Chapter 1: Introduction
Ian had been looking forward to his visit with Abigail for weeks. It was the perfect opportunity to catch up on her life, spend some quality time together and maybe even teach her a few new taekwondo moves. He couldn't suppress a smile as he walked up the stairs leading to her one-bedroom unit in their high-rise building on the outskirts of Manila.
It had been a long time since he last saw her, and his eyes were immediately drawn to the way her taekwondo gear hugged every curve of her body.
As soon as she saw him, Abigail's face broke into a radiant smile. "Uncle Ian," she greeted as they embraced in a warm hug. She felt his strong arms around her and for a moment, she forgot about everything else but how right it felt being with him again.
As they walked into her room, she invited him to sit on the couch while she prepared some tea. He took a moment to observe his surroundings and noticed how much things had changed since he last visited. The walls were adorned with pictures of Abigail's taekwondo achievements, and medals hung proudly from the shelves.
She poured two cups of steaming tea and handed one to Ian as they sat down facing each other across a small coffee table."So tell me," she said curiously,"What have you been up to?aew
You look different."
"Yeah, I've been working out a lot," he replied with a smile. "I wanted to see if I could still keep up with you during sparring practice."
Abigail couldn't help but feel a twinge of excitement at the thought of them practicing together again. She had always enjoyed their training sessions and missed them since she started college last year. But as they spoke, her mind wandered back to that summer they spent in Boracay when she was 14 years old.
They had spent the entire trip training and sparring together, getting up before sunrise every day to run on the beach. She remembered how she used to watch him in awe as he demonstrated his signature moves with ease and precision. Now here they were again, only this time it was different somehow.
Ian looked at her intensely for a moment before speaking."Abigail, do you remember that summer we spent in Boracay?" He asked softly."Yes," she replied hesitantly,"How could I forget?