Chapter 4

She squeezed her eyes when the sunlight hit her face. Her phone also rang from her side table. She blocked the rays of sun to avoid getting blinded by its light and reachef for her phone. She answered the call immediately when she saw Jezreel's name on the screen. "Hey, Jez?" she softly said. "Hi, sweet heart. Are you really awake or you just woke up when you answered my call?" Jezreel asked on the other line. Astreille laughed softly. "I just woke up, Jez." "You need to hurry up, one of the owners of the agency will come today. All the agents need to be here, especially you because you're assigned to the computer," Jezreel explained. The girl quickly got up from her bed. "What? Oh my gosh, okay Jez, I'll be there soon. Thank you for waking me up." "No worries, sweet heart. Take care when driving," her bestfriend added. "Thanks, Jez. I'll be there soon. Bye!" She was about to enter the cr inside her room when someone called her again. She saw the name registered on the screen so she immediately answered it. "Auntie?" "Hello, Astreille, dear?" She bit her lower lip when she heard panic and anxiety from her aunt's voice. "Tita, what happened?" she worriedly ask while preparing her clothes. "Your Tito Freddie had another heart attack, dear. I-I don't know what to do, Marie, your cousin was deeply hurt," her auntie said on the other line. Astreille sat back on the bed when she heard it. "Tita, I'm in a hurry right now. I'll call you again later and I'll send some money for tito. I might go there later after my work. I'm sorry, tita, my boss might get mad at me," she politely said. "Of course, dear. It's fine, take care, okay? Thank you." When her auntie hanged up, she immediately entered the cr to take a bath. She's in a hurry right now because she doesn't want to get scolded again. She's certain that her boss will vent everything on her. When she was prepared, she took her car keys before closing her house. She entered her car before turning the engine on. "Stop thinking about it for a minute, Astreille, please," she muttered to herself when she felt the hot liquid on her cheeks. She remembered what her auntie said. She was very close to them as they're the only family she has left. She sniffed while wiping her tears before driving away. She needs to clear her mind first before facing their boss' boss. When she arrived at the agency, she immediately parked her car and got out. She needs to hurry or else she'll be humiliated by her co-agents again if she's late. She entered the agency and sighed in relief when she saw Jezreel waiting for her. Her best friend waved at her so she walked to her instantly. "Hey, am I late?" she asked while biting her lower lip. "Nope, our boss is not here yet so it's fine. Come on, let's go up." Her chest lightened because of that. Jezreel guided her to the elevator to their station. She can now calm down and think of her auntie's situation. Her tito Freddie had another heart attack, she was sure that her uncle probably forced himself to work in the farm even if it was scorching hot. She once insisted them to just live in her house, but her cousin's scholarship was there and also their farm. "Hey, let's go. Are you okay?" Jezreel asked worriedly when the elevator opened. She nodded her head slowly, lying once again to ease the tension. "Y-Yes. Let's go." When they arrived at their tables, she slowly put the folders her commander needed for later. She sat down on her swivel chair before resting her back. She slept late last night because her body was sore all over, then she was waken up early in the morning. She felt exhausted and drained. "Agents!" They stood up in synchronization when they heard that sign. They all faced the man who just arrived before bowing their heads. "Good morning, sir Ephraim," they greeted in chorus. Astreille felt Jezreel teasingly poked her side waist. "Your crush is here," she teased. She chuckled and shook her head discreetly. What her friend said wasn't true. She doesn't feel anything for her boss, she only felt admiration for his passion when working, but he's not her crush. She's faithful to only one guy, and that is her favorite writer. She adored him so much. "I told you, I don't like her, Jez," she whispered on her bestfriend's ear. Jezreel just rolled her eyes and didn't speak again. Their leader cleared his throat before smiling timidly. "I'm glad that everyone is doing fine. I heard that you're number one in the rankings and stayed there ever since. This agency is doing good, among the other agencies that I handled, your skills are pretty good and awesome," he said while smiling which made them sigh in relief. "I also want to praise Astreille for doing a good job, she's the only hacker in this agency but she managed to handle all the informations by her own. I hope you'll treat her right, I don't want to lose a great hacker under my care." Astreille thanked their leader with red cheeks while she earned frowns and eyerolls from the other agents. Jezreel, on the other hand warned their co-agents with her clenched fist. She doesn't know why they're so bitter with her friend, just a little bit more and she could punch a hundred faces for Astreille. Astreille caught her fist and slowly brought it down. Astreille doesn't want her bestfriend to get involved in a fight just because of a weak person like her.