“JOSH?” Astrid stood up when she saw Josh coming over. He was glaring at her as if he wanted to eat her alive. But she didn’t care about it because her attention was on someone else - Ellen, who was holding Josh’s hand. She looked as if she had seen a ghost.
“What are you doing here?” Josh asked softly. He was wearing the red sweatshirt with the logo of his favorite basketball team, which was her gift on his last birthday.
She knew she had to say something but nothing came out from her mouth. Thankfully, Bullet was quick-witted and immediately stood up. He put his arm over her shoulder and joined the conversation.
“She’s on vacation, with me,” he chimed in, smiling. “So, you are ‘the’ Josh. Astrid has told me so much about you. By the way, I’m Bullet, the new boyfriend.”
Astrid turned her head and saw Bullet smiling. He tightened his grip on her shoulder as if telling her to be still and just go with the flow. Once again, she glanced at Josh and Ellen who both looked as stiff as a board.
“New boyfriend?” Josh pressed, suddenly releasing Ellen’s hand. He looked at Bullet sharply, and then at Astrid. “Is that true, Astrid?”
“Well, okay...not yet. We’re just dating as of the moment but we’re getting there. Right, Astrid?”
She forced a smile, her eyes still glued at Josh. “How about you, what are you doing here?” At last she mustered the courage to ask.
“Vacation, too.”
Same time last year, they went on a vacation to Tagaytay together with Josh’s family but now, he has somebody else with him. Just one year has passed but it was like a long time ago. She didn’t even know if the man standing in front of her was the same guy she once knew. She wanted to slap him right then and there but she didn’t want to make a scene so she just took a deep breath and fake a smile.
“Why don’t you join us for breakfast?” Bullet offered, which made Astrid reach Bullet’s hand and grasp it tightly. “The cafeteria’s full anyway.”
“Thanks,” Josh stammered after scanning the entire place. He said goodbye and headed to the long buffet table, still holding Ellen’s hand. When the couple were standing in line, Astrid noticed that Josh was glancing in their direction every once in a while.
“Hey, Astrid, look at me.”
“S-sorry?” she asked absently, still eyeing the two because she couldn’t help it. Bullet had to hold her hand just to get her attention.
“You are with me so just look at me,” he whispered. “I’m your new boyfriend, right?” He moved closer that there was almost no space between them. He looked into her eyes as if it was all he wanted to do forever, “I told you, you needed my help, didn’t I?”
Astrid tried to avoid staring at Bullet’s face but it wasn’t easy. It was like she was hypnotized. She wasn’t able to protest when he caressed her cheek and his stare was so intense that she felt like his eyes could penetrate her soul.
“So, that’s the ex-boyfriend. I don’t mean to offend you or anything but he’s not as good looking as I imagined. I wonder why you’re still crazy about him, considering that he’s a douchebag.”
Yes, he is and that only proved one thing - that she’s just too foolish to fall for him. She believed in everything he said, she held on to his promise that they’d be together forever. But sadly, while she’s building their future in her dreams, he’s been cheating on her.
“Hey, hey, don’t cry now, not here.” Bullet took a piece of tissue and immediately wiped her tears. “Do you want that man to see you sulking like that?”
“You shouldn’t have invited them to eat with us.”
“Why not? I want to witness how you skin him alive and cut him open. That’s something you don’t see everyday.”
That made her laugh and all of a sudden, she realized that she’s enjoying Bullet’s company more than she would want to admit and if not for Bullet, she’s probably crying her heart out somewhere.
“So, now that we have confirmed that he is indeed with somebody else, what are you gonna do next?”
“I’m going back to Manila.”
“And then what, you’ll cry in your room all night until the end of time?”
She pouted her lips and glared at him. She was about to hit him on his arm but he immediately caught her hand and held it tight. Astrid’s eyes widened especially when they saw Josh and Ellen coming. She wanted to cry even more when she witnessed how sweet they were as they whispered and laugh at each other.
“Look at me. Focus on me, Astrid.”
And so she did. She let him stare at her, hold her and touch her cheeks. Bullet’s eyes were only on her and since her attention was all his, she didn’t realize that all eyes are on them. He held one of her hands and kissed it while occassionally caressing it on her cheek. She shouldn’t let him do that, given the fact that she had just met him the night before. But she allowed him to hold her hand and kiss it because she can no longer deny that there’s something about Bullet that made her so drawn to him.
“You look more beautiful up close, you know,” he said almost in a whisper, caressing her cheek. His hot breath fanning her hand gave her shivers.
“Bullet, my hand, please...” Astrid tried to withdraw her hand from him but he didn’t let go. He then kissed it again, which almost made her jump.
“Let me be your boyfriend, Astrid.”
“W-what?” Her eyes widened and slowly pulled her hands away.
Bullet’s face turned red. He combed his long hair with his fingers and emptied his coffee cup. “I mean...that’s the plan, isn’t it? I’m going to pretend to be your boyfriend in front of him to make him jealous, right?”
“I think that’s no longer necessary.”
“Well I think it is.” Bullet turned to the couple and Astrid felt his hand over her shoulder. “Be ready, honey. They’re coming.” He even moved the chair closer to her that their cheeks were almost touching.
“Smile, honey,” he whispered in her ear. It tickled her and laughed, which got a frown from Josh.
The couple sat in front of them and started eating quietly. She could feel the tension building between them. Fortunately, Bullet was just next to her because otherwise, she would have already broken down.
~~
ALL throughout breakfast, Bullet heard nothing from Astrid. She was just quiet while stirring her coffee and occasionally getting a glimpse at Josh and Ellen. He could clearly see the sadness in her eyes and he knew that she’s trying her best not to cry.“You look awful,” he whisper against her ear. “Do you want to get out of here already?”But she just smiled. She inhaled sharply and drank her coffee. He was suprised when she held his hand but he understood what it meant - that she needed his support so he squeezed her hand to let her know that she could count on him.“So guys, what are your plans for today?” Bullet inquired, just to break the ice.Josh and Ellen looked at each other. “Well, we’re thinking of visiting the Grotto first. How about you?”“I have a lot of places in mind so I think we’ll go ahead, right Astrid?” He stood up, grabb
AFTER 3 MONTHS...BULLET has been glancing at his cellphone several times since he arrived at Margarita Ville. It’s already nine o’clock in the evening but Miles was still out of sight. He should have gone back to Mania instead of staying and waiting for some girl.Miles is a singer at The Lounge, his go-to bar whenever he needed to unwind. She’s sexy, beautiful. She’s fun to talk to, sweet and yeah, she’s good in bed. She’s the type who knew what he wanted and she could do all the crazy things in bed, even things he never thought possible. That’s why he’s here now. Because she promised to keep him warm in this cold night.But he’s been sitting there at the bar for more than an hour, has finished four bottles of beer and he’s already losing his patience because he wasn’t born into the world just to wait for a woman.He poured some beer to his
“SO, what’s the story of your life, Mr. Samuel Blake Ortega?” Astrid prodded after emptying her bottle of beer. Bullet looked at her because he was surprised by the sudden serious question. They were the only ones at the bar at that late hour except for an employee who was starting to wipe the tables.“What do you want to know?”“Like what you do besides flirting with girls at the bar?” She was staring at him as she spoke as if she was really interested to know everything about him.“Well, I’m a teacher. I used to teach Math.” He poured beer in their glasses and put ice in them. He could no longer count how many glasses Astrid had but there were at least nine empty bottles in front of her.“Ah, that explains why you’re so good at counting women,” Astrid muttered loudly.“Ouch.” Bullet shouldn’t have been offened by what she said be
ASTRID’S face was just a couple of inches from his. Her breath felt warm and intoxicating. He has consumed a lot of alcohol but he knew that his fast heartbeat wasn’t because of that. He’s the type who gets easily attracted to women but Astrid has a different effect on him. It was as if his eyes were being absorbed by her stare and he couldn’t promise that he won’t be able to control himself from kissing her if she continued to look at him that way.“I think...I’m really drunk now,” Astrid whispered with a smile. They were already standing in front of her cottage, just a few steps from the Villa bar. He slightly moved back when he felt her hand touched his cheek. “Because I suddenly want to kiss you...but of course, I can’t, I shouldn’t.”“Why not?” he joked. Though it’s quite dark in that part of the alley, he could still see her beautiful red face. He actually f
PROBABLY, Astrid was really drunk because even though everything was clear to her and she could taste every kiss from Bullet, she didn’t know why it was happening. She could also hear his deep breathing as well as his moan every now and then every time she passionately responds to his kisses.Why did she let this happen in the first place? Why the hell did she let herself kiss a man who’s almost a stranger to her? She couldn’t understand why she was so attracted to Bullet because his type was far from those men she had dated in the past. Aside from being too handsome and too proud of himself, he’s also a certified playboy, which is one of the things she hated the most in a man.Oh who was she kidding? Any woman would be drawn by his hypnotizing stare. The question was why in the world was he wasting his time with somebody like her, considering that she’s not like those gorgeous and sexy women he’s been?
AND it did. Bullet kissed and licked her bosom. It wasn’t the first time that she has experienced something like this but she has to admit that the feeling he gives her was different compared to others.As he kissed and caressed her left chest, his other hand was busy working on her underwear. He was able to take it off without a hassle and her silk undies fell on the wooden floor. She felt his hot skin against her body and she sighed as his warm palm moved over her stomach, down to her abdomen.This was really happening, Astrid thought at the back of her head. And though she knew it was wrong, she was certain that she couldn’t stop him - no - she’s certain that she had no intention of letting him stop. Everything seemed so right, so perfect. She felt as if she’s been waiting for this man for so long, some to whom she’d surrender all of herself to. But this was going to be her first. Ever.“W-wait...” sh
SHE waited for Bullet to kiss her but he just looked at her - in the eyes, her nose, her lips...and again in her eyes. He was still holding her hands over her head and each time he breathed, she’s feeling his wide chest touched her breasts. He’s doing it on purpose, she’s certain about it because when she glanced at his face, he was all smiles.“I want you right here, right now.” Using his left hand, Bullet kept holding her raised arm while his right hand was busy caressing her chest. “But I won’t do it because I plan to make you want me damn much until you beg me to be inside you.” He kissed her on the cheek, then on her neck. He kissed and licked until she cried out his name. The water coming from the shower was cold but Bullet’s caresses and kisses were warm. Astrid could catch a glimpse of the mist caused by the heat from their bodies and it somehow just made her feel hotter.Finally, he let of
THE room was filled with Astrid’s sexy moans, which was music to his ears and her nails kept on digging onto his skin everytime he deepened the kiss or flickered his tongue on her breasts or moved his fingers on her wetness.Her entire body was glistening, especially her center. He’s ready to take her and get it over with but at the same time, he wanted her to enjoy every second of this precious moment. So he leisurely touched, kissed, licked and bit every inch of her body and took his time kissing her abdomen. And when his mouth reached her inner thigh, she squirmed beneath him uncontrollably.“Oh!” she exclaimed when he suddenly darted his tongue to taste her.Bullet secretly smiled. His expert tongue has never disappointed him and it has not disappointed him now. He didn’t have to ask Astrid how she felt about what he’s doing because her movements and moans said it all. And that encouraged him to do b