On the third day of Nic's arrival in New York, she and Angela set out for the cruise. They tried to hail a cab from the curb of Angela's apartment. Several cabs had already passed, all occupied. Nic caught sight of an unoccupied cab at the far end of the street and started waving her arm to catch the driver's attention. Much to Nic and Angela's luck, three guys, who were standing on the other block's curb also trying to hail a cab, were the ones the driver picked up.
"Argh! Pag minamalas ka naman oo...." Nic cried out in exasperation.
One of the guys in the cab turned and saw the girls on the curb. Good thing, another empty cab took them in and brought them to the port.
They checked in at the counter and waited to board while having coffee. It was still early in the morning and they didn't have time to have breakfast before they left Angela's apartment.
Dickie was eyeing the last slice of chocolate cake on the cruise buffet table.
"Choy....let's sit over there....by the window..." Topper nudged Dickie and pointed to a table. Dickie turned to Topper and acknowledged him. When he turned back, he saw the cake slice in the tray of the long-haired girl who approached the buffet table ahead of Dickie. Dickie could only shrug his shoulders and look at the girl and the cake.
"Choy"
Nic heard the term again. It's been running through her mind for the past couple of weeks. She vaguely remembers where she first encountered the word....or was it a name? She could not remember. She turned to where she heard it said and saw 2 guys at the other line of the buffet. The guy who carried a tray with a plate of carbonara and a salad looked familiar.
"Nic....are you done? Let's sit over there...." Angela, who was also holding her food tray, approached Nic.
"Where do we get our drinks?" Nic asked.
"We can order from the waiter..."
"Ah okay...."
After their meal, the girls decided to tour the ship. They were on a day's travel to Florida. They were headed for the Bahamas and would be island hopping for the next couple of days. It was their first ever cruise so they were really excited. Plus, it was also Nic's first ship ride. She's toured different ship museums as a child but had not been able to go on a cruise. Like a child, she was quite curious and excited.
While Angela stayed in their cabin, Nic walked around the ship's deck, enjoying the view of the vast ocean. The wind was blowing a bit strong and it was getting chilly so Nic decided to go inside. As she pulled on the ship's door, "carbonara guy" pushed the door open. He had his head turned as he was talking to his friends so he did not notice Nic on the other side of the door.
"Hey!" Nic said, trying to regain her balance from the force of the door being opened toward her.
"Oh...sorry....sorry...." Dickie said when he realized her presence. He continued out of the door, talking to his friends.
Nic just looked at them then entered the door.
"Cute nga sana...." Nic said under her breath. She could still hear them as the door closed behind her. She heard "Choy" again in their conversation.
"O, how was your exploration?" Angela, who was lying in bed reading a book, asked as Nic entered their cabin.
