Lost in the Waves

Chapter 8 : The Morning After

“Ugh” Amalia groaned as sunlight leaked through the curtains and woke her up from her slumber, followed by a surge of throbbing in her head. She rolled over to the other side to avoid the light hitting her eyes and found that portion of the bed empty.

“So much for not leaving.” She grumbled in her breath and buried her head in the pillows.

“Good morning to you too.” Amalia quickly whipped her head towards the direction where the voice came from and immediately regretted her rash reaction, for, in a split second, another wave of pounding washed over her head. Another groan left her mouth as she laid back in bed and tried to open her eyes to look at the source of the voice.

“It’s not a good one, believe me. I thought you left.” Amalia replied, still struggling to open her eyes.

“I told you last night, I wouldn’t. Besides, I love being in your company, so I stuck around.” Ezio assured her, joking a little bit in the end in hopes of hiding the truth that he stayed because he wants to spend the aftermath of last night with her- no matter how cheesy it seemed. Somehow, he wanted to do the cheesiest things he could think of with her.

“Hey, I got you breakfast,” Ezio said as he brought a tray full of food and laid it on the bed.

“Thanks, you really didn’t have to,” Amalia replied, still feeling half-asleep. She stared at the food for so long, too long for Ezio’s liking so he took a spoonful of soup and tried to feed her himself.

“The soup helps relieve the hangover, so take a sip. It’s lukewarm, I blew on it.” Ezio stated, his hand hanging in the air, as he waited for Amalia to take the spoonful of soup.

Amalia wordlessly sipped and felt the throbbing lowering down a volume ever so slightly, to which she released with a sigh. She took the glass of water beside the plate of food on the tray and drank it. As she gulped and gulped, Amalia failed to notice the hunk of a man that was volunteering to feed her. She was in such a daze that even his bare chest didn’t even fluster her.

“Slow down on the water a bit.” Ezio reminded, a bit concerned of the prospect of her choking on water. Then, his thoughts took a hundred and eighty-degree turn.

‘Much better if she choked because of me instead.’  With this, Ezio’s ears turned red and the member down below woke up as well to which Amalia was completely oblivious.

After Amalia gulped down the last bit of water, she placed the glass back on the tray and looked at Ezio. What she saw was more blinding than the rays of the sun that had woken her up. As if he became one of those Greek gods she used to draw to perfect her techniques in drawing the human body, the light that was leaking from the curtains emphasized his physique. Then, as she drew her attention towards his lower torso, she noticed the bulge in his pants and gasped.

“Are you done checking me out?” Ezio asked, raising his brows as he smirked.

“Apparently, yes. I just noticed your body would be a good subject to draw.” Amalia replied, masking her embarrassment as she tried to divert her topic towards her sketches.

“You want to draw me?” Ezio asked, shocked by her reply. He never thought she wanted to draw him and that thought alone made him a bit happy.

“Perhaps.” That was all Amalia said with a small smile. She didn’t want to sound so eager to draw him, even though her insides are in a mess with just the thought of her drawing him. All the fantasies she dreamed of in her 14-year-old self are now flashing before her eyes.

‘All in good time, dear self. All in good time.’ She assured herself.

After that, Amalia continued eating her breakfast with a few remarks from Ezio here and there. When she finished, she set the tray aside on the other bedside table and kept a mental note to call the room service later to pick it up. She stretched and headed to the bathroom to freshen up, while Ezio went to her closet.

“Amalia, can I borrow your shirt? If you have something that fits me.” Ezio asked as he skimmed on her clothes.

“What makes you think I have clothes that fit you?” Amalia responded as she wiped her face with a face towel.

“You are wearing one right now. I’m guessing you have a spare?” Ezio retorted, chuckling as he stood by the closet.

“Fair enough.” Amalia then walked towards her closet and looked for another loose shirt.

Ezio keeps checking her out every time she bends as she looks for the shirt. She forgot that she was only wearing her underwear and a loose shirt, so whenever she bends, it really does not cover her bottom. And Ezio, quite loving what was in front of him, never told Amalia of this fact and just enjoyed the whole show.

“Aha! Found it. Make sure you return it, it’s one of my favorite shirts.” Amalia said firmly, now reluctant to lend it to him.

“You do know it's a Calcifer shirt right?” He replied with a tone of disbelief.

“Exactly. It’s a shirt with Calcifer on it. How did you know it was Calcifer in the first place? Are you a fan of Howl’s Moving Castle? I didn’t know you had that kind of side, Ezio.” The Latina teased Ezio as he took the shirt from Amalia’s hands.

“A little bit. I saw it once for a school project.” He admitted, albeit sheepishly while scratching his head.

“Whatever you say.” Amalia agreed as she laughed.

“But seriously, return them. I made this.” She added in a whisper but Ezio heard it somehow.

“You did? I must admit you are freakishly talented.” He praised her work, still quite amazed at how she did it. 

The shirt was white, with a little ball of fire on the upper right side of the shirt that is just below the collarbone. On the back of the shirt, was a ball of fire in the middle, its flames spreading on the side. On top of the fire’s heat was a pan with bacon and eggs cooked. The fire had a face, and it looked like it was munching on eggshells. Amalia drew it as if it was real, yet still does not get out of the borders of animation.

“Now you’re just exaggerating.” Amalia brushed off his compliment, yet her cheeks were that of a tomato.

“I’m not. You were able to mimic Miyazaki’s art style but added another touch to it, making it unique.” The bartender reasoned and admired her artwork on the shirt.

“I’m not that great but thanks for acknowledging my skills. I made it when I was experimenting with my style. I still am now and that’s why I’m here in Barbados, sketching whatever that caught my attention.” Amalia blurted suddenly, not being able to stop herself from mentioning the last sentence.

“I was always wondering why you were here for a long time. I thought you ran away or something.” Ezio joked.

“Ha-ha, no I didn’t.” Amalia denied, anxiety suddenly taking over her. It ended their conversation and Ezio donned the shirt. To no surprise, it suited Ezio and Amalia liked it. Ezio then went to stand in the mirror and checked himself out.

“It actually looks great, Amalia.” Amalia’s response was a blush on the cheeks.

“You can call me Mal. Amalia seems so long.”

“Okay then, Mal. It has a good ring to it.”

They just stared at each other for a minute or two until Amalia broke eye contact. She went over to the bedside table to call the room service, instructing the employee on the other end of the line to get the tray from the breakfast earlier. A few minutes after the phone call, the doorbell rang, signaling that the hotel staff had arrived. Amalia went to open the door for the hotel staff to go inside. The housekeeper then went inside the room as Amalia guided her to where the tray was left. The housekeeper was shocked and stopped in her tracks when she saw Ezio emerging from the bathroom. She was about to greet him when Ezio signaled her to stop what she was about to say. Somehow, she got the message that Ezio did not want Amalia to know. The housekeeper quietly proceeded to get the tray. Ezio released a breath he never knew he was holding when he saw that Amalia was oblivious to the previous interaction.

‘That was close.’ He thought.

“Thank you for coming here.” Said Amalia to the housekeeper, to which she only nodded and hurriedly went out of the room.

“I should also get going, Mal,” Ezio said, picking up his discarded polo.

“Oh yeah, I forgot.”

“I really enjoyed our time together. See you around Mal.” As Ezio said his goodbye, he stole a passionate kiss from Amalia, to which she responded with equal passion. When the kiss ended, she was left standing in her hotel room, stunned by what Ezio did, despite the fact that they already did more than kissing. As the sound of the door closing reached Amalia’s ears, she brought herself back to reality. 

“What have I gotten myself into?”