Love Thy Neighbour, Annecia Ellies [readict txt] 📗

he wore clung tightly to his well-toned chest and abdomen as he walked. Once he got through at the Baggage counter, he walked with his luggage in tow towards the Exit sign. He stood outside the doors looking for someone holding his name card. It took him a couple minutes but he finally saw the slight middle aged man holding a card with his name hugged to his chest. He spot him about the same time that the gentleman saw him. He flashed a brilliant smile at Filipe and headed in his direction.

“Guess I’m your guy.” Filipe said smiling.

“Mr. Le Mar I presume?”

“Yes, Filipe Le Mar, pleased to meet you, you can just call me Filipe. Are you the person from the hotel who will be taking me out and about for my two week stay?”

“That will be me Raymond Pancho, you call me Pancho, everybody I know does.” Pancho said in his Trinidadian dialect and flashed another toothy smile at Filipe while thrusting his hand in his direction. Filipe took his hand, gave it a vigorous shake and said, “Pleased to meet you Pancho.”

Pancho then took hold of his luggage and popped open the trunk of a silver grey Wing road wagon.

“Go ahead and have a seat,” he said to Filipe.

Filipe opened the door and sat in the front passenger seat. Looking around him he couldn’t help but admire the hustle around him. He decided to stay focused and pay attention to his surroundings because this may be the first time on the Island, but it will definitely not be his last. Soon they were off to the Hotel.

 

After Flynn left Morgan, she sat at her laptop doing some color scheming for Adlei. After about an hour her computer chimed as new emails came in. She saw some messages from Filipe, she clicked on it and went onto Full Circle.

“Hi beautiful, hope you had a great day today.”

She contemplated a short while before answering, wondering why her heart did those little leaps whenever she received a message from him.

Morgan: Hi Filipe, yes it was a bit exciting, how was your day today?

Filipe: Great, successful. Turned out just as I hoped. Did you see my message?

Morgan: What message

Filipe: About us, about our friendship, meeting each other … I got a bit too busy doing stuff and lost touch with a lot of my friends. I’m hoping to regain a few, also make new ones. I’m hoping you will agree with me and my desire to see this friendship grow because I like you a lot, you have a charming personality and chatting with you comes so natural to me. I don’t just mean to chat online, but someone to talk to, to confide in, to give advice, to hang out with, that kind of thing.

Morgan: Wow, I didn’t see that message as yet but that’s cool, I don’t see a problem there, I would love that Filipe.

Filipe: Great.

Morgan: I’m doing some color scheming for work, what are you up to?

Filipe: Actually I have a surprise for you.

Morgan: Me? Really? What sort of surprise?

Filipe: I booked a flight to Trinidad and Tobago and I will be staying for two weeks.

Morgan: Great, when will you be here?

Filipe: I am here already, staying at the Kapok Hotel.

Morgan: Are you serious?

Filipe: Dead serious.

Morgan sat wide eyed and open mouthed for a few seconds processing that information. She then continued typing when she realize he wasn’t saying anything else.

Morgan: Filipe, tell me you did not come here just to look for me, like I said I won’t be able take you around, I’m very busy with this wedding at the moment, what are you gonna do?

Filipe: No, no, please don’t worry about me ma Cherie. I’m sure you can remember I told you I never been here and I would like to visit someday soon. I have a couple weeks to do as I please so I took the opportunity to come down. If you can I will like to meet you, but if you can’t I can wait for another time, but I can’t promise I won’t be disappointed in not meeting you though. If it’s just to say hello… I’m still hoping. The Hotel organized a driver for me so I have someone to take me around for the two weeks so I will be fine.

He then sent her a smiley face and two hugs emoji’s.

Morgan: Ok. I will see if we can meet up if even it’s for a bit. Give me a call when you can ok. My contact is six eight five, twenty seven ninety.

Filipe: Sure will, hope you enjoy your evening.

Morgan: You do the same, what are you doing this evening by the way?

Filipe: My driver, Pancho, said he’s taking me on the Avenue to taste some of the local foods.

Morgan: Oh ok, sounds great, well you will enjoy that. Call me tomorrow ok, I will see what I can do to help you out.

Filipe: Sure thing. Good bye Morgan.

Morgan: Goodbye.

 

After the conversation ended, Morgan sat at her desk with a frown on her face while she nibbled on her nails. She felt a bit nervous and could not understand why. She let out a long breath and picked up the plan for the new apartment complex. She began drawing little sketches on a note pad planning how she will be organizing things once she got settled in. A familiar sound caught her ear and she got up to look for her cell phone. She had forgotten to take it out of her handbag. It was Auri.

“Hello Auri” she said into the phone.

“I saw when you left with your boyfriend missy, is that how you stand security for your friend?” Saurelle asked, pretending to be mad at her.

“I saw Kwassi and you were looking pretty chummy so I thought it was ok to leave. Did something happen?”

“Of course something happened.” She said still pretending to be upset.

“OMG Auri I’m so sorry, I…” But Saurelle cut her off.

“We decided that we liked each other and we want to give a relationship a try!”

Eeeek! They both screamed at the same time.

“I’m so happy for you honey, I can’t wait to officially meet him. So now we can couple up and do some couple things together, you, Kwassi, Flynn and me that should be fun.”

“What does he do anyway?” Morgan asked

“He is a junior Doctor working at San Fernando General”

“Are you serious? You never told me he is a Doctor!”

“You, my dear, never asked.”

“Wow, cool. I hope things work out. I will get to plan the wedding.” Morgan said as she smiled.

“Woops, hold it there sister, we haven’t even officially started dating, you already planning wedding?”

‘Aah, we will get there when the time comes.” Morgan replied.

“So you just went back home? Is Flynn still there?” Auri asked.

“No, he didn’t come here, he had his car and I had mine, we just browsed the Mall a bit then he had to leave to go to Class so I came home.”

“Ok, well we will chat later on honey I got to go Iron a shirt for work tomorrow.”

“Before you go I have something to tell you”, Morgan said to her, “You know the guy I told you is very cute on my list in Full Circle?”

“Um, yeah, Phil or something like that?”

“Yes, Filipe. He is here.”

“What do you mean he is here? Is he there with you?” Saurelle asked Morgan, her eyes bulging in her head.

“No silly, he is in the Country.”

“From France?”

“No, he was in the US. He came here for two weeks.”

“Are you meeting him? Did he come here just to see you? What?” but Morgan stopped her and continued.

“He said he just came cause he never been here, and asked me if I can show him around, but I told him I have plenty work at the moment but I will meet him if I can.”

“You going to meet him by yourself?” Saurelle asked, her voice raising a bit.

“Well, that’s where you come in.”

“Oh, ok, well sure, just tell me time and place and I will be there.”

“Thanks Auri. It means so much to have a friend like you. You know he even sent me a message before I knew he was here, asking for us to be friends. Real friends as in someone to talk to, to hang out with, to give and get advice and all that. He seemed genuine so I told him yes. Maybe if you meet him we can all hook up and all be friends.”

“Ok, I don’t see a problem, but I have to go Morgs so we will chat later ok.”

“Ok, love you bad babe.”

“Love yer bad too Morgs.”

 

 

Filipe was waiting in the lobby for Pancho when one of the Hotel staff touched him on his shoulder.

“Mr. Le Mar, your driver is here,”

“Oh, thanks.”

He didn’t realize he was so deep in thought that he didn’t see her approaching him. He went outside and sure enough saw Pancho waiting for him in the same car he collected him with at the Airport.

“Hey, hope yuh sharpen yuh teeth because we had lots of food to taste eh.” Pancho said smiling at him.

Filipe smiled as he got into the vehicle. The drive to the Avenue wasn’t long. Pancho pointed out a few places to him and kept up quite a hearty conversation on the way. They stopped at the side of the road close to a man selling something from a cart. He realized Pancho was getting out of the car so he followed him.

“Two doubles for me” Pancho looked at Filipe and said “My treat”

Filipe shrugged and watched as the man took something like a pie out from a bucket with a thong and placed it on a piece of wax paper he had on his hands. He proceeded to put something that looked like chick peas in a sauce onto the thing he put on the paper. He added what smelled like pepper with another sauce, placed another of the pie like thing over all of it and wrapped it up. He did it again and placed two into the bag then gave it to Pancho. Pancho paid him, took the bag and signaled him to get back into the car.

It smelled strange but his stomach grumbled.

Pancho took out one and gave the bag to Filipe and told him to eat it. It was called a doubles.

Filipe took a bite and let out a sigh.

“This is really good” He smiled while chewing. Pancho just nodded and continued eating his doubles. After eating the doubles Pancho drove onto the main road in St James. It was five twenty in the afternoon according to his watch. He stopped the car and signaled Filipe to follow him. They walked around a bit, buying and drinking a couple of beers each. Pancho introduced him to some of the locals he knew while they chatted and ate cutters at the bar. They remained there for about one hour before Pancho stood up and Filipe stood up with him. They said their farewells and went back to the car.

“Let’s go to the Avenue now to get you dinner.” Pancho said.

“Sure” Filipe replied.

At that moment his mind strayed to Morgan. He glanced at his phone and pulled up her number. He then put it back in his pocket when Pancho asked him if he wanted barbecue chicken. They made another stop at a place called The Grill, where they purchased dinner “to go”. Pancho told him if he wanted to see some of the sights it will be better if they started early in the morning. He took him back to the Hotel and set a time to pick him up in the Lobby the following day. Filipe went upstairs to his room where he enjoyed the dinner and looked at some local TV for a couple of hours. Sometime after eleven he went to bed, looking forward to the tour with Pancho tomorrow. He fell asleep with a smile on his