[Book 2] What If

Chapter 11

Just like she said, Ellie just went somewhere near with Nicole. They went to Vertis North just beside the hotel where they came from.

Their first stop was in UCC coffee shop. Ellie decided to stay there as she check out some files in her mac book while the both of them enjoy their beverages. Nicole had ordered a chocolate parfait together with her strawberry French toast while the young writer just decided to have Kori Kohi.

As like what she promised, the teenager just kept silent as her Ate El focused on working with her laptop. The kid just played with her Nintendo Switch as she eats her food. It is the same handheld game that Ellie gave her when they visited her in Austin.

When Nix had finished with her food, Ellie decided to enjoy strolling along the mall. Since everything's already set for later's meeting, she just wanted to kill time away from the eyes of the media personnel present in the press conference earlier. Wanting Nicole to have a good time as well, they instead went to the arcade to play some games.

There was happiness that can be seen in the face of the young teen. Despite being born from a prestigious family, the kid remains humble and still enjoys the simple pleasures for a normal girl.

It was not Nicole's first time going over at Timezone, but this was the most memorable experience she now has on this arcade. She had truly enjoyed playing the hoops and the dance mania together with her "older sister". Though fans have spotted the duo, they have never interrupted the two with their bonding time. Fans have come to know how Lea got angry with an incident that made her daughter frightened on a crowd from her fans. Instead, they just took candid shots of the two enjoying the arcade games which Ellie did not mind. After all, it will be rare for her to be seen in such a place. She had deprived people a sight of her being interviewed, so she made it a point to relent fans taking a picture of her when they come across her in public.

After spending almost two hours in the arcade, the duo then stopped at a bookstore to check literature works that might interest them. Though the kid haven't picked up anything for her, Ellie had bought her a manga volume that she herself had read before. She also added some Adventure Time jigsaw puzzles as the kid is an avid fan of that particular cartoon.

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After enjoying their time in the mall, Ellie then drove their way to Makati to meetup Lea and people from the theater group. Their venue was Bobbi's matriarchal home which have been used by the director only on special occasions.

There, they were welcomed by Bobbi and his assistant. Though it was not yet exactly 5:00pm, it seems that everyone is already there. Nicole went to find her mom while Ellie had to go back to the car to get the food she bought over for the whole team. There were four boxes each of doughnuts and pizzas. She handed it over to the assistant to put on a place that can be accessible for everyone.

"Mom!!" Nicole called her mother as she ran towards her.

"Oh, where have you been?" the Broadway star hugged her daughter who just came in.

"Ate El and I went to a coffee shop and played in the arcade." The kid's grin are reaching from ear to ear. She then gave Lea the shopping bags she got from their trip.

"Hey, what's this?" Lea asked her daughter as she looked at the contents. There was a cute pig stuffed toy in one, and a manga and puzzles on the other bag she got.

"Ate El, bought all these for me. This one.." Nix pulled out the stuffed toy as she shows it to her mom and to the others present. "We won this from the arcade. It was so fun."

Everyone can feel how happy the teenager was, with all her grinning face showing. The Broadway star just smiled feeling satisfied that her daughter is getting along well with Ellie.

"Wow, Ellie must be such a sweet and kind ate to you Nix." Mikki Bradshaw; Nyoy Volante's wife and one of the talents in Atlantis Theatrical, comments as she watched the teenager tell about her gala with El.

"Yes. She's a very kind ate. She always makes time to play with me. She's pretty and smart too." Her mom seconded all the positive things Nicole mentioned about the young writer. Lea even told them all the extra mile El is doing for her unica hija.

"Wow. You found such a wonderful adoptive daughter then." Bobbi said as he goes back to the group. "It seems everybody is here, but before we start let's go eat. Our dearest writer brought over some snacks." 

"Woah. For real? Man, what a good timing. I'm starting to feel hungry." Said Nyoy whose ears became attentive with the mention of the food. 

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As they huddle to have their dinner snack, Ellie had been properly introduced to all members of their upcoming play. Some of them had already known her by name and by face since she joined The Voice, but nevertheless, it was her first time to personally acquaint herself with the others, save for her very own coach, Bobbi and Renan.

Yes, Renan is also part of the cast which makes the man excited to get to work with her admired crush.

As the others where mingling with one another, the man took the initiative to approach El as he saw the woman sitting alone as she drinks her wine. Nicole just left her side to play along with Nyoy.

"Mind if I sit beside you?" asked the man.

El looked up to see Renan smiling as he holds two plates of strawberry shortcake on his hands.

"Of course, no need to ask." El smiled which made the man silently feel kilig.

"Thank you. By the way, this is for you." Renan hands over one of the plates he's holding which holds the shortcake with a small fork on it.

"Oh, you shouldn't have bothered." Ellie put her wine glass down on the table as she reaches for the plate.

"Well, I heard strawberry is your favorite flavor. I took it upon me to save you a slice since later on, the guys might have to eat them all."

"Thank you Renan. You're so sweet." Ellie smiled once more as he finds the man's gesture so kind. She took a bite of the cake that was given to her and studied its taste. She looked at the man's face and smiled as she said:

"It's so tasty. I like it."

Renan could not hide his grin as he hear those words from El. Seeing her smile makes his heartbeat fast. Despite the woman's disappearance from the scene months prior, he never stopped liking the girl. Though minimal, he tried to kept their communication through their social media accounts. He had been messaging the woman through IG and Twitter from time to time.

And now that Ellie's back and will be working together with them, the man is fully determined to get to know her better in hopes of courting her in the future.

Though El's interaction with Renan remains casual, this has not been left unnoticed with Lea's piercing eyes. From afar she could see the smiling faces of the two. Mikki, who was with her at the moment, noticed where the Broadway star has been looking at.

"Aww. They look so cute together, right Ms. Lei?" Lea's gaze then turned back to Mikki as her statement made a painful sound on her ears.

"Do they?"

"Yeah. I wonder when will Renan make his move. He had been admiring El since he saw her at your party last year." comments the cheerful chubby girl.

She almost forgot how this man irritated her. Since she had been with Ellie as of lately, she had forgotten Renan's existence temporarily. But now as she realizes that Ellie and Renan will get to see more often because of their work, her mind and heart could not feel at ease. Lea could feel a tingle of ache in her heart as she sees Ellie enjoying the night with someone else.

The Broadway star's mood had become sour and her facial expression changed from that of a smiling to a resting bitch face.

"Ms. Lei, are you alright?" Mikki asked as she saw the change in Lea's beautiful face.