Meeting with Mailbox

Kay saw the man's nameplate. It read "Hi, my name is Lorenzo."

Could this be the guy?

"Ah yeah... A-Are you Lorenzo Bulan?" he asked the server. What a perfectly inopportune time to stutter.

"Yes, I am. Why do you ask?" the server replied.

Kay was still a little unsure about it, but he figured that he would have to ask at some point. "I... I'm here for the house-sitting job?"

"Oh, you're the one! Right this way, please." said the cheerful, black-haired young man. At this point, Kay got the message that they really were expecting him to arrive within the day.

Lorenzo led the brown-haired young man to one of the corner tables. The table was solid wood and it could accommodate four people with its two plush seats. There was no one there yet, so Kay thought that the mysterious job poster would be coming in later.

He took his seat. Then Lorenzo handed him the menu.

"By the way, Mailbox told us they will be paying for your meal, so you may choose anything you like," the server told Kay.

"Mailbox?" the latter asked.

"Ah, they're the one who put up the ad, your potential employer," the server replied. He then scratched his head and added, "We haven't seen them in the flesh, to be honest. Since they spoke to us through letters, we just took to calling them Mailbox. They don't seem to mind it so far."

Kay's immediate thought was: They just took it as it is?

"How can you be sure that they're legit, though? I mean, doesn't that sound a little suspicious?" Kay asked. After all, who would just wholeheartedly trust someone they couldn't see?

"I don't know, but the manager has approved of it." Lorenzo answered. "That sort of thing is kind of normal for us. Also, considering that you took the time to actually go here, I should also be asking you why you came here."

A moment of silence passed before the server continued speaking.

"Sorry about that. It's not my place to say that." he said. "Is there anything that you would like to order?"

"Oh yeah," blurted Kay. Because of Lorenzo's question, he got to thinking about the reason why he really did choose to go to the cafe as instructed. He may have mentioned earlier that he went there just for curiosity's sake, but was that the real reason?

He took a look at the menu and searched for something that he would, deep in his heart, like to try. The barako coffee as well as the calamansi cheesecake caught his eye, being curious about the taste of the items ever since he saw them on another, more famous cafe's menu. He also wanted a rice meal, but he thought that would be too much.

"I'll have a barako coffee and calamansi cheesecake, please," he told Lorenzo.

The server confirmed the order. "Alright. One barako coffee, one calamansi cheesecake. Anything else?"

"Nothing else. Thank you."

"Okay. You'll be meeting with Mailbox once I bring you your order."

"That's okay. I'll wait."

Now Kay wondered how he would be meeting with the so-called Mailbox if the staff hadn't even seen him either.

After some time, Lorenzo came back with his order, as well as two small mailboxes, some paper, and a pen.

Seeing the items, Kay already had an idea what they were going to be used for, but he still wanted to be sure. "Thank you," he said. "May I ask what those are for?"

"These are for talking with Mailbox. You write and insert into one of them, and they give a reply through the other one," the server replied, showing the customer the boxes. "If you want, you can check the mailboxes to see for yourself if they're empty or not."

"Okay."

Kay did it not to say that he didn't trust them, but he would like to see things for himself. He checked the mailboxes as suggested, and true enough, there was nothing in them.

"Well, I'm convinced," he said.

Lorenzo put the mailboxes on the table, with one near Kay and the other one farther away. He also gave the pen and paper.

"I'll leave you to your conversation. Please call me if you need help or have an additional order." said the server. He then walked away to attend to other customers.

Kay thought, "What do I write, then?"

"Hello. I am here at the cafe," he wrote on a piece of paper. "I got myself some coffee and cheesecake. Thank you for the hospitality."

If he were to be honest, he wasn't really sure on how to start the conversation, and he didn't know how much they knew or if they could hear him at all. Also, part of him still doubted whether this would work or not. He has heard of supernatural occurrences, but he had never thought that he could possibly witness one.

In the end, he thought it would be best and safest to give his status first.

He put the short note in the mailbox next to him and waited a few minutes until he heard the soft sound of falling paper. He then took a peek at the other mailbox and saw a letter inside. There was a weird feeling that's both of surprise and getting an expected response.

"Glad to hear that. I suppose we should get down to business.

The house that you'll be taking care of is one of mine that I can't get back to for the moment. I have been extremely busy recently, but it is important now that that one has someone in it.

I will be paying you to live in it and take care of it for me. Aside from that, I will also be providing for supplies and utilities. Just like what's described in the ad.

Is there anything else that you'd like to know?"

Kay wondered why they wanted to pay someone to do it, though. He thought that renting it out would also get them money.

"I have a question. Why didn't you just have it rented out? I mean, you'll have someone in there to man it, and you'll get money in the process," he wrote back. Something inside him told him that it wasn't the best question that he could ask, but he wanted to get that one cleared up.

"I have no need of additional money," Mailbox replied in another letter. "Also, I can't have someone there who will eventually think that they own the place and can do whatever with it simply because they're paying for it. And I can't have too many people knowing about it, either, considering that putting it up for rent will increase the chances of subsequent turnovers. I apologize if that offends you."

Kay shuddered as he read the reason after the one with money. He had heard horror stories of people being entitled just because they paid for something, and he had also witnessed it firsthand.

"It doesn't. I can relate to the situation," he wrote.

He now had reason to believe that Mailbox was just like him, in the sense that they're both in a situation where there's a limit as to who to turn to and trust. And just for that reason, he gained a desire to help them.

Now one might think that it wasn't enough, and that this whole thing was still too sketchy. But for Kay, the proof was right in front of him! This conversation was happening, and he didn't even know how.

"Thank goodness," Mailbox wrote. "Do you have any other questions?"

Now Kay wondered... What about other people? Could they stay if they needed it?

"I was wondering, what if I had a friend or two who wanted to visit? Is that allowed? And what if they wanted to stay with me?" he asked through a letter.

"If that's the case, I would need you to let me know beforehand. I'm afraid it's on a case-to-case basis," they replied. "But there, I am open for inquiry."

"Also, speaking of inquiries, I would need you to give me a report at the end of every day. Try to make it interesting, at least. Tell it to me as if you were telling a story, if possible."

"A story, huh?" thought Kay. He had always wanted to tell one, but he just froze up before he even managed to finish anything. Maybe he could make a difference with this.

"I will," he replied. "I don't think I have any more questions either except for when I'll be moving. That is, if I am accepted."

"I am glad to tell you that you are. Here are the keys to the house, as well as the address." Mailbox said in the next letter. The envelope it came in contained keys, as they said.

At this point, Kay wondered how they were doing this. Was it a type of magic? Or was it some form of technology?

As he was thinking about it, he noticed that another letter was in the mailbox. It said, "As for when you can move in, you can do so next week. Surely that leaves you with enough time to pack."

He wrote a reply. "It should be. I'll be there next week. Thank you so much."

Mailbox's last answer for that interview was "Thank you too. I believe you will do your job well."