I Went to Your Wedding

Heartfelt

Arman left for Davao and he will be gone for a couple days.

Carmaine Dei picked up Rix at the Benitez residence and took a private chopper owned by the Benitez family to fly them to Quezon Province where the Mendez vacation home is located at..

Rix: Dei, thank you in advance for taking me here, honestly it's been awhile since I travel outside Manila..
Carmaine: Really? I come here often when I need to get away from all the chaos happening in the city especially when I want to take a break from work, you know helping Mom and Dad with the business.
Rix: How about your siblings? Where are they?

C: Sean is in Japan with his wife, no children yet, he opened up an English school there with his 3 friends, Gerry is in Austria, married with twins, interior designer sya doon, Eve is in Chicago, she's an Accountant, she's married, one child..and me, soon to be married...

She looked at Rix with so much uncertainties in her voice...

Carmaine: Let me show around and I'll show you your room..here, this is your room, two beds because Eve and I share this room every time we come here, of course that was, what?when we are both in teens until she moved to the States to study, huh, we made beautiful memories here...
Rix: It's really nice and cozy... I could just stay here..

C: Well, get yourself ready cause I'm taking you to a nice lunch treat..
R: Give me 5 minutes...
C: Ok, then..

They arrived at Villa Escudero Resort in time for lunch. The Labasin Waterfalls Restaurant which is one of the center pieces of Villa Escudero. They served traditional Filipino food buffet style, you eat by hand while soaking your feet in the shallow running water.

After lunch they went Bamboo rafting. They rode on a bamboo raft and paddles on the still waters of the river. The water was calm, Rix couldn't take his eyes of Carmaine Dei, his attraction towards her grew, which he never felt before from any women that he met before..and that includes Lucille and Sylvia, the two women that he was engaged to before..

Carmaine: What's wrong? is there dirt in my face?

Carmaine Dei wiped her face using the back of her palm...Rix started to giggle...

Rix: No, your face is clear, sorry, I didn't mean to stare..its your eyes...
Carmaine: You have deep dimple... it's cute..
R: Thank you.....(he pause) Dei..
C: Yeah?
R: Do you mind if I ask you something? I mean you don't have to answer if you don't want to ..
C: Ano yun?
R: I ask Arman this question too...
Why are you doing this? the marriage, the arranged marriage?

Carmaine Dei looked at him..then looked away..

Carmaine: To prove something to my parents... Arman and I was groomed or should I say has been matched before we're even born. Both our parents was sold on match making, that love will come sooner or later scenario between Arman and I.. I love my parents.. my siblings didn't like this idea, they hated it. Our family especially our parents doesn't like to share their wealth to the outsiders... they earned this richness through hard work and just to let any body from the outside comes in without knowing their background is a red flag. They're not condescending, they're just cautious and they just hate opportunistic people..so you understand me Rix?
Rix: I do Dei.. but are you cautious too?
C: I am, with everything, even with love and maybe that's why I never had any relationship..I witnessed a bride who's groom never showed up on their wedding day... imagine how broken she is at that moment?

Rix felt a pinch in his chest... dejavu...reminds him of his supposedly weddings that never happened..

Carmaine: But like what I said, I'm not judgmental, there's always two sides of the story..listen, you're supposed to enjoy the vacation not to listen to some kind of boring topic..let me take you to the museum, then later on watch a show where they're showcasing traditional dances and music...
Rix: Okay, Dei, I follow your lead..

After a long day, Rix decided to go for a night swim at the beach, while Carmaine was left at the house to prepare food for them to eat..the Mendez' vacation house is a short distance to the beach...so he walked..

After he swam, he sat for a while listening to the calmness of the wave... the sound is so peaceful, he closed his eyes and try to savour the beauty of nature and then he heard a sweet sound calling out his name

He looked behind him and it was the woman who's been crowding his mind and making his heart beats non stop... a woman he wishes would not marry ... Carmaine Dei Mendez ..the woman he wishes to marry...