My Firsts With You

Chapter 10

RACHEL'S POV

Today is the weekend again and yesterday was our musical play. It was supposed to be last Monday, but Mr. Davis was so considerate that he extended the date of the musical play 'til yesterday. So yeah, today's Saturday. If I remember it rightly, I'm supposed to be assisting Martin today with choosing a gift for his older sister. I guess I will rest tomorrow, hopefully.

"Let's go with black," I told myself as I grabbed black clothes. I went for a simple black crop top, black flare pants, and white rubber shoes. I decided to wear earrings only and secured my hair into a high ponytail. It was 9:50 in the morning, and Martin said he would pick me up at 10, so I hurried downstairs to eat a piece of toast. "When is Martin's sister going home?" mom asked while reading one of her best-selling books. "He didn't tell me yet, but I'll make sure to ask him later," I answered and took a bite of the toast I made. My mom nodded, then I heard honking outside, which meant that Martin was already there.

"He's here, mom. Gotta go, bye!" I said and kissed her cheek. She said goodbye, and I made my way out of the house where I saw Martin's car. I saw that he was standing outside his car, near the passenger's side. "Hey, bro!" I exclaimed and put my fist up for him, and he bumped it with his fist while chuckling. "Let me open the door for you," he said and opened the car door for me. After giving him an 'aww' reaction, I entered his car, fastened my seatbelt, and waited for him to enter.

"I hope you ate breakfast," he said once he entered. He started the car and drove off our residence. "Don't worry, I ate breakfast," I replied, and he nodded in understanding. He was steering for a few minutes until we arrived at the mall that my father owns. Yeah, this mall wouldn't exist if it wasn't for my father. Martin parked the car, we both left, and finally entered the mall. Thankfully, there weren't too many people. Not that I'm showing off or anything, but people who know my father know me too, so I'm not really in the mood to be watched or anything.

"What will you give your sister?" I asked as we walked around going somewhere. "I think I'll buy her a dress. You know she loves dresses," Martin replied, and I nodded in agreement. I've seen that most of Aurora's (Martin's sister) clothes were dresses of various types of material, color, patterns, and necklines. I'm glad that she wears something else in college. After hearing Martin's statement, I guided him to a*****e where they sell the best-looking dresses I'd ever seen. Sometimes, I buy a dress or two in that store.

"It looks incredible," Martin commended the store as he looked around. It has the usual vibe that every store has, but what makes it incredible are the organized racks of clothes and the welcoming smiles on the salesladies' faces. "Welcome!" one of the salesladies welcomed us, and we reciprocated the greeting with a smile. "Shall we look through the racks of dresses over there?" I asked like an explorer and pointed at the dresses waiting for us to choose among them.

We started looking for pretty dresses, and I kept in mind the dresses that would flawlessly suit Aurora. "She should wear the dress you'll buy at her welcome back party," I suggested and continued looking through the rack. "Yeah, sure. Of course, she's going to wear it since I bought it," he proudly said, and I playfully hit his arm while chuckling. Martin and his older sister are close, and they have the best bond as siblings. I remember that day when they both cried at the airport before Aurora boarded her plane. We were watching them warmly because of how genuine their brother-and-sister relationship was.

"How about this?" I asked Martin as I showed him one of the dresses that caught my attention. It was a blue mini dress with puffed sleeves and a tie ribbon on the front. The dress is so cute, and I bet Aurora will look very lovely in it. "That's cute," Martin commented as he examined the dress. "I know, right? Just imagine how pretty Aurora will be when she wears this!" I exclaimed excitedly. It's not that I'm very close with Aurora, but I admire her beauty so much, and the fact that she's also very kind makes her perfect!

"I'll take that," Martin said, and my eyes widened a bit. That was fast. I have a lot to show him, but I guess he likes this dress too. "Okay," I replied and gave him the dress. "You can still look around while I pay for this," Martin said, and I nodded. I looked for more dresses since I realized that I don't have a new dress yet for this month. Also, my birthday is just around the corner, so I have to buy a new dress.

As I scanned through the dresses, one particular dress caught my eye. It's a red dress, my favorite color, and it's just the style that I want. It's a long red dress that stops below the knee with short sleeves and a vintage style, exactly what I want. I can wear this for dinner or formal parties. "Rachel?" Martin called, and I turned to him. After a final look at the dress, I followed Martin outside the store. "You wanted to buy that dress?" Martin asked while we were walking. "Oh, no. I just... I was only looking at it," I immediately answered. Although deep inside, I wanted to buy that dress badly. I will come back for you, my dress.

Martin nodded in understanding, and we continued to walk. "Are you in the mood for steak?" Martin asked after a few minutes of silence. Look, we're not awkward, it's just that Martin is a quiet guy, okay? It was a comfortable silence anyway. "Of course! When did I say no to steak? I'm always in the mood for one as long as you pay," I replied, and Martin chuckled. "Okay, okay. Our lunch is steak, then," he said, and we started walking in the direction of the restaurant that sells the great steak.

We were almost at the restaurant when, suddenly, we saw Kenneth and Sabrina going to the same restaurant. "Hey, Kenneth!" Martin called, and they fist-bumped. I smiled at him, and he raised his eyebrows at me. Dude, I was smiling because you don't look ridiculous on your date with Sabrina now. "So, you guys bought a gift?" Kenneth asked, and Martin nodded. I looked at Sabrina and gave her a little wave. "Hey, Sabrina. It's nice seeing the two of you," I told her with a smile. "Yeah, thanks," she replied with a smile, but it looked fake. What did I do? Does this girl hate me or something?

"Uh, Kenneth. Shall we go inside now? I'm starving," Sabrina told Kenneth and clung to his arm. No one's going to steal him from you, girl. Okay, she seems a bit clingy now. "Really?" Kenneth asked and turned to us. "Do you guys want to join us? It will be like a double date, although you two are not dating because you don't like each other. What do you say?" this guy rambled and Sabrina looked surprised by Kenneth's offer. "Sure. As long as it's good for Sabrina," Martin asked, and we all turned to Sabrina. She looks a bit uncomfortable now. What is wrong with this girl? Does it have something to do with me? "It's fine. The more, the merrier," she replied and chuckled awkwardly.

We all went inside the restaurant and sat at a table with Kenneth and Martin sitting across from each other, and Sabrina and I sitting across from each other. I was trying to get her attention, but she wasn't even looking at me! She was looking everywhere but me. Does she hate me? "How do you want your steak?" Martin asked from beside me, and I turned to him. "Well done. Ooh, can you buy me some strawberry milkshake too? I'm craving that," I said, and he nodded.

We finally ordered and waited 20 minutes for it. When it arrived, I became excited again because of the steak. "Is that your secret for maintaining your figure?" Kenneth teased, and I stuck my tongue out at him. I didn't bother arguing with him and started to take a bite of the steak. "Wow! This is perfect," I exclaimed and acted emotionally at the end to show how much I loved the steak. Martin smiled sweetly at me and took a bite of his. "This is really great. No wonder many people eat here any time," Martin remarked, and Kenneth and I nodded in agreement. When we have time, Kenneth and I eat here even after an hour of having lunch.

"Do you also eat here often, Sabrina?" I asked her and took a sip of my strawberry milkshake. Their milkshakes are delicious too. I order a different milkshake every time we eat here. "Obviously," Sabrina replied with a slight annoyance in her tone. Was that on purpose? She noticed my shocked expression and immediately said, "Oh, I meant yes, I often eat here with my friends". I smiled awkwardly and nodded at her.

"When is Aurora coming back?" Kenneth changed the subject before it could get more awkward. "She didn't say yet. She wants it to be a surprise," Martin answered, and I went near him a bit. "But she told you that she's going home," I mumbled, and Kenneth laughed. Martin chuckled as I went back to sitting correctly. "She did, but we don't know when. We can expect her to come home any day and any time," he explained, and I nodded in understanding.

"Did you buy her a present yet?" Kenneth asked me. "Not yet, but I will, later," I answered, and after that, we continued eating in silence. I don't know about them, but I'm crying in happiness because the steak was so delicious and perfectly cooked and how the strawberry milkshake was the right sweetness for me.

After eating, Kenneth and Martin decided to split the bill since they are gentlemen, as they called themselves, and we said our goodbyes outside the restaurant. "I don't feel good about Sabrina," Martin commented. "You felt that, too? She was acting weird and awkward," I replied. "And the way she answered you earlier, I knew there was something off about her," Martin added as we went to an ice cream kiosk for dessert. "You know what? Let's not think about her. Kenneth likes her, so the least we can do is be happy for him," I said and ordered two chocolate ice creams for Martin and me. "Let's just buy your gift for Aurora," he suggested as he paid for the ice creams. "That's a good idea," I smiled and licked my chocolate ice cream.

For the rest of the afternoon, we went from store to store looking for a good gift that I could give to Aurora. After buying a pretty necklace, we hung out more at the mall and had a lot of fun.

It was genuinely fun hanging out with Martin.

END OF CHAPTER 10