Chapter VIII

Huge waves greeted Ronn's ship as they patrolled the northern region of the country. A massive wave hit them and capsized their ship, and they immediately rushed into the sea to prevent sinking. He discovered a piece of the container and created buoyancy, but he was sunk by one of his colleagues. He pursued the swim while also pulling the container, and they both pulled the pull. "Aahhh!" his crewmate said as they approached the port. What do those dreams signify every time he leaves the place, and why is that still my dream? As he organized his luggage for the trip down to the harbor, he wondered aloud.

He suppresses his usual dream, just like he did before. They would eat first, as is customary, before taking a jeepney to the city, from where he will take a bus to the city where his aunt also resides. However, he will first pass by his lover and present her with the welcome perfume. He went down to the area near his brother's boarding house where he was studying. Hubb happened to be outside at the time and was pleased to see him, so he assisted him with his luggage and escorted him into his tenant.

"How are you, Big Bro?" he inquired of his elder brother. "You've turned into more of an artist now, ah, perhaps you have a lot of caretakers there," he joked.

"Your utter nonsense, how are you here?" Ronn smiled back at his brother. "This is it; I'm giving it to you," he said, handing up a bag of dried fish.

"Wow, it's delicious!" exclaimed the brother. "Didn't I have a gift from you?" Hubb said softly of his brother.

"You'll be lost," Ronn said. He also hands in his brother's gift, which was also a diver's watch like Rocc's.

“Wow! Great! ", Hubb exclaimed excitedly. "Thank you, Big Bro, I'll get something back to you next time," he remarked proudly to his brother.

"I'll leave the thing that I'll take to Manila first and go see Menin first; she had no idea I was going home, so I'll surprise her," Ronn said to his brother.

"OK, Brother, when are you returning to Base?", Hubb inquired.

"Perhaps tomorrow or later," Ronn said. "OK, I'll just take a shower, and when I see Menin, she won't be in school today because it's Sunday," Ronn explained. He entered the bathroom, had a shower, and then changed into Menin's favorite and presented polo shirt.

"Wow, my brother really looks like a movie actor, you must eat first," Hubb said as he hugged his brother.

"Don't bother, Menin and I will eat together," he added as he kissed his brother farewell.

"OK, be careful, brother, do you know where Menin's address is?", Hubb inquired.

"Her mother gave me her address," he said, thrilled that he was leaving with his greeting to his girlfriend.

Menin would have needed to rest now because it was Sunday, but her classmates and friends Elsa, Rebekka, Leanne, and Sergio arrived just as she completed doing her laundry. They will conduct their study, which must be completed because it is due the next day. They're standing next to one other on Menin's tenant's balcony. Sergio pays great attention to Menin; he is the one who is aggressively wooing her, despite the fact that she has stated that she already has a lover. Menin chastised him multiple times and stated she would never exchange her lover, but it didn't stop since he said he wouldn't believe and stop flirting as long as he didn't see Menin's alleged boyfriend.

While doing the study, they consume a burger given by classmates. When Ronn saw Menin with him, who was still holding the man in his arms and wiping the girl's lips with a tissue, he was jealous and sad. He was both angry and sad towards the girl. Because of his mestizo appearance and good shape, the man is attractive and appears wealthy. Sergio noticed the attractive young man staring at them and feigned to rub the girl's shoulder. Rebekka also saw the man standing in the corner; he was so attractive and masculine that she couldn't take her gaze away from him. Menin turned to look at what Rebekka was saying to the girl, but no one was standing there.

"You're simply imagining it, because all you can think about is handsome," Menin teased her buddy.

Sergio also deviated, saying, "That's because you're still fantasizing even though you already have a lover." But he knew it was Menin who the attractive man was staring at when he abruptly departed, and when he saw him hugging the girl, he smiled and said to himself, "Victory!"

"It's not a dream, he's carrying a green paper bag," the girl explained. "He is so handsome and tall, and based on his conduct here, it appears that someone is looking for him, but his countenance immediately darkens," the friend added. Menin was apprehensive, so she stopped what she was doing and went out to the tenant, then hurried to the corner where her buddy had suggested. Except for the food vendors, there was no one at the corner. She was much more scared and sorrowful on her face as she looked about for what the young man's companion was saying. But it's difficult since Ronn is on the ship, and if he returns, he'll almost certainly send a message first. She continued to gaze around as she returned to the tenant, hoping her friend would notice what she was saying.

Ronn hid when he spotted Menin; he wanted to discuss and scold his girlfriend, but he didn't. His mouth is fiery, and he is so faithful and smart that he ignores the ladies who like him because he loves her so much. But why is this the case? He questioned himself. Why was she instantly exchanged for that affluent man, aaaahhh!... he contemplated. We are simply impoverished, and they are compatible since they are both rich in living. He returned to Hubb's tenant; his hand clenched.

He picked up his luggage and said his goodbyes to Hubb when he arrived. He stated that he called the office and arranged for his return to Base. When he saw his older brother, he was astonished to see him angry and depressed. He could sense rage on his face and it was pathetic to look at, but he just shrugged his shoulders and noticed his brother. He drove a tricycle to the bus terminal after receiving the greeting for Menin and an expensive perfume in a green paper bag from his brother.

When Ronn arrived at the station, the bus was leaving, so he hopped aboard. But it's alright; it's critical that he get out of here. He claims in his thoughts that he is trying to sleep, yet he sees a man wiping and hugging his girlfriend in his hallucinations. She is no longer his girlfriend since he no longer has a girlfriend, a treacherous girlfriend. He grumbled angrily.

Menin was so agitated by what her buddy said that she fell asleep. But she had previously questioned why Sergio had suddenly removed her shoulder and stroked it. Why didn't she rebuke him earlier, despite the fact that she never allows her lover to touch her, especially when she is being hugged? Sergio seemed to know what Rebekka was saying, so he abruptly diverted her friend's tale, she wondered. She also can't imagine the grief she gets when she thinks about her boyfriend; she misses him terribly and longs to see and hug him. Her feelings for him will never change, and she will never exchange him for anyone else. She cursed herself until she blacked out.

Ronn was deafeningly quiet as he arrived at his aunt's place. He used to be really quiet, and he is much more so today. It was his aunt who came forward to greet Commodore. Her aunt and the Commodore appear to be made for each other. He had already packed his possessions to be transported to the Base, and he was ready to accept his captain's offer to send him to a remote area covered by the country. He is not being pressured because of his link to the Commodore, but he is now heading for a distant location.

Menin was not very uncomfortable a week later, so she went to Ronn's brother's place. They only meet once since they are both busy studying, despite the fact that they merely rent a tricycle rider.

Hubb had just finished cleaning and washing his uniform when she arrived at his flat.

"Hello Hubb, how is the study?" she asked her boyfriend Ronn's brother, smiling.

"How are you, Menin?" You drop by; what’s the problem? ", Hubb inquired of his pal. Okay, how was your meeting with Big Brother last week? “, He said with a smile to the girl. Menin was astonished and depressed after hearing what her boyfriend's brother had said.

“Ha! Ronn came home and approached me?", she asked Hubb one by one. So, Rebekka's story to her is accurate.

"I believe you met and talked. But I was shocked, and when he arrived from you, he ran to the bus terminal. "Then there was despair and quiet like fury," Hubb explained. "Are you serious you didn't talk?" he asked the girl.

“No! Menin was overcome with emotion. "I'm in my apartment’s balcony with my classmates, we're doing our research, why didn't he come and show me?" the girl wailed.

"Why did he put up with not talking to me?" grumbled the lady.

"Perhaps he doesn't want to bother you because you claimed you were doing something; just stop crying over it," Hubb suggested.

"What's the point of that?" "Your older brother didn't keep talking to me because he was jealous of my classmate putting his arm around me and then wiping my mouth," the girl wailed. "He didn't even wait for my explanation, he just didn't show up," the girl continued to cry, and Hubb felt bad for his brother's girlfriend.

"Wait!" exclaimed Hubb as he entered the room, and something seized it. He walked out carrying a green paper bag, which he handed to her.

"I believe that's for you since your name is printed on it," Hubb added.

Rebekka told her that the handsome guy was carrying a green paper bag, so she took it.

"What am I going to do?" the girl sobbed. "I really love Ronn, and it never occurred to me that I would leave him for someone else, hu!hu!hu!" wailed the girl.

"Come home, simply write to him or call at the Base, but I don't know the contact number there," Hubb consoled his brother's fiancée.

"Your father surely knows the number there, Chief," Menin assured Hubb.

"Yes of course! I'm sure he knows the number there," he informed her. Encouraged, the girl will find a way to communicate with her cherished partner. She said her goodbyes to her friend after they had talked for a bit. She went to see her friend Rebekka confirm what she had seen the previous week.

"I told you sis, the handsome man I saw in the corner was carrying a green paper bag," Rebekka said confidently.

"Is that it?" Menin asked, pointing to the bag.

"Yeah, that's what he was carrying, why is it with you, hmmm, don't tell me she's your lover!" she delightedly mocked her buddy.

"He is," the sluggish girl responded.

"Is that true? OMG! Why are you sluggish, where is he, and have you spoken to him? ", she asked her friends one by one.

"Because I guess he's upset at me, do you remember when Sergio lied and said your narrative wasn't true, that's why maybe that idiot put his arm around me to show Ronn that I'm his girlfriend," Menin wailed?

"Let him go first, heroes will see that, that idiot is also stupid, I also noticed that he was embracing you, I don't know what, your boyfriend is jealous," her friend soothed her.

"But, sis, you're different; your lover is so attractive; he's like a movie actor!" she said. "It's a shame I didn't chat to him and get to know him; does he have a brother?" said the friend.

"There, he gave it to me earlier, she claimed his older brother left once he recovered and went to my flat," the girl sadly explained.

“Wow! "As for your deception, I hope you brought me along, and if I meet him, make sure he's as attractive as he was with your lover," her buddy remarked. But she didn't make Menin smile, and when Ronn noticed another man supporting her, she burst into tears again. So, the buddy consoled her, even though they were both outraged with Sergio, the exploitative monster. She instantly sent a letter to her boyfriend, in which she stated that her feelings for him had not changed and would never change and that he was the only one who made her heartbeat. She also admitted that a classmate was flirting with her, but she claimed that she already had a boyfriend named Ronn.

Ronn was destined to a remote part of the country that his peers avoided and refused to visit. As a result, he was unable to read Menin's letter, and he instructed his aunt to hide or discard any mail with the name Menin. He never forgets to give money to his parents every month in order to help and ease his family's poverty. In some ways, they changed the minds of people who believed there was nothing to gain from being a soldier because they witnessed the challenges of their lives.