"Is everything okay, Joyce?" She ask her without looking her way.

"I was gonna ask the same, Ms M." With one brow raised, Joyce muses.

"Yeah. Everything is fine here, Joyce." She said, still not glancing at her direction.

"Is that why he was walking away whistling a happy tune? Huh... I wish I know your secrets so I can use it to Troy." She said shaking her head, smiling. The door chimed, she went back to the counter to greet whoever that came in.

"Hi!" Said the jolly faced young lady. She looks like their age. She's all smiles and beautiful but at the same she's giving off a bad vibe to her.

"Yes, ma'am? How may I help you?" Joyce greeted the customer with a smile.

"I heard from a friend of mine, that the cupcakes here are very good, not too sweet but very moist and tasty." The lady said, confused but smiling.

"Yes. Your friend gave you the right information." Joyce said smiling with pride.

"Oh good. Would it be okay to order a dozen of Choco-Vanilla Swirl, a dozen of Red Velvet Melt and a dozen of Pine-Vanilla Crush." She said smiling, more like giddy.

"You seemed to be sure what to order. Are you sure this is your first time here? Are you sure you've heard us from a friend of yours?" Joyce said giggling, trying to make herself sound equally as giddy as the girl infront of her and trying to make little conversation with her.

"Oh, it's my first time here but me and my friend had a coffee at the one in Taguig. Is the one in Taguig same as this one here?" She asked smiling. She's very pretty especially when she smiles, but... there's that but at the back of Joyce's mind.

"The one by the strip mall? By that marble design place?" Joyce ask.

"I think so..... I'm not sure. All I know is that my friend took me to the one in Taguig. I'm not from here. I am just visiting for a reunion." She stated. "Reunion huh." Joyce thought.

"Wow. Where you from?" Another small talk? Come on, it's Joyce, of course everything is a small talk. But that's Joyce, she's living up to her name.

"I haven't been here since my family moved to Spain right after high school graduation." She uttered. She's really cute though. She looks familiar in a way.

"Wow. Spain." She said like she's enthusiastic about it but in reality,this girl is too upbeat in a way it's scary. "Hold on let me call the owner for you." Joyce said changing the topic, smiled at her and went to the kitchen.

"Ms. M, we have an order of three dozen cupcakes, the lady is in the front." Joyce announced.

"Why don't you just take it, you know what to do." Maine stated.

"I think you need to be out for this one. She's a new client." Joyce declared. She look up to her. Joyce almost let out a big chuckle. Maine is covered with flour from almost head to toe.

"I can't get out of there looking like this." She said pointing at herself.

"Ms M, just take of your coat and the hair net and you still look pretty. And besides, you are much prettier that the girl outside." Joyce consoling her, in a way. She shook her head.

She took off the kitchen coat and hang it on the hook at the back of the door. She took her hairnet off and threw it in the trash. Washed her hand in jiffy and dried it quickly. Joyce put the stray strand of hair behind her ears and smiled at her.

"You look great, Ms M. Sir A said so." She smiled at Maine and walked ahead of her.

"Hi, may I help you?" Maine ask the lady customer. Since it's in between lunch and break time, there's not much people in the cafe.

"Oh hi. My name is Kelly. My friend and I were told by the girl at the cafe that big the orders were from here?" She said smiling sweetly at Maine.

"Hi, I'm Maine. Who you spoke to a girl at the other shoppe? Which one?" She asked Kelly. The girl is smiling sweetly in a way it looks like she's forcing it. But this girl is undeniably pretty.

"Uhmmm... I think, she said her name is Cherrie. Sherry? Jerry? I'm not sure." She scrunch her face in a winced trying to remember the girl's name from the other shoppe.

"Ah yes, Cherrie. She's right, big orders are made here, but you can call it in and pay it there. Didn't she tell you that?" She furrowed her eyebrow. Jing and her had told all their employees in Taguig shoppe to call here for order and not send the clients here.

"Oh, yes, she did, but I decided against it. I want to see the place here. Few of the customers there said that this has a different ambience." She said giggling in a stagey way. Maine somewhat raised her eyebrow. Joyce on the other hand quietly giggled. Maine gave her a darting look and smirked. These two are too much to handle when together. I think this new client of theirs is something.
"Are you from Taguig area?" Maine ask Kelly.

"Not really. I'm just vacationing. I tried a few cupcake flavors from that coffee shop and I fell in love with them." Kelly said in an orgasmic way. Joyce gave her the what-the-fudge look, Maine backed off a little bit and winced. She straightened up.

"Thank you. Which flavors are those?" Maine asked the lady in front of her.
"Like I told...." Kelly looked at Joyce's direction.

"Joyce. My name is Joyce." Joyce responded with a fake smile showing her nameplate.

"Joyce. Thank you." She said smiling. This girl smiles a lot, it's unreal. "Like I told Joyce earlier, I'd like a dozen of Choco-Vanilla Swirl, a dozen of Red Velvet Melt and a dozen of Pine-Vanilla Crushed." She said still smiling.

Joyce started to have a bad feeling towards the girl quite a while ago. She seemed to be so uptight and forcing herself to smile is almost scary. You know those people who are forcing themselves to and/or are trying to look so happy but inside they are very sad and demented? Yes, that kind.

"When do you want it?" Maine asked again. Trying to get rid of the bad thoughts towards this girl.

"On Saturday. I'll come and pick it up, let's say... 5:30 pm?" She said in a questioning way.

"That is doable. Joyce will be here to take care of you on Saturday." Maine quickly answered her.

"Oh, you're not gonna be here?" Kelly asked. Sounds annoyed but still smiling. Joyce secretly raised a brow. What the heck is wrong wit hthis girl.

"Unfortunately, I won't. I have a wedding cake delivery that day. Is that all for you?" Maine apologizes, ending the conversation with a question and a sweet smile, which she doesn't have to force it out of her. She always smile sweetly. It's natural to her.

"Oh, wow. You do that, too?" Her eyes went big.

"Yes. Umm, your total will be P2,550.00." Maine said. She wanted to get this transaction done and over without being rude. She have too many thing to get done before going home. She actually wanted to be home before Alden goes to bed for some coffee latte or homemade hot choco latte and midnight snacks.

"Okay. So, you will be here then." Looking at Joyce's direction. Joyce force a smile and nod.

"Yes, Ma'am, I will be definitely here." She said.

"Okay. So... thank you. I'll see you Saturday then." She smiled. Paid her orders and walked away.

Maine and Joyce looked at each other. They both give each other an eerie shiver. Maine almost jumped when she heard the timer from the oven went off.

"Oh my God. My cupcakes." She turn around and ran towards the kitchen. Joyce followed her. Troy came around the counter to take over for her.

"Ugh! Dang it! Now I have to stay later than I intended to be." She exasperatedly express. All frustrations out, almost crying, she sat on the stool next to the flour shelf. Joyce, walked up to the tray full of freshly baked cupcakes, picked one and tried it.

"Ms M, these are not burnt and besides, it just barely went off. I think this would be okay. How many more you need for tomorrow?" Joyce asked. She knows that her employer is tired. She had been baking all day and she knows that this is not going to be good.

"Ms M, remember that time you went to New York and stayed there for a while and before that when you were in Bacolod? I know you're trying to make it up to Ms J, but I can help. You taught me how to bake the way you do it, and I have been doing it for awhile. Would you let me help you?" Joyce ask. She knows baking is Maine's passion and she loves working here, but she can't stand the fact that her boss is almost on the verge of melting down. And she also knows that Mine is so frustrated because she couldn't go to Alden's high school reunion, which he's egging about since last week. She knows. She hears their conversations.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make it seemed like greedy and self-absorb. You're right, I can't do all this things on my own. Thank you, Joyce for reminding me that." She said relieved. Joyce walked closer to her and hugged her.

"Well, the only thing is the icing, I couldn't duplicate it too well." Joyce announced. Maine felt a little relieved knowing that she can really depend on Joyce. And she is really happy that she is still with them.

"Well, why don't we make the icings for those cupcakes." They nodded at each other.

"Lead the way, Ms M." Joyce proclaimed, tapping her boss gently on the shoulder. "Troy!" She yelled calling her fiance out from the floor.

"I'm sorry, Joyce. I think I forgot to trust the people around me. Those are the things that Alden had taught me but was the first I always neglected. Thank you." She smiled at her and pulled the icing ingredients. Troys head pop-in from the swinging door that separates the cafe floor and kitchen.

"Ms M, let me talk to Troy first." Joyce uttered and left. She pushed Troy out and disappear with him. A few minutes later she came back wearing a hairnet and an apron. They got busy preparing the icing with different flavors and put it all in the fridge for tomorrow.

"Well, I guess we're done? Few more dozens of cupcakes then we are definitely done." Maine expressed excitedly.

"Don't worry about, Ms. M. I'll do it, just leave the flavor list and I'll take care of it." Joyce said reassuring her. "It's only cupcakes Ms. M, I can do it with my eyes closed." She said laughing. Maine smiled at her.

"Okay the. I'll just lean up and I'll be heading home before Mr. Richards threw a fit again." They both went their different ways. Maine cleaning up the pans and bowls that she used. Joyce continued to the other side of the table and started mixing ingredients to the next cupcake batch.

"Well, I guess I'm done." Maine said happily as she look at the clean stainless steel prep table, mixing bowls washed, mixer cleaned, utensils put away. And it is 7 pm.

"Ms M, Troy and I can close up for early." Joyce said, hoping her boss would say yes.

"In a hurry to leave?" Maine asked naughtily.

"If it is only okay with you, Ms M." She shyly smiled.

"Yes, it is fine. Just open up early tomorrow and bring the cupcake out and ice them. Here's the list. I will try to be here as early as possible. Jing will be home tomorrow at lunch time." She exhaustedly say.

"Tomorrow? I thought she'll be back on Friday." Joyce asked. Her brows furrowed.

"Yes, but she's leaving the convention early. She doesn't want to stay longer there. You know her. She already got she needed from the conference and she doesn't want to stay for the after party something." Maine said rolling her eyes.
"What about the Saturday? Aren't you going to Sir A's high school reunion? Aren't you going with him? Isn't it their school's anniversary, too?" Joyce knew that Alden is so eager to bring Maine with him to his reunion.

SHE LEFT By The Bench passed seven almost eight at night and she knew she will be hitting the ever so faithful and the undying traffic of the ever so wonderful EDSA before getting to her condo building. She's hoping for a somewhat good flow of traffic instead of a slow movement that would mirror slow moving parking lot. She's about to call Alden, unfortunately, she realized that her phone is dead. She continued driving and took a different route, she approach the corner of.... Oh my Lord. Here she goes again. Her car started sputtering and it stopped. Right at the part where she was once stuck few years ago. Now she's praying to all the saints that she knows to save her. She doesn't want to go through the same thing she went through the last time. Good thing that Alden came to her rescue, but Alden didn't know that she left early from the coffee shop, and Her Kuya Nikko is not anywhere near Manila.

"Why, Maine? Why do you have to be so irresponsible sometimes." She's scolding herself out loud, because she forgot her charger in her unit. She wasn't able to pick it up from the top of her center table in the living room.

An hour and a half had passed, which felt like a lifetime, and she's still inside her car. She's not going to make the same mistake she made that time. Once is fine. Twice is stupidity, and staying inside her car with locked doors and not moving inside would be the best move. She pulled the side lever to recline her seat. She leaned backward and closed her eyes. She's just going to keep praying till morning comes, where she can easily ask for help. She's so tired. Her eyelids are giving up on her, she can't stay awake.

"HELLO, Sir A. Is Ms M with you?" Joyce ask Alden nonchalantly.

"She's not with me right now. She said she'll be late in coming home tonight because of an early morning delivery tomorrow." Alden responded which Joyce didn't pay attention much on the words that Alden said.

"I called to tell her that Troy and I will deliver the cupcakes tomorrow morning since I got it all iced and decorated but she's not answering my calls." She replied.

"She may still be on the road driving." He responded.

"Driving? Sir A, she left after 7 almost eight to go home." Joyce worriedly announced. Alden started to feel the panic rising up. He's not liking what he's hearing at all.

"What time she left you said? Seven?" He continued to ask.

"She left passed seven, almost eight." She answered squarely. She just doesn't sound worried, she too is panicking.

"She left passed seven?! It is almost ten now, traffic may be bad that time but it had slowed down now. I am looking at my window, I can see the easy flow of the traffic. Joyce, have you called her?" Alden is now on a full-fledged panic.

"Yes, Sir A, I did before I called you. It is either off or she doesn't have a signal. Sir A, if she's not with you and she's not here, then where is she?" She feeling nervous now.

"Bye, Joyce. I got to find her." Without any hesitation Alden ended the call. Joyce was left speechless not knowing what to do.

She rushed to clean up and put away everything. She tucked all the finished cupcake inside the glass door industrial sized fridge. Went out to the lobby and made sure all doors are locked and called Troy, who is now also done with mopping the floor and putting away all that's need to be put away. They both moved back to the kitchen and went the back door. She set the alarm on, locked the door and left the shoppe.

He put on his a shirt, picked up his keys and got out of his unit, went straight to Maine's to see if she's just inside. To his dismay, Maine wasn't there. Her unit is empty. He is not panicking now, he is starting to become mortified. "What if something bad happen to her on the road. What if...." He spoke his mind out loud in panican but did not continue with the thoughts anymore. He refuse to.

He's on the road now. He doesn't know where to start but he was left with the thought of the same scenario happened few years ago. He set out to find her. He doesn't to waste time, it's too precious, she's too precious to be left out that long out on the street at this hour of night. He went down the route the Maine takes everyday twice already, then a thought struck him square in the face. That road. That street. He remembers where it's at. He flipped a U, He called a person he knows who can help find Maine.

"Hello, Tito? Good evening." He greeted the person on the other side of the phone.

"Oh, Alden, how are you? It is late already, nephew. What I can do for you?" He worriedly asked. "Is everything okay with your mom and dad?" He added.
"Mom and dad are okay, but my fiancee is missing. She left passed seven from the coffee shop and it's passed ten now, Tito, I am so worried about her safety. Her phone lost signal. I'll check that road where she got stranded the last time." He said sounding defeated.

"Don't worry, we will find her. I'll send help your way. I'll have them check that road first." He tried to sound convincing but Alden knew that it was hard to find her, and if someone did something to her, the first 48 hours are the most critical moment on a missing person's life, NCIS and 48 Hours says so, and even Law & Order: SVU and Blue Blood says the same thing. If she just got lost or stranded like before because of a broken down vehicle, that may be different, but what if someone took her then? They only have 48 hours to find her. He is not going to wait for 48 hours.

Please God, don't let anything happen to me. I know this is not the safest but this is not the most dangerous side of the world. Let me come home safe.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

As she was praying, she heard a light tap on the driver's side window. She jump a little, she's at the edge of her seat as it is, someone tapping at her window this time is not a good sign. This is what she doesn't want to happen. This is what she was praying NOT to but for whatever God's reason it is happening. She knows there's a reason for everything. She continued praying not paying attention to the knockings. She'd rather not move or make a sound. In her mind, if she doesn't make even a slight movement, whoever that be, will just leave.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

There it is again. She can't stand the fear that is taking residency in her system. She closed her eyes tightly. She doesn't even want to look at the window directly.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

"Maine?! Maine?!" That's her name. She can hear someone calling her name. She wanted to turn around but she doesn't want to. It might be her imagination playing tricks on her because she's been thinking of Alden finding her. Yes. She's imagining it, convincing herself even. It is impossible for Alden to know where she's at because Alden doesn't know what time she left the By The Bench.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

"Maine!" The voice becoming louder. And it does sound like Alden... She got up.

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End of Chapter 1: By The Road

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💖~Joni~💖
10.28.2016

Parting Time
Arrange Marriage: Destined? 2
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First Published: October 9, 2016