The next day started really early. It had been convenient that they were shooting at the very place they were staying, at the prestigious and uber-glam Hotel Rasa Sentosa. It was overlooking a marvellous beach, with a thin shoreline, but nonetheless, gave Kim a breathtaking sunrise view.

Kim had been already up when the 6 a.m. wake-up call invaded her reverie. Miss P had instructed everyone to turn after they’d been escorted to the hotel about 10:30 last evening. Everyone was to come down to breakfast in thirty minutes.

Freshly showered and clad in a comfortable baby doll dress and white tights, Kim quietly closed the door behind her only to stop short. Gerald’s room was just across hers. She wondered if she should knock.

For what?

To see if he was already awake?

Or maybe... just maybe... she could finally tell him how she really felt.

Kim shook her head, trying to keep focus. They were there to work! Gripping her script determinedly in her hands, she marched on towards the elevator to get to the lobby.

Much to her surprise, everyone was already in assembly. Miss P was starting to distribute the breakfast coupons.

“Good morning,” a smiling voice greeted her from behind, to which caused Kim to jump.

She quickly turned around, and automatically she found that she couldn’t breathe. Gerald was standing too close, that Kim used the bulky script to camouflage her troubled ventilation.

He looked real handsome this morning, donning simply a medium sized red shirt and his cargo khakis. He even only had slippers on.

What was happening to her? She just saw the guy hours ago! Or was it because he managed to slip into her dreams, only she couldn’t remember what it was about...

Gerald only grinned, pulling the script gently from . “O, bakit ka nagtatago dyan? Para kang nakakakita ng multo.”

Kim gave a nervous smile, thinking if ghosts were as gorgeous as the young man in front of her, she’d never be afraid of them... “H-Ha? Nagulat lang ako na nandito na pala kayo lahat.”

His smile faded, his expression replaced by one of worry. “Napagod ka siguro talaga kagabi.”

Kim looked away. She had been awake for hours, trying to memorize her lines but to no avail. Gerald’s loving admission kept running through her mind, and she fought hard to relinquish the urge to do something about it. Miss P came to her rescue as she handed Kim her breakfast coupon.

“Tara na,” Gerald said, and guided her by the waist as everyone approached the buffet table.

Several of the restaurant staff rejoiced when they came in. The ABS-CBN crew and the stars were only too happy to oblige with the photos and autographs. Once settled, Gerald pulled a chair for Kim as Miss P reserved a long table for 15 people by the window.

“So as we discussed, the storyline is about two best friends, who were able to get jobs as waiter and chambermaid in Rasa Sentosa,” Miss P inducted, whilst everyone listened over their hearty breakfast. “Gerald would play Randy and Kim would play Sue.”

Gerald and Kim glanced at each other while the rest snickered at the coincidental names of the characters.

“Randy has always been in love with Sue, whose main priority is to send her two younger siblings to school. He couldn’t bear for her to be away for so long, so he decided to go along so he could watch over her.”

Kim swallowed, the parallel correlations between her and the characters a bit too familiar. This probably wouldn’t require that much acting on her part.

Gerald secretly shared her sentiment as he continued to stare at her, only part-listening to Miss P’s preamble. He had read the script and could clearly identify with Randy’s longing. Now, in front of all this people, he was beginning to feel a bit scared. He might become too transparent, and worse, put Kim in such an awkward situation that to keep on being friends would become out of the question.

The breakfast was uneventful after that, leaving Kim to withdraw to her own thoughts. Gerald would glance at her direction, and could only wonder what was going on in her head. Was she internalizing? Or was there something else? The bubbly, sunny personality that he was used to still hadn’t surfaced.

Afterwards, while the crew members were preparing to set-up and Miss P was coordinating with management, Gerald pulled Kim to one corner while she was pacing around by the lounge chairs and whispering her lines to herself.

Kim stared at him inquisitively. “Ge? Bakit?”

He bit his lip. “I was just thinking whether we could run lines together.”

Kim nearly crumbled at the hopeful, pleading look on his face. That expression meant that he was extremely anxious about getting into character, because she used to be the same when they first started out. At one end, she could empathize with him. This was his comeback, and he hadn’t acted in years. She still felt compelled to help him with this.

But she needed to be serious right now. They were given only three days to finish shooting on the interior and callous mistakes couldn’t be afforded. So she went into her professional mode. “Sige. Ano bang part ang nahihirapan ka?”

“Ito, o.” And Gerald flipped into page nine of the script.

Kim immediately referred to her own copy, and regretted agreeing to do the exercise with him. It was that pivotal scene where Randy confessing his feelings for Sue. “G-Gusto mo ba page 1 na lang tayo sa umpisa?”

Gerald shook his head, his eyes intent on the words on paper. “Madali lang naman yung una. Ito kasi, medyo intense. We need to bounce the lines off each other.”

Kim exhaled deeply. Fine. They were going to do the actual scene, anyway, so practice was key... right? “Should I start?”

Gerald nodded.

Professional mode, professional mode... she chanted in her head as she gulped down enough bravado to begin. “Randy? Anong ginagawa mo dito?”

“Hindi ka magre-resign, naintindihan mo?!” Gerald countered strongly, but his eyes were still glued on the script. “Kailan pa naging mahalaga sa’yo ang iisipin ng ibang tao, ha?!”

“Bakit ka ba ganyan?!” Kim replied, authentic pain starting to pierce her heart. “Ikaw, sa lahat ng tao, ang akala kong unang kakampi sa akin! Desisyon ko ito, at ito ang makakabuti para sa akin!”

Gerald’s tone turned desperate. “Paano ang mga kapatid mo?! Tingin mo ba madali lang makakuha ulit ng trabaho dito sa Singapore?! Anong gagawin mo, tatambay ka sa *Geylang at sasama sa mga foreigner?!”

Kim slapped him on the face.

Gerald’s eyes blazed.

For a moment, Kim appeared shocked that she hadn’t been able to help herself.

His gaze softened just a bit and gave her an encouraging nod to resume.

“Hindi ako ga’nong klaseng babae, Randy!” Kim cried, tears now trickling down her cheek. “Kahit magpunas ako ng mga mesa sa *hawker, wala akong pakialam! Saka problema ko ito! Wala kang responsibilidad sa akin kaya pwede ba pabayaan mo na lang ako?!”

“Hindi ko pwedeng gawin yon! Pinangako ko sa tatay mo na babantayan kita!”

“Hindi ko kailangan ng bodyguard! Ang kailangan ko kaibigan!”

Gerald gulped and looked at Kim, his eyes misting with emotions. “Hanggang kaibigan na lang ba talaga ako para sa’yo?”

Kim bit her trembling lip, not even realizing that they weren’t reading the script anymore. “Bakit? Ano pa ba?”

“Higit sa kaibigan, Sue...” Gerald whispered, as a tear streamed down his face. “Kailangan kita...”

Kim just stared at him, dumbfounded. She knew it was in the script somewhere but she couldn’t recall the next line.

Gerald blinked as he heard Miss P approaching. Only then did he wipe away his unexpected tears.

Miss P approached slowly, as her happy expression changed to something of foreboding. “O... Gerald, Kim...? Umiiyak ba kayo?”

Kim sniffed and started to pick up her script, which had unintentionally fallen on the floor. “Po? Um... nagrerehearse lang po. Run-through.”

“Ah,” Miss P said, smiling proudly. These kids were so natural and hardworking they would hardly need any coaching on the actual scenes. “O, sige na, magfi-fitting na kayo ng uniform. Gerald, sumama ka na dun kay Dan para sa costume ng waiter, at Kim, sumama ka kay Jenny.”

Kim nodded and proceeded to follow the P.A. she was assigned to.

Gerald only stared after her, just before he was nudged by Dan.

After a whole day of training with a real Filipina chambermaid and shooting at the same time, Kim was exhausted and gratefully plopped down on her queen-sized four-poster bed. They had one camera on them, for footage of Kim turning over a bed and cleaning the porcelain toilet and efficiently smoothing over the quilt. Kim had found new respect for the people in the hospitality industry. Her slender frame, though had experienced occasional strength training in the gym, wasn’t all prepared for the amount of work chambermaids had to endure for a day.

She closed her eyes, wondering how Gerald did with his first day stepping into the shoes of a five-star restaurant’s server. The job title sounded more glamorous to her. But still, it was hard labor. Kim restrained a giggle, remembering how clumsy Gerald could get when he was trying something for the first time. And reflecting on the scene they had just rehearsed earlier, spending a few years in America made Gerald lose his Tagalog accent a bit. She hardly noticed to be honest. She had gotten confused about the intention behind their “practice scene.” Was he trying to convey something? Something that they’d talked about, recently?

Surely, they both agreed that they should be distracted like that. Besides, she already told him that they could only be friends. He said, he understood.

When they both signed for this project, Kim had felt good about working with him again, almost like... coming home. But now... maybe... five years was too soon, after all...

Just then, Kim yawned. She was tired, all right. She didn’t think she could still come down for dinner. She might to get into her pajamas and sleep.

She was in the bathroom washing her face when she heard a soft knock on her door. Kim quickly dabbed her face with a towel and ran to the door.

Without even thinking of looking into the magnifier, she opened it.

Gerald stood there, gaping at her. “You’re in your pajamas already?” He instantly touched a hand on her forehead. “Masama ba ang pakiramdam mo?”

Kim rolled her eyes. She realized it was only seven thirty but it was no reason to over-react.

“What about dinner?” Gerald asked, following Kim inside the room as she returned to the bathroom.

“I was thinking of skipping it,” she answered nonchalantly, picking up her toothbrush. “Tatawagan ko na si Miss P para ipaalam sa kanya.”

Gerald leaned by the bathroom door, looking at her plaintively. “Well...” He reached into his pocket to produce two colorful tickets. “Ako naman, I was hoping you’d like to go after dinner.”

Kim cautiously looked at him through the mirror. “Ano yan?”

Gerald sighed, as Kim began to brush her teeth. “Yung show sa Sentosa, Songs of the Sea. The manager gave complimentary tickets kanina. Actually, dapat sa last day pa tayo manonood lahat ng crew. Pumasok sya kanina sa kitchen when I was rehearsing with the other waiters. Baka daw gusto ko pa ng tickets, so I asked for two.” He shrugged. “If you want, I can skip dinner too.”

Kim spat on the sink, almost coughing. Gerald hurriedly patted her back. “Okay ka lang ba?”

She nodded profusely, using the towel he had handed her to clean herself up. She frowned at him, her hands on her hips. “Kumain ka na dun kasama nila, ‘no? Baka magtaka pa sila kung bakit pareho tayong hindi kumain.”

Gerald only grinned and led her back into the bedroom. “E, di wag na natin ipaalam.”

“Sira ka talaga! Baka magalit sila Miss P sa atin!”

“Akong bahala,” Gerald assured, winking at Kim. His teasing grin only grew broader as he locked her gaze, which only made her more infuriated. “Uy... sasama na sya sa akin... Papayag ka ba na ako lang mag-isa ang manonood nito?”

Kim crossed her arms to her chest and sulked even more.

Gerald straightened up and became a little nervous. “Sandali lang naman tayo, Kim. O, ayan, last show na raw ng 8 p.m. Magbihis ka na para makahabol tayo.”

She wasn’t budging.

“Kim, sige na,” he pleaded. “Bukas, todo shooting na naman tayo.”

“Bakit ba kasi ang kulit-kulit mo? E di sa last day na lang tayo manood kasama nilang lahat!”

“E, bakit hindi pa ngayon?” Gerald insisted, looking at the tickets again. “Hanggang ngayon na lang ang mga ito, saka I haven’t seen you all day.” He glanced at her gingerly, gauging her reaction. “I missed you.”

She just continued to stare back at him, as though she herself was waiting for what he would do next.

“Kim, ano?” Gerald asked, a bit exasperated. “Sasama ka ba?”

“Paano ako magbibihis, e nandito ka?”

Gerald’s handsome face broke into a grin. “Sige na, Miss Chiu, lalabas na po ako.” He went towards the door, calling out. “Bilisan mo, ha? Sasakay pa tayo sa Skyride.” And then he closed the door behind him.

Skyride? She hadn’t the time to read the brochures since she was TRYING to concentrate on her script. She quickly chose a soft lavender wrap-around blouse and black cropped shorts. She slipped on to her purple flipflops while she briskly applied thin foundation and cheek tint to freshen up her look.

Now, she knew what Skyride meant, as she held on to Gerald for dear life, her toes clenching on her flipflops for safety. It was virtually a ski-lift, absolutely open except for a bar across their torsos that was supposed to secure the passengers.

Kim was oblivious to the stunning mountainous scenery going downwards to the beach, as she couldn’t keep her eyes off how high her feet were above solid ground.

Gerald, on the other hand, was completely relaxed with his arms wrapped around her. He chuckled as Kim visibly went rigid and shut her eyes closed during the lift switching over another cable.

She shrieked when Gerald suddenly turned over and reached for her feet.

He only laughed, in an almost menacing way. “Akin na nga yang flipflops mo. Pag nahulog yan, magpapabuhat ka pa.”

Kim grabbed on his blue sweatshirt as he tried to unclasp her slippers from her toes’ iron-clad grip.

After nervewracking moments later, Gerald emerged safe and sound with her two flipflops at hand.

“Kailangan ba nating sumakay dito pabalik?” she asked, shivering.

“Actually... pwede naman tayong mag-monorail.”

Kim gasped in utter betrayal. “Bakit hindi na lang tayo nag-ganun?” And when she realized how unprotected all this open space around her, she squirmed towards Gerald as was physically possible.

“Ang ganda-ganda ng view, o!” Gerald declared, flinging his arms wildly that Kim buried her face in his chest.

She peeked through her eyelids, just to see if he was right. It truly was beautiful. Gerald softly caressed her right arm in a soothing way, and every concern and problem she had began to diminish. The faint moonlight shimmered across the greens while the mountains seemed small and vague beneath them.

“Di ba, ang ganda?” he whispered to her hair.

Kim bravely looked up to him just then. He was staring at her.

After a few seconds, she lowered her gaze, couldn’t take it anymore. She didn’t know what was more terrifying in this ten-minute ride; having the fear of heights or having the fear of being this close to Gerald again?

Gerald sighed, squeezing her to his side. The Kim he remembered was so much more courageous than this. Here he was, throwing not-so-subtle hints at her, and she was pretending not to comprehend them. What was it going to take to make her believe that they belonged together? They always had.

It never changed.

Just then, they were nearing the last stop. A porter smiled and instructed them to jump when the ground was within their reach.

Gerald held Kim’s hand as the bar elevated and they were free to leap.

Both landed solidly on their feet.

She looked at him, then, but Gerald only gave her a small smile that was somehow tinged with a little sadness.

He knelt in front of her and gently put back the slippers to her feet.

“Tara na,” he prompted as he stood, making his smile a little bigger as though hoping she wouldn’t suspect he was concerned over something.

But Kim knew as Gerald gave the tickets to the usher and they settled on their seats. A Sentosa vendor was passing by and Gerald, the gentleman that he was, offered to buy her hotdog and soda.

He had to grin when she initially refused. “Ano ka ba? Naririnig ko ngang kumakalam ang tyan mo habang nakayakap ka sa akin.”

“Hoy, hindi kumakalam ang tyan ko kasi di ako gutom.”

Gerald arched his eyebrow at her knowingly.

Kim broke into a sweet smile. “O, sige,” she admitted finally, motioning a measure of an inch with her fingers. “Slight lang. Slight.”

Gerald then laughed. “Two hotdogs, please.”

The air cleared a bit by then, and the two friends enjoyed the spectacular laser show about a fish named Oscar and his friends while they tried to locate a sea princess that was kidnapped by an evil witch.

The show concluded less than hour later, and all the guests got up to leave. Gerald volunteered his hand to help her to stand up, and Kim gladly accepted.

“Mag-monorail na lang tayo, ha?” Kim begged, as Gerald jokingly turned towards the Skyride queue.

“Sabi ko nga,” Gerald chided and then led her towards the path for the monorail tickets.

As they waited for the train to come by, Kim turned to him. “Ge... thanks, ha? I had fun, kahit sandali lang.”

Gerald smiled. “Oo naman. Libre lang naman yung tickets e.”

Just then, a neon green monorail parked in front of them and they both climbed in, along with other passengers.

There were limited seats and Gerald was a little disappointed that Kim couldn’t sit down. On the contrary, Kim enjoyed this little freedom, however fleeting. She and Gerald had been wandering by themselves for an hour and yet no one recognized who they were. “Ang sarap ng ganito, ‘no?”

“Ang alin?” he asked, amused. He was holding on to a metal post along with the rest, and Kim held on to his arm for support.

“Yung... para lang tayong normal. Hindi ako artista, hindi ka rin artista...”

“Parang sina Randy and Sue.”

Kim shrugged, laughing. The names really were uncanny. She began to wonder if the network was playing a trick on them. “Biglaan rin kasi ang punta natin dito sa Singapore, so medyo wala ring nakakaalam na nandito tayo.”

“Matagal mo na di nae-experience ang hassle-free na location, ano?”

“Ngayon lang ulit,” Kim confessed. “Ganito siguro ang buhay mo sa US. Peaceful saka less stress...”

“Routine, monotonous...” Gerald enumerated, looking into her eyes. “Malungkot...”

Kim tried to laugh it off. “Ang sinasabi ko lang naman, much as I love my life right now, it’s just nice... to spend time with a good friend like this.”

Friend. Gerald gulped. That was what she asked, but he still had a hard time accepting it. When Kim appeared startled at the somber expression on his face, Gerald only reluctantly nodded. “Right.”

Well, if he was going to be her friend, he might as well be a good one.

And they were at their stop. He helped her exit and they slowly walked over to the hotel. They were side by side, at ease with the sound of the rolling waves splashing onto the shore. Gerald, while quiet, didn’t want this night to end. If the only way to be with her was like this, then so be it. He wouldn’t tire of coming to her aid, whenever he needed her and could only pray that one day, she would take him back...

Not just as her perpetual love-team partner.

Hell, not even as her best friend.

But as the one she would spend the rest of her life with.

“Ge...?”

He looked up to her, and again, as much as it hurt inside to smile... he did.

“Kanina ka pa tahimik,” she managed, reaching to touch his hand.

He shook his head and stared straight ahead. “Marami lang akong naalala, about the two of us. Nung nandun pa lang tayo sa Bahay ni Kuya...”

Kim giggled. “Oo nga, takot na takot ka pa sa ahas nun tapos...”

“Pero ikaw, sobrang tapang mo...” Gerald smiled, pressing his lips together. “Kaya nga inspired na inspired ako dahil sa’yo.” He grinned at her then. “I was glad na ikaw ang naging partner ko nun. Ayokong mapahiya tayo, kaya naisip ko na...” His voice trailed off. “Para maipasa natin yung challenge.”

Kim squeezed his arm, biting her lip. Gerald might be reminiscing about it with a smile on his face but she could clearly see the chagrin still on his eyes. He had put heavy rocks inside the garbage bags in order to meet the weight requirement. And for that, Gerald was punished and prematurely brought back to the house.

“Parang dun ko lang narealize,” Gerald admitted, stopping in front of Kim, “kahit 17 lang ako, na posible pala na gagawin mo ang lahat, hindi para sa sarili mo, pero sa ikabubuti ng isang tao. Noon pa lang pala... mahal na kita.”

Kim’s eyes misted with tears. Her heart knew that Gerald was saying this not because it was a big epiphany that he befell him just now, and not even because he was obligating her to say it back. He was telling her this because it was the truth. “Alam mo ba kung gaano ako nalungkot nung pinabalik ka ni Big Brother sa bahay? Akala ko talaga... disqualified ka na at hindi na tayo magkikita ulit.”

Gerald enveloped her in his embrace just then as he remembered the surprised look on Kim’s face that morning when she returned to the previous night with Mikee and Ate Claire, and rocked her as though he couldn’t let go, just like the way he did at that fateful reunion... “Heaven forbid,” he murmured sadly, dawning on him that even if he understood that Kim still loved him, she wasn’t quite ready to take that next step with him...

If he had been indeed sent home, then he wouldn’t become Kim’s love-team partner and they wouldn’t have headlined such wonderful projects together over the years, and they wouldn’t have shared the most valuable friendship they could ever hope for.

And that alone was a reason why he couldn’t stay away.

“I’m here for you, Kim,” he whispered, holding her tightly. “You know that, don’t you?”

Kim nodded, couldn’t stop the tears from her eyes. “And I’ll always be your friend. Always,” she promised painfully, knowing that her heart was protesting about her decision to hold back. But she couldn’t help it, the risk was too much. She had worked so hard to move on from that dark abyss of the past when he didn’t reciprocate her love.

Gerald sniffed, pulling back with an enduring smile on his lips. He cupped Kim’s face gently in his hands, his thumbs tenderly brushing away her tears. “Don’t cry. For now, I’m just glad that we’re able to work with each other again, just like old times. Masaya na ako sa opportunity.”

“Pero...”

He softly pressed a finger on her lips to stop her. “I’m okay,” he reassured her. “Lahat gagawin ko para sa’yo. Lahat...”

Just then, they squinted at the flashes of light directed upon them and Gerald instinctively held Kim behind him for protection.

Miss P alighted and came rushing towards them. “Kim! Gerald! Saan ba kayo galing? Kanina pa namin kayo hinahanap!”

That was when they realized that the blinding beams were from police cars patrolling around the vicinity.

Kim looked horrified at the commotion they had caused.

“Uh... sorry po, Miss P,” Gerald confessed. “Ako po ang may kasalanan. Ako po ang nagyaya kay Kim.”

“Kayong dalawa, ha?” Miss P scolded, shaking a warning finger at both of them. “Hindi por que safe dito sa Singapore, it gives you an excuse to frolick around unsupervised. Hindi man lang kayo nagpaalam sa amin.”

“Sorry po talaga, Miss P,” Gerald said shamefully, taking all the blame. “Gusto po magpaalam ni Kim, pero tina-try po naming wag mahuli sa show. I take full responsibility po.”

Miss P sighed as the director and other crew members apologized and thanked the police officers who helped them search for the two stars.

Kim and Gerald rode with Miss P in one of the police cars back towards the hotel. He shared a secret smile with her, that sent Kim trying to muffle her giggles when Miss P glared at their direction.

After everything had quieted down and she was sent to her room without much reproach, Kim slipped once again into her fluffy pink pjs and sank into the bed. Just then her cellphone beeped, to which she hurriedly checked.

“I had a good time tonight, too, Kim. I don’t think Miss P will let us to do it again, but thanks for going with me. Good night, friend.”

Kim sighed, as she laid her head on her pillow. “Good night, friend,” she whispered sadly and then she was claimed by lure of much-deserved sleep.