“Always remember. Being a Mondragon means being the top in everything. No Mondragon is a loser, and we definitely do not allow others to step on us”
At the Mondragon mansion, Cassie came down the stairs, smiling to herself. She startled her mother by hugging her from behind and they both laughed together with Neil. Robert came in and they all sat at the dining table. Cassie told Nanny Esther that something was missing, and the older woman left and brought her a plate of sardines.
Robert asked if she would ever get tired of eating the same thing and Cassie said she wouldn’t because it was delicious and they (Robert and everyone else at Camila) worked very hard to make it. At the Bartolome residence, Marga sat alone at the table. “Nanny, didn’t I tell you I don’t like sardines?” she called out, and the older woman came and apologized profusely.
The nanny took away the plate of sardines as Marga told her to hurry up and change the food for her. Carlos and Daniela came in, and when Carlos asked what the problem was, Marga said that her nanny was feeding her very disgusting food. The nanny came running back in with a different plate of food, still apologizing. Daniela threatened to fire her if she did that again.
Bonita came to get Romina while the Mondragons were still having dinner. She explained that Romina was now the Vice President of Camila and Robert said she deserved it since she had been working so hard. Cassie congratulated her mother. Bonita asked if Romina would go and get ready since she had some important meetings to attend.
Romina told Bonita that she had to take Cassie to school first. Robert told her to go on because he would be taking Cassie to school himself. Marga was typing away on her laptop when her father closed it and told her to have breakfast first. She complained that she was doing something very important, and Daniela told her husband to let their daughter be and be grateful that she was always at the top of her class in the most prestigious school in the country.
Daniela then gave her a present in advance (a very expensive fashion designer bag), saying that she was sure that Marga was going to take the first place in her class again. Marga thanked her mother while Carlos watched silently. At Camila, the board members congratulated Romina for attaining the position of the vice president, and Romina assured them that she would do her very best for the company.
After they left, Bonita came in with some other employees and also congratulated her for the promotion. The other workers left and Bonita stayed behind to celebrate with her friend some more. Romina was sad that her mother wasn’t around anymore to see the good life she had now. She was also worried about Cassie now that she was all grown-up and Bonita told her to trust her daughter and give her some breathing space since she had raised her well.
At St. Jude, Cassie was finishing up with a painting when some friends of hers came in. They said that they had been looking for her and Cassie said she was almost done with the painting. The girls were amazed at Cassie’s talent. When Cassie was done, she took a selfie of her most recent work. Her friends mentioned that her parents were too strict and controlling and even though she was 15 years old, they had imposed a lot of restrictions on her. Cassie told them that it was normal for every parent to worry and she didn’t want her mother to worry so much.
A teacher came in and told Cassie that the upcoming quiz competition would be held at Maxwell International School and the girls were very excited. At Maxwell International School, Marga walked with swag down some outdoor stairs. She met up with three of her friends – Nadya, Nica and Maureen – and they scared off some girls who had been sitting on ‘their bench’. They sat down and Marga began her Question & Answers.
Nadya and Nica answered correctly but Maureen seemed a bit distracted. Soon, Marga was pissed off. She snapped Maureen out of it and told her that she had no plans of losing in the upcoming Quiz Bee competition. At the old neighborhood, Cassie taught some kids. They had ran out of materials so nanny Esther offered to go and buy some more. Cassie gave her her savings and asked Esther to use that instead.
The older woman asked why she needed to save since her parents could give her anything she wanted and Cassie told her that she didn’t want to be entirely dependant on her parents. Mr. Kulas saw Cassie and asked his sons what Romina’s daughter was doing there, and one of them (who was now a police officer) said that she taught the kids in the neighborhood every Saturday.
Kulas said it was illëgâl because they were occupying the sidewalk. He asked his officer son to make them leave but the guy told his father that he couldn’t do that because it was Jepoy’s property. The other son said that Cassie was nice and smart and Mr. Kulas said Marga was kinder and more intelligent, and even better than Cassie. One of the boys told him to chill out and relax because it wasn’t a competition, but Mr. Kulas eyed Cassie as they went to buy something nearby.
Jepoy and some others watched as Cassie taught and attended to the kids. His neighbor, a woman, said that she was happy Cassie had grown up to be beautiful and kind and Jepoy said she took after Romina, her mother. The woman passed an insensitive comment and Jepoy asked her to drop it because Romina wouldn’t be too happy to hear that and she agreed to it, saying that they would still be jobless had it not been for Romina and Robert.
Romina arrived just then and Cassie went to greet her. Romina thanked Jepoy for watching over Cassie. Daniela was very upset after talking to some of her clients on phone. Marga asked what was wrong and she told her that her clients might be very rich but they were also very stüpïd.
“Are you ready for tomorrow?” she asked her daughter.
“Absolutely.” Marga replied.
“Great. And you know what you have to do?”
“I have to win.”
“Yes, you will have to win,” Daniela said to her. “Always remember… being a Mondragon means being the top in everything. No Mondragon is a loser, and we definitely do not allow others to step on us.”
Marga told her mother that she had never disappointed her before. She assured her that she would win the competition tomorrow and Daniela said she would call all her friends and tell them that they were throwing a party. At the Mondragons, Cassie and Romina were busy doing their own thing when Robert walked in. He asked what they were doing and Cassie said that her mother was preparing for a meeting while she prepared for the Quiz Bee competition tomorrow.
Robert told her daughter that she had studied enough and her mind needed to rest before her big day, but Cassie said she had reached the championship level and she might forget something if she rested. She added that she needed to give it her all if she wanted to win. Robert told her that she had to try and give her best but it wasn’t necessary or required for her to win. He added that she would still have experience even if she lost because lessons were learned from failure more than success.
Cassie then asked who would drive her to the school. When she mentioned Maxwell International School, Robert was taken by surprise. The place where the competition would be held was where her granddaughter, Marga schooled. Daniela talked to someone on phone. She told them that there was going be a party for Marga so they had to bring all their friends. Carlos came in and covered a sleeping Marga with his jacket as Daniela kept talking on phone.
At Maxwell International School, Cassie and her friends walked in. Cassie told her friends that it wasn’t easy to get into this kind of school unless you had connections or a lot of money. They asked her why she didn’t study there since she was rich and a Mondragon and Cassie just stared back at them, smiling. Meanwhile, Marga sat at her territory with her friends. She glanced at Cassie as Cassie’s friends told her that they had to find the auditorium before they were disqualified for arriving late.
Cassie went to ask around for directions to the auditorium and she found no one better to ask than Marga. Marga said she was going to the same place with her friends. She offered Cassie and her friends to come along if they wanted. But then when Marga soon learned that Cassie and her friends were also participants, she didn’t seem to be that friendly anymore even as Cassie was smiling at her.
The Quiz Bee competition had began, and Maxwell, headed by Marga, were several points ahead of Cassie’s St. Jude. Cassie tried to convince her friends that they could make a comeback and win. At home, Romina made ready to leave and Robert insisted on driving her and when Romina asked why, he eventually told her that the Quiz Bee competition was being held at Marga’s school.
Back at the Quiz Bee, Cassie’s St. Jude were still losing – 5 points behind. Cassie was quick enough to ring the bell and answer a question correctly and now, the scores were a tie – each team now had 25 points. Back home, Robert was worried that Cassie and Marga would meet after such a long time without them being present.
Romina told him that if Cassie and Marga met again, then maybe it was a sign that they had to work out their differences again. The score was 50-50 and it was now time for a tie-breaking question. Marga rang the bell and began to show off before answering the question. The spectators began to hail and chant Maxwell School.
“And that is…” began the quizmaster. “Incorrect!”
Cassie then took up the stand for St. Jude and answered the question correctly, and Marga was left shocked, embarrassed and humiliated. You know, all those negative feelings. Maxwell had lost to St. Jude and Marga’s friends said that they needed to do something. Marga then protested that St. Jude’s answer was incorrect but she was made to shut up after a a teacher told her firmly that the answer was correct.
The principal was then called in to award the second place winners. Marga didn’t seem pleased, her arms folded stubbornly like the spoilt rotten child she was. It was now time for the winners to be awarded. Names were called as medals were put on each participant. Marga had the shock of her life when she realized that the unfashionable girl in glasses who had just beaten her was none other than Cassie – Cassie Mondragon, her estranged sister.
Cassie congratulated Marga, telling her that her group had done a great job. Marga gave her a dirty, unimpressed look. The principal left after she told Marga to take Cassie and the others on a tour of their school. Cassie asked Marga if she remembered her in her irritated tone, Marga said she did. Cassie suggested that they have dinner at Robert’s place and Marga said she had to seek permission from her mother first.
At Camila, Romina was very worried about Cassie since she had not called her for a while now. Robert told her that maybe the competition wasn’t over yet, adding that it was good for their daughter to hang out with her friends. Romina still didn’t seem convinced; she worried about the kind of people Cassie would be associating with and feared that something bad might happen to her there.
Romina said that she only wanted to protect their daughter because of the terrible ordeal she had been through. Robert convinced his wife to give their daughter some breathing space and trust that things would turn out well. Bonita came in with a package for Robert and Romina was pleasantly surprised – it was an office name/position inscription that beared her name and position as the new vice president of Camila.
At Maxwell International, Robert watched as Marga walked with her entourage. Bernard, his old time friend saw him and introduced Kristoff to him. Kristoff was Bernard’s son and he was going to be studying at Maxwell from now on. Robert told Bernard that he had come to pick up Cassie who had attended the Quiz Bee competition. After they left, Cassie came smiling like always, telling her father that they had won the Quiz Bee. Robert congratulated her.
At Camila, Romina made a presentation to some board members who seemed to be against her idea of packaging. Romina told them that they had a second option which was much more costly than the first. Later on, she told Bonita that she would prove to everyone that she had attained the vice president position not because she was Robert’s wife but because she had earned it.
At the club, Savannah brought Daniela a newspaper which headlined Romina’s new enviable position at Camila. Daniela was mad and before she could begin her usual reign of verbal abuse, Carlos came in with the man who managed their club’s finances and asked Savannah to excuse them.
The man explained that they hadn’t made much profit for over a year now. He and Carlos added that they had to close down some of their branches to avoid unnecessary loss/debts.Daniela wouldn’t listen though. She said she would find more investors if she needed to.
At the Bartolome residence, Marga eventually told her mother that she hadn’t won the competition. Daniela looked bored and disappointed at that and Marga apologized. Carlos told her that there was no need to apologise because she couldn’t win every single competition. He said he was proud of her all the same.
Daniela asked who had won, from what school and which family. As she went on with her rant, Marga eventually admitted that it was Cassie who had won the Quiz Bee and Daniela was beside herself with shock. Daniela was beside herself in her room.
“The nerve!…those two again…like cockroaches, forcing themselves everywhere!”
Carlos asked her to cool it off but Daniela wouldn’t listen. She said that she was sure Cassie has cheated so she was going to have a talk with the principal tomorrow. Carlos advised against it, saying that she would only be embarrassing their daughter if she did that.
Daniela refused to listen. She said that her daughter wasn’t a loser. Carlos told Daniela not to drag the children (Marga & Cassie) into her issues with Romina. Carlos added that the worst thing was that Margaret thought she was a disappointment because she had failed her.
Carlos then said that Marga needed to learn that she couldn’t always win and she (Daniela) shouldn’t make her feel like she was a failure just because she had lost. Meanwhile, the Mondragons sat at the dinner table. Cassie said it was too bad that her father hadn’t been able to see Marga. She suggested that he go visit her and Robert said that was what he was going to do.
Romina came in and asked why there was no food and Neil told her that Cassie had made them wait for her so they could celebrate together. Neil complained that he was even starving and Cassie said she had caught him eating in the kitchen earlier. Romina then apologized for being late and congratulated Cassie. Everyone gathered together for a group hug and Robert asked the silliest yet wisest question at the time – “Who would take the picture?”
At the club, Daniela met up with Savannah and some former classmates of hers. She said she would have thrown a party for them had she been informed about their coming. They told her that she hadn’t changed a bit and she was still the party animal she had always been.
Daniela said she was also a businesswoman and Savannah had to open her big mouth and say that they would take them to another branch next time, if only Daniela didn’t close it down. Daniela said she wanted them to invest in her club and they eventually agreed and made a toast.
