After The Fall GxG)

Chapter 3

I wake up to the smell of coffee and bacon wafting thru my nose. I stretch my arms and look at the person beside me. Joelle isn't there. Obviously.

I could smell the food, so she's probably cooking breakfast. What a good host my best friend is, I thought as I smile. I go in the en suite to wash my face and brush my teeth and fix myself.

As I walk towards the kitchen, Joelle's back is on me. I stop for a bit and just look at her. Her dark brown wavy hair is currently tied into a bun on top of her head. She has this swag about her that commands attention. She has a heart shaped face, an aristocratic nose, and fair complexion.

She's about 5'6" in height, an inch shorter than me, with long slender legs that could go on for days. She's a head turner.  Sexy and pretty. 

But the one thing that's so attention grabbing, at least for me, is her somewhat, round deep set of bourbon colored eyes that is framed by thick eyelashes and softly arched eyebrows. 

Most importantly, those eyes of hers are very kind and soulful.  There's something about those eyes that sees you beyond the surface or facade.  Iba talaga siya tumingin eh. 

Besides having a pretty face and beautiful eyes, she's smart to boot.  Hello? She's a fvcking doctor for crying out loud!  And she's not just any doctor mind you.  She's a thoracic surgeon.  One hot surgeon if I may say so myself. 

Bukod sa pagiging hot Doctor nitong friend ko, mabuti and mabait din ang puso nya.

She's also talented.  Like she really has this good singing voice. Doon nga kami mag bond when we were in high school. We both love to sing and we both play the guitar as well. Pero, she's not the type to boast about her attributes. She's sobrang low key when it comes to her many talents.

She's a great catch actually. A babe. That's why I'm wondering, why in the hell she hasn't been dating since her ex boyfriend cheated on her? And that was like ages ago! Like almost 3 years maybe? That's quite long for my taste.

I realized I've been standing here for a quite sometime.  So, I did the next ting that comes to mind.  I let her know that I'm here.

"Ehem. Good morning." I say after clearing my throat. She turns and looks at me smiling. Her eyes sparking and her dimples are showing. I can't help but return her beaming smile, that the muscle on cheeks are straining itself out. 

"Good morning babe. I was about to wake you actually." She says as she pours a cuppa joe from a vintage porcelain coffee pot into a coffee mug and hands it to me.

"Tinimpla ko na yan the way you like it.  Matapang, creamy and with just a hint of sweetness.  Parang Ikaw."  She laughs  and winks at me.  What in the freakin' hell was that?   Why does it sound so sexy?  Is it just me?  My eyes widen at that. That makes her laugh some more and I just bow my head a little to hide the blush that's starting to form in my cheeks. Para Saan ang blush na ito? Para saan??? I ask myself confused.

At bakit parang may laman ang sinabi niya.  I don't know kung mahihiya ba ako or matatawa.  I just look away to avert her playful eyes na naka tingin sa kin. 

She stops laughing then kisses my right cheek. "Did you sleep okay?" She asks with concern all of a sudden ng makita niyang I was looking away.

"Yes, I did.  Thank you. Your bed is so comfy." I nod and take the cup from her as I walk with her to the table.

"Sit down, sit down. Breakfast is ready na oh." She motions to a chair in front of where she's standing. I smile and take my seat. On the table are a plethora of all the good stuff:  Fluffy scrambled eggs, thick slices of crispy golden brown bacon, breakfast sausages, and a few slices of brioche toasted to perfection.  For drinks, the choices are orange juice and pomegranate. All my are my favorites.

Napa smile ako sa gesture ni bestie dito. She's so thoughtful and may ka sweetan din pala siya. I laugh at that thought in my head.

People find her intimidating. Kaya hindi mo masasabi that she's kind and nice and all that.  Kasi she's assertive and opinionated and very frank. Kahit mabait at maamo ang mukha niyan, kapag tinignan ka na niya ng seryoso with those bourbon eyes na parang tagos maka tingin, talagang ma-i-intimídate ka. 

I don't know.  There's a certain aura about her that's very authoritative sa ibang tao.  Me kasi I'm sanay na with her. 

Pero what people don't know is that, once you get to know her and she lets you into her world, she's actually quite shy because she's very private when it comes to her emotions. 

She's very thoughtful and has a caring nature.  Pero, sige na nga, I'll add na sweet din siya. Katulad today. 

She prepared all of these food para Lang sa kin.  Eh Pwede naman siyang mag order sa dami ng restaurants sa paligid and have it delivered. 

But no, she made an effort to cook for us.  Oh di ba she's sweet?  Kaya, kahit 4-5 times a year ako bumisita dito sa New York, I make sure that I have time for her kahit busy ako and busy din siya sa schedule niya sa hospital. It's always a blast spending time with her. 

Kaya laki ng pasa-salamat ko kay God because we've rekindled our friendship as if hindi kami nagka hiwalay ni Elle.

"Grabe naman sa effort 'to bes. You went all out this morning.  Parang hiking breakfast ko na ba 'to?"  I tell her laughing a little as she sits down in front of me instead of sitting at the end of the table. I gaze at her and smile my biggest smile before slowly drinking the hot coffee she prepared. 

"Ano ka ba? It's nothing." She dismisses my statement with a wave of her hand. "Kain na tayo." She invites and motions for me to dig in.

"You should've woken me up para naman natulungan kita mag luto." I say as I put some eggs and bacon on my plate.

"Pish posh. Ikaw ang bisita, alargan naman na Ikaw pa pag lutuin ko. Besides, first time ko Lang naman gawin ito sa you, and you deserve this kind of treatment." She furrows ver browse at me as she says this as if challenging me to contradict her. With that look she's giving me, ayaw ko nga!

She begins to pile some food on her plate too when she suddenly says with a loud voice, "Oh, shoot! I forgot!" She stands and goes to the fridge to get something. I look at her with a puzzled look on my face. She then puts a stick of butter that's on butter plate and a black currant jam in front of me. 

She sits down again and gives me a knowing look then winks at me.
"Here you go." She says to me.  Teka, ano ba meron at panay ang kindat nito sa kin since yesterday? 

I shake my head a little so she won't notice and I let that thought take a back seat and continue with our conversation.

"Aww. You remember. Kulang na Lang scones and clotted cream at complete na ang perfect at favorite breakfast ko bes!" I beam at her, touching my chest to show her that I truly appreciate all her effort and gestures. I stand up and kiss her head as I hug her while standing up and she's sitting down. "Thank you bes. I'm truly touched."

"Oo na! Para ito Lang. Tara and eat na!" She dismisses me again. 

"Taray ah! Wala ka pa din talaga pinag bago!" I laugh at her and take a seat once again and continue eating.

She tells me that she's taking the whole two weeks off except for tomorrow and the day after, as she has some scheduled surgeries that she can't reschedule.

I tell her that it's okay.  I'm grateful enough that she's letting me stay here and that we'll be spending time together. Besides I'll go visit Kai tomorrow anyway and have that meeting with her. So, it's no biggie.

"But, otherwise I'm all yours the whole time you're here so I can take you anywhere you want." She says smiling at me.  After finishing off breakfast we started to get ready and head out into the heat and the humidity that's engulfing the entire city.