Reunited

Chapter One

Cebu City

     "Jo! Jo! Hurry up or you'll be late for the first day in college!" Lea called out from below.

     "I'm coming, Ma." Josephine quickly descended from the stairs. She took the right hand of her mother and placed it on her forehead. "Bye, Ma."

     "Take care and God bless you, baby girl." Lea kissed Josephine's cheek.

     "Ma, I'm no longer a baby girl." Josephine laughed. "Besides, I'm already in college."

     "But you're still my baby girl." Lea hugged her daughter. "I love you." 

     "Love you too, Ma." She went outside the house and walked towards the main road.

     Josephine Borromeo hailed a jeepney to ride to her university. She was a bit excited and nervous on her first day. The ride to her school was not very far. She paid her fare of six pesos and passed it towards the driver at the front. Upon arriving at the gate to her school, someone was apparently running to her direction.

     "Eeeeeeeeeeeee! Hi Jo!"

     "Oh, hi Anne!" Josephine hugged her best friend. "It's good to see you again!"

     "Yeah, it's good to see you too!"

     Anne and Josephine started walking towards the entrance to their new school. Once inside, they were both enthralled with the campus and its students: someone was rehearsing for a declamation at the centre of the quadrangle, a group of onlookers watched as a pupil paints a scene copying from a photograph, several students were making music through mere improvisations, and some were briskly walking, carrying lavishly decorated props towards the Amphitheatre. 

     "Jo, you do know that I can predict the future, right?" Anne asked as she and Jo walked towards the first classroom where their first subject was going to take place.

     "Yeah, I know that, Anne." Jo answered, laughing. "So, what do you see?"

     "I see the two of us, shining bright as the next 'big thing', performing inside the Amphitheatre!"

     "No way, Anne. That's... ermm... impossible. I'll just be a musician doing gigs away from the spotlight, thank you very much."

     "Impossible? No way! It's possible. Really possible."

South London

     "Great practise, lads. See you again tomorrow. You're dismissed."

      "Goodbye Mr. Fox."

     "Mr. Brunswick," Mr. Fox called out to the boys. "May I have a word with you?"

     A tall scrawny lad stopped walking and turned his head back.

     Mr. Fox walked his way towards the grand piano in the centre of the room. The boy followed him.

     "Now, John-"

     "It's Joseph, sir."

     "-Joseph," Mr. Fox remembered the boy's name. "Just call me 'Albert' in the meantime. Now, what is it that you wanted to talk about?"

     "Albert-" Joseph remembered to call him with his first name. "-you said I need to stay a wee bit to polish my solo."

     "Oh, yes. I remember. Now, shall we begin? Remember to apply the vibrato when you reach the end of each verse of the song." 

     Joseph Brunswick began to sing his solo. He had a rickety start, knowing that the choirmaster was carefully listening to him. He started to ease himself a bit, and remembered to apply the techniques in singing.