Before I went out of the bathroom, I took a last glance at my reflection in the mirror. I paused for a moment before getting distracted by my hand soap dispenser that was positioned awkwardly.
I reached for the dispenser I had placed on top of the side of my sink and arranged it carefully, took another look around and sighed.
It's just a small bathroom, with a fit to one shower area, enclosed with a hazy almost see-through glass door and a sink just adjacent to the toilet. The room is lit with a dim yellow light but with a small white auxiliary light just at the top of the mirror to allow just a bright and clear reflection. On top of the toilet tank sits a tiny green plant placed on a round wooden vase. Facing my toilet is a small brown cabinet which looks quite simple antique but just enough to contain my toiletries and bathroom necessities.
I dried my hair with a gray hand towel as I walked toward my tall closet beside my single sized bed. My room is not big or spacious but just enough that I could move around freely and comfortably. It is located within my office, just at the back. Therefore, it can be talked that 'I live in my office' literally and that it does not mean that I work 24/7 in my office when I say so.
I opened my closet and took the white formal long-sleeved collared polo that was neatly folded along with all my white garments and their kinds. They are all arranged based on their colors and types as well as for the pants so that I could select and choose them with ease and save time. I took a black slacks and paired them with my not so new, coffee-brown classic leather shoes.
I grabbed my old wristwatch that was placed on top my bedside table and looked at the time.
All was set. I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly before walking toward the door to grab my black belt that was hanging behind.
4:01am, let's see what my client will reveal.
I had let my feet maneuver and take me to wherever it'll take me. It was a calm and peaceful dawn where the cold breeze of the morning air could almost send shivers down my spine, but in a soothing and satisfying way. A few more walks and I had reached the destination where I subconsciously wanted to be- the boulevard, where the seaside is just beside it.
I sat on one of the benches placed across on the edge side of the boulevard designed for people to take a moment to appreciate the scenic view of the sea waves.
For quite some time, I observed the waves hit the coastal rocks again and again with their calming sound occupying my ears that made me escape reality for a while.
I read some time ago that trees are not actually the sole responsible for the oxygen we breathe but rather there are those that come from the ocean which produces almost over half of the world's total oxygen. And if we come to think of it, it's just one of the many things we have always believed to be facts. If we put that in regard, what else do we believe that are true, yet are not?
Mesmerizing, how we easily believe things without probing deeper into meanings, like when people are smiling and laughing, serving and helping but are totally upside down in the inside and we fail to notice because we only look into the face value rather than the real value. Well, maybe the reason we overlook it is because human beings don't become sad and down in one fell swoop, but like the ocean does, dysphoria comes in waves, and we call these waves- the pangs of grief. Until these pangs hit the coastal rocks from time to time, these rocks would either not be able to withstand and succumb or will just erode and change shape.
I noticed the morning sun started to rise which had given me subtle feeling of warmth on my face which had awakened me from this deep relaxation in solitude.
Just for a while, I get to appreciate another dawn of life of being just with myself.
I stood up from where I was seated and decided to take a walk. It's still 6:04am, so I roamed around for a while looking for a place to have my breakfast before meeting with Mr. Walpol, the richest man in town.
On my way to grab breakfast, I kept thinking about Walpol… Stephen Walpol, the owner of the largest mansion in town and founder of the most luxurious chains of hotels. What could a man with everything in the world be lacking?
I ordered a small meal and two brewed coffees, one for dine and one to go.
"Excuse me, could you change this sugar with creamer instead?" I asked the waiter while showing the two packets of sugar in my hand. "Is it possible if this other coffee be heated before I finish, I'd like to take my time to enjoy this meal you prepared." I added with a smile.
"Sure sir!"
"Thankyou!" I said to the waiter.
After I was done eating, I directly went to Mr. Walpol's directions to where his house's whereabouts. Just across Johnston Street.
I was awestricken by the towering black gate that stood before me. It had carvings of intricate gold designs of various birds on the side of the wall connecting to the steel gate and two beautifully made designs of birds on top the middle gates which meets and separates when opened.
I had no idea how I would be able to enter this place, so I approached the gate and peeked inside. Just a moment passed, and a guard called me and talked.
"Who are you looking for?" asked the guard.
"Mr. Walpol, sir." I answered.
"You sure?" He dubiously asked. "What you got there?" he added, pointing at the coffee I was carrying.
"Mr. Walpol asked me of this, it's brewed coffee. Would you be so kind to tell him that Engañar is here… Paul Engañar." I smiled and raised the coffee to show it to him.
The guard did not answer, instead he turned his back and grabbed a walkie talkie. By the tone of his talking, he's contacting the other guards maybe.
About five minutes passed, I saw a man came out of the mansion with just a gold-colored robe, he was slender and beardy. He walked hastily towards the gate and smiled laboriously as if it warranted him great effort just to do so.
"Mr. Engañar!" He greeted me. "Let him in!" He exclaimed to his guards.
The gates immediately began to open and the birds above us separated. Wow!
"I see you just woke up! I'm sorry if I caused you trouble so early in the morning." I promptly said to him before handing him the coffee he asked.
"What's this?"
"Brewed coffee, you called back yesterday to ask for this Mr. Walpol." I responded. He may not have gotten a full sleep since yesterday, his lower eyes are quite darkened and his physique… not what I expected of for a billionaire, he is quite skinny.
"Oh… I did?" he asked while he reached to get the coffee, and I was looking at his hands just before he grabbed it. By the look on his face, he was a bit confused, so he really did forget about asking of it.
I just smiled at him and nodded then he signaled to me to walk along with him.
"Just call me Stephen, by the way." He said as we walked toward his mansion.
When we were finally inside his mansion, I could not help but just be amazed and look around the interior of his house. Man got everything in the world. But by the looks of his today, maybe he doesn't have everything in his life after all. From what I've observed so far, he was fidgeting his hands unconsciously and right now he's constantly cracking his knuckles- a clear sign of restlessness.
"Wow! Your house is just… amazing!" I exclaimed while still looking around because of my ignorance with these kinds of furniture and all other things that I have little known idea of.
"Yeah… I guess so." He responded in an awfully flat tone. What?
"Tell me Stephen, where's your favorite spot here in your house." I asked.
"Favorite spot?" he paused. It took him maybe a minute or two before he spoke again. "Perhaps, outside… in the backyard Paul." He added. Okay, I'm starting to wonder.
I nodded at him and smiled. I was observing him for a while now, Mr. Walpol shows clears signs of forgetfulness, restlessness and I'm still not sure but I was sensing agitation in his tone a while back when he shouted at his guards.
"Ahmm… Hey! Your coffee's getting' cold." I told him pointing at his coffee which was swaying side to side because of his trembling hands.
"Come on! We'll talk at the backyard." He said with haste and turned to walk toward where he was telling me.
I could not respond to him since he immediately left off, so I just followed him.
When we got there, he just stood silently. So, his backyard is a large pool area. Just a few meters away from it, there was an outdoor bar. With that, it's still very spacious.
On our way here, I noticed a change in his mood when we got past a certain area inside his mansion. He glanced at the area and breathed heavily, although he did not say anything, but I was able to sense it.
"I'm still not sure why I called you yesterday Paul…" he said while still staring at his pool. "Nor… how I was able to." He added and sighed.
I just looked at him standing in that area and waited for him to talk again. I'm thinking he's a client that's easy to work with. The YAVIS clients.
"I can't… find the exact words… why or how I am feeling this way." He slowly turned to face me then stared at me for a moment.
"But somehow Paul, yesterday before dinner, I was… fine? I felt okay…"
Now I'm really wondering what's lacking in his life that's causing distress.