Episode 11 - The one with the buyer

Episode 11 – The one with the Buyer

Aired in the UAE on 28^th February, 2012

Nelson arrives with Sharina and Benjie in that awkward position.  He calls for Sharina which startles her causing her and Benjie to bump each other’s head.  They laugh and quickly aright themselves.  Nelson explains the door was open so he let himself in.  “Bukas ang pinto kaya pumasok na lang ako eh.  OK lang?”

Nelson sees Benjie for the first time and asks who he is, “Sino siya?”  Sharina introduces her new sculptor.  “Si Benjie, ang bagong manlililok.”

Nelson and Sharina watch Benjie work.  Nelson is doubtful about Benjie and asks is Sharina is certain he is indeed a sculptor.  Sharina says he is highly recommended by Mang Tino, her former head sculptor and just because one doesn’t look like a sculptor doesn’t mean one isn’t a good one.

Nelson still is doubtful and comments that Benjie looks like he doesn’t know what he is doing.  Sharina tells him to give the guys a chance.  It is afterall, only his first day at work.

He changes the subject asking for Sharina a favor.  He wants to gift a religious statue for his mom, an image of Mama Mary.  Sharina tells him to just show her a design he likes and they’ll try to make one like so.

Rico gives Lizette the stolen i-phone and she asks for the box.   She wants to be sure it’s brand new and comments that it looks stolen, “mukhang nakaw.”  But Rico reminded her of their deal, that she’ll be his girlfriend if her gives her a new i-phone.  Lizette says she’ll think about it as the condition was a brand new i-phone not one that looks like it’s just be stolen from someone.  Rico acquiesces and Lizette shoos him away, “umalis ka na!” 

Sharila is making phone calls to other places that can perhaps provide her with a replica of the stolen image of the Sto. Rosario.  However due to being pressed for time, she is not successful.  [Obviously di naman makakagawa yung workshops agad-agad.  Kelangan made to order yan.  Di naman yan cellphone na nabibili sa mall no!  Sharina naman eh!]

Benjie asks her, “may problema ba?” sensing the young lady is worried about something. 

Sharina shares her recent experience , about the robbery and how the image got stolen.  She laments how people no longer have any respect, stealing even holy images for money. “Sobra nga ang mga magnanakaw na yon.  Kahit santo, pinapatos nila.  Di na sila natakot sa Diyos.”

Gimo is on the phone to a buyer of the stolen image.  He tells the buyer it is ready and to ready the payment as well. “Nandito na ang santo mo.  Nung isang araw ka pa hinihintay.  O, ihanda mo nay unh pera.  Bukas magkita tayo.”  He sets a meeting with the buyer the next day and happy at the prospect of getting a lot of money. He tells this to the image, “Uulaning ako ng biyaya bukas!”  He leaves the statue in the room, switches off the light and locks the door.

Benjie sneaks through a window.  He drops to the ground and when sure that he is alone, stands up and looks around.  He sees the image and recalls Sharina’s comment how people no longer show any respect for holy things.  Then, a phone rings.

Meanwhile Gimo who is lying on his bed in another room hears the phone ringing.  It’s his phone.  He gets up and returns to the room.  Benjie hides just as Gimo enters the door and grabs his phone.  He tries to answer but the caller had already hung up.  He looks around, feeling something amiss.  He stares at the saint’s image and asks if it is staring at him, “Tinititingnan mo ba ako?”  He thinks it creepy and is thankful he’ll be able to get rid of it tomorrow. “Buti na lang mawawala ka na bukas.”  He switches off the light and locks the door as he leaves.

Benjie now in darkness waits and makes sure Gimo is not coming back.  He grabs the image and leaves.

Sharina is sweeping their patio when Elsa, Ginella and the priest arrive.  Father asks Sharina about the image.  He wants to know whether what Elsa and Ginella let slip is true, “Totoo ba?”

Elsa butts in, washing her hands off any wrongs, “Pasensiya ka na Sharina, akala ko kasi, alam na ni Father.”  Pretending that perhaps Sharina had already told the priest about the robbery.

Sharina now is caught and has no other recourse but to admit it, appealing for the priest’s patience and forgiveness.  “Pasensiya na po, di no sinasadya.” 

But this upsets the priest saying that in all this time they’ve been sending statues to Lily for any repair work, she had taken care of them and had not lost a single one.  He calls Sharina irresponsible and asks what’s to happen of the procession scheduled the following day.  Sharina really has nothing but suddenly Benjie arrives with the stolen image.   “Eto ba ang hinahanap nyo?”

Sharina exclaims, “Ang birhen ng Sto. Rosario, pero papaanong napunta sa iyo ito?  Asking Benjie how he got it.  Benjie shrugs saying he just found it.  “Nakita ko lang.”

Elsa ang Ginella smirk at their foiled plans while father is overcome with joy, claiming it to be the original and what a miracle to have found it just in the nick of time. 

Sharina looks at Benjie, impressed.

Lizette and Emie are about to eat.  Emie sees the new cellphone that Lizette has and asks where it came from and how she came by with such an expensive phone.  Lizette tells her elder sister that it was given to her by Rico.  Emie asks her why Rico is giving her such expensive things.  “Boyfriend mo ba siya?”  Lizette denies it telling her that Rico is not really her type and changes the subject to Emie and Benjie, whether her sister has seen her boyfriend already.

But Emie says she has not seen Benjie since she slapped him.  Lizette asks if maybe Benjie is seeing another woman?  To this Emie declares he just go ahead and try, showing she is ready to go into battle to fight for her man.

Sharina asks Benjie again how he came by with the statue to which the young man’s answers is nothing but a shrug.

Elsa and Ginella both upset about their evil scheme backfiring on them.  Elsa still couldn’t understand how the image got returned when it had already been stolen.  Ginella couldn’t explain it herself but suspects the new sculptor had a hand in it. 

Benjie tells Sharina to forget about the events that led to the loss and the finding of the image.  Just be thankful that it has been returned to which Sharina agrees, “tama ka.”

Ginella tells her mother that there is something strange about Benjie.  She points out to Elsa that he looks exactly like the one in Lily’s portrait.  She coyly says, “There’s something strange about that guy, aside from the fact that he’s cute.”  [Aba, aba, type ni forever applicant si Arben!]

Gimo is with the buyer who asks for the saint’s statue.  Gimo goes to the room but there is not image there.  He asks Rico and baddie friend who are at Gimo’s place where they’ve hidden it but both deny any knowledge of its loss.  Gimo tries to ask buyer to wait a while.

Father thanks Sharina for finding the statue.  It seems all is forgiven and Sharina kept asking for the priest to forgive.  She promises to take better care of the images sent to her for maintenance from now on. 

Gimo demands that Rico and baddie friend produce the image but they can’t.  Baddie friend asks Gimo that maybe he forgot to lock the door and someone got in to steal it.

Gimo is adamant he locked the door and thinks the whole thing is crazy.  How can they, robbers get robbed?  “Magnanakaw tayo tapos ninakawan tayo?”

Father tells Sharina that church images like the Sto. Rosario are important to the devotees.  It gives the people hope especially in hard times, to continue to pray and hope.  Sharina agrees and asks leave of the priest so she can make her own prayer of thanks for the finding of the statue.

The buyer is not impatient and since Gimo cannot give him the statue, leaves.  Gimo is now very angry and thinks about who could have stolen the statue from him.

Sharina is in church praying, asking for justice for Junic’s death, hope for her and her sister and patience and hope to find ‘the one’.  “Pag-asa na mahanap ang dapat para sa akin.”

Lizette at school shows off her i-phone.  Her friends see it and one said that when hers comes from the US, they’ll all have iphones.  One comments why Lizette’s sticker is like it belongs to a boy.  Like it’s a man’s phone but she says she likes it that way.  One of her friends’ brother arrives, it’s the same guy Rico and baddie friend took the phone from and as soon as he saw his phone, he knew it was his.  Lizette is found out not only buying a stolen phone but buying a second-hand one which is a big no-no to the elites in her school.  She returns the phone and her  so-called friends leave her burning in embarrassment.

Sharina and Monica talk about the lead the police had shared with the latter.  Monica says the police found that the gunman had a tattoo at the back.  Benjie seems to have the same tattoo but fortunately for him, he covers it before the sisters see it on his back.

Monica asks how the lost image returned.  Sharina cannot really explain it and says Benjie just found it.  Monica is sad, saying that  the image is better off having returned and wishes Junic too can return.  “But pa santo, bumabalik.  Sana si Junic din.”

Suddenly Lucy arrives telling Monica she’s found a way for her friend to talk to Junic.  Monica drops everything and goes with Lucy.

Sharina tells Benjie about her sister’s grief.  How Junic got shot leaving Monica, just when they were about to get married.  She asks is Junic’s soul is still around.  Benjie tells her about the black and white sundos and how some spirits, unable to let go of loved one, stay behind. 

Sharina is curious about Benjie’s version of the sundo.  She says it sounds like stories old ladies tell when she was little. 

An image is ready to be delivered Sharina wanting to carry it with Benjie wanting to help accidentally touch one another’s hands.  Desa sees the exchange and smiles.

Rico is at home searching.  Lola Inday asks what he is looking for and he asks if they’ve seen the statue.  Lola Inday thinks Rico is on drugs and asks what he is on.  Rico denies it and keep looking.

Meanwhile, Lizette arrives and slaps Rico in the face screaming, “I hate you!” and leaves.

Desa aks Sharina what’s new.  Sharina explains her and Benjie’s activities and Desa is just curious why Sharina had to accompany Benjie deliver the statues when she never had done before.  She reasons, “Para siguradong na-deliver talaga.”  To which Desa’s reply is a meaningful smile.

Sharina is looking for one particular image, “ang santo ng San Jose” that had already been loaded onto a truck where Benjie is busy arranging.  She tries to climb the truck and Benjie insists on helping her.  While she kept declining his help, he keeps insisting it and resulted in both of them falling onto the truck again inches away from one another.  [Santo ng San Jose Sixto Gonzales Dantes III? Hehehehe Dingdong is Jose, FYI.]

Sharina pretends to be angry, “Sabi ko na kasi sa iyo na ako na eh!”

Baddie friend and Gimo are walking still plagued by how the image got lost.  Gimo suspects there’s a traitor in their group.  Baddie friend sees Benjie and calls his name.  Gimo agrees.  But baddie friend says no and points to Benjie.  They see him with Sharina.    Gimo puts the pieces of the puzzle together.

Abangan:  Emie fights Sharina.  “Sinasabi ko na nga ba may babae ka eh!”