"I’m a provinciana at heart—this is what I love, the simple things. I can’t think of a time I’ve been happier since I left Cebu to pursue my singing career. Thank you."

"Amapola, I couldn’t be happier myself. I fell in love with you as soon as I heard your CD. I’m just so happy I could spend a day with you."

He said it without any trace of aggressiveness and he didn’t sound like he was trying to woo her. Rather it expressed his feeling and sadness for a relationship that could never get beyond where it was at the moment. She was touched and felt a similar tenderness for him.

They finished their meal and cleaned up everything from the table. They washed the fishy smell off their hands as best as they could in the nearby restrooms.

It was now dark and cold and Amapola held onto his arm and laid her head on his shoulder as they walked back to the car. It was eight o’clock and their day could have ended right there and would already have been perfect.

"I hope you’re not too tired because I don’t feel like going back to my hotel yet. I know my agent must be tearing her hair out by now wondering where I’ve been the whole day. Let her—I don’t misbehave too often."

In less than an hour they were at the Griffith Park Observatory in the middle of L.A. Jesse showed her around the building then took her to the back of the premises.

From the high vantage point of the observatory, they could see all of Los Angeles. Jesse pointed out where the different areas where—downtown, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and San Pedro where they had dinner earlier. They spent some time looking and enjoying the sparkling lights and could hear occasional sirens as the city went on with the business of its people below. The steady stream of airplanes coming in to land at LAX appeared like an aerial procession returning to church. They didn’t talk much but were happy with the sense of gentleness that had developed between them.

"Did you say that’s Hollywood over there?"

"Yes, that’s right."

"Then why is the sign over there?" she said, pointing to the mountain behind her.

Jesse laughed, "I don’t know. I guess it had to be high enough where everyone can see it."

"Can you really see movie stars in Hollywood?"

"If you’re lucky and you’re patient."

"I feel lucky, can we go there?"

"Okay, but the chances are slim we’ll see anybody."

After driving around for a while and seeing nobody, they went to Pink’s Hot Dog on La Brea. They both got a chili dog and went to the back where cheap, white plastic tables and chairs were set in an open area. After some time, a familiar face came out of a car that parked close to where they were sitting. It was Jack Nicholson with a lady friend. Before long, Nicholson and his friend were sitting two tables away from them, sitting on the same cheap plastic chairs.

"I guess you really have luck—I’ve been here so many times and hadn’t yet seen a big name star. You see one on your first outing."

"He looks just like regular people," she whispered, trying not to be heard by the star. "And nobody’s going crazy and bothering them."

"Angelenos let them be at peace in places like this, they mob them during movie premiers and similar occasions. It’s an unwritten rule."

As they were leaving, Jesse greeted Nicholson as they passed him, "How’re you doing?"

He answered, "Good to see you, take care now."

Back in the car, Amapola asked Jesse, "Do you really know him?"

"No, but he could never be sure we haven’t met. He had to greet me back."

She shrieked with laughter, "You’re so bad."

It was almost midnight and Jesse finally took Amapola back to her hotel. He walked her up to her room and they stood at her door for some time, reluctant to let the day end. She kissed him and said thank you before closing the door behind her.

After work the next day, Jesse dropped by Amapola’s hotel. They had agreed the night before he would come early and drive her to the restaurant in Burbank where she would be singing. She gave him a warm hug when she opened the door. She was in her street clothes, had no makeup on, but was ready to go with a small suitcase that had her stage clothes and makeup kit.

The restaurant wasn’t very big, it could have accommodated a hundred or a hundred twenty customers at the most. It wasn’t in a busy area where you would expect a successful restaurant to be but in a strip mall in a mostly residential area.

Her band was already there doing a sound check. A makeshift stage was set up in one corner of the dining hall, the audio control equipment was by the front entrance, and the lighting apparatus in yet another corner by the bar. One technician was taping audio cables with duct tape to the floor where they wound around the tables.

Amapola went into the restaurant office for a while then came back out to join the sound check. She sang snippets of songs into several microphones in turn while an audio technician twirled dials and pushed sliders to balance the sound coming from the different musical instruments and the voice mikes. It only took a few minutes, everyone seemed to know exactly what needed to be done.

When the sound check was complete, Amapola went back into the office which was the only place she could use as a dressing room. She stayed there until show time putting on makeup and changing into her stage clothes. It was a far cry from the earlier days when she performed in large halls that could hold thousands of fans and had proper dressing rooms. She always had a professional do her make up then and an assistant would help her with her costume changes.

Jesse went to the bar and ordered a beer. The cashier was close to the bar and he could see a small shrine with Santo Niño and Buddha statues side by side. Candles and incense were lit, and there were offerings of rice cake and fruit. He smiled at the uniquely Chinese Filipino custom of practicing two different religions simultaneously without any apparent conflict.

A well-dressed woman joined him. "I’m Tonette, Amapola’s manager. She says you’re a friend from way back."

Jesse almost gave himself away before he realized Amapola had told Tonette a lie so she wouldn’t ask too many questions. "Oh, yes. We knew each other before she became well known. Who would ever think we’d meet again here in L.A., of all places." He prayed Tonette wouldn’t ask for details because he didn’t speak Cebuano and hadn’t even been to Cebu City. "Can I get you a drink?"

"Yes, I’d like a margarita, please."

Jesse finished his beer and ordered two margaritas.

"You wouldn’t believe it but we used to play in larger halls—we’d get three, maybe five thousand people in easy. But little venues like this are really better suited to Amapola’s intimate style. She can get closer to her audience."

Was she saying that because she couldn’t get Amapola good bookings anymore? Jesse wondered.

"She really doesn’t have to perform anymore and I imagine one of these days she’ll just stop. She doesn’t need the money, she has saved quite a bit and invested it wisely. When she retires, I retire, too. I haven’t taken on new clients and I want to go back to writing, my first love."

"What would she be doing if she stopped singing?"

"Spend time with her children—I know that’s what she’d like to do the most."

They went to their respective tables as dinner started being served. It wasn’t long before the lights dimmed and a spotlight focused on the stage. Amapola came on—she looked very different in her show face—she looked strong and sophisticated, not the gentle and vulnerable woman Jesse had gotten to know.

The show lasted two and a half hours, including the intermission where Amapola stayed in her makeshift dressing room to rest and change clothes. It was a magical interlude for Jesse. Hearing her on his stereo was marvelous, but being close to her singing live, at times sounding like she was singing just for him, was heavenly.

He stayed around after the show while Amapola spoke with old friends and other people her manager wanted her to meet. It was late when she finally asked him to take her home. She invited him to come in when they got to her room.

Jesse woke up at seven the next morning. He called his office and left a message that he wouldn’t be coming in because he had to attend to some personal business. He ordered some pastries and a pot of coffee from Room Service before he went in the bathroom to take a shower.

Amapola was still asleep when the coffee and danish arrived. He gave the attendant a couple of bucks after signing the check then put the tray on the coffee table. After Amapola woke up, he turned the TV on to watch the morning news. She joined him on the sofa where they sipped their coffee and ate their pastry.

"You were great last night."

"Did you mean here or on the stage?" she smiled naughtily.

"Pilya," he laughed.

"It’s been a while—I don’t know how you made it seem like the most natural thing for me to do," she said. She wasn’t sure how she would react when she finally found another man but it turned out to be beautiful after all.

"I’ll be sad when you leave. I’ve gotten used to having you near me all the time."

"Tonette has more tours lined up for me after a rest in Manila but I haven’t said yes yet. I’m tired and was thinking of retiring. I feel comfortable here and after you showed me around, I knew this was the place to be."

"Are you going to do it, then?"

"I want to, but I haven’t made up my mind yet."

"When will you know, when can you tell me?"

"I’ll let you know after my last show on Friday, before I leave."

"Good enough. I have to go on a business trip tomorrow to Salt Lake City but I’ll be back Thursday evening. I’ll take you to your last concert on Friday and hope I’ll hear what I want to hear."

Friday came and Jesse was on edge when he picked Amapola up for her show. The restaurant was filled to capacity for her last performance. The audience appeared more lively than the people on her first night and she reacted very well with them. Jesse fell in love all over again when she sang.

She announced at the end of the show that it was her last concert on this trip and was going back to the Philippines. Everyone stood up and cheered—they didn’t want to let her go. They wanted to hear more, maybe one last song if she was tired.