LA FURIA

Chapter 12

"Ask away," she tilted her head a notch.

"Who's Mark?" His face reddened with fury. She looked at him sheepishly and replied. 

"My eldest brother who takes care of me...Next question, please."

His face softened. He was beginning to smile again. Oh my God, one more sight of him smiling, and I'd be ready to die happy, she thought. 

"Why did you decide to stay?"

"I didn't want to go. I don't want to go. Don't ask why," she grinned. 

And then, she saw it. The official Edward David Sevilla Jumbocharmer 1000-watt smile. Her knees turned to jelly. She wanted to scream and collapse. 

Rachel sat on the reclining chair, hugging her knees. They just finished cleaning up and Edward was having his nightly hot bath. She didn't turn on the lights in the yacht's exterior. She could think better in the dark. 

She didn't know why she decided to stay, couldn't sleep till she found out. Okay, so she had to admit she enjoyed being there.  An opportunity to cruise in a yacht came, and she just grabbed it. It's a perfect summer and Edward was there. He wasn't exactly a nice guy, but she liked his mood swings. he sounded so intimidating, but she could feel her control over every situation. Although sometimes he baffled her. He was a mystery, alright, and twice as any puzzle she could find in a bookstore. She never thought she could find a guy who's so complicated. He seemed like a challenge. He was like a jack-in-the-box. She opens him up, he scares her, then makes her laugh.

He had killed the engine, saying that they'd continue to sail in the morning. The cabin door opened. Rachel had already anticipated that he'd join her there. 

Edward held a small lamp in one hand, a big paper plate in another. 

"What's with the lamp, Aladdin? Lookin' for a genie?" She called out when he failed to spot her in the dark. He walked towards her and settled the lamp on the floor. He shoved the plate to her. 

"Midnight snack?" he offered.

Rachel looked at the plate. Carrot sticks with a puddle of seasoned sour cream on the side. She took the plate and put it on her lap. Edward promptly picked up a stick and munched away contentedly. 

"Why are you so quiet?" she tried to sound casual. 

"I don't blab," he replied between chews. 

"I thought you're here to talk with me."  If she wouldn't start a conversation, he'd never open up a topic. 

"I'll talk when I want to..." he crammed the rest of the stick he was holding into his mouth.

She couldn't stand it. She didn't like carrots much, but she ate some, competing with his crunching noise. If it's his way of communicating, she'd be happy to do it too. 

"Uh, maybe we should turn on the lights. Your lamp is too small," she began when they finished all of the carrot sticks. 

"I like it better this way," he sounded real bored. 

"You have potato chips in the cupboard? I'd love some."

"I don't eat junk foods..."

"You prefer diet food?"

"No, I don't."

"Well, it's obvious with a body like yours."

"A body like what?"

"Well...you look like a brontosaur."

That hit him. He turned to look at her. 

"A WHAT?!"