Four

Jericko’s POV

I'm currently enjoying a peaceful cup of coffee at the hotel café. My friends haven’t shown up yet; perhaps they drank too much last night and are still asleep. Because when I joined Gino and Clyde on the dance floor last night, I just said goodbye to them and went back to the hotel.

It's a good thing my coffee cup wasn't totally full because it might have spilled on me while I was in the middle of sipping it when someone unexpectedly pushed me in the back.

Charlie snorted, "Hey Jericko, where did you go last night, huh? Why did you just disappear like a bubble?"

If my friend Charlie snorted, you'd think his fiancée had abandoned him in the pouring rain.

"What's missing? You are the ones who suddenly disappeared from our place," I responded angrily.

He sat next to me and drank some of my coffee as well.

I grabbed the coffee cup and exclaimed, "Hey, that's my coffee. Why don't you make an order for you?”

“Really, what happened last night?” he asked.

I turned to glance around, hoping someone would hear what I had to say if there were many people in the café.

Charlie and I were seated next to one another when I whispered. I said, "This is what happened Charlie, while Gino and Clyde were dancing and you went to the bathroom, I saw a woman walking towards me, in the middle of her walk, someone grab her wrist, and when she looked at me it’s like she is asking for help, that’s why I approached her saved from the man who grabbed her wrist.”

"And what happened after that? ”

“She asks me if I can join her on the dance floor and talks in a seductive way. It’s kinda creepy,” I said.

Charlie just gave me a dumb look before laughing out loud. I took a step back and gazed in awe at him.

He continued to chuckle and said, "Maybe you're just dreaming it man, perhaps you're saying that because you went to a bar again last night. The girls at the bar are just like that, they will invite you to dance even if they don't know you.”

“She is creepy, but her face is gorgeous, so no, man, it's not just in my imagination, I can see it with my two eyes, Charlie.”

“What does she look like? Besides, I don't let criminals into my bar, so what you're saying is impossible. Is there a woman who is beautiful and then a criminal?” he said in wonder.

I held my chin and thought. What did the girl look like? “She is beautiful and the shape of her face is quite small," I answered.

"Did you ask or did she tell you what her name is? What is her motive and she suddenly approached you?"

"I'm not sure about her name but it seems like there's Maria and she's inviting me to dance," I said.

"She'll just invite you to dance, that's it.  But let's do it like this, let's go back to the bar later and point her out to me if you ever see her again. You never know—maybe I know her if she is simply from here.”

"Alright, I'm willing to do that, so I can prove that I'm telling the truth."

"Alright tonight, 7pm huh. By the way, did Clyde tell you that we can go for a walk on their farm and we can also ride horses."

" He hasn't told me anything yet. But I'm game with that, we haven't done that in a long time," I said with a smile.

"How can we do that if you don't visit here anymore? If you weren't already broken-hearted, you wouldn't be coming here," he teased.

Charlie's comment made me pout. Maybe what he said was true—I wouldn't be able to see them in La Union if I weren't already heartbroken. My girlfriend used to be my first choice over my friends, but she betrayed me. I'm this idiot again, but I did whatever my ex asked because at that time she forbade me from connecting with my friends here. I foolishly believed that if I did so, we would remain together forever, which we did not, by the way.

I grabbed Charlie's hand and apologized, saying, "I'm sorry Charlie, I chose to stay beside that girl, I thought she was going to be with me for the rest of my life, but it's not."

My buddy gave me a shoulder pat and said. "Dude, it's not a big deal for us. We're still your friends. You can still run into us when you have a problem. You know, everyone makes mistakes, no one is perfect, remember that. And then you just did what you believed was right."

I heard Fred ask, "What the hell is happening here?" from behind us.

Charlie said with a smile, "Ah Fred, this friend of ours seems to have attracted a gorgeous lady last night."

I hid my face behind my two hands because I knew they would start making fun of me once more.

“Really? Too bad I didn't witness that. How was your meeting? Has something happened? ” Fred asked one after another.

I quickly covered Fred's mouth with my hand. "Fred, be slow in asking questions, maybe someone will hear you, what else will they think," I said.

"Now what if someone hears? Just answer my questions first," said Fred again.

I took a deep breath before answering his questions. "Nothing happened to us, okay? Besides, I'm not that kind of person, what do you think of me cheap?"

Charlie said, "I told him, let's go back to the club tonight in case he sees that girl again and he can point her to us."

“It will make the process of getting to know each other easier for you two if you introduce her to us,” Fred remarked with a smile.

I replied, "Maybe I'll get into another fraud again. I have no intention of getting to know her. I don't want to get into a relationship with her.”

Fred approached me slightly closer and gave me a shoulder tap. "You know what buddy, we're just talking about getting to know each other, you're about to enter a relationship. We're not saying that just because you were introduced to each other that you will be together right away."

 "You know, Fred, maybe our friend is just scared. Maybe you're wondering that what your ex-girlfriend did will happen to you again, right?" Charlie asked.

“That girl also left me with a great deal of trauma, so of course I will never lose the fear that it might happen again," I replied.

Fred questioned, "What actually caused you and your ex-girlfriend to split up?"

I looked at the ground and said, "It's like this, you know we've been together for about five years, she's even slept at home once, and we almost know each other's family, but I didn't realize that while we were still together, she was chasing someone else.

Charlie wondered, "How did you catch her when she was with someone else; didn't she confess to you?"

I shook my head and continued, "I caught her with someone else, and I am also impressed that she did not dispute the sin she committed, but it still hurts me since her excuse is so stupid, men."

Charlie again asked, "Why? What is the reason she told you? Why did she look for someone else?

I rubbed my eyes a little because I thought  I felt that my tears were falling . "The f*ck dude, my world almost revolved around her, and then she's going to say that's the reason?! I can't give her time anymore because I'm busy with work, so she looked for someone else's time. At first I couldn't really accept the reason she said, ``we are no longer teenagers to act like that," I said. 

“Afterward you realize that she can't really be good for you. Everything that happens to us has a reason. Maybe just a little patience and you will also see the good return that God is preparing for you,” said Fred calmly. "You know, man, maybe you two aren't really meant for each other, that's why the one above has already found a way to keep you away from that girl," he added.

"Maybe the girl you are destined for is from here," Charlie said with a laugh. "That's why later you get ready and we'll look for the mysterious woman who met you last night," he added.

When night came, we gathered in the bar; we were in the VIP lounge on the second level, and what Charlie said was accurate—from here, you could see the entire dance floor.

Fred poured wine into our cups and remarked, "Jericko, this place is fantastic. Maybe you can show us the girl you were talking about last night."

Gino and Clyde both yelled "Woman?" at the same time.

Fred and I both looked at the two of them in their reaction.

Charlie laughed and added, "Yes, Gino and Clyde, a girl. You're startled, aren't you?" He mocked, "Aren't you amazed with Jericko's charisma?”

"You're really excellent dude, you just visited here last night, and then you get someone’s attention right away?" exclaimed Gino as he suddenly approached me.

I just grinned at what Gino said.

Clyde jokingly said, "I guess the charisma is extremely different when you're from Manila.”

I simply paid them no attention and kept my eyes on the people starting to dance on the dance floor.

And when I looked up at the entrance, I saw the woman who came to me last night coming in, I quickly pulled Charlie who was talking to our friends.

“What the hell is it, Jericko? Why are you pulling me all of a sudden?" he asked, annoyed.

I answered, "I'm sorry man, you said I would call you when I see the girl I was talking about.”

"I said call me, not to drag me. By the way, where is she?" he asked.

I pointed to the girl and said, "There she is, the one with the black dress."

When my other friend heard me pointing at the girl, they rushed to our spot.

"Where's she at? " asked Gino.

I repeated, "The one who is wearing a black dress."

They all had their mouths covered with their hands when they saw the woman I was referring to, which shocked me.

“Oh no, isn't she the daughter of the governor? "Fred said unexpectedly.

“What?! Daughter of the governor here in La Union?” I asked.

Clyde smiled and stated, "I'm now believing in your handsomeness, Jericko my friend, even the governor's daughter is attracted to you.”

She doesn't look like the daughter of a governor, and her movements don't make me believe that she is. I then re-asked my friends. "Are you being honest? Is she truly a politician's daughter?”

“Jericko, we're telling the truth,” Fred said. He then suggested, "If you like, we can go down there and ask her directly."

“No! I answered firmly.” I looked at her and said, "I don't want to, and besides, I'm not interested in her.”

“Really? Why can't you stop staring at her? You've been gazing at her for some time,” Gino smirked.

I murmured, "I'm not looking at her, I'm just watching the people dance.”

“We've been watching you for a while, Jericko, so don't try to deny it,” Fred stated.

I was unable to continue speaking since what they said was true; I had been observing the woman's actions for some time. I don't know why I can't take my eyes off of her. 

I had no idea why my friends started laughing; they looked like excited teenagers. The girl abruptly shifted her gaze in our direction due to their loud laughter,  and for the second time our eyes met.