EMMA DAMIAN 7

- - Emma - -

I wanted to shout at that point. "Hannah!" I screamed. ”

My apartment was filled with the whip crack of my voice, but it didn't come close to matching how irritated I was at the time.

"Don't even think about it!"

”

From the other room, Hannah cried out to me. "Just give me a second!" says the narrator. ”

Hannah was a terrific worker and a sweetheart, but she'd never been a good liar. I dashed out of the guest bedroom, which I'd converted into an office, and into the living room. Hannah stood in the middle of the room, typing a text with her thumbs a flurry.

"Don't do it!"

“Almost … and … done!”

I came to a halt a few steps away, watching at her broad grin as she slid her phone into the back pocket of her black thin pants.

"Please tell me you didn't do exactly what I believe you did."

"Can you save me from having a nervous breakdown?" Because I'm rather certain that's what I did."

I growled, "You have no idea how far off the mark you are with that little evaluation."

"I did provide your address to Dr. McSexy," Hannah said. "I also informed him that you were scheduled to appear on Saturday."

I sighed, moving my feet in place, then let forth the groan that would end all groans. "I'm not sure what you achieved by doing this and I just can’t believe you ocould do this to me."

I turned around and walked into the kitchen, opening the fridge and grabbing the bottle of white wine I'd opened the night before.

"As the generous host that I am, I feel obligated to offer you a glass of wine." But, after what you just did..." I sighed regretfully.

"Does that look like sauv blanc?"

"Yeah, I'll surely have some," she said, craning her head to see the bottle and ignoring my comments.

I muttered under my breath as I reached into the cupboard for two glasses. As I placed the glasses on the bar that separated the kitchen from the living room, I was struck by how disorganized the environment was.

My flat in an apartment complex near Manila Bay was a small - ish, but charming little two - bedroom. The sun sinking between the bluest of the bluest sea in the distance always took my breath away from the living room balcony. It made more sense to rent an entire place just for Hannah and myself than to rent an entire space just for us when we were both perfectly capable of working here. Sure, Hannah became a regular visitor to my flat, but that didn't bother me in the least. Aside from this, she was a fantastic employee and a wonderful friend.

"I need to clean this place," I muttered, my gaze fixed on the shambles as I approached Hannah with the wine glasses. "It's a complete disaster in here."

Hannah took the wine and exclaimed, "Oh no." "Don't even attempt it."

"What are you going to try?"

"Working is your favorite method of avoiding dealing with whatever situation in your life requires attention. And if you don't have anything else to do, you'll make something up."

"That's no longer the case."

Hannah sipped her wine and smiled slyly at me.

"OK, maybe it's a smidgeon of the truth."

"If you say so,"

"However, since we're on the subject of diversions," I added. "How do you feel about it?" You're the one attempting to divert my attention away from the utterly ridiculous action you just made."

Hannah took a step back to open the balcony door. "Come on, I think this is going to be a wine and sunset conversation."

I looked about me, without saying anything, at all the work documents.

"We'll be fine for the weekend," she declared. "We don't have any events until next Tuesday, which we're already planning for, and we're caught up for the next few days — at least until Monday." There's no reason not to come out here and unwind for a while."

I sighed, an uncomfortable feeling rising inside me as I realized she was correct - there was nothing I could do at work to divert my attention away from Damian.

"All right then," I said.

We stepped out onto the balcony, a brisk breeze smacking us and sending goosebumps up our spines. Warm air curled all about us, making me feel lovely and toasty. We relaxed in the plush recliners, as if we had nothing to be concerned about in the world.

She nodded toward the sunset and added, "Take a look at that. It has a way of making everything else seem so insignificant, doesn't it?" ”

I had to acknowledge that she wasn't entirely wrong. The sun was halfway below the horizon, and the sky was a rich, wild orange, with red flashing through it like fire. The first evening stars flickered above, with a few wisps of clouds painted here and there.

"A beautiful sunset, a glass of wine, and wonderful company...what more could you ask for?" ”

"How about you explain why you gave Damian my freaking address?"

"Of course, he needed to know where he could pick you up ."

My eyes were flat and my mouth was curved up into a scowl as I cocked my head to the side.

"All right, all right," she conceded, cuddling up on the blanket. "I believe I may have crossed some lines."

“Overstepped? A wee bit of an exaggeration."

"However, it's for the best." She argued, "Because I know better than anyone that you need some time off. You're putting in a lot of effort, babe ! You'll soon turn around and see nothing, and you'll think to yourself, Holy crap, my ass is gone – I literally worked it off."

I burst out laughing. Hannah had a knack of making me laugh no matter how irritated I was with her. "Perhaps, This , on the other hand, isn't the way to go about it. Going to Boracay with Damian is not a good idea. Not in the least, “

"OK, I understand you've had a past with him."

"There's a lengthy history here."

She lifted a finger and murmured, "Not quite. You have a past that dates back a long time. This is a minor yet significant distinction. It's not like you and your partner were married and then divorced."

The mere mention of marriage in the same room as Damian made me feel uneasy.

"That signifies it's time for you to put the past behind you and move on." I mean, it appeared like that's what he wanted to accomplish."

"It's not that simple," I admitted as I laid my glass of wine down after a long swig. "Let's just say if you were in my shoes, you'd understand where I'm coming from," she says.

"All right, then," she continued, "here's the million-dollar question. Can you tell me what happened?" ”

I opened my lips to say something, but nothing came out. I was really stumped as to where to begin. "I'm not sure I even want to talk about it."

Hannah's face had taken on a serious expression due to something in my tone of voice. Shit. Had I made it too clear that anything significant had occurred? I despised letting my emotions show because it made me appear weak. Being a woman in my position meant I couldn't afford to appear weak.

Hannah pressed her palm against my arm and squeezed it. "Can you tell me what happened?" she said softly again.

I had two options at the time. The first was to be honest with Hannah, to tell her everything that had happened between Damian and me all those years ago. It would be excruciatingly painful, but perhaps getting it all out there would be beneficial. I could either shut up and keep it to myself, like I had for the previous seventeen years.

I didn't have to think too hard about it, as terrific of a friend as Hannah was. "It's nothing. I'm just not a big fan of him."

"Alright, alright, I won't push any further," she said, as if to let me know she could see right through me.

I sipped my wine, my stomach clenched in anticipation of her dropping it. But I was aware of the situation.

"However, just because you and Dr. Handsome-as-eff had a falling out doesn't mean you can't have a good time in Boracay this weekend." Get rid of the dude and go to the club or the beach, or watch one of those shows with the bears riding around on miniature bicycles."

"Bears on bicycles?" says the narrator. It's Boracay, not a circus, Hannah."

"Are you able to tell I've never been?" Her eyes sparked, as if she had just realized something. "Or, hey, I'll fill in for you. It was just a thought."

She was joking, but the idea didn’t seem all that bad to me. I tilted my head back and forth in deliberation.

"Oh my God!" exclaimed the speaker. " she yelled, slapping me on the back of the head with a playful shove. "You were genuinely thinking about it!" ”

"I mean, why not? I don't want to go, but it's evident that you do. It all makes sense to me."

She shook her head, saying, "I don't even understand this. If you didn't want to go, why did you bid on him?" ”

"He requested that I bid on him. Do you remember the lady who kept bidding against me? That's his ex-wife, "

That peaked her curiosity. "You have to give me the story, Emma. Come on, " Hannah said.

I shook my head and took a small drink of wine to buy myself some time. "It's far too much to cover. Just ...what do you think? I believe I should begin packing."

Her head cocked to the side. "Are you serious ? You're leaving now? ”

"I mean, I haven't made up my mind. But, if I change my mind, I should at least be prepared, right ? ”

Hannah gave me a puzzled and skeptical expression, as if I was working on some angle she wanted to figure out. "Um, yeah. Do you require assistance? ”

"Nah, I'm fine with it. You've spent much too much time here. Go home and relax for a while."

I sensed she was still trying to figure me out as a beat of stillness hovered in the air. She gave me a brief look before shrugging.

“Alright. But if I learn you're intending to cancel this once - in - a - lifetime trip, I'll be furious."

"I said I would consider it."

Hannah sipped the rest of her wine, laid her glass down, and began gathering her belongings. "I'm not sure what transpired between you and this person, but it can't be worth your stress."

"I'm not worried; I'm simply thinking about things."

"Well, whatever it takes to get your butt to Boracay, do it. It'll be a blast, I promise. "See you later," she said as she walked away, leaving me alone with my glass of wine.

I was completely overwhelmed. I refilled my glass and returned to the terrace, unsure what else to do. As soon as I sat down, I was overcome with a peculiar desire to perform a specific tune.

I shook my head, thinking, "This is so ridiculous. It's only because of him that I'm thinking about it.

I took out my phone and accessed Spotify with a disgruntled sigh. Then I entered T - L - C into the browser bar and pressed the search button. TLC was mentioned, and one of their top songs was the one I was looking for.

Nothing is going to happen. I pressed play after a little pause. I was transported back to the day it occurred the instant the track began.

I'm sitting on the bed in my Laguna childhood bedroom, my legs pulled up in front of me and my arms wrapped around them.

It's been three weeks since graduation, and Damian Aquino has completely ruined my life.

The crummy three-CD player I bought with money earned from my part-time work at the Gap is playing TLC's "Waterfalls." My little attic room is filled in posters of bands I enjoy – The Spice Girls, TLC, Tupac – or bands whose members I adore – N'Sync, The Backstreet Boys.

Tears are flowing down my tomato-red face, and I'm sobbing uncontrollably.

And it's all down to him.

"You fvcking jerk!" " I want to scream the word, let it reverberate through my body.

But I'm so broken-hearted that I can only moan in defeat.

So, instead of letting out my completely justified and well-deserved rage, I take my stereo's remote and turn up the volume. I'm singing along with the females as the chorus comes on.

I'm on a mission to find waterfalls. To my still-developing brain, that makes perfect sense. Damian Aquino is a freaking waterfall compared to the other boys at Kennesaw High. And I was chasing him like a madman.

That isn't fully correct. He pursued me as much as I pursued him. Granted, his flirtation was as sophisticated as it gets, but mine was as sloppy and awkward as I was in high school. Since sophomore year, I've been staring at him from afar, watching him go through each of the most popular girls in school one by one, as if he were attempting to fill out a bingo card.

I'm a bit of a nerd. I have braces, am gawky and tall, and haven't yet filled out. So when Damian Aquino himself begins laying game on me at the first party I'd been invited to in God - knows - how - long, I had to think it was a joke.

He came up to me, calm as a cucumber, with that cocky, I-know-something-you-don't look on his face. The garage band was playing a Stone Temple Pilots song, and when Damian asked how I liked it, I said I didn't like grunge.

That, of course, occurred exactly after the band finished playing the song's final chord and the between-tunes stillness fell. Everyone was staring at me, the girl who had slammed the band. Damian looked to the crowd without skipping a beat as my cheeks flushed.

"Hey, the lady claims she doesn't like grunge," he said, unfazed by the fact that he had hundreds of people staring at him, including the band.

He smirked as he turned to face me. "Can you tell me about your favorite song?" ”

"I don't really have a favorite song," she says. I have a few favorites, but how can someone choose just one? I—p" I was rambling, and he was well aware of it.

"Do you like the song 'Melt With You?' " He cut me off, and part of me appreciated that.

"Yeah," I answered, a smile on my face. "It's true."

With the celebration still quiet, he yelled out the song to the band, who, after a brief moment of hesitation, played it exclusively for him.

It's only for me.

I was finished.

With music playing, we begin to converse. Damian Aquino isn't just a good-looking guy; he's also brilliant, witty, pleasant, and utterly into me. But, nervous as I am, I keep peeking over his shoulder, expecting one of his pals to spring out and laugh at me.

They never manage to do so.

We had that fantastic night months ago. And, dumb me, I'd imagined that could be the start of something amazing.

But no, here I am, wringing every last drop of moisture from my body after learning that not only was he breaking up with me, but that not only was he getting married, but that he was marrying Marian freaking Mendoza herself, the girl who was almost single-handedly responsible for turning my life into a living hell from elementary school on.

How could he have done such a thing to me? I'm letting my tears flow freely, my body trembling with sobs that are nearly painful.

And it wasn't even the worst part of it.

He'd gotten her pregnant, which was the icing on the cake, the teaspoon of salt ground into the wound.

I can't believe he had the audacity to come up at my house and lay it all out for me, as if he wasn't about to turn my life upside down with a few words.

I assumed he was joking at first. For a few weeks, things had been difficult between us, but as far as I knew, we were still together, still a couple.

But I knew something was awry the instant he came out of his car, that pine-green '72 Jaguar convertible he adored and that I adored him driving around in. His confident grin was vanished, replaced with an expression I could only characterize as solemn.

I can't believe he came up to my house and lay everything out for me, as if a few words weren't enough to flip my life upside down.

I assumed he was joking at first. Things had been difficult between us for a few weeks, but we were still together, still a couple, as far as I knew.

But I knew something was awry the instant he came out of his car, that pine-green '72 Jaguar convertible that he cherished and that I loved seeing him drive about in. His smug grin had disappeared, replaced with a mournful expression that I couldn't put into words.

You'd better get out of there! ;)

I let out a sigh. Damian hadn't been seen in years, and I hadn't seen him since that night. And now he'd reappeared in my life, acting as if nothing had occurred.

But, as enraged as I was, I was also experiencing other feelings. For example, I was quite inquisitive. What had gone wrong between him and Marian? Was it true that they were no longer married? There didn't appear to be any love lost between the two of them at all. What about the child? Was there a little Damian out there somewhere?

Everything seemed so odd. But the more I considered it, the more determined I became to find out more. More significantly, I was resolved not to be overcome by this strange situation. I'd confront Damian and take control of that portion of my past. Because I was a conqueror who was frightened of nothing.

To be honest, it would be a lot easier if he weren't so darn attractive. Damian appeared to be much sexier than he had been in high school.

I, on the other hand, was a warrior. I'm sure I could handle him.

It's as simple as pie.