Torn Between Twin Brothers

James couldn't help himself and grinned a little while shaking his head back and forth because of Jeffrey's reaction.

"Oh, that was the concert we did over here. It's too bad that you guys weren't here yet. It was a blast. We had so much fun after that. We even came to your school and stayed for a night." He was blabbing his mouth while watching himself on the television.

===

When Jeffrey heard what Ashton said, he turned his attention to him and began asking about being an idol.

"How old were you when you started training?" He asked curiously.

Ashton had to think for a moment. "Officially or not officially? Because I started early on, but I was not officially part of the group. I only hung out with a bunch of aspiring Idols. Hahaha!" He bragged proudly, seeing how interested Jeffrey was. He decided to show off a little.

However, Jeffrey could care less about that. Instead, what interested him was how he started. "Forget about that; what I want to know is the official one. How old were you when you signed up for training?"

Ashton's brows rose when he heard what Jeffrey said. However, he needed to be nice to him for Ava's sake. So he politely answered. "I was about your age, I think. I didn't have to sign up as a trainee since we owned the company." He bragged once more to see how Jeffrey would react.

"Aren't we all? That's good then." Jeffrey then lost interest and went back to watch the concert.

===

'What does he mean by, aren't we all?' Ashton thought to himself.

James, who was just listening while watching the concert on television, decided to inform his twin brother.

"Ashton, if you're wondering what he meant by 'aren't we all?' Let me enlighten you a bit. Jeffrey, correct me if I'm wrong, alright?" James said; Jeffrey only nodded while his eyes were still glued to the television.

"What Jeffrey meant was... Just as our parents own an entertainment company, so do his parents. Got it? So, stop bragging in front of him because they're just as rich as our parents." James then got up and went to the kitchen to grab a drink; he was grinning from ear to ear as he left.

Ashton was dumbfounded. James actually cracks a joke. 'Wait, was it a joke?' He thought as he follows his gaze to his twin brother that was long gone...

===

Meanwhile, in the Philippines, Arria had just come back from a shopping spree in Hong Kong with her grandmother Sophia and Aunt Eva. Ann and Jeff had asked them to take Arria so she would not be there when they left for the Kingdom of Stonasia.

When she found out that her parents had left her, she threw a tantrum. Arria ran to her room, locked herself in, and called her mother, crying her heart out.

===

Ann was on the phone speaking with Arria on FaceTime while she was crying. She couldn't be consoled, no matter what Ann said or did.

"It's not fair! I'm all alone here while all of you are there together as one big happy family."So cried Arria while tears were flowing down her young face.

It broke Ann's heart to see her like that, but Jeff was adamant about not bringing her because she might decide that she also wanted to study at the Royal Academy once she saw the place.

Ashley heard Arria's voice, and she peeked to say hello.

"Hello dear, what's with the tears?" It showed on Ashley's face that she was really concerned.

"Aunty!!! Mom and Dad were mean to me. They left without me. Please, talk to my mom to let me come too, please!!!" She pleaded, knowing that Ashley had a soft spot for her and would probably do her best to help her.

Ashley's heart was aching for Arria's sake and she was about to say something to make her feel better when Akira suddenly popped up wearing a beautiful ball gown.

"Mom, I think it is too loose on this side." Akira said, not realizing that Ashley was speaking to someone. She then saw Arria, "Oh, hi Arria! How come you didn't come? You're missing all the fun! We're going to a coming of age gala this weekend and..." She wasn't able to finish her words; her mother pinched her on her side.

Arria started crying louder after hearing what Akira just said. A coming of age gala, and she wasn't even invited. Not that she was even old enough to attend, but at least she could have been with them and not all alone, like how she was now.

"Waaah, you see, even sister Akira thought I should have been with you all; it's not fair!!!"

Then Ava and Pearl decided to peek too, and when they saw Arria, they both waved at her, not knowing what was going on.

Arria saw Pearl and stopped crying for a moment. 

"Who are you?" She asked with puckered lips. The girl looked familiar; she looked like her favorite blogger if they covered her face from the nose down.

Pearl smiled, "Hi! You must be Arria; you're as pretty as your mom and sister. Nice to meet you!"

Hearing her voice, Arria was now sure that she was the same person. First, her eyes brightened, then she was disheartened knowing that she could have met her in person if only her parents took her with them.

"Waaaah!!! Life is not fair!!!" She whimpered more stridently, hoping to make her mother feel bad.

Finally, Ann couldn't take it anymore and told her daughter to be good, and that she would talk to Jeff.

After hearing that, Arria was grinning from ear to ear. She couldn't thank her mother fast enough before saying goodbye.

===

After Ann finished speaking with Arria, she excused herself to call Jeff, who was with Tanaga and Daniel playing golf.

"Hello, my sweetheart! Did you miss me so much that you couldn't wait until we finished playing? You just had to see my handsome face, didn't you?" Jeff bantered as soon as he picked up the phone, smiling sweetly.

"Well, it isn't me who missed you so much; it's your lovely daughter Arria. She's crying her heart out at home as we speak because we left her behind. So I think it's best to let her come too. I will call mother or Eva to ask to accompany her; what do you think?" She said more matter of factly than as a question.

Jeff knew for a fact that Ann was actually telling him and not asking him for approval. They have been married for many years now, and he knew how she was. She worded it as if she was asking. But the truth was she was informing him of what precisely she was planning to do. 

What else could he do but play along as usual? "Hmmm, go ahead, it would be best if you called Eva first, then ask your mother. If she agrees, it means your father is coming too."

"It's settled then.. I love you! Bye!" She then quickly hung up on him so that she could call her cousin Eva.