cleaned up and changed.
Supper that night was fast food – Jollibee's again. Kelly and I went for cheeseburgers while Marlyn and Marilyn settled on spaghetti. While we were eating, Marilyn got up to get a refill of her Coke. When she was out of earshot, Marlyn told us 'Thank you, both of you, for such a wonderful day. I haven't seen Marilyn this happy for a very long time.
And she is so proud that she learned how to swim! She asked me how she could thank you for taking the time to teach her, and I didn't know what to say.'
Kelly smiled and took her hand to give it a small squeeze before saying 'She doesn't have to thank us. I know it made both of us happy to teach her, and see how much fun she was having.'
Marlyn smiled back, and said 'I know that – I could see that both of you were so concerned with her while you were teaching her, and how much fun you had after. I told her she didn't have to thank you, but she really wants to. Is there anything I can tell her?'
Kelly turned to look at me, and I had to think for a few moments before getting an idea. Looking at Marlyn, I asked 'Do you think she would be willing to have us as her pretend aunt and uncle? Her American family?'
Marlyn looked positively delighted at the idea, assuring us 'I'm *sure* she would. I will suggest it to her, and let her ask you herself.'
Kelly could hardly contain her excitement at the idea, and barely managed to keep a straight face when Marilyn got back to the table. We continued our meal, and a few minutes later, heard Marlyn and Marilyn have a not-so- short conversation – one that left Marilyn almost beaming with joy.
When the meal was over, Kelly and I carefully didn't notice as Marilyn made a few false starts at talking to us. When she was finally able, though, we gave her our full attention when she told us there was something that she wanted to say to us.
First, she thanked us for letting Marlyn come to visit with her, and all the nice things that we'd given the orphanage. We both told her that we were happy to do those things, since we didn't have children of our own yet. Then she went on to tell us that she was glad that we took the time to teach her how to swim, and that she wanted to thank us for our kindness – would we be upset if she called us her American family – her Tito (Uncle) Dan and Tita (Aunt) Kelly? Kelly started to cry, and both of us assured her that we would be delighted for her to do that, and that we would call her our niece. Marilyn was so happy that she started to cry, which got Marlyn going, too. I have to admit that I felt a little tightness in my throat as I distributed paper napkins for them to wipe their eyes with.
We celebrated our new 'family' with a round of ice cream for everyone before starting back for the hotel. All the way back, Marilyn held hands with me and Kelly as she walked between us. We got a few looks from the locals, but when they saw how happy Marilyn was, they just smiled and went on with whatever they were doing.
In the hotel lobby, I told Marlyn 'I'd like to take Kelly to Baguio tomorrow for some shopping. If you think we'll be okay with Bhoy, you're certainly welcome to stay here and spend the day with Marilyn.'
She thanked me, admitting that the evening before hadn't really been enough time for her and Marilyn to have together. She went on to assure me that we'd be just fine with Bhoy – that my (limited) Tagalog was enough for him to understand what we wanted. I thanked her before Kelly and I wished both of them a good night; Marilyn insisted on kissing both of us on the cheek before we left for our respective rooms.
Kelly and I had undressed and were lying on the bed listening to some classical music we'd brought with us when Kelly suddenly gave me a fierce hug and kiss. I looked at her in surprise, and she just told me 'That's just for being you. You made that poor little girl so *happy* by letting her call us her Aunt and Uncle! I never would have thought to do something like that.'
'I didn't know for sure whether it would work or not, myself. But I remembered how close family friends can take the place of missing family members, and figured it was worth asking.'
Kelly hugged me again, and said 'You are such a softie. I saw how she was looking at you – I'll bet it won't be a week before she's convinced herself that you really Are her Tito Dan. I couldn't believe it when you got out of the water that first time, and she started helping me put the lotion on you – she got over being shy around you fast enough!'
'Just my rugged good looks and natural charm, is all', I teased.
To my surprise, Kelly just nodded her agreement before telling me 'I know you're joking – but you really are good-looking, in a rugged kind of way; you're not Mel Gibson cute, but more Harrison Ford handsome. And I can personally vouch for your natural charm. Not the greasy used-car-salesman kind, but the open friendliness kind.'
I wasn't comfortable with where this was going, and didn't say anything in response.
Kelly just looked at me for a few moments, and said 'I know, you don't like talking about yourself like this. But what I said is true. If you weren't so darn picky, you could have about any woman you wanted. But you are picky, and you picked me – and made me the happiest person on earth. Now give me a kiss so we can listen to the music some more.'
I did, and the two of us spent the rest of the evening just holding each other.
The next morning, Marlyn and Marilyn met us in the lobby as Kelly and I were getting back from breakfast. They and Kelly chatted for a few minutes while I went up to our room to make sure I had plenty of money for the shopping I expected to be doing. I hadn't forgotten my private vow to make sure all the girls at home got something to show them how much Kelly and I appreciated their help.
I got back to the lobby just in time to see Bhoy drive up in the van.
Kelly and I went with Marlyn as she told him that we wanted to go to Baguio for some shopping. Helping Bhoy maintain his ruse that he didn't understand me, I told her that we particularly wanted to get some silver things for some friends back home, but that we would be after other items, as well. Bhoy indicated to her that he knew just the places to take us, so Kelly and I took our customary seats for the trip.
Baguio – and particularly its silversmiths – was a popular enough tourist destination that they didn't seem to feel the need to gouge tourists too much. Kelly was both amazed and delighted at the quality and delicacy of the work she saw. I didn't have any trouble convincing her to buy a number of things for herself, and she was more than happy to help pick things out for everyone that we'd had to leave behind. Bhoy seemed to make it a point to stay with us, making it clear that we were not to be subjected to any thievery of any kind. A few hours later, and several hundreds of dollars poorer, we left to return to San Fernando.
After a single look at us in the rearview mirror, Bhoy deliberately didn't notice that my arm was around Kelly as she snuggled into my side.
Knowing that this was just a single-day side trip, she'd taken care to get all the photos she wanted on the trip there, leaving her free to sit next to me on the way back. Only when we got to the outskirts of San Fernando did she straighten up and let me pull my arm from around her.
Once back at the hotel, we turned Bhoy loose for the evening before heading up to our room. There, we set our packages down so we could grab a quick shower and change clothes before going out for Filipino food – we were both surprised at how quickly we'd tired of fast food.
We paused to buy a couple of Cokes each from the sari-sari store on our way back to the hotel; once in our room, we quickly undressed so we could cuddle on the bed as we watched a Filipino comedy on TV – laughing at all the right places, judging from the laugh track.
When it was late enough, we turned off the TV and went to bed, holding each other close as we drifted off to sleep.
The next morning found us in the lobby, trying to decide where to go for breakfast. We finally decided to try the one restaurant that claimed to serve American-style breakfasts; as we were leaving, we heard Marilyn's voice calling out to us. We turned, and saw the two of them walking toward us. We invited them to join us for breakfast, and they readily accepted. Marilyn again took my and Kelly's hands as we walked to the restaurant. I chanced a look behind us, and saw that Marlyn was as happy as she could be at the sight we presented.
When we'd finished eating – I'd gotten a surprisingly good omelet – and were enjoying our coffee, I asked Marlyn if there was anything else she could think of that the orphanage needed. She thought for a few moments, and answered 'They can always use food – particularly rice.' I told her that Kelly and I wanted to try and set them up with the things they would need until we could get back to the U.S., where we planned to take steps to help them even more. She nodded her understanding, and told us 'Yes, food would be the best choice.' Then she got an idea, and had a conversation with Marilyn. When it was over, Marlyn told us 'Marilyn says they are always needing
