It had been five months since Ayisha started working at Simon's restaurant.
By now, she had already grown used to the place, the sound of utensils clinking, the smell of food from the kitchen, and the loud conversations between the staff during breaks. Most of them treated her well.
Well… almost everyone.
Angel was the exception.
Ayisha learned from Max that Angel had once confessed to Simon. He rejected her.
Since then, Angel had been noticeably cold toward anyone who seemed close to him.
"Just ignore her," Max whispered to Ayisha as Angel walked past them with a stiff expression. "She's like that to everyone who gets close to boss."
Ayisha glanced at Angel's retreating figure but didn't say anything.
Max leaned a little closer, lowering his voice as if sharing a secret.
"You know," he continued, "our boss has been single for a long time. He told me he wanted to focus on his dreams."
He paused, then smirked.
"Honestly, I thought he was going to grow old alone. But now… looks like I was wrong."
Ayisha frowned slightly. "Huh? Anong ibig mong sabihin?"
Max shrugged, clearly amused. "Don't play dumb. Alam ko na kayo ni boss."
Ayisha's eyes widened.
"Ha?! Hindi nga kami, uy!"
"Talaga ba?" Max raised a brow. "Hinahatid ka nga ni boss. Hindi nga nagpapasakay si boss ng babae sa motor niya."
Ayisha opened her mouth to argue but stopped. She didn't really have a good explanation for that.
Max continued, clearly enjoying himself.
"Ah, basta. Sa tingin ko talaga kayo na. Sinisikreto niyo lang sa amin."
Ayisha rolled her eyes.
"Hindi nga."
"By the way," Max suddenly added, "ano regalo mo kay boss bukas?"
Ayisha blinked. "Huh? Bakit? Ano ba bukas?"
Max looked at her like she had just said something unbelievable.
"August 14," he said slowly. "Birthday ni boss."
Ayisha froze.
"Birthday niya?!"
"Oo," Max replied. "Hindi mo alam? Jowa mo yun, ah."
"Hindi ko nga jowa, eh! Ang kulit mo." Ayisha smacked his shoulder.
"Aray!" Max winced dramatically, rubbing the spot. "Grabe ka naman."
"He's going to be thirty-six," Ayisha muttered under her breath.
Max heard it and grinned.
"Yeah. If I were you, I'd start thinking about what gift to give my boyfriend."
Ayisha raised an eyebrow."Oh really? Then give your boyfriend a gift."
Max chuckled. "He's handsome, but I'm straight, baby." He clapped his hands once. "Now come on. Back to work."
___________
Later that evening, Ayisha arrived at the hospital.
She quietly stepped inside the room.
"Hi, Mama," Ayisha said softly as she placed the food container on the small table.
Then she turned to her sister.
"Kamusta si Mama?"
"Okay lang ako, nak," Maricel answered before Samantha could speak.
Samantha frowned slightly. She glanced at Ayisha and subtly shook her head.
Ayisha understood immediately.
She nodded, then faced their mother again with a small smile. "You should sleep now, Ma."
She gently touched Samantha's arm.
"Kain ka na. Lalamig yung pagkain."