The Other Half [ON HOLD FOR REWRITE] / MAFIOSA

Chapter Eleven

Sebastian Valdez

Alarice Guillermo is driving me crazy.

Talking and texting her daily this past week has strangely become one of my favorite things to do. I don't think I've ever enjoyed talking about random and deep things with another girl before, not even Roxanne and she's been my friends for years. I've gotten used to conversing with her through the phone that now that we're face-to-face I don't know what to do, and that never happens.

When I first kissed her on the plane, I couldn't stop myself from doing it again and again. It's like I could never get enough of her, and that honestly scares me because that was just kissing her. But fuck did that feel amazing.

The question is: what happens now? Neither of us has touched the subject since we've got off the plane, and we probably won't for a while because we've been busy all day. Plus, I'm not sure I want to talk about it yet because I'm still unsure about my feelings and what I want to do with them. This is new territory for me, I've never had anything more than a fuck buddy.

One thing I know is that I care for Alarice and would hurt anyone who harms her.

Right now, I'm watching Alarice in awe and admiration. Having her show me the ropes of what goes on in her company and here in Toronto, is amazing. She truly knows her stuff and what she's doing, I regret ever doubting her abilities. Seeing her in action makes me want to see more of her doing her job and learn from her.

"Hey, Sebastian?" I hear Alarice's beautiful voice, bringing me back from my thoughts.

"Yes?"

She looks at me curiously, slightly narrowing her eyes. "What do you think about Ria's work with the transactions?"

"Great, definitely." I say with uncertainty. Shit, what did I miss?

"Sebastian, Ria doesn't even work with transactions. Her job concerns customer service." She points out, one of her eyebrows is slightly raised. That look is definitely hot, probably a bit too much for my friend down there.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry about that Alarice, I need a break. Maybe some lunch?" I ask.

"Oh, yeah, of course. I didn't notice that we haven't eaten since the morning." She mumbles with her head cast down, deep in thought.

A few moments of silence pass by then suddenly her head shoots up with her eyes shining with a different light. She quickly runs to the door, putting on her maroon winter coat. "I know exactly where we can go, c'mon."

We head out to the streets of Vancouver, some of this reminds me a lot of New York. From the buildings to the many people walking these streets, it's all familiar.

I look to Alarice who's holding my hand tightly as we're brushing past people, walking to our destination that is still unknown to me. Having Alarice's hand intertwined with mine just feels right, her hand perfectly fits against mine. This small amount of contact brings weird tingles to my body, making me wonder how would it feel to have our bodies more intimate, touching more.

Alarice stops in front of a sketchy somber looking building, the windows are broken and ragged, the brick of the building is tattered and chipped, and light outside is flickering. Why the hell are we here?

"Um, Alarice... why are we in front of an abandoned building?" I ask, slowly backing up from the place.

"Come one, let's go in." She's in front of the beaten up door, motioning me to come in with her right hand.

I let out an uncomfortable laugh and look at her wearily. "How about we don't go in and we go get lunch?"

Her lips form a slight pout as her arms cross in front of her chest.