Amore had no choice but to bring the man to her uncle's house. While riding the boat, they planned out what they needed to do for their pretense.
Out of all the possible alibis they could use, this was the craziest way to avoid being suspected by her uncle. They reached the shore and immediately hailed a tricycle to take them to her uncle's house. They could have walked, but she was just too lazy.
After a ten-minute ride, they finally arrived. They saw Amore's uncle standing outside the house.
"Uncle Gusting, I'm here!" she greeted the old man cheerfully. He looked surprised to see her.
"Why did you come back here? Amie, what happened in Manila? Do you have problems there again?" he asked curiously.
"Nothing, Uncle. I came home because I wanted to stay here for a while while I build my family. Oh by the way, Uncle, this is Yam, my husband!" she said straightforwardly. She didn't beat around the bush. Everything had to look convincing.
He was shocked. "What? You got married? Why didn't you tell me so I could attend your wedding? What a waste. Alright, come inside. Come here boy," he gestured to Liam. "Wow, he's so handsome. Where did you find this handsome man? You look good together because you are beautiful too Amie. Oh well, I guess I'm the only ugly one here. I look like just your servant." Good thing he wasn't angry at what she said.
"Uncle, I'm not really that handsome. Actually, you are quite handsome too. I can see in your face that you had great charm, especially when you were young," Liam interrupted. He was impressed by the old man.
"Love, stop flattering Uncle Gusting, he really likes that," Amore chimed in.
Liam suddenly froze when he heard Amore call him "Love". He was shocked because that wasn't part of their plan earlier. They had only agreed on the aliases—Amore would call him Yam, and he would call her Amie, as that was the name she used there.
"Uhm... Really, love?" Liam forced himself to agree. He smiled afterwards.
"Come inside. I'll prepare dinner for you. I wish you had called me so I could have prepared for your arrival. By the way, why didn't you inform me that you got married in Manila, Amie?" her uncle asked, sounding a bit hurt.
"Because Uncle, I was busy with work. And I didn't tell you because I wanted to surprise you. Isn't it better that way? Isn't it thrilling and fun?" she answered jokingly to lighten the mood.
"You really are something, child. You're always so mischievous!"
She looked at Liam. "Love, by the way. Don't worry, Uncle Gusting will adjust for you. Right, Uncle?"
"Of course. That's good, so I can learn another language besides English and Tagalog. I will do my best to understand you, nephew," Liam assured him. "Don't worry, love," he added, turning back to look at Amore.
"Here's dinner. We eat as early as six o'clock here because we sleep early and wake up early the next morning. Most people here earn a living through fishing. We set sail very early to catch plenty of fish because if you go late, you won't catch anything since they're all gone. It's basically a race to catch fish here."
"Really? Can I come with you? I want to learn how to fish," he said excitedly.
"Love, you might get into an accident, just let Uncle Gusting do it."
"Amie, he should learn how to fish so he can help here somehow and have something to do. I'm getting old so I'm not as strong as I used to be," the old man said.
"Oh, alright. You two decide. But Uncle, you have to teach him properly first, don't be reckless!"
"Me? Reckless? I'm an excellent fisherman. I'm sure I'll be a great teacher too. I'm probably the king of fishermen here. So Toto Yam, trust my skills okay? Don't listen to your wife. She's just being overprotective. She probably doesn't want her handsome husband to get sunburned and dark."
"Uncle, stop it. Let's eat before the food gets cold," Amore interrupted.
"Alright then. Let's go. Let's eat!"
"Uncle! Stop saying words he won't understand," Amore scolded her uncle. He knew a lot of slang words. "Ah. Love, what my uncle means is let's eat. He's just being silly, he picks up terms and phrases from anywhere," she explained to Liam.
"Now, now. Don't mind your wife. She's just like that. Come on, let's eat."
Liam chuckled softly; he didn't expect the uncle and niece to interact like that. They bickered like children.
They ate, and afterwards, Amore and Liam cleaned up and washed the dishes. Gusting, on the other hand, stayed outside enjoying the breeze, waiting for his food to digest before going to sleep once he felt drowsy.
They finished washing up so they went outside too and joined the old man who was sitting on a bamboo bench facing the sea. The ocean was very close to their house so they could feel the cool breeze. The air didn't smell foul or fishy because there were strict ordinances prohibiting littering everywhere. The whole island was clean and peaceful. Anyone who violated the rules was automatically fined, so everyone living there was afraid of paying the huge penalty. It was 10,000 pesos per person, so they really made sure to avoid it.
"Uncle. You are such a great Chairman of this island. You really maintain its beauty. No one violates the rules. That's good to see. No pollution that could affect our marine resources. The habitat of the fish and corals remains safe," Amore praised.
"Yes, the people here are afraid of the fines, but you know, there are illegal fishers that pass by our island and sometimes they even use dynamite. We used to stop them but they are aggressive and carry weapons so we were forced to back down. I don't want my companions to get hurt, especially since they have families of their own."
"Hmm. Is that so, Uncle? Leave them to me. I will patrol every day. Those bastards have the nerve to fish in territory that isn't theirs."
"Hey. What are you planning? Stop that. Just stay here at home. Maybe it's better if you just sell cooked food here. I'm sure it will sell well especially since this is where most fishing boats dock. There are a lot of hungry fishermen so it's a good business. It will be extra income for you. Just don't go playing hero against those useless illegal fishers. It's dangerous, and you are a woman."
"Uncle, please. Don't underestimate women because nowadays, women are stronger, braver, and most of all, smarter. That was back in ancient times when women just stayed home and their only purpose was to bear children, but the world is different now. Women are even more capable than men who just laze around!"
"Well, what you say makes sense, but I don't want anything bad to happen to you, especially since you are the only family I have left. Your mother, my twin sister, is gone. So I see her presence in you. Alright, I'm going to sleep now. Don't be stubborn, okay? Oh by the way. Since Yam is your husband, you two can share your room. There are no other rooms available here anyway. Alright, I'll go ahead. When you come in later, lock the door properly."
"Yes, Uncle. Good night and sweet dreams."
It was only after Uncle Gusting left that Liam finally spoke.
"Wow, I'm speechless with what you two were talking about. I couldn't even get a word in. May I ask, doesn't he know what your real job is in Manila?"
"Lower your voice. He doesn't know anything. He only thinks I work as a chef. That's what he believes because I'm good at cooking so that's what I told him."
"Why did you hide it from him? You know there are no secrets that remain hidden?"
"I know. But I had to lie so he wouldn't worry. And about our pretense, act properly so he doesn't suspect that everything is just make-believe because he will really get hurt by what we are doing."
"Okay. But wait, so we only have one room? How are we going to do this? Are we going to sleep on the same bed? I don't want that, I'm not used to sleeping next to someone."
"Tss. Then sleep on the floor. No problem there. There's a mat so you won't get cold. And speaking of cold, it's getting colder out here so let's go inside and sleep. Come on, Love."
"Ew. What's with calling me 'Love'? You know I almost choked earlier when I heard you call me that. Why did you even think of that? We could have just called each other YAM and AM, right?"
"It just slipped out. So get used to it. It's just acting anyway, so don't think too much of it. Just come on!"
The two went inside the house. Amore locked the door securely. Doors should never be left unlocked because you never know if there are thieves around.
"This is my room here. There's only one bed, but it's big because I had it made specially. It has a soft mattress too because I bought it myself. The floor is quite cold and narrow, especially since this bed takes up most of the space. They actually had to destroy the door just to get this bed inside years ago. Oh! Choose now! Will you share the bed with me or sleep there on the floor? Well?"
"Tss. Fine, I'll just sleep on the bed. Let's just put a barrier of pillows between us. It looks like it can fit three people anyway so pillows in the middle. Okay?"
"That's very okay, fine let's sleep now my fake husband! Goodnight and sweet dreams!" she said then turned her back against him.
This was the first time Amore had someone sleeping with her in her bed, and it was a man at that. They slept with their backs turned against each other.
Amore was sleeping soundly, but Liam couldn't feel any sleepiness at all. He kept getting up and lying back down, repeating the same motion over and over again. Maybe he was just feeling homesick or perhaps something was bothering his mind.
It was almost four in the morning when he looked at the clock on the wall, but he still hadn't slept. Gusting knocked on their door, a sign that he was inviting Liam to go fishing with him that morning.
Liam went out quickly. He looked like a zombie. He had huge dark circles under his eyes when Gusting saw him.
"Here's some coffee, drink this first then come with me. We are leaving early so we can catch a lot today."
"Thank you," he accepted the cup of coffee.
"I guess you couldn't sleep huh? Your eye bags are huge. You're probably just not used to it yet. Oh well, you will get used to it eventually. By the way, where did you meet my niece?"
"Ah... At a restaurant. I was eating back then when I noticed her. Then I talked to her and we just hit it off until I courted her and married her," Liam made up the story. Where did he even get that line? He almost choked on his coffee.
"Really? Well you two are lucky then. Alright. Finish that coffee. Here are a jacket and hat to protect you from the heat and sun. We probably won't be back until noon. I've also packed our breakfast."
"Yes. I'm done. I'll just go say goodbye to Amie first."
"No need. She knows that if everyone is gone, that means we've already left for the sea. Alright let's go. We need to catch a lot of fish."
"Yes."
The two left and set sail. It was still dark everywhere, but there were already many people awake.
Amore woke up feeling great. She had slept well so she was eager to get up. She left her room and went straight to the kitchen. There was already rice and viand. It was cold so she reheated it. She also made coffee and sat on a chair.
She smiled beautifully. This was the life she had been longing for. A life that was simple and free.
It was still far from noon so she decided to go to the town proper and buy things she needed. She bought several SIM cards and a new cellphone. She had lost hers when they escaped. Good thing there was no evidence Regor could get from it anyway. She also dropped by the market and bought pork and chicken. She was tired of eating fish all the time. And she also decided to follow her uncle's suggestion to start selling food for now.
She went home early so upon arrival, she just cooked lunch. She made Pork Adobo and Chicken Soup. She put the remaining meat in the freezer to cook tomorrow as she was starting her small eatery business.