Catch Me, Iʼm Falling (A JHOLET AU)

Chapter 4: Proposal [M]

Colet slowly crept inside after locking the door of her condo. She took off her heels, glad to finally be rid of them because her feet were starting to hurt. After placing it on her shoe rack, she changed into a comfortable pair of house slippers.

She went to check the living room, expecting to see her girlfriend but found it empty. The television was on, filling the silence of the place. A rerun of a sitcom was playing on the huge screen, but she went on and ignored it.

She then decided to check the master bedroom to look for her girlfriend.

A barely lit hallway led to her spacious, modernized kitchen, and at the end of that hallway was the wooden oak door of the master bedroom. Either her girlfriend would be in there or she just had a burglary, which was very unlikely since they have top-tier security in their building.

Colet felt a little thirsty, so instead of going straight to the bedroom, she made her way to the kitchen. She was by the entrance when she stopped in her tracks. She caught a whiff of something delicious—a very familiar smell.

Her mouth watered, and her stomach grumbled in response.

There stood her girlfriend, stirring something from her nonstick pan, wearing one of Colet’s oversized shirts, in her undies, and barefoot. Her long brown hair was tied into a messy bun.

Colet smiled and leaned into the arched doorway, her arms crossed over her chest. Alex was so focused on what she was doing that she didnʼt notice Colet standing there, watching her silently.

Colet resisted the urge to wrap her arms around Alex, afraid of being hit with her wooden spatula.

She watched as Alex lifted the spatula to her mouth to taste some of her cooking, then clicked her tongue, apparently unsatisfied with the taste. Colet could only imagine the face she made, and it made her grin widely.

Alex opened one of the cabinets above her, standing on the tips of her toes, her hand groping for something. In her effort, the hem of her shirt accidentally rode up, revealing a pair of very flimsy, lacy underwear.

Colet swallowed hard and tried her best to look away.

Alex succeeded in her task—taking a jar of something from the cabinet. She gently placed it on the counter and closed the cabinet. She then opened the jar, put some of its contents on the dish she was cooking, and stirred again.

Colet crossed the short distance between them and wrapped her arms around her girlfriendʼs small waist from behind. Alex stiffened. Colet kissed her nape before she pressed herself against Alex and pressed her lips against her hair.

“What are you doing here, Miss Beaumont?” Colet asked, her voice a little muffled. Alex visibly relaxed and leaned back against Colet.

“You almost gave me a heart attack, Cole,” said Alex, her voice trembling a little. “How long were you standing there?”

Colet kissed her temple. “Not long. I was just admiring the view.”

Alex laughed, pinching Colet’s arm. “Pervert.”

Colet chuckled and pulled away slightly, just enough for Alex to turn around and face her.

Alex pressed her back against the marble kitchen counter, observing her girlfriend.

“Iʼm cooking adobo,” Alex announced, answering Colet’s first question before wrapping her arms around the latterʼs neck.

“I know,” Colet replied, tucking some stray hairs behind Alexʼs ear. “What I meant was, what are you doing here in the kitchen? Youʼre in the wrong part of the house.”

Alex raised a perfect eyebrow. “And whatʼs that supposed to mean?”

Colet studied her girlfriendʼs face, smirking. She leaned in sideways, her lips brushing against Alexʼs earlobe.

“Youʼre supposed to be in my bedroom,” Colet whispered seductively in a low, husky voice, gently nipping her girlfriendʼs earlobe. Her hands slid down to her girlfriendʼs hips, keeping her steady. Alex let out an audible gasp.

Colet pulled away, staring up at Alexʼs stormy gray eyes, dilated with need. Alex cupped Colet’s face with her hands and pulled her in for a searing kiss. Colet responded with the same fervor, her hands roaming around her girlfriendʼs body. Her hands moved inside her girlfriendʼs shirt, and she groaned when she found out Alex was not wearing anything underneath.

Colet’s hands kneaded her girlfriendʼs soft breasts, her fingers playing with the sensitive buds. Alex threw her head back and moaned loudly when Colet’s hot mouth replaced her fingers. She sucked, licked, and left lovebites all over her girlfriendʼs chest. Colet then placed biting kisses on her girlfriendʼs neck, sucking and nipping on the smooth, sensitive flesh.

“Iʼm hungry,” Alex whispered in her ear, her hands desperately trying to open Colet’s dress shirt.

After she heard the mention of being hungry, Colet came back to her senses and remembered the adobo her girlfriend was cooking for her before they started making out. Colet reached out behind Alex to turn off the stove.

“The food can wait, I think,” Colet replied with a slight pant. She leaned in and captured Alexʼs lips again, sucking on her lower lip and gliding her tongue inside to explore her girlfriendʼs mouth.

Just when the kiss was starting to get deeper, Alex pulled away, savoring the tortured look on Colet’s face and smirking impishly.

“Who said anything about food?” Alex murmured, her voice dropping into a more seductive pitch, biting her already swollen lips.

Colet smiled wickedly. “Oh yeah? Wanna christen the kitchen island?”

As a response, Alex pulled down her blazer aggressively. It landed in a heap on the tiled kitchen floor. Wasting no time, she hastily unbuttoned Colet’s dress shirt, kissing every inch of skin she exposed.

“Why here, when you have a very comfortable King-sized bed?” Alex replied before letting the dress shirt drop on the floor, joining the expensive blazer. Colet was now standing in front of her, topless, save for her black brassiere. Alex stared hungrily before looking up at her face.

“Ah, youʼre no fun,” Colet quipped, poking Alex in the stomach. The latter squirmed and giggled. “Weʼve done it everywhere, so why is the kitchen an exception?” Colet continued, her tone playful, wiggling her eyebrows.

Alex laughed.

“Why donʼt you just put that mouth to good use? Shut up and kiss me, Cole,” Alex commanded, hooking a finger in the strap of Colet’s bra before pulling her in and crashing their lips again.




A trail of discarded clothing could be seen from the kitchen floor to the master bedroom, where a tangle of limbs and naked bodies were sleeping soundly.

They never bothered to cover up after their steamy session. Body heat was enough to keep the cold temperature at bay anyway. The duvet lay on the bedroom floor, unwanted and ignored.

Alex was sleeping on top of Colet, her head resting on the latterʼs chest, her arms wrapped around Colet’s body almost possessively, their legs entwined.

A phone started ringing somewhere. Colet, who was sleeping lightly, stirred as she heard the sound. She opened her eyes and checked the time.


04:28 AM. What the hell?


Colet managed to gently roll Alex off her and onto her side of the bed without waking her up. She stared at the naked sleeping figure for a moment, ignoring the demanding tone of her phone. She tried to collect her thoughts but failed.

With the incessant ringing of the phone, she decided to wallow in self-pity when she had enough sleep.

She climbed out of bed, picked up the fallen duvet off the floor, and covered Alexʼs body with it.

Colet picked up the phone on her bedside table and checked who was calling that early.

The screen displayed a picture of a beautiful young woman in a gray suit, smiling mischievously at the camera.

Ate Janna.

Colet answered the phone immediately. A slightly deeper but pleasant voice greeted her.

“Good morning, our dear Colet.”

She smiled at her greeting.

“Ate, hi,” she breathed. She padded inside her walk-in closet, rummaging for something to wear. She found a pair of black silk nighties, probably Yvesʼ because they werenʼt hers. She put the call on speakers while she slipped into it.

“Iʼm sorry to be calling this early, but this is my only free time, and Iʼve been meaning to talk to you about something,” she said, sounding a little hesitant.

“Iʼve been extremely busy too, Ate. Iʼm sorry, I couldnʼt call you back immediately,” she apologized. “What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?” Colet asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.

Colet went out of the bedroom in order not to wake her girlfriend up. She went to her living room and sat on the couch.

“What Iʼm going to ask of you is not easy. Iʼm afraid Iʼll be asking too much of you, Colet.”

“Ano ba kasi ‘yon?” Colet asked, eyebrows knitted anxiously.

“Well, you see,” she let out a heavy sigh before continuing. “Thereʼs a reason why Motherʼs been begging you to come home.”

Colet held her breath.

“Iʼm getting married soon.”

Colet didnʼt expect her to drop something that big on her. To say that she was astounded was an understatement. She fell silent for a moment, digesting the news, completely feeling blindsided.

“Colet?”

“Y-Yes?” She answered in a hushed tone.

“Are you okay?” she asked softly, sounding worried. Colet couldnʼt seem to find her voice and took her time to respond.

“Yeah, Iʼm fine,” Colet lied, her voice quivering a little. “Just surprised, is all. Congratulations, Ate Ja!”


Janna sighed. She probably knew she was lying through her teeth.

“Iʼm sorry for keeping you in the dark. I know you donʼt want to come home, but Iʼm asking you this as a favor,” she muttered quietly, which was met by utter silence on the other end. “Please come home, Cole. I would love to have you here. I want you to be with us on that special day,” she said earnestly. Colet didnʼt know what to say. She swallowed thickly. She was right; she didnʼt want to come home. Her mother had been begging her to come home for years, but she always found ways to turn her down.

And now here it is—the thing sheʼs been dreading the most—going home.

Her sister never asked her for anything her whole life. It was the first time she asked her to do something for her, and she didnʼt have the heart to say no, even if it meant going back to the Philippines.

“Iʼll come, Ate. Donʼt worry.”





Colet fell asleep on the couch after her talk with her brother, not caring about the cold temperature in the living room. She only woke up when Alex came looking for her.

“Come to bed,” Alex urged, tracing odd shapes on her cold skin. “Youʼre freezing.”

Colet fixed her gaze on her girlfriendʼs face, faintly visible thanks to the gradually illuminating sky behind her.

She seemed to have forgotten to close the heavy drapes again.

Colet cupped Alexʼs face in her hand.

“Marry me?” she whispered, her tone almost pleading. Alex leaned into her touch, but she only smiled and kissed the palm of Colet’s hand.

“Come to bed; weʼll talk about it later,” Alex promised, leaning down to kiss her slowly. Colet responded, savoring the kiss as if it were the last.

Alex didnʼt say it out loud, but Colet could smell the impending heartbreak from a mile away.

Colet silently followed Alex into the bedroom, and they slept for another hour before they were woken up by Colet’s alarm.

“Morning, babe,” Alex whispered somewhere on her right before placing a chaste kiss on her lips.

Alex was the first one to get out of bed, and only then Colet opened her eyes. Alex went out of the room to cook breakfast and prepare for work.

Colet stayed a bit longer in bed, dreading her talk with Alex. She knew, after years and years of asking, that she was about to be turned down again.

Colet climbed out of bed and washed up before heading to the dining room.


They had a subdued breakfast.

Neither wanted to address the elephant in the room, but Colet kept on stealing glances at the woman in front of her, not really eating her breakfast but rather playing with it. Alex was on her phone, answering emails and checking her notifications.

Alex took notice after a while and grabbed Colet’s other hand, interlacing their fingers, finally giving her undivided attention to her girlfriend.

“Stop playing with your breakfast.”

“Iʼm not that hungry,” she lied, putting down her fork on the plate. She looked up and stared at Alexʼs face. “Are we going to talk about it?”

Alex swallowed, looking nervous. “Yes, of course.”

“So, what do you say? Are you going to marry me this time?” Colet asked, sounding hopeful, her gaze so intense that Alex had to look away.

Alex had to set down her half-eaten toast, her expression unreadable. Colet’s face fell. She knew what was coming, and before she could brace herself, Alex had already opened her mouth and started speaking.

“Cole, baby, you know I would love to marry you someday,” she started, her expression beginning to crack. “I know you asked me multiple times already, and I am sorry that I have to turn you down every time. Believe me, it breaks my heart to do it.”

Colet’s heart was breaking into millions of tiny pieces as she listened to the other woman. She withdrew her hand from Alexʼs grasp and rested it on her lap instead. She stared at her shaking hands and refused to look Alex in the eye.

“Is that your final decision? Because I wonʼt ask you again,” said Colet, her hands now curled into fists in her lap to stop them from shaking. She was trying so hard to hold back her tears.

“Iʼm sorry, Cole. You know I love you so much, but Beaumont Industries needs me. My father needs me,” Alex answered, her voice faint and laced with pain.

“Okay, then,” Colet replied with a tone of finality. She was grateful that her voice, at the very least, was firm and in control. “That was my last-ditch attempt at staying here. I guess I would have no choice but to leave.”

Colet laughed bitterly, tears welling up in her eyes and obscuring her sight. Colet wiped her tears angrily with the back of her hands, feeling betrayed by her own eyes.

Alex looked shocked at what she just heard. Her face looked ashen like she had seen a ghost.

“W-What do you mean?” she asked, her voice shaking with uncertainty. She stared at Colet with fear in her eyes.

“Iʼm leaving for the Philippines soon. My sister is getting married, and I think my parents would want me to stay there for good. For the company.”

“But what about us?”

Colet let out a mirthless laugh as she stood up. The chair made an annoying scraping sound against the floor.

Colet smiled sadly at the woman she loved and the person she wanted to spend her future with and said, “I think itʼs fairly evident that you donʼt want to share a future with me, Alexandra. I believe itʼs better for us to part ways now than to continue whatever this is.”

Alexʼs eyes began to tear up, but she didnʼt seem to know it yet. She looked startled when she realized she was crying as she wiped the wetness from her cheeks. Colet struggled to control her urge to reach out and wipe away her tears, but she had to be firm with her decision. She swallowed the lump in her throat and looked away.

“Itʼs pretty clear that I donʼt matter to you as much as you do to me. I loved you with all of my being, but it seems that love isnʼt enough. So, I guess this is goodbye. I wish you well, Alex. I really do.”