Chapter 2:

“Promise me, Baby, that you’ll behave while you’re at your Papa’s house, okay?” Patrisha reminded her son gently.

“Yes, Mommy.”

“You should listen to your Papa Ethan and Mama Sydney, okay?”

“Yes, Mommy.”

“And lastly, don’t fight with your brother and sister there, okay?”

“Yes, Mommy,” Eros replied politely, nodding repeatedly.

She gave her son a sweet smile. “Very good, Son. I love you! Always call me, okay?” she reminded him again.

“I love you too, Mommy. Of course, I will!”

A few moments later, the plane they were on began its descent.

Finally, after five years, she was back in the Philippines.

Her five years in New York had been good. She had a stable job at one of the city’s well-known companies and had managed to build a comfortable life for herself and her son. Still, there was a different kind of happiness in being back in the Philippines, where she could be with her friends and her parents—even if she sometimes felt like she barely mattered to the latter.

When they finally got off the plane, they immediately spotted Ethan waiting for them with his wife, Sydney. The couple waved happily at them, and Patrisha and Eros quickly made their way over.

“Papa!” Eros shouted happily as he ran toward Ethan.

“Son!”

Ethan immediately pulled his son into a tight embrace, clearly overwhelmed with happiness at finally having him in his arms again.

This wasn’t the first time the two of them had met in person. There had been times when Ethan and Sydney had visited Eros themselves in New York.

Ever since Patrisha told Ethan about her pregnancy, they had remained in constant communication because of their child. She never kept Eros from him. She had also always made sure that Eros understood the relationship and arrangement between his parents.

Patrisha and Ethan had agreed that they would both do their best to be good parents to Eros.

She had also gotten along well with Sydney, who was now Ethan’s wife and the mother of his two other children. There was no bitterness between them, especially on Patrisha’s part, because she and Ethan had never been in a relationship. Instead, she and Sydney had even become friends.

After hugging Ethan, Eros also hugged Sydney. He even called her “Mama Sydney,” which clearly made the woman happy.

“Welcome back, Trisha!” Ethan greeted her with a smile before giving her a friendly cheek kiss.

“Thanks!” she replied before hugging Sydney as well. “I’ll leave Eros in your care for now.”

“Sure, Trisha! What about you? Where will you be staying?” Sydney asked.

“I’ll stay with my friends. Nanay Lucy will be going home to her family first,” she replied.

“I see.”

“Eros, Hijo, be a good boy for Papa Ethan and Mama Sydney, okay? Don’t give them a hard time,” Nanay Lucy reminded her grandson.

“Don’t worry, Nanay. I’ll behave there. I promise!” Eros replied before quickly turning to look at her. “Right, Mommy?”

“Yes, Nanay Lucy! I already talked to him, and he promised that he would behave there,” she said with a smile, agreeing with her son.

“That’s good, then. Very good, our baby,” Nanay Lucy said happily before kissing Eros. After that, the older woman turned to Patrisha.

“Well then, I’ll be going home now. Take care, okay?” she reminded her.

“You take care too,” Patrisha replied.

“Where are you headed? You can ride with us,” Ethan offered.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course!”

“Thank you, Sir!” the older woman said happily before turning to look at Patrisha again.

Patrisha immediately smiled at Nanay Lucy. Even before the older woman could say anything, she already knew what she was about to ask, so she quickly answered, “Maxine is already on her way here, so don’t worry about me. You can go ahead.”

“Are you sure?” Nanay Lucy asked, and Patrisha simply smiled and nodded.

In the end, Ethan and Sydney said their goodbyes to Patrisha before leaving with Nanay Lucy and Eros.

Only a few moments later, Patrisha’s phone started ringing.

“Hello, Trish?”

“Max!”

“I’m here already.”

Patrisha quickly made her way toward her friend, Maxine, and soon spotted her inside a sleek black car.

Maxine immediately greeted Patrisha with a warm hug. It had been several years since they had last seen each other in person.

“Welcome back, Trish!” Maxine said happily.

“Thank you, Max!” Patrisha replied with a smile before glancing around the car. “You’re alone? Where’s Summer?”

“Summer? She’s at home.”

“Why? I thought you had a shoot scheduled today.”

“Nope. I canceled all my schedules for today so I could spend the day with you,” Maxine said with a smile.

“Really?!” Patrisha asked excitedly, clearly unable to believe it.

“Yeah! Of course, we have to celebrate your return.”

Patrisha gave her friend a sweet smile. “Thanks, Max! You’re so sweet.”

“I know, right?” Maxine replied before starting the car.

The two friends spent the entire drive talking and laughing. It was obvious how much they had missed each other after being apart for so many years.

Maxine Willow was one of Patrisha’s friends from the entertainment industry. They had first met when they both auditioned to become models for a popular magazine. They were both accepted, and from then on, they quickly became close friends.

Modeling wasn’t the only career Maxine pursued. She eventually ventured into acting as well, unlike Patrisha, who had to give up modeling after unexpectedly becoming pregnant.

Now, Maxine Willow was a successful and well-known actress in the Philippines.

“Where do you want to go first? Is there anywhere you want to visit?” Maxine asked excitedly as she drove.

“Actually, there are so many places I want to visit. But I guess we should eat first. I’ve really missed the delicious food here in the Philippines,” Patrisha replied.

“Oh, sure!”

“Sorry, Max, for making you my driver today.”

“What are you talking about? It’s fine! Besides, I’ve missed driving too. You know how it is. I rarely get to go anywhere by myself these days,” Maxine replied.

“True. You really are different now because you’re a superstar! But, by the way… how are things? I mean… how’s your Lucas Thompson?”

“Lucas is doing fine. And honestly, I think I’m falling even more in love with him every day,” Maxine replied happily.

If there was one thing Patrisha would never forget about her friend Maxine, it was how deeply in love she was with Lucas Thompson, who was also one of the country’s most famous and seasoned actors.

As far as Patrisha could remember, Maxine had once told her that Lucas was the reason she decided to try acting in the first place. That was how serious her friend was about him. That was how deeply she felt for Lucas—something Patrisha had never been able to fully understand.

Her friend had already made countless sacrifices and endured so much just for Lucas. Patrisha had lost count of how many times Maxine had cried to her and how many times her heart had been broken because of her intense love for the man.

But then again, perhaps that was what love could do to a person.

It could make you blind to everything else until you stopped caring about how much you were hurting yourself, as long as you could do something for the person you loved.

It was something Patrisha had once done herself.

Just like Maxine, she had once done everything for the man her heart had chosen to love. The only difference was that the ending of their stories had turned out completely different.

Maxine had eventually won the love she had longed for, and all the pain and sacrifices she had endured had led to something beautiful.

Patrisha’s story, however, had been the complete opposite.

Fate had been cruel to her. And because of that, her heart had never opened itself to anyone again.

After the painful ending she had suffered with the first man she had ever loved and trusted, it was as if her heart had turned to stone. It had remained closed ever since, refusing to let anyone else in.

A few moments later, Maxine stopped the car at a traffic light. Almost immediately, people began crossing the street in front of them. Everyone seemed to be walking quickly, as if they were all busy with their own destinations.

Then Patrisha noticed an elderly woman slowly making her way across the street. She was using a cane and was clearly having difficulty walking.

A woman approached her and offered to help her cross, but the elderly woman politely refused the offer.

Patrisha watched as the seconds on the pedestrian signal continued to count down. There was only a little time left before the traffic light would change and the cars that had stopped would start moving again.

She began to worry about the elderly woman, but then she suddenly noticed a man stepping into the crosswalk.

The man walked slowly, seemingly matching the elderly woman’s pace as he crossed the street beside her.

Patrisha didn’t know why, but somehow, the man immediately caught her full attention.

Then the traffic light turned green, signaling that it was time for the cars to move again. However, because the elderly woman was still crossing slowly with the man beside her, the waiting cars patiently remained stopped until the two of them finally reached the other side.

“There really are still gentlemen in this world, huh?” Maxine commented, apparently watching the man as well. She had also been observing him for some time.

Patrisha simply shrugged. “I guess?”

That was all she said before Maxine drove the car forward, and the man gradually disappeared from Patrisha’s sight.