Still Into You

4 - The Unplanned Date

Yunah’s POV

"Hello, Ma? Yes, I’m on my way. I have the papers with me. I just need to sign them there, right? Okay. Bye."

I’m heading to Cavite today to check on our resort. Ej insisted on tagging along, and I let him.

"Shall we?" he asked, already heading toward the driver’s seat. I nodded. Apparently, he’s driving. "Where should we have breakfast?"

We ended up at a Pancake House we passed along the way. He ordered Caramel Banana Walnut Pancakes with a Green Mango Shake; I went for Chocolate Marble Waffles with a Grape Shake.

"Hey, so… you’re famous now, huh?" he said out of nowhere.

I frowned at him. "What?"

He shoved his phone in my face—my i********: profile filling the screen.

"Are you stalking me?"

"i***t. You still haven’t followed me back! I followed you last year, bestie! What kind of friend are you?"

Why did it sound like I was the one at fault here?

"I didn’t see it—my notifications are a mess. Sorry." I pulled out my phone. "What’s your username?"

He grinned like he’d just won a prize. "Ee—@eeejay."

I followed him back instantly. The guy had 75.8k followers, yet only 187 posts. I got curious and checked his stories.

First was a video of him driving, camera panning to me with some grainy filter—classic Ej. The next was a boomerang of me mid-bite into my waffle. Oh, for the love of—

"Edgardo! You—look at the size of my mouth!"

I tossed a tissue at him. He just laughed, the shameless man.

After breakfast, we headed straight to the resort. My mom’s assistant said there was a meeting I had to attend in her place. Again.

"Jay, just wait here in the lobby, okay? Won’t take long."

I slipped into the boardroom. I wasn’t even supposed to be here, but I’ve gotten used to playing proxy for my parents when they’re away. Meetings like these were dull—mostly retirement-age proposals and half-baked pitches.

Some of the older members whispered that I was the "Harrington with an attitude" because I rarely approved projects. Well, sorry, but I wasn’t going to nod along to bad ideas just to be liked.

When it was over, I took a walk around the property, greeting guests and checking facilities—my usual routine here. Some staff even mistook me for a guest. Ej, meanwhile, trailed after me like a shadow.

"Still alive, Jay?" I teased.

He just smiled and nodded.

By 2:30, we were done. I suggested Burger King for lunch. Afterward, he said he wanted to go somewhere but refused to tell me where.

"Where are we going after this?"

"Just eat," he said flatly.

This boy.

We drove back to Manila for his so-called “surprise gala.” I took the wheel, he paid the toll. We passed the time with music and random chatter.

"So why were you unreachable all this time?" he asked through a mouthful of Cheetos—spraying me with crumbs.

"Lost my phone. Didn’t memorize your numbers."

He rolled his eyes. "You could’ve messaged us on f*******: or Twitter."

"Didn’t have f*******: anymore. Got hacked. And I only made a Twitter account two years ago."

Half-truth. I really had lost my phone, but the truth was… I wanted distance back then. Avoiding them felt easier.

"Yeah, right. Excuses," he muttered.

"Come on, don’t sulk. You just want me to follow you on Twitter, huh?"

I tossed my phone at him. "Here. Follow yourself from all my accounts."

He laughed. "YES! But I’m not following you back."

Unbelievable.

Our next stop was SM North, then UP Town. Still no clue where he was taking me until he dragged me into a café.

"Someone’s meeting us," he said.

I was about to tell him I’d wait in the car, but he bribed me with, "The shakes here are amazing. My treat."

Okay, fine.

Inside, a girl waved from the far end.

"Hi, Iza! Sorry, did you wait long?"

"Not really. Just got here early." She glanced at me and smiled. "You must be Yunah. Please, sit."

Ej pulled out a chair for me.

"You ordered yet?" he asked her.

"Nope. And I won’t stay long—want you two to get on with your date."

If I’d been drinking something, I would have choked.

"Something funny?" Iza asked, clearly curious.

I shook my head. "Nice to meet you, Iza."

"Have we met before? I think I saw you at fashion week."

"I was just filling in for a friend. Not really my thing."

Ej’s head snapped toward me. "You did fashion week?"

"Yeah. Last month."

While they discussed whatever architectural project they were working on, I scrolled through my phone. When they were done, Ej insisted on getting me a fruit shake—large size—and even threw in a massive glazed donut.

From there, he drove us to UP Town. We hit the arcade, loaded ₱200 onto the card, and I played like my life depended on it. Dinner followed at a Japanese restaurant. I argued for samgyup, but he insisted.

"You’re really milking my treat today," he teased.

"Hey, this is rare!"

"Yeah—and never happening again."

We were still laughing when—

"Hey, Edgardo!"

Kit walked over… with Rai beside him.

Great. Just great.

Kit slid into the seat across from me, leaning toward Ej. "So, what were you whispering to Yunah, huh?"

"Just told her not to mention I was paying."

Ej nearly choked when I spilled. Rai silently passed him water.

"Grabe ka, Yunah! You’re supposed to have my back!" Ej groaned, making Kit laugh even harder.

"Out and about, I see. Saw your stories, man," Kit teased.

Ej rolled his eyes. "Mind your business."

"Edgardo’s making the most of it, huh? Friendship over, Rai?"

At that, I glanced at Rai. He’d been so quiet—but for a fleeting second, his gaze met mine. Then, just as quickly, he looked away.

And for reasons I couldn’t explain… my chest felt a little too tight.