Chapter 47 - Founder
Sunday lunch at our house was supposed to be peaceful.
That was the selling point.
No Carlo.
No John.
No acquisition candidates.
No executive résumés.
Just—
family.
Food.
Tori.
My family.
Apparently recovery.
Mama had invited Tori again.
Then somehow—
Tori's entire family.
I did not know when that expansion happened.
I found out Saturday night.
"Mama."
"Hm?"
"Bakit buong pamilya?"
Mama kept slicing vegetables.
"Para magkakilala."
"You invited Tita Elena?"
"Yes."
"Tito Ramon?"
"Yes."
"Bea?"
"Yes."
"Marco?"
"Yes."
I stared.
"You've acquired Tori's family."
Mama frowned.
"Anong acquire?"
"Nothing."
Sofia walked past.
"She's worried."
"I am not."
"You are."
I looked at her.
"Why would I be worried?"
Sofia counted on her fingers.
"Carlo."
One.
"John."
Two.
"Potential Round Three."
I pointed at her.
"Don't manifest that."
She grinned.
"I didn't say Benjamin yet."
I froze.
"What Benjamin?"
Sofia froze too.
Then—
"Nothing."
I narrowed my eyes.
"SOFIA."
"I MADE IT UP."
Suspicious.
Very suspicious.
Mama looked between us.
"Who's Benjamin?"
"Apparently no one."
"Correct," Sofia said quickly.
I stared.
She escaped.
Interesting.
Sunday was—
surprisingly normal.
Tori arrived first.
By herself.
Thank God.
She stepped inside carrying fruit.
I looked at the bag.
"Again?"
"Our mothers have established protocol."
"Dangerous."
She smiled.
Then leaned closer.
"Hi."
"Hi."
I kissed her cheek.
Easy now.
Normal.
She looked toward the kitchen.
"Your mother's cooking?"
"Yes."
"Should I help?"
"No."
"Why?"
"She'll assign you something."
"That's helping."
"No. That's recruitment."
Too late.
Mama saw her.
"Tori!"
There.
Gone.
My girlfriend disappeared into the kitchen.
I watched.
Sofia appeared beside me.
"She's more loved than you now."
"She's been here approximately thirty seconds."
"Exactly."
Rude.
Tori's family arrived twenty minutes later.
Tita Elena brought dessert.
Tito Ramon brought drinks.
Bea brought something Mama had apparently requested.
Marco brought himself.
Normal youngest-child contribution.
Tita Elena greeted Mama warmly.
Actually warmly.
No stiffness.
No—
girlfriend mother.
Just—
another mother.
Interesting.
Mama accepted the dessert.
"Ay, hindi na sana kayo nagdala."
Tita Elena immediately—
"Hindi pwede."
Ah.
They understood each other.
Dangerous.
Within ten minutes, they were discussing food.
Within twenty—
suppliers.
Within thirty—
apparently recipes.
I looked at Tori.
She looked at me.
"Should we be concerned?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"They're becoming friends."
Tori smiled.
"Your mom likes mine."
"My mom likes people who bring food."
"Fair."
Then Mama called—
"Lia, get the extra chairs."
I stood.
Final authority.
Lunch was loud.
Very different from Tori's house.
At ours—
people interrupted.
Someone asked a question while another person answered something unrelated.
Papa and Tito Ramon found common ground around traffic, property, and inexplicably—
water pressure.
Kuya Nathan started talking business with Marco.
Ate Bianca and Bea had somehow entered a conversation about skincare.
Sofia was telling Tori something embarrassing about me.
I caught—
"Grade Eight—"
"No."
Everyone looked at me.
Sofia smiled sweetly.
"What?"
"Whatever you're telling her, stop."
Tori looked interested.
"Continue."
"Relationship terminated."
"No."
Apparently that threat had no effect anymore.
Mama served more food.
Tita Elena tried to refuse.
Mama ignored her.
Good.
One problem solved universally.
At one point, Tita Elena looked around the house.
Not judgmentally.
Just observing.
Family pictures.
Old furniture mixed with newer things.
Mama's decorations.
Papa's chair.
Sofia's things somehow occupying every horizontal surface.
Normal home.
Then she looked at me.
"You still stay here often?"
"Yes po."
"You have your own place?"
"Yes."
"But you're here."
"Often."
Mama answered for me.
"Dito pa rin yan kumakain."
I sighed.
Tori smiled.
Tita Elena looked surprised.
"Even with all the businesses?"
"Especially with all the businesses," Mama said.
Okay.
Interesting.
Her mother glanced at Tori.
Then back at me.
Maybe she had expected—
something else.
More intimidating.
Less—
Mama telling me to carry rice from the kitchen.
Then Mama handed me an empty serving bowl.
"Refill."
"Yes."
Tori watched me stand.
Very amused.
"What?"
"Nothing."
I went to get rice.
After lunch, Tita Elena helped Mama clean.
Mama tried to stop her.
Failed.
Of course.
I was in the living room with Tori when I heard—
"Elena, leave that. Bisita ka."
"No, okay lang."
"Sit."
"I can—"
"Sit."
Silence.
Then Tita Elena appeared.
Sat.
Immediately.
I looked at Tori.
She whispered—
"Your mother scares mine."
"Correct hierarchy."
Tori laughed.
It was actually—
nice.
That's what surprised me.
No agenda.
No comparisons.
No discussion about men.
No future husband.
No grandchildren.
Tita Elena saw Tori beside me—
our knees touching,
her hand occasionally resting near mine,
me giving her the drink she preferred without asking—
and didn't visibly tense every time.
Progress.
Not complete.
But real.
At one point, Tori leaned against my shoulder while Bea told a long story.
Tita Elena noticed.
I noticed her noticing.
She looked away.
Then—
looked back.
No comment.
Fine.
Good enough.
For now.
Before they left, Mama packed food.
Of course.
Tita Elena protested.
Of course.
Mama ignored her.
Of course.
Then Tita Elena came toward me.
"Thank you, Lia."
"For what po?"
"Today."
I smiled.
"Thank Mama. I mostly moved chairs."
Her mouth shifted.
Almost a smile.
Then she looked toward Tori.
"She looks comfortable here."
There.
Interesting sentence.
"She is."
Tita Elena nodded.
Then—
"I'm trying."
I looked at her.
No defensiveness.
No explanation.
Just—
trying.
"I know po."
Her eyes softened.
For one beautiful, miraculous second—
I thought maybe we were done.
Maybe Carlo and John had finally killed the campaign.
Maybe this was—
growth.
Maybe Tita Elena had accepted that her daughter had a girlfriend and stopped trying to recruit a replacement penis through increasingly impressive résumés.
Beautiful.
Peaceful.
Mature.
Wrong.
Three days later—
Tori called me.
I answered.
"Hi."
Silence.
I stopped typing.
"No."
Tori said nothing.
"No."
Still silence.
"Tori."
"My mother found a founder."
I closed my eyes.
Of course she did.
"What kind of founder?"
"Three companies."
I leaned back.
Jesus Christ.
"She upgraded again."
"Do not sound impressed."
"I am impressed by the escalation strategy."
"Lia."
"Sorry."
"His name is Benjamin."
Ah.
Sofia.
I was going to kill her.
"How old?"
"Thirty-four."
"Okay."
"Founder and CEO."
"Of?"
"She sent me his entire fucking profile."
"Efficient."
"Three companies."
"You mentioned."
"She emphasized it."
"Of course."
"Own house."
"Expected."
"Family business background but he built his own."
"Very good."
"Lia."
"I mean—objectively."
"She said, 'Ito, sariling kumpanya. Hindi empleyado.'"
I stared.
Oh.
Oh no.
She had learned from John.
??
I covered my mouth.
Tori heard.
"Don't laugh."
"I am trying very hard."
"She specifically found someone you cannot theoretically acquire by buying his employer."
That did it.
I laughed.
Hard.
Tori waited.
"This isn't funny."
"It is extremely funny."
"My mother adjusted the search criteria because of you."
"That's innovation."
"Fuck you."
I finally controlled myself.
"Sorry."
"No, you're not."
"No."
Then—
"Do you want me there?"
"Yes."
Immediate again.
"Okay."
"Last one."
There.
"This is genuinely the last one."
"Your decision?"
"Yes."
"If she does this again, I'm done attending family dinners for a while."
"Fair."
"And I'm telling her before we go."
"Okay."
Pause.
Then—
"I need you to behave."
"I behaved with John."
"Unfortunately, you were already reviewing his company."
"Not my fault."
"Benjamin owns his."
"So we're safe."
Tori went silent.
Then—
"Why did that somehow sound threatening?"
"I don't know."
Sunday.
Round Three.
Final boss.
Benjamin's car was—
nice.
Very nice.
I looked at it.
Tori opened the door.
"Don't."
"I didn't say anything."
"You looked."
"I have eyes."
"He owns three companies."
"You've mentioned."
"My mother has mentioned approximately forty-seven times."
I held up the cassava cake.
"Peace offering."
Tori stared.
"Your mother?"
"Yes."
"She keeps feeding my mother's matchmaking events."
"She doesn't know."
"She needs to know."
I smiled.
Tori did not.
Mostly.
Then she took my hand.
"Last one."
"Last one."
We went inside.
Benjamin was standing near Tito Ramon.
He turned when we entered.
Tall.
Well-dressed.
Confident.
Not John-polished.
Different.
Founder energy.
Slightly more relaxed.
Expensive watch.
Probably earned.
Tita Elena immediately brightened.
"Lia! Tori!"
Very suspicious.
Then—
"Benjamin, this is my daughter, Tori."
Tori stared at her mother.
"I think we've established that."
Benjamin smiled politely.
"Hi."
"Hi."
Then Tita Elena gestured toward me.
"And this is Lia."
Benjamin looked at me.
Stopped.
Actually stopped.
His expression changed.
Not—
attraction.
Recognition.
Big recognition.
Like someone had just walked a celebrity into his mother's dining room.
I looked at him.
Something familiar.
Again.
Fuck—
No.
I had promised to stop using that as punctuation.
Still.
Familiar.
Face.
Where?
Article?
Conference?
Company profile?
I tilted my head.
Tori saw immediately.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Lia."
"Hm?"
"You know him?"
I kept looking.
"Not really."
Benjamin's eyes widened.
Then—
"Are you Lia Ramos?"
"Yes."
"Lia Alessandra Ramos?"
"Yes."
His entire face changed.
"Oh my God."
Silence.