When Josias entered the mansion, he found Melissa dressed up to go out."Dear, I didn't want to ask you yesterday, but I saw that you were a little upset." Josias approached and kissed her cheek."Oh, you're referring to the mission you entrusted me with?" Melissa huffed and rolled her eyes at the same time, "Unfortunately, I couldn't be as efficient.""What does Kelvin claim?""He denied it the whole time, making me believe exactly what you said," Melissa replied disappointed with her ex-husband, "How am I going to tell the twins?""Don't tell them. They don't need to have their childhood traumatized," Josias advises her."Actually, they're pre-teens." Melissa jokes."How time flies, huh? Little Theo is going to be just as big as his father, and Pete is kicking out problematic tenants by brute force."Melissa laughs. Yes, she's getting old, but to her, it's interesting to watch the next generation grow.They walk towards the hallway."Darling, about you ordering the boys from the Bent
Daniela claps as if she were part of an audience watching Pedro's energetic action."Wow... fantastic. What a manly and strong boyfriend I have!""Am I still your boyfriend?" Pedro jokes, wiping his hands as if trying to clean the dirt off the evicted tenant.Beto laughs and comes out from behind the counter. "I'll pack his things."Beto goes up the stairs to 202."Pete, while I applaud your courage, I wonder if this could backfire on you one day." Daniela expresses her concern."How so?""For example, I always had a suspicion that guy from 202 was up to something shady." Daniela drops her smile, "Could he not try to seek revenge on you?""With the electronic gate and the fact that we're protected by Josias, nothing bad will happen to us, my dear.""But wasn't there a time when Caio suffered retaliation?" Daniela remembers the incident."Indeed, some drug dealers tried to harm Caio. But they paid dearly for it. The one who tried to kill my brother was found with his mouth full of ants
In the cafeteria of the Teodoro building, Teresa talks to Daniela. The two watch the tenants having their meals."Daniela, how did things go with Caroline? Have you made up yet?"Daniela purses her lips. "No. She hasn't been here since, neither her nor Felipe.""I'm really sorry. As a friend of Melissa, I think I should talk to her.""Don't bother." Daniela smiles to reassure her, "I appreciate your dedication, Tess, but Caroline is my business. And honestly, I'm not in the mood to talk about it.""Do you think the anger will pass?" Teresa raises her eyebrows, "Caroline has an issue with Sofia that hasn't completely resolved yet.""Sofia Vasquez, her sister-in-law? Alan seems to be a happy husband. Why can't Caroline be happy for her brother?""Midnight Mysteries." Teresa shakes her head."Maybe I can understand what's going on. Sofia is pregnant, right?" Daniela's eyes sparkle, thinking of some plan of action."Yes, go visit her. She needs it." Teresa encourages her.Daniela starts c
Days passed. The slap that Caroline received from Sofia healed, but the emotional wound continued to feel fresh in her mind and heart.She can't concentrate on her college entrance exam books and turns up the volume on her MP4 player. Shakira's song "Did It Again" seems to make her deaf.Dora entered her room. "My granddaughter, the music is echoing throughout the whole mansion!"Caroline rolls her eyes and lowers the sound. "Why do you like to exaggerate the truth?""Because it makes you realize faster." Dora approaches the desk, "Why are you like this?""Did you know that Sofia Vasquez slapped me?" Caroline vents with wrath in her eyes.Dora is frozen for a few seconds, realizing something else."Why did you call your sister-in-law by her maiden name?""GRANDMA!" Caroline stands abruptly, "You're not taking me seriously!""Don't be unfair, girl. You need to understand that Sofia is pregnant and her hormones are not in harmony. I'm sure she will come here today to apologize to you."
At Rocha Mansion, Melissa doesn't want the living room to turn into a battlefield."Are you here to complain about what's going on?""Yes, Melissa." Sofia asserts confidently and decisively, "I believe it's time to put an end to this talk once and for all, don't you think? Or do you also believe I came here to steal money from you?"Melissa swallows nervously. "I must admit that initially, I had my suspicions too.""Before or after Caroline opened her mouth?"The door opened and Caroline entered with Dora."No need to talk behind my back anymore. I'm here." Caroline announced pompously and arrogantly."Daughter, what's going on here?" Melissa frowned as she stood up.Caroline glanced sideways at Sofia, barely acknowledging her sister-in-law's presence. She addressed her mother."Sofia told you she slapped me in public at Café Montanha?""WHAT?" Melissa exploded, glaring fiercely at Sofia, "The pregnant woman has the strength to hit MY DAUGHTER?""Don't use my pregnancy as an excuse to
Tension reigns with abandon in the living room of Rocha Mansion.Melissa tries to organize things, "Listen you two: didn't we have a truce between you two? It's been a while since I heard any of this. Carol, you chose the worst time to argue with Sofia. She's pregnant with your brother's firstborn!""Mom...""Can you imagine what Alan would do if he found out?" Melissa continues with maternal authority, "I won't allow you to do anything to harm my first grandchild. I believe that, when you get pregnant by Reuben, you'll want everyone to treat you with care.""And since we know Reuben, that won't take long." Dora sneers.Sofia smiles in disdain at Caroline, mentally calling her a b*tch.Melissa turns to Sofia, "And what about you, Sofia? You should be at home resting. Did Dr. Silvana authorize you to be wandering around the city, slapping people, and getting stressed?""No, Melissa. I had just come from a meeting with my husband and Josias after he informed me of the situation and dema
Sofia returns to the Vasquez mansion.To her surprise, she finds Daniela waiting for her in the living room.Engrácia introduces the visitor. "Mrs. Rocha, this young lady is waiting for you."Daniela stands up. "Hello, Mrs. Rocha. I'm Daniela Lombardi, Pete Reis's girlfriend.""Pleasure to meet you. Please, have a seat, let's talk.""Your cousin was waiting for you, but he had to go to work." Daniela sat back down.Sofia sits comfortably. In front of her is a tray with tea cups."I'll talk to him later.""Here's a little gift." Daniela extends the package.Sofia smiles pleasantly, "Oh, thank you! How can I help you, Miss Lombardi?""Please, call me Daniela because I feel like we'll be friends. We have a common goal: dealing with Caroline Rocha."Sofia takes the package, rolling her eyes."Ugh, give me patience... I slapped that bully a few days ago at Café Montanha. My parents need to borrow money and asked my husband. Caroline thinks we want to default or spend the money on other fri
Rocha Mansion. In Josias' office, another sunny morning in Sunset Village unfolds. Josias sits at his computer, engrossed in online news."I hope the construction of the mall won't suffer due to the current economy..." he murmurs, his brow furrowing in concern.Melissa enters the room with her face beaming with excitement as she approaches her husband."Hi, honey! I have excellent news," she announces cheerfully.Josias chuckles at her enthusiasm. "You could have told me yesterday," he teases lightly."I didn't have anything definite yet. Do you know about Maggie? She'll find something for Caroline so she won't have idle time," Melissa replies jovially.Pausing from his task, Josias regards his wife with curiosity. "I didn't know Carol was so desperate," he remarks, surprised."She's not; we are," Melissa corrects him with a hint of urgency in her voice."Does this have something to do with the fight between her and Sofia that was reignited?" Josias inquires, sensing underlying tensio
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