Sentinel BioTech HQ, Manila — December 6, 2023 | 8:00 AM
The first gusts of December wind swept through the city, cool and crisp, a welcome contrast to the heat that often lingered even through the holidays. Inside Sentinel BioTech's executive wing, the morning sun cast golden stripes across the floor-to-ceiling windows of Matthew Borja's office.
He stood by the glass, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the skyline.
From here, he could see the city's arteries—roads, highways, intersections—choked with vehicles. Despite the success of the MRT-7 and the accelerating construction of the Aurora Line, road congestion remained a glaring, painful truth.
Behind him, Angel entered with two cups of coffee and a folder tucked under her arm. She placed one cup beside Matthew without a word and then joined him by the window.
"Traffic's worse than usual," she commented, nodding toward the bottleneck along EDSA.
"I've been watching it for the past twenty minutes," Matthew replied. "It hasn't moved."
