Unofficial First Girlfriend

CHAPTER 8

Clark pulled into the designated parking lot, and we both hopped out of the sedan. I carried my purse and the bouquet of roses as I walked towards him. I linked arms with him, and we made our way through the cobblestone pavement.

We were inside the hotel compound, and the ground had a beautiful landscape with trimmed bushes and pink and purple flowering shrubs. The large mango trees were adorned with lanterns that light up the way.

We entered the Filipino-Spanish restaurant not far from the parking lot. It had a beautiful interior with brick walls and carpeted floors. A waiter approached us and offered a friendly smile before leading us to our table.

There was a small veranda past the tables where a string quartet was setting up. I felt my heart skip a beat. The place was romantic and definitely a good spot to propose.

I placed the bouquet and my purse on the table and took a seat. The waiter handed us the menus and filled our glasses with some ice-cold water.

I grabbed my glass and chugged it before reading the menu. Clark eyed me suspiciously, and I just shook my head.

"Just a little thirsty," I explained as I put down my empty glass back on the table.

The waiter refilled my glass as I started reading the menu. Then he walked away after listing our orders.

"This place is beautiful," I murmured.

Clark glanced around and smiled proudly. "I knew you'd love this place."

"How'd you find this?"

"A little research on the internet and this place have been recommended by my workmates."

"Ah, I see."

I glanced at my purse. I had been itching to call Clark's mother, just to check up on Naiah. Clark noticed it and reminded me to relax.

"It's your night off. You deserve to rest, Mace."

I took a deep breath before responding, "Okay."

"And she's a big girl. Besides, Mama's going to take good care of her."

Two waiters approached our table and laid down our orders—a platter of paella, seafood kare-kare, and lechon paksiw. The smell and sight of our meal instantly made my mouth water.

"Thanks," Clark mumbled.

We began devouring our scrumptious dinner, and just one spoonful of the paella made me forget about all my worries earlier.

***

We left the restaurant and walked through the garden. During our dinner, we had refrained from talking about his work and the diner. Instead, we talked about random things—the kind of stuff we usually talked about when we're still just dating.

Honestly, I missed this feeling. I missed bonding with Clark, and I hadn't felt this way since Naiah came into our lives. We were so focused on giving her everything she needs that we had forgotten to give each other what we need.

I tried to push my negative thoughts away as an ugly memory came into my mind. It always upset me whenever I realized how things had changed between us, how my life had changed, and how I was living this life.

This wasn't my dream life. But this night gave me a glimpse of hope that maybe things could be better somehow.

We sat on a bench under a tree, and I crossed my legs as I turned to face Clark.

"Thank you for this night," I whispered.

"But tonight's not yet over."

I tilted my head and watched him closely.

What did he mean by that?

Back in the restaurant, the string quartet played one of my favorite songs and I was reminded about my proposal thoughts. But I was glad no proposal had happened. Now, I was starting to worry again.

I didn't want to get married yet, and I didn't want our night to be spoiled.

"There's a tiny library café around here. Do you want to check it out?" he asked.

"Maybe we can do that tomorrow morning?"

He nodded. "Want to check our room now?"

I agreed and so we headed towards the hotel. We entered the building and a piece of soft instrumental music was playing in the lobby. The interior had a minimalist touch and there was a brown couch set near the receptionist. Clark talked to the lady behind the counter as I stood behind him, observing the abstract paintings in the lobby.

As soon as they were done talking, he led me down the hallway, and we rode the elevator up to the fourth floor. According to him, our room was at 407.

"We've never done this before," I began.

"Yeah, we should've though."

We exited the elevator and walked down the hall. He swiped the key card and pushed the door open for me. I gasped as I entered the room.

This hotel really did a clean and minimalist style with the whitewashed walls and white furniture. The queen-sized bed was in the middle of the room with a flat-screen TV on the adjacent wall. There was a dining table near the glass-paned door leading to a small balcony.

I sat on the bed and removed my sandals.

"There's a tub in the bathroom," Clark mumbled.

I narrowed my eyes at him, and he only laughed at me. He walked towards me and pulled me up from the bed.

"I know you prefer to stay at home instead of going out but I thought this is better. You get to stay in, and I can take your mind off from everything that stresses you."

"And I appreciate everything."

He cupped the side of my face and whispered, "I'm sorry for being so busy and for not having time with you. You should be my priority."

What's going on?

Apologizing wasn't part of his vocabulary. In fact, I had begged him for his apology dozens of times before and now he was apologizing to me even if I wasn't asking for one.

"Naiah should be our priority."

"You should be my priority too. Both of you."

I felt a tiny bit of guilt. Maybe I should really start making time for him again.

Maybe, it was time to start working on our relationship again.