Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 65
It seemed that Claire was confident in her beauty. She was the most attractive woman in their neighborhood, and that was probably the reason why she was confident. Her dark green hair was always carefully brushed, and her lips were often tinted with cheap lipstick to enhance her charm. Furthermore, she had a lighter skin tone than Maya. As sad as it was, the beauty standard in Adobo country was "the whiter, the better."
Hence, Claire felt like she had a chance to snag Karlos. Claire didn't finish high school because she felt like school was not for her. She hated the feeling of being judged by teachers and classmates who thought she was only a pretty face with no brain and was being delusional. Her parents tried to introduce her to men who had good careers, but her dream was higher than that. With her beauty, she was confident that a millionaire man would marry her... That was ten years ago when she was still young. She was now a 29-year-old maid who spent most of her time reading romance novels and watching telenovelas.
When she got an offer to be a maid in a villa, Claire used that opportunity to meet rich men. She did meet a rich man, but he was only interested in her body. The memory still stung, his sweet promises vanished the moment he got what he wanted. He forgot about her once he was done having fun. On top of that, the villa rarely hosted parties, so Claire was just a maid all the time. Day after day, she scrubbed marble floors and dusted chandeliers.
If she did this right and successfully seduced Karlos, her dream of becoming a rich woman would come true.
'He is handsome and fits my criteria, although he needs to dress nicely so that no one will belittle him. I can teach him to do that.' Claire smirked. Her reflection in the water of the kitchen sink showed confident eyes filled with determination.
She had watched so many telenovelas where poor but beautiful ladies met their prince charming and changed their lives for the better. Claire believed that she was the leading lady of a romance telenovela. In her imagination, dramatic music played whenever she looked at Karlos.
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Karlos sighed in relief after confirming that he only lost three traps. He brushed a hand through his hair as the salty scent of the sea lingered in the air. The eight traps in the mangroves were stuck against the mangrove trees, so most of them were safe from the strong waves and wind. He only lost one trap in the mangroves. Unfortunately, some of the traps needed repairs.
As for the traps around the small island, two were missing and the other five were in good condition. Karlos even caught nine living lobsters. Their shells glistened with seawater as they struggled inside the container. He also caught an eel.
"Whoa."
The eel was so active that Karlos had to be careful. It thrashed around, its slimy body wriggling. He used a stick to stir the eel back into the sea. Eels were edible, but Karlos was not interested in taking one back to the villa. Eels were not in demand, mostly people near the shores ate them. As for the inland region, they were not interested in eating eels, so buyers rarely bought them from the fish port.
Now that the weather was getting colder, the salmon season would intensify. A thin chill traveled through the morning air. It was still regrettable that he couldn't fish for salmon for almost a week, but he had to move on.
He hooked a bait and waited for a fish to take it. His first catch was a red snapper. It had crimson scales like small rubies and sharp teeth.
'Even though the weather is colder, being under the sun is still tough.'
His small wooden boat didn't have a roof to shield him from the blazing sun. Sweat rolled down the side of his face, his shirt clinging to his skin.
Two hours later, Karlos caught eleven salmon of different sizes and two red snappers. His arms ached from hauling the fish, but a satisfied smile tugged at his lips. He decided to end his fishing job at 2 p.m. and go to the fish port to sell the fish.
He looked at his boat. Aside from the fish he caught, four traps needed repairs. He found it awkward to take them to the villa, but he went along anyway. He scratched his head, imagining the maids judging him behind his back. It didn't matter if the maids found him lowly, he would fix the traps in the villa tomorrow.
'Tomorrow is Sunday and we have to attend church. I wonder if there's an Ocean Church near the bay.'
Considering that the bay harbor had many boats, there was probably one or two churches there.
He stepped on the concrete ground and tied his boat. The fish port was bustling as always.
"King Salmon! I'm looking for King Salmon! 692 pesos per kilogram!"
"692 pesos!?" Karlos was excited when he heard the price. His heart thumped, eyes widening in disbelief. Since there had been a storm and fishermen couldn't meet the demand for salmon, the price naturally went up to 692 pesos.
Salmon was one of the most favored fish to eat, so it was no surprise that people wanted to buy it. Unfortunately, a week of storm stopped fishermen from catching salmon. Now that the weather was good, the price surged.
Karlos quickly found a buyer for his salmon. It was a buyer from the salmon processing factory. The man wore rubber boots and gloves, a clipboard tucked under his arm as he inspected the fish.
Karlos' catch weighed 88 kilograms, and he earned over 60,000 pesos.
As for the nine spiny lobsters, Karlos earned 7,000 pesos. That day, Karlos took home over 67,000 pesos. His rough hands trembled slightly as he counted the bills, his first profit after a week of idling. If he could maintain this kind of earning for the whole month, Karlos would be satisfied.
'...Perhaps I should stop going to the mangroves and put all of my traps around the small island instead. That way, I can spend more time fishing salmon.'
Even though fishing for salmon was the priority, Karlos couldn't forget that his real job was being a trapper.
"Hey Karlos, I heard that you found a house at the bay harbor. How are my sister, niece, and nephew?"
Joseph greeted him with a cigarette in his mouth. Smoke rose into the air as he squinted under the sunlight.
"They are doing great."
The person who helped him find an apartment was Joseph, but Karlos didn't find it adequate, so he didn't rent there. Joseph and his family lived in the northwest part of town, almost the opposite side of the beach. Hence, they rarely had time to visit each other's houses. Their town was not that small, it was comparable to a city in size. Crowded streets, tricycles, and market vendors made the town lively.
"Give me the address, I'll visit you later once I get free time. I'll take my wife and kids." He passed a pen and paper to Karlos.
"Alright. I just recently found out that we are going to live in a villa, so don't be shocked." Karlos wrote the address.
"What?"
"A villa."
"...I'm supposed to believe that?" Joseph raised a brow, half amused and half doubtful.
"I'll explain it to you later. Neither of us has the time to talk long."
"See you later then."
"You too."
Karlos untied the rope and stepped onto the boat. His direction was different this time. Unlike the usual route to the beach, Karlos' destination was the bay, where he would stay for about half a year. The sunlight danced on the water's surface. Despite the fatigue, a quiet sense of happiness settled in his chest.