CHAPTER 5
2212 Words
(Hera's POV)
I can't sleep...
I really can't sleep...
Even if I force to close my eyes..
No matter what positions I do to get a better sleep but...
I still can't.
The kiss.
It's stuck in my mind.
Yeah... I kissed him back, which I made a huge mistake.
After that kissed he walks away without saying any word.
He skip dinner. He's avoiding me. He's angry.
I know... I push it too much to forget that but...
I'm afraid.
I'm afraid that if we continue what we started, then what? What will happen? I'm afraid to the fact that we didn't start of liking each other. We started in one night stand as a stranger... If we continue, I know it won't work out.
***
It's Tita Marina's 47th Birthday.
As they are busy for the celebration.
It's just a simple celebration... No catering... No bunch of guest. Just family, relatives, and friends will be coming.
And here I am... at the kitchen as I am baking a cookies. I actually know how to bake cookies, but not that good. And I am doing this alone here in kitchen. Mom said I should bake cookies for tita and I just obey her. I will make fruit juice too later.
I put the cookies in the oven. Yeah, I'm almost done.
While waiting for my cookies, someone enter in the kitchen and open the fridge. I don't know who that is because I didn't look as I'm wearing earphone and busy scrolling on my phone. That person left the kitchen without bothering me.
But I was startled when someone take off my left earpiece. I'ts Zach.
"I'm sorry but..." He pointed out the oven.
My cookies!
I rush to to the oven take out the cookies.
"Careful." He help me. I glance at him and look away. Why is he nice now?
"So... what's next?" He ask while staring at me.
“Ahmm... Fruit juice.” I pointed at the fruits in the table.
“Okay.” He prepare to the fruits.
Siya yung nag slice ng fruits, while I blend the fruits he sliced.
Tahimik lang kami sa aming ginagawa. Not talking… it does just feel awkward.
Pero masaya ako that he talks to me first.
“Aren’t you busy?” I just ask because I saw his friends arrived earlier.
“Nope.” He said while not looking at me.
“Your friends might be looking for you. I can handle this.” I was about to snatch the fruit he was about to slice.
“Careful!” as he abruptly stops my hand. “You’re not good with knife.” And he continues his job.
I just let him do whatever he wants.
*Silence*
*Silence
*Silence*
Tanging si mareng blender lang ang nag-iingay.
I’m trying to start a conversation earlier but it ended like that.
Should I ask him if we can be friends at least?
Would that be feeling awkward?
What if he doesn’t want to?
I’m embarrassed to talk to him again.
“Can’t we at least be friends?” bigla akong napatingin sa kanya. He’s not looking at me.
Napangiti ako…
Do we have the same thought?
“Of course.” Habang ang tingin ko ay nasa blender…
“So, we’re good now?”
“Yeah… we’re good.” I smiled to the fact that we have the same thought.
Nung tumingin ako sa kanya ay bigla din siyang napatingin sa akin… we just smile at each other.
Being friends is nice too hahaha.
Ni-ready na namin ang juice at cookies sa labas ng mansion, sa beach kung saan may naka prepare nang long table. Nag decide si tita na sa beach nalang ang venue kesa sa loob ng mansion, mas nice kasi ang weather today.
Zach carries the jar of fruit juice and I have the cookies.
“Zach, place the juice at the end of the table, please.” I point which side of the table.
“Yes ma’am.” Napangiti ako sa response niya. I am okay in this set up. At least we are talking to each other now without opening about the past.
.
.
I just enjoy the day…
There’s a lot of food that cooked by my mom and tita. There’s juice for kids while wine or beer for the adult. And I am drinking beer. I just miss the strong scent and taste of this drink.
Napatingin ako sa paligid ko, wala talaga akong kilala ni isa except sa family ni Zach. So I decided to grab my beer and drink it under the coconut tree, wala namang bunga yung coconut tree kaya safe na tumambay sa baba hahaha. The folding bed is empty so doon ako humiga, and open my phone to watch a movie. I need to make myself comfortable since I don’t have friends here to talk to.
I will watch After I Fell. This is a new release romance movie.
As I am so immersed in the movie, didn’t know it’s already a kissing scene.
Tumitig ako sa screen… is that how we kissed yesterday?
I keep replaying the scene in my phone as I keep replaying our kiss in my mind.
Wait…
Why am I thinking about that kiss? Umiling nalang ako.
Why don’t we just continue the movie, Hera?
I continue the movie but the kissing scene is actually a bed scene.
Bed scene…
.
.
.
They’re taking their clothes off…
.
.
Oh God!
Is that how it looks while someone taking off your clothes?
That night…
.
.
.
Zach tooks off my underwear!
O_o
OH MY GOD!!!
My cheeks are burning now.
I drop my phone in my lap as I sit properly and calm myself habang pinapaypayan ko ng kamay ko ang aking mukha.
My god Hera! You force him to forget the past but here you are…
Damn...
Nag-iinit ako...
Dahil ba ito sa beer?
I cover my face through my palm.
My phone vibrate… I look at my phone na nasa lap ko and… they are getting wild.
Grabe namang bed scene ito. Ganun din ba kami ka wild?
OH GOD! I exit the movie and turn off my phone.
Shit!
“You okay?”
“What the…” nagulat ako sa nagtanong… Si Zach! How long he’s been standing there? “Kanina ka pa diyan?”
“No…” he’s hesitant to answer my while looking at me in question. “I just want to introduce you to my friends. Is that okay?” then he look at his friends.
I look at the direction where his friends are. They are waving and smiling at us. I smile too and wave at them.
“Well… yeah, sure.” He extends his hand to help me get up. I reach for his hands too at bumuntonghininga.
“Don’t worry, they’re nice and friendly.” He gives me a smile as assurance. Tapos inakbayan niya ako.
Nang makalapit kami sa friends niya. He give me a seat and he sit beside me.
“Guys… this is Hera Sandoval, she’s my—.”
“Girlfriend?” Someone cut him off. Nagulat naman ako sa sinabi niya. I wave my hand many times to say that I’m not.
“Nope… my ninang Amanda’s daughter… and a friend of mine.” Napalingon naman ako sa kanya. Friend of mine talaga ah hahaha.
“Okay! Okay! They’re friends… gimme.” Then he places his hand in front of him.
Then the others murmuring in dismay parang disappointed sila and handed out a money to the guy who place his hand in front of them.
Did they made a bet? If I’m Zach’s girlfriend or not?
“Guys! What the hell are you doing?”
I look at Zach when he raised his voice.
“We we’re just curious, dude.”
Magsasalita pa sana si Zach but I touch his arm, he look at me and I come closer to him.
“It’s okay.” I whisper at him.
“Ahemm.” Napalingon kami a tumikhim.
They're all looking at us. Umayos ako ng upo.
"Okay... Hera, this is my friends, Lianne, Nicole, Mark, Kristoffer, Shiela, and Ken." He introduced them as he points them one by one.
"Hi." I wave at them... They are saying hi while waving at me. They're typical group of friends, being loud hahaha.
"So, where you from, Hera?" Lianne ask.
I sip the beer first given by Ken beside me. "Germany."
And they interrogate me from afternoon till night >.
(Zachary's POV)
It's already evening... I look at my friends, mukhang mga lasing na.
"Lianne, hey!" I tap Lianne's arm and she's awake. She look at me.
"Get inside... Take Nicole and Shiela."
"Oh... Are they drunk?" She stands up and checks the two drunkard.
"Yeah... alam kong nahimasmasan ka na... You three can sleep in the last room at the end of the hallway in the second floor." Inalalayan niya si Shiela. Pero, dalawa ng lasing kaya medyo nahihirapan siyang hawakan si Nicole.
"I'll take her." Kinarga ko nalang si Nicole para mas mapadali. Lalakad na sana ako ng napadapo ang tingin ko kay Hera. She kinda drunk.
I look at my friends... Mark is drunk and sleeping, Kris is on the phone... Ken is still drinking.
Nah, nothing will happened... I look around, my family is still eating in the table.
She's safe here... Then I take my walk while carrying Nicole in my arms.
After I make sure that the girls are good now. I go back to the beach.
I saw that Ken is still giving Hera a glass of beer. I run towards them, and I take the glass to drink it.
"Ken, that's enough, she's drunk." I put the glass in the table.
"Ok..ay o..ka...y" he said while waving his hand.
Andami kasi nilang ininom. I limit myself today because I have a meeting later through zoom.
I check Hera, "Hey..." Itinaas ko ang mukha niya kasi kanina pa siya nakatungo baka magka stiff neck siya. Hinawi ko yung mga buhok na nasa kanyang mukha.
Her cheeks is red. It's the same look she has before. She open her eyes...
I can't help but stare at her.
"Are you drunk?" I ask her, in case she doesn't know what she is doing.
Umiling siya.
"Who am I?" I tucked her hair in her ear that keeps falling in her face.
She touch my cheeks. "Z-za..cha..ry..." As she hold and moving my face.
"Where are you now?" I whisper at her as our face are close enough.
"Mo..nten.e..grow ha..ws." I laugh at how she talks.
"You need to sleep now, Ms. Drunkard." I touch her nose while smiling.
She's so cute when she's drunk. I can't help it but smile.
"Hey! I..am.. not. Drunk!" She lean closer to me. "Frie..nd of m..in...e"
⊙.☉
She kiss me!
.
.
I hold her arm to stop her as there are people around us. Especially her mom and my family is just near!!
But she move her lips while kissing me, I was taken a back, I can't help it but responds to her.
Her taste, Her scent, She's making me crazy.
I grab her neck to deepen the kiss...
Then I heard a laugh at the distance.
(☉｡☉)!
Shit!
I push her lightly and look around...
They are busy chatting, while my friends are already down on the couch.
Damn... That's so close.
"Is t..ha.t h..ow we ..ki..sse..d ye..s.t..er...da.y?"
I look at Hera. What is she talking about?
"Look... Hera... Let's head upstairs so that you can sleep, Okay?!" She's waving her hand means it's a no. She was about to reach the beer but I hold her hand to stop her.
"No. That's enough. Let's go." I help her get up but...
"1 m.or..e" while she point a 1 on her finger.
"No... Don't be stubborn. That's enough. No more beers... C'mon, get up." I force her to stand and carry her.
"Zach, is she drunk?" I look at the person who called me. It's ninang.
"Ahmm... Yeah, I'll take her to her room ninang." I smile at her.
"Please and thank you, Zach." as she waves her hand... I guess she had beer too.
"No worries, ninang." I give her assurance.
I walk inside while carrying Hera and head upstairs. When I reach Hera's room, I turn the knob but it's lock.
"Manang!" I look downstairs. "Manang!" But no response. Maybe they're already asleep. I don't know where the keys are.
I go back to the beach to ask mom.
"Mom! The keys!!!" But she just wave her hand while laughing with ninang and friends. "MOM!" But no response. Maybe she didn't hear me. Dad is busy with his friends too. I was about to go near at them but Hera move.
She cover her mouth. s**t!
I rush to the comfort room downstairs and she relieve everything. I hold her hair para hindi niya masukahan while other hand is touching her back.
"You good?" I ask her when she's done. Tumango naman siya.
I help her get up and wash her face...
I carry her again.
.
.
.
Then I don't have a choice...
- Writer
