Carmen feels strange when she sees Uélton walk through the glass door with his clothes dirty with dust and concrete.“Uélton, shouldn't you go home?” She attends to him.“I need to speak urgently to my best friend and symbolic brother,” Uélton responds as if he were desperate.“Calm down, Josias won't fly away.” Carmen laughs at her joke.Uélton pretends to be offended, “Very funny, ma'am! We already lost him once, we can't lose him again.”Josias strides to leave, “Oh, hello, Uélton. I'm on my way out, do you need anything?”“I want to talk to you about the party we need to have in your penthouse,” Uélton speaks expansively.Carmen is interested and faces Josias.But Josias lowers his head, “Ehr... let's talk on the way to the police station.”Carmen understands that Josias is going to visit Adrian to peel him and sits down to do her chores.Uélton and Josias leave.******Haroldo visits LCN facilities with Reuben. The two, carrying the visitor's badge, find Isabel with Jack Motta ta
This Sunday is the day the citizens of Lagoon City will choose a new mayor.According to the electoral law, Tobias Ibrahim could not run as a candidate because his father has already served as mayor for two terms. After all, we are in a democracy, not a monarchy.However, that would not mean that Tobias would stay out of public life. In the polling area where voting is taking place, he is explaining to Josias his plans for the future.“You won't see me around here, Josias. Glad I had time to say goodbye to a great friend.”“Where are you going?” Josias asks curiously.“I am traveling to the United States.” Tobias proudly replies, “Is there a better place to learn about the Rule of Law than Uncle Sam's land?”“Hum, interesting. When you come back, you will have cultural baggage and preparation to win in the first round.” Josias so desires.“I wish, Josias...” Tobias laughs, “By the way, I watched Lisandro's show. You did very well.”“Thanks. Everything went well, except for my marriage
Unaware that Uélton is attacking the strawberry pie, Melissa talks to Simeon and Dora in the master suite.“Mom, Dad... it's with immense regret that I've decided to cancel plans to get back together with Josias.”Simeon punches the mattress on her bed, “Daughter, no!”Dora is distressed, “Dear daughter, and your status as Madam Rocha, how gets it?”Melissa wiggles in displeasure, “Don't even remind me of that, Mom. I was willing to forgive Josias for getting Angela pregnant. But now he has one more child fathered by another slut. Is this how my life will be? Every time Josias is away from me, is he going to impregnate another random woman?”Simeon tries to defend his son-in-law, “Daughter, what happened to Josias were extreme situations. It will not become a habit.”“Is it not, father? I don't want to pay to see it. Now it's two out-of-wedlock children who will give us trouble and headaches when they become adults. And what's worse: they are two boys. They will grow up to be jealous
In the Rocha penthouse, Melissa continues to reason with her parents about her and Josias's divorce.“Mom, Dad, I hope you accept my decision,” she begs.Simeon makes a face as he sucked on a lemon, “I don't know... what will become of you when the divorce is finalized?”“Well, we're literally going to carry on as if Josias is dead.” Melissa gets up and goes to the dressing table, “I will continue to live in the penthouse with my children, Ernesto and Lilian will remain here, Elza and João Paulo will continue with the R$250,000.00 they inherited... nothing has changed.”“And Will is gonna worsen his behavior at the company and home.” Dora rolls her eyes.“Will was already nasty when Josias wasn't here.” Melissa asserts, “He will be put in his place in the company, once Josias has reasserted the throne.”Simeon gets up from the bed, “So there's no way? How are we going to explain it to the public, your fans?”Melissa is already uncomfortable with the conversation, “We didn't have time
Simeon and Dora return home, devastated by Melissa's confirmation of divorce.When they enter, they find William watching TV, the music video for “Everything About You” by Ugly Kid Joe.“Hello, guys!” William tries to be kind, “How was visiting my dear sister?”“You still ask?” Simeon collapses in the armchair, “Your sister is going to divorce anyway.”William laughs heartily.Dora crosses her arms and takes a good look at her son: lying on the couch, shirtless, with grubby shorts, several cans of beer on the coffee table, and crumbs of potato chips.“Will, have you been overdoing the cans?” Dora gives her son a light slap to straighten himself up on the couch, “You're the one who's going to sweep up these crumbs.”“I celebrated in advance.” William sits up, “It's good to know that Melissa has come to her senses. When will she come back here?”Simeon and Dora got appalled.“What question is that? Melissa can't come back here!” Simeon thunders.“Oh, I need to move first, right? Okay, t
Monday, a working day. Diana visits Cristina’s apartment to see if Moacyr needs anything.Moacyr is comfortably on the couch watching LCN’s morning video shoot. The video in question is "Stay" by Shakespeare’s Sister."What a beautiful music video, don’t you think, niece?" Moacyr comments about it."Yes, so is the music. Uncle, what can I do for you?""I intend to stay here to follow the channel of the new station. Perhaps soon they will broadcast the morning news.""Okay, I’ll sweep the floor and take care of the dishes while Aunt Cris works in the lobby."Diane finds the broom and starts sweeping. The music video ends and the TV goes to the commercials.Suddenly, they both see a commercial for Crystal Blue. During the presenter’s speech, they show images of the place with Kelvin and Daryl smiling at the camera.Daryl’s smile hypnotizes Diane and she stops sweeping. Moacyr notices her."Did you enjoy the restaurant very much yesterday?"Diane wakes up to life, "Yes. And I was interes
Uélton and Flávia talk at their house about the party they intend to give. The radio is playing "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Reuben dances in a funny way."Well, here’s the list of those we don’t want to invite." Uélton always emphasizes the barred ones instead of emphasizing those that have been allowed.Flavia picks up the sheet of paper, "Okay, let’s not invite Adrian because he’s already in jail.""Never come back!" Uélton looks at his son, "What are you doing, champ?""I’m dancing, Dad!" Reuben swings like a worm."Darling, I want to tell you a sacred secret." Uélton approaches and whispers in his wife’s ear, "Melissa and Josias will continue the divorce."Flavia walks away, "But Melissa had forgiven him before the accident!""It’s because Josias told me that he impregnated the farmer’s daughter who kept him in false imprisonment," Uélton speaks with regret.Flavia makes a 'tsk' with her tongue, "Jeez... but there is no way to defend Josias! There are already two
Melissa is crossing Main Square and unwittingly finds Katherine sitting on the same bench as if she were waiting for her."Oh, I knew I could find you here!" Katherine quacks.Melissa opens her eyes. Is this crazy woman spying on her?"Stop pestering me. You need to take care of this baby." Melissa responds dryly."How am I supposed to take care of the baby if the father won’t even talk to me?" Katherine teases her."This is between the two of you." Melissa begins to withdraw.Katherine realizes Melissa’s reaction and rejoices, "What is it? Josias confirmed to you that the child is his? Are you getting a divorce?"Melissa stops the steps and turns her head at her with a sneer, "Good luck, honey. You’re not the only one in line."Eventually, Melissa moves away quickly, no longer wanting to argue.Katherine snitches, it wasn’t the effect she wanted, "Well, at least YOU aren’t in line, right, ma'am? I could see defeat in your eyes. You lost, you were the official wife but you were oversh
Josias visits the Rocha Hotel since he didn’t have a day off for the staff. In the management room, Eugenio gathered David, Benjamin, and Sybil. “Why is that mere cook present at this meeting?” David asked disparagingly. “Because that’s how our boss ordered it,” Eugenio replied dryly. “I didn’t say anything and didn’t call this meeting, so if you’ll excuse me...” Benjamin and Sybil were horrified to see David leaving the meeting just like that. However, when he opened the door, David came face to face with his father. “David, where do you think you’re going?” “DAD!” David exclaimed, extremely surprised. “I didn’t know you were coming!” “Didn’t Eugenio tell you I was coming?” Josias asked with a scowl. David understood who the ‘boss’ was. Benjamin and Sybil felt vindicated. Josias sat down at the desk, taking Eugenio’s seat, while the manager remained humbly standing. “Very well,” Josias began the meeting in a formal tone, “I’m here just to make things crystal clear. First
Melissa and Mary visit the Mountain Café.“A guava juice for me, Mr. Mountain!” Mary requested, smiling sweetly.“Of course, my princess!” Rodrigo replied, thinking Mary was very adorable. “Neil will make a delicious cup for you.”“Thank you. But the princess is Carol,” Mary responded, striking a serious pose.Melissa and Rodrigo laughed heartily. Mary is something else...“Rod, how has it been managing the café in your father’s absence?” Melissa asked seriously.Rodrigo served a baked chicken pastry with ketchup to Mary. “I'm getting by, Melissa. Josias was here earlier, more concerned about my loss than his own, as always. Isn’t he supposed to be resting?”Melissa nodded. “My husband is like that: he only relaxes when all of us are relaxed.”“An impossible mission because of certain people.”Neilton approached with the glass. “Who ordered a guava juice?”“I DID!” Mary grabbed the glass and went to a table.Melissa leaned forward, “Neil, Rod, how are Daryl and Diane? Behaving?”“Cont
At João Paulo’s house, he and Josias were about to have a significant conversation.“Walter, do you want to go with your mom to the kitchen?” João Paulo asked, looking at Helen. “I think she made some walnut cake.”“It was carrot cake,” Sandra replied, already getting up from the couch.“You got it.” Helen appeared and picked up Walter in her arms. “Let’s let Dad and Uncle Josias talk.”“Bye, Uncle!” Walter waved goodbye to Josias.“Bye-bye, I want a piece later!” Josias chuckled.Once alone with João Paulo, Josias became serious. “Don’t let anything or anyone ruin this family scenario, little brother.”“I’m fine. No one wants to ruin anything,” João Paulo replied casually.“Well, I hope David hasn’t caused you any trouble.”“He probably doesn’t even know I exist, man.” João Paulo shrugged.“But I stopped by Café Montanha and found out that the Vasquez family has replaced the Mountain family as the ‘annoying people.’”João Paulo sighed in disappointment. “Yeah. They—”The doorbell ran
Josias visits Café Montanha for a coffee and finds Rodrigo there. “Rod, how have you been?” Rodrigo is taken aback. “How am I? You’re the one who suffered a horrific loss recently!” “But you also lost your father. We’re in the same situation,” Josias explained as he sat down on a stool. “I’m okay, Josias. Life has a way of cheering me up. For example, I’m back at the diner after Thierry decided to take his place at the supermarket.” Rodrigo smiled. “What about the photography studio?” Josias smiled back. “It’s still going to operate, and Thierry will make periodic visits. But he’s going to appoint one of the staff to manage the studio.” Rodrigo served a pizza pastry to Josias. “Thank you. Well, I hope everything is alright between you two. I need to visit Rosemary and meet Jean Luc — is that the name of the baby?” “Yes, the name of the supermarket heir. Meanwhile, Frank will be here or somewhere else.” Josias interjected, “If Frank wants to work at Rocha Constructions, count
At the Rocha Mansion, Josias receives a visit from Benjamin. “How have you been, Ben? Any news about your parents?” The two embrace. “Actually, that’s what I want to talk about.” Benjamin scratches the back of his neck. The embrace breaks. “Let’s go to my office.” The two gentlemen enter Josias’s imposing office. “Any problems with Adolfo?” Josias asks, becoming serious. “Not yet, but I hope not to have any,” Benjamin replies with some sadness. “You know, Josias, what happened with your father made me think about my family, about how important it is for all of us to be together in the final moments.” “That’s true. João Paulo can tell you that better than I can.” “I think you can say it too. Vernon was the father you never had.” Benjamin clears his throat. “So, I’ve been looking into some hotels and realized there’s a demand at the Rocha Hotel in Victoria.” Josias looks at Benjamin, understanding where he’s going with this. “You want to go to Victoria to be close to your pare
Someone rings the doorbell at João Paulo’s house. The homeowner goes to answer after taking a shower and putting on clean clothes. But when he opened the door, João Paulo felt like slamming it in the visitor’s face. “Don’t be rude!” Erasmo exclaimed. “What do you want, you old bore?” João Paulo shot back. Erasmo barged into João Paulo’s foyer. “The mourning is over. Let’s pick up where we left off.” “Are you crazy? Who decides how long mourning lasts? We just got back from the trip!” “Not exactly, it’s been a day. Life goes on, my friend!” Erasmo replied mockingly. João Paulo remained serious. “But I don’t want to continue living this way, where fights and intrigues are the order of the day. Mr. Vasquez, you have a business to run, and I have a family to raise.” “But you found time to slap my son-in-law when he was here defending his family, didn’t you?” “Alan was extremely rude, but that was some time ago.” João Paulo frowned. “I don’t feel the same anger as before.” “So a
At the Vasquez Mansion, Alan could hardly believe that the people were thinking about more intrigues and disputes. “Guys, don’t you understand that I even forgot the reason I slapped Uncle João Paulo?” “Ridiculous!” Erasmo gestured. “You just maintained respect because it was a difficult occasion. But now, the mourning is OVER!” “Do you think João Paulo will rest, dear?” Sofia asked, sitting next to him. Alan shook his head. “If Uncle João Paulo doesn’t want to rest, then he is truly despicable. But my dad is back in town. He wouldn’t dare to do that.” The news should have been uplifting, but the members of the Vasquez family merely exchanged silent glances. With Josias present, it’s quite likely that he will put a stop to their fighting. Alan turned to Olivia. “In the meantime, we should celebrate the recovery of my dear mother-in-law!” Olivia and Sofia smiled awkwardly because of the secret they were keeping. “That’s right, let’s celebrate life!” Erasmo wrapped his arm arou
Josias Rocha and his family returned to Lagoon City. Those who were waiting for them stayed in the mansion and greeted them cheerfully in the foyer. “WELCOME BACK!” Melissa, crying, embraced her parents, William, and the twins fervently. Josias greeted them with a light smile. “Where’s João Paulo?” William asked. “He went straight to his house. His kids needed to rest from the trip.” Melissa wiped her tears with her fingers. “Alan went straight to his mansion. Especially now that his mother-in-law has woken up from the coma.” “That was a scare; I thought we’d have two funerals,” Simeon commented. Everyone headed to the living room. “Is Paris very beautiful, Mom?” Mary asked. “Yes, sweetheart, it’s stunning. We’ll go shopping together another time, okay?” “Do you have pictures?” Ignacio asked anxiously. “Yes, son, we took some pictures.” Melissa sat on the couch, pulling out a package from her bag. Josias sat in the armchair, taking a deep breath. William approached him.
At Café Montanha, Daryl walks in for a coffee and finds Rodrigo at the counter while Neilton serves the others. “Hey, are we back to the old tradition?” “Don’t be a clown, man.” Rodrigo laughs. “Yes, Thierry is at the supermarket, as we agreed.” “Hi, Neil. Can you make me a cappuccino while I enjoy a natural sandwich?” Daryl places his order. “Sure thing, Mr. Mountain.” Neilton heads to the back. Daryl sits on the stool. “So, how do you feel after getting back to your element?” “I don’t regret at all helping my dear wife at the supermarket, Daryl,” Rodrigo admitted while preparing the natural sandwich. “I’m not talking about regrets.” Daryl joked. “But it’s undeniable that after Uncle Francisco’s passing, you prefer to stay here, carrying on the legacy he left.” “Just like Crystal Blue.” Rodrigo smiled. “Hey, I’m aware that you’re looking to open another restaurant in Sunset Village. Do you think you can manage it? How’s the prospecting going?” Daryl picks up the sandwich but