A month has passed since Rain and Ami’s birthday and still no word from her. Perhaps she had forgotten about him. Just like the previous month he immersed himself in overseeing their businesses,It’s about time he pulled his weight and lessen the burden on his mom’s shoulders. He was busy reading an email when his phone rang. Without looking, he just swiped the off button. In a few minutes, his aunt came all flushed from obviously running up the steps to see him. He still can’t understand why she wouldn’t just use the elevator to make her life easier. '`Rainaldo Lyssander!”, she admonished. “Rain got startled and leapt up from his swivel chair and looked at her with guilt on his face. '`Yes Auntie?”, he asked apologetically, giving her his most adorable expression. Obviously it didn’t work because she scowled at him and crossed her arms across her chest. Oh no, this is not going to be a normal conversation, he thought to himself. Without any preamble,
Ambot and balong means one and the same, they refer to little boy. Balong is an Ilocano term, Ilocano is one of the many languages in the Philippines. Ambot is an Ibaloi and Kankanaey word referring to a young boy, ambet is the female counterpart. Ibaloi and Kankanaey are two vernaculars in the Cordillera region of Northern Philippines.
As it happens, Jerry forgot to remind Magnolia to delete her post of her and Rain and since one of Magnolia’s friends is connected to Ami’s social media account, she saw the photos and the captions. She was busy browsing through her FB account when she caught sight of the post on her friend’s timeline. There was a strong pang in her chest that she couldn’t name but made her sad and gloomy. It was her day off but since the Al Fahezi residence is far from the city center, she just stayed in her room. She couldn’t understand why seeing the post made her emotional. She was never this emotional back home. Maybe she is just homesick, she told herself. That’s probably it. Missing all those glorious greens on rolling hills, her neighbors, oh not that specific neighbor, she tried to tell herself, oh well him too. She was about to take a nap when there was a knock on her door. “Shuhada, who is it?! She shouted. Nobody i
Before they boarded the ship, Ami and Mabel couldn’t help but gawk at the massive ship. For her part, Ami had only seen photos of it when she was in college. The Gonzales’ just purchased the ship and Rain was so proud that the first thing he did was show a photo of it to Ami. Of course over the years, the ship had undergone a makeover to modernize it. It had nearly cost the Gonzales’ their fortune. If not for Mrs. Gonzales’ business acumen, they could have gone bankrupt. Now gazing at it up close, it felt surreal for Ami. Her jaw dropped at the massive size but she at once remembered who she was with so as quickly as she could, she nudged Mabel on her side which earned her a glare. “Close your mouth,” ordered Ami. “Otherwise, we’ll embarrass ourselves and our employers..” “I just can’t believe it,” owned Mabel. “We are actually spending weeks in that, that big boat?” she asked,
“Why is he so solicitous of you?” he started. “Are you and him in a relationship? You seem so cozy with him, all the time. Or perhaps he really is your lover.” Ami was appalled at his attitude that she nearly raised her fist again before Rain caught it in his hand. “Firstly, you did not have a very friendly way of saying hi, secondly, you assumed a lot without even asking how I have been all these months. Are you sure you are my bff because I do not see him in you now!” cried Ami. All her anger and disappointment were starting to bubble on the surface that she had to inhale and exhale rapidly to compose herself. “All these months I wondered if you even thought of me at all because you did not even try to reach out. Mabel told me she messaged your aunt informing her of my whereabouts and that you know, but no. You were so busy with all your pretty girls, you forgot you have a bff. You think I do not know w
That morning, Rain woke up early despite getting a few hours of sleep. After assuring his mom that he’ll be fine he went down to the breakfast hall but this time accompanied by Eliza. He wanted to catch Ami and apologize for his actions the night before but having escorted Eliza down to breakfast ruined his plans. His early start rewarded him though because Ami came down to breakfast as well. Ami schooled her features when she saw Rain with Eliza. She knew for a fact that Eliza has had a big crush on Rain ever since they were in high school. She felt a pang of jealousy because of the way the two were reacting to each other. Rain seemed to be very accommodating, flashing Eliza a smile every now and then. Although she tried to avoid them, Rain kept blocking her path until she thought she’d have enough. Rain gently took one of her hands but when Ami flinched, Rain looked down and frowned when he saw the bandages on her fists. Ami was trying to tug
Rain and Ami spent the day together like what they always did back in the Philippines. Ami couldn’t help but recall how Rain comforted her when her parents died. She may be young back then but losing both parents a month apart is not easy. Thankfully the Gonzales’ family were there along with her uncle. While she was reminiscing, Rain kept stealing glances at her. Even in a shirt and jeans, she always takes his breath away not that he wanted her to know, otherwise, the awkwardness will be back. He likes her like this, relaxed and at ease in his company. For her part Ami still felt awkward at times but she couldn’t deny the fact that she feels safe with him. She can’t help comparing him with Ali in her mind though but she tried her best to shake off the comparison. This relaxed atmosphere continued until night time. Reluctant to let his best friend leave him early, he requested “Do you mind checking the bar with me? Maybe we can celebrate with a toast
As it happened, as soon as the Al Fahezi entourage landed in Abu Dhabi, there was no time to rest nor get in touch with the Gonzales group aboard the Siren of the North. It was utter chaos, the Al Fahezi household was disorganized with Farinah missing. The nannies who remained were fearful they would be blamed for the disappearance of the girl. There were police cars outside the villa and the normally peaceful Al Reef area was suddenly caught in the mayhem. The Sheikha was beside herself and Ami tried to console her as best she could. “Madam, the police are looking into the matter and I believe Sir Abdullah’s influence will hopefully help.” comforted Ami. “I don’t know Habibti, if only I insisted on bringing Far
As plans go, the Gonzales group did not have the luxury of doing the Europe tour as Mrs. Gonzales and Rain were called back home immediately. When they are away, Ronnie is in charge of the Manor and the household staff. It was not Ronnie who called Mrs. Gonzales, but her sister. The police are investigating the sudden disappearance of Ronnie’s son, Ridger. The last time people saw him was the day the Gonzales went for their cruise which was a month ago, July to be specific. It wasn’t unusual for Ridger to disappear for a few days or weeks but a month is something else. It wouldn’t have caused any problem, if the people did not notice that Ronnie did not seem surprised or concerned at all. Whenever people ask him, his answer was Ridger went to visit some relatives in the lowlands. Of course, the police were summoned but as the Gonzales wer
Ali was stuck in traffic for almost two hours thereby costing him precious time to get to Ami. If he wasn’t so worried and angry at the same time, he was so frustrated that it took all his control not to blow his horn at every opportunity. He was one of those who have no tolerance for drivers who constantly blow their horns in traffic, now he knows why. They must be as frustrated as he is. Thankfully he passed by a mosque on his way so he was able to offer his prayers first asking for the safety of Ami and his sister. After scouring nearly all the hotels he knew his mom frequented during her Dubai visits, he is at the edge of his sanity. After escaping the traffic, he managed to arrive at the last and only hotel he passed by in his eagerness to get to Ami and his sister hopefully. It is past 10 in the evening and normally during th