Cheating On You

Vlll

“Who knows, maybe someone just texted him saying they saw you in Baguio, right? Calm down. We’re here to relax, and you’ve been acting paranoid since last night.”

“I don’t know, I just have a weird feeling” I bit my nails while talking to her.

“Oh my God, why don’t you just ask instead of overthinking? He’ll just get annoyed at you for not giving an explanation” I just sighed. She’s really knows what to do.

“You know what? maybe you should be my boss. You have more common sense than I do” I joked and picked up my phone.

[To: Elijah

I'm with my secretary. I'm sorry I just want to unwind. I’ll home this afternoon]

[From: Elijah

ok]

"Wow, he replied so fast? Ooh! Seems like he's really waiting for you" she giggled

"Of course it’s fast, his reply was just 'ok'. Like he’d run out of breath if he sent something longer."

"Hahaha just ask him how he found out. go, go!"

[To: Elijah

How did you know where I am?]

[From: Elijah

Not important]

"What did he say?" She was glancing around while driving.

"‘Not important’"

"Whoa, he’s being so mysterious!", she even tapped the steering wheel repeatedly.

"You're being dramatic"

"Hahaha sorry. But I really think someone who knows him saw you. I don’t think he’d go so far as to put a tracker on you. Besides, do you think he’s the type who’d snoop through your stuff and do that?"

She parked the car and we got out. “I really hope that’s the case. That’d be a huge problem if he actually put a tracker on me. He can’t find out about Kenji.”

“Why not though? Shouldn’t it be fine since you two don’t have feelings for each other anyway?” We walked into Ozark and picked a table.

“He’s possessive. If ony you’d seen his face when he spotted the picture of Kenji and me on my bedside table. He didn’t say a word about it, but from the way he stared, I know he remembers Kenji’s face as clear as day, he could barely take his eyes off him.” I ordered a hot chocolate and a breakfast set. She got the same, and a cup of coffee.

“Sir Elijah seems so different from Kenji, doesn’t he? Kenji’s so sweet, but Elijah’s this intense, almost intimidating guy. Now I’m curious, when do we get to meet him?”

“Oh, you’ll only see him if you ever come to my house. I have no plans to bring him to the flower shop, no way!”

“Why not?”

“The flower shop’s my only safe space away from them. And then he’d invade that too? No way!”

“Hahaha, fair enough, but I’m still really curious about him.”

Our order arrived and we started eating. We dropped the topic to take my mind off things for a bit. After we finished, we headed straight to Mirador. She said it was perfect for unwinding. I’ve been coming to Baguio on and off for ages, but this was my first time in Mirador and she’s the only one who could talk me into going up. Even Kenji couldn’t convince me back then because I’m scared of heights.

“I promise, those wobbling knees will be worth it when you see what’s inside this mountain. It’s like seeing different little paradises all in one place.”

“You better be right, Claire or I’m not giving you your 13th month pay!” I threatened her.

“Okay, okay! Hahaha” We started climbing. I was so nervous, there were stairs, but they weren’t stable. They were made of rocks and some were even loose. One wrong step and you’d fall and if you did, you’d roll down so far.

“Gosh, how did this become a tourist spot? It’s so dangerous, and they even bring old people here? That’s totally crazy.”

She just laughed and kept climbing straight ahead. We went slow because of me she said I walk like an old person with arthritis. It was so tempting to fire back at her sometimes. We spent two hours exploring Mirador. We passed by shrines, a bamboo grove, and a section full of violet plants that made me feel like I was in another country. But my favorite part was the wishing well it’s exactly the kind of place I daydreamed about as a kid. I never thought I’d actually see one. I’d never even imagined a place like that existed.

We also passed by some rock formations, sections with lots of sunflowers, and so much more. Baguio never fails to impress me, they’re really great at managing the place’s tourism.

“So? You’re enjoying it, right? Look at all the photos we took!” she said, flipping through our pictures on her digicam.

“Yeah, it’s so beautiful today’s a dream come true for me” I still felt like I was on cloud nine from pure joy. “I thought I already loved Baguio’s city lights at night, but I never imagined there was something even more beautiful.”

“Told you, just trust me. I’ve got you covered,” she said proudly. I just laughed.

“I just don’t get why you only invited me here now. We could’ve enjoyed this earlier, you know?” I teased.

“Hey, who’s the one who’s only ever busy with work and her boyfriend? Last time I checked, it’s definitely not me.” I rolled my eyes at her, trying not to laugh.

We headed back down and rested for a bit "My feet hurt so bad.”

“Mine too.”

“But it was worth it.”

After our adventure at Mirador, we decided to head back to the hotel to rest and get ready. We were going home so we wouldn’t be on the road at night, but we decided to eat lunch first to keep the drive going smoothly. Once we were ready, we went straight to Ililikha for lunch. I was so amazed the second we walked in. As a Ghibli fan, this was a total dream come true. It felt like I’d stepped right into the movie Howl’s Moving Castle.

We picked a table, I ordered a mango shake and a rice meal, while she tried their local delicacy, rabbit. That woman really has a strong stomach.

After that, we scurried around inside like little ants. All the paths were only wide enough for one person, narrow and small, so you had to hunch over. But it was packed with incredible designs, and the experience was truly next-level. We passed by some artisans, so we bought souvenirs too. I spotted a bag painted with sunflowers, it was beautifully made, super detailed and vibrant. I bought it right away, and once Claire was done, we headed home.

The drive was quick. I’d fallen asleep in the car when I felt my phone vibrate.

[From: Kenji

Meet me later at home. I'll wait for you, take care my love]