"You guys are lucky. Despite those years, this big world made you meet each other again." Leus said. "God did not let you down. He made a way for you. Since you have been a good child." he added.
Leus thought they were lucky to meet each other again. If there is a big gap already, look at Aera and Lance. Even though they did not find each other, someone made them meet, and that was a cool moment already.
No one would imagine that it could still happen.
"So that's where you meet Sandra, the bully?" Leus asked.
Aera nodded her head and ate.
"When did she start bullying you? How did she end up doing that? Was she a bad one since then?" He asked again, curious about her condition in the orphanage.
'I do not know the reason, but when I got there, she already hated me and would not communicate with me. I also tried to make friends with her, but we ended up fighting. So I never dared to approach her.'
'The children dislike her that much, either. Sandra has a bad temper. She easily gets annoyed if she sees something she does not like. Sister Ailee said that maybe she was like that because she is one of the oldest there. She was not like that before, and she was also playing with the other kids'
Leus nodded. "That could really happen. I get where that temper is coming from, but now that she was adopted, she should start treating you better. Why is she treating you so badly now?" he asked.
He could not pinpoint where Sandra's anger was coming from to Aera.
'I do not know either. Let's just be happy that she has a family now. A lot of children are still in the orphanage, waiting for a family to adopt them'
Leus smiled. "You are still kind to her. I could not believe my ears. If I was you, I would be cursing at her now," he said. "But I hope the kids will be able to find their families and live better lives. They deserve more and they need to experience a lot of happy things outside the orphanage." he added.
After a few minutes, they had finally finished the food. Leus was waiting for Aera. She was writing down her comments for Leus' uncle.
"Hey Aera, have you enjoyed the food?" he asked.
Aera quickly looked at him and smiled before nodding her head. Giving him a thumbs up before going back to writing.
"Why does it feel like you are writing some complaints there?" He joked. Aera shook her head and hid her pen in her bag. "Are you done?" he asked.
She answered him with a nod. "Let's go. I will call Uncle Ji, so we can go home now." he said, and guided her to the kitchen.
Leus called his uncle, who was fixing some kitchenware.
"Are you guys done?" Leus' uncle asked while he was walking towards the two. "How was it?" he asked again.
Leus gave two thumbs up. "Mine was good. The tenderness of the ribeye was so good. The shrimp and scallops are good too. It tastes good when they are all combined together. It's perfect for wine, Uncle." he commented.
"Really? That was good to hear. How about you, Aera? How is the food for you?" Aera handed him a paper. Uncle Ji read the paper silently before looking back at her. "Oh, thank you. Do you want me to show you how to make the sauce? Do not worry, you can always visit here. I will teach you a lot of things." Uncle Ji said.
Aera smiled and nodded excitedly. Uncle Ji tapped Aera's head. "I am looking forward to working with you. I love how you explain the taste in your note. I really appreciated it. I remembered Leus' father to you. He was so meticulous that he would tell you every inch of what he tasted. I am amazed. Thank you very much." he said.
"We will go now, Uncle. I still have to send her to the orphanage on time." Leus commented.
Uncle Ji nodded his head. "Okay, so take care on the way home. Text me when you get home." he reminded.
"I will. Thank you for the food." Leus said his gratitude.
Aera bowed a little, waving her hands to Leus' uncle before following Leus.
Tomorrow morning.
"Good afternoon, Ma'am." The security guard greeted Aera when he saw her enter the company.
Aera immediately bowed in respect. She then took out her phone and showed the guard the question she had prepared before going to the company.
'May I know if Lance is here?'
The guard nodded. "Yes, Ma'am. Maybe he is in his office, because he did not go out today." he replied.
Aera quickly tapped on her phone and showed it to the guard.
'Can I go inside to visit him?'
The guard nodded again. "Yes, Ma'am. We are advised to let you in if you ever visit here. You can head inside." He smiled and made a way for Aera to enter.
Aera showed her phone, thanking the guard.
'You can just call me Aera. Thank you very much, Sir. I will head now~'
Aera bowed again, waving her hands before walking ahead. She went straight from school to the company, carrying what she had cooked from their class. When she got in front of Lance's office, she was about to knock when someone called her.
"Ah, excuse me, Ma'am." One of the workers drew her attention. "Mr. Guevarra is in the meeting room. Do you want me to tell him?" She even asked.
Aera immediately types on her phone to answer.
'Ah, no. You do not have to, Ma'am. I am not in a rush, I will just wait for him. But can I peek at him?'
The woman smiled at her and led her into the meeting room. "This is the meeting room. That's Mr. Guevarra, standing in front." the employee said, and pointed where Lance was.
'Thank you very much, Ma'am. May I know what your name is?' Aera asked.
"I am Kim, from the merchandising marketing team." She introduces her name.
Aera bowed again and showed her phone to Kim.
'My name is Aera. It's nice to meet you, Ma'am. Kim'
Aera introduced before typing again.
'Thank you and sorry for the inconvenience. Can I wait for him here outside?'
"Yes, you can. If he ever looks at you, you can just wave at him for him to know that you are here. I will go ahead. I need to go back to my work now. It was nice to meet you too. See you again!" Kim bid her goodbye and started to walk back to her office.
Aera glanced at Lance, who was standing in front. She was not able to hear what they were talking about, but she could tell that it was serious. The meeting room is also transparent, so you can see what's happening inside.
So as not to disturb Lance's meeting, she just peeked to the side. Amazed at how Lance stood in front of his employees confidently.