It was a scorching morning when I woke up the next day—still surprised by the new atmosphere and weather. I still thought about the delicious dinner I had that night that I first thought was just a dream. I ate a lot, though. I even forgot the proper table etiquette because I ate giant oysters and lobsters with my bare hands. Filipino food has a unique taste. Even some kinds of seafood I missed the taste. I hope Mom's newly hired maids wouldn't spread the word about what happened last night because it was embarrassing. For sure, they had been thinking I looked like I didn't eat for days. It was 10:00 am when I woke up, that was why it was already hot. I didn't turn on the air conditioner when I went to bed because I was already tired. My whole body was dripping with sweat with the humidity. I was awake, but my spirit was still asleep. I stayed lying down even though I was already sweating, but when I suddenly remembered my plan for the day, I got up. I almost forgot where I planned
Since we sat down, we hadn't started eating yet. I kept answering everything Lea was asking. More about the things I did for the past five years I was gone in England. Although we kept in touch while I was away, face-to-face conversations aren't similar to texts and phone calls; those only happened when there were special occasions. The time had always been limited, so I couldn't tell them all the details. "Mama is such a killjoy," Lea murmured while pouting her lips when Auntie Eugene told her to let me eat first. "You know, if you're the only one who will be hungry, I'll let you carry on with an empty stomach. My grandson wouldn't have milk to drink when he wakes up," Aunt preached to her daughter just to make her stop talking, and because of that, she stopped. Lea just gave birth to her second baby. A healthy baby boy who's already six weeks old. Thinking about that made me feel sad for myself. Lea was only a few years older than me, but she had already given birth twice. The
"So, how are you, Felix?" I broke the silence after I let a few minutes pass by. He had been silent since we rode in the car, and we were already halfway from where we came to the mansion, but he didn't even try saying anything. "I'm good," he answered flatly, looking at the road as if he didn't want to talk to me. I tried ignoring that because there were things I badly wanted to know from him. "And why does it seem you're not good at all? Is managing a company stressful?" I continued. "Well, yeah. It's stressful sometimes when there's a lot of paperwork, but because it's for the good of the company, it's okay to be stressed," he answered. His tone remained the same. He sounded uninterested in our conversation, and his eyes were fixed on the road. "And how about your love life? I won't believe you if you tell me you're still single now," I asked. The truth was, that was what I wanted to know. I want to hear from Felix about what Lea told me earlier. I heard so much from Lea that
"No! I don't want to!" I exclaimed firmly and was about to stand from sitting when Felicity suddenly grabbed my arm and made me stay from where I was sitting. "Just for once, Elyana. Please... pretty please... date him so he will stop pressuring me. I have other clients to take care of. I'm planning to go somewhere. I don't have enough time to arrange him for my female clients now that I have already tried doing for so many times. Please! Help me, just with this person, please!" he begged. He even kneeled on the floor that shocked me the most. "H-Hey, girl...get up!" Ordering him, but he didn't want to listen. I couldn't believe that was what he would ask me to do after so many years we were apart but he seemed to be in trouble with his client, and I'd seen it as well, but what should I do? I had other plans too. "Pleaseee?" he pleaded. He stayed kneeling while both palms of his hands touching. Felicity tooks like praying, but knowing what he wanted from me, I'm not a saint to agre
I had gotten ready, but I was having second thoughts about meeting Quintin. I got exhausted shopping for clothes that afternoon. When I was supposed to buy only a few things to put in my closet, I bought almost 10% of the dresses, sleepwear, and shoes displayed in just one boutique. Who can blame me though? The aesthetic hues of the clothes and softness of the fabrics were too delicate for the skin. Fits for tropical countries just like the Philippines. The designs were cute, from the florals to the prints, and I felt like a teenager again after trying a few. I fell in love with them, and that’s why I took them home. The staff made me try most of the clothes that they told me would look good on me, and I admit, I became too gullible to believe all their sales talk. When I was done, my poor driver had to carry a lot of shopping bags and boxes. He had trouble putting all the stuff I bought inside the car. Fortunately, he thought of a way. He asked me if it was okay to remove some
'No, it's still early to show up," I thought. I observed him take a sip of the wine. It was very amusing to watch him do so. The women around him couldn't help but look, even the older ones not far from his table turned their heads in his direction. Couldn't blame them though; Quintin has good looks, elegance, and has potential in modeling. He's the type of man that could make a woman open her legs wide in just a wink, but he's not the type that would make me fall to my knees. As I watched him from the tinted window of the car, I suddenly remembered Felix. Because of Felicity and her problem, I forgot to stop by Felix’s office to apologize for the bad words I said about the girl who he impregn*ted. Although she deserved all those things, I wanted to be nice so Felix wouldn't think I was being mean to the mother of his child, but after that, I don’t know what I could do next. Ten minutes before eight that night, I finally decided to get out of the car. The driver was glancing at me
"So, you're saying your mother is a Filipina as well?" he asked after we exchanged some basic information about ourselves. "Yes, she is," I replied. “Wow, really! We do have things in common. I love coffee too, and now we have the same enemy that comes from the name of—” he paused. I didn't think he could talk sensibly at all. He looked rude when I saw him in Felicity’s office that same day, and he seemed like he would kick anyone who tried blocking his way. He sighed, and after leaning his back into the chair, he stared right into my face with awe in his eyes. "You know what, I still can't believe I'm going to meet you here in the Philippines, Elyana." He had said this several times already that night. "Well, me too. With this big world, who would have thought the one who often competes with my ex-husband would be the one I will date tonight?" I paused and slightly grinned before I continued, “Another thing I didn't expect is that you're a sane person even though you gave Felici
Checking my phone was the first thing I did the next day. I was hoping Felicity had already replied to the message I sent him the other night, but I frowned just to discover I hadn’t received a message from anybody that morning. It made me wonder where Felicity had gone, hoping nothing bad had happened to him. I tried to relax my mind by thinking he was just busy, but my brain refused to cooperate. In the end, I chose to call his number again, but I almost threw my phone away when a voicemail informed me that his number was still out of service and that he could not take my call. “Ugh! Where the heck are you, Felicity?” I asked while staring at cell phone in my hand as if that would answer the question. I did remember him telling me he needed to go somewhere when he begged me to date Quintin, but what if something else occurred and that’s why I couldn’t call his number? That negative thought pushed me to find other ways to get to know his whereabouts. I searched for a telephone. Th