Chapter 14: Cheeky Nini, Part 2

To avoid possible conflicts, I just let Aurora do the honors of picking the movie to watch.

And what is this? It's a comedic adaptation of a classic kung-fu film, packed with so many memorable one-liners!

Ah yes, I've really, really liked this film, and it's a great laugh riot, so another watch doesn't hurt!

Who could ever forget lines like…

"Try this 'my groin to your fists' style. It's gonna hurt!"

"I've thrown away my old pretentious, overblown name. From now on, you must all call me Camille!"

"SHE JUST LEFT! WITH CANS OF GREEN PEAS! PLUS SOME BONUS FRIES!"

Judging from their faces, it seems the girls didn't watch that film yet, most likely because it's not to their tastes, but I'll encourage them to laugh as much as I did.

***

I am Nini Hyacinth Sargent. 33 years old.

I'm what some people refer to as a "Christmas cake", and what others refer to as a "cougar".

Indeed, I can be as aggressive as I can be… because I was so desperate for love.

But seeing someone named Otto Sarthou, who is now under the custody of the authorities, breaks my heart, knowing that he once had a crush on me, but his overly strict parents didn't want to love me. Ever.

And thus, we were both made to pay for the consequences of something we didn't have complete control over.

But now that he is admitting to his sins, I am more determined than ever to experience love from a totally new perspective.

I still retain my brazenness, but I have to restrain myself.

Miraculously enough, days after he was brought to justice, I received a date offer from a man my age.

It was heaven.

Especially on the day we've first met.

He was especially sincere in his actions, and he made sure he came clean on everything.

For one thing, he didn't have HIV or any other related diseases, because he was a firm believer of saving it until marriage.

He was also a principled man, as he confessed that he cleaned up his act after an accident changed his world view.

And now that I'm experiencing love for the first time in my life…

I'm making sure I'm spreading the message to everyone, especially to people I know who would ridicule me for my zero love life before.

And thus, I hand out anonymous letters to people who frequent places where they can shoot the breeze – bars and restaurants in particular – mainly because I know some of those people via my friends.

That's one of the many beauties this world has – we are connected somehow or some way, and thus we should never consider ourselves isolated.

I just want everyone to know – that I'm still the same old cheeky Nini they knew, but now emboldened by true love.

***

In the end, Leigh and Aurora laughed as much as I did, as they seemingly understood the film's male-oriented humor.

Of course, I explained some of the jokes they might not have understood.

"Growl..."

And what do we know?

We haven't ate anything during that movie, so we cook our own lunch together.

It's chicken Parmesan with meat sauce, coupled with peach juice.

And good thing none of us are terrible cooks, or else the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would raid us, as silly as it sounds.

Satisfied with our lunch, Aurora proposes…

"Shall we watch another film?"

"Why not?" Leigh and I agree.

Again, Aurora gets to choose the film.

With an "eeny, meeny, miney, moe" this time.

And what she has just picked...

...is a film whose cover art has a picture of a smiling anime girl on it.

The name of the anime movie is... Strange Life in the Universe.

I bluntly ask her, "How'd an anime film slip through the cracks?"

"Oh," she answers while staring intently at the case containing the film, which is on Blu-ray. "Fred, Leigh, I know you are not familiar with anime films that are geared towards families. Like the ones directed by a certain Mr. Miyazaki. But this film… I thought you might like it."

"An anime movie that focuses on teen love and the vastness of the universe, huh?" I ask with an inquisitive tone as I read the synopsis on the case's back.

"Yes. To be honest, even I haven't watched it before."

"Neither did we," Leigh cuts in. "I think we bought it on impulse months ago."

"Guess it'll be a learning exercise for all of us," Aurora chuckles. "And as far as I know, this film also has a highly-regarded English dub. It has a good mix of celebrity and regular voice actors in the cast."

"How'd you know?"

"Casually browsing the news."

"Alright, let's not delay ourselves. I'll grab some snacks and drinks while you insert the disc, OK?"

Seconds later, I reappear in the living room with bags of potato chips and bottles of iced tea in tow.

We are now watching the film's opening credits, which are both written in Japanese and English.

We don't know who the majority of those who worked on the film are, but we make sure that we watch both the opening and closing credits as a way to personally thank them all.

Minutes later, we are introduced to the film's two protagonists, a young adult girl who's clearly from Earth and a human-looking alien who wants to contact the girl via an already antiquated cellphone, which is a far cry from the smartphones we use nowadays.

The way the film is lined out suggests that the two are bound for an unsuccessful long-distance relationship due to the obvious language barrier.

But here comes the film's first and only plot twist.

This seemingly outdated cellphone has mysterious translation properties that would put even the most advanced speech translation devices available on the market to shame.

And to complement the twist, the film's cinematography gets more vivid, as if the environment is reacting positively to the fact that the boy and the girl have the chance to talk to each other, with nothing standing in their way.

Well, except for the fact that the alien boy is still floating in space, holding the cellphone, and can strangely breathe without the need for space suits.

We three are all anticipating with bated breath how the boy will descend to Earth to finally meet the girl he is obviously in love with.

Well… the ending is kind of predictable and anticlimactic, but in terms of dramatic impact, it's still super effective.

The boy finally descends to the earth with his sheer force of willpower and meets the girl of his dreams.

The girl knows beforehand that he's an alien, but she doesn't mind it.

After all, a certain superhero is the son of an alien father and an Earthling mother.

So what do we three think of Strange Life in the Universe?

For me, it's an okay film. It's not groundbreaking or anything, but the gorgeous cinematography and storytelling sure impressed me.

For Leigh, she's really impressed by the two protagonists' character development as they had to find ways to finally get close to each other.

For Aurora, who is weaned on telenovelas, it's a refreshing break from the excessive melodrama found in those TV shows that can sometimes become overbearing. She knows the two characters will be together, but the way their love story is presented with simplistic honesty touches her heart.

After watching the film, we three decide that we'll rest before eating dinner and heading once again to work.

Once we all three land within the confines of the bar once more, the effects of the anime film still linger in our minds – and strangely enough, these memories converge with the memories of the letter with the kiss mark.

Could it be that…

...that film is an allusion to what the woman who gave the letter in the first place went through before she finally has her one and true love?

No, no, no. It must be coincidence, end of story.

Since we arrive earlier than usual, Leigh and I have some casual talk that shouldn't damage our vocal cords, as our memories of the film still remain fresh.

***

And once Fred tells me about the outdated cellphone the alien boy carried, something surreptitiously enters my mind.

I remember it now.

I carried that exact cellphone model he had.

It was a CallEasyTel feature phone, model number CET-1500/DR.

Its screen was just a monochrome display illuminated by neon green, and its only purpose was to send and receive calls and texts.

As a phone which was released when I was just a wee little baby, it was outdated when compared to the phones that were released during my elementary years, which boasted higher-resolution displays, had low-megapixel cameras, could connect to PCs via USB to transfer files, had built-in games, and supported MIDI ringtones.

But this phone I had… was an indispensable tool to make contact with family and friends.

Especially at a time when my classmate was accused of a misdemeanor she actually didn't commit.