If You Only Knew

Chapter 8

Devon's POV

I sat around the campfire that we made after we finished swimming. The sun was beginning to set and we were all hungry. Because we got them drinks, the boys decided that it was the gentlemanly thing to do to buy us differ. Janella and Kisses were both gossiping about work whilst I sat there pretending to listen; but really, I was lost in my own thoughts. 

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Ethan standing there. I hadn't heard from him in over a year and there he was, staring at me with a pair of regretful eyes. I couldn't lie to myself, he looked good. More than good actually. He looked like a celebrity. Lucky for him, that's what he wanted to be. 

While I was replaying our conversation over in my mind, I felt a warm presence sit next to me. It was Kiko, holding a hamburger and a bottle of water. 

I smiled at him. "Salamat Kiks ha, nagugutom na talaga ako."

He chuckled lightly. "Alam ko. That's why I added an extra patty to yours para ma busog ka. It amazes me how you can eat without exercising yet stay so slim."

"Siguro pag tanda ko, tataba din ako. Pero for now, I'm going to take advantage of my fast metabolism," I replied. 

After that, we fell into a comfortable silence, staring at the hot, flickering lights in front of us. A cool breeze flew past us and I felt myself shiver.

Kiko turned to me. "Are you cold? Ito, jacket ko oh. Sayo na lang," he said as he wrapped his jacket around me. 

It wasn't unusual for Kiko to be a gentleman, it's in his nature. Sure sometimes he can get a bit cocky when he's in public, but when it's just the two of us, he's different. A good different. In the moment, it felt natural for me to rest my head on his shoulders as a muttered a quiet thank you. He instinctively put his arm around me. I couldn't see it, but I felt Kiko smile and so did I. 

I forgot what it was like to feel safe around a guy. To know that I was being protected. But I knew I shouldn't feel too comfortable or I was at risk of getting hurt again. 

"Devs, do you want to go for a walk? Na bo-bored na ako from just sitting down," asked Kiko, breaking the silence.

"Huh? Uh, sige. Kung gusto mo," I replied. 

And with that, he picked himself up, shook off the sand and then helped me up. We were about to walk off, but of course we didn't escape the teasing of our friends. 

"At saan naman kayo pupunta," Elmo smirked. 

Kiko and I both rolled our eyes. 

"We're going for a walk bro," Kiko responded, shaking his head. 

"Be careful kayo ha, it's getting dark," added Janella. 

Kiko and I both nodded in response and began walking along the sandy shore. The waves softly crashed against each other and birds hovered above us, chirping. The sunset looked like something out of a picture; splashes of orange, yellow and red were painted across the sky. 

We trotted along next to each other, our feet in perfect sync. Every now and again, I could feel Kiko stealing glances at me, opening his mouth as if wanting to say something but never did. So I decided to take the initiative. 

I grabbed his arm and stopped walking, both of us halting. I turned to him and asked, "May gusto ka ba sabihin sa akin?" 

He gave me a sheepish smile. "I was just wondering what happened between you and that Ethan guy. He got you really upset."

I bit my lip. Of course this was what he wanted to talk about. Truth be told, I never really told anyone else what happened between Ethan and I, not even to my siblings or my mom or even my best friend. From what everyone knew, we just stopped talking. It was my decision to keep everything a secret, I didn't need everyone thinking that he was a bad guy.