Ryo looked at her as she focused her attention on the movie she watched. Her face was an open book. One moment her lips would stretch to a smile, the next moment her forehead creased. She’d burst out laughing one moment, then cry the next. Any actor who would see the way she watches a movie will feel delighted.
But not right now. Not for Ryo. The more looked at her, the more irritated he became. “How could she enjoy such garbage? What’s so good about that second-rate actor? He cannot even say his lines right,” he mocked Yuki in his head. He killed Yuki with his mental criticisms.
Ellie seemed to see something from her peripheral vision, so she paused the video. Her eyes rounded, and she clutched her chest in surprise when she turned in his direction. “You scared me. I thought you were a ghost,” she said, catching her breath. After she recovered, she smiled at him. “Can’t sleep?” She cocked her head in his direction, waiting for his answer. He nodded. “Wanna watch a movie with me?” Ellie invited him and patted the empty chair beside her.
“Is that a joke?” He wanted to ask her. It tempted him to roll his eyes at her invitation, or to say something harsh to her, but he did not. She was being a delightful host to him, and he’d be a total jerk if he showed her attitude. Suppressing his irritation, he sat in the chair she showed.
She gave him one earpiece of the earphones she was using. He gritted his teeth and placed the offered earpiece to his left ear. “Don’t make me find out that you’re an actress set up by the show producers,” he thought to himself. His eyes shifted from her to the screen that played the movie.
She was so close to him, and he could smell the scent of her body wash. Although he used the same body wash earlier, it smelled different to her. The floral smell tickled his nose.
Her eyes glued to the screen while he observed her. Her profile looked beautiful. She had slightly arched brows, and a nose which not so high, it looked cute. He swallowed when his eyes lingered on her plump pink lips. They looked soft. Part of him wanted to sink his teeth into them.
Her chuckles distracted him. They sounded cute. Ryo continued to watch her. From time to time she would gasp, exclaim, or sigh. She was such an animated viewer he cannot help but find her entertaining. Definitely more entertaining than the movie she asked him to watch.
After a while, the movie ended. She again looked at him with a smile. “Did you like it?”
“Did I like it? Are you f*cking kidding me?” He wanted to scream at her, instead he said “En.”
“Do you like Yuki Yamada?” He cannot help but blurt out the question. Soon as he said that, he waited in suspense for her answer.
“Who?” She scrunched up her face, looking very confused. Her reaction also confused him. “The actor from the movie.”
“Oh, is that his his name?” her eyes round as orbs, as if she discovered the elixir of life. He nodded at her question.
“Not really.” She wrinkled her nose and looked at him. “I loved the manga that they based this movie on. That’s why I watched it.” He wanted to jump with joy from the answer she gave, and his face did not hide his mirth.
“I know. I’m such a geek,” she whispered. Her cheeks flushed from embarrassment.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you.” he was so taken aback by her embarrassed reaction that he felt a little bad for rejoicing.
She gave him a cute chuckle. “No need to apologize. You know what, I loved that manga so much that I named my shop after it.”
After a while, she clicked a folder from her desktop, then moved her chair closer to him to show him pictures of her shop.
It was a small shop, but it looked like the shop in the movie. The outside walls of the shop were white with a large window that showed the tables inside. There were huge flower pots outside, spilling with flowers of different colors.
“Looks the same, right?” she asked, her face beaming with pride.
“Yeah,” Ryo answered, nodding his head. “What cakes do you sell?” He recalled she was here to study baking.
“A lot but my strawberry shortcake and chocolate cake are to die for.” She clutched on her chest and gave him a wink.
“Really?”
“Yup! I’d bake one for you but I don’t have ingredients stocked right now.”
“Too bad.” He regretted he cannot sample her cakes.
“Well, if you find yourself in Baguio City, then you can have one, on the house!” Ellie pointed her thumb on her chest and once again flashed her brilliant smile. The tiny dimples on the corner of her lips deepened. “Hey, enough about me. What about you, what do you do?” she complained.
“I’m an actor” He scratched his head and gave her a cute schoolboy look. Ellie scanned his face. She tilted her head from left to right, studying his features. The doubt written on her face was hard to miss.
“Like an actor, actor, movie actor?” she inquired, squinting her eyes. Her tone sounded so incredulous he felt insulted.
“Yeah” he touched his thumb on his nose and looked at her smugly.
“Oh.” With eyes opened wide, she nodded her head, but she looked at him, still unconvinced.
Though their conversation felt fun, he somehow got a feeling that she does not seem impressed by him.
“How is it possible for a woman like her to resist his charm?” he wondered in his head. He’s so used to women swooning over him. A single wink from him would send them screaming their heads out.
But this woman does not seem impressed by his looks. She’s the first woman who did not throw herself. She did not even bother giving him a flirty look when he’s putting on an effort to look cute. Her reaction made him feel downcast. He had forgotten that he had prosthetics on.
Ellie hardly realized that a month had already passed since she got back from Paris. She drowned in her work as soon as she got back. She hardly noticed the passing of time. Her excitement to apply what she learned made her forget about the hurt she had. It only proved she made the right choice when she moved away. Her business has also grown popularity. Before she left, they depended on the university students for their sales, but they were only breaking even. But through word of mouth and the improvements she did on her recipes, orders started coming in. Now, she had clients would drop by the store to pick up orders they brought online or would pick up something to go. Some would schedule a delivery through an app. As for those the app could not reach, she’d deliver their orders herself. The movie adaptation of the manga that inspired her store added popularity to the store. There are passersby who would pose outside her shop for p
Confusion filled Ellie’s face as she stared at the man before her. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think I’ve met you before.”
“Finally, it’s Sunday!” Ellie thought as she snuggled into her blanket. Her shop closed on Sundays. She bolted from her sleep when she remembered that today is her grandma’s birthday. She got out of bed, took a bath, and went down to her kitchen.宋体; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: ini
Ellie glared at her best friend as she wiped her mouth. Her face red as a tomato from too much coughing and embarrassment. “What bullshit are you talking about, Naomi?” her voice hitched. “Language, Elizabeth.” The deep voice of Ellie’s father warned her. “He’s not my boyfriend. What made you think he is?” Ellie’s voice was still indignant as she challenged Naya. Naya shrugged her shoulders. “This is the first time you brought a guy home, and it’s even on Nana’s Birthday.” Ryo cannot help but feel surprised by the revelation. “Wow, I’m the first guy she brought home. No wonder they’d think I’m her boyfriend.” Ellie’s face cannot be any redder. She stole a glance at Ryo, who sat beside her, grinning. “Sorr
The blaring sound of her alarm woke Elizabeth. With eyes half opened, she looked at it then pressed snooze and snuggled on her blanket. It was chilly and her warm blanket felt so good. “10 more minutes, please”, she internally pleaded. She had no choice but to pull herself out of the bed when her alarm sounded 10 minutes later. She braved the icy water and took a shower. After her shower, she looked at today’s tall order and put on her clothes. She opted for a clean white t-shirt and denim shorts and paired it with a white sneaker for comfort. After tying her hair in a bun, she went down to her store kitchen to bake. She had already prepped all the batter she needed when she heard knocking on the store’s front door. She furrowed her brows. It’s only 6 AM, Maya rarely comes in before 8. She tried to ignore the knocking and prepared her frostings. But as minutes passed, the knocking only intensified. E
It was only 4:00 in the afternoon, but they already had to close the shop. Elizabeth cannot help but to stretch her lips into a smile as she looked at her display counter. They sold all her cakes and cupcakes. They even had to apologize to some customers because they ran out of cakes. Ellie looked at the paper that Maya handed her. It’s a list of advanced orders from the customers they could not accommodate. This is the first time they had to do something like this! She cannot help but swallow as she mentally calculated the time she needed to meet these orders, their scheduled orders, and tomorrow’s stock. Looks like I won’t be sleeping tonight, Ellie thought. It’s a happy problem, she consoled herself. After she finished cleaning up her oven and mopping her kitchen floor, she went out to the store. Like her, Maya and Ryo were busy. He concentrated on counting the money in the till and comparing it with the t
She looked at him as he walked away from her. Like a child, he stomped his feet rather than walked, showing his anger. He hailed a taxi after walking a short distance. His taxi had long gone, but Ellie still continued to look in the direction it took. She didn’t know how long she stood rooted at her place. But a tear rolling down her cheek brought her back to the present. She wiped the solitary tear with the back of her hand, then went back inside her shop. After making sure that she locked up, her feeble feet walked up to her flat. After taking a quick bath, she flopped herself onto the bed. She felt exhausted, physically and mentally. What happened between her and Ryo played back in her mind. She recalled the roller coaster of emotion she rode earlier. Ryo felt so good. Their bodies naturally fit one another. She remembered how wonderful he tasted and how marvelous he made her feel.
Ryo’s warm kisses trailed her body. Each centimeter that his tongue grazed made her hair stand up on its end. She felt tiny currents of electrical tickle the skin his lips worshiped. His fingers elicited the same reaction. They awaken her every nerve. She felt him cup her breasts and his thumb brush on her nipples. They saluted the fingers that pleasured them. She squirmed in satisfaction. Tiny electric waves radiate on her body and congregated in her center. Ryo’s hand traveled down to her belly and stopped in the triangle between her legs. She had waited for him so long to touch her spring. Her legs part to welcome his exploring hand. His finger teased the folds of her lips, then rubbed her hardened knob. She arched her back as she felt herself tingle from his touch. The onslaught of sensation she felt was so strong she let out a loud moan. She writhed her body, arched her back and lifted her bottom. She al