Randell laid himself on his small pallet after changing clothes. He looked at the other side of his room and smiled when he eventually looked at his cat, Molly, the stray cat that he’s been taking care of. Its eyes were rounded, for sure it was amazed by Randell’s charm or it was just hungry.
Gosh Molly, obviously you're into me.
He made a hissing sound to call his cat. "Ps-sssss-sssss".
The cat was alert and approached him immediately.
“I have leftover sardines, you want?” He chuckled while teasing a cat. He breathed air after his cat went to the top of his table. There’s nothing he can offer since that’s the only food available. Noodles aren't suited for cats so he’s the one who’s going to eat them.
After eating, Randell faced himself in front of the mirror. “Hey Randell! End your misfortunes! What are you going to do, huh? Do you have a twin disguised as bad luck? I think it’s your time to get out of this place!” He scolded himself like a fool.
But he has a point though. What if he would simply leave this tenement? But how is he going out? His savings are not enough.
Somehow, he also planned that thing so he could live a simple life. Or probably he can go to his parents and reconcile with them.
But what if he changes his plan? Will he find the main reason for his bad luck? Right, that old woman.

****

Early in the morning, Randell tried to look for the old woman at the tenement where he last saw her. He was trying his luck if somebody knew who that woman was. He didn’t fail to find any information about her. According to his source, that woman is a vendor who sells anything for daily living. She has no relatives there. When he arrived at the market, he saw a commotion and he heard people shouting in fear.
“The lady over there! I think she’s about to jump!” the other exclaimed. Randell looked up at the three storey bungalow because he’s curious about what's happening there. And to his surprise, he found out that the certain lady was no other than the old woman he’s been looking for, the same woman who caused bad luck to him. He didn’t hesitate to act and save her. He rushed running upstairs and he found the old woman who’s also in shock to see him.
“Nanay!” he called the lady. “Please don’t do that! Although life was unfair and hard, it’s still nice to live in this world!”
The lady frowned when she looked back at Randell. “Is it really fun living in this world? My landlord is inconsiderate to an old woman like me!”
Randell easily noticed the tears of the old woman.
“I’m going to pay for your rent, please don’t do it,” Randell begged. He’s not sincere when he said that he will shoulder the rent, he had no choice.
The old woman changed her mind and her face lightened up. “That’s a promise, okay?”
She ended her suicide attempt.
“Yes, mark my words,” Randell answered, faking a smile on his face.
The old woman hugged Randell. “I’m so glad right now! I am fully sure that she’s the one for you?”
“For whom?” Randell curiously asked.
“For my granddaughter.”
“W-what?”

****


Randell’s heroic act became the talk of the town. He became closer to the old woman after that incident. The old woman’s name is Remedios but people often called her Nanay Remmy.
While waiting for the company’s call, Randell decided to do part time jobs or errands at the tenement. Having numerous jobs made him skilled. Sometimes, he’s fixing houses and he also willingly does other construction jobs. And one day, Nanay Remmy passed by him.
“Hi! You’re there!” Nanay Remmy was too excited to welcome Randell. “Good day to you, Nanay,” Randell politely replied.
“You know what, I want to go home,” Nanay Remmy suddenly uttered. She holds Randell’s shirt just to stop him from walking.
“What?” Randell’s brow raised. Does it bother him if Nanay Remmy wants to go home? He felt like Nanay Remmy admired him because he’s too approachable.
“Then, where are you going? Do you have any relatives here in Manila? And where are you temporarily living? At Nanay Ising’s house? That would be a bad idea since she was close to your landlord. And you can’t blame them, they are just scared and alarmed for what you did,” Randell frustratedly explained. The truth is, Nanay Remmy told him that she's not really trying to jump off the house. She just made a scene because she wants to find out if the landlord will be considerate and kind to her.
“I will go back to my granddaughter,” Nanay Remmy revealed.
Randell finally felt the assurance that Nanay Remmy will be in good hands after this. And the bad luck will finally end if he will live distant to hers.
He may sound like a fool, but he really believes in good and bad luck and things such as the law of attraction. Whatever comes in a person's mouth will come true, whether it’s good or bad.
“Can you accompany me going there? After that, I won’t ask anything from you. That’s a promise,” Nanay Remmy begged Randell as she flaunted her contagious cheerful smile.
“In fact, I wanna go far away from here too. So, I think after accompanying you to your relatives, I’m about to pack my things and live somewhere far away from here.”
“Then, where are you going to live? Where is that far away that you are referring to?” Nanay Remmy asked. “And don’t worry about me Randell, I'm not a sugar mommy. I won’t harm you and I’m also not a con artist. Maybe what I did a few days ago was the result of my despair, because I’m old and living alone. And I approach you because I know you are very trustworthy,” Nanay Remmy clarified.
Randell scratched his head and then released a sigh. “I don't know where I am going, maybe to my mom or dad. My situation isn't good since my parents separated and they both have families.”
“If that's the case, then you should come with me and live at my house,” Nanay Remmy recommended. Randell hesitated and of course, he didn't like that idea.
Then, Randell immediately shook his head. “I’m just going with you to assure that you are safe.”


****

“Nanay Remmy, are you sure that this is your house?”
Randell lifted his head upon looking at the three storey house. It was huge, comparable to a mansion. They arrived at a certain village at San Pedro, Laguna. “Of course, I lived there. I’m not conning you. I’m really honest,” Nanay Remmy clarified as she raised her right hand to swear that she’s telling the truth.
“Okay then. I’m gonna hit the doorbell button,” Randell swiftly replied. “And if they don’t recognize you, that means that you’re just kidding me about this.”
With just one hit on the doorbell, a maid welcomed them and surprisingly hugged Nanay Remmy. “Oh my God, it’s really you, Madam Remedios!”
Randell was surprised and he couldn’t believe that Nanay Remmy was telling the truth. She is indeed rich because of how the maid called her with respect. But he has to stay vigilant, because this part might be a trick for him.
Randell was simply stunned when they entered the house. The interior designs aren’t ordinary. He was convinced that Nanay Remmy is just faking her identity as a poor old woman. And according to what he heard from housemaids, Nanay Remmy has a granddaughter who searches for her when she’s away.
“Ms. Martina informed us that she will be coming home late. For sure, she will be happy because you are already here,” Alina, one of the housemaids explained while in tears.
“How is she? She’s probably sad without me. I bet she's still mad.” Nanay Remmy was worried about that part. When she left the mansion, years ago, they were on bad terms.
“I don’t think she’s still mad at what you did, madam. You just can’t blame your granddaughter for being worried about you. But still, Ms. Martina’s temper doesn’t change. She’s still stern and hot-headed,” Alina sighed with deep disappointment. Martina is considered a successful accountant who built her own private accounting firm. She’s just older than Randell, only a one year age gap.
“For sure, her attitude will change once she meets the guy I will recommend for her as a husband,” Nanay Remmy laughed and that part was also heard by Randell.
“So what’s the latest about your plan, madam?” Alina shook her head while asking.
“Just watch me do my plans.” Nanay Remmy threw a meaningful and suspicious glare on her beloved housemaid.

****

Nanay Remmy prepared a welcome back party for herself after she’s done inspecting her house that she misses the most aside from her granddaughter, Martina. Randell was still clueless about what’s happening after she accompanied Nanay Remmy, she even stopped him from leaving the house because it’s getting late. They spend the remaining time before Martina comes home. According to Alina, Martina isn’t fond of parties and other celebrations. They still had no idea why Martina is away from home but they still seize the opportunity to celebrate without her. Because of that attitude of hers, she and Nanay Remmy had a hard time living together on one roof.
Nanay Remmy called her other staff to celebrate for a while. Because they enjoyed the night, they were like mice who got out of their hidden places because of the big cat’s absence. The celebration party lasted until midnight. Alina made sure that she will leave no trace about this celebration. She kept the kitchen tidy and clean, like they never do some celebration stuff because if Martina finds out, they will surely get scolded by her. They successfully hid liquors and other leftover foods in the fridge. Randell on the other hand was drunk and couldn’t process himself. Liquor was his weakness, mostly if it’s wine or tequila. He was easily drunk, that's why he avoided drinking before. But this situation is inevitable because of Nanay Remmy’s request.
He went upstairs, searching for his own room. Nanay Remmy instructed him to find a white door, but the problem is, there are two white doors but he wasn’t sure of that because the other one is beige, because he is drunk, he can’t identify the difference between the two doors.
He decided to enter the room on the right side and he immediately searched for the restroom because he felt something weird on his stomach. And when he reached the restroom area, he immediately vomited all he had eaten and felt like he even vomited his internal organs. He managed to clean his own mess and after that, he fell asleep with a toilet bowl on his side.