“ Thank you for flying with Philippine Airlines. Maligayang Pagdating, Mabuhay!”
Ann was jolted awake by the flight attendant’s voice over the speaker, announcing the plane’s arrival at the airport. She had been dreaming about memories that happened, years before, back when she was younger.. . memories that brought out a myriad of feelings in her heart.
It has been 5 years since she left the Philippines Philippines had been her home, the condo suite that she and her mom stayed was where she grew up, and strange as it may seem to most teenagers at the time, Manila
Now she has come back, after 5 long years of being away. Back then when she left, a lot of people knew her but then a lot of people also judged her wrong. Now, as she wonders, what will be waiting here for her?
Chapter 1
5 years ago…
“Mom! I’m gonna go over at Rich’s place, she told me she’s having some kind of photo shoot and she wants me to go see it..” Ann shouted as she was walking outside of their condominium suite. “Okay, but be back before dinner, ” her mom shouted back.
Ann and Rich had been neighbors since they lived in the condo suite. Over the years, they had become really close friends as well so it was no surprise when Rich invited her for the photo shoot.
“Ann! Over here…”Rich shouted from her room as she was being fitted clothes to wear for the photo shoot. Ann was a little surprised by the commotion that was going on at Rich’s place, what with all the lights and the cameras and the people all busy doing their job for the shoot.
“What’s this all about, Rich?” she asked as she sat on an empty chair in Rich’s room. “Didn’t I tell you? I auditioned for this reality show stuff and I got accepted!” Rich exclaimed excitedly. “Now they’re doing this photo shoot to introduce me on the show, isn’t it fab? Hahah! ” she laughingly told Ann.
“Wow, that’s good news girl. Congratulations!” Ann said as she got up and hugged Rich. “This is famous! I’m now going to have a celebrity bff, how ‘bout that?” Ann added and they both giggled excitedly.
As the hours passed, both girls were having so much fun with Rich posing for the camera and Ann watching happily on the sidelines. She felt really happy for her friend. All along she knew that this is what Rich wanted, to be popular and be recognized by a lot of people. Of course she kind of hoped that she would be famous too, but she wanted to be known for her art and the things that she is passionate about. Unfortunately, those talents are just in there somewhere, unseen and not really noticed because despite her wild ways, she has always had major stage fright.
After the shoot, she went and said goodbye to Rich but as she was walking in the hallway a few meters away from Rich’s place, someone called her name from behind.
“Miss! Ann!” she heard a gay sounding voice call her from behind. She turned around to see a man that seemed familiar to her. He was dressed a little flamboyantly than the regular guy so it seemed safe to conclude that he is gay. “Yes? You called me?” She answered and smiled.
“Yes, I did. Andrew, by the way, that’s my name. I was there earlier in the photo shoot. Do you remember me? “ The gay man introduced himself. “Oh, yeah! Yeah, I do remember you. Hello, sir” Ann beamed at him and shyly offered her hand for a handshake.
“Dear, you’re too formal. It doesn’t work for me, and besides we’re just about the same age so let’s just do the cheek-to-cheek greeting, haha!” he answered jokingly.
“Oh, ok..” as she did what he asked and offered both of her cheeks in greeting. “Now, enough about this… You might be wondering why I know your name? It’s because I have been watching you ever since you came inside your friend’s room. I must tell you dear, you have so much potential and I’d just hate for it to go to waste,” Andrew smiled as he told her.
“Aww really? Thanks so much sir! What you said was just so flattering I want to hug you, haha!” she was so happy and flattered that she was smiling so wide.
“Yes, really and so having said that, I want you to go and audition for the show. I’m going to give you my card, call me once you are at the place of the audition so I can assist you. That will be tomorrow so be at your best and look your prettiest, okay?” Andrew told her. “Wait, sir. I’m not really sure about this. My mom doesn’t even know about this reality show and I’m not sure if she’ll let me audition let alone be in the show.” She nervously told Andrew.
“Ann, darling, there is no harm in trying. The reason why I am adamant that you do this is because I feel that you are an artist and you have a really good chance at making it in show business. Not only that, you have the kind of beauty that is very different from the conventional pretty faces that are so common in the television these days. Your Asian features are striking and yet subtle, I don’t know how to explain it. Let me just say this, for me, your pretty face is one that commands attention. You should have faith in my taste dear because I am rarely wrong, okay?” Andrew said and smiled reassuringly at her.
“But what am I going to do at the audition?” she asked. “Oh, don’t worry about that. They’ll just ask you to do some things, like projections, a little acting maybe, show off your talent. I heard you play a song on the piano earlier, you could play that tomorrow. Not to say bad stuff about your friend but she’s tone deaf even if she has good voice quality. But she dances pretty good. If she can do the audition, you can too, okay? So don’t disappoint tito Andrew, you can call me that by the way, ” Andrew said encouragingly.
“Okay, I’ll just give it a try…” she answered hesitantly.
“That’s my girl!” Andrew said and waved goodbye to her as she went back to their suite.
Chapter 2
“Mom, let’s go. We might be late for the audition and tito Andrew might kill me for that..” Ann said as she checked for her mom.
“Yes, dear…coming! I just have to make sure we don’t forget everything we need, ” her mom answered while double checking on her bag.
“Why? What else did you bring mom?” she asked.
“What else? Your make up, and I brought some accessories and two extra dresses, just in case..” her mom answered.
“What! You’ll be bringing all of those? Mom, just chill okay? I’m just going to the audition and play one song and that’s the end of it. Just for tito Andrew’s sake because he was so nice…” Ann told her mom.
“No dear. If you are going to do this, you might as well give it all you’ve got. This is an opportunity that not everyone gets, so you have to grab it. You are young, Ann, and so try everything that you can…i know you love playing the piano, I know you love fashion, I know you love ice skating and God only knows what all the other things you are interested in as well. So go, do all this while you still can and mom will always be here to support you..”
“Oh mom, I’m going to cry! Thanks, I love you mom!”
“I love you too, Annibee..” her mom said as she hugged her. “Let’s go, we don’t want to be late,” Her mom said as they went out of the suite and minutes after they were on their way to the audition.
Chapter 3
At the waiting area…
“Mom, I don’t want you to wait for me outside because you’d just be wasting your time. Since you are not allowed to be here with me, why don’t you just come back for me after I’m done. “ Ann told her mom over the phone.
“Yeah, I’ll call you I promise. Yes, mom I’ll do my best. Yes, mom I’ll make sure to look very pretty too, haha! Bye, I love you..” she said as she ended the call.
After her phone call, there was nothing left to do so she looked around and looked for a place to sit while waiting for her turn to audition. She found a vacant seat at the back row, sat there and waited. She already called Andrew, informing him that she was already at the place and was getting ready for the audition. Andrew told her that he will just be meeting her later that day because he got called up in an emergency meeting involving one of his talents.
While waiting, she noticed that there were not a lot of teenagers auditioning. Only about 20 others were sitting, waiting for their turn. The girls are all very pretty they looked like they could be models. The guys are all cute as well, some even way hotter than the guys she’d met at the parties she had been to.
‘What did I get myself into? Seriously, it’s like, I’m from a different class here…what was tito Andrew thinking? No way do I have a chance of getting this audition..’ she thought to herself as she was looking around at the people in the room.
A few minutes later, her attention was caught by a guy who entered the room. Lanky but very good-looking, she noticed that most of the girls were staring at him. Unfortunately for them, he looked snobbish and reserved. However, she had to give him credit for being so magnetic and mysterious looking.
‘Oh well, too snobbish for me…’ she thought aloud. She saw him walk towards the back of the room to the empty seats. He sat at the far end from where she was seated. For a few seconds their eyes met and she felt a little fluttering in her stomach when she saw him stare at her for a few seconds. Embarrassed, she looked away and pretended to ignore him.
‘What was that? He looked at me like…I can’t even describe it…chill, Ann…breathe...don’t be too obvious’ she thought to herself.
In the minutes that followed, she just kept looking at the door of the audition room, not risking a glance at the guy sitting at the far end. Even without looking at him, she was very aware of his presence. She could see what he was doing from her peripheral vision, a few times she even felt the guy look at her. He was really quiet, not making any effort to befriend anyone. Maybe he was just like her, observing everyone and everything.
At last it was her turn to audition. She felt relieved to be away from his presence and yet sad because she knew she’d never get to see this guy again after this day.
Chapter 4
A few days after…
“Ann, you’re phone’s ringing!”
“Hmmm….hello…” Ann groggily answered. She had been up until early morning because she and her friends partied until late last night. When she got home, she still didn’t get to sleep right away because Lila, Chris and Her spent hours talking about the party.
“Ann, tito Andrew here…”
“Oh, hello tito, good morning,”
“Dear, it’s lunch time already and you just woke up? Did you get wasted last night?”
“Oh, is it? I’m so sorry I didn’t look at the time, haha! Yeah, my friends and I went to a party. No, we don’t drink that much so we didn’t get wasted, tito,”
“Well that’s good to know. Anyway, I called to let you know that you passed the audition, congratulations! See? I told you, you’d make it.”
“Seriously? Wow…”
“Yes, you passed it and so we are going to have a photo shoot as well. This time, we are not shooting at your place, we’ll do it somewhere else because we don’t want you and Rich to have the same photo shoot environment. Also, you are not allowed to tell her you got in as well, it’s one of the rules. The shoot’s going to start at 3 pm so get your cute ass up and be here at the studio ASAP, okay? See you...”
“Okay, bye…and thank you!”
“Mom…where are you? Mom, tito Andrew called and told me I got in!”
“Really, dear? Well congratulations! I’m not surprised at all, all along I thought you could do it,” her mom smiled at her as she answered.
“Aw mom, thank you for the vote of confidence, you’re the best!” Ann said as she kissed her mom on the cheek.
“You’re welcome, dear. Now, we must go shopping today. You have to always look your best now that you’ll be part of a show.”
“Mom, I don’t think I’ll have to wear make up and dresses all the time. We’ll just be staying inside a house, remember? I’m not even sure I want to continue this. It feels kind of weird knowing everything I do will be shown on television for the whole Philippines
“Ann, it’s not everyday that you are given a chance to experience this. Spending time with your friends here, partying, you can always do that. But this, this is going to be something new for you. I would ask you to just give it a try, live inside the house and try to make new friends. Show them and the whole Philippines
“Mommy, what would I ever do without you…Okay, I’ll do it. Why do you always lift my spirits up? Haha! Even if I’m not really sure about this, I’m doing it because you’re so positive about it..” Ann smiled as she gave her mom a hug.
Chapter 5
On the day of the show’s launch…
“Ann dear, you’re going to be the next one to be introduced, okay? Go get yourself ready and we’ll be seeing each other once you go out of the house, good luck dear!” Andrew said encouragingly as he ushered Ann into the backstage.
“Okay, tito. Thanks so much again, bye!”
While waiting for her turn to be introduced, Ann could not stop pacing back and forth because she was so nervous. As soon as she turned around to walk in the opposite direction, she bumped into another girl who was standing right behind her.
“Oops! I’m so sorry, I didn’t know you would be there…”Ann said.
“That’s okay, I just got here and so you wouldn’t have seen me earlier. My name’s Jenny by the way. What’s your name?” Jenny asked and smiled at her.
“Oh, it’s Ann. Nice to meet you Jenny.”
“Nice to meet you too, Ann. Now I know I’ll have at least 1 friend inside the house, we’re already friends, right?” Jenny smilingly asked again.
“Of course, we’re already friends. I’m actually relieved right now that I won’t have to do this introduction thing all by myself. We are going to be introduced together right? “
“Yes, we will be.” Jenny answered.
“Girls, Ann and Jenny, you’re both up next so come up on stage once your names are called, okay?” said one of the staff to them.
“Okay,” they both answered in unison.
Chapter 6
Once they were inside the house…
“Wow, that was something! Haha! I’ve never been that nervous in my whole life!” Ann told Jenny as they were walking towards the living room.
“Yeah, me too! Did you see those people? There were a lot of them and they were all looking at us. I didn’t even hear what the hosts were saying because the crowd was making too much noise. But Ann, you have to admit it was kind of fun, right?”
“Yeah, it was fun,” Ann readily agreed.
“ I wonder where the other housemates are? “ Jenny asked.
“Maybe they’re in the rooms? Oh wait, I hear voices. Yeah, I think they’re all in the living room…” Ann’s voice trailed as she saw the person she least expected she would ever see again. He was sitting on the sofa, chatting comfortably with another guy who looked very Caucasian. She felt her heart pound when she saw him smile for the first time…
“Ann? Did you hear me?” Jenny called her.
“What?” Ann answered.
“I said I think we’re the last ones to enter the house. They’re all already talking with each other. And, oh my…I see really cute guys…gosh…” Jenny said and silently giggled.
“Jenny…don’t be too obvious…but yeah, they are CUTE!” Ann agreed. She tried to keep her heart from beating fast, tried to act cool as they approached the people who were going to be her housemates.
“Hey guys, we have two more housemates! “ said a Chinese-looking girl who looked really hot in her tight fitting dress.
“Hello!” Ann and Jenny greeted.
“Hi! I’m Averil, from Hongkong. This here is Sofie, she’s from Korea Canada , Jacob and Ryan from Korea , Bret from USA and James from Australia
“Hello everyone, my name is Jenny and I’m from Korea Taiwan
“Hello, I’m Ann. Nice to meet you guys.” Ann said, fixing a wide smile on her face to hide her awkwardness as she felt James watching her.
“Do you guys already know each other even before this?” Bret asked Ann and Jenny.
“No, actually, we just saw and knew each other earlier, ” Ann answered. “Are you guys all from Manila
“My dad and I live at Makati but I’ve only been staying in the Philippines
Acting as cool as she can, “Oh no, I’m 15. Really, you’re 17? Dude, you look my age…” Ann answered James.
“No, YOU look MY age…” James rebutted.
“Really? Hah, cool…I never thought I could pass for a 17 year old, “ Ann said. Feeling a little at ease after a few exchange of words, Ann looked for a space to sit on the couch. Jenny easily found a space to sit between Ryan and Sofie and was already chatting with the two. Ann was about to sit at the end of the couch beside Jacob when James called her. “Ann, you can sit here, there’s still room for you…” he said and she saw that he pushed Bret a little to make space for her. Hesitantly, she went and sat between Bret and James. Trying to shake off the self-consciousness that she was feeling, she joined the group’s conversation on just about anything that came to mind.
“ So, what do you guys think of the other housemates, huh? The ones from the other house?” she asked.
“Well I only saw some of their faces really ‘coz they were introduced first and by the time it was my time to come up on the stage most of them were already inside the other house. But I saw this one girl, she looked pretty and I must say I loved her skin color,” Brett answered.
“Oh, does she have long hair and bangs too? And is she like, petite? I think you’re talking about my friend Rich!” Ann said excitedly and started talking about how she and Rich got to be on the same show.
“Hey guys, aren’t you hungry yet? Food’s ready, why don’t we all go eat now?” Jacob called them and so they went and proceeded to the dining room.
Late that night…
‘Hmm...this should be an interesting experience. She reminds me of Denise…’ James thought to himself while he was lying in his bed, toying with the bracelet his ex-girlfriend Denise gave him.
‘That audition day, I couldn’t help but look at her. She looks kind of like Denise but then she’s not. Maybe because they have the same hair and she’s Asian too. She’s very pretty too, and those eyes…I could just stare at those eyes for hours…good thing she speaks very good English, at least I won’t have to adjust…well, this might turn out to be an enjoyable summer for me after all..’ was James’ last thought before he fell asleep.
Chapter 7
After a week…
“ Guys we have to practice because we need to win the challenge!” Averil called.
“Averil’s right guys, we’ve already lost two challenges. We better win this or else we’d lose 2 slots AND we won’t have budget for this week.,” Jenny seconded.
“Ahh, I’m too lazy…” James jokingly said while lying on the couch, his head on Ann’s lap. He volunteered to have his eyebrows plucked because he could see Ann’s excitement over plucking Ryan’s eyebrows. While he was having his eyebrows plucked, he was cursing in pain on the inside but pretended that he’s cool with it just so Ann would continue what she was doing and he could just remain in that position, with her face so close to his.
“James…” Ann said. “Joking,” he smilingly replied and stood up to practice.
He waited for Ann to join him and they both went out to the garden. The next two days will be busy days for them as they have got to compete with the other house for slots and for their weekly budget. They had been divided into groups so each one had to participate and each one had a role to play. Larson, Averil and Jenny will play hula hoop, Ann and Sofie will play arm wrestling together with Ryan and Jacob, Bret and James will perform a presentation. If they win all the competitions tomorrow it would mean that 2 from their group will ultimately join two others from the other house in the show’s finale and they would also have their weekly budget. Losing even one of the competitions will mean none from their group will stay for the finale and they would have no budget for the next week.
James and Bret already knew how to perform their presentation and so they were pretty confident that they will do well. They both decided to play the guitar and sing since they both know how. After practicing their performance twice, they agreed to help the others practice.
“Hey Ann, what are you doing?” James asked as he approached her. “Dude, what do you think? I’m practicing,” she answered.
“But that’s not how you do it, you’d have a hard time bringing down your opponent’s arm. Come here, I’ll teach you how to do it right.”
“Really? Cool,” Ann said as she walked towards James who sat on the floor with a square pillow on his lap.
“Okay sit here, opposite me. Give me your hand. “ James said as he gently grasped Ann’s hand. “What you are going to do first is to pull your opponent’s hand close to you and then bring it down. Again, pull it closer to you, then bring it down.”
“Oh okay, I get it. But dude, isn’t this like, illegal?”
“No, it’s not. Once you pull her arm closer to you, your opponent will have a hard time bringing your arm down.”
“Oh, okay. Okay let’s do this, pretend you’re a girl, okay? One, two, three….” Ann counted as she tried to arm wrestle with James.
“That was easy, right?” James said after Ann easily beat him at their armwrestle.
“Yeah, it was easy. But this time, be serious. Okay ready, one, two, three….” Ann counted again.
‘Dang it! She really looks so cute…’ Smiling sheepishly, James thought to himself. ‘She has such soft hands too. The way her eyes light up whenever she gets excited, man, I could just drown in those eyes.’
After a few seconds of trying to pull James’ arm down with no success, Ann gave up. “I’m going to die!” she laughingly told James.
“No, you’re going to be fine. I’m a guy so of course I’m a lot stronger than you,” James assured her.
“Haha! Right! Dude let’s take a break, I think I spent all of my energy on that last one. Do you want Pops? I’ll go get us one…” Ann told James.
“I’ll go with you,” James answered.
‘It’s a good thing Ann has warmed up to me now. She’s not stiff anymore unlike before, her bubbly personality is showing. Funny thing, I don’t even think about Denise when I’m with Ann. Maybe I’ll just take this easy on her, let her think she and I are really just close friends, so she won’t shy away from me again.’ James was thinking to himself while they were walking towards the kitchen to grab some Pops.
It had been a year since James and Denise broke up. He had to leave Australia and be in the Philippines Philippines
Chapter 8
On the day of the competition…
“Guys, this is it! Let’s just give it our best today, okay? Win or lose, it doesn’t matter, but I know we’ll win because we got this..haha!” Bret said to cheer everyone up while they were getting ready to compete.
Larson, Jenny and Averil were the first ones to compete against a guy and two girls of the other house. Jenny and Averil won in the hula hoop competitions, Larson lost. Next it was Ann, Sofie, Jacob and Ryan’s turn for the arm wrestling competition. Ryan lost his game but Jacob and Sofie won theirs.
At last it was Ann’s turn to arm wrestle. She did not expect that Rich was the girl that she was going to arm wrestle with. This was the third time that she saw her friend since the show started. That first time that they saw each other, she saw Rich’s genuinely surprised expression. That surprised look turned into a questioning one. She so wanted to explain what happened and why she got in on the show but Andrew’s words kept popping in her mind. That day ended with them not speaking to each other.
The second time they saw each other, she noticed that Rich had gone cold on her. She wondered if it was because she didn’t give an explanation for her presence or if it was because of something else. She also noticed that Rich kept glancing at James and flipping her hair (which Rich only does when she likes someone). A few of Rich’s housemates teased her about James, which she didn’t object to. That day ended with Rich still ignoring her.
“Go Ann!” Jenny, Averil and Sofie cheered for Ann.
“Go Ann,” James said as well. Jenny, Sofie and Averil shared knowing looks while the housemates from the other house curiously looked at Rich.
As she was getting ready to arm wrestle, she noticed Rich glaring at her for a few seconds. Rich must have seen that she saw the glare and gave her a blank look instead. She tried to ask what was wrong but Rich continued to ignore her. Then the arm wrestling began, at first she was very nervous because she knew that Rich had strong arms and could very well beat her in this game. Two minutes have passed and she could still not bring Rich’s arm down. Her strength was slowly draining and she could feel her arm going down….
“Ann, remember what I taught you? Do it, it would be easier…go Ann!” James cheered and stood up in his suspense while all of their other housemates continued to cheer her on.
‘Right, pull it closer and bring it down…pull it closer, bring it down…pull it closer…bring it down…’ Ann chanted in her mind while using all of her strength to pull Rich’s arm close to her and bring it down. After just a few seconds, she could feel Rich’s arm slowly giving away and a burst of adrenaline shot through her. In less than a minute, she brought Rich’s arm down successfully.
“Yes! Hahaha, I did it! I WON!” she shouted and jumped excitedly after their arm wrestle. She momentarily forgot Rich in her excitement but after a few minutes, she calmed down and just fixed a smile on her face in respect for Rich.
She was about to shake Rich’s hand as a show of sportsmanship but Rich turned around and walked back to her team. There was nothing else that she could do so she silently walked back to her own team. No one noticed the tension between the two girls for they were all caught up in the competition.
After a few hours of rest, It was now Bret and James’ turn to compete. They were going to perform Jack Johnson’s “Better Together” with their guitars. The other house was going to perform a Filipino song, with a female housemate as the lead vocalist. They were the first to perform and they did it well, however at the last part of the song, the female lead forgot the lyrics and just ended up humming the tune instead.
When it was Bret and James’ turn, everyone got quiet. Ann wondered if it was because they were all into the performance or if the girls were just dumbstruck by two gorgeous boys playing the guitar and singing in perfect tune. The rest boys were out of words as well. Ann was feeling really proud of James because he played the guitar and sang so well. She never thought that he was that good. The James everyone knew was mischievous, lazy, sarcastic and seemingly without a care in the world. She was just discovering this side of James, the side that sang from the heart. The side that showed so much sincerity through his song. She was smiling the whole time until the song was done and she couldn’t help but stand up and clap after the two performed. Both boys said their thanks and went back to their group. For a few seconds, James and Ann stared at each other and no one else mattered. They both felt so happy inside for no particular reason. When they looked into each other’s eyes, they just knew that they felt the same. They were both especially happy with each other.
Chapter 9
The contest was no contest at all.
Their house got a unanimous victory on all three competitions and so they were now guaranteed two slots in the show’s finale. They also had the right to buy whatever food they wanted for the whole week. The group decided that they would celebrate by throwing a pool party that night.
Ann and the rest of the girls were preparing food for their party when the girls were called in to the admission room, except for her. Left alone, she decided to continue peeling the potatoes set aside by Jenny. They were supposed to fry those but since she didn’t know how to cook, she just peeled the remaining potatoes and sliced the remaining ingredients for the barbecue and pasta they were making.
“So you’ve just been here all along? “
Ann literally jumped to her feet in surprise when James came up behind her back and spoke close to her ear. She didn’t notice him because she was so engrossed with peeling a particularly large potato.
“James! What the hell? You scared me dude!”
“What? I just asked you a question,” James silently laughed at her spooked expression.
“That’s ‘coz you intentionally spooked me!”
“Of course not, haha! Anyway, what are you doing?”
“I’m helping prepare our food, I’m peeling these potatoes ‘coz we’re making fries.”
“You’ve peeled a lot already, go cook those potatoes now.”
“Dude, I don’t know how to cook. I’ll just burn these.”
“Aw…it’s easy. Okay, I’m going to start frying these potatoes and you can watch me do it the first time so that you can do the rest later.”
“Really? Okay, but what about the guys, what were you doing with them earlier? They might be looking for you.”
“Nah, they’re just lazing around. I kind of got bored. Anyway, would you hand me those potatoes? The oil’s hot enough, we can start frying.”
“Sure thing.”
‘I could get used to this…He doesn’t seem to mind that I know next to nothing with chores. He’s so easy to get along with, and to think I considered him to be a snob. He has a gentle side that he rarely shows to everyone. It’s a good thing that he has become really comfortable with me because I get to see the sweet things he is capable of and the soft side he rarely shows to everyone. Everyday, as I know him more, I find myself being drawn to him and I can’t help it. I should stop it though. I can’t feel more than what I’m already feeling right now. I’d just end up being hurt. I’m just a friend to him, nothing more than that.’ Ann thought to herself as she silently helped and watched James fry the potatoes. They worked in comfortable silence.
In more than a week inside the house, they had become so comfortable with each other that they can stay in each other’s company for hours without having a steady conversation. Sometimes, James would automatically rest his head on her lap and she would absently stroke his hair. Other times Ann would rest her head on James’ lap and he would automatically rest him arm on her side. Then there were times when Ann would rest her head on James’ shoulder and James would also rest his head on hers.
These unconscious gestures were drawing the other housemates’ attention towards them. However, not one of them wanted to tease. They each could feel that there is something going on between Ann and James but they could not say it out loud. They would just silently watch the two and then look at each other, speculating.
“Guys, what do you think is going on between those two?” Jenny asked Averil.
“You know, I think they have feelings for each other. In fact, I’m pretty sure they DO HAVE feelings for each other” Averil whisperingly said.
“But how come Ann doesn’t talk about James all the time? Not even in a romantic way? I mean, yeah, she does mention James in our conversations but not even once have I heard her say she LIKES him,” Sofie butted in as well.
“Yeah, I noticed it too. I mean, I’m closest to her right? And we sleep together but I did not once hear her say that she has a crush on James. I don’t know, but the way they act around each other is different with the way they act around us,” Jenny said.
“Girls, maybe they just want to keep it to themselves for now. Or maybe they are just friends, friends who secretly care for each other. Haha! How cute is that?” Averil answered.
“Yeah, let’s just let them have their moments, haha!” Jenny joked as well.
Chapter 10
The morning after the pool party…
”Guys, listen up. The reason we were called in to the Admission Room yesterday is because we were instructed to inform you that later today we will be moving in with the other group. We will be living in their house for the rest of our stay here in the show, so you better start packing now because we will be moving out later.” Sofie told the group.
“But, I thought we were going to be competing against each other the whole time? Why are we moving in with them?” Ann asked.
“I think this is some kind of a twist that they’re creating for the show. Guys, always remember that we are a team ok? Even if we are going to be living together we might still be competing against them…” Bret told them.
“Yeah, but it’s okay to make friends with them though…” Jacob added.
“And also later guys, we will be nominating three people to be out of the house. That will be for each house so the other group will be nominating people from their team as well…”Jenny added.
“Really? But I don’t want to nominate any from us guys, can we nominate people from the other house instead? Haha!” Ryan joked.
“Yeah, let’s nominate all the boys from the other house so we can have all the girls to ourselves!” Larson joined.
“Oh Larson, I didn’t know you liked someone from the other house, ayeeee!” Bret teased him.
“Stop teasing man, haha! But seriously, all the girls there are cute. Not that you’re not cute girls but were family so where’s the challenge, right? “
“That’s okay Larson, we totally understand. So, who’s the lucky girl then?” Ann answered.
“Rich is really pretty. “ Larson smilingly answered.
“Yeah, she’s hot man! James, you agree with me on that, right?” Bret asked James.
“Yeah, she is pretty. But what I like about her is her skin color. Color like that is rarely seen in Australia
“Really? I didn’t know you like her. Later I’m going to introduce you both. I told you she’s my friend remember?” Ann asked.
“Well, she’s pretty…”James agreed. He did like dark-skinned girls but that had always been something that he never took seriously. Both of his ex-girlfriends were not dark-skinned. In fact, they were both really fair-skinned. What drew him first to those girls were their eyes. He liked girls with chinky eyes more than girls who were exotic looking. That is what he had always wanted to tell Ann. He so wanted to tell her how beautiful her eyes are. She always wore contacts because she couldn’t see without them. She told him she had eyeglasses but didn’t like to wear them because it makes her look geeky. It always fascinates him when her eyes are blue. But he also loved it when she just wore the colorless ones where he could look at her naturally light brown eyes.
“So, are you excited to move in to the other house?” Ann asked him. Both of them were just lying on the same hammock, eating chips. The other housemates were either lazing around on the big round couch, chatting with each other or sleeping.
“It’s cool, I guess. So tell me, how did you and Rich become friends? Have you already been friends since you were little? Is she also 15 like you?” James asked her.
“She’s the same age as you, 17. Well, Rich and I knew each other years before. We’re neighbors you see. She was the only one who befriended me when we first moved to the Philippines
“So, is she your best friend?”
“Well, she’s one of the closest friends that I have. My best friends, Lila and Chris, now those guys are two of the most awesome people that I know. They’re just the best, really. Awww, I miss them…” Ann smiled to herself while remembering her best friends.
“So, Rich and your best friends don’t hang out together?” James asked again.
“Sometimes we do. Don’t get me wrong, we’re all really close. It’s just that, two years ago, we had a falling out and she chose to hang out with a different set of friends. We’re all good now though…”
“What happened?”
“Oh, it’s a long story…I’ll just bore you with it… Dude, I think they’re calling us. Let’s go join them,” Ann answered.
James could sense that she was trying to evade the question. He didn’t try and press the question again. However, he was left wondering as to what happened between Rich and Ann two years ago.
Chapter 11
After Nomination…
“Dude that was hard,” Bret broke the silence in the room.
Most of them were very quiet, silently contemplating the result of the nomination. Each one of them did not want to be nominated but in the end, four people got the highest number of votes and eventually, three would leave the house the day after tomorrow.
James was one of the people who were nominated. Along with him are Larson, Averil and Jacob. He did not know the reasons behind his nomination but that didn’t matter to him. What he feels sad about is the fact that if he left the house, he might never see Ann again. Things will be different once they’re all outside, there will be a lot of other people and she had a different set of friends. He on the other hand, had very few friends in the Philippines
If ever he does go out, he will really miss Ann. So far, she has been the only one who has been really patient with him. She accepted his laziness, his sarcasms, and she wasn’t pushy at all. She is one of the very few people who can still understand him even when he gets really excited. His accent becomes thicker when he gets excited and then he talks really fast which make it a lot harder for people to understand what he is saying. Although she can be bossy sometimes, he found her bossiness cute and unoffending. She didn’t flirt with him or with the other boys, she was just naturally sweet and caring. He wanted to spend more time with her and he feels sad that there might be no more time for that.
“Hey dude, you want to go outside and have some pops?” Ann said as she sat beside him on the hammock.
“Yeah, let’s go grab some pops…” He agreed and stood up. He pulled Ann to her feet and they both went to get some Pops and then went outside.
“Guys, wait up! I’m going with you,” Jenny called behind them.
“So, what do you think is going to happen tomorrow?” Ann asked Jenny.
“I think once we live together at the other house, the competition between our group and theirs will end. I think we’ll be given individual challenges…” Jenny answered.
“Yeah, that could be possible. Or we could be challenged as one group and the prize will be a really good one…” James added.
“Yeah, I wonder what would be a good prize for a group though…” Ann asked to herself.
“A Boracay adventure would be a good one! Really guys, I have never been to Bora in all the years that I’ve stayed here in the Philippines
“Oh yeah, Bora would be really fun right?” Ann said to Jenny and James. “Guys let’s go to Bora after this okay? Let’s make it a reunion!”
“I don’t know if we’d all still see each other after this. Things will be different outside. I might have to go home on the next day and I don’t know what will happen after that.” James told Ann and Jenny.
“Oh James, don’t say that. Of course we’ll still see each other outside,” Jenny said to cheer him up.
“Maybe…I hope so,” he said and looked at Ann. Ann was already looking at him and for a few seconds their eyes met. Ann saw sadness in James’ eyes and she couldn’t help but feel sad too. She looked away and in a gesture of comfort, rested her head on James’ shoulder.
Chapter 12
On the day of the eviction…
“Hey James! Won’t you come and join us?” Rich called Him. He was about to sit on one of the benches near the pool when he heard Rich’s voice. She and another girl housemate were already on the pool, swimming.
Ann had already introduced them yesterday. Rich was friendly enough and she was nice too. What he found a little amusing is that even before they were introduced, he already felt that Rich liked him. Now that they live together, Rich always seemed to want to be in his company to the point that he couldn’t spend time alone with Ann anymore.
Another thing he noticed between the two girls is their awkwardness around each other. Although Rich talks to her, he sensed a certain coldness in the way she acts around Ann. Ann on the other side, always tries to engage Rich in a conversation but ends up with only a few sentences from her. He wondered if the two girls fought before they entered the show.
“Yeah, I’ll be diving in in a minute,” He answered Rich. He waited for Ann to come outside so he could ask her to go swimming with him. After a couple of minutes and Ann still had not gone out, he decided to look for her inside.
He found her in the kitchen with John, a housemate from Rich’s group. James thought that John was a little too handsome for his own good and he noticed that he was especially nice to Ann. She looked like she was enjoying herself while helping him cook. He felt a tinge of jealousy at seeing those two laughing.
“Ann, let’s go swimming.”
“You go ahead dude, I’ll just help here.”
“Dude, you’ll just do more damage than help. You don’t know how to cook remember?” James wanted to punch himself after saying that. He wasn’t able to stop himself from saying it. For a seconds he saw Ann’s hurt expression after what he just said.
“James, was there really a need for you to say that? Geez!” Ann retorted.
James wanted to apologize but Ann turned her back on him and went back to helping John cook.
“Fine! I’ll go swimming by myself then,” and he walked away in a bad mood.
Chapter 13
For most of the day, James and Ann were not talking to each other. Ann intentionally avoided speaking to him and he pretended he was enjoying himself with Rich. The truth was, they both were already missing each other. Especially for James, who was thinking that he might be leaving tonight, he felt the need to talk to Ann one last time. After he was done packing, he was contemplating on how to approach her. When he went outside of the room, he saw Ann alone in the living room. She was fixing her hair, in front of the mirror, as always. She looked very pretty in the yellow dress she wore. In fact, she always looked pretty with whatever she wore.
“Ann?” he said as he approached her.
“Yes, James?” she answered.
“Nothing,”
“Yeah right,” Ann retorted coldly.
“Seriously dude, I’m leaving tonight and that’s how you treat me?” James pretended to be hurt.
“Aww, James…” Ann looked at him and gave him a sad smile.
“Now, that’s better. Seriously, let’s not fight okay? It feels weird to not be talking to you for almost a day. I’m not used to it.” James said as he pulled Ann down to sit beside him. They were still the only ones present in the living room where the evictees will be announced.
“And who’s fault is that, might I ask?” Ann said to him.
“Fine, it’s my fault. I’m sorry for being mean earlier. I shouldn’t have said what I said.”
“Apology accepted! You’re officially back on the list of my best friends,” Ann smiled back at him as she told him that.
“Thank goodness, I can happily die now,” He answered sarcastically.
“Haha! No you can’t die yet, we still have to go to Bora when the show ends remember?”
At the thought of leaving the house, James’ smile turned into a sad one. Ann noticed his expression change and so she just took his hand and entwined her fingers with his. James looked at their clasped hands and he suddenly had an idea. He removed the bracelet from his hand and slipped it in Ann’s.
“Dude, are you giving me this?” referring to the bracelet.
“No, I’m just lending it to you so you have to give this back after the show ends.”
“But this is so important to you, you never take this off…”
“That’s why it’s just a loan. Wear this while you’re still inside the house so you won’t forget me. Then let’s meet up once you go outside, is that cool?”
“Okay. Really dude, I’m touched that you’re lending me this,” Ann said and just kept looking at him with wonder in her eyes. He just smiled at her and squeezed her hand tight.
Chapter 14
After the eviction…
“Guys, I’m going to miss those three. Promise me we’ll still be friends even if we’re not on the show anymore,” Jenny told everyone of them on the team.
“Of course, Jenny. We’ll always be friends after this. Who knows, we might get to hang out every weekend, throw parties together, wouldn’t that be fun?” Ann said to all of them.
James was just listening and not joining in on the conversation. In truth, he felt happy and sad. He felt sad for Larson, Jacob and Averil who were evicted but he was also really happy that he got to stay. He was still remembering the hug Ann gave him earlier after learning that he was not evicted. That was the first hug she gave him. It warmed his heart that she was so happy that she hugged him so tight.
“Why so quiet, James?” Ryan asked him.
“I’m just sad and happy, that’s all…”
Their group was told to stay at the boy’s room and the other group was told to stay at the girl’s room. They were informed that even if they were already living in the same house, the competitions against the two group will still continue. Both groups now had to plan for the next challenge.
Instead of planning though, they all lay on one bed and continued chatting about the events of the eviction and who might be the next set of nominees. Because of the bond that had already been formed within their group, not one of them found it awkward or inappropriate to lie beside each other on one bed. After a few minutes of silence, Ann stood up from the bed, ran to the other end of the room and ran back, launching herself to the people who were all lying on the bed. “Guys, group hug!” she exclaimed happily. She landed squarely on James who automatically put both of his arms around Ann. Nobody teased them about those seemingly automatic gestures because they had gotten used to it. They all ended up laughing at Ann’s childlike gestures then Jenny stood up and jumped in as well, “Me too, group hug!” She landed above Ann,
“Ouch Jenny, it hurts!” Ann said laughingly.
“Ouch Jenny, it hurts!” Ann said laughingly.
Jenny still continued to laugh and wiggle above Ann who was also laughingly screaming. “Jenny, you have to realize that you’re actually pretty heavy…” James told Jenny a little seriously while trying to protect Ann with his arms. “Oh, I’m so sorry James, okay I won’t move” but still kept on laughing above Ann.
“Jenny, go sit on Bret’s lap,” James seriously said after a few seconds. Jenny immediately stopped laughing and moved to squeeze herself between James and Bret instead. Ryan, Jenny, Bret and Sofie just looked at each other and smiled knowingly. Ann was still quietly laying on James, feeling so relaxed and comfortable that she didn’t notice the knowing looks their housemates were giving them. James’ arms were still laying protectively on Ann’s back. For a couple of minutes, they just lay like that, not moving but very comfortable with each other, each lost in his own thoughts about what will happen to each one of them after the show ends.
Chapter 15
Over the next week the housemates all got busy competing in the challenges that they were given. Rich’s group only won once while Ann and James’ group won two more challenges over the other group. They were also slowly becoming accustomed to living in the new house as well as making friends with their new housemates. At the end of the week two more housemates left and this time, it was Sofie who was evicted from their group.
The friendship that James and Ann have continued to blossom with each day that they spent together. However, Rich’s obvious attraction for James often prevented Ann from spending too much time with James alone. She didn’t want to aggravate the negative feelings that Rich had towards her. She guessed that her unusual closeness with James was the reason behind it. James, on the other hand, always made the effort to spend time alone with Ann even if it was only for a couple of minutes everyday. Sometimes it annoys him that Ann shies away from him every time Rich was with them, but he understood Ann’s reason behind it. Her unselfishness made her even more endearing to him. He knew that she thought of him as a best friend and that Rich likes him and so she is making the effort to bring the two of them together.
‘If only she knew that I like her more than just a friend. If only she likes me as much as I like her…’ James thought to himself. He was sitting on a bench on the poolside, absently strumming the guitar that he was playing while watching Ann with the other housemates swimming on the pool.
“Hey James, won’t you join them?” Rich asked as she sat beside him on the bench.
“No, it’s okay. I’m not in the mood for swimming anyway,” James answered.
“Okay, let me just keep you company then.”
“Cool.”
“What song are you playing?”
“It’s a song by Jack Johnson, it’s called ‘Angel’”
“Is that your favorite song? Or is it a song for someone special?” Rich asked and smiled sweetly at James.
“Yeah, something like that,” he answered as he kept on strumming the guitar.
“Can you sing it for me? Please? Pretty please?” Rich asked again, with a sweet, pleading look on her face.
James just smiled at her and continued to strum his guitar.
“She’s that special huh? The song’s only for her?”
“How do you know that the person is a ‘she’?” James smilingly asked.
“How else? A guy only dedicates a love song for a girl…unless of course you are gay, which I’m sure you’re not. Haha!”
“Good thinking…”
“Okay, how about a massage in exchange for a song? I’m good at massages…” Rich said invitingly.
“Hmmm…….Okay, deal…” James said as he started to play and sing ‘Banana Pancakes’ for Rich.
Chapter 16
‘What is he doing lying on Rich’s bed?’ Ann thought to herself when she saw James lying comfortably on Rich’s bed while Rich massaged his back. She was about to change her clothes when she walked in on them. Pretending not to care, she greeted the two and grabbed a change of clothes before going out of the room. She immediately went to the bathroom to bathe and change. ‘Damn, this is just so hard! Why did I have to like him? Why does he have to be such a jerk? Oh wait, no, he’s not a jerk, I’m the one who’s overreacting. I’m not his girlfriend so why should he care if I’m hurt or not? Besides, I already know he likes Rich. Too bad for me I don’t look exotic, just another Asian girl…’ she thought to herself.
When she was sure that she was calm enough, she went out of the bathroom and went back into the girl’s bedroom where again she saw James and Rich still on the bed. This time, James’ head was resting on Rich’s lap and Rich was massaging his head. Wanting to leave yet wanting to stay even more, she sat at the foot of Rich’s bed. James remained in the same position while still just watching her.
“Hey guys, you want to go outside and join the others? The food is going to be done in a couple of minutes anyway…” Ann said, looking at James.
“We’ll just stay here for a while. Besides, Rich isn’t done massaging my head yet.” James answered, feeling a little guilty for ignoring Ann. He saw something in Ann’s eyes which made him think she might be jealous. This led him to decide to stay a little longer on Rich’s lap. At that moment, an idea popped into his mind. ‘Why don’t I try and see if she’ll get jealous. Maybe she likes me too, even just a little. Maybe all it takes for her to realize it is a little prodding…’James thought to himself.
“Oh, okay. I’ll just stay here with you guys then,” Ann said. She saw Rich’s annoyed expression for a second before it was replaced with a smile. She knew Rich didn’t like her staying with them but she just couldn’t let them stay in the room, with just the two of them. Maybe it was pure jealousy on her part.
Chapter 17
Over the next few days, James became especially close to Rich for the same reason that he wanted to see if Ann would get jealous. It didn’t escape his attention that Rich has also become a bit possessive and more demanding of his time. Sometimes he gets annoyed by it but he knows that he is partly to blame for Rich’s actions. He knew it was wrong to give Rich false hopes but he just couldn’t help himself from making Ann jealous. He noticed that when he got unusually touchy with Rich or especially sweet to her, Ann would immediately be close to where Rich and Him was. She would not join them, but she would always be nearby, as if guarding the two of them. Also, it was a boost to his ego to have someone at his beck and call, and that was Rich. She fed the chauvinistic side of him. He knew he had to stop before Rich really got hurt and he promised himself he would stop as soon as he was sure Ann did feel something for him.
One day, after Rich gave him a massage, he excused himself and went into the boys bedroom, where Bret and Ryan were playing chess. After a few minutes, Ann went inside the bedroom and went straight to lie on his bed beside him, asking him to massage her arm. He guessed it was just her excuse because after he massaged her hand for a few minutes, he stopped but she never moved away from his side. She just stayed there with him, chatting with Bret and Ryan who were both sitting on the other bed. It warmed his heart that Ann did that because rarely does she do things like that. It had always been him who makes the effort to spend time with her. Even when Jenny called her, Ann didn’t leave the bed. She seemed so content just by being beside him. This made him decide to stop flirting with Rich.
Tonight would be another nomination night for them. Four people will be leaving the house two days after nomination and two of those people will be coming from their group. The show’s finale is fast approaching and by the end of next week, only 4 people will be left inside the house. One will eventually be announced the winner but James didn’t care about that. He wasn’t even expecting to be one of the 4 people to be staying for the show’s finale. He was already happy with the experiences he has had so far but most especially for having met and known Ann. Though still unsure of her feelings for him, he was content to take it a day at a time with her, knowing that they would still see each other even when the show ends. He was hopeful that eventually they would be more than friends in the future. When that day comes, he would be one of the happiest guys on Earth.
Chapter 18
After Nomination night…
“Hey, are you okay?” James asked Ann as he sat beside her on the poolside.
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” Ann answered.
“Because you have been nominated. I’m just a little worried that you’re taking it badly.”
“Well, I am a little sad that some people think I should be one of the people to leave the house but there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s their decision. Did you vote for me?” Ann said jokingly.
“That’s a bad joke…not even the tiniest bit funny,” James answered, feigning a hurt look on his face.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. Of course I’m sure you wouldn’t vote for me, I’m your best friend remember?”
James just smiled at her as he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to him. Ann rested her head on his shoulder and he rested his head on hers. They just sat their for a long time, not saying anything and just content to be in each others presence while lost in their own thoughts.
‘Am I really just a best friend, Ann?’ He so wanted to say it but just could not summon the courage to ask her.
‘I wish I were more than just a best friend to you, James…’ Ann wished in her mind. It hurt to think that once the show is over, James would get to meet other girls and he would fall in love with one of them. James would be happily in love while she will just be watching in the side lines, silently hurt but pretending to be happy for him. Sometimes, when she sees him together with Rich, she gets tempted to just tell him that she likes him but in the end she always stops herself from doing it.
“Wait, I’ll just get the guitar. Don’t go inside, just wait here for me,” James told Ann.
“Okay, but could you grab me some Pops as well?”
“Sure thing,” James said as he went inside to get the guitar and get Ann some Pops.
“Here you go,” He said, handing the ice cream to Ann and sitting back beside her.
“Thank you, you’re so kind,” Ann said and smiled sweetly at him.
“Yeah right,” He answered sarcastically. “Hey, do you know the song ‘Lucky’?” He asked her.
“Lucky? I think I’ve heard of that song…”
James started playing the chords of the song and began singing the first stanza. “Oh yeah, I know that song! I only know how to sing the chorus though…” Ann exclaimed.
“Then sing the chorus with me, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll try my best to remember the lines, haha!”
James continued to play and sing the song. When he came to the chorus, he looked at Ann, silently telling her to sing with him.
Lucky I’m in love with my best friend,
Lucky to have been where I have been
Lucky to be coming home again.
Lucky we’re in love in every way
Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed,
Lucky to be coming home someday.
Hmmm….Hmmm….
Ann stopped singing, fully understanding the meaning of the song’s chorus. She suddenly looked at James, who was still looking at her while singing the song. For a few minutes they just stared at each other, with Ann listening to James singing the song for her.
Chapter 19
On the day of the eviction…
“James, let’s go swim,” Ann asked James that morning after breakfast.
“Yeah, sure. I’ll just change,” James answered and went into the room to change.
Ann was already waiting for him in the pool so he dove in after a few minutes. The rest of the housemates were still having breakfast or busy exercising and so it was just the two of them on the pool. Swimming was something they both really enjoyed doing together. He was a swimmer himself and so he loved being in the water. It always amazed him to see Ann swimming gracefully. She always wanted to race with him and he always let her win. Of course she wouldn’t win if he really put all his focus into the race but he always loved to see Ann happy when she wins. When they both got tired of racing, they just sat and stayed on the edge of the pool.
“James, will you be going back to Australia after this?” Ann asked him.
“Honestly, I don’t know. What I know for sure is that I’ll be staying here as long as my father is here.”
“But don’t you miss Australia? Your friends there? Your siblings? Your girlfriend…”
“Hmmm…fishing, are we? Haha!”
“No, I’m just asking…” Ann said defensively.
“Yeah, right. Haha!”
“Whatever, James!” Ann laughed and splashed his face with water.
“Okay, stop. Haha! I’m just joking. Honestly? Yeah, of course I miss my friends there. As for my brothers and sisters, they can always come visit Dad and me so it’s really no big deal. Plus, I’m home-schooled so there’s really nothing much to worry about.”
“You’re home-schooled? I’m home-schooled too! Wow, what a coincidence. Wait, that would mean we would have a lot of time to hang-out, party, or even go to Boracay or to other places. I’m going to introduce you to my friends. Oh, I’m so excited already!”
Ann’s excitement was so infectious he couldn’t help himself from grinning at her. She looked so child-like whenever she got so excited. What he found most amusing was the way she talked when she got excited. She’d talk so fast one can barely understand a word she said. When she starts to laugh so hard, she’d start slapping her hands on whatever surface it lands on or keep banging her head on his shoulder, a gesture that sometimes hurt his shoulder but nonetheless he found amusing.
“Ann, you need to go to the Admission room, “ Rich called her.
“Oh, okay. I’ll be there in a minute. See you later,” She told James as she got out of the pool and went inside.
James stayed in the pool a couple of minutes more before deciding to shower and change. He was about to go inside when Rich went out, already in her swimsuit, intending to swim.
“Hey James, don’t stop just yet. I’m going to go swimming too.”
“Well…okay,” He dove back into the pool.
After swimming a few laps, James sat back on the edge of the pool. After a few minutes, Rich sat next to him.
“ So, are you and Ann a couple?” Rich asked him.
“No. What made you say that?”
“Just wondering. You too seem really close. You look good together, by the way.”
“Really? Thanks. But no, we’re really just friends. We’re really comfortable with each other though. She told me you two are neighbors, and close friends as well.”
“Yeah, we are. We used to be best friends, but something happened. We are still close friends though.”
“Mind telling me what happened?”
“Oh well, it’s a long story. That was two years ago, I got over it. It looks like she got over it as well. And she’s changed, I believe, so let’s not talk about it.”
“Was it that bad? And what do you mean she’s changed?”
“Well, let’s just say that two years ago, she did something that really hurt me. Let’s leave it at that. “ Rich said and swam to the other side of the pool, leaving him thinking and wondering what could have happened between them two years ago.
Chapter 20
After the Eviction…
“I’m really going to miss Jenny, and Bret too…” Ann said as she squeezed herself between James and Ryan on the bed. The rest of the housemates were called to the Admission room so it was just the three of them inside the boy’s room. She felt sad because she won’t have Jenny to talk to anymore. Aside from James, Jenny was the closest person to her inside the house. She could talk about anything to Jenny, even her feelings for James. They promised each other that no one but the two of them will know about her secret.
“Awww…please cry…” James joked as he hugged her tight to comfort her. Ryan hugged her as well so she hugged both of them too.
“Ryan, go get Ann some Pops.” James told Ryan.
“Aw, you do it James,” Ryan told James.
“Not me, Ann needs me. Can’t you see? She’s sad, she needs ice cream to cheer her up.”
“Okay, but I’m doing this for Ann, not for you..” Ryan joked and went out of the room.
“Aw, James, you’re so mean…” Ann said to James.
“Yeah, I’m sooo mean…” James joked while still hugging Ann.
“Seriously James, I feel bad that Jenny got evicted. And Bret too,”
“Don’t feel bad about it. We’ll all eventually be evicted anyway. It just so happened that they went out earlier than us. Plus, you promised Jenny we’d all go to Boracay after this, remember?”
“Yeah, I did promise her. You have to promise me as well.”
“Do I need to promise that? For sure that’s going to happen, we’ll have lots of time hanging out together remember? By the way, what’s the reason why you’re home-schooled?”
James felt Ann stiffen in his arms. He felt the tension in her body when he asked her that.
“Well, I had some problems with school two years ago. Plus, home school is way more fun. I can do all the other stuff that I like. I can practice my skating, go to parties with my friends and I still get to learn school stuff. What about you? Why are you home-schooled? “ She asked back.
“I had trouble coping up with regular school here. Dad decided I should just enroll in a special education program. I plan to go back to regular school once I’ve adjusted to everything here.”
“Oh, cool. Me too, I’m planning to go back to regular school once I finish high school. Maybe we can go to the same school too?”
“Yeah, maybe. That would be cool,” James answered. Ryan came back to the room bringing the Pops James asked him to get. The three of them switched to the regular joking conversation they always have whenever Ryan was with them but at the back of his mind, James kept thinking about Ann’s reaction when he asked her about being home-schooled.
Chapter 21
“I can’t believe we are going to have another eviction today! I thought it was going to be next week!” Ann exclaimed after learning about the eviction news.
“The show must be really nearing it’s end. Next week, there will only be 4 people left here. Who knows, you might be one of them.”
“Oh, I don’t know James. That depends on the supporters now. Honestly, I don’t think I’d have that much supporters as you and Ryan have. I don’t think I’m that interesting to watch unlike Ryan and you.”
“What makes you think I’m interesting?” James asked her.
“Dude! Do you really have to ask that? You’re so good-looking girls stare at you all the time. Plus, your Aussie accent makes you hot. And you’re so good with music, blah, blah,blah…I could just go on and on…” Ann told him.
“Really, you find me handsome and hot?” James asked her with disbelieving eyes. He was so surprised with what he heard from Ann. Not once did he ever consider Ann finding him ‘hot’.
“Of course, I do. You are ‘hot’ despite the fact that you’re so thin, haha!”
“Hmmm.. Now that’s a revelation. So tell me, if you find me hot, why didn’t you hit on me? You can still flirt with me you know,” James joked.
“So what? So you can turn all sarcastic on me? Hah! No way dude…” Ann answered back to him.
“Aww…I’d never do that to you, haha! But seriously Ann…uhm…if ever I did flirt with you, would you flirt back?” James blurted out. ‘This is it, there’s no turning back now,’ he thought to himself.
“What do you mean?”
“Well…like…if I told you I like you…uhm…would you still want to be friends with me?”
Ann didn’t know how to answer him. She was so caught off-guard by his question. She did not expect him to be asking her these questions.
“Well, yeah, I guess so. There’s nothing wrong with it, right?” She answered after a few seconds.
“So if I did tell you I like you right now, you’ll not get angry at me?” James asked.
“Dude, seriously, what’s up with you. Are you playing?” Ann asked him, her heart was beating so fast she had to tell herself to calm down.
“No, I’m serious. I really do like you, even before you went inside the house. That day when we first saw each other, I already found you cute and really pretty.”
“Shut up dude! Haha! Okay, I get it, you’re just trying to distract me from the eviction thing,”
“Okay, fine. Whatever. Let’s just go inside and join them.” James said, feeling a little hurt.
Ann saw the hurt on James’ face and she realized that he was telling her the truth. “Wait, James…I’m sorry, I didn’t take you seriously. Can we stay here a little longer?”
“Sure, whatever you say.” James said after a few minutes.
They both just sat there, sitting beside each other but not talking. For a couple of minutes it felt awkward to be sitting next to each other. Finally, Ann looked at James and asked him,
“What do you like about me, James?”
“A lot.” James answered hesitantly.
“ Yeah, that answer says a lot, haha!” Ann joked, just to hide everything that she was feeling inside.
“No really Ann, what’s there not to like about you? You’re very pretty, you have gorgeous eyes. You look hot in a swimsuit. You’re sweet, you’re nice…do you want me to go on and on?”
“No, stop…” Ann said, her face turning all red.
“You’re blushing, that’s so cute…” James laughed when he saw Ann’s face.
“Now you’re making fun of me!”
“No I’m not! Honestly you really do look cute whenever you’re excited, or become embarrassed… I find it really cute. So, does that mean we’re still best friends even though I told you I like you?”
“Of course.” Ann answered. There was silence for a few minutes again and then suddenly, James grabbed her hand and held it to his. She was so happy she felt like shouting her heart out and laughing out loud. Instead, she turned to look at James, smiled ever so sweetly and said,
“James, do you want to know a secret?”
James looked back at her, smiling at the twinkle he saw on Ann’s smiling eyes. “Yeah. What’s the secret?”
“I also like you. A LOT. “ Having said that, she kissed James on the cheek and walked hurriedly inside the house and went into the girls bedroom, leaving James speechless with an utterly surprised expression on his face.
Chapter 22
The morning after…
James could not wait to see Ann. He was so excited to talk and clear things up with her. The events of last night were still so fresh in his mind that he just couldn’t keep himself from smiling every time he thought about it. Last night he never got the chance to talk to Ann again because Rich kept monopolizing his time and Ann got called to the Admission room. They were not even able to say goodnight to each other.
He waited for Ann before sitting down to have breakfast. As soon as he saw her go out of their room and head towards the kitchen, he immediately walked towards her and walked by her side.
“Good morning,” He smilingly greeted her.
“Good morning,” Ann said. She couldn’t look him in the eyes. She felt awkward because of what she did last night. She shouldn’t have kissed him but she couldn’t help herself. Now she was having trouble acting normal around him.
James sensed that Ann was uneasy around him. He guessed that it must be because of what happened last night. He decided to just keep things cool for now, until Ann once again relaxes back in his presence.
“Let’s go eat breakfast,” He told her.
“Yeah, I’m kind of hungry already.” Ann answered.
They ate silently together with all the other housemates. Ann was thankful James did not bring up anything about last night. The awkward feeling was slowly ebbing away from her and she was starting to relax around him again. While they were eating, James stood up to get some juice for her like he always does every time they eat breakfast. He does not get another one for himself because Ann shares her juice with him anyway. She even shares her banana with him.
Unnoticed by both of them, Rich was observing everything that was happening. She was fuming inside because of all the attention that Ann was getting from James. She felt that she should be the one sharing everything with him because after all, she was always there to please him. All those massages, the conversations she had with him (which bored her) and everything she did, all of those were to get him to like her. Sometimes she could feel that she was already succeeding but whenever Ann comes into the picture James’ attention shifts back to her. She could feel everything was happening like it happened two years ago. She lost that one to Ann but damn if she will let anything get in her way of winning this time.
Chapter 23
Later that day…
James, Ann and Ryan were joking around in the boys bedroom. So far they were in their 5th round of pillow fights and Ryan always lost to both Ann and James. They decided to spend the day bonding with each other because they knew one of them will be leaving the house tonight.
When they got tired of doing pillow fights they just spent their time talking about anything under the sun. Ryan always had a lot of stories to tell and they always enjoyed listening to him. After a while,
“Guys, if ever I get evicted tonight, I want you to both do the ‘chuvachoochoo’ with me before I leave the house. You both should dance ‘chuvachoochoo’ with all your heart so that I will be happy,” Ryan jokingly told them.
“Ryan, only you can dance it without looking stupid,” James protested. “If Ann and I did it, we’d both look so funny we’d both be laughed at by everyone.”
“No guys, it’s okay for both of you. Ann is pretty and you are handsome so even if you do something stupid like chuvachoochoo they will all still like it. Haha!”
“Aw Ryan, it’s so sweet of you to say that. James, it’s okay, we’ll do the chuvachoochoo if ever Ryan gets evicted. Of course, it will probably be me James, so you don’t have to worry about looking stupid,” she smiled and told James.
“ Guys, whoever gets out tonight, no worries, we’ll all still see each other for sure…” James assured them.
“Yes, of course…” Ryan agreed. “I think my energy has left me after that last round of pillow fight. I’m going to go grab some food, would you guys like to have some as well?”
“Yes, we do. Ryan you’re so kind. Thank you!” Ann said to Ryan.
“Okay. I’ll come back with the food, “ He said and went out of the room.
“So, Ann, I’ve been meaning to ask you…” James said to Ann.
“Ask me what?” Ann asked him back.
“That kiss you gave me last night, does it mean we’re…” he left the question hanging for Ann to answer.
“What, it was just a kiss on the cheek. It’s no big deal dude!” Ann said defensively.
“You’re wrong dude, it’s a big deal for me. As far as I can remember, that was the first time that you kissed me, even if it was only on the cheeks. Plus, you did say you like me. A LOT . Remember? “ James teased her.
Ann’s face was starting to get red all over and so she pretended to check the toes on her feet in order to hide her face.
“Yeah okay, fine. I kissed you because I was happy. That’s it. Should there be anything else?” Ann said, still hiding her face from him.
“Aw, come on…” James said a little frustrated already.
“Hi guys! What are you doing? Can I join you here?” Rich said when she entered the room.
“Of course,” Ann said. Although feeling a little disappointed because of Rich’s intrusion, there was nothing she could do about it so she just shifted the conversation to other things. She could still see James waiting for her answer and looking a little annoyed so she just looked him in the eye and smiled at him. Hopefully, he’ll get her message and won’t try and press the issue, at least not while Rich was around.
No comments:
Post a Comment