17 You’re Face Seems Familiar

At six in the morning, two men arrived on the island of Camotes. One came with a backpack and the other, a small trolley travel bag.

"I just left the other day. Now, here again. Hey, boss, will I be doing my job here? Do you also have an establishment here?"

"None, you're simply paid for two weeks for nothing so just enjoy."

"Is that right, to be paid to enjoy?"

"Yes, and stop complaining. I'm the one having a vacation. I'm supposed to come here alone, but I became your boss yesterday night. So I have no choice but to bring you along. Let's do it this way: I'll make things easier for you, and then you'll make things easier for me. Got it?"

"OK, boss, as you wish."

"And stop calling me 'Boss'. Just simply call me Clarence."

"OK, Boss Clarence."

"I said 'Clarence' ... no boss attached. Get it?"

"OK, bo— ... oops, Clarence."

"..."

"Clarence, that's fine?"

Clarence sighed, thinking as to how long did he have to put up with this guy. He glanced at Ronald with an 'I don't know what to do with you' face.

"Haha, sorry, sorry, Clarence. Don't get angry? But to be honest with you, I prefer the 'Boss' attachment to your name. It sounds like the master and his sidekick but with strong friendship in between ... like Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Sounds like detectives but just for foodies. Calling you 'Boss' will make us look mysterious. Ohh, I love it!"

"Fine, fine, have it your way."

"That's the spirit, Boss. BTW, where are we heading? Which hotel?"

"BTW? FYI, I really can't talk normally with you."

Arguing with this sort of guy was not worth it, Clarence concluded.

"Haha, see? ... Loosen those tense muscles, Boss."

"Bring me to Beauty's house, and we'll find a place nearby to stay."

"Oh, there? We can ask Grandpa to stay there. The room I slept was big enough for the two of us."

"Do you snore at night? If you do, you'll stay somewhere."

"Well ... a little, boss." Ronald felt a little ashamed and worried with the way Clarence looked at him. A scary smug was on the latter's face.

"Oh, I'll stay at Beauty's, and you'll stay in a beautiful resort. You know, AC room, with a luxurious bed and a swimming pool. With sexy girls all around you. How about that? That's a great idea!" Clarence made it sound like there's no more room for negotiations.

"Please, please, boss. I don't mind sleeping in Grandpa's little hut outside their house than in a hotel."

"What's that suppose to mean? The hotel is better than a small hut with mosquitoes at night."

"Ha? There are no mosquitoes there, and it's got fresh air—Mother Nature's AC. Believe me. Also, the food in that house is better than in hotels. Grandma is a real cook, and then we add Beauty to the equation. Oh, the better!"

"Are you into Beauty?" Clarence's face was starting to get hard and grim, hearing the last sentence.

"Haha, Boss, don't get angry easily. It's not good for your health. If you want to know anything about Beauty, I'm here to answer. If you're asking me about my feelings for her, I think just ... a friend. To ask her to be my girlfriend is a ways off [1]."

At this moment, Ronald already realized Clarence intentions towards Beauty, so he had to back off. The truth was he also liked Beauty, but it was more of admiration. Somehow, after receiving a good salary from his new job, he felt he might pursue her. That would be a big 'NO' for Clarence. There was also this big 'UNLESS' lying underneath. In the end, it was all dependent on Beauty's choice.

. . . . .

"Hello, anybody home?" Ronald shouted outside the gate.

"Ha? Who's there? Uhhhh." Grandpa stretched his body after he got up from his bamboo bed.

"It's you again? Based on what I remember, you just left two days ago. Why are you here again? Another job from your boss?" Grand Daddy was looking at the two people in front of him with a little apprehension.

"Grandpa, you're excellent at guessing. I'm really here for my boss, but I've got a new boss. Here, let me introduce him to you."

"What happened to your other job?" the elder asked.

"I'll tell you later about it. For now ..."

Ronald introduced Clarence using his true identity, the son of Clyde Peres. Mentioning Clyde made Grand Daddy happy. He had a good talk with Clyde and Claire when they were there. Claire was also hinting at her son to Beauty so this might be the boy she was talking about.

He looked at Clarence from head to toe and then nodded. For what the nod meant, they guessed it might be of approval, but only he could tell for sure. Somehow, that nod made Clarence's chest lighter, giving him hope.

The elder brought them into the house.

"Amelia, we have guests. Please add two more plates for breakfast," he spoke from the kitchen door. "Come in, please feel at home, Clarence."

"How about me, Grandpa?" Ronald felt dejected for not being mentioned.

"Oh, you? You've been here so why feel like a stranger? Go to the kitchen and help Grandma. You love that place the most." The old man just excused him right away, but with respect to Clarence. Ronald flew like a bird to the kitchen after being told to go.

"I can also help in the kitchen, Grandpa. I'm a cook myself." Clarence offered himself to begin his plan, leaving a good first impression on the future in-laws.

"Oh, surely, as the son of the owner of a food conglomerate, I believe you. But for now, you're our guest of honor. Come, please sit. Your father and your mother were a delightful couple. I had a good conversation with them."

"Really, that's good. Nice to hear that you had a good time with them." Clarence was all smiles with a lot of geniality.

"By the way, what's your purpose for being here? For a vacation or something else?" As usual, Grand Daddy was always the direct-to-the-point kind of man.

"Grandpa, I actually came to ask your granddaughter for some ideas. My mom and my dad tasked me to collaborate with her, and we'll pay for it. They said she was excellent when it comes to food presentation. He even showed me some of her works. Well, I wish I can stay here and observe her cook. If it's inconvenient, we can stay in a hotel nearby. We can also share notes since I'm studying now in a culinary school. I heard Beauty wants to take up culinary."

Grandpa felt funny to hear Clarence's artful reply, but he thought of playing along. Also, he needed to see if Clarence was being coerced by his mom to court Beauty. Seeing Clarence's outlook, he had a good impression of him; but if he was just being compelled, then he would just teach him a lesson. If he's simply here for exchanging notes then, that wouldn't be a problem.

While the elder was silent, Clarence was really trying to show his best side. He brought out some gifts he prepared, hopeful that what he readied would be to their liking.

"Oh, we have a guest." Unexpectedly, Beauty chose to come out of her room this time. Their eyes met. They stared at each other. The young man's heart was beating fast while the girl was recalling something ... then Beauty spoke.

"Have we met before? Your face seems familiar."

Oh, boy, seeing the new Beauty in person, Clarence's heart was running havoc for two reasons: excitement and fear to be recognized and then rejected.