Chapter 4

Teresa awoke, her head throbbing and her body feeling weak and unsteady. The early morning sun pierced through her bedroom curtains, and she groaned, turning away to avoid the bright rays. Her thoughts immediately drifted to the unsettling dream that had haunted her the previous night. She hissed, trying to banish the unsettling images from her mind.

As her consciousness slowly reasserted itself, she remembered her looming work commitments. Panic set in as she realized she was running late. Hastily checking the time, her eyes widened in alarm—it was already 8:30 am, an hour and a half past her usual work start time of 7 am.

With a jolt of adrenaline, she leaped out of bed and hurried to the bathroom to freshen up. Teresa moved quickly, her morning routine a blur as she brushed her teeth, showered, and dressed in a rush. In her haste, she slipped on the bathroom floor, hitting her wrist, but she hardly noticed the pain amidst the urgency of her situation.

Completing her ablutions, she dashed to gather her work attire and essentials. Teresa's heart pounded in her chest as she raced downstairs, barely sparing a moment to say goodbye to her concerned mother, who had urged her to eat breakfast, but her mind was solely focused on the impending lateness to her workplace.

Teresa's morning had started in chaos. She bolted out of her apartment and rushed to the bus stop, her heart pounding with the fear of being late for work once again. The moment a bus came into view, she lunged towards it and secured a seat, her mind clouded with thoughts of her impending tardiness and the consequences it might entail. Would her boss notice her habitual lateness, she wondered, her anxiety mounting with each passing moment.

She attributed her morning rush to a disturbing dream that had jolted her awake earlier. In hindsight, if it hadn't been for that disquieting vision, she might have managed her time more efficiently and avoided the morning frenzy that had set her behind schedule.

As the bus came to an abrupt halt, Teresa leaped out of her seat and dashed towards her destination – the restaurant that was her workplace. Her thoughts raced as she envisioned the disapproving looks of her colleagues and the stern reprimand that awaited her from her boss. She knew she had to make amends quickly.

Upon reaching the entrance of the restaurant, Teresa paused for a moment to collect herself. She took a deep breath, allowing the morning air to calm her racing heart. In those few minutes, she mentally rehearsed her apology, hoping to make it sound as sincere as possible.

With newfound composure, she finally pushed open the kitchen backdoor and entered the bustling restaurant. Her co-workers turned to look at her, some with raised eyebrows, and others with subtle sighs of impatience.

"Good morning, everyone," Teresa began, her voice wavering slightly. "I'm so sorry I'm late." Her gaze fell upon Gomez, the head chef of the restaurant, who was known for his no-nonsense attitude.

Gomez fixed her with a stern look. "Why are you late? What is the reason?" he demanded, his tone laced with a mixture of curiosity and annoyance. Teresa swallowed hard, realizing that she would have to explain herself in a way that might just spare her from further consequences.

"actually Gomez my dad had an asthma attack this morning and it was a tough one, I'm really sorry I'm late" she frowned pitifully although she knew that she was using last night situation as an excuse to why she was late.

"ohhh I hope he's fine now" Gomez replied with concern falling completely to Teresa's lie.

"yes he's fine now" she smiled as she felt terrible for lieing although it was her first time she was lieing. All thanks to Jane and her gang, they vowed to make Teresa more fun and to make her have a normal teenagehood with so many atrocities. they believed it was fun and Teresa doesn't really approve of being a bad girl but since they told her it would be fun, so she decided to give it a try.

"Mrs Gabriella said you should come to her office" said Isla.

"okay" Teresa responded as she immediately left for her bosses office.

"Good morning ma'am" Teresa greeted while bowing her head.

"Teresa how are you"

"I'm good ma'am, how can I help you?"

"I learnt you where just coming to work" she said reluctantly

"yes ma'am, I apologized"

"why were you late?"

"my dad had an asthma attack this morning and it was very bad. I couldn't even find his pump on time, it was such a difficult moment for me" she lied again.

"oh, how his he?"

"hes fine ma'am"

"ok good, I want you to accompany my son to the mall to get me a very nice dress"

"ma'am, i don't think I can do that. Andrea hates me"

"I promise you do not even have to communicate. I just need you to pick out a dress for me, that's all."

"But ma'am, andrea and I don't do well together, he hates me and I don't think his hatred for me would end anytime soon"

"worry less, I've spoken to Andre already, he wouldn't dare mistreat you, please Tessa, for my sake."

Mrs. Gabriella kept on pleading with Tessa to accompany her son, Andre, to the mall for a last-minute shopping spree. Despite the known animosity between Tessa and Andre, Mrs. Gabriella insisted that Andre wouldn't mistreat her.

"Ok ma'am, I'll try," Tessa reluctantly agreed. "What's the theme for the party?"

"It's red," Mrs. Gabriella responded. "Any style you think would fit me perfectly."

"Ok ma'am, when he's back, we'll head out together," Tessa replied.

"He's already behind you," Mrs. Gabriella smiled slightly. "Ok then, shall we?" Tessa turned to Andre, giving him the cold shoulder.

"Bye ma'am, I'll be back in a jiffy," Tessa smiled as she headed out, leaving Andrea behind.

"And you expect me to put up with that?" he said cruelly.

"Andrea, mind your speech. Go with her now and do not be rude, or else I'm seizing your credit card."

"Really? Is that a treat?" he scoffed.

"Try me," Mrs. Gabriella said, breaking eye contact with her nonchalant son. "Get out!" she yelled.

Andrea backed out of her office and stormed towards his car. Tessa was already waiting for him.

"When he eventually did, she hopped into the back seat. "Why are you there?" he said coldly.

"This is where I feel like sitting, okay,"she replied. "Move to the front seat now."

"Okay, I'm only adhering to your ill-mannered instructions because of madam. I do not work for you. I respect your mother, and that is why I'm here," she said as she sat in the front seat. "Got that?" She stared at him with a bloodshot eye filled with hatred.

He stared at her for some moments and eventually came to his senses, starting the car. She faced forward, taking a deep breath and fastening her seat belt before he could ask her to.

The journey to the mall started, a long silent ordeal. After 15 minutes, which felt like 15,000 years to Tessa, Andrea's phone rang. It was a video call with a random girl, though Tessa tried her best not to look.

"Hey baby boy, where are you heading?" the strange girl said with a very sharp voice.

"To the mall," he said without lifting a muscle from his face. "Why? You didn't tell me you are going shopping today."

'Is that his girlfriend? Ugh, which kind of girl would ever love such an arrogant guy. He's not even charming nor nice,' Teresa thought to herself.

"I wasn't, until my mother asked me to get something for her at the mall,"he explained.

"Oh, how's she?"

"She's cool."

**COUGH**

"Who's there with you, Anddyy?"

'Anddyy? That's a stupid nickname,' Teresa thought to herself as she giggled out loud unknowingly.

"Just some peeksqueak," he hissed at Tessa. "And why is the rag with you?" the stranger sounded annoyed.

"Well, my mom wanted her to go with me to select an outfit for her. She's an ordinary employee at Mom's restaurant."

"You both are just too dumb. You really are perfect for each other," Teresa shot her eye at them.

"What did you just say?" Andrea yelled. Before he and the stranger girl could rant on her, Teresa pulled out her earphones and began to listen to soothing music to calm her nerves before things got ugly.

She listened to her songs for 10 more minutes, not noticing Andrea had already ended the call. He looked over to Tessa and couldn't help but stare at her lovely skin as the sun kissed it gently. He smiled unknowingly, admiring the way she hummed to the rhythm of the song and smiled as if she were in it. It was indeed a beautiful sight for him.

He could only imagine how it would be if he lowered the window of the car on the side she was sitting. As he kept staring at her, curiosity carried him. He then lowered the window, and the cool soothing breeze began to come in and brushed Teresa's hair all behind her neck. 'She is indeed beautiful', he thought.

While Teresa was enjoying the breeze, she wondered why the air conditioner was on if the window is open. She turned to Andrea and caught him staring at her. They both held their eye contact for 2 minutes, both feeling something, like a rush of excitement running through their veins.

*HONK! HONK!!*

The sound of the bus behind them shook them out of the tingling moment.

'Oh, the, er, window, that was a mistake, sorry,' he stammered.

'It's fine,' she smiled, and they both felt awkward.