Pagkarating ko sa Abanao Square ay agad akong nagtungo sa CR, sabay naring inilabas ang uniporme mula sa bag nang makapasok ako dito. Laking pasalamat ko nang makitang walang pila. Ten minutes nalang eh start na ng duty ko.

Hay pambihira naman kasi itong si Gabriel. The more I thought of his words, the more I felt my heart race. Oh I've tried riding motorcycles, alright! But, not with a man like ... him. I shut my eyes forcibly, shaking my head in hopes of changing my thoughts. Pero teka, kailan pa 'yon nagkamotor? Kung sabagay, owner ba naman ng Engine City, malamang sa malamang may motor talaga 'yon!

I lowered my gaze and began to unbutton my blouse, removing it in haste along with the tie and sliding the soft white fabric onto my torso. Hay, OA mo naman Grace. It's not like riding with him is that special.

Ibinawing ko ang tingin sa blouse na ngayo'y suot ko. I smiled in admiration, tracing out the black accents that adorned the garment. Grabe, ang high class talaga ng Shekina Book Café. For them to afford such high-end fabrics for their staff already said a lot about the business' financial standing. With a swift hand, I pulled the dark slacks to my waist, tucking the blouse in swiftly before I zipped it close.

Huminga ako ng malalim at ini-ayos ang school uniform ko sa bag, sealing it carefuly inside before pushing the cubicle door open. Agad bumungad ang repleksiyon ko mula sa salamin na nasa harap ng mga cubicle. A smile made its way to my face. Finally, finally I can make my own money. A wave of relief washed over me, gratefulness welling up my heart knowing that it would no doubt lighten my mother's load.

Itinaas ko ang bag sa aking balikat at dali-dali lumabas ng CR. Tinungo ko na agad ang Book Café, at saktong pagpasok ko dito, the clock ticked 4PM. Immediately I saw Freya coming out of the shop, a smile on her face as she walked.

"Hello, Grace!" She waved at me, "God bless on your first day!"

Ngumiti din ako at bahagyang yumuko, "Thank you po, Ate! Ingat sa school!"

She once more winked and waved goodbye, a smile on her face as she did so. Her very presence manifested bubbly, and anyone who would see her would notice. Talaga yatang may mga taong kayang makapag-pasaya ng atmosphere kahit saan man sila. I've always envied those types of people, it was very charismatic.

"Hello, Ate Rita!"

Ngumiti siya at tinawag ako sa kabila ng counter, "Halika dito, Grace,"

Tumango ako at ini-angat ang partition sa humahati sa ordering area at counter. "Kamusta po?" I asked with a smile.

"Okay naman, Ading ko." She replied with a smile, placing a hand on my shoulder as I approached, "Ikaw, how was school?"

"Ayos din naman po," Sagot ko, "Ayun medyo marami pong assignment pero okay lang!" I grinned.

"Ooh, I understand, Ading," She glanced around the shop, "Since mostly ang work mo naman ay to organize the books and assist our readers, its okay pwede mo isingit gawin ang homework mo lalo na kung walang customers at tapos mo na mga gawain mo,"

I smiled all the more at her word, "Hala, thank you po, Ate!"

"No problem, dear," She nodded, "So pa'no? Ready ka na? I will begin showing you around so I can brief you with the responsibilities around here."

I nodded with enthusiasm, "Ready na po!"

"Okay then! First here," Nagsimula siyang maglakad palabas ng counter at tinungo ang mga shelves. "Itong first six shelves ay shelves para sa mga books nating for sale. So basically, we have four copies of each book on display here. Dapat ikabisado mo ang mga andito ha, or atleast the main categories they are in."

Naglakad siya sa shelf sa pinakadulo, "Our first shelf is for Bibles; we have a lot of types of Bibles you see; may Journaling and Illustrated Bibles," Itinuro niya ang second row ng shelf, "May Study Bibles." She pointed to the third, "And we have Bibles for Kids," She pointed to the last row. Ibinalik niya naman ang tingin sa pinakataas na shelf, "And of course, we have our regular Bibles up here."

Naglakad kaming papuntang gilid ng unang shelf ipinakita niya ang isang laminated note na nakadikit sa side nito. "Here is the guide to the version arrangements in this shelf. Yung mga Bibles in the left most corner are Word for Word translation Bibles, at going on the right are the more Phrase for Phrase translations. See here, we have NASB, ESV..."

Nagpatuloy siya sa pagbabasa, I could only watch in amazement. "Uhm ate?" She paused and looked at me, "Ano po ang Word for Word at Phrase for Phrase translation?"

"Ah," Tumango-tango siya, "Simply put; The Bible is originally written in three languages mainly, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek, right?"

I replied in assent.

"Syempre when scholars translated it, there are also different ways. Some did it in a very literal way, as in word for word na trinanslate nila - like NASB and ESV. Others did it phrase by phrase in order to capture each statement's whole or general idea - like the New Living Translation and the famous New International Version."

"Ahh," I nodded in percipience, fascinated of the new things I was learning. Wow naman, nagpart time lang ako pero parang mapapa-aral yata ako ng theology neto ah. "Okay po, got it. I will keep that in mind ate."

She smiled and moved to the other shelves. She pointed out how the books are arranged, that books are compiled by author, at ang kailangan ko lang gawin ay ifamiliarize kung saan naka locate ang mga respective authors na ito. Napasinghap nalang ako. Phew, mukang marami akong kailangang tandaan talaga.

"And lastly Grace, these two shelves against the wall are our Books for Rent. Two copies per book lang dito kaya dapat aware ka kung alin ang mga nahiram na or hindi. Books are rented differently. You just have to show them to the customers and ako na bahalang mag-explain ng expenses sa counter, okay?"

I took me a few seconds before I could reply. Releasing a breath, I smiled and nodded, "Okay po Ate, noted!"

Pagkatapos ako i-breif ni Ate Rita sa mga kailangan kong gawin ay bumalik na siya sa counter, bidding me God's blessing as I began to arrange the returned books.

I was just about to get real focused on the task when I heard her speak from the counter. Tumayo at lumapit sakaniya. "Bakit po, Ate?"

"Grace, I received a call from Sir Taylor, he is requesting a book right now. May family lounge sila sa tabi ng office ni Ma'am Vina. Can you go ahead and give this?"

Iniabot niya sakin ang isang librong kulay brown at agad ko naman itong kinuha. "Sa tabi lang ho ng office ni Ma'am?"

"Yes, Grace," Tumango siya, "He is with his father right now. Go ahead and give it."

"Okay po," I smiled.

"Thanks, Ading,"

At her word I began to walk, entering the door across the Café with a book in hand. Ini-angat ko ito at binasa ang titulo.

Do It Again, Lord. - Gordon Pettie

Out of curiosity, I flipped to the other page and began to read.

''Revivals don't have celebrities. In fact, it is rarely the professional minister or evangelist who is the catalyst of revival. In the six Revivals I have written about, it was always a lay person, or persons, that God used to initiate it - nobodies in the eyes of the Church and the World.''

It was as though my heart turned as I read each word, saktong itutuloy ko na sana ang pagbabasa nang marinig ang pagsara ng isang pintuan sa harap ko. I lifted my gaze, and immediately I blinked in disbelief.

Wasn't this the father of...?