Chapter 36
"Happy 3 years!"
The gang were at Tok Aba's shop, and to their delight, it was Boboiboy and Lia's 3-year anniversary. Boboiboy has his arm wrapped around Lia's waist so he could be closer to her. "Hehehe, thank you." He grinned while Lia chuckled, "Aww. I can't believe it has been 3 years."
"Me too! Back then, he was just a little boy who's out there saving the galaxy! He also said that he doesn't need a girlfriend, but look at him now! Aiyoyoyo! My boy is growing!" Gopal fake cried.
Fang kneeled on the ground and did a dramatic sigh, "It might cost the whole galaxy. I told myself that I will prioritize my heroic duties." He mimicked his voice as he did dramatic poses.
Boboiboy sighed, "Aiya, you guys wouldn't let me live huh? That was before, okay! Sheesh." Lia laughed at the two boys, "He meant you guys did a great job. Keep going." With that, Boboiboy rolled his eyes which made the others laugh.
"Aigoo! I have a better one!" Leizel cleared her throat then continued, "Boboiboy's a great leader and a great friend. For sure he does all those things to the others too." She imitated Lia's voice.
"Oi!" Lia exclaimed, crossing her arms. The others laughed, especially Fang. "I remember telling her back then... You're just too dense to realize it. You think Boboiboy hugs me whenever I get injured or do great in missions?"
His remark caused even greater laughter among themselves, except Lia who was giving a sulky pout, still arms crossed. "I mean, I thought he does that."
"Well, you were wrong. That boy never gives anyone of us a tight or long hug except for you." Ying replied, wiggling her eyebrows. Yaya laughed, "Yeah! And I remember the urge of mine to throw fists at the air when Boboiboy denied liking you. It was way too obvious!"
"That's so true. But what made us frustrated even more was you being dense about it. We just wanted to create a presentation to elaborate Boboiboy's signs of feelings." Leizel added on, still laughing.
"Honestly, I thought I'd get friend-zoned when I confessed to you. You weren't really showing any signs of acknowledgment." Boboiboy said, making Lia smile sheepishly. "Eh, I wasn't sure if it was a sign. I was scared to misinterpret it."
"Dey Lia, do you remember the time Boboiboy gave you a bracelet? The one that has your zodiac sign?" Gopal asked with a sly smirk. Lia nodded, "Yeah, I still wear it here." She showed her left wrist that has the bracelet.
Boboiboy showed him as well, "I still wear it too. It's too good not to be worn." Gopal chuckled, "Dey, I remember Boboiboy telling me how frustrated he was that Lia didn't get the sign when he gave her the bracelet!"
Lia facepalmed herself, they wouldn't let her live with her being oblivious of Boboiboy's feelings before. Aish, these people... But I love them so that's okay.
Yaya smiled at the two, "Aww, that's so sweet. It's great that you guys still have that. Boboiboy, you gave that to her back in 2018, right?"
"Yup, so it has been 5 years. Gosh, it's been so long," Boboiboy replied with a soft sigh. Then he turned to Lia, "You made me wait for 2 years, goodness." The others chuckled at his remark while Lia sighed.
"Oi! I would've known already if you told me that time!" Lia defended herself, playfully furrowing her eyebrows. Boboiboy laughed, "I know. I was just kidding, sayang. Even if it would take more than 2 years, I'd still wait for me."
An "aww" came from them with Fang nodding with a smug smile, "Hay, things do change for you, Boboi. I'm glad you took my advice; this means I am the reason why they're at that stage now. I am a great model."
Ying raised her eyebrow, "What are you? A blueprint? I'm sure Boboiboy helped himself man up to Lia too. Gosh, this spiked head is so full of himself." Yaya giggled upon hearing what Ying said, "Blueprint?! Goodness! Hahaha!"
"You guys, that's okay. He's right," Lia said with a smile as she walked to Fang. "He did help me at some point too. Give some credit to him." She softly pats his shoulder. Fang didn't reply anything but Leizel did.
"Ay Lia, he's happy about what you said. He's going to brag it to me later on that someone praised him about that." Leizel giggled, slightly leaning onto Fang's side. Finally, the man himself spoke up. "That doesn't change the fact that I'm the blueprint."
"Eh? Why would it be you? Gopal got himself a girlfriend first than you," Boboiboy reminded with a teasing smirk. "Technically, he's the blueprint. Am I right, G?" He turned to his best friend who chuckled, "Yeah right!"
Fang groaned, "Whatever." The others just laughed at his response and mini downfall.
Later on, Boboiboy left the shop under Ochobot's supervision and led Lia to somewhere. "Eh? Where are we going?" Boboiboy grinned, "You'll see." Then he brought out his power watch and contacted someone, "Commander, we're ready."
The next thing Lia knew, TAPOPS spaceship was already descending on the ground. The door opened revealing KokoCi. Lia was surprised, "Commander... Wow, it's been a while."
"You too. Now c'mon! You wouldn't want to waste time, right?" Lia looked at Boboiboy in confusion, who just winked at her. "You'll see." He dragged her inside the spaceship. He guided her to sit down on the provided chairs as she was still in confusion.
"Lia! So good to see you again! How is the sound queen?" MotoBot beamed while heading to the girl. Lia softly gasped, "MotoBot! Wow, it's been a while! And hey, I'm not queen. That title is for Yaya as she is the gravity queen."
KokoCi chuckled as he eavesdropped on their conversation, he was by the flight deck ready to fly the ship out, "I think Diva is the right term for her... Yeah, that sounds great, sound diva..."
Boboiboy, who just arrived by the deck, raised his eyebrow upon hearing what the commander said. "Eh? Do you even know that word, commander? That's like slang." KokoCi sighed, glaring at him, "What do you think of me? Of course, I know! It talks about a female opera singer which is accurate for Lia's power. You guys are from Earth so I researched things about it."
The elemental hero smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, commander." KokoCi scoffed, "You better be. I offered to drive you guys out and you tell me this?! You're lucky it's your anniversary, so I'll let this slide... Just sit at the back with Lia."
Lia and MotoBot giggled at the commander scolding Boboiboy, who walked back to the seating area. Boboiboy quietly mimicked KokoCi's response making the two laugh even more.
"MotoBot! Come here! We'll fly this out now!" Speaking of the devil, he called out to the power sphere. MotoBot headed toward the deck and helped KokoCi fly out the spaceship from planet Earth.
As the higher up and power sphere maneuvered the ship, the couple sat way behind them, watching them. "Commander, do we have a mission?" Lia asked, still not enlightened with what's about to happen. KokoCi shook his head, "Hmm, no not really. But Boboiboy has."
"You have? Why didn't you tell me?" Lia turned to him. Boboiboy chuckled, "Eeesh, you're so cute when you do that. But it's not really a TAPOPS mission." She raised her eyebrow, unsatisfied with his answer.
Motobot went back to them, "By the way, your clothes are ready. I suggest you two dress up now." Boboiboy gestured for Lia to sit up and when she did, they both went to the back. There were winter clothes prepared for them.
"These are winter clothes... Oi, just tell me where are we going." Lia pleaded with a pout, much to the laughter of her boyfriend and Motobot. "Just get dressed, sayang." They both changed their outfits to the provided clothing for them. Afterward, they heard KokoCi announcing, "We're already here at planet Saharu." Lia widened her eyes, "Saharu?"
Boboiboy nodded, "Yeah, we had a mission here before. We had to retrieve EggaBot. It was fun." He held her hand and went to the exit door. Once the door went down, Boboiboy continued. "It would be more fun if I went here with you."
Lia gasped as she saw how Saharu looked like. It was a place full of snow, and she already felt the cold breeze hitting her body. "That explains these outfits... So we're going to find a power sphere here?"
"You think I'd let us go on a mission on the day of our anniversary? Of course not, silly. We're going to have a date here." Boboiboy replied with a grin, much to her surprise. "What?! Here? What are we going to do here?"
All of a sudden, Motobot arrived. "Space Vehicle Materialization!" The vehicles of the two were being summoned, as helmets were being placed on their heads for protection. Once it was done, "Vehicle onwards!"
The motorbikes were launched outside the spaceship, much to their surprise. They both immediately set their hands on the grip to be able to control it. They stopped for a while. "Oh, gosh. This looks better than Antarctica." Lia remarked.
Boboiboy laughed, "Of course it is. C'mon, let's go around." They both zipped around the planet; both were having fun. At first, they went in a race on who will get to the other side of the planet first. With the two using their powers, they ended up getting a tie. They did another race again, which that's where Boboiboy won.
"No fair. Lightning is faster than sound!" Lia whined. "That's why they call me Mr. Speedy." Boboiboy winked at her, making her sigh, "Heh. Why Mr. Speedy? Is this because of lightning?"
"It could be, but... because I'm fast in general. I like fast." Boboiboy winked at her. He couldn't see the blush on Lia's face because of her helmet, she just cleared her throat. "Wow... Double meaning, I guess."
Boboiboy chuckled then brought himself to gaze at her. He couldn't believe that it has been 3 years since they were together. His life became a euphoria ever since she came. Sure, they both had their ups and downs in their relationship, but it was worth staying and fighting for. They went from their first kiss as a couple all the way to here and for sure, there is more to look forward to.
"You're cute. C'mon, let's go stroll around some more." Then, they went on top of a mountain, much to Lia's nervousness. "Wow, this is high... Do you really want to do this? What if we get into an accident?"
"We won't. Besides, I wouldn't let you do this if I know this would endanger you. Just hold onto the grips tightly." Lia smiled at how thoughtful he was, "Okay, okay. Thank you. Let's do this!"
They both positioned their bikes and got ready to slope down it. "On the count of three, we'll slide down, okay?" Lia nodded, understanding Boboiboy's instruction. She exhaled deeply, readying herself.
"Okay, one..."
"Two..."
"Three!"
The moment they both said three, they used their motorbikes to slide down the slope of the mountain. Lia was having fun; she lets out a squeal as she was going down the slope. Boboiboy was delighted to see that she was having fun. He lets out a whoop as they got down.
Once they got down, they continued driving their motorbikes. They did another race again in which Lia won this time. She immediately got out of her bike and jumped up and down while wiggling her arms.
"Yes! I won! Hah! Take that!" She continued to rejoice, much to Boboiboy's amusement. He always loved how Lia was rejoicing, even at the small things. It made him happy seeing her like that.
Lia took off her helmet and stuck her tongue out to Boboiboy, "Looks like I beat Mr. Speedy." Boboiboy removed his helmet, "I just made myself lose so that you can win." He teased her with a grin.
"What?! Really?" Her voice was so loud that it made Boboiboy laugh, "I was joking. You won that fair and square." Lia rolled her eyes, "Whatever! Hmph!" She crossed her arms, furrowing her eyebrows.
Boboiboy chuckled, "Aiya, don't get mad. Say what, I have one last thing to show you." Lia looked at him, "Eh? What is that? You know, you have a lot of surprises. Like what you did on our previous anniversaries!"
She remembered what he did on the first one - they were all at the training arena at TAPOPS station doing intensive training until the lights went off. For safety, they all exited the arena and went back when the lights were back. What Lia didn't know was that the lights off was a way for Boboiboy to do his major set up at the arena; it was a mini-concert type. Everyone knew Boboiboy can play the bass guitar and that's what he did for Lia - he serenaded her with the help of Fang. It was a day to remember.
Last year's anniversary was Lia's random suggestion. She suggested that they could go to another country, without knowing Boboiboy would take that suggestion seriously. The next thing she knew, they were in a plane heading to Japan.
Remembering that brought warmth to her; it made her feel Boboiboy's utmost love for her. It gave her more reasons to choose to love him, a choice that she will always pick - no doubt that she will. Boboiboy is a true gentleman and has been a great boyfriend to her, the best to be exact.
The next thing Lia knew, Boboiboy is bringing her to the top of a cliff which confused her. "W-Wait... Here?!" Upon arriving there, she looked down to see how high they were. "Uhm, w-what are we going to do here?! I know these vehicles can fly but there's no way I'm going to plunge down with this!"
"Relax love, I'll show you," Then he raised his power watch, as it displayed an ice symbol. "Elemental Power! Boboiboy Ice!" Boboiboy transformed to Boboiboy Ice, much to Lia raising her eyebrow.
He's already on his vehicle that is powered by ice. He took a glance at Lia, "I'll go first. I want you to follow me and keep on accelerating your motorbike, okay? Do you trust me?"
Lia didn't hesitate in answering him, "I do." Boboiboy Ice smiled, "Thank you. And don't worry, we won't be encountering any giant penguins. The reason why it attacked us before was that it thought we had its kid."
Lia chuckled, "Yeah, Gopal told me about that before. Okay, let's go." Boboiboy Ice grinned then he used his motorbike to prepare his power, "Ice Slide!" He moved out of the cliff, going to different directions as a huge slide of ice was being created.
"Oh my gosh." She was astonished, then she heard Boboiboy call out for her. "Go now!" She immediately slides down the slide made of ice. She controlled her vehicle and accelerated to make it more fun.
She slightly looked around and set her eyes on the slide Boboiboy created. She was amazed at how he did it; it brought fun to her, "WOOOOO!" She shouted with giggles in between as she continued to follow him.
Boboiboy Ice made the slide long, it wasn't reaching the ground yet so he made it go everywhere. He even made the slide go sidewards, much to Lia squealing. He turned around for a bit and saw Lia trailing on him, he smiled. "Prepare for this one!"
He made the slide go downwards, but the slope wasn't that steep so an accident won't happen. But it was a bit high that made Lia a bit nervous. "I got this." She accelerated the vehicle and went down the high slide, much to her screaming.
Boboiboy Ice ended the ice slide as he now arrived at the ground. He went further a bit to see Lia who was using the vehicle to slide down. He smiled as she got off the slide. He reverted back to his original form then removed his helmet, "How was it?"
Lia removed her helmet and flips her hair, much to Boboiboy in awe. She has grown older, and her hair grew longer until her shoulder blades. Boboiboy also noticed her height increased a bit and how she became more mature-looking.
"You scared me for a bit!" Lia exclaimed as she moved her arms. "Especially with that high slide! I thought I was going to fall!" Boboiboy laughed, "Well you didn't. Besides, as I've said earlier, I will never risk your safety."
"I know, I know..." Then she remembered something, "Shoot, I forgot to ask you. Did atok allow you to go with us? To the Philippines?" Boboiboy nodded, "Yes. I already told Ochobot as well. Sonobot will be staying with them, right?"
"Yeah. My kuyas doesn't know about her, plus how would we bring her to the plane?" Boboiboy chuckled, "Fair enough... So, did you have fun here?"
"Yeah! Even with this high slide, I have to admit, it was fun sliding down there." This is way better than Antarctica. Thank you so much." Lia beamed. Boboiboy laughed, "Well, we wouldn't do this in Antarctica either, so..." He walked to her and wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her closer.
They both rested their foreheads at one another, with their eyes closed and without saying anything. Boboiboy then opened his eyes slightly and swooped down for a kiss, in which Lia kissed back then wraps her arms around his neck to pull him closer. The kiss lasted for about a minute, then they both pulled away.
"3 years down, many more to go," Lia told him with a smile. "I'm looking forward to what's more for us. I wonder what's more for us, do you ever wonder about it?"
"I do. Although the future is quite uncertain, there's one thing I'm certain about." Boboiboy brought his hand to caress her cheek, "I'm certain that it will be us for the long ride... More like a lifetime." He nuzzled his nose against hers then he rested his forehead against hers.
"Happy anniversary, sayangku."
"Happy anniversary, mahal ko."
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A/N: Did an update cos I'm feeling great today :> Btw, mahal ko and sayangku both mean "my love" heheheh. Just a random fact, this is already in the year 2023 and if you noticed in the previous chapters, it was in the year 2020. I didn't include the COVID-19 pandemic in the plotline. I hope you guys like this one! Keep safe always, lovely readers ~ !
- Ana <3