Prologue
2098 Words
I walked around in front of the body mirror, admiring the dress Mommy bought for me. I wore white flat sandals to match it and did my own makeup for the first time with the help of some online video tutorials.
I was temporarily staying in one of the rooms at the hotel in our family’s resort in Pangasinan. Even from inside the room, I could still hear the waves hitting the shore. The ocean was right behind the hotel, and you could clearly see it if you stepped out onto the balcony.
We rarely visited this place. Most of the time, it was Daddy who came here to manage the resort. In fact, the idea of building a resort in Pangasinan was his.
They must have forgotten that today was my eighteenth birthday.
We only came here because an important guest booked our resort for a wedding reception. I heard the couple were celebrities. That was probably the reason why Mommy bought me a new dress.
Someone knocked on my door.
I quickly fixed my thin, long, wavy hair. The front was cut in a wolf cut, which was trendy these days. Smiling, I opened the door—but my smile quickly disappeared when I saw that it was only a bellboy.
I sighed, raised an eyebrow, and crossed my arms. “Yes, what do you need?”
“Sir Lopez is asking for you, Ma’am Cassandra,” he said.
His expression remained serious. He didn’t look like the usual friendly bellboy. He looked more like a bodyguard.
Hmm. He was actually handsome for a bellboy. His face looked clean and pleasant. He just had a stiff expression.
“Well, I’m not going down there,” I replied casually.
So they forgot again. I didn’t really mind when they forgot my birthday, but this was my eighteenth birthday—my debut. Shouldn’t it be celebrated?
“Can you get me a drink instead?” I asked, leaning against the doorway.
He nodded stiffly, as if he was nervous.
“Your usual drink, Ma’am?” he asked.
My brows furrowed in confusion. I didn’t remember talking to him earlier today. I hadn’t even called for a bellboy. Yesterday, several of them helped me and my older sister, but I was sure I never asked for a specific drink.
I decided not to question it anymore.
“No. I want… uh… what’s that strong alcohol again? Tequila?”
His brows furrowed, and he tilted his head slightly in confusion.
The longer I looked at him, the more I noticed how handsome he was. His features didn’t look very Filipino. His nose was high and sharp, and his skin tone was lighter. Even his chocolate-colored eyes stood out.
“I don’t think you’re allowed to drink alcohol, Ma’am Cassandra,” he said.
“Nah, it’s my eighteenth birthday, so I’m allowed now because I’m an adult. I just want to try it. Just one bottle of tequila.” I smiled at him hopefully and clasped my hands together.
He stared at me for a moment before replying. “One shot might already knock you out.”
I placed my hands on my hips and glared at him. “Why am I even asking for your permission? Just do what I say, or I’ll complain to my dad and you’ll lose your job.”
He didn’t look scared at all. He stood there calmly, looking straight into my eyes as if he had no intention of following my order.
Then I heard footsteps from the corridor to the right.
I stepped outside, stopping just a foot away from him. He looked startled and quickly stepped back as if I had some contagious disease. I glared at him before turning toward the hallway.
Another bellboy was walking toward us, an older one. I smirked and raised an eyebrow at the useless bellboy in front of me.
“Excuse me, can you please get me a bottle of tequila? I’m celebrating my birthday with my friends today. They’ll arrive any minute now, so please assist them too. I already have my father’s permission, so don’t worry,” I lied smoothly.
The older bellboy smiled.
“Happy birthday, Ma’am Cassandra. Do you need anything else?”
I shook my head. “That’s all.”
“Please wait for a moment.” He bowed slightly before walking away.
Before he could leave completely, I grabbed the shoulder of the bellboy beside me and glanced at the name tag on his chest.
“Adrien will help me with something in my room.”
The older bellboy nodded and left.
I pulled Adrien inside my room and quickly shut the door. Letting go of him, I sat down on the bed.
“Well, since I have no one to celebrate my birthday with—because my parents and sister seem to have forgotten…” I sighed and looked at him. “You’ll have to do. Stay with me and drink.”
He looked at me like he didn’t want to, but he didn’t move.
“Why don’t you go down to the wedding reception and celebrate there instead?” he suggested irritably. “There’s food.”
I shook my head. “No. No one would even notice me there.”
He sighed. “Then your dress is just going to waste.”
“I’d rather think of it as my birthday dress,” I said. “Don’t remind me it’s meant for the event downstairs.”
I looked him up and down. He was tall. Sitting down made me feel even smaller.
“Can you change your clothes? Your uniform is distracting.”
He looked at me blankly. “Where would I get clothes?”
“Well, I brought some oversized shirts because they’re comfortable. They’ll probably fit you.”
I walked to my suitcase beside the couch, opened it, and grabbed a folded T-shirt. I handed it to him.
He stared at me and the shirt before finally taking it.
“Try it on and see if it fits.”
“Now? Here?”
I nodded. “Yes. I need to see if it fits. Stop being shy and take it off.”
His lips tightened, clearly against the idea, but he obeyed.
He removed the top part of his uniform. When his shirt came off completely, his bare upper body was revealed.
I didn’t expect him to have such a nice body. His skin looked smooth, and his abs were clearly defined. I even caught myself counting them. Six.
I felt oddly disappointed when he finally put on the oversized shirt I gave him. Suddenly, all the blood rushed to my face, making it feel hot.
I lowered my head, hiding behind my hair.
What am I doing? Am I blushing?
“Uh… what do you think of my makeup?” I asked, lifting my head and trying to change the subject. “I did it myself for the first time. Does it look okay?”
He dropped his uniform clothes on the bed while staring at my face.
“It looks nice.”
“Really?” I smiled widely. “What about my lips? Does pink lipstick suit me?”
His gaze dropped to my lips. His Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed. He quickly looked away and nodded.
“Do they look nice?” I asked teasingly. “Kissable?”
He glanced at my lips again and cleared his throat, only humming in response.
I bit my lower lip to hide my smile.
Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. Excited, I ran to open it, leaving only a small gap so the other bellboy couldn’t see Adrien.
“Ma’am Cassandra, your friends haven’t arrived yet,” he informed me while handing over a large bottle of tequila.
I quickly took it.
“They told me they couldn’t come anymore. Something came up. You can go back to the reception now. I’ll be fine.”
I waved goodbye and shut the door.
I showed Adrien the bottle. He didn’t look pleased.
“Is it okay if we drink straight from the bottle? We don’t have shot glasses.”
“You won’t like the taste,” he said.
“I’m sure I can handle it.”
I happily sat on the bed and patted the space beside me. He shook his head and moved farther away.
“Sit down. What are you going to do, stand there all night?”
He looked down at the floor and sat there instead.
“Ma’am Cassandra—”
“Call me Cassandra.”
He hesitated before saying my name.
“Cassandra.”
Hearing my name in his deep voice sounded nice.
“Anyway, you don’t mind sharing saliva, right?”
He suddenly choked on his own saliva, covering his mouth with his elbow.
I just shrugged.
“We’ll drink from the bottle.”
I tried opening it but failed. My palm turned red from trying.
Adrien took the bottle from me and opened it easily.
Then he suddenly took a long drink from it.
My eyes widened as he kept drinking like it was water. When he finally lowered the bottle, his face was red.
I blinked at him and looked at the bottle. It was already halfway empty.
“Did you just try to empty the bottle? Because if you did, that was really stupid,” I said, laughing.
“I tried,” he admitted.
“Well, I’m still drinking.” I grabbed the bottle and took a small sip.
The taste was strong and harsh. I hummed and took another sip, feeling the burn in my throat.
“So this is what alcohol tastes like? It’s bad… but kind of interesting.”
I tried to take a bigger drink, but he grabbed the bottle away.
“Hey!”
“Are you planning to get drunk immediately?” he asked.
“I’m just making it fair!”
I fanned myself. “Can we just drink normally? Like actual drinking buddies?”
He stared at me for a long moment.
“Don’t worry,” I added with a smile. “I won’t tell my dad. You’re my friend now.”
Maybe I imagined it, but his expression softened slightly.
“You don’t like that idea? Celebrating my birthday with me?”
He sighed and reluctantly nodded.
We passed the bottle back and forth until it was empty. My body felt warm, and my thoughts were becoming hazy.
Eventually we both fell silent. I leaned against the bed while he remained sitting on the floor, looking tired.
I studied his face again. He was really handsome. It felt strange seeing someone like him working as a bellboy.
Closing my eyes, I reached behind my back and tried to pull down the zipper of my dress.
“I should go back to work,” he suddenly said.
I opened my eyes and saw him already standing.
“What are you doing?” he asked when he noticed me.
I didn’t answer immediately. My gaze lingered on his body.
I slowly pulled down the zipper of my dress.
He immediately looked away and grabbed his uniform from the bed.
I stepped out of the dress and walked toward him, wrapping my arms around his waist from behind.
His body tensed. He quickly grabbed my wrists and pulled my arms away before turning to face me.
“What are you doing?”
I didn’t answer. My body felt warm, and my breathing was uneven.
My gaze drifted to his lips.
Without thinking, I stood on my toes and kissed him.
He inhaled sharply, freezing in place. His lips tasted like tequila, but they were soft.
I liked the feeling.
When his grip on my wrists loosened, I wrapped my arms around his neck to keep him close.
“M-Ma’am Cassandra—”
He tried to pull away, but I pressed closer.
His hands moved to my waist, still trying to push me back. When I bit his lower lip, a soft sound escaped him.
His grip tightened slightly.
When we pulled back, we were both breathing heavily.
He rested his forehead on my shoulder, his hand moving slowly along my back.
“Damn it, Cassandra…” he whispered near my ear. “I’ve been trying to hold myself back.”
Suddenly he unhooked my bra and pushed me onto the bed, leaning over me.
He looked down at me, breathing hard.
Without saying anything, we kissed again—deeper this time.
Our remaining clothes were quickly pulled away as the night continued.
- Writer
