Chapter 6: Just when you thought you're up, you fall down

Rica arrived at the lobby of Go Corporation where she was suppose to meet Luis and Dave. When she got there, Dave was already sitting on one of the chairs in the waiting area. Luis was not yet around.

That's good, she wanted to ask some questions about the proposal that will be presented to Mr. Shepherd before they actually meet the client.

"Good Morning, Boss. You're early." greeted Rica

"Yes, I always am. You're early too." said Dave

"Yes, I wanted to get some background on the proposal. I went early hoping either you or Luis will be here to help me out" answered Rica.

"Hmm…Do you remember the document I asked you to complete and submit to me today?" asked Dave

"Yes, I sent it to your email." said Rica

"That is the projected sales that Go Corporation will have in this proposal. I've added it in the presentation." said Dave

Rica's eyes widened.

"At first I didn't know we'll be able to get this schedule. But when we did, I was worried that we don't have the numbers yet. It was a blessing from heaven that you stayed last night to finish it. I have them all here now." said Dave.

"Does that mean…"

"Yes, that means you did well. Of course that was a big coincidence, but that saved the presentation today." said Dave

Rica can't help but be happy. Her heart skipped a beat knowing that her effort will be helpful to Dave. All the hours she spent in the office last night was worth every second. This was the first time she did something right. Although she just got lucky with the timing and all, she was still happy that she can help Dave.

Dave noticed Rica smiling happily. From the first time Dave met Rica, this was the first time he was seeing her smile this happy. Something about that smile felt different. It felt like something about Rica glows. But maybe it's because Dave had always seen the uptight Rica, the Rica who always tried to look brave, the Rica who always tried to be good at what she does. This was the first time he had seen this Rica, the happy Rica.

Rica noticed Dave looking at her. Something about the way Dave looked at her was odd.

"Don't worry, Boss. I know that this does not mean that staying in the office late was right. I know you worry about the safety of the people who work for you. " said Rica, still smiling.

Dave immediately looked away from Rica as if his eyes got burnt.

"Luis is taking a lot of time. You should probably review the numbers you sent me yesterday." said Dave

Rica had to stop for a second to think.

"Ah, he needs me to review the numbers in case Mr. Shepherd had a question." thought Rica.

Dave noticed the crease between Rica's eyebrows which was starting to look familiar.

"You want to know why I am asking you to review the numbers?" asked Dave "It's because you will be presenting the financial projection in the presentation later."

Rica couldn't believe what she's hearing! She will also present? But she's not prepared for this. She's a newbie! Although the computation was still fresh on her mind, she hasn't practiced how to present it yet.

Luis arrived while Rica was reviewing her numbers.

"I made it on time. Should we go in?" asked Luis

Luis noticed Rica sitting on the other chair.

"Wow, you still got her to be here even if we only got the schedule last night?" asked Luis

Dave immediately stood up.

"We'll be late if we don't hurry. Let's go." said Dave looking irritated

"What's gotten into him this early?" asked Luis

"Hmm...He was OK a minute ago." said Rica

"So you mean I pissed him off? What did I say?" asked Luis

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Dave was sure the contract was the best Go Corporation could get from any other company out there. With all the discounts and additional benefits, Go Corporation would never go wrong with SkyRock. The problem was Mr. Shepherd does not decide on these terms alone. He was known to make the weirdest decisions which eventually turns out right.

The presentation started out well, Dave made the introductions of what the SkyRock Company was all about. He had to make it concise since he only had five minutes to make the introductions. It was Luis who discussed the details of the presentation. He discussed the contents of the proposed contract and its benefit to Go Corporation. He only had ten minutes to do this.

Rica had been listening well with what Luis was saying. But her heart was beating fast in anticipation for her part. She only had three minutes to discuss her part because they wanted to give Mr. Shepherd time to ask questions. And so when Luis called her name, she had to breathe deeply to calm her nerves.

"Mr. Shepherd, as you can see on this slide, with an average of one hundred spinners a month, your company will earn up to four and a half million dollars. That was one and a half million dollars higher than what most of our competitors can give you. I've collected the information about the competitors too in the attached file so that you can compare the benefits of the companies." Rica said.

"I have to stop you, Ms. Spencer." said Mr. Shepherd. This was the first time he talked since the presentation started.

"Your projection shows a hundred spinners. A hundred spinners in a month as the average. That might be true to a company as big as FlyAir and SkyRock. But that won't be true to a company like Go corporation. Our scale is lower than that. The three and a half million dollars would be a bloated projection." said Mr. Shepherd

Mr. Shepherd is not convinced of the projections and Dave felt that Rica was in a difficult situation. Just when Dave was about to talk in behalf of Rica, Rica started speaking again.

"Mr. Shepherd, on the research paper I did on Go Corporation a few months ago, I know that the average spinner sale of your company was around eighty a month. Lowest of which was forty spinners a month and highest at one hundred twenty spinners a month. The research showed that the highest sale was during the month of April while the lowest normally happens the month after. On my research, it showed that the reason why sales increase on the month of April was because of the discount that Go Corporation provides to the customers during this month. Customers hoard as much spinners as they can. But then the following month, on May, the price increase usually happens." said Rica

"So what are you trying to say?" asked Mr. Shepherd

"Go Corporation can give the same price you give your customers on April all year round if you sign the contract. Because you can now provide the lower price all year round, we can say that the sales will increase because your customers will prefer your services and products. Upon the studies I made, the projection of a hundred spinners per month was already very conservative. The calculation showed up to a hundred twenty spinners but for purposes of this presentation we didn't use the maximum since we do not want to bloat the numbers." said Rica "I can share the details with you later today."

Dave doesn't know which was more surprising. He's surprised to hear Rica so composed and had already considered all these factors when she did the computation. But he's also surprised with the smile that was now forming on Mr. Shepherd's lips.

"Just as expected from you, Miss Spencer. You never disappoint." said Mr. Shepherd "I will look at the details. This is very promising. But honestly, the numbers are temporary. Though I like what I see on the projections, no one can say for sure how long we can do business together. In my long stay in this business, I learned that long term partnership is better than short term benefit. And I want to make sure that if Go Corporation enters into this contract, it will be for a long term partnership with SkyRock."

"That will be good for now" thought Dave. That answer is better than Mr. Shepherd saying no right away. They still had a chance to get this contract.

When everyone was going out of the room, Dave approached Mr. Shepherd to shake his hand.

"I don't know how you got her. We've been trying to convince her to work for us. But she declined our offer and said she will work for FlyAir since she wanted to help her Uncle as soon as possible." said Mr. Shepherd.

"I also don't know how a very capable person ended up in my team. I mean, I'm not even paying her anything special." said Dave. "But it just happened."

"She might've seen something about SkyRock…. or you perhaps. I would love to know what that is. I've heard a lot of good things about you Mr. Lopez. But I'm not a person who easily believes what I hear." said Mr. Shepherd.

"I am slowly seeing that Mr. Shepherd. And I like that. Our future interaction will be based on results and not on here says." said Dave

"By the way, I'm planning to rest this weekend. Where do you recommend me going?" asked Mr. Shepherd

Ah…the ultimate make or break question had finally come.

Dave stopped to think for a second and saw Rica walking out of the room behind Mr. Shepherd.

"The best place I know is the Villa my Dad gave my Mom years ago. That's where I had most of my fondest childhood memories. That's where I always go to whenever I want to have a quick escape from the world." said Dave while still looking at Rica who was walking towards Luis.

"It must be a very relaxing place." said Mr. Shepherd

"Yes. It is. As much as I want to share it with you, I will need to keep it for myself for now. Or else I won't be able to use it for my escape anymore." said Dave

Mr. Shepherd laughed. This young man, David Lopez, was very interesting. Did Rica Spencer make the right decision to work for this man instead of helping out her Uncle right away? Mr. Shepherd saw Rica looking at Dave when Dave walked towards her and Luis. And he saw Rica's eyes twinkling as she looked up at Dave.

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Luis had been seeing Dave yawning the past minute and that can only mean one thing. His Boss did not get any sleep last night. Again.

"You didn't sleep to finalize the presentation?" asked Luis

"Yeah, I had to add the numbers I got from Rica." said Dave while yawning

"But Boss, I thought you said we should work within a manageable time frame?" asked Rica

Luis can't help but laugh.

"You said that, Boss?" asked Luis

"I did. And I mean it. But the point is you can't stay late in the office alone. That's just dangerous." said Dave

Luis was enjoying this. His stubborn boss arguing with the smart intern.

Inside the car, Dave decided he can't drive and asked Luis to drive. He sat on the seat beside the driver to get some sleep. Rica sat at the back seat. On the way back to the office, Luis noticed Rica taking a peak at Dave's sleeping face. Rica was an adorable girl. Good thing he was way older than her, almost like her Dad. That thought made Luis laugh catching Rica's attention.

"Were you saying something, Luis?" asked Rica

"Umm… actually, I just wanted to say that you did a good job back there." said Luis

"Thank you. I'm glad I helped you both. It was my first time and I was really nervous. I thought the air in my lungs will burst out of my chest." said Rica

"You did? You did well hiding it. You looked natural and confident." said Luis

"Thank you, Luis. I tried to follow your example." said Rica

Luis couldn't help but laugh again with Rica's compliment. It may be out of modest, but Luis will take that compliment heartily.

"By the way. I am glad you were able to join the presentation earlier. When we discussed having you as part of our presenting team yesterday, I was not sure we should pressure you that way on your second day at work. When we got the schedule last night, I was almost sure you wouldn't be able to join the presentation because it will be too late for you to know." said Luis

"You mean, you already decided that I will present to Mr. Shepherd yesterday, even before you got the schedule?" asked Rica

"Yes. I told Boss that it's too early for you to already be part of the presenters. But he insisted that you are more than ready. It turns out he was right." said Luis

Rica got confused. She thought Dave only wanted her in the presentation because of her prior experience dealing with Mr. Shepherd. But hearing that Dave had already planned for her to be part of the presentation team even before getting the schedule with Go Corporation makes her confused.

"But, how can he even think of having me present when I failed on my first document?" asked Rica

"The document which you submitted two hours delayed? That one? You call that a failure? Haha! That customer was the most complex customer we have. It had all those discounts and reductions which we don't normally give other customers. Thus, computations are normally tricky. Whenever we submit that document to accounting, they will normally give it back to us because there's always something wrong about it. Yesterday was the first time we submitted it to accounting and they did not return it to us for rework. It was the first accurate report submitted to them for that customer." said Luis

Rica looked frozen from her seat. All afternoon yesterday, she felt bad that she was really slow at work and that she had to revise everything over and over. She even thought she was a failure and that she does not deserve all her graduation awards. But hearing all these things seems to melt all the sadness away.

"Don't get it to your head. You did a good job yesterday and today. But I still won't forgive you staying late in the office just to do all those." said Dave while he still looked like he's sleeping and his eyes were still closed.

"You weren't sleeping?!" asked Luis, surprised.

"Just drive" said Dave

Rica felt happy and giddy inside. She feels like she's on cloud nine!

Dave looked at the mirror where he can see Rica at the back seat. He saw the happy smile and couldn't help but smile too.

This girl is so easy to please.

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Dave was in the middle of a meeting when Belle called. He knows she's going to ask him for lunch and he needs that right now, anything to pull him out of the office and get his mind on something else.

Belle was already in the restaurant when Dave arrived. As usual, Belle had already made the orders because she knows what he will choose in the menu. The food was also already served. He would sometimes eat lunch with Belle since her office was just one block away from his. Some people mistake them for being a couple. But people from SkyRock knows that Belle was just his buddy.

"Look at those eye bags." said Belle

"Thank you for noticing. I've already had three cups of coffee." said Dave

"Coffee does not eliminate eye bags." said Belle

Dave had to raise his eye brows. What does he know about eye bag elimination anyway? That got Belle laughing.

"Carl shared something serious yesterday when you left." said Belle. "You should've been there. But of course Luis was more important than your buddies so you left just like that." said Belle

"Is he getting married? I don't think he had a serious girlfriend the past year." said Dave.

"Nope. Although we aren't getting any younger and thirty is such a heavy age to be in, Carl is as single as me." said Belle. "Can you at least apologize for leaving us yesterday?"

"Sorry, you know I had to. If there's something I can do to make sure SkyRock doesn't fall, that Dad still keeps his name among the Board, I will definitely do it." said Dave

"Carl said he was online the other night and guess who was also online?" asked Belle

"Hmm…There can be a billion of other people in the online community. Who was it?" asked Dave

Belle took a deep breath.

"It was Di. Carl was surprised to see her online." said Belle

Dave stopped eating.

"Di was online?" asked Dave

"I just said that." said Belle. "When was she coming back? She's been there for three months. I thought her assignment was only supposed to be a month?"

"Her Boss asked her to stay longer. Somebody there resigned and they had just hired someone new." said Dave

"So what do you plan to do? You were supposed to propose the day she told you she'll be assigned to New York right?" said Belle "But of course you weren't able to propose then because you wanted her to achieve her dream. Are you still planning to propose once she returns?"

Dave suddenly felt like his appetite left his system. He placed his fork on the table. How long has he been with Di? Eight? Nine years? It's been so long. But in that nine years, they have broken up countless times. They were living separate lives half the time during those nine years. But they will always get back together after a few months. Before their eight anniversary, Dave decided the on and off relationship has to stop. And he has to make everything permanent. He decided that it's time to give Di what she deserves after all the eight years they've been together. He bought the most luxurious ring he could find and even started preparing for a proposal. But that did not push through.

"How can I do that now? With SkyRock's situation, how can I propose to her?" asked Dave.

"I don't think Di would mind a simple wedding." said Belle

"I will. I want to make sure it's a proper wedding. But I can't celebrate anything now. With the Board watching every step my family does, it will not be a good idea to get married within the next months." said Dave

"Dave, you and Di had been together for eight years and seven months! To be honest, not all women can be as patient as her." said Belle

"Di also has plans for her career. I don't want to hold her back. Her career is now starting to go up. She needs this time to focus on what she wants to achieve." said Dave

"Did she tell you that? Did she say her career was the most important thing in her life right now? What if she's just trying to hide what she feels because she doesn't want to hold you back, that it is you who need this time to focus on your career and not her?" asked Belle "You might be surprised that what's holding you back from proposing is not Di's career…but yourself."

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Dave went back to his house. It was everything a bachelor pad would look like. The motif is lback and white. It's minimalist and since he had cleaning service every day, the room was spotless.

Dave was tired. He was deprived of sleep. Everything was doing well in his team. If not for the loss due to the wrong decision two years ago made by his Dad, what Dave was doing in his team would had been already excellent and had already made it to the business magazines. But these days, he feels that whatever he does, it's always not enough. Only Samuel Spencer can help them. Dave doesn't want the feeling of depending on another person just to survive. But in this case, he didn't have much choice. Everything his father worked hard for, everything his Dad sacrificed would be gone if Samuel Spencer didn't help them.

Dave lied on his bed. If only he can turn back time when everything was doing well in SkyRock, he will stop Di from going to New York and will propose to her that day. But when he saw Di's excitement to go to her assignment, he couldn't bring out the ring from his pocket.

Dave sat up and took the ring out of his bed side table.

"But will there still be a chance to make it all right?" thought Dave.

Dave's phone rang and he saw the number from Samuel's office calling. He almost dropped the ring while reaching for the phone but managed to put the ring back on his bedside table.

"Hello, this is David Lopez."

"Hi Mr. Lopez, this is Mr. Samuel Spencer's secretary." said the other line

"Yes, of course. I remember you. How are you?" asked Dave

"I'm good, but my news for you is even better." said the secretary

"What is it?" asked Dave, his heart beating fast.

"Mr. Spencer wants to see you next week. He told me he wants to invite you for lunch." said the secretary.

"Lunch?"

"Yes."

This was getting more nerve wracking by the minute. How can he sleep tonight with this development?