Last Friday, July 5, Ruffa Gutierrez breezed back into town after being away for barely two months, purposely to have a twin-purpose dinner and to offer a thanksgiving Mass, but the rains just kept on puring, pouring and pouring, prompting Ruffa and her parents, Annabelle Rama and Eddie Gutierrez, to put everything on hold.
But on Saturday, July 13, come rain or high water, Ricky Reyes will host an exclusive dinner for Ruffa at his Valle Verde mansion, with an elite guest list that includes only those really close to him and to the Gutierrezes. By then, the Gutierrezes shall have offered the Mass, maybe at the Christ The King Church near their White Plains (Quezon City) home.
Oh, yes, Ruffa and her family have two good reasons to celebrate – her birthday last June 24 ("Please don’t remind me about my age!" Ruffa screamed when asked how young she was), which she already did with her boyfriend, Yilmaz Bektas, in his native Istanbul, and Ruffa and company’s recent legal victory when the estafa case filed against them in connection with the 1994 Manila Filmfest Scam was dismissed last week by the Manila Regional Trial Court.
"I was in Istanbul when I learned about the good news," said Ruffa. "It was Shirley (Kuan) who texted to me the news."
Ironically, two days after the bungled-up Gabi ng Parangal of the newly-revived Manila Filmfest on July 22 at the Ninoy Aquino Memorial Stadium, Ruffa was in Istanbul celebrating her birthday with fireworks along with Yilmaz and 25 selected guests at the outdoor restaurant Reina. In fact, all of Turkey was celebrating, not so much Ruffa’s birthday (but what a coincidence it was!) as the country’s No. 3 finish (after Brazil, No. 1, and Germany, No. 2) at the World Cup. "Everybody was in a celebratory mood," said Ruffa, "because the last time Turkey made it to the finals was in 1956."
During the Reina affair, Yilmaz unreeled a video he did on Ruffa, marking the highlights of their more than two years of romance punctuated with lovers’ quarrels and rendezvous in various points around the world. Then, Yilmaz played a recording he did of a romantic phone conversation between him and Ruffa, in which Ruffa professed her undying love for him – and vice-versa – much to the amusement of the well-wishers.
But Yilmaz sprang the biggest surprise on Ruffa on June 22, two days before her birthday, when he gifted her with the latest model of SUV Cadillac Escalade in L.A. The brand-new car, top of the line, was delivered to the Gutierrezes’ home early morning and Ruffa’s sleepiness evaporated pronto.
It turned out that Yilmaz asked his men in L.A. to buy the car (in cold cash, I presume) and wanted it delivered filled with roses, tied with a ribbon, but he was disappointed when that wasn’t possible due to company regulations. Oh, well, a Cadillac is a Cadillac is a Cadillac with flowers or without, with ribbon or without, isn’t it?
That same evening, Ruffa flew to Istanbul using the round-trip ticket Yilmaz sent her. No, Ruffa didn’t stay with Yilmaz but in a condo complete with a maid, contrary to the wild guess that they’re living-in in Istanbul. Ruffa stayed there until first week of this month when she flew back home. It’s her second homecoming this year. Last May, after she was introduced as Ricky Reyes’ newest image model, Ruffa and Yilmaz flew to Bali for a three-day holiday, stopping over one day in Singapore where Ruffa met up with good friend Donita Rose. They then proceeded to Cannes for the filmfest there, on to Monaco for the Formula One Grand Prix, then to Istanbul from where Ruffa flew to L.A. alone.
On Sunday, after co-hosting A.S.A.P., Ruffa will fly back to Istanbul in time to celebrate with Yilmaz on his birthday on July 19.
At her Istanbul condo, Ruffa won’t be lonely, that’s for sure. Keeping her company, together with uniformed maids, are the two cute puppies given to her by Yilmaz who saw the Gutierrezes’ pet dog treated as a family member at their L.A. home.
"He gave me the puppies para daw hindi ako malungkot," laughed Ruffa who can now leave the country anytime she wants to without asking court permission. "The dismissal of the case was a heavy load off my shoulder," she added, at the same time thanking her lawyers Rene Saguisag, Felipe Remullo and Bonifacio Alentajan (first batch), and Rico Domingo and Jose Armand Arevalo (second batch) and all her fans and friends who stood by and with her during "those dark hours."
But Ruffa won’t be away for long.
Not having renewed her contract (as TV host) with Century Productions, Ruffa has decided to concentrate on the businesses (jewelry, import-export, etc.) she and Yilmaz are putting up both here (before the year is over) and in Europe.
What about the wedding?
"Not now," smiled Ruffa, "not yet. It will come in due time."
Maybe next year?