Chapter 09
“ S ince you know where we’re going, do you want to drive?” I offer.
Andrea hesitates, scanning my car. “You’d let me drive it?”
I nod. Anything for her to realize just how terrible her car is and invest in a better one. On second thought, though… “First, tell me where those nine dents on your car came from.”
“You counted them?!”
“Couldn’t help myself. So?”
She thinks about it, eyes squinted as she tries to recall. “I think five were already there when I bought it. One was when I backed it for the first time in the alley at my parents’ house—the car was longer than I thought. The big one on the right happened while parked, so I never found the culprit. The one at the back is from a guy at a red light who drove off before I could get his info. Then the last was a sneaky concrete post I didn’t see.”
That isn’t too bad, so I extend the key to her. She stares at the Mercedes logo on it, then at the car, and shakes her head.
“A car I don’t know in rush hour traffic sounds like a bad idea. You drive, and I guide.”
“Suit yourself,” I agree with a shrug, stepping onto the driver’s side.
It doesn’t take long for me to realize she’s terrible at navigation. She doesn’t say anything whenever she messes up, though, probably hoping I won’t notice. But I do notice and eventually suggest, “You know, you can put the address in the GPS if you want.”
“No, we’re almost there. Take the next left.”
“This one?”
“No, the next one.”
“You’re not very good at this,” I say with amusement.
“We all have our flaws. This one! Take this one!” she urges .
Miraculously, we arrive at our destination in one piece. I find a spot near the small square, and we step out of the car together. We walk up to the food truck, where people are already lining up, and I’m surprised by the length of the queue.
“This seems popular,” I note as we get closer.
“I told you it was a good spot. Now move your perfect butt before the line gets too long.”
The smells of spices and slow-cooked meats reach my nose, and I have to give it to her: it’s mouth-watering. We get in line right before a group of five people, and she celebrates the small victory with a little wriggle. The menu is handwritten on a blackboard hanging on the side of the truck, and I quickly accept that I’ll need her help with this.
“I don’t know what any of those are, except for the nachos and the tacos,” I confess.
“You’re in luck because I know what all those things are,” she proudly retorts. “Can I choose for you?”
“Yes. I’d rather have chicken. And nothing with coriander in it.”
“Okay, that’s doable. What about the chili level?”
“None.”
She halts her inspection of the menu to look up at me with furrowed eyebrows. “No chili at all?”
I shake my head, and her frown deepens. “We may have found another one of my hard limits,” she explains. I’m only just starting to worry when her seriousness cracks into amusement. “Lex, my abuela will make fun of me forever if I tell her my novio can’t handle a little spice.”
“ Novio ?”
“Boyfriend.” She realizes what she implied and continues with, “And I meant it hypothetically. This is still a trial period.”
I nod. The little Spanish that I know activates, and I try to remember what I learned. “Would that hypothetically make you my… novia ?” I try.
“Yes, but don’t you dare learn Spanish, Lex. Between your accent and your face, my ovaries would burst.”
I let out a powerful laugh that comes from deep in my stomach. “Out of respect for your ovaries, I won’t, then.”
We take a couple of steps forward, getting closer to the person taking orders. “Good. But seriously, no chili at all?” she insists.
I shake my head. “I never understood the appeal. After three bites, my mouth is on fire, and I can’t taste anything else.”
“That’s because you need to take baby steps. Start with a little and go up.”
As we slowly make our way through the line, she explains the various dishes and makes me repeat after her until my pronunciation is acceptable. When the time comes to order, she takes charge and asks for way more than I anticipated. I recognize the dish she orders for me and step forward to say, “With a very small amount of chili, please.”
When Andrea looks up at me with something that resembles pride and appreciation, I bend closer and say, “We wouldn’t want your abuela to dislike me, would we?”
She shakes her head, still grinning, and returns to our order. She pays before I can offer and hands me a plastic tray with nachos and our sodas. I carry it to one of the folding tables, and we sit down facing each other.
“You said it’s a popular drink?” I ask, picking up my bottle.
“Yes. Jarritos is the Mexican soda. We always had some at home, and I used to sneak in the pantry to steal bottles.”
I try mine, which is lime-flavored, and focus on the taste. “I’m not into sodas, but this is good.”
“I know, right?”
She eats a tortilla chip and sits back in her wobbly chair. “What do you want to talk about this time?” I ask, doing the same.
She considers her options thoroughly. “Where did you graduate from?”
I fold my arms across my chest, trying to think of where to start. “My father always expected me to take over the company, so he sent me to Harvard Business School for their MBA program. I was still fourteen at the time, so I moved in with Lucy—who was doing her medical studies there. I had to do a year of undergraduate courses before I could get to the MBA, which was a bore, but I didn’t have a choice. I was allowed to specialize in applied mathematics, so I didn’t entirely hate my time there. And I quickly used everything I was learning to make my own money to pay for the degrees I genuinely wanted. As soon as I turned eighteen, I moved to Stanford and enrolled in their computer science PhD, with a focus on machine learning and artificial intelligence, as well as cybersecurity. Then, three years later, I graduated and began working at Avoss.”
“You got a PhD in three years?”
“Yeah, I was cutting myself some slack.”
“You arrogant shithead,” she mutters with a grin. Someone calls out her name from the food truck, so she quickly heads there and returns with another tray.
The conversation turns sparse as we eat. We have to get back to Kelex before the end of our break, or else people might suspect something is going on. But she still asks about my time at Avoss and what it was like being a child prodigy in schools known for having the brightest students in the country .
“It wasn’t easy, especially since I no longer had Kevin to help. He went on to study business at Yale. Then, once he caught up, we opened Kelex together.”
“And look at you now…”
“I did quite well for myself, yes.”
There’s nothing but chewing for a moment, and I’ve eaten half of my burrito when she asks, “So, do you like it?”
I can tell just how much she needs me to say yes—as if my seal of approval is meaningful for some reason.
“I do,” I answer with honesty. “This level of spice is very manageable.”
“Yeah, there’s barely any in there. You should try adding a couple drops of this,” she suggests, pushing forward a small bottle of hot sauce. She’s been dousing her burrito with it the whole time, so I decide to give it a try. It can’t be that bad, can it?
“Just a drop,” she instructs.
I follow the command and bite over the spot. It starts off fine, but the more I chew, the hotter it gets. Eventually, I force myself to swallow, feeling as though a fire has started in my mouth. “Holy fuck,” I grunt, coughing.
“Oh, come on. It’s not that bad.”
“How the fuck do you do it?!” I wonder, picking up what’s left of my Jarritos and downing it.
“It was just a drop, Lex.”
The heat won’t subside, so I focus on not letting my eyes fill up with tears. She’d give me shit for it, I’m sure. Eventually, she decides to do something about it and comes around the table. She frames my face with her hands and makes me look at her, lowering to be on my level. “The more you think about it, the more it burns,” she explains. “So, try to think about something else, baby.”
I don’t know if she did it intentionally or if it slipped out. But her calling me baby again has my mind in such a frenzy that I can’t think of the chili anymore. Everything stills, and I get lost in her eyes and their long lashes, the freckles dusting her cheekbones, the plumpness of her lips… Has a woman ever been this beautiful? Has there ever been a more perfect face than hers? I don’t think so. There’s no way.
My gaze is fixed on her lips, which I swear are even redder and plumper than usual, inviting me to kiss them. I’m about to let the impulse win when I remember I’m not supposed to. Not until she asks. She’s in charge.
So I look into her eyes instead and beg her to let me, to ask me. There’s conflict in there for a moment, and I can tell she’s torn. “Not yet,” she whispers, either for herself or me. “And you couldn’t handle me right now, gringo ,” she humors, releasing me and straightening up. “My mouth would feel like fire to you.”
She’s probably right, yes. But she’ll forever be the kind of spice I can handle. The kind I’ll always crave. The one I’ve never had to get used to.
The only one I’ll ever need.
D uring the drive back to Kelex, we debate which programming language is best. Turns out we strongly disagree. I swear by dynamic typing and Python’s flexibility, while Lex prefers the structure and performance of statically typed languages like C++.
“You’re so old school,” I tease. “Next, you’ll tell me you actually like semicolons.”
He scoffs. “Some of us appreciate a little discipline in our syntax. Not everything needs to be loose and freewheeling.”
“Yeah, yeah. Enjoy your ancient C++ while I write readable code.”
By the time we arrive, we still haven’t changed each other’s minds, but we do the mature thing and agree to disagree—even though I know I’m right and he’s wrong.
I’m coming up with a list of arguments in Python’s favor when I reach my desk, right on time for the end of my break. I’m determined to send it to Lex, but a message awaits me when I boot up my computer.
I let out a small sigh of relief and bring my hands to my keyboard.
Kevin Langley: Hey, Andy. Could you come to my office when you’re done with your lunch?
It’s the first time Kevin has summoned me to his office like this, so I can’t help the twinge of fear that sparks in me. I don’t see him as my boss—not as much as I do Lex—but he’s still very much in a position of power. Does he… does he know that Lex and I are reconsidering things? Kate knows, but Lex is much better than me at keeping secrets, so Kev might still be clueless.
Maybe he just wants to see me about my app or something. Yes, that’s probably it. I’m worrying for nothing. I’m still nervous as I walk to his door, and my hand shakes a little when I knock.
“Hi, Andy,” he greets me when I enter.
He stands and joins me as I observe his office, which I’ve never seen before. It’s the same size and configuration as Lex’s but warm and cozy, with woods, colors, and more creative designs.
“Hi,” I salute back once he’s with me.
“How was lunch?”
Fuck, does he know?! “Good, thank you.”
“Please, sit,” he offers. I obey while Kevin settles in the armchair opposite me. His couch is way more comfortable than Lex’s—low, cushiony, and with beautiful colors.
“I see you’re worried about why I’ve asked you here, so I won’t torture you longer. I’m in a pickle, and I need you to do me a favor.”
That definitely doesn’t help clear the air, and I stare at him with even more confusion.
“Do you have any plans next week?” he asks.
“You mean… The whole week, or a day in particular?”
“A big chunk of the week, actually. From Monday to Thursday.”
“I, uh… I don’t think I have anything specific, no. Why?”
“I need you to replace me in Korea.”
My jaw goes slack almost comically. “You—What?” He gives me a little more time to process the information, and when I can finally assemble proper sentences again, I wonder, “Did Lex put you up to this?”
“No, he doesn’t even know I’m asking you.”
“But … why ?”
“Well, Michelle isn’t doing too well. She’s been struggling with postpartum depression, and I don’t want to leave her alone if I can help it.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that. I had no idea.”
“She’s good at hiding it, so don’t feel bad about it. Nevertheless, I’d rather stay here with her. And since my best friend doesn’t look moody and depressed all the time, I imagine you two have patched things up. So, since you’ve always wanted to go to Korea, I thought of you. Plus, leaving the company without one of us was also an issue.”
“We’ve barely patched things up,” I counter. “And I’m sure you can find someone way more suited than me. I’m a junior employee, and I work in the dev team. Get someone from marketing. They’ll be much better.”
“Don’t sell yourself short, now. I’ve seen your presentation at Hello World and completely trust you to represent the company. Also, your app is the main reason we got this deal, so I’m sure they’d love to meet you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. They loved it so much it got us a deal we’ve been trying to make for the better part of three years.”
“I-I didn’t know. ”
This is huge, and I’m so happy that I could help somehow. They’ve been actively looking to partner with a manufacturing company that could make phones designed for our apps and operating systems. And they finally found one: Injin Electronics. From what I know, they signed a deal with them a few weeks ago, and everyone at Kelex is excited about it. Those phones they’d make for us would be the first of their kind, built to accommodate and help a variety of disabilities and special needs, with an easy setup and a plethora of accessories to make the phone as adapted as possible to its owner.
Kelex is already the world leader for what they do, and this will boost them even further into that lead and worldwide markets—including Europe, which they’re eager to get into.
When Kevin continues, he sounds graver. “But I’d be lying if I said this is the only reason I need you to go.” He sits back in his armchair, his intertwined hands in front of his mouth as he thinks of what he wants to say. After a moment, he sighs and rests his hands on his lap. “I need someone who can ground Lex and appease him. Otherwise, he’ll be uncomfortable the whole time, and I don’t want him agitated or thin-skinned.”
“What makes you think I’ll be enough?”
“I’ve known the man since I was thirteen. In all these years, I’ve only seen him talk to hundreds of people on stage once. And it was for you. He’d kill me for saying it, but you can’t even begin to understand your power over him. There’s something about you that makes him bolder, more confident, and also more peaceful. That’s the real reason I need you to go with him to Korea.”
I say nothing for a moment, digesting his words. Going to Seoul on an official visit to a world-leading tech company is an enormous responsibility. If it involves high responsibilities, I can’t do it.
“What would I need to do there?” I ask.
“Everything has already been negotiated at their San Jose headquarters. The deals are signed, and everything is in order. This is a friendly visit to answer their courtesy invitation. They’ll show you some of their sites, give you a tour of their departments, invite you for dinners and such… You can trust me, Andy. I would never put you in this position if I had the slightest doubt about you nailing it.”
“It would really be that simple?” I ask, still hesitant.
“It’s a run-of-the-mill kind of thing. You’ll follow them around, stick with Lex, and if there’s any responsibility involved, he’ll handle it, not you,” Kevin insists.
For so many reasons, this is a golden opportunity. Not only would I get to visit Korea, but I’d also visit the headquarters of one of the world’s most prominent tech companies. My inner nerd is more than excited by the prospect. And doing all of it with Lex by my side has its own appeal, of course.
When I look at Kevin again, I notice that nothing about his attitude forces me to say yes. He’s giving me the choice—genuinely. Knowing Michelle’s state, I can’t refuse and force him to go. If I really am the only person he trusts with this, then I have to accept.
“I’ll do it,” I say before I can change my mind.
He claps his hands together, a charming, triumphant smile flashing his perfect teeth. “Outstanding. Thank you for this, Andy. I owe you a big one.”
“If I end up having to take on extra responsibilities, what you’ll owe me is a raise,” I half-joke.
“You won’t, but that’s something we can talk about if you want.”
“No—I was kidding. You can’t give me a raise.”
“Why? You’ve been working like a madwoman since you started. And your app is turning out to be much more profitable than we expected.”
“Then my royalties will reflect that. And you can’t give me a raise so soon because when people learn that Lex and I are…” I don’t finish my sentence, but the look on my face fills in the gap.
“Ah, yes, I see. Well, you two better do things right this time and get HR involved.”
“We will. As soon as we’ve made a decision, we will.”
I don’t tell Kev that the decision rests on me, not Lex. He already knows much more than he should.
I’m still a little stunned by what’s happening while he fills me in on everything I need to know. He hands me a printed itinerary and tells me he’ll have his plane ticket changed to my name as soon as possible. It doesn’t feel real, but that’s been my life since I started working here.
I guess I better catch up on those Korean lessons…