Honey, I'm Home

The sun was terrific that day. Her majestic rays shone through the blinds as the air conditioner struggled with all its might to keep everything cool. One can say that the temperament in the room was a mixture of minds scorching with unfathomable creativity and hearts with the calmness of the vast ocean during summer.

He sat there once again staring blankly at the transparent window glass which seems to be opaque at times. Everything outside him is visible, but to them he is just another being lost in the race of humanity grappling for answers to life’s common struggles.

On his desk lay a plethora of blueprints, each one begging for his valuable attention, each one shouting out to him asking him to do this and that. On the wall, the clock continues to tick furiously as the race to accomplish his projects becomes all the more obvious and the urgency emanates a sense of alarm that never ceases to urge him to work even harder each time.

Daniel has to face these challenges each day. But he never minds it. He is contented with the life that he has at the moment. These infinite tasks handed down to him by his dictator of a boss help him ignore the lowly life that he has. Not that he hates his life right now that he drowns himself with these projects much like a drunkard would do with the company of wine. To him his life is menial like a garden littered with weeds and no blossoming flowers in sight. It is as dry as the arid dessert or as desolate as the next undiscovered planet in space.

The clock strikes 5! It’s time for him to go home. Yes a home that has been his solace ever since he realized that he will be alone for the rest of his life. Every day he returns to his apartment and says “Honey, I’m home,” with the hope that someday, someone would answer back, a voice that would reply, “I cooked some adobo.” A voice that would vanish the reality that says, “Oh wait, that’s right, I live alone.”

Daniel gathers his things in haste. Hoping that none of his peers would notice his loneliness, but he was wrong for here they are staring at him with an eager face awaiting his answer that he would go with them and have some drink or two.

“Hey Daniel, going home so soon?” asked one of them.

He tried to avoid their incriminating stares, but to no avail.

“Yeah! Come on join us. Have a drink so you can relax and unwind” added another.

He stopped for a while, trying to figure the things that were going on simultaneously inside his head. Should he go or should he not? That indeed is the biggest of all. If he does, he would loss valuable time that he should’ve spent in the office tinkering with the designs that were assigned to him. If he doesn’t, the boys would just have a good reason to try and uncover his skeletons in the closet.

“Alright… alright, I would go, but only for a few drinks. But first I have a bunch of things to accomplish if you guys can hold your horses, even for just a minute or so, then I would be good to go,” he replied with a smile that seem to solicit the agreement of his office chums

“Sure Daniel, we’ll be by the lobby waiting. Don’t take too long ha or don’t even think of escaping hahaha,” answered one of them jokingly which to him is more half meant than a joke, but of course he doesn’t mind at all ‘coz he’s used to it.

Time went so fast. It’s as if time itself is playing a big gaga on him. Soon he is down to the finishing touches on the last design. It is a multi-billion dollar school owned by no less than the city’s most eligible bachelor, Mr. Castro. Rumor has it that it will be the first high-tech educational institution in the area equipped with solar panels as its main source of electrical power for the 15000 computers and machineries used by both the teachers and their students.

He stood up from his chair upholstered with leather whose color matches those of a tiger. Standing tall with his 6-foot frame, he gazed at the magnificence of his engineering marvel. Call it being conceited, but he needs to pat himself on the back for a job well done even before his boss would even extend his hand to congratulate him.

“You did it again Engr. Ibarra. You’re indeed the best investment this company has ever had. I never doubted you the moment we decided to hire you out of college,” muttered, his boss

“Thank you… thank you sir,” he spoke with a humble voice.

“Hey! Daniel! Done already?” shouted his work mate who was asked to go up and check on him.

“Oh… yes… yes. I am done. Just doing some final touches on my computations to make sure everything is as it should be,” he responded.

These awaken him from his daydreaming. Yes, he was just dreaming. He knew that the compliments he heard earlier would never emanate from the mouth of his dreaded boss. The only reason he is still here is because this is the only way he can repay the scholarship this company has accorded him, enabling him to graduate as a Civil Engineer from the University of the Philippines. Once he’s done repaying them, he already has plans of establishing his own engineering design firm back in his hometown of Pangasinan. It has been his long cherished ambition to build affordable houses for the poor and middle income families since he chose to take up engineering in college. Most of his relatives were surprised that he took up this course, as most of his relatives were either teachers or accountants by profession. Even his parents were teachers. He and another cousin of his were the only ones who became engineers.

The group headed for the Blue Diamond Bar that night. This has been their hang out for it is the nearest bar to the office and besides that they have this karaoke night where they could spend almost the whole night singing their hearts out.

Daniel sat on the chair directly in front of the stage. Today is Friday and the bar is known to feature up and coming singers to entertain its guest and visitors. They signalled the waiter to come near their table and ordered a bucket of beer to start their drinking spree. They even added their favorite roasted peanut as complimentary snack while sipping on their ice cold beer.