven once more for letting him be part of such a huge company.

Elven was glad that he managed to meet Josh again and hired such a talented person. He didn’t know that he needed help before but now, he’s beyond happy. With a big smile adorning their faces, they walked out of Elven’s office and made a short tour around the company and the main store.

–

The next day, after studying and signing a contract, the day was spent with Josh learning his job as Elven’s assistant. Elven gave him a tour to some of the shops within Manila. Josh learned a lot of useful information and made great progress with the job in a short time.

Elven noticed that Josh is pretty good at handling different tasks given to him. The fact that Josh took him seriously as a boss and treated him appropriately, despite knowing each other outside the company and of course, because of that incident. Elven genuinely appreciated the trust and respect he had earned from Josh.

When night fell, Elven suggested that they eat out before going home to celebrate Josh’s first day at work. Josh agreed immediately. They decided to settle on the nearest resto they could find. Josh followed Elven to the restaurant across the street.

While eating, Josh kept asking questions, mostly related to work and the company.

” Have you met the new CEO of the company, Sir? ” Josh asks curiously.

Elven takes a sip of his wine.

” No, not yet. I only met her legal representative, Attorney Mendez. ” Elven said honestly.

” Attorney Mendez? As in Attorney David Mendez of LE Firm? ” Josh said in disbelief.

Elven just hummed and nodded.

” Woah. That’s awesome! Maybe the CEO is a big shot, eh? She has the most expensive and greatest lawyer ever! ” Josh said, being extremely in awe.

Elven smiles.

” I guess so, she’s in the United States according to Attorney Mendez. ”

” Do you know her name, Sir? ”

Elven nodded.

” Sort of. I read her name on some of the documents in the office. ”

” So, what is it? ”

” Mirage. Mirage Esquibel. “