My First Novel: Noelle, Chapter 7

Jason-Kara Loveteam

*reprint from Mod Magazine



“Nothing beats shopping with best friends,” Frances declares in the middle of her favorite store, Forever 21. Her friends Kara and Noelle laugh at her.

“Hey, did anybody get to meet Andrea?” Andrea is Jason’s girlfriend. Kara was trying to be casual about it. But her friends can tell, she wasn’t cool about it. They both shook their heads to answer her question.

“Ah, I thought maybe, Anton met her… Just a thought.”

Frances picks a ruffled sheath dress and tells Kara, “hey drama queen, stop sulking and try this one on.”She pauses to smile and says, ”you will look the prettiest in that school party of yours. Who knows you might meet your Prince there.”

Kara smiles and takes the little black dress to the dressing room. Noelle looks at Frances and asks, ”so did you meet this Andrea girl?”

“No!” She protests.

“Anton?”

“If he did, he would have told me. I know, I will ask Anton to ask Jason what happened between them. In fact, I am going to call up my husband now.” She searches her limited edition Longchamp bag for her phone but Noelle stops her.

“Take a hold of yourself. Later please. She will come out anytime soon.

“The suspense is killing me.”

“Have patience.”

Just then Kara comes out and asks them, “what do you guys think?”

Both ladies were nodding and giving her thumbs up without thinking.

***
“He said they broke up.” Anton replied when Frances was pestering him about the outcome of Jason’s girlfriend’s visit.

“Are you sure?” Frances could not believe her ears. “What, the girl came here to break up with him? She could have just done it over the phone. More practical.”

Anton was partly not minding her as he adjusts his glasses while he reads Love Life, a book by George Gabriel, given to him by Noelle on his birthday.

“But that is good because now that Martin, Noelle and Andrea are out of the picture, there is hope in Jason-Kara loveteam.” Then she remembers, “honey, would you know if Jason is interested on anybody in his office. Or anywhere?” When Anton does not respond, “baby, I am talking to you.”

“What?” So she repeats herself.

Anton just shakes his head meaning he does not like the topic at hand. Frances pouts and asks pretending to be interested, “what is that anyway?”

He tells her how the author changed his life for the better when he started his day by affirming what is good about his life and thanking God for it. And adds, ”maybe we should try that honey?”
“Sure,” but she was not really listening. All she want is to get back to Jason-Kara topic.
“Listen to this, this is nice, ’We are children of the richest, most famous, most powerful Father. And so we deserve the best in life & we should dream big.’ So, he encourages us to say this to ourselves ten times a day, ’I am a child of God. I am good. I am awesome.’”
“All right,” was all Frances could say. Frances cannot believe her husband is actually enjoying a book like this.

“Baby, you are good. You are awesome. I thank God for you,” Anton tells her and she is instantly transported to heaven. Forget Jason-Kara loveteam. For now, she wants to focus on her husband who was waxing some poetics or whatever it is. All she knows is, she is enjoying all the attention.

Hmmn, she is beginning to like this George guy.

My First Novel: Noelle, Chapter 5

We are Engaged!

*reprint from Mod Magazine



“Why would you think that Kara is upset about Jason having a girlfriend?” Noelle and Frances are talking in low voices between the racks of Forever 21.

“Oh, so you don’t know.”

“I don’t know what? Tell me.” Noelle’s curiosity is heightened.

“Jason and Kara went out for awhile. Jason’s sister is Kara’s good friend. She introduced them on Kara’s first year here in Sing. They went out a few times but didn’t hit it off.” Frances was close to whispering. Kara was just somewhere in the accessories area.

“Why?”

“They decided to be friends. And so, he is now one of our friends.”

“Kara decided that?”

“She actually saw the possibility of him being a boyfriend despite her being older. But I don’t know what happened exactly. Maybe he is like most guys who prefer younger girls.”

Both ladies were startled at the sound of Kara’s voice, “Noelle!” She is rushing to them, “why is your boyfriend calling me?” and hands her Iphone to her.

“Oh thanks,” she accepts Kara’s phone. David was apparently calling her on her mobile phone but she forgot hers at the dorm. She moves away from her friends to talk to her beau.

“He just called to say he misses me,” Noelle told her friends when she got back.

“Oh, sweet,” her two friends purred.
***

“Hey, Mark is coming to Sing!” Noelle excitedly announces while in front of her laptop checking her emails.

“You have so many boys, Noelle. Who is Mark?” Kara asks drowsy from her afternoon nap.

“He is my good friend, a wonderful preacher from my charismatic community in Manila. He is single and cute,” winks at her roommate, “but I know he is still with her long-time girlfriend, Sophie.”

“Preachers are not my type.”

“He is asking if we can show him around the city.”

“Why am I in the equation? I don’t even know him!” Kara asks pretending to be disgusted with the idea.

“Because you are my roommate and my good friend,” Noelle explains with the sweetest voice she can muster.

“No, those are not the magic words,” Kara tells her friend then asks, “will you treat me to a mani, pedi and foot spa afterwards?”

Noelle thinks for awhile then says, “alright.”

“Count me in!” was Kara’s quick reply.

***

Noelle and Kara sits by the restaurant close to where her friend Mark was billeted. They are waiting for him and his girlfriend, Sophie.

Kara asks, “so, we’re not going to show him around anymore?” Noelle shakes her head. ”Bummer. What about our spa date? Is it still on you?”

Noelle looks at her and says, ”all right since you are a dutiful friend.”

Kara claps her hands and cries, ”yipee! Let‘s invite Frances. She will get jealous if she finds out.”

“Yeah, let’s ask her to join us but don’t tell her about my treat for you.”

“Yeah, let her pay for her own. She can very well afford it.”

“There’s Mark,” Noelle alerts her friend.

“He’s cute all right. He doesn’t look like a preacher.”

“What does a preacher look like?”

“Dunno,” Kara changes the subject as she notices a pretty, slim and fashionably dressed lady with him.” Who’s that with him?”

“His longtime girlfriend.”

“Is that why we are not going around the city anymore?” Kara was speaking in a low voice.

“Maybe,” Noelle replies and stands to greet the approaching lovely couple.

After the greetings and short introduction, Mark holds Sophie’s hands and announces, ”Sophie and I are engaged!”

Noelle was shocked. She could not believe that her friend Mark is getting married. Sophie shows off her 18 carat diamond ring as proof.

“That explains the glow around you two,” Noelle exclaims. The ladies congratulate Mark and wish them both well.

“We couldn’t be any happier,” Mark told them but he actually didn’t need to say it because it was written all over his face. Sophie’s pleasant face was a picture of joy and love. They made a nice pair.

Mark explained that city tour with Noelle is a back-up plan. In case, Sophie rejects him, he has company.

“The guy with a plan,” Sophie comments.”Apparently, my whole family knew about his plan and I was the last to know.”

Without much prodding, Mark narrated how he asked for her hand aboard PAL flight to Singapore. He made arrangements with his friend pilot, and the crew who were happy to oblige. So while they were 30,000 miles up in the sky, this young preacher asked his lady love to marry him and she accepted his proposal in front of her family who were traveling with them and some 200 or so strangers. The passengers and crew were delighted to witness a profession of love up close. Some even took their pictures, or had their pictures taken with them. It was fun, everybody was happy.
Everybody even Kara, everybody except Noelle. She could not take any more of this. She wants to bolt out of the room and head back to her bed. The sweetness of the two lovebirds was killing her.

If truth be told, she suddenly missed David. As soon as she got to the dorm, she calls him up. But he was not answering. She dials again and again but no reply. Then she thought maybe he’s out, with somebody, somebody prettier, somebody there. And the idea killed her. I pushed him to somebody else’s open arms, she thinks to herself. Oh, what have I done?

singapore is now my favorite city...next to mla lang of course!

after my recent visit to singapore, it's now my favorite city for the ff. reasons:

1. trees lining up the streets



i love trees period.

2. the place is clean.

what else can i say?



3. people are friendly and mild mannered.

even when riding mrt, i don't feel rushed. the general pace is relaxed compared to hk. no pushing compared to the scenes in our mrt.



4. i love the artscience museum!!!



the lotus flower structure itself is a marvel. designed by architect moshe safdie, the museum is dubbed as the welcoming hand of sing.



i find the rain incubus fountain inside it, amazing. it's like an oasis in the middle of a concrete jungle.

sg is home to other numerous architectural wonders - esplanade, marina bay sands hotel, shoppes at marina bay, helix bridge, the flyer, changi airport...and the list goes on.

5. van gogh



just because, i saw van gogh's paintings there, when i think of sg now, i associate it with van gogh and vice versa. no actual paintings, just larger-than-life projection of his artworks on the walls. it was great being immersed in his colorful and mind-blowing creations. i could've stayed there all day. more on van gogh on my next blog.

6. nice malls (ion orchard & shoppes at marina bay are my faves) & stores (lv, chanel, gucci, h&m, sephora to name a few.



anybody knows when will a&f open? their board-up got us ladies excited.).
but i have to point out that i prefer manila's forever 21's merch mix & visual mdsg over sing's.

7. ice cream on the street



for an ice cream lover, this is a big plus. easy access to various flavors of this delish treat. though on all 3 occasions, i always stuck with triple chocolate and with the same manong hehe.

but, i have to say, our mamang sorbetero's cart is much more visually appealing.

8. mrt loop
very convenient & accessible, very easy to move from one loop to another.



except for the funny smell in the trains though. good thing, i came prepared. i brought my ever reliable "armas," panda ointment. it's a must for ever travel outside the country.;p

9. changi airport
(pronounced chan-yee)

t1's arrival toilets are spacious; departure comparable to 4-star hotel's. i like the idea of putting a low sink for kids. free foot massage!!! just don't forget to wear socks. even their airport tubes are carpeted! elevated train, smrt, from one terminal to another. you can start your tour right inside the airport grounds!

10. good roads



no potholes. no traffic, or at least, our ride to the airport was a breeze. i have to note that this was on a sunday night. but even our short ride from marina to bugis on a saturday night was quite quick. you see, mostly, we rode the mrt. so, i couldn't say for sure. but i do envy their smooth roads.

11. great cars

audis, beemers and benzes are quite a common sight. with sports cars here and there.



in my visit in 2008, i saw a bentley for the first time, up close! i even grazed my hand over it. haha!

12. yummy foodie

while rhei loves fried prawn noodles and ate it every meal for 3 days!!!


jesson feasted on pork & at times roasted hainanese chicken.



while, i ate hainanese chicken rice, soup noodle (i didn't take note of the name) and the fried prawn noodles.



13. snow city!

i don't like snow because it's cold. and that you have to wear thick jacket and boots etc. but the tube ride, i like!



even after 3 rides, i wanted to go back for more.

14. serene



singapore has a special place in my heart because of my friendship with serene, my first and only singaporean friend. visiting her country 3 years back was a happy one for me. she was gracious enough to drive me around, with my also first-timer friend sylvia and my cousin janet, who used to work there, in her benz. how cool was that!
and treated us to dinners at upscale restos.

unfortunately though, i didn’t see her this sept because she was on work tour in south america. but i’m looking forward to meeting her again on my next visit in feb. and hope to have a great time with her & my friends in my favorite city outside the philippines!

p.s.

as in any trip, the best part is having fun people to be goofy with. at least on pics. thanks to rhei & jesson! had a wonderful time with you guys!







ganda na sana, panira naman si manong ;p



rhei found something she likes but cannot buy, kaya hanggang posing na lang.



vote for the silliest pose. but keep it to yourself.



the failed jumpshot which we blamed on the digicam, of course.



and our best jumpshot, in the funny category, with the title, "lion king, mufasa, and the elephant." which is who? ;p

hot forever 21 fever

i've been hearing from friends in the fashion industry about the invasion of the real forever 21 to manila & finally last fri, it has landed. i planned to go on its opening day to make ush-show-sow. (alright to be honest, i wanted to get a gc, as i read from chuvaness that they're giving away such for early birds. i love freebies!)

for some reason, i forgot about it & good thing i did cos my good friend jinj told me the place was packed. there was no way, i could've gotten a free voucher she said. & peeps were shopping like there's no tomorrow. everybody stylish & nagpapanggap na stylish were there. designers & merchandisers including their mm's & probably even their vp's opted to go on field that day & do competitive check. read: shopping ;p

so i said, curious me will go when the curiosity is over. so tonight, since i was around mega, i thought it's been a week & it's a thu so maybe there won't be too many peeps & i was wrong. they had like 10 or 12 counters & yet the queues are sooo loooong. henry sy's magic in the works again ;p

dreamy-eyed women & gays (probably envisioning how to wear their new outfits the next couple of days) & not-so-happy men (probably fielded in by girlfriends/wives to line up for them while they're in the dressing room or checking out the fancy accs.) were braving the loooonng lines with, i would say, 4 items ave. per customer. mr. sy must be very happy. hurray!

i'm happy for sm. i heard they were eagerly anticpating to bring in h&m about 3 years ago. (hence, the specualted reason behind facelift of sm mkti & sm dept stores.) at around the same time, rustan's peeps were saying, they will bring in h&m. why it didn't come to pass, dunno.

i'm happy for the fashionistas on a budget & me-self. they don't have to contend with vintage (read: uks) products. not a fan. alright, i did buy a few items but eventually stopped. i didn't like boiling clothes.

i wonder how this will affect brands like mango, zara & even local brands. f21 has very affordable items. the night before f21's opening, i happened to take a sneak peak at zara sale at gb & as usual, ladies & gents were grabbing items like mad. i wonder if it's still the same story the day f21 opened its doors. are they hurt by the new kid in town? i wonder what happened to old (fake daw) f21 here in manila before.

worth noting are the trendy & pretty shoppers in the "candy store" for fashionistas. those that i only used to see at shang are here. sm seems to be attracting more upper class clientele. they started with m&s, then the block, mega atrium, to which i have to ask, is it working? are the tenants making money? doesn't look like it. except forthis latest venture. let's see if it holds.

while i was doing all these wondering & scanning the huge & expansive fashion store, to be efficient, i was also picking up a striped knitchambray combi mini-dress, cute bandeau, jersey shortalls, plain v-neck tee, true blue jeans, silver loop earrings to try on & welcome to my wardrobe. but i wasn't brave enough to wait in line for the dressing room so i said i can't go wrong with my choices. & given the inexpensive prices, it won't hurt if later, i change my mind. like i don't like the fit or it doesn't look good on me. besides, i can always wrap it for christmas gift to friends (oops, there goes my secret.). it's fast approaching anyway. by now, some brands are already brainstorming for their concept for christmas. they might also want to start plotting how to conquer or tame this latest entry to the roster of fashion brands.

so, i told me-curious self, i'm going to buy these stuff right away, no need to fit. i showed my true color & my real nature came out of its shell, shopaholic sachi emerged. i have to buy these now! i have to get my shopping fix now! i've tried it on the mirror, i justified. but then, i look at the box office hit line, & i say, forget it, i'm hungry. it's a little past dinnertime.

what??!!! me, getting hungry while shopping? i can't believe it! in my whole shopping life, this is a first! i don't get tired or hungry when shopping. i've shopped long & wide, sometimes even in heels, sometimes with a slight fever & flu, during sale in metro manila malls, in flea markets, in hk, in bkk. i don't get tired because i'm in my element. up until tonight.

what happened to me? this is so not me. i have changed! i'm free, i'm liberated from the shackles of commercialism & instant gratification. i'm no longer a shopaholic! i'm released of my vice... should i be scared? ;p

anyway, i left the store without any goodie (sorry to the sy's, i'm not parting with my moolah tonight. so what, for definitely sure, they're not the slightest bit affected.) but i didn't feel that bad. huh? i don't know me anymore. i've matured ;p but i swear, i'll be back, better prepared. i'll go when the office folks are still trapped in their cubicles so i'll have a grand time hehe.

f21, i'll be back with a vengeance & shop like crazy. friends, let's sugod! ;p