Let's Just Fall In Love Again (ch. 11)

Chapter 11: “Riessa”

Nicole and Matt drank their cups while they chatted happily. These were the moments that Nicole cherished the most. It saddened her that the moment ended when Matt suddenly announced the time.

“It’s almost midnight. I think we should call it a night.”

“That’s probably a good thing.” She said at the same time Matt yawned.

“Yeah.” Matt agreed and they chuckled.

“I guess it worked?”

“Yes it did. You didn’t put a sleeping pill in it, did you?” They were heading upstairs and she laughed.

“You’re lucky you’re behind me and we’re on the stairs or else I would’ve smacked you.” She retaliated.

“I guess that’s a good thing, huh?” He smiled. At last they arrived and he escorted her to her door. He smiled and she smiled. Eyes clashed and when he couldn’t help himself anymore, he bent down and kissed her on the cheek.

“Thank you,” he whispered in her ear and was gone, leaving a dazed Nicole behind. Smiling all the way, he opened his door and shut it quietly behind him. He looked around the dark room and saw Rico sleeping heavily in his bed and saw Daniel’s bed empty and untouched. Not worried, he dumped himself in his own bed and closed his eyes. He hoped that this summer will be the happiest of his life.

Nicole went inside her, Vanessa and Emma’s room still touching the place where Matt kissed and saw that the room was empty. She glanced around and noticed that the curtain covering the sliding glass door, which separated them from the balcony, was billowing softly so she went and started to close the balcony door and that’s when she finally notice the pair sleeping contentedly in each other arms.

She smiled as she saw the way Daniel held Emma as if he would never let her go. She headed to Emma’s bed and picked up Emma’s blanket. She then went back to the pair and laid the blanket softly over them. Emma, as if feeling the warmth, snuggled closer to Daniel which he immediately took as a sign to tighten his arms around her more. She was so absorbed at watching Emma and Daniel that she didn’t hear Vanessa coming inside the room.

“Nicole, why are standing there?” Vanessa asked when Nicole didn’t acknowledge her. She was surprised when Nicole shushed her and telling her to come there. What she saw made her smile. They exchanged glances and decided to leave them alone. Vanessa went back inside to change into pyjamas and started to get into bed when she noticed that Nicole was still standing outside.

“You okay?”

Nicole sent her a reassuring smile over her shoulders. “Yeah, I’m okay. I just wanted a little fresh air.”

Vanessa seemed to accept her excuse and slipped into her blanket after switching off her bedside lamp. Nicole turned back to the sea and sighed. The cool breeze was teasing her hair and she ran her hands on her shoulders to warm it up. She sighed again one last time and turned to go inside. She left the door open so Emma and Daniel can easily get inside. She glance at the couple one last time and felt her heart fill with longing.

Emma loves Daniel and she was sure that Daniel returned her feelings. She wasn’t sure about one thing though. Matt showed to her awhile ago that he liked her. But does he like her as more than a friend?

Around 3 in the morning, Daniel woke up because he couldn’t feel his arm anymore. Blinking his eyes profusely so he could focus, he saw Emma’s head resting on his shoulder. He smirked amused. So that’s why blood isn’t running in my arm. He noticed that there was a blanket draped over them, he guessed either Nicole or Vanessa or both of them saw them in the balcony and took pity on them.

 Imagining Emma’s reaction at their position in the morning, he decided to save her the embarrassment for he was sure that she will be embarrassed tomorrow morning when she sees their position and that will lead to more avoidance from her, so he moved his arm slowly to her back and put his other arm behind her knees. He then lifted her and even if his arm has pins and needles prickling, he managed to carry her and the blanket inside and into her bed. Emma stirred when he finally put her down and clutched the blanket more tightly around her.

Daniel stood beside her bed and watched her sleeping for a moment. Her face was so innocent when sleeping, her dark eyelashes nestled against her cheekbones, her pert nose and those lips… He wondered if those lips were as soft as it looks. He inwardly groaned at the sudden urge to kiss her so he settled for a kiss in her cheeks instead. He quietly slipped out of the room and into his, Rico and Matt’s room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Vanessa woke up early in the morning feeling refreshed to find that Emma and Nicole were still sleeping in their respective beds, she was a little surprised about Emma being in bed but she guessed that Daniel may have carried her to bed in the middle of the night.

She sat up and swung her feet off the bed until they touched the floor. Standing up while yawning; she headed to the balcony and opened the door, allowing a little sea breeze to enter the room. Stretching the kinks away, she smiled and closed her eyes. She opened her eyes again and watched the sea. She wanted to swim but thought against it, knowing how cold it was for it was only – lifting her right wrist to look at the time – six a.m. in the morning.

Putting both her hands on the railing, she looked down to see that Rico was already dressed for the day and was putting on his slippers when she shouted at him.

“Hey!”

Rico lifted his face up to see Vanessa smiling down at him. He couldn’t stop the grin that threatened to fill his face. He knew that he looked like an idiot standing there, looking up and grinning ear to ear. Vanessa thought there wasn’t anyone who could look as cute as Rico look now. 

“Where’re you headed?” Vanessa asked.

“Since the weather’s nice and it’s still early, I was thinking of walking around the beach. Wanna come with me?” He’d long admitted to himself that he fancied Vanessa so why not take the opportunity and spend a little time with her.

“Sure.” Vanessa went out of sight and came back to the balcony again in not less than 5 seconds. “Can you wait? I have to take a shower.”

Before he could answer she quickly added. “I promise that you don’t have to wait for more than 10 minutes.”She bit her bottom lip and smiled crookedly at him.

Unable to resist, he laughed heartily and waved his hand at her, “Go before I get bored.”

She laughed and went out of sight again. Picking out a short, a white tank top and a blue checkered long-sleeved polo in her closet, she hurriedly went inside the bathroom and took a shower. This has got to be her fastest record ever in getting ready, taking only 5 minutes in showering and took only 2 minutes in putting her clothes on. She left her polo unbuttoned, showing her white tank top.

She literally bounced. Unfortunately, her foot caught the rug and tripped on the way out. She could only close her eyes and waited for the impact of the floor when it didn’t happen. A pair of strong arms was around her instantly, catching her.

“Are you okay?” She opened her eyes to see Rico looking at her worriedly, concern flashing in his blue eyes. Speechless she became and can only stare at his wonderful face.

It was silent for a moment, with her just staring at him dazedly when she saw his lips moving and that’s when she realized that he was saying something.

“What?” Disoriented, she asked. His arms were still around her and she was still hugging him tightly.

“I asked you if you were alright.” He smirked. There was another emotion that flashed in his eyes. It was .. amusement?!  Why that ruddy –

She quickly got out from his embrace. “I’m fine. Thank you,” she said stiffly. She has never been more humiliated as she was right now. Changing the subject she started walking asked, “So where shall we start?”

Noticing her change of attitude, the smile faded from his face as he started walking behind her. “You choose. I don’t really have a destination in mind.”

So they set out to the beach with her walking in the front and with him trailing silently from behind.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Rico ran his fingers through his hair for the hundredth times in frustration. Vanessa still hadn’t talked to him, hadn’t uttered a single word to him. And it had been almost an hour. They were still strolling around the beach with her giving him the cold shoulders. Some walk it turned out.

When she smiled at a couple of boys their age, he couldn’t take it anymore. He doubled his stride and stopped beside her, gripping her arm gently and stopping her in the process. She turned to him in annoyance and opened her mouth to say something to him when he beat her to it.

“Look, I don’t know what you’re problem is but I know that it’s me so I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry about – about – hell, I don’t even know what I did that made you upset. I just wanted a nice walk with you in the beach and I don’t want to ruin it just because I said something bad. So I’m sorry.”

During his speech, he watched as Vanessa’s face morphed from annoyance to a softer expression. He didn’t know what it means but he quite liked it. But that quickly turned to confusion when she suddenly smiled at him.

“Did you mean that?” She asked.

“Meant what?” Rico frowned. He really didn’t know what she was asking.

“That you wanted a nice walk with me…?” She prompted.

“Oh that.” Shit, I slipped. Damn. He mentally cursed and called himself names you don’t even want to know. 

“Well, I – uh—I, I meant – uh, I meant that, oh sod it.” He gave up on trying to form a coherent sentence and did what any boy would do when they can never put what they are feeling for a girl to words. He cupped both her cheeks and kissed her.

Imagine his surprise when she actually kissed him back so he took his chance and showed all his feelings to that kiss. Halfway through the kiss, he had settled his hands on her waist while her one hand was on his neck and the other one was weaving through his hair.

He pulled back a couple of minutes after and rested his forehead on hers. Her eyes were still closed but it fluttered open when he called her name softly. They maintained eye contact while he caressed her cheek with his thumb.

“I’ve wanted to do that so badly.”Rico admitted. He had been dreaming of what their kiss could be like or how soft was her lips. It was good in the dreams but now that he finally had a taste of the real thing, nothing could be more amazing.

“And you’ve no idea how badly I wanted to do this in return.” She surprised him again by gripping his hair tightly, bringing his head towards hers and giving him the most mind-blowing kiss he’d ever received in his life.

“Wow.” That was he could say after the heavenly few minutes of his life.

“Yeah wow.” She sighed contentedly. They were still standing there in each others arms, letting what happened sink in.

“So…” She started.

“So..” He mimicked.

“What are we now?”

“Well, from what I understand, when two people kiss each other senseless, it means that they liked each other.” He smirked when she hit him in the arm.

“Be serious, will you?” He noticed the change in her voice and decided to tell her the truth. He pulled her slightly away from him and looked her into the eyes.

“Vanessa, I’ve like you since we were kids. Hell, I’ve loved you since we were 13. You were different from all of the girls that I know but didn’t act on it for fear that you don’t feel the same thing for. But now, I can’t hide it anymore. I love you, Vanessa. I love you. And I would be very happy if you’ll accept to be my girlfriend.”

Vanessa grinned from ear to ear and hugged him tightly. She kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, “Yes.”

He picked her up and twirled her around, not bothering to feel embarrassed by everyone watching them. Not even a typhoon could dampen his mood. He was far too much happy for that to happen. After a moment, with his arm around her, they resumed their walk, sharing a few chaste kisses here and there. While they were heading back to the cabin, he remembered his thoughts earlier. Some walk it really turned out.

Oblivious (A short SamVon FanFiction) - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

“You can do this Devon, kaya mo ‘to!” I keep muttering to myself as I walk down the hallway to the dance studio. When I got to the door, I inhaled deeply and pushed the door open, preparing myself for the worst part.

Fortunately, he wasn’t here yet. I sighed. Thank God for that.

“Hi Devon!”

“Ay butiki!” I jumped and turned at the culprit. It was Enrique, smiling and amused at my reaction. I immediately gave him my famous hand-slap in the shoulder.

“Aray!” He whined.

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Anong aray? Kasalanan mo kay? At tsaka, kalalaki mong tao, ang laki laki ng mga muscles mo, umaaray ka pa jan.”

He chuckled and suddenly he turned serious. “Okay ka lang ba”, he asked, concern etched all over his face.

Of course I knew what he meant but being the girl that I am, I played the oblivious one. “Oo naman. Kahapon pa nga nawala lagnat ko eh. Bakit mo naitanong?” I inwardly flinched at how high-pitched my voice sounded and I cursed at myself in my head for babbling. Yeah, I know. I’ve never been more pathetic.

He scrutinized me for a second and then sighed. Damn, he saw right through me. He saw the hurt lurking in my eyes.  “Alam mong hindi ‘yun ang ibig kong sabihin at alam mo kung bakit pero hindi kita pipilitin. Tandaan mo lang Devs na andito lang ako kapag gusto mo nang kausap.”

I can’t help but smile at what he was doing, and my smile was genuine. But behind my smile, tears were building behind my eyes.

He swore when he saw it. “Devon, may sinabi ba akong mali?” He panicked.

“Wala.” I put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it softly, assuring him. “Salamat ha? Alam ko naman ‘yun. At okay lang ako…” My voice faltered at the end and I laughed faintly.

Looking around, he saw that the studio was slowly filling up with people but still no Sam in sight so he steered me by the elbow to an empty corner of the room. When we stopped, he wasted no time.

“Tell me truth Devs, okay ka lang ba talaga?”

I looked him in the eyes and what I saw in his eyes undid me. I sobbed. He instantly put his arms around me and hugged me. I rested my forehead on his chest, my face hidden with my hair. I cried softly. I cried at my stupidity. I cried at my helplessness.

“Ang tanga ko.” I mumbled into his shirt, “Ang tanga, tanga ko talaga – alam ko namang kaibigan lang ang tingin niya sa akin – pero ang sakit – ang sakit palang marinig sa kanya ang katotohanan – and  dammit, he’s been giving me signs, akala ko --  akala ko…” I couldn’t finish so I cried harder.

Enrique was silent the whole time I was voicing out my feelings. He kept rubbing my back soothingly and whispered words of comfort in my ear. I didn’t bother on being embarrassed by crying because I knew that whatever happens in this studio stays inside the four walls and I knew that everyone was respectful to everyone’s private life that no one will tell the world what happened today.

After my break down and when I was perfectly sure that there were no tears left, I untangled myself from him. I smiled at him even when my lips were still quivering. “Thanks. I really need that. I owe you.”

“No probs.” He smiled back and then grinned. “Ilibre mo na lang ako mamaya.”

It was the icebreaker and then we were laughing like nothing happened. Halfway through it, I hugged him again. “Really, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I would have been quite a mess right now.”

 He made no comment about it; he only pushed me softly away from him but without getting his hands from my shoulders. He looked me intently in the eyes and asked, “So okay ka na?”

I thought hard about my answer. I knew I was really not okay but it was not the way it was before. Knowing that I had a shoulder to cry on helped a lot.

“Hindi. Hindi ako okay ngayon, but I will be.” I wiped the remaining tears from my face. “I’ll try to be for the sake of myself and our friendship.”

He smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll be with you every step.”

I suddenly laughed. He gave me a confused laugh. “What?”

“Eh kasi, kanina pa away-away pa tayo, ngayon, nag-iyakan na.”

“Hoy, ikaw lang kaya yung umiyak.” I laughed harder when he said, “Ano ba ‘yan Devs, sinisira mo yung drama natin.”

“Sira.” I turned and saw myself in the mirror and ta-da! Not only am I a mess on the inside, it showed on the outside as well. I laughed at my reflection. My eyes are red and my lips were puffy. Good thing I wasn’t wearing any mascara or any ghost will run at the sight of me.

I turned to Enrique once again and said, “Punta muna ako sa C.R., ayusin ko muna sarili ko.”

“Samahan na kita, baka Makita mo siya at ano pang magawa mo sa sarili mo.” I laughed. In a situation like this, I can really count on Enrique to make me laugh.

He put his arm around me and together we headed to the girls comfort room. I went in while he waited outside. Once I was inside, I turned the faucet and splashed my face with water. I looked at myself in the mirror and whispered, “I’ll forget about these feelings Sam, I’ll forget it for the sake of our friendship. And I promise, I’ll never shed a tear for you again.” And with that, I walked out of the comfort room.

We were at the door of the dance studio when I hesitated. Enrique noticed it and said, “Huwag kang mag-alala, hindi kita iiwan ngayon, kahit magsawa ka pa sa kakadikit ko sa’yo, hindi kita lulubayan.” Even if it was said in a joking style, I was still comforted.

 When he opened the door, he was all I could see. My breath hitched when he smiled at me.

I can’t do this! I was turning away when I felt my hand being taken by Enrique. He looked me in the eye and squeezed my hand in assurance, reminding me of his promise. When I saw the determination in his eyes, I resolved myself. I nodded at him and smiled. My heart was pounding when he dragged me into the center of the room where everyone was standing, where he was standing.

“Jejevon!” He exclaimed. “Salamat naman at magaling ka na!” And he surprised all of us when he pulled me away from Enrique and hugged me.

Let's Just Fall In Love Again (ch. 10)

Chapter 10: I’m Still Here

His hand gripped her shoulder and tugged hard causing her to fall backwards beside him while he was saying, “She will be right here beside me now with no buts.”

She was nestled in the arms of Daniel. Her heart was beating faster and the romantic night wasn’t really helping her. She didn’t say a single word. She couldn’t say a single word. Everyone could say she was surprised.

Daniel was breathing heavily. The feeling of her in his arms was nothing compared to what he expected. He hoped she couldn’t hear his heart beating. It was making him crazy. She was making him crazy. The way her head was resting in his shoulder, the way her hair tickle the side of his face, the way her body curved to fit his. It was like fitting in missing part of him. He already knew this but it couldn’t stop him for being happy with the realization.

The silence engulfed them. For Emma, it was the kind of silence that she wanted to escape from. For Daniel, it the kind of silence that he found comforting (with the awareness that Emma was in his arms). He couldn’t get over it.

Deciding to break the ice, Daniel asked, “What are you thinking?”

Emma was caught off guard of his voice and stammered, “N-no-nothing. I – wasn’t thinking about anything.”

“You sure?”

“Mhm-hmm.” Emma replied with a small nod of her head. Emma could only hope that Daniel couldn’t hear her heart beating fast. She was aware of how muscular his shoulders beneath her head, of how hard his chest below her left hand. She was very aware of how her body fit his perfectly. She emitted a sigh.

Oh how long she yearned to be in his arms like this. Now that it happened, she couldn’t help herself from hoping it would last. She wished that the time would stop so she could stay like this forever.  All she could think about was how good it felt to in his arms.

It wasn’t long when she felt vibrations from Daniel’s chest that she realized that he was asking her a question.

“Sorry, what was that again?”

“I was asking you about what happened yesterday.

He didn’t need to elaborate so she could understand his meaning. She understood it perfectly. Although she wanted nothing more than to tell him, she didn’t want to ruin their friendship. It’s a secret that he doesn’t need to know.

“It’s a girl thing, you wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me. “ He was being persistent. Emma inwardly groaned. How could she escape this?!

Daniel was now really curious as to what happened to Emma and Sabrina while he was away in America. He already asked his mates about but his friends just shrugged in return. He was frustrated after he asked the girls about it, they didn’t give him the answer. They just gave him the same answer the boys had given him. He then stared pleadingly to Vanessa and Nicole – for besides him, the two were Emma’s best friends – Nicole just smiled apologetically while Vanessa  laid her hand at his shoulders and said, “It’s best to ask her personally.”

Now that she was relaxing with him there, he was determined to know what happened. He’d do anything to find out. Even if the only way to get answers is to strangle her, he would do it. But of course, he wouldn’t do that. He was that desperate that he even couldn’t understand himself.

“It’s really not that important.”

“Quit stalling Emma. Just tell me the truth.” Daniel was starting to get frustrated. He didn’t understand why Emma’s not telling the truth.

“Please…..”  He begged when she didn’t say a thing.  She sat up and hugged her knees. Daniel sighed and decided to drop the subject.

“Okay, I’ll drop it. But I warn you, I will ask that question again. Not now, I’ll wait until you’re ready to share the secret.” Daniel sat up too. “You know, we used to share secrets about everything.” He added as an afterthought. She didn’t say a thing as guilt racked her body.

“Hey,” She felt a finger under her chin, urging her to look at him and she did. “Even if we won’t secrets anymore, please know that you can still talk to me. I’m still your bestfriend. I’m still here.” She didn’t know how but the words comforted her. She sighed and laid her head on his shoulders.

“I know.” That was all she could say to him.

That was the last thing she said that night as the rush of waves reminded her of how tired she was and lulled her sleep.

The evenness of her breathing told Daniel that she was sleeping and took that chance to study her. She changed quite a lot, he realized, with curves on the right places. He always thought she was beautiful and now she was even more beautiful. There was hint of maturity in her, the way she walks around with an aura of confidence but he knew that there is still that bit of shyness in her and she still lights the room whenever she walks in it. She is still the same girl he knew and loved.

While he was in his own thoughts, he absent-mindedly stroked her hair. Emma, even in her sleep, felt the soft caress and snuggled more in his arms and produced a soft ‘mmm’ in appreciation. Harry smiled and tightened his hold on her and when he couldn’t help, kissed the top of her head softly.

I love you… That was the last thought as he soon too fell asleep.

******

After the dinner, Nicole stayed behind to help clean the dishes. She watched Matt walk out with Rico and sighed. Vanessa noticed and patted her shoulders affectionately and whispered with a smile, “Don’t worry, you’re not the only one feeling that way.”

Nicole laughed and playfully shoved Vanessa out of the kitchen saying that she’d catch up with them later. After putting the clean dishes to the proper places, she walked to the nearest window and watched how the moon shined brightly above the calm sea water. She was walking away when she notice a small figure walk into sight.

The wind was whipping his light brown hair and she realized it was Matt. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest as she debated with herself if she should join him or not. She wanted badly to be with him so she took her jacket and went out of the house and headed directly to where Matt was. When she finally reached him, he was already sitting in the sand and watched the moonlight while playing with the sand.

He didn’t notice her yet so she decided to scare him, bending down to his level, she put her mouth beside his ear and whispered, “Boo!”

Matt, who expected nothing of the sort, jumped up and whirled to face Nicole with a terrified expression on his face. Nicole, unable to control the laughter bubbling inside her, burst into giggles at seeing his expression.

“BLOODY HELL NICOLE! That was uncalled for!” Clutching her stomach, she raised her face to Matt’s face and laughed even more when she saw the angry expression at his face. She continued to laugh not noticing the change of his expression from angry to smiling.

Her laughter was like a music in his ears and he couldn’t help but smile. Soon, he was laughing at the hilarity of the situation and started laughing with her. After their laughter died, they stood there standing in front of each other with a smile on their faces. Neither on said a thing, afraid to break the silence and kill the moment.

A few seconds later, Nicole broke the moment by breaking their eye contact by sitting in the sand beside him.

“So, how did you end up here?” she asked. He scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment and sat down beside her, putting a distance so as to not embarrass himself further more by touching her or kissing her.

I wonder how her lips feel. Would she taste as sweet as her personality? Suddenly feeling a little warm, he shook the thought a way and focused on the scenery in front of him.

“Rico went to sleep. I can’t sleep so instead of bothering him by tossing and turning and a lot of groaning from me, I decided to go out here.”

There was a silence again but it was not uncomfortable. Suddenly Nicole perked up with a thought and turned to him, smiling.

“Do you want a hot chocolate?”

Seeing her smile froze him, until he realized that she asked him a question. “What was that?”

Her smile was still there when she asked patiently again if he wanted a hot chocolate.

“Why?”

“When I was still little, my mum would make me cup of hot chocolate when I wake up from a nightmare and couldn’t sleep back again. It always makes me calm and I’d fall asleep again.” Seeing hesitance on his Matt’s face, she smile and added, “Trust me, It helps.” With that, she stood up and held out a hand to help.

Not wanting to waste a time with Nicole, he put his hand on her hand and stood up, aware of the feel of her hand on his, they made their way back to the house. Matt, in his happy state from holding her hand, didn’t realize that he didn’t let go of her hand but she sure did notice. She watched where their hands connected and a blush crept up her face. She finally smiled and decided to make the best the best of it.

Nicole quickly started making two cups of hot chocolate, telling Matt to sit down when he offered to help.

“We wouldn’t want your hot chocolate taste like crap, would we?” She smiled at him teasingly.

Matt put his hand to his chest and gasped, pretending to be hurt, “You wound me lady, I’ll let you know that I’m perfectly capable of making my own hot chocolate.” But the twitch at the corners of his mouth betrayed him. “But if you insist, I’ll try not to disturb you while you do your thing.” He arrogantly waved his hand at her dismissively and sat down on a chair, putting his hands behind his head and perched both of his feet on top of the table, crossing it at the ankles, completing his act.

 Nicole just laughed and shook her head at him as she continued her task in making them both hot chocolates. Matt snatched a glance at her at the corners of his eyes. He loved teasing her. Always making sure to take it easy because she was more sensitive that the other girls when it comes to teasing. But he always wondered about her reactions to his teasing. She doesn’t react violently like punching him in the arm or smacking him in the head like she always did with Rico, she only laughed or sometimes, to his delight, blushed.

Does she like me? Matt wondered and smiled at the thought. Oh the joy that will be there when that was indeed true. He’d long admitted it to himself that he liked Nicole more than a friend and long wished that she liked him too. As she smiled at him and sat down across him while handing him his cup, he decided.

Let's Just Fall In Love Again (ch. 9)

Chapter 9: I Miss My Bestfriend

It’s the day after the incident with Daniel. Emma avoided him as hard as she can and she was thankful for Daniel for making it easier for her. Daniel was avoiding her too. She couldn’t blame him. He was her best friend and he only wanted to be her best friend again for asking her to open up to him. But she never gave him the chance. Instead, she made a bitch of herself and told him to mind his own business.

There was only one person who was happy about her problem. Sabrina was always cheerful and there was only one reason why. It’s because Daniel was always free for her to cling to. She was walking down the shore when she saw Daniel, Rico and Matt sitting around a table drinking sodas. They decided to join only to stop in their tracks. They watched Sabrina leave her cousins and took a seat beside Daniel. Sabrina maybe spotted her watching them because she gave a mischievous smile to her and then slips her arm to his and leaned on his shoulder.

Daniel seemed to stiffen from the way he held himself and for a moment she thought either Daniel would stand up and leave or pull back. Well, she hoped rather than thought but she failed in hoping. Her heart suddenly stopped beating for she saw that Daniel had done neither. Instead, he seemed to accept her clinging to him. What actually stopped her was when Daniel saw her. His facial expression was worse than seeing Sabrina clinging to him. She didn’t want to remember that face.

“I’m really sorry Emma. I didn’t know this would happen.” Nicole was apologizing to her when they were sitting on each of their beds, remembering what they saw.

“What are you apologizing for?” Both Vanessa and Nicole knew what happened and they both felt sorry for her.

“I shouldn’t have invited her over to stay for the summer but my mum will drive me crazy if I didn’t. You know that she is a family friend – even though she’s not really my friend –“

“Look, it’s not your fault.” She smiled at her but it only made Nicole feel bad. “You really shouldn’t think that. It’s my fault.”

“But –“ Nicole started but Emma cut her off, “Please….” Emma pleaded.

“I don’t know about you two but I really would want to murder her.” Both head turned to Vanessa. Vanessa only grinned like a devil. Seeing the look on their faces, Vanessa laughed. “What? I decided to give you my opinion.” Always count on Vanessa to lighten up the serious talks.

“Believe me, you’re not the only one.” Emma agreed. They all laughed.

“Oh, is that the time? How come time’s fast?” Nicole grumbled. “It’s dinner time.”

“I don’t want to face them yet…” Emma hesitated, covering her face with both her hands.

Nicole sighed and stood up from her bed. She then went to stand in front of Emma and offered her two hands. “Come on.”

Emma looked up to Nicole and smiled. She finally accepted the offered hands and stood up. Vanessa then stood up and went to stand at the other side of her where Nicole wasn’t standing so she was the center. The three of them went out of their room. They were halfway to the stairs when Vanessa said, “When Sabrina is stressing you out, remember to give me a sign and I’ll have Rico knock her out of her chair”, leaving the hallway with joyous laughter for Daniel to hear.

When Daniel heard them talking, he hid behind his door so they will not see him. He heard what Vanessa said and he started to wonder again. What’s up with them and Sabrina? He thought grimly. Because of what he didn’t know, Sabrina was starting to get in his nerves. He didn’t want her with him all the time but he was too nice to send her away.

Making sure that the girls were out of sight, he went out of his hiding and went down the stairs to the dining room. Everyone was there waiting for him. He let his gaze wander around the table and met a pair of brown eyes he knew so better. They locked gazes for a while and then finally realizing what he was doing, he sat on the empty chair which unfortunately was beside Sabrina. The good thing was Rico was there beside him and across from him was Vanessa.

“Hi Daniel”, Sabrina smiled sweetly at him and he flinched, winced and groaned inwardly as he heard her shriek of a voice. He looked at Rico with plead in his eyes. Rico just snorted and shrugged. Vanessa on the other hand took notice of his discomfort.

“We can change seats if you like. Besides, I have something to tell Rico.” Vanessa offered and then stood up. All the time they were rounding the table to change seats, Emma gazed at them with plead in her eyes while Sabrina’s eyes glazed with hatred. As he sat beside Emma, he didn’t know what to do. That was the first time he never spoke to Emma during dinner.

Emma was very much aware of Daniel. Her senses were very much alive just to be near him. Just once, their elbows touch and she nearly jumped from the contact. After that, Daniel slightly bumped his knee to her and since then it never moved away. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she pushed her half eaten food away from her and stood up.

“I think I’m going to bed now.” Pushing back the chair by the back of her knees, she started to walk upstairs but halted when Mrs. Jacobe spoke.

“I see you’re food is still half-eaten. Is something wrong dear?” Mrs. Jacobe asked, concern written all over her lovely features.

Emma shook her head and said, “I’m not feeling quite well, Mrs. Jacobe but I think a good rest will do me good.”

“Okay Emma. You do that but don’t hesitate to call me if you need something.”

“I’ll ask Nicole to ring if I need you Mrs. Jacobe.” She was getting very desperate to get out of the room that her sentence fell out from her mouth a little bit quickly. Tossing a thankful smile to her shoulder, she bounded the stairs hurriedly.

Daniel on the other hand stood up suddenly and pushed his own chair back. “I think I’m going upstairs now.” He quickly rounded the table and when he was half-way to the stairs, Mrs. Jacobe spoke again, emitting a grimace from him.

“You’re not feeling well too?”

“Uh…yes. No. I mean, I have to call my mum. Sh-she asked me to call a while ago.” He stuttered and mentally slapped himself for stuttering.

“You can do that later Daniel. You still didn’t finish your food.” Mrs. Jacobe insisted. Everyone stared at him now. All his friends’ faces showed understanding. Only Sabrina showed hatred.

“No. I mean, I really have to go. She insisted I call on this hour. She’s an early sleeper so I have to go call her now.” He said quickly, pointing toward the stairs.

“Okay. But I’ll have snacks prepared for both of you if you decided to have a midnight snack. Tell that to Emma in case you see her.” Smiling at her, he bounded the stairs two at a time and swiftly reached Emma’s bedroom door. He turned the doorknob open and peered inside. The lights are off and moonlight poured through the curtains that slightly covered the glass doors that separated the bedroom and the terrace. He looked over to Emma’s bed, he saw that she wasn’t there. In fact the whole room was empty.

He went inside and glance around the room. He went to the bathroom to check if she was there and to his surprise, still wasn’t there. He walked over to the closet near the glassed doors and opened it. Still not there. He turned around and finally noticed the glassed door slightly ajar. Hoping and praying that she was there, he opened the door and he saw Emma lying on the terrace floor with her hands beneath her head and her eyes closed so she didn’t see him. Silently, he walked and laid down beside her.

That’s when she noticed him. She gave a small cry and sat upright with a jerk. Daniel sat up too and regarding her with amusement. “What am I now, a monster?”

“Oh Daniel!” She exclaimed with a smack on his shoulders. Daniel made a move to try to dodge her hand and it landed on his cheeks instead. Good thing it was a weak hit but it still stung. Daniel rubbed his cheek that got hit.

He gave her a fake hurt look, he said: “For a weak hit like that, I’m surprised that it hurts.”

“Serves you right for scaring me that way.” She stayed sitting beside his body. His arms were put beneath his head and his eyes were closed. His hair was tousled whether from his hand or from the wind. The moon gave his skin a paler complexion. His eyelashes lay dark against his cheekbones. He was wearing a loose t-shirt but not enough to conceal his broad shoulders and muscular chest. 

She averted her eyes to a safer view. She stared at her feet like it were the most interesting thing in the world. There was an uncomfortable silence between them that Emma was becoming more and more anxious as minutes pass by. She glanced back at him and saw him still in the same position. He was calm and relaxed. The more anxious Emma was becoming, the more relaxed he became.

Emma looked away and sighed. Sighed like she was very tired and sleepy. Half of the reasons were true. She was tired. Tired of waiting. The sleepy part, well, not true. Very, very, very not true. Every part of her was awake and aware of him.

Daniel gave up in waiting for her to break the ice. He sighed and said, “You’re not my bestfriend.”

That got a reaction from her. Throwing a quick glance at him she asked, confused at his statement, “What?”

“I said you’re not my bestfriend. I don’t know you anymore.”

“Oh” was all she could say. She winced at his last words. I don’t know you anymore. Did she really change? Did she really hurt him so much for him to change his view of her?

As if she didn’t say anything, Daniel continued, “Do you know why?”

She didn’t answer. “I’d say that was a yes.”

When she didn’t contradict his observation, he said, “’Cause my bestfriend won’t be sitting away from me.”

Before she fully understood what he said, his hand gripped her shoulder and tugged hard causing her to fall backwards beside him while he was saying, “She will be right  here beside me now with no buts.”