The next day, Dora is mopping the living room floor while humming the song “Lifted” by Lighthouse Family. Simeon passes her and likes to see his wife calm.“How nice to see you in a good mood, my love. Did something happen? Will found another decent girl?”“I think that will take some time.” Dora giggles, “I talked to Carmen and Cristina yesterday. We were right, honey, there was no christening for James on the day of Melissa and Kelvin's engagement.”Simeon gets upset, “And what did they say in their defense?”“They were embarrassed to show up because of Pamela.”“Oh, but what happened wasn’t—”Dora stops cleaning and smiles, “Here we have to be patient, my love. The idea came out of Cristina’s mind.”Simeon is a little upset, “Now I understand their guilt.”Dora smiles again to smooth things over, “Finally, we forgave each other. Pamela is no longer with us and Cristina learned her lesson. We will be friends again and everything will be fine.”Dora opens the door for the wind to dry
Jack and Veronica were talking on the phone. She was very excited about the interview she had at LCN and is buoyant with hope.“Jack, you needed to see that dark, hot director! I think I could fall in love with him, so he would give me major roles in LCN soap operas!”Jack takes it all as a joke, “Why don't you fall in love with him sincerely?”“Well, you know the perfect marriage between famous people only works in the commercials we shot,” Veronica speaks irresponsibly.Francisco enters the room and turns on the radio. The song “Alright” by Supergrass makes their apartment even more lively.“But you can be the exception, having a perfect and lasting marriage with Mr. Oliveira." Jack hints.“No, I prefer to leave the doors open for now.” Veronica implies that she wants to marry Jack.But Jack doesn't take the hint, “Okay, mate, I'm praying for you. Now I have to go, they found a replacement for you at the agency.”“Who's the bitch—” Veronica realizes that Jack has already hung up. Sh
Melissa is talking to Flávia and Isabel about the fear she has about Angela and Uélton.“Nothing gets out of my head that that weird girl wanted something bad with my dear big-eared.”Melissa hides her laugh by covering her mouth with her hand, “Cousin, don't be paranoid. Come, let's go to the studio where my soap opera is being recorded.”The three ladies go to the protagonist's house. She is poor, but she will fall in love with the rich heartthrob.Flávia calms down when she sees the scenery, “You know I'm an unconditional fan of your show, Melissa. You look like you were born for this.”“Well, thank you very much.”Flávia quickly turns to Isabel, “Your soap opera is also good, dear mother-in-law!”Isabel laughs, “I'm not jealous.”Flávia sits on one of the sofas and the camera is right in front of her, “So this is where our heroine thrills viewers with her beautiful performance.”“Exactly.” Melissa feels that Flávia is deflecting the subject, “You know, Flávia, I think you and Uélt
At LCN studios, Melissa and Isabel are shocked when they discover that someone was recording Flávia. The lady gets up from the couch and goes over to the cameraman.“What kind of clowning is this, young man?”The cameraman is startled, “Excuse me, weren't you ladies auditioning for new characters? I thought it was part of the selection process!”Isabel calms down and laughs, “It's not that. Flavia is my daughter-in-law and she just sat on the couch. We were talking that had nothing to do with 'Love Just Happens'."“In this case, ‘Sweet Love’.” The cameraman kindly corrects her.“Diego, don't worry, Flavia won't be upset. It was a misunderstanding.” Melissa solves the problem.Flávia is annoyed, “If my husband finds out that I'm kissing soap opera heartthrobs, he'll ask for a divorce!”Diego ventures, “But you never thought of being an actress?”“Shall we talk somewhere else, Melissa?” Flavia asks angrily.Melissa looks at her watch and again remembers that it was a gift from Josias, “
Thursday. Flávia serves breakfast and finds Uélton checking Everaldo's phone in the phone book.“Looking for whose phone, my love?”“Everaldo’s number, but it looks like he hasn't been able to get this important technology yet.” Uélton bitterly closes the phone book.“I look for you, father.” Reuben offers himself.Uélton pats his son's head, “You worry about eating your cereal to go to school.”Flávia joins them and helps herself to coffee with milk.“Honey, yesterday something very funny happened. A cameraman thought I was in a selection process for characters in Melissa's soap opera and recorded me while I was talking to your mother and my cousin.”“Are you going to be an actress, Mom?” Reuben's eyes are twinkling.Uélton chuckles, “No, son, your mother will only kiss the heartthrob here.”Flavia is slightly uncomfortable to see her suspicion come to fruition, “Would it be that bad?”Uélton shrugs, “Didn't you say that Veronica Montanha was there looking for vacancies? Let them hir
Uélton goes around the Main Square in search of Everaldo. As if by divine providence, Uélton finds him selling hot dogs in a strategic corner of the square.“EVERALDO!” Uélton pays the biggest embarrassment by literally jumping on top of the vendor, "God heard my prayers, and that's why you're here!”Everaldo almost has a heart attack, “Stop it, comrade! Don't embarrass my customers.” He addresses a girl paying for the hot dog, “Mayonnaise or mustard?”The lady customer was afraid of Uélton, “No, it's ok for me, thank you very much!”The customer runs out instead of eating the hot dog on one of the park benches.“I hope the girl wasn't scared,” Uélton speaks without the notion of what he did.“What you want? Is Josias in trouble?”Uélton is more and more amazed, “See? How do you know that I'm Josias Rocha's best friend? You can only be an angel coming from Heaven to help mere mortals!”Everaldo neither confirms nor denies the hypothesis, “I follow Josias’s life at Maggiezine.”“OK, I
Isabel and Harold are at home watching the traditional fishing show.Harold comments with a slight smile, “I miss our grandson in my lap watching these shrimp being caught.”Isabel pats her husband's belly, “He is now studying, to be a good citizen. And I don't think he would fit in your lap, not anymore.”“How time passes. He will be nine years old. Do you remember that Flávia almost died in childbirth?”Isabel worries a little, “I remember. So I hope they don't risk having more children, this could have been a warning for Flávia not to get pregnant again.”The landline rings and Isabel gets up to answer it, “Hello?”On the other side is Daniel, “Isabel, this is Daniel Oliveira. Is the hubby around for me to call you by your last name?”Isabel giggles, “He's not jealous, I will always love him.”“Great, because you're already intimate with everyone here. Now is the time for us to be intimate with your daughter-in-law.”“Flavia?”“Isabel, we saw the recording of your daughter-in-law..
Isabel is trying to call Flávia, but she can't. She doesn't know that Flávia is defending Uélton at Rocha Constructions.“No, no one answers, honey.” Isabel hangs up, “I don't think even Reuben made it home from school.”“Is the boy alone at home yet?” Harold asks, surprised.“Uélton said that our grandson is already a man.” Isabel smiles slightly, “As long as Reuben doesn't open the door to strangers, I'm fine.”“Unfortunately he was isolated. Caio lives here. Alan, Caroline, Pedro, and Rosemary live Downtown, and Junior is in Victoria.”Isabel sits on the other sofa, “This could be resolved if they left the favela and lived here in the neighborhood.”Harold ponders for a few seconds, “Well... he's in good financial shape.”“And that house is many years old,” Isabel remembers fondly.“Maybe that's why Uélton insists on staying there. But... it's like you said: before, we lived in Happiness Slum because we couldn't afford to live in a better neighborhood. Now we have it, and Uélton al
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