FIND

Hey! Um...I hope you will like this.

And so, the D I S C L A I M E R: I do NOT own anything.

Terms used are explained below. Read on~!

CHAPTER I

Destiny Beckons

"Nanay!" Marisol bellows from the doorway. Changing into her slippers, she entered the small living room, searching. "Nanay, where are you?"

"Sa kusina," her mother's voice floated out from the kitchen.

Marisol smiled and inhaled deeply. "Mmmm...Nay, is that sinigang?"

"Wait a moment, it'll be done soon," her mother answers, as Marisol entered the kitchen and took a seat at the dining table.

"Nay, I have some good news," Marisol declares excitedly.

"What is it?"

"My application to Japan has been approved. I'll be going there next week!"

The news was greeted with silence, as Marisol's mother went on stirring the pot as if she hadn't heard anything at all.

"Nay? Aren't you going to say anything?" Marisol asks tentatively. Her mother sighed.

"Do you have to go? I mean, there are a lot of places to work in, even here. Bakit sa Japan? Dahil ba..."

"Nay, we've already discussed this, right? I want to find Tatay. I'd like to know if he's still alive and how he is doing."

Marisol's mother turned off the stove and faced her. "Well, even if you did find him, what good will it do? He hadn't even remembered that we actually existed. Not a word, not even a single letter. Heck, you can't even recall his face! What's the point? What if he already has another family in Japan? Ano na, ha?"

Marisol stood and hugged her mother from behind. "Nay, I'll be alright. I just want to see him, that's all. It's not like I'd ask him to come back. At isa pa," she added when her mother snorted, "the pay is good. You won't be alone naman eh, right? Kuya Toots will be staying with you." Toots is an older cousin closest to them, and will be staying with her mother while Marisol is gone.

Her mother sighed. "Mana ka talaga sa Tatay mo. Too stubborn. Alright, let's eat already. I see there's nothing I can do anymore to stop you, huh?"

Marisol laughed and kissed her mother's cheek. "Yay! Thank you, Nay! You're the best."

Her mother smiled, and proceeded to set the table for lunch.

Now, standing at the NAIA terminal a week later, Marisol isn't feeling so sure anymore.

"Oy, kasin! OK ka lang?" Toots poked her. "You seem to be spacing out a lot."

Marisol fidgeted with the handle of her bag. "Uh...I'm fine. Just a little...nervous."

"Don't tell me you changed your mind? You were the one who wanted to do this, right?" her mother reminded her.

"Well...not really...it's just that I'm just worried about what will happen to me once I get there," Marisol replied.

Toots laughed. "Anak ng...after all the training and crash course in Nihongo, you still worry about that? Whatever happened to 'I'll do this and you can't stop me'? Ouch!" he yelped as Marisol slapped him on the arm.

"Okay, fine, I'm going. You take care of Nanay, ha? And Nay, take care of yourself," she said, hugging her mother. In the distance she heard her flight number being called, and sighed.

"I'm going," she said, and turned to leave.

"Ingat ka, anak!" Marisol heard her mother called out, and she fought back the urge to run back and cry. She knew she had to do this, not just for her mother, but also for herself.

And thus, with a resolve she never knew she had, Marisol boarded the plane taking her to Japan, anxiously anticipating what awaits her there.

Pinoy terminologies time!

Nanay – mother

sinigang – a soup dish very popular in the Philippines. It can either be pork or fish (bangus is the best) and vegetables, with a sour broth...yummy.

"Sa kusina" - In the kitchen

"Bakit sa Japan? Dahil ba..." - Why Japan? Is it because...

"Ano na, ha?" - What now, huh?

Tatay – father

At isa pa – And besides...

You won't be alone naman eh – in this context, "naman" is used to mean "anyway", as in "You won't be alone anyway"

Kuya – literally means "big brother", or onii-san in Japanese. It can be used to address any male older than you, especially strangers. Another word also used is "Manong" (but let's not get into that, shall we?)

Mana ka talaga sa Tatay mo – You really took after your father

"Oy, kasin! OK ka lang?" - Hey cousin! Are you OK?

Anak ng... - Son of a...

"Ingat ka, anak!" - Take care, child!

Be updating this as soon as I can (or if I don't get too lazy, LOL). Ohkura house is next chapter so...will they finally meet? Hmmm... :)