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.”
“Yes, we have. In Paris,” he answered, his voice full of conviction.
Her eyebrows furrowed further from his answer. “We met in Paris? Why don’t I remember him?” Feeling intrigued, Ellie pulled the chair across from him and sat.
She cupped her face with her hands and inspected the person sitting across her. She tilted her head from left to right as she tried to recall where she had seen him. The more she looked at him, the more convinced was that she had not seen this handsome man before.
He reached for his cellphone in his pocket. He then tapped on his cellphone, and without a word, handed it to her. She looked at him with confusion. The groves on her wrinkled forehead deepened as she stared on the mobile phone.
She clicked the play button on the video displayed on the screen. It started with a montage of the scenic spots of Paris, in particular, Champ de Mars. The video was in Japanese, which she hardly understood. There were also no subtitles to guide her. She lifted her head and her confused eyes to Ryo but he did not offer any help. His arms crossed in front of his chest as he lazily sat across her. His lips curled into a smirk.
She continued to watch the video, unsure how this would answer her questions. After a few minutes, the video showed a man walking around the park like a headless chicken. He looked familiar, but she could not put a finger where she saw him. He seemed to ask people, but got turned down by everyone. One even hit him with her bag.
After a while, Ellie’s head snapped. Her confused eyes stared at him for clarification, but he offered none. He continued to look at her with a smug look on his face.
She cannot be mistaken. It was her in the video and the person she was talking to was Takumi, the stranger she helped in Paris.
She pressed pause on the video and placed it on the table. She looked at the man before her, waiting for an answer.
He savored the look on her face. Her eyes were so big she looked like an anime. Her surprise and confusion were all painted on her face. She looked like her head was going to explode from trying to make sense of what she watched.
“Explain.” She demanded when she finally found her voice.
“I’m Ryo Matsuda,” he extended his hand. When she did not bother to shake it, he took it back, then cleared his throat. “Didn’t I tell you I’m an actor?” He cocked his brow at her. He looked so arrogant. When she did not say a word, he added, “I was a guest in the reality show you watched.” He continued. She noticed he spoke perfect English, unlike “Takumi” who can tardy string words to make a sentence.
“What?” His explanation made little sense at all.
“We have a reality show in Japan that does social experiments. For that episode, they wanted to know if somebody will be selfless and help a stranger.” His eyes never left her face. His deep voice was soothing, but it was not enough to ease her mind.
Ellie looked flabbergasted. She opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. Her mind froze and cannot find words to say. She looked at him, unsure of what to feel.
She’s definitely surprised by what she learned, but she also felt violated. She felt like she got tricked. She wanted to be angry and vent on Ryo but she couldn’t. Indeed, Takumi told her he was an actor, but she did not believe him. And since he was an actor, and was acting for a show, how can she be angry at him for doing his job?
She felt so aggrieved that she wanted to cry. She wanted to vent her anger to somebody, but she did not have anybody to vent on.
She felt her good intentions got mocked. She got up from her chair and said, “the cake is on the house. Excuse me for being rude, but it’s already past our store hours.”
She turned around and gave instructions to Beth and Maya. After which she locked herself in the kitchen.
She did not know how long she sat in the kitchen staring at the oven, but when she got out, the cafe was already empty. The chairs tucked under the tables; the lights were off, and the doors closed. Beth and Maya have also left.
Her feet took the stairs that lead to her living space. She felt weak from the exhaustion and from frustration. She plopped herself onto the bed and stared at the ceiling and recalled the man she helped in Paris.
She remembered how they ate a meal and watched a movie together. She recalled the sound of his voice and his laughter and how warm his kind eyes were. It was still hard for her to believe that the warm and endearing Takumi and the snooty Ryo were the same person. He must be a great actor to act so convincingly.
Ryo. She sighed at the recollection. He’s handsome, yes. He had a playful vibe around him. She remembered his smug look. It would look very unappealing if other people did the same look, but it suited him.
She remembered his handsome features, especially his soft lips, but she also cannot whisk away from her memory how much he looked like Naruto. She smiled, then she fell asleep.
“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
Ryo woke up feeling his head splitting in half, adding to that his parched throat and languid body. “This is probably what death felt like,” he groaned. He sat up, his hands grabbing a handful of hair on each side of his head to suppress the searing pain he felt. “F*ck!” he cursed as the pain the intensity of the throbbing increased. His eyes swept around the room. The assortment of empty bottles scattered around the floor reminded him of how he drowned himself last night to numb the pain he felt. It’s been a long time since he drank this much alcohol. Heck, he did not even bother touching it when he caught Sofia cheating on him. But Ellie wrecked him so badly with just a single word. He could not help but sneer when he thought of Ellie. He searched for her soon as he got back from Paris. Upon learning her whereabouts, he immediately flew to see her.
Ryo woke up feeling his head splitting in half, adding to that his parched throat and languid body. “This is probably what death felt like,” he groaned.He sat up, his hands grabbing a handful of hair on each side of his head to suppress the searing pain he felt.“F*ck!” he cursed as the pain the intensity of the throbbing increased. His eyes swept around the room. The assortment of empty bottles scattered around the floor reminded him of how he drowned himself last night to numb the pain he felt.It’s been a long time since he drank this much alcohol. Heck, he did not even bother touching it when he caught Sofia cheating on him. But Ellie wrecked him so badly with just a single word.He could not help but sneer when he thought of Ellie.He searched for her soon as he got back from Paris. Upon learning her whereabouts, he imme