In the Mountain Penthouse, Diane is in the kitchen preparing steamed vegetables and ravioli. Daryl appears in the doorway with a Lafayette grocery bag.
“Honey, I brought that red wine you love so much for us to celebrate!”
Diane widens her eyes and turns to her husband, “Did we... make it?”
“Yes, we managed to get selected for an interview—”
Diane immediately turns the beam into a frown, “NO! Throw that bottle in the trash! We’re not going to celebrate anything!”
Daryl approaches her, leaving the bag on one of the islands, “Why not, honey?”
“I thought we were going to welcome our son.” Diane frets, “What you mean is that we are going to have an interviewer or an inspector who will still evaluate us, to see if we’re decent and responsible people to adopt someone.”
“Exactly,” Daryl is confused, “Honey, you know how the
The next day, Patrick returns from the bakery to Teodoro’s building. The radio is now playing the song “In the End” by Linkin Park.Pedro appears in the school uniform, “Now I’m going to school alone. You’ve graduated, and Rosemary is doing her senior year of high school with Caroline at a posh Capital school.”“Lucky for her.” Patrick shrugs, “May she not get pregnant with a preppy over there. Oops! I forgot, her thing is beggars!”Pedro takes a deep breath, “Pat, I know how upset you are—”“No, man, you don’t, and I hope you never do!” Patrick exclaims, shaking the bag of bread, “May your girlfriend become your wife and mother of many of your children to continue the Reis family. In my case, the Nogueira family will become extinct!”“What it is!” Pedro laughs, “You are a handsome dude, there will be many females knee
In the lobby of the Teodoro Building, Thierry realized that fourteen-year-old Pedro Chaves Reis is mature enough to have a heart-to-heart talk with him.“Pedro, I know you are nervous, but allow me to explain.”“No, I’m not nervous.” Pedro explains, “I’m disgusted, indignant, revolted, but nervous, not so much. Nervousness would mean punching you, but I don’t have enough muscle mass for that yet.”“Why do you think everything would be solved by punching me?” Thierry leans against the news bulletin board, “Punching me won’t bring Rosemary back.”“And you’re dying to get her back, correct?” Pedro pounces.“She never needed to leave here in the first place.” Thierry shakes his head, “How come the family didn’t convince her to stay? You guys talk so much about the mother who is in Victoria...”“She’d rat
At the Mountain Penthouse, Daryl is nervous and embarrassed in front of the inspector who has come to ask some questions. She is in her forties, wears glasses, has her hair pulled back stiffly in an old-fashioned bun, and is dressed in sober clothes. A clipboard and red pen rested in her arms.She glanced at the living room clock and sighed. Avril Lavigne’s song “Complicated” didn’t cheer her up.“Mr. Mountain, we definitely got off on the wrong foot.” She mutters, “If Mrs. Mountain doesn’t have the proper commitment to receive me—”“Calm down, Mrs. Brito.” Daryl was buttoning a dress shirt as he was at the pool.Mrs. Brito pretended not to, but she checked Daryl’s physique as he wore his shirt and smiled out of the corner of her mouth.The bell rings and Daryl goes to answer it, tucking the bottom of his shirt into his dress pants.Opening the door, Diane gasps, &
The next day, Daryl and Diane are crying their eyes out with the rest of the family at Café Montanha.“Failed, people, we were FAILED!” Diane tears non-stop.Isabel tries to comfort her with her hand on her shoulder, “But, Diane, calm down. One rejection is not the end of the world. Have you tried other orphanages?”Daryl isn’t crying publicly, but his red eyes indicate that he did it privately, “So far, we’ve only received contact from this orphanage. This means that the others have written us off right away.”Francisco serves them chamomile tea, “Don’t worry, you’ll make your dream come true.”Diane sobs, “I’m seriously considering getting checked out again with Dr. Silvana! Why can’t I get pregnant, WHY?”Daryl fumes, “Honey, don’t do that! No more exams, you already know the result. So, you’ll get more depressed.&rdquo
Gabriela felt punched by her father-in-law’s direct and caustic question.“That’s not fair, Vernon.”But Vernon bursts out laughing upon hearing this, “NO! My granddaughter is learning to speak, she already says ‘daddy’, ‘grandpa’, and ‘grandma’, but she doesn’t say ‘mommy’! She hates you and I rejoice in that!”Gabriela was going to slap Vernon, but she remembers that she needs the job and holds her frozen hand in the air.“Put that hand down! We’re not on ‘Sweet Love’ for you to stoop yourself to that cardboard scene.”Gabriela lowers her hand, but smiles wickedly, “Looks like this soap opera was canceled, huh? The new writer didn’t know how to maintain Melissa’s excellence and the audience plummeted.”“Why do you rejoice over something like that?” Vernon shakes his head.“
Against what Daryl and the others recommended, Diane dared to consult with Dr. Silvana.The charismatic gynecologist and obstetrician felt sorry for Mrs. Mountain.“By God, they really got it right when they said ‘money can’t buy happiness’.”“Don’t say that, Dr. Silvana.” Diane blows her nose with the umpteenth handkerchief she has used to do so, “I am a happy, fulfilled woman. I have money, material possessions, fame, social prominence, my husband owns the hottest restaurant in town, we opened a branch in Victoria, and I’m going to buy a car of the year. Why wouldn’t I be happy?Dr. Silvana stares at Diane in bewilderment, “But then... why are you breaking down in tears in front of me?”Diane tries to disguise her incongruity, “Ehr... actually I wanted another exam—”“Diane, we already checked you out!” Silvana interrupts her, &ldquo
Carmen and Teresa read the letter.“Dear TessI write this letter to give you some news that may or may not come as a shock to you. You were always an understanding woman and the best candidate for making my father happy. I thank God every day that he found a wife so perfect that he doesn’t even miss my mother.Sadly, as much as I love my Dad and know he loves me too, I just can’t address him with this news. That’s why I addressed the letter in your name, and I beg you never to show it to him.As you may know, I’m having the time of my life in Victoria. The beach is beautiful, not like Sunset Village, but you can have a nice time. Carol has been a great friend to me, and I have met more people in the Capixaba social circle. And it was during one party and another that I met this guy.He is the son of a re
A few days passed. And Daryl and Diane haven’t heard from any other orphanages.And Diane still hasn’t gotten pregnant.So she ran to Dr. Silvana to pick up the result of the gynecological exam.Dr. Silvana handed her an envelope full of sheets, “Oh, Diane. You have been coming so many times that I already feel the intimacy of calling you by your first name.”Diane takes the envelope as if it were a life preserver. She opens it, checks the pages, and reads carefully......And disappointment comes to her face.“Everything is in order with me!”Dr. Silvana doesn’t understand, frowning, “Girl, shouldn’t you dance ‘the twist’ here in the middle of the office?”Diane tucks the sheets carelessly back into the envelope, “You could have said something I don’t know.”“What can we say?” Dr. Silvana is tired of the same repertoire,