“WHO would have thought that we’d be seeing each other again?” His smile was the brightest. “So, you’re staying here as well, I see?” He even got closer to where she’s standing that she had to move back just to avoid him.
“Actually, I’m just about to check out,” she lied, which unfortunately was heard by ‘Jenny’, who was obviously attracted to this young man.
“Madam, you were not able to check in earlier, how are you going to check out?” the receptionist asked with a smile. She turned to the young man and smiled even more. “Madam here has been waiting for a room but the hotel is fully booked until next week, sir and it will definitely be difficult for her to find an accommodation because the reservations of other hotels and transients are full now as well, that’s for sure.”
Astrid gave ‘Jenny’ a death stare, grabbed her bags and walked away. She felt Bullet following her until she reached the cafe and restaurant at the corner of the hotel. When she sat down on the bar stool, he sat next to her and ordered two bottles of iced cold beer.
“Do you know what this means?”
She just frowned at him.
“It’s destiny, Astrid.”
Oh, he remembered her name. “It’s just a simple case of bad luck,” she replied instead. She picked up her phone and pretended to be occupied.
“Is it called bad luck when you saw me when you badly needed help?”
“I don’t need help. I don’t need YOUR help,” she pointed out.
“Oh, come on.” He straightened up and combed his messy hair with his fingers. “Don’t you need a place to stay?”
“Do you have any recommendations?” she doubted. Though she couldn’t fully trust this man, she had to admit that she needed any help she could have.
“Yes, and it’s free.” Bullet smiled a sweet smile and by the way he acts, she’s sure that the guy was aware of his effect on women.
Astrid’s eyes widened with with disbelief. “Really? Where?” It was as if everything she’s feeling at the moment vanished - her dizziness, sleeplessness, her anger and her frustration.
“Well, my room is big enough for the two of us,” he replied without any hesitation.
“And you actually believe that I’m gonna agree to that suggestion?” She laughed out loud at the idea. “I’m guessing that you were not able to get a girl at the bar so you’re hitting on me now, huh?”
“Come on, I’m just being helpful and-”
“Thank you for your help, Mr. Many Names.” She poured beer into her glass and drank it. “I’m just a virgin but I am not a fool, okay?”
“Wow, you’re still a virgin?” His eyes widened, obviously shocked by the discovery.
Instead of answering, Astrid just ignored him. “I might be a bit tipsy but I’m not a fool. I’m sure your help would cost me something.”
“You’re being too judgemental, you know that?”
“I’m sorry but that’s just how the world works, that’s how men are. At the beginning, you’re gonna act like some kind of a superhero or something who’s willing to do everything for a girl but in the end, you’re all the same - you’re gonna leave, cheat and find somebody who’s prettier, who’s willing to do what they want in bed -”
“Oh, I get it.” Bullet looked straight to her eye. “That is the reason why you ended up here in Baguio, isn’t it? Because your boyfriend left you, cheated on you and found someone else who’s better in bed?”
“The reason why I ended up here because of men who cannot be satisfied, men who can’t resist temptation just because their girlfriends can’t give what they wanted,” she growled.
“So, you’re saying that your boyfriend cheated on you because you were not able to give him sex, is that it?”
“Will you please stop rubbing it in?”
Bullet laughed as if her situation was such an entertainment to him. “What else do you expect him to do?”
“Ah, to be faithful, perhaps?” Astrid said with firm persistence. That second bottle of beer was slowly hitting her as she’s starting to feel her fingers go numb. “You’re all the same, aren’t you? There’s nothing else in your mind but…”
“But what?”
“You know what I mean.”
“You mean..sex?”
“Shh!” Astrid raised her right hand and covered Bullet’s mouth. He was surprised but couldn’t hep but smile. She immediately lowered her hand as she felt electrified when his lips touched her palm. “Is that all that really matters to men?”
“Well, not really but it’s a huge deal in a relationship,” he said casually. “Anyway, just a bit of curiosity here…why didn’t you give him what he wanted? I mean, he’s your boyfriend and that’s just normal for a man to-”
“Being my boyfriend doesn’t give him the license to do whatever he wanted to me without my permission.”
Bullet raised an eyebrow. “So, it’s true then.” He looked at her from head to toe as if judging her.
“Why does it seem like it’s a sin to be a virgin these days?” she grumbled. When she looked at Bullet, it was obvious that he couldn’t believe what he just heard. “Is this your first time to encounter a virgin?” After finishing her bottle, she stood up and carried her bags. She was about to walk away when Bullet stood up and blocked her path.
~~
“WAIT, where’s the virgin going?” he mocked.“The virgin’s gonna look for a place to sleep.” She went straight to the exit and went out of the hotel. The beer she had didn’t help with the cold weather that she had to put her sweater back on.“Why don’t you just accept my offer? It’s late, Astrid. Do you think you can still find a transient at this time? And look at you, you can’t even walk properly!” he added when she almost bumped a man standing at the entrance.But she just kept on walking, trying to keep her balance until she reached the taxi bay. The queue was still long given the late hour and she had a feeling that she’d be waiting there until sunrise.“Come on, stay with me.”She shook her head. “I’d rather sleep on the street than sleep in a room with you.”“Fine,” he nodded agreeably. But instead o
“FEELING better?"Astid just nooded. It was almost 2 o’clock in the morning when she told him that she’s too tired and that she wanted sleep so he had no choice but to bring her to his room - not that he planned it.With eyes almost closed, she was holding a hair brush but it seemed as if she had no intention of using it She had just finished her shower and she’s now sitting on the far side of the huge bed, wearing the black sweatshirt Bullet had given her. She wasn’t able to bring any clothes except for the thin souvenir Baguio shirt and dolphin shorts she bought, which was way too short than she had expected.“Piece of advice. If you can’t handle your alcohol well, don’t drink especially if you’re alone.” Bullet suggested, shaking his head.“Yeah, I am alone now. And heart broken.”“Is that a license to get drunk?” He handed her a glass of water a
“WELL, when is the right time, may I ask?” he asked, laughing.“I’ll know when it’s the right time. I just don’t want to feel pressured or anything.”Bullet shook his head because clearly, they are not on the same boat when it comes to the topic. Is sex really that complicated for women? Because for him and probably for men in general, sex is sex. Whenever there’s an opportunity, they’re gonna grab it without even thinking.“If I could only do something to get even, I certainly would.” Astrid frowned as if she was really considering the thought.“Do it. Maybe once he finds out that you’ve found someone else, he’d be jealous and-““And then there’s a chance that he’ll take me back?” she interjected.“Well, it depends, really. If he still loves you, of course he’ll come back,” he commented. And th
ASTRID woke up that morning without Bullet in sight. When she realized that it’s already seven in the morning, she hurried and got up despite her splitting headache. After taking a shower, she quickly got dressed and left a note on the nightstand.She was about to get inside the elevator when she heard someone approaching from a distance and when she turned around, she was surprised to see Bullet beside a tall woman. Based on how the woman put her arms around him, it’s pretty obvious that something’s going on between the two. He’s grinning from ear to ear as if he had just won a million dollars. Well, it certainly looks like it.Astrid turned away and pressed the elevator button, praying that it would open before Bullet notices her because she still didn’t know how to deal with him after what happened the night before.She immediately went inside when the it opened and finally, she breathed a sigh of relief. B
“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 shou
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