Martini Kisses (epistolary)

n a r r a t i v e

NARRATIVE
MILLY

Milly sees them first through the glass windows.

They're seated at the second table, the one closest to the counter six tables away from where she stood. Kuya Evan is typing away at his laptop, forehead creased in concentration, his mouth opening to say something that Milly can't hear.

Sitting across from him and listening to him talk is his friend and business partner. The engineer. The one that furrowed his brows and ran his eyes over her from head to toe on the first night she saw him, like he's evaluating her and she didn't pass his test.

Hearing him insult her straight to her face had come as a surprise. It's not the first time someone had insulted her because that's pretty usual in the industry she thrives in, but it's actually the first time someone had dared to do so point blank. Eye to eye. Without hesitation.

At first, she was pissed.

Because how dare he look down on her when he knew jack squat about her?

Later on, when she's calmer and got more time to play their first meeting in her mind, she slowly became interested.

No one had ever had the gall to look at her straight in the eye and say what they really feel. No one until him.

Everyone else was always dancing around her — scared to hurt her, scared to offend her — as if she was some kind of a fickle, fragile doll who'd snap and break at the slightest provocation.

There were Neve and Ran, of course. Her lifelong best friends. Two people who never held back or mince their words. Called things for what they were. Always so honest and upfront with her.

But they were different. A special find. They didn't belong to the world she normally lived in, and thus shouldn't be lumped in with everyone else she knew in the same breath.

But this guy...

This guy is from here, but he doesn't orbit around her like the rest of them do.

To say she's piqued is an understatement. When she told Malee that she was looking forward to seeing him again, she's not lying.

She is. Why, who knows?

Milly doesn't think that far ahead. She's always been spontaneous — a doer, a go-with-the-flow, ride-in-the-moment kind of girl.

And this one is one of those situations where she'd rather wait and see than calculate her actions.

Kairos cuts a striking figure even as she walks in and makes her way closer to them. Taller than her, his toned built is visible to her through the white v-necked shirt he's wearing, his biceps packed with muscles that almost made her grin when she remembered how Monday had described him before.

No wonder the girls were fawning.

Kuya Evan is the first to notice her approach. Immediately, he stops typing and gets to his feet to greet her with a half hug.

Milly can feel the burn of a stare pricking her neck when she returns it, and when she turns, her eyes connect with his.

Kairos. Engineer Aviado.

She smiles at him as a greeting, but he slowly diverts his attention back to the lady that delivered their coffee, looking as disinterested in her as the first and second time she met him. He thanks the waitress and sips his coffee without saying another word.

"Sorry, was I late?" Milly asks Kuya Evan. He's pulling back the chair beside the one he's occupying to give her room. Milly thanks him and takes a seat. She also makes sure to thank the lady when she slides the iced americano closer to her.