章 16: First Assignment

Holding the prescriptive lens at the tip of his index finger, Yves lifted his eyelid and let it sit comfortably after a couple of slow blinks. After repeating the same process to his other eye, he squeezed them shut.

God, he hated contact lenses, but he needed to wear them when he's working because it's more convenient.

With his vision clear, Yves continued to change into a more casual attire, as per the client's request. He settled with a short-sleeve white barong cut in a shirt-jack style that made him looked like a high school teacher.

Thankfully, his job was not to babysit brats. Hoping that Emie wasn't a bratty vlogger, of course. But since it didn't involve guarding sexy politicians, which was already a rare occurrence, he had no problem accepting it.

Although, in his very honest opinion, Emie didn't need a bodyguard at all. Not even local celebrities or international vloggers would need a close protection agent while visiting Baguio because the city was relatively safe. Unless Emie was secretly a runaway princess of some unknown kingdom with a threat to her life, then that's going to be a different story.

As Timothy said, though, he can't be picky with clients. And speaking of his boyfriend, he was calling right now. Yves tapped the answer button and leaned against the washroom's sink. "Hi, Tim."

"You really don't want to call me Baby, do you?"

A laugh bubbled out of Yves' throat at Timothy's fake, brooding tone. "I'm sorry. So, what's up, Baby?"

"That sounded so unnatural."

Yves grinned. It's funny how he was the one who suggested a call-sign for them, but rarely addressed the other as 'Baby'. And Timothy rarely pointed it out too, so he had gotten used to calling him with his shortened name.

"Why are you calling, Bay-bi?" Yves stressed with a roll of his eyes.

"Am I not allowed to? You're with your secret lover, aren't you?" Timothy chided.

"Silly, I'm at work. Didn't you read my text?"

"I did. So you accepted the job?"

"Yeah. Gotta provide for the family." They shared a good-natured laugh at their inside jokes. Yves glanced at his wristwatch as their laughter died down. "Tim—I mean, Baby, I have to go. Talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay, okay. I just called to say... take care at work."

"Don't worry, I will. It's not like I'm doing things like those in the movies we've watched."

"I know, I know. Seriously, my whole life is a lie."

Yves could picture Timothy shaking his head with a dramatic sigh, which made him smile wider.

"Anyway, there are still risks that I hope you won't encounter, so please take care of yourself. I'm still gonna love you, so don't go doing dangerous stuff, okay?"

Yves felt the overflowing love filled his heart that he could make a bulletproof armor with it. With a determined smile, he said, "I will take care of myself, Tim—my baby," he added. "I promise."

"I don't need promises, Yves. I want you to come home in one piece."

Yves chuckled at the deliberate use of his first name because it meant Timothy was dead-serious. "I will come home in one piece, okay? Stop being a worrywart."

"Just making sure."

"Right."

"Okay, this had gone on for too long. Take care. I love you. Bye."

"I love you too," Yves said, shaking his head, the smile never leaving his face because Timothy hadn't hung up yet. "Bye now."

"Yeah, yeah. Bye."

Yves slid his phone in his pocket upon hearing the beep that signified the end of the call. After putting on a black leather jacket with their agency's insignia on the left chest, he exited the washroom to put his personal things in a locker. Then he made his way to the lobby where clients and potential clients lounged.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Ma'am. Is this casual enough for you?" Yves asked.

Emie looked up from her video camera to stare at him. Her jaw fell, her eyes unblinking. Then she shook away whatever trance she had fallen into to answer. "Y-Yeah. That's much better. Should we go now?"

"What's your itinerary?"

"Pardon?"

"Your plan for the day. Do you have a list of places you'd like to visit in a chronological order? Or you'll find that out as we go?"

"Oh! I do." Emie grabbed her phone and showed him a list of what seemed like a googled tourist attraction in Baguio, which wasn't surprising. "I already took a shot at the Lion's Head when I first arrived here so we can already cross the out."

Although there were no actual lions in the mountains of Cordillera, one of its notable landmarks was the gigantic limestone boulder at Kennon Road that had been carved into a head of a lion. It stood twelve meters tall and was the first thing to see when travelling to Baguio City.

"Our agency is closest to the Botanical Garden, which is close to the Wright Park if you want to go horseback riding. From there, you can see The Mansion. Then we can head to the Mines View Park where you can rent out an ethnic attire, so which place you'd like to start filming for your vlog?" Yves asked.

Emie blinked several times. "Um. Let's just go with what you said."

Yves felt like he had become a tourist guide instead of a bodyguard. But so long as he's getting paid for it, he's not going to complain. "Okay. It's walking distance from here. Do you have company?"

"No. My vlogs are about travelling to faraway places by myself, so yeah, I'm alone."

No wonder she's getting into a lot of trouble. Seriously, she could have solved all her security problems if she had close friends or relatives to travel with. Even one person would suffice.

This was not to say she's not allowed to hire a close protection agent at all if she can afford one, but something about Emie was quite suspicious. As if she's purposely hiding a vital information from them.

"Any person or group of people I should be wary of?" Yves asked, closely watching her facial expression and body language. "Like a stalker who might follow you around in your travels?"

The apprehension in her eyes confirmed Yves' assumption, but to his annoyance, Emie only shook her head. "I have fans, but a stalker is a bit too much. Can we go now? Oh, wait. I'll go to the bathroom first. I need to retouch my makeup."

Yves bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself calm. The most difficult clients to handle were the secretive ones, who failed to realize the important of open communication.

"You look troubled," Michelle commented, appearing by his side.

"Something is off about her."

"You're perceptive. That's what I like about you. Think you can handle her?"

"It's not like I have a choice." Yves sighed.

"You could have chosen Richard Alonzo," Michelle said in a meaningful tone. "Well, I've seen you work. This should be a child play for you. But please keep your temper in check, okay? It's your first assignment."

Was there even a need to mention Richard? It's not like they will see each other again.