Chapter 22: Rewind 

Rica received a call from the secretary early morning and had to rush to FlyAir's office to meet Vice President Ann. It seems Ann received news from SkyRock.

"What is it Auntie, did they give a decision?" asked Rica

"They said they are seriously considering the contract."

That's a relief.

"That's good. That means we still have a chance."

"But they need you to personally go to SkyRock and present the contract to their CEO. I also can't understand why they need you to be there personally. I mean our best Vice Presidents already presented that to them before. "

Rica's heart was starting to race, but her irritation was reaching its peak. She can still remember how angry she was the other night at Dave. And now he wants her to personally present the proposal when it was already presented before?

"You know that you don't have a choice on this matter, right?" asked Auntie Ann

Rica had to take a deep breath.

"Yes, yes Auntie. I will go and meet him." said Rica

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Rica prepared for the presentation. She wanted to make sure she had all the information needed. She feels that Dave will not be easy on her. She memorized the benefits of the proposal to SkyRock and recalculated all the numbers just to be sure that everything was accurate. When Rica got to SkyRock, Dave's secretary told her to wait.

Wait…

Wait….

And wait….

Rica knows how busy a CEO's schedule might be. But if he called for this meeting, this should have been in his schedule right? So why is she being asked to wait for this long?

"Hi…it's been three hours. Do you know if the CEO can still accommodate me today?" asked Rica.

"Yes Mam, he said to have you wait for him a bit more. His meeting is just running overtime." said the secretary.

A bit more? How much longer will she need to wait?

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Dave was talking with Carl in his office.

"You are kidding me."said Carl. He can't believe what he's hearing from Dave

"I know you've been really stressed the past years and so I want you to take a two to four week leave." said Dave.

"You didn't have to repeat. I heard you the first time. And I still can't believe it no matter how many times you repeat it." said Carl. "What will happen to my team?"

"I'll personally oversee them for the next weeks." said Dave

"You? Wow! You already do not have much time to finish everything you need to do as the CEO. Now you will add my team on your plate? Are you trying to commit suicide?" asked Carl.

"Luis is there. Everything will be fine. But you need to take this leave." said Dave almost like a command.

"I can even pay for your travel expense should you be interested to go abroad." said Dave.

Wow. Dave had never been this generous. Carl is sure there's catch here somewhere. But Dave is his Boss. And a two week vacation is what he truly needs.

"All right. I'll take the leave. But please ensure I will not need to clean up too much mess when I come back." Said Carl

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Carl saw Rica at the waiting area outside Dave's office. It stopped his steps.

"Hey Rica, Why are you here?" asked Carl

"I have a meeting with the CEO." said Rica, looking as bored as she can get.

"Oh really? Wow…I'm curious what it is about. But I won't ask further. It might be too personal." said Carl jokingly.

But Rica just smiled a sarcastic one and stood up.

"Miss, can you check if I can already go in?" asked Rica

"Yes, the CEO said you can go in any time." answered the secretary

"Well, Carl. See you around!" Rica waved her hand at Carl before entering Dave's office.

Carl was left curious and confused. What is this all about? What are they going to talk about?

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Rica went in the office and found her jaw dropping the instant she opened the door.

Wow…What a large office. SkyRock does know how to show power in a grand way.

She saw Dave standing, looking out the window. She placed her laptop on the table and opened it, getting ready for the presentation.

"Good Afternoon. Are we still waiting for anyone before I start the presentation?" asked Rica.

Dave turned to look at Rica. "No, it's just the two of us. And no, there will not be a need to present."

Rica was speechless. What is this about? She thought Dave needs her to re-present the proposal. If not for that, why did he want to see her here?

"I am not sure I understand." said Rica. "I was told you want to see the proposal again."

"Again. It means I have seen it quite a few times. Unless there are any changes, then there's no need to present it over and over."

That's exactly what Rica thought. So why does she need to be here?

"Please sit down, Miss Spencer." said Dave

Miss Spencer? He called her Miss Spencer? How Irritating!

Rica tried to control herself. She sat on the nearest chair and maintained a formal smile.

"I reviewed your proposal and I saw all the numbers. I can safely say that SkyRock will benefit nothing here." said Dave.

Wow. This is an absolute rejection. Is this why he called her here? Does he intend to raise her hope and then crush it to the ground? David Lopez sure is good at doing that.

"It is not a short term benefit for SkyRock, MR. LOPEZ."

Rica intentionally stressed "Mr. Lopez" and that got Dave's brows close together.

"It's a long term proposal. The benefit of which will be harvested by SkyRock after five years," said Rica.

"Five years. are we even sure FlyAir is still existing after five years?" asked Dave "The rumor is spreading. You're company is losing the market."

As expected, Dave is not going easy on her.

"Are you saying that you think Uncle is going to die?" asked Rica, an angry edge to her voice.

Rica tried to take a deep breath. She can't let her emotions get over her. This is not personal. This is a professional business meeting.

"I mean…My Uncle is going to recover. That's for sure."

"I also want Samuel to recover. Your Uncle is a very important mentor to me personally. But on a business standpoint, FlyAir is not in a good position right now." said Dave. "However, I already presented this proposal to my Board. I truly want to help FlyAir since FlyAir was the only company which helped SkyRock three years ago. And fortunately for FlyAir, I was able to get the approval from SkyRock's board." said Dave.

Rica's heart was beating fast. He did?! He got them to approve? Rica wasn't able to stop a sudden laughter from her lips.

"You did? Wow! Just Wow!" said Rica "Thank you so much!"

"But."

On no. There's a "But". Rica's happiness was cut short.

"But?" asked Rica, her throat moving.

"There's a condition."

"And that is?"

Dave stared at Rica for a while.

"What is the condition?" asked Rica.

The suspense is killing her. What will SkyRock ask in return for this great favor.

"That is… you need to marry SkyRock's CEO. The Board will not have it any other way." said Dave.

Rica's heart dropped.

"You…you're kidding." said Rica.

Is he crazy?!

"Do I look like I'm joking? I don't take these kinds of meeting, lightly Miss Sepncer." said Dave. His face indeed looks really serious.

"Well…. There cannot be a logical explanation for you to want to experience that… AGAIN." said Rica.

"It might not be logical. But there's a reason why it has to be done. The Board once made a wrong decision to trust a business partner. You know what happened three years ago. We need to ensure that FlyAir is not going to betray us. I think you get it. You know how our world works. So you have to decide whether you will marry me or not. And this time, once you accept, there will be no turning back."

"And if I say No?" asked Rica

"FlyAir is on its own. It might fall in less than two years without Samuel." said Dave

Rica took a deep breath. She has tried… so hard to move on from the past. It was one of the hardest emotional and mental battle she has to face in her life. She had to accept that Dave is not for her. She had to accept that he was no longer part of his life. Now… now will she have no choice but to entangle herself with him again?

"And If I say yes…"

Dave stood in front of Rica and leaned down so that his face is just a few inches from Rica's.

"If you say yes…I will be your faithful husband. I will take care of you. I will support you and I will stay by your side forever." said Dave, his eyes intensely looking at Rica.

Something inside Rica felt really strange. That familiar tingling sensation in her heart was starting. And she could feel her throat tighten.

Oh no…she can't feel these things. She has to push it away.

"Tomorrow morning, be back here in my office. I need your answer then." said Dave.

Then walked a few steps away from Rica. Rica tried to normalize her breathing.

"You're only giving me one night to think about this?" asked Rica.

Unbelievable!

"That should be enough time. I don't want to give you more than one sleepless night. My future wife needs to take care of health." said Dave.

Future Wife? Rica's heart was beating faster than it already did.

No Rica. Control yourself. You can't let those words bend you. You've moved on. You are fine now.

Those words are…just words.

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Rica felt really tired. She went back to the hospital and saw her Uncle already sleeping, her Uncle, her beloved Uncle Sam. How can he look so weak right now?

She looked for her Mom around the hospital and found Gene by the garden.

"It'll be cold in a while, Mom. You need to go inside." said Rica

"Just a bit longer. Sit here Rica." said Gene, patting the seat beside her.

Rica sat beside her Mom.

"I'm glad we went back here. I missed this place. I miss Korea the most though, but I like San Francisco better than New York."

Rica can see tears forming on Gene's eyes. Rica forced her mom too much on those three years that they were in New York. Gene suffered a lot with the fast paced life Rica lived, but Gene stayed by her side no matter what.

Rica hugged her Mom.

"I love you, Mom. I don't always say it. But I have never stopped loving you, even when you were not with me. And now…I just love you even more." said Rica

Gene wiped her eyes.

"Saying those things…You make an old woman cry." said Gene

Rica let go of her Mom and smiled.

"But that's tears of joy, right? It's OK to cry tears of joy." said Rica

"I hope one day Rica… you would also cry of joy." said Gene

"Cry of joy? I don't think that suits me. I've always cried of pain." said Rica

Gene held Rica's hand

"Sometimes we need to go through pain before happiness. It's like childbirth. It is very painful. But once the baby comes out, it's a great joy." said Gene.

��What if it's all pain? Isn't it best to let it go?"

"What if you let go when happiness in just around the corner?" asked Gene

Rica knows what Gene was saying. Gene had been telling her that her decision to leave San Francisco three years ago might be done hurriedly. She said Rica's decision was made at the peak of her emotion and should had been thought of more with a clear head. Gene also told her that it was wrong to leave everyone she knows without a proper goodbye. Rica knew Gene was right in everything…except for one thing.

Gene thought Dave loved her.

What can be more ridiculous than that?

"Mom, do you think I'm ready for marriage?" asked Rica

Gene blinked a few times.

"Did you already answer Robbie?" asked Gene, a bit alarmed.

"No Mom. He's not even my boyfriend." said Rica

"But he confessed to you when you were young. And he also confessed again two years ago. I just thought maybe he confessed for the third time that's why you're asking about marriage." said Gene

Rica laughed.

"It's complicated now, Mom. I might need to marry someone, someone I don't want to be associated with anymore." said Rica.

Gene was getting confused by what Rica was saying

"Uncle…He is really sick. The doctor said Uncle has brain cancer that's impacting his facial nerves that is why he is always in pain." said Rica. "It's still stage two though and it's good thing that it was detected before it got worse. But still, Uncle will need to under-go treatments. He can't work that much anymore. FlyAir is going to fall. And I am the only one who can save it." said Rica.

Gene felt dizzy all of a sudden. Samuel has cancer? FlyAir is falling?

"I think Uncle knows FlyAir's situation and that's why he got hospitalized again. Mom…I need you to stay by Uncle's side while I fix FlyAir. " said Rica

"And how will you fix it?" asked Gene. "You work very hard… but FlyAir is gigantic."

"I am going to marry SkyRock's CEO." said Rica

"SkyRock's CEO? But that's…Dave?"

Gene was surprised beyond words.

"It's like a game of fate, right mom? It's like déjà vu, only that we're on different sides of the story now. He now has the power, I need to obey his every word." said Rica

Gene sure calls that fate.

"Do you hate the idea?" asked Gene

Rica sighed.

"I don't know, Mom. Every time he's near me, I want to run away. I want to hide. I don't like the way he makes me confused and feel all sorts of things." said Rica

Gene can't help but smile at this development. Her daughter…is not that immune to Dave it seems. That's good for now.

"I just…don't want to fall on the same black hole again." said Rica "I just can't let myself suffer like that anymore."

Gene nodded.

"Maybe this time it's going to be different." said Gene.

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Rica was really early. She's Dave's first appointment that day. She was immediately shown to Dave's office and Dave was already there browsing through documents. Was he always this early? It's just six thirty in the morning!

"Good Morning." greeted Rica

"You're here. Take a seat." said Dave, lowering the folder his holding.

Rica sat down on a chair across Dave.

"I am here to give my decision." said Rica

"Good. So what is it going to be?" asked Dave

Dave looked composed and very formal. That irritated Rica more. They are talking about marriage. Their marriage! And yet he speaks as if it's just one business transaction. Where is all those faithful husband talk?

"I am accepting your condition. FlyAir needs SkyRock. That is why…I will marry you." said Rica

"Good. I will sign the contract on the day of the wedding." said Dave

"All right."

Rica tried to stand up but Dave stopped her.

"Do you think that's it?" asked Dave

"What do you mean?" asked Rica

"Your Uncle is sick. Nobody is going to teach you the business, right? And so I will help you. I want to make sure FlyAir will be able to deliver the commitments and get back on shape after a few years." said Dave.

"What do you mean?"

"I want you to work for me for a while. This time, I want you to handle the team I used to handle." said Dave.

"Luis and the guys?" asked Rica

"Yes, That team. I want you to manage them and replace their manager for two weeks. He is currently on leave. You will also need to be by my side on special occasions just like their manager." said Dave

Rica did not expect this at all.

"Do I have a choice on this?" asked Rica

"I know you're smart. And I know your achievements in New York. But let's face it. You're very young for a CEO position. And that's your target to ensure that your Uncle's interest is protected, right? So let's speed up your learning. And the best way to learn is to learn from the CEO of the biggest company around, right? And that's me." said Dave.

Rica's eyes narrowed. Dave actually has a point.

"You are the only one I had ever offered this. It's your choice if you'll take it or not." said Dave.

Everything Dave said makes sense. And that irritates Rica that though she wants to have as limited time spent with Dave as possible, she can no longer run away. He had her trapped on all corners. But until when can she survive being around him without her heart succumbing to her old feelings?

"I will take it." said Rica

"Good. I'll introduce you to the team. And oh, Miss Spencer…I want to let you know about our marriage, I have the intention of only marrying once in my life. I certainly don't plan to get any divorce of any kind."

Rica's heart was racing. It's like a running horse was stepping on it.

"So you and I, let's get along well. Because forever is a long time to keep looking irritated whenever we meet." said Dave, finally smiling.

That smile was melting something inside Rica. This can't be. This has got to stop now.

Did she just enter a land-mine?