Gerald pulls Kim closer and kisses her with a sweetness that brought tears to Kim’s eyes.

Gerald: Babe, are you okay?  (wiping her tears away) Why are you crying?

Kim:  (laughing with tears in her eyes) I don’t know… I guess I’m just happy.

Gerald pulls her in a tight bear hug.

Kim: (in a muffled voice) Gerald, I can’t breathe.

Gerald:  (releasing Kim) Sorry babe. 

Kim: Babe, I’m going to get ready for bed.  I need a shower after all our adventures today.  When we were at Universal Studios today, and we went inside the studio that had the Backdraft scenes from the movie, I wanted a shower so badly.  It was so hot in there with the fires.

Gerald:  (raising his eyebrows) Shower?  Can I join you?

Kim: (steps away from him) Behave.  We’re moving fast in this relationship but not that fast.  (thought – How am I going to be strong and stay away from him?)

Gerald:  (pulls Kim close to him) I wouldn’t do anything you weren’t ready for.  Okay?  I love you babe.  Now go take a shower and leave me here in misery.  I wonder if the rest of them fell asleep.

Kim goes and takes a shower while Gerald goes into the living room to see what everyone is doing. He sees Jon asleep with Tanya right next to him reading a magazine. Matt and Mel weren’t in the room.

Gerald:  Where’s Matt and Mel?

Tanya:  They went to sleep in the other room. Or at least I think they are sleeping.  (laughing) Where’s Kim?

Gerald:  (laughing) Kim went to go take a shower.  How come you are not asleep?

Tanya:  I guess I am wired after everything we did today.  It could also be the Starbucks I drank earlier this afternoon.

Gerald:  (laughing) I told you not to drink it.

Tanya:  I know but I was getting so sleepy and I didn’t want to miss anything.  (lowers her voice) How are you guys doing?

Gerald:  (with a big grin on his face) We’re doing great!  Tanya, she loves me!

Tanya:  Duh! Of course she does. 

Gerald:  You knew?!

Tanya:  Heello!  I am her best friend and I have known her forever. Of course I know. 

Gerald: How?

Tanya:  I have known all the guys she has dated and she has never been close to anyone of them like she is with you.  She didn’t care if she saw them or not.  She wasn’t blasé about it but she also wasn’t that into it.  She’s definitely into you.  I think since she first met you.  She tried not to be but you can’t fight the feeling.

Gerald: (chest puffing out) So she’s into me and only me! (laughing)

Tanya:  Don’t get all big headed there mister.  You better take care of my best friend and if you ever hurt her, I swear I’ll hurt you even more.

Gerald: (putting his hands up) I could never hurt her.  I think I would kill myself first before I do that. 

Tanya:  So… we’ve been talking about Kim.  What about you?  How do you feel about her?

Gerald:  I love her Tanya! I absolutely love her.  I know we are still sort of young and we still have school to finish.  But I can’t imagine not being with her. 

Tanya:  (sighing) Good.  I love you for loving her.  Gerald, just take good care of her. The last guy was a jerk.

Jon: (waking up) B, why are you telling Gerald you love him? (frowning) And who’s a jerk?

Gerald:  (laughing) Go back to sleep Jon.  I’m not stealing your girlfriend. I got one already.

Jon:  Ha! Ha!

Tanya: (giving Jon a quick kiss on the lips) B, Gerald and I are just talking about him and Kim.  I was just about to tell him about her last boyfriend. So where was I?  Oh yea… Umm...  You know, her last boyfriend went crazy on her.

Jon:  He definitely did.  Kim told her parents that she was headed back to school early to take some tests towards the end but she actually lived at Tanya’s parents’ house with Tanya up until they returned to school.  

Gerald:  What?!  What did he do?

Tanya:  So it was good for the summer.  I think midway during summer, I want to say it was fourth of July weekend.  Kim finally said yes to him to be boyfriend and girlfriend.  They saw each other everyday.  They seem to have fun.  I don’t know.  I didn’t like him.  There was something about him, something controlling. I could feel that he didn’t like it when I was around because Kim’s attention was split between the two of us.  I was just uncomfortable.  I just didn’t tell Kim because she seemed happy.  At least I think she was. Then one day, it was about mid August, Kim called me crying.  I couldn’t understand her so I went to go pick her up at her house.  Right when I got there, her boyfriend pulled up to the house.  I said hi.  He didn’t say hi and just asked me what I was doing there.  I told him I was there to pick up Kim and that we were going to go get our nails done.  For some reason, I felt like I had to lie to him.  He said oh that he and Kim were going to go out.  When Kim came out of her house, she saw him there and immediately came close to me.  I could feel that she was frightened.  I couldn’t figure it out.  She asked him what he was doing there.  He said that he thought they were going out.  Kim said something about telling him that she was going out with me.  He said why? Don’t you want to be with me?  Kim said I do but I need to get my nails done.  Thank god she said that because that’s exactly what I told him.  He said her nails were fine.  Kim finally said that they needed to leave to make it to their appointment.  He stepped forward as if to grab her arm but it was like he decided not to since I was standing sort of in between them.  He then left without saying a word.

Jon:  When Tanya told me about it, I wanted both of them to come back to school early but their apartment was not ready yet and I know Tanya’s parents would not approve of them living at my apartment.

Tanya:  Kim and I went to go get our nails done.  I didn’t tell Kim but I saw him in my rearview window right as we pulled up to the nail salon.  He drove away after I parked.  Kim told me what was going on but I don’t think she told me everything.  She did say that when she said she was going to hang out with me to get ready to return to school, he started yelling at her and cursing at her.  She said that it was a slow build up because whenever she would talk about going back to school for the Fall, he would tell her why doesn’t she stay here and go to school at the local junior college.  He would ask her why does she need to go to school and that he would provide for them. Weirdo.

Gerald:  Does he go to college?

Tanya:  No. Well sort of.  I think he attends one of those trade school things.  I don’t think he graduated from high school.  Kim found that out later.  I think he just took his GED which is fine but he just wasn’t into the higher education thing. I think that was a big sign that he was not the right guy for her.

Gerald:  So what happened next?

Tanya:  Later that day, Kim and I decided that she would sleep over my house.  She called the guy up and told him that she was sleeping over at my house.  He started yelling at her over the phone.  She finally told him that it was over between them.  She was too scared to do it in person. He went crazy over the phone. She eventually hung up the phone on him.  I think at first she was too scared to do it but it was either that or continue listening to him yell and curse over the phone.

Gerald:  I’m glad she didn’t see him again.

Tanya:  I’m glad too.  Kim and I decided that she would just stay at my house for the rest of the summer to hide from him.  Later that night, we went back to her house and he was there outside the house.  I guess he came over to her house waiting for her to return and never left.  Luckily, Kim told her dad right away that she was no longer with that guy and not to tell him where she was.  I know Mr. Chiu never liked him.  So I guess he waited outside.  It was kind of scary.  He just kind of popped out of nowhere.  Scared the out of us!  (laughing) It’s funny now but back then, not so funny.

Gerald:  So then what happened? He didn’t hurt you guys did he?

Jon:  I would have killed had he touched them. Though if I remember correctly, he tried to grab Kim, right B?

Tanya:  Yeah, he did but then Kim’s brother William came out and so did Ate Lakam, wondering what all the commotion was all about.  I think Mr. Chiu was ready to call the police.  He finally left pissed off.  Kim and I packed her stuff as fast as we could.  Mr. Chiu said it was a good idea that Kim stays with me and spoke with my parents.  So she stayed with me the last 2 weeks of summer.  We stayed inside pretty much because we were too scared to bump into him anywhere.  Then we headed up back to school and moved into our apartment.  He still tries to call Kim but it’s not as frequent.  Sometimes I get freaked out if he will try and find her on campus.  I wouldn’t put it past him.

Gerald:  Even if he does try, I’m always with her.  He can try but he’ll have to go through me first. 

Jon: Ang macho mo bro!  Protect your woman!

Gerald:  (laughing) Fool!! (throwing a pillow at him)

Kim walks out…

Kim: What are you guys talking about?

Gerald:  (pulls Kim onto his lap and smells her hair) You smell so good.  (holds her close)

Kim:  Thank you but you need a shower…. (thought- I still love your smell though.)

Gerald:  Fine or else you won’t come close to me. (gets up to go take a shower) Want to join me?

Kim: HA! HA! I already took a shower.

Gerald:  You can take another one.  (wiggling his eyebrows)

Kim:  Go take a shower crazy guy!  (throws a pillow at him) Love you! (Turns to Tanya) So what were you guys talking about?

Tanya:  I was telling Gerald about your crazy X.

Kim: You did?  What did Gerald say?

Jon:  He looked kind of worried.  Worried for you.

Kim: I’ll be fine.  That crazy guy does not know where I live.

Tanya: But he does know where you go to school.

Kim: It’s a big campus.  It’s a big town. Well sort of.

Tanya:  Just be careful.  It’s been good so far these past few months but I’m worried when he finds out that you have a new boyfriend, he’s going to go crazy. And he probably knows about Gerald already from your friends back home.  You have friends that know his friends.  So I just would be careful. 

Kim: Gerald just became my boyfriend so why would he trip?  hmmm… well let’s just hope that he has moved on.  So what’s on TV?

Tanya and Jon just look at each other, looking worried.