C
The next morning, I rolled over in bed—hoping like hell that last night's kiss between me and Bea was just a wet dream. A very vivid and repeat-worthy wet dream that I wished could've lasted a bit longer and gone a bit further.
I stood up and walked to the bathroom, gasping when I saw my reflection. There was a huge bite mark on my neck, and my lips were still swollen from how thoroughly she'd kissed me. My thigh even had a print from where it'd been pressed against her gearshift.
So that shit actually happened?
I stepped into my shower and stood under the streams, shutting my eyes as the water fell over me. I wasn't sure what I was going to say to her the next time we were alone, but I knew that couldn't happen again.
Even if it was the best kiss I'd ever had in my life. Even though I was sure I would be thinking about it for the rest of the day.
The rest of the year...
I waited until my skin was wrinkled and red, and then I quickly dressed in a teal shirt and jeans. Opening my cosmetics drawer, I pulled out my concealer pen and rubbed it against my neck until all remnants of Bea's kiss were gone.
I stiffed my pencils and brushes into my bag and headed into the kitchen.
"Good morning," Bea said, looking up at me from the bar.
"Hi..." I stared into her eyes. "Don't you have Econ right now?"
"I told you excused ako sa class na 'yon since I'm doing the report on The Silk Stem. Speaking of which, sinimulan mo na ba yung questions na sinend ko sa'yo about the romance store?"
I nodded. "I'll have them back to you tonight."
"Okay."
"Okay..." I moved past her and grabbed a bagel off the counter. I headed toward the door, but I couldn't help but turn around. "Can we talk about last night?"
"What about it?"
"Well, for starters, I think we took things too far."
"It was just a kiss, Caitlin." She looked me up and down. "A very good kiss... But nothing else happened."
"Well, gusto kong malaman mo na nothing else will ever happen," I said. "You know I would never willingly kiss you—not matter how well you've been pretending to be my friend lately."
"I would've thought that before last night." She smiled.
"It still stands true today, Bea. Lasing ako."
"Hindi ka lasing." The way she was looking at me was making me wet.
"Yes, well... I didn't want to tell you this, but while we were kissing I was thinking about Kris. You know, the guy I'm sharing a seat with for the senior lodge trip. I was picturing him instead of you."
"You said my name."
"By default."
"You said it twice." She looked upset, but her expression slowly softened. "Ino-overthink mo yung kiss, though."
"So, wala lang 'yon?"
"It meant that I can no longer assume that you're a terrible kisser." She tapped her fingers against the counter and changed the subject. "What else did you purposely lie about in some of your letters?"
"What?" My face paled. I didn't remember mentioning that to her at all, and I'd sworn long ago that I would never bring it up.
"Kagabi, you told me that certain incidents you wrote about weren't true," she said, standing to her feet. "I wanted to wait for the complete clarification, though. So, what else did you lie about?"
"Um..." I stepped back. "I have to be on time for class."
"Your class doesn't start for another thirty minutes."
"The shuttle comes in fifteen."
"I'll drive you there in twenty." She stood up and walked over to the door, blocking my exit. "What else did you lie about?"
"Minor things."
"Okay." She shrugged. "Feel free to elaborate."
"I'm sure you lied about things here or there, too." I shook my head. "It's not that serious."
"I've been truthful about hating you my whole life," she said, smiling. "Wala akong rason para magsinungaling."
"Right... Well maybe I had a really good reason to lie, then."
"Duda ako d'yan. Tell me."
"Fine." I paused. "Well, I only dated a few guys while I was away, so I may have lied about some of those guys I wrote about you at first."
"Pakiulit?"
"I didn't date that much on the ship," I said. "Lahat ng nasabi kong mga lalaki nung freshman and sophomore year ko ay hindi totoo. I didn't start dating guys until my junior year."
"So..." She tilted her head to the side. "Mark Gonzaga, your first onboard kiss under the stars, when you swore you felt butterflies and shit... Hindi yon totoo?"
"Bakit naalala mo ang details?"
"Totoo ba?"
"No," I said. "Mark Gonzaga ay isang character in one of the books I was reading."
"John Dela Cerna. The first guy you invited into your room and had sex with... Was that true?"
"Oo at hindi."
"It can't be both."
"I got seasick on the deck and he walked me back... It wasn't as romantic as I put it."
"Was there sex?"
"No." I shook my head. "My first time wasn't until my first-semester, junior year. With Tyler Tio."
"The guy who was too aggressive with you?" she asked. "That was your first time?"
"Yeah..."
She shook her head. "Caitlin, bakit ka naman magsisinungaling sa ganong bagay?why would you ever lie about some shit like that?"
"Because you were telling me about all the girls you were hanging out with, and all the fun you were having on campus," I said. "I didn't want to seem as lame as I was in high school. I wanted you to think I was having more fun since I was still pretty upset with you."
She stared at me, still shaking her head. "We've had a policy from when we were seven and a half years old, Caitlin. Utter honesty, no matter what."
"I was trying to make my life appear more fun," I said. "That's not a crime."
"So, you've only had sex with two guys?"
"Yes. Stop looking at me like I'm pathetic."
"That's not how I'm looking at you at all," she said, opening the door. "I'm looking at you like I should've seen this shit before."
