Chapter 288
Read till Authors notes please. Thank you and enjoy reading folks.
(August 5, Gonzales house.)
The whole house had some decorations that would suite a now 12 year old girl such as Stella and the birthday girl herself was coming down from her room and is donning a new outfit.
A white shirt with a yellow star in the middle, light blue jacket with rolled up sleeves, black knee ;length skirt and black leggings and green shoes with white socks and of course she still had her watch.
Stella comes down and she sees her family outside all with the food ready and all of it was based from her home country the Philippines. She sees this from the window and she races down the stairs and past the kitchen which was busy the whole time and then she makes it out the backyard and sees her mother, father and granny setting things up.
Stella's dad: Manuel Gonzales – around his early 30's, tall and slim man with tanned skin, black hair and no facial hair at all, light blue shirt, dark blue pants and brown belt and black shoes.
Stella's mom: Stephanie Gonzales – around her early 30's, tall and slim woman with tanned skin, long black hair. She wears black round glasses, golden round earrings, and light blue sweater, aqua blue jacket, and black pants, red and white sneakers.
Stella's Granny: Cecilia Gonzales – In her late 60's. Long black hair with some grey streaks. Dressed in an orange blouse with some floral design sewn into it, a long red skirt and thick lens glasses on her nose and they appear to have a gold chain hooked at the end of the glasses handles and the rest of it is wrapped around the elderly woman's neck.
"This place looks so awesome!" Stella hugs her parents. "I already love the smell and the sights of the decorations, thanks guys!"
"You're turning 12 Stella, of course we had to make this look nice" said Manuel. "And we are proud of the things that have made you who you are now."
Stella hugs her dad. "Thank you Papa! Thank you so much guys!"
Stephanie chuckles. "The sole credit goes to your Lola (Granny). She's the one who still knows how to make the food we all love so well."
Stella goes over to her granny and hugs her. "Salamat Lola!"
Stella's granny hugs her back and smiles. "Stella, ikaw ay labing-dalawang, kaya ito ay para sa iyo."
The parents watch with warm hearts at this moment. They then hear some vehicles arrive. "Stella, I think the guests are here now" said Manuel. He then checks on the projector for the film.
Stella and her granny also hear the vehicles and they break from the hug. "Stella, hinihintay ka ng mga kaibigan. Hayaan silang lumapit at tingnan kung ano and magandang araw na ito. Lalo na iyong boyfriend." She helps fix Stella's hair before she heads off.
Stella chuckles and blushes. "Okay, okay." Stella heads out to the front to greet her friends to her home.
Stella sees all of them have come. Lincoln, Jordan, Liam, Tabby, Jenny, Christina, Richie, Flat Tire, Simon, Sam, Lori, Leni, Luna, Luan, Lynn Jr, Lucy, Lana and Lola, Lisa, Lynn Sr, Sully, Mazzy, Chunk, Michelle, Jessica and the eagles, and of course the parents from the Rosato's and the Sharps also arrived. What was shocking? Abuela Rosa, Bobby, CJ, Ronnie Anne, Sid and Haiku!
"Guys, and whoa! Did not expect to see a lot of you all here" said Stella in shock.
"We're all pals here Stella" said Sully. "We've all be through a lot of trouble so we're all kinda like family."
"Don't think too much of this big crew, we're all going to have a heck of a time" said Tabby. "Also."
They all chant out. "Happy Birthday!"
Stella chuckles at this. "Well, it's nice to see you all here, though I can understand that Haiku is back from the boat trip."
"Sigh, the only reason why it was tolerable was because Bartholomew was also onboard, I chose the right vessel to go to with my parents and he told me the many places he went to. Though the sun and laughter from everyone was annoying, he did like going to places that had dark and twisted history, and a lot of the world had one to share for him and me" replied Haiku with a smile.
"I can't wait to hear what Haiku has to share with the rest of the young Morticians club" smiled Lucy.
The others were kinda freaked out by this, classic Haiku. Then Stella looks to the peeps from Great Lake City. "I never thought you of all people would actually be here! Not after what happened."
They chuckled nervously at that one. "No need to worry Stella, Abuela made sure that Sergio and Carl have been restricted of all things fun until they learn to show humility, respect and responsibility" replied Ronnie Anne. "And knowing those two, it'll be a long time before they learn anything."
"We brought you some cool things you might like from Great Lake City" said Bobby.
"Adelaide wanted to come along, but she decided to stay back home and help mom with a hippo giving birth" replied Sid. They all look to her in shock. "What? Baby Hippo's are cute. But my mom does wanna know more about your countries culture and the wildlife, though I think it's best to look online for that one."
"And I brought with me some of my tamales for everyone to enjoy, also from what I heard from Lincoln and Jordan that you're Abuela is capable of making good food. Well I would like to know how the country of your heritage can make it good and I would like to try them too. Perhaps I could serve them to my familia and share some to the neighborhood" said Rosa.
"No way! Me too!" said Lynn Sr. "Though my wife told me to just be here to keep an eye on Lisa while she escorts Lily to one of her playdates, I would also love to know more about the food straight from the Philippines!"
"I can watch over Lisa Mr. Loud, I got this" said Michelle as she pulls Lisa close to her, this wasn't faring well for Lisa. She too wanted to know more about the country Stella is from.
Stella is amazed by all of them coming here, seems like they all wanna wish her a happy birthday and know more about the country she is from. "Well, I am happy to share what culture my home country is all about, though there is a lot and we might not cover all of it."
They all were okay with that, then Simon goes over and gives her a quick kiss. "Maligayang Kaarawan ng aking pag-ibig."
Stella chuckles and blushes. "Well, someone has been studying my language."
Simon smiles. "I thought it would be nice to greet you this way, you are worth more as the day you came into my life."
They all "Awe" at this. Stella giggles. "Okay, okay. Come on guys, let's get to the backyard and show you what food we got."
"Oh man! I can't wait to see what kinda food they got!" said Lynn Sr with excitement, even Rosa was looking thrilled for this.
Luna whispers to Sam. "When did your little bro learn the Philippine language?"
Sam whispers back. "A few months ago, at times I would hear him talk to this book and then to his tablet and try to speak some different words. So, that must be the same language as Stella is."
"I believe the language is called Tagalog, since Stella is from Manila" replied Jordan. "In the Philippines they have a lot of different accents and languages within the regions." they look to her confused.
"She did some research, and so did I" replied Lincoln. "We came prepared for the day."
"Damn! Lucky for you two!" chuckled Jessica. They all chuckle and they reach the backyard and see how the place is decorated.
Flowers around the place, and flower petals with some red, white and blue banner as the décor and streamers, they see the food and some chairs and a blank screen and projector all underneath a tarp roof with some wooden supports. This looks like something for some entertainment.
"Huh, so I guess there's no need for me to be the entertainment then?" asked Luan.
"Oh, wow. I did not know about that" said Stella. "Sorry Luan, but I don't know if my granny would understand your sense of comedy. We already have our entertainment set and ready."
"It's okay, and it's a good thing I didn't bring my gear with me. Lincoln told me not too, just in case" said Luan. "At first I doubted him, but then I thought about it and just went with it."
Michelle sighs in relief, now she doesn't have to take more than just a pie to the face, or even a cake, or a steak or anything food related.
"Look at all that food!" said Lynn Sr. Both he and Rosa Casagrande were fascinated by the food they were serving.
Fried Sisig, Chicken, and Pork Adobo, Chicken Soup, Dinugoan, Pancit, Egg and Buko Pie, Bibingka, Fried Chicken, Boneless Bangus, Hal-Halo, Pandesal with different fillings within them, Barbequed Bananas, Lechon Manok and Baboy with lots and lots of fried rice and Spaghetti and Coca-Cola for the drinks.
Rosa and Lynn Sr's eyes go wide from seeing this, they have never seen this kind of food before. "I am so going to love trying all of this!"
Then they see the parents and Stella's granny. "Welcome everyone, we're so glad you all could make it" replied Stephanie.
Stella's Granny was more pleased with the guests there. "Kumusta at Mligayang pagdating sa aming tahanan sa lahat." She then goes over to Simon. "Tuwang-tuwa ako nang Makita kang bumalik dito Simon. Halika, ginawa kitang paboritong."
Simon smiles. "Awesome! Pandesal with monggo beans in them! Sis, you have got to try them, they're delicious!"
Sam chuckles. "Okay, I can't wait to see what she has in store with her cooking, you never seem to stop talking about it back home at times." Sam follows her little brother to see what they have served. Even they're mom wanted to see how good the food was.
Manuel then goes to the kids. "Come on kids, we can place you're gifts over by that table over there and it is an honor to see the eagles and their children here too." He pets the eagles.
Stella's Granny sees the eagles and is happy to see them. "Ay naku! Napakaganda nitong Makita and mga magagandang hayop dito." She pets the two adult eagles and gives some pieces of chicken to the chicks.
Lincoln and Jordan smile seeing this. "Thank you ma'am." He knew she must've said a compliment.
Stella goes over to them. "Yeah, my granny loves flowers and eagles, mostly to the eagle part. That is something she can never ever part with and she treasures the most, next to knitting."
"Why?" asked Jordan.
Simon goes over and he hands some Pandesal to them so they can try it. "Stella told me, that when her granny was a little girl she was being picked on by some mean kids. Then the national eagle of the country, the Philippine eagle swoops down and chases them away. That eagle has been keeping an eye on her since, but the eagle didn't last long over time and you guys see that eagle feather in her pocket."
They all see it. "Oh. So the eagle passed away and she kept that with her as a reminder of her old feathered friend. That is so sweet and also odd for an eagle to do that" said Leni.
"I guess you can say my granny had her own Patriot and Valkyrie with her, in the form of one big noble Philippine bird" replied Stella.
"Stella's family is so amazing with their history and all the things they have in their country" said Simon as he eats another Pandesal. "Also, what's the projector for?"
"Oh right, that's the entertainment" said Stella. "My granny had that projector for a long time and she still works and with my help we made some adjustments and now it can attach itself into any form of devices. I guess you can say tinkering with tech and stuff is straight from my granny."
"Wow! Now that's cool!" said Lana. "So, what the heck are we watching?"
"We are gonna watch it now, so everyone get to the seats!" said Stella. They all come over and take a seat, then Stella's granny gets to the projector and with the help of Stephanie they plug in the laptop and the flash drive.
"Whatever it is, I'm already so excited for it!" said Sid.
"Will it have subtitles?" asked Jenny. "Most of us can't understand and we know it's gonna be in your countries language."
"It will, obviously" replied Stella. "And you're all gonna be off your seats for this one!"
"Why? Is it an action kind of movie?" asked Mazzy.
Simon then realizes what it is. "Oh yeah! Horror and suspense, now we're talking! You're granny knows her scary movies" said Simon.
Lynn Sr's eyes shrink from the words and he feels like all the color is washed away from him. "W-What?"
Lincoln and the others look to him. "Oh boy. Here comes the screams and possible hidings" said Lincoln.
Lynn Sr tries to act brave. "What? No, Lincoln. I am a grown man and I can manage a scary movie."
"Sure you will pops, like we believe ya" replied Luna. The others chuckle at this, they know he's bound to be scared for his life from this.
"Just a note people, my granny and I watch the movies not for the scares, we watch it for the history of it all" replied Stella. "And almost all the films are based off our tradition and culture."
Lucy and Haiku smile. "Wicked!" They were both planning to tell the young morticians club about this.
Stella's granny chuckles. "Maging handa upang Makita kung ano and hitsura ng aming mga pelikula sa aming alamat. Lahat kayo ay para sa paggamot." They can feel a sudden chill up their spines from what she just said.
"This whole place just felt cold all of a sudden" replied Michelle with slight worry, but then the screen turns on from the projector and they see the title of the film. "Sukob."
"You guys are in for something you all did not know about" chuckled Stella.
"We are so going to like this" chuckled Haiku. Lucy was also looking forward to this.
Everyone else was getting a few goosebumps and the movie hasn't even started yet, Lincoln and Jordan hold hands and the same goes for Sully and Mazzy and Liam and Tabby, Lola and Lana get ready to hug each other should it get too scary, Patriot and Valkyrie get ready to cover they're chicks so they don't have to see it. Sam notices how excited Simon was. 'How the heck does he sleep at night watching these things?' Even Stella was unfazed by this.
(Skip, after the movie.)
Many of them are stunned and also a bit relieved by this film, it was somewhat romantic and yet also very scary to watch. Lori and Leni were both thinking of the same thing. 'We are not having a wedding on the same day and at the same time!'
Stella's granny then turns off the projector and tries to speak in English. "Everyone okay now? Hello? Anyone scared a little?"
She can see almost all of them are on their toes and a bit scared from this. Simon cheers. "Woo! Let's watch another one!"
They all were shocked at what he said and they all had one thing to say. "No!"
"Please no!" Rosa turns around and see it was Lynn Sr who said it and he was hiding behind her the whole time. "Oh for goodness sakes Lynn, man up. It was just a movie and even though it is part of the culture, I doubt any of that even happened." But this made Stella's granny chuckle a bit.
"Well, I don't think I'll be dreaming of my future wedding with Lincoln anytime soon" replied Jordan.
"Yeah." Then Lincoln realizes what she said and looks to Jordan. "Wait what?"
Luan shivers, but tries to make a pun. "Ain't nobody gonna be grooming over what just happened, sure as heck we ain't bride enough to do so, right? Get it? No one? That's okay, it was kinda scary."
"Dudes! That was intense, a bit wicked and sad at most part, but completely scary above the level of anything scary" said Luna.
Lynn takes a deep breathe. "Wow, and I thought the Harvester was scary, but that just beat it in a long shot!" she looks to her arms. "And I still got goosebumps." then the twins hug her legs, yep they're scared too.
"That. Was. So. Wicked!" said Haiku and Lucy. They have never felt so … Alive? In their lives, or unlife, whatever.
Simon and Stella and of course Stella's family chuckled at this. "I'm just kidding guys, come on let's eat! I see the cake already."
And he's is not wrong, the cake was setup while they were all screaming from the film. Stella's mom and dad brought it out.
The cake is a large triple layered vanilla and chocolate cake with sprinkles and small bits of candy and had a 12 shaped candle on top. "Wow! This is so cool! How come I didn't see this when I was in the house?" asked Stella.
"We kept it safe from your eyes, your granny told us where it would be and we brought it out" said Stephanie. "We made the right call bringing it out while you were all screaming." She high fives with her husband and fist bumps with Stella's granny.
Simon chuckles. "Wow. You guys are so awesome!" Sam and her parents did not expect this family to take their culture and scare with determination and little to know fear.
They all gather around and Manual lights up the candle for Stella, she needs a tall chair to reach the top of the cake because it is tall, like taller than she is. They all sing to her a happy birthday and she smiles looking to all of them and some of them are taking pictures. Stella then blows out the candle and they all cheer.
Stella' granny goes over and she hands her granddaughter the cake knife and Stella makes the first slice and she sees what it inside the cake, and within the cake was a fudge filling. Now that is one chocolatey and sweet cake! This made Lola and Lana's eyes feel like they were mouths watering at the sight.
They all enjoy the cake and the food, and Stella watches as all of them are chatting and talking about how nice this whole things was and she sees Rosa and Lynn Sr talking to her Granny. Okay, so Manuel is the translator since Stella's granny is not quite good with her English.
Simon then goes over to Stella and he wipes off some fudge from her face. "Was this the best birthday you've ever had?"
Stella kisses his cheek. "Nope, it was better than the best and I loved it. It was kinda nice with you around though."
Simon chuckles. "Happy Birthday Stella, and for more lovely years to come."
Stella and Simon share a small kiss, in which Stephanie and Amy take a picture of this moment of theyr kids in love and on Stella's 12th birthday.
A/N: Happy Birthday Stella, and another thing guys. My Filipino is kinda … stale, and I haven't spoken my own language in a long, long, long time. I am from the city of Iloilo and some part of me believed that Stella is from Manila, so her family's language is Tagalog. I hope I did all of my Pinoy peeps a good job, also I only know a few of my countries food. Leave a review and tell me what you all think.
Date made: 7/14/20 – 7/15/20.