Until...

Alden Richards looked up the sky and stopped himself from once again feeling the rage and frustration that had fueled him over the past weeks.

He had finally gotten over all that anger because he was reminded that no matter his circumstances, there was someone whose happiness was far more important.

"Tisoy?" she called out – her nickname for him – as she opened the door to her house in disbelief.

His face automatically lit up in a smile. "Meng..." he responded with his own nickname for her and proceeded to hug her.

God.

It felt so good to feel her heart beat against his.

Maine Mendoza smiled up at him, all the worry and stress she had experienced over the past days in looking for him immediately forgotten, and Alden knew that there would be no one else whose smile would have the ability to melt him from inside out.

"I'm sorry" he immediately blurted out "I'm so so sorry."

It was then that a solitary tear fell from her eye. She slammed a hand against his chest. "Don't do that again, ok? Don't disappear on me like that! Don't do that ever again!"

He accepted each slam.

He knew he deserved it.

For two weeks, his phone had rung constantly and she had inundated him with messages asking where he was, what was happening to him, was he alright.

"I won't do it again" he told her.

"Promise?" she asked.

"I promise."

He hadn't been himself for months now.

Ever since Maine told her that she accepted Emilio's proposal of marriage, Alden felt the earth had been pulled under him.

She had been too happy to notice that his whole world was falling apart.

"I'm so happy you're back" she told him now as they sat down to eat dinner.

The woman had wasted no time in making sure he would be comfortable in her home, and upon deducing that he had lost weight, immediately cooked up a feast.

"I'm happy to be back too" he answered, meaning it more than she would ever understand.

Seeing her busy in the kitchen and telling him everything he needed to know so he could catch up on what happened ever since his self-imposed "vacation", he felt his heart ache in thinking that if he had done things right years ago, she would be doing this for him, not as his best friend, but as his girlfriend, as his fiancée, or even as his wife.

"What I would give to turn back time..." he thought to himself as she regaled him with another story about her bickering bridesmaids.

"I don't know why they all decided to make it a contest amongst themselves who would have the smallest dress size" Maine complained as she put in portions of everything she cooked on his plate "Now, none of them can fit in any of their dresses! My wedding is a week away and the seamstress is as stressed about the wedding as I am!"

He shook his head and laughed.

She would expect it of him, he had to bring out the best of his acting prowess to assure her that everything was ok.

She couldn't know.

"It seems I missed out on a lot while I was away" he commented.

Maine squeezed his hand. "You did but it's ok. Also, Mommy Ten told me that the movie producers have been trying to get in touch with you because Daniel seems to be having difficulty now that actual shooting is happening. Did you know about this?"