On the sidewalk of the building where the Rocha Penthouse lies, everyone is saying goodbye to João Paulo.The result of the entrance exam was out and João Paulo was among the first 100 approved for the higher course in Journalism.Vernon hugged his son effusively, “Son, when you get back, look for your old father who has a spot at LCN waiting for you!”“Or he can work at Marçal Publishing.” Elza opines, wiping her tears with a silk handkerchief, “Bernardo Marçal will not object.”The hug is undone.“Thank you, guys. Let’s think first about getting my degree.”Uélton and Benjamin carry the bags and put them in the trunk of Josias's car.“Buddy, are you carrying survival items?” Benjamin asks jokingly.“They're my books, Ben. And I will probably come back with a lot more.”The two best friends hug each other.Josias approaches the others, “What great commotion is this? It seems that João Paulo will never come back.”“Isn’t four years away from home too much for you, son?” Elza asks mela
1994Josias is sitting in the armchair in the living room, calmly reading the new issue of Maggiezine. Although the magazine was more aimed toward the female audience, Josias feels that he is honoring Melissa by reading it.Katherine would burn with jealousy at other times, but she holds back because at any moment Maggie's interview could appear in the magazine.J.J appears, walking into the room. The boy will be three years old and is already eating solid things.Josias notices his son's presence and smiles, “Hello, J.J! Exploring the penthouse?”“Daddy!”J.J goes to him. Josias picks up his son and puts him on his lap. Josias tries to read the magazine, but the son keeps pointing and trying to move the pages.“Calm down, son, let daddy read the magazine.”“Mommy!”Josias is surprised by J.J’s eagle vision. Neither had he noticed.On the left page of the magazine, there was a picture of Katherine taken on the sofa in the same living room they are in. The title of the report reads: “M
Josias enters Rocha Constructions for another day of work. Carmen is exclusively happy that day.“Good morning, Carmen.”“A great day for us all, sir!”Josias smiles and is surprised, “Wow, did something happen that I don't know about?”Carmen stands up, “Sir... it finally happened. I'm pregnant!"Josias joins in the excitement, “Wow, Carmen! Congratulations, I thought Tiago was sterile!”Tiago appears as if by magic, “Who is sterile here?”Everyone laughs. Josias hugs Carmen and then shakes hands with his friend and financial director.“Congratulations, guys. I am very happy with the expansion of the Bento family.” Josias comments.“Unfortunately, Marcelo is not here to celebrate with us.” Tiago sighs, “But we still have Igor as an uncle and Elisa with a cousin for my firstborn.”“We still don't know the sex of the baby, but that comes with time.” Carmen replies, “Oh, I'm so happy.”“It reminds us that we're going to need a new secretary.” Tiago erects his index finger.Josias has a
Josias is very comfortable in his presidential chair. The room has been renovated and the wall is painted light gray.He's calling his mother, “Hello, Mom, this is your dear son.”On the other side, Elza is sitting at the desk with a bright smile, “Hi, my son! And so, have you seen the report of the first months of Rocha Hotel?”“They’re encouraging, Mom. Customers looked for our hotel, especially at Christmas and New Year.”“I just hope our competitors don't want to build a hotel right in Sunset Village. That’s where the fireworks after the countdown take place.”“Yes, since 1983...” Josias gets melancholy.He remembers that when City Hall started the New Year's Eve tradition at Sunset Village, Josias was there with Melissa. Both had promised to work hard and Josias had promised to get his driver's license.“Son? Josias?” Elza called him to reality.“Hi, Mom, sorry. I was rambling.”“What were you thinking about?”Josias takes a deep breath, "I can't hide anything from you, huh?"“Of
The following week, Katherine was sitting on the couch reading the new issue of Maggiezine. The living room radio played “Mr. Vain” by Culture Beat.Suddenly, Katherine feels her blood boiling as she reads a page.Instead of a well-written article, Maggiezine took only a quarter of a page to debunking the entire interview she had done with Katherine.“In a note, we want to apologize to our dear readers for announcing that Katherine Bezerra would be the next Mrs. Rocha. Josias Rocha appeared at our office and denied the information.”After reading this, Katherine throws the magazine to the floor, "Damn, you bastard!"Josias enters the living room at this point, “Who are you cussing so much?”Katherine gets up, wide-eyed, “YOU! Why did you go to Maggiezine to humiliate me even more?”Josias smiles from the corner of his mouth, “Who told you to chat with Maggie Marçal here in my penthouse, without my permission? Kate, I told you from the beginning to stay away from the media.”“Well, I d
Josias is uncomfortable with Diane's request to regain full custody of Caio just to secure her relationships with Daryl, Melissa, and Kelvin.“I don't know if that would be wise, Diane.” Josias responds as best as he can, “Many people accuse me of being nosy.”“I already feel divided.” Diane states, “I am a direct cousin to Adrian, the man who hated you for ten harrowing years. For that fact, you should hate me and Daryl should tell me out to graze.”Moacyr is moved, “Don't say that, niece...”“And now I'm going to have another cousin who's going to cause trouble for my boyfriend's sister-in-law. I'm sure she will demand that I support her, while Pam will demand that I support the Chaves side.”Moacyr narrows his eyes, “You're not obligated to take either side, Diane!”Josias takes advantage of Moacyr's statement, “Exactly, Diane. You and Daryl can date peacefully and nothing bad will happen. As for Melissa, I know her very well and she will be reasonable.”Moacyr agrees, “Melissa has
Josias tells Angela that she needs to be prepared for the bonus and burden of being the next Mrs. Rocha.Gustavo clears his throat, “Excuse me, gentlemen, I need to go to work.”“Have a good journey, Gus,” Angela says goodbye to him.Josias nods and Gustavo leaves.Angela takes a deep breath, “Are you going to tell me what the attributes are for such an important placement in society?”Josias smiles slightly, “First, you need to love Mr. Rocha. Is that possible?”Angela's eyes are shining, “Oh... Josias, what question is that?”Josias chuckles, “Well, that's what I thought. Second, you will be the target of the tabloids and Maggiezine. Can you handle the pressure from the media and High Society?”“Of course I do, let them try to intimidate me. You will be surprised.” Angela adopts a confident tone.“And the most important thing is that the humiliation done by Katherine is not repeated on your part.”Angela does the Girl Scout gesture, “Deal!”“Okay, Angela, so we can ask Maggiezine to
Josias is now in the presidential room watching the upcoming projects created by Octavio and his group of architects. They analyze a floor plan stretched out on the desk. The drawing is of an apartment building.“We can take the same model, make some color changes, and apply them to different projects built in different cities,” Octavio comments excitedly.“Absolutely, Octavio.” Josias nods in wonder, “I still don't understand why I'm surprised at you.”“You've been repeating that since we met.” Octavio laughs.“Well, for me these projects are all approved. I hope Rocha Hotel makes enough money to help us.”“And how is your mother as the hotel manager?”“Do you believe she has done a good job?” Josias happily comments, “Madam was born to such an important position. And to top it all off, she keeps her busy so she doesn't plot against the Freire family.”Octavio purses his lips, “Do you think your stepfather won't try anything?”Josias waggles his index finger, “This year there's nothi