"I'm not sure. I mean, yeah, it's huge, but... I don't know, let's see," a familiar voice answers, making the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Is this...
The first thing that you see when you follow the sound of the voice is the tattoo on her nape. Her back is turned against you but it is undeniably her –shoulder-length bob, nape tattoo, those... shoulders. Why are you even looking at her shoulders?
"Fine. Think about it long and hard, okay?" her companion, a short-haired,bespectacled woman says. Althea bursts into a fit of giggles, making her friend giggle too, as the two of them make their way to a table near the back of the restaurant.
"That's just so wrong," the bespectacled woman tells Althea.
"Althea?" you call out. You're probably a bit too loud, but you can't find it in yourself to care. She turns at the sound of her name, her eyes curious and still dancing with humor. They instantly light up with recognition, and she gives you a little wave.
You stand up from where you are seated, ignoring David's curious stare, and approach Althea, who is wearing a light pink halter top, paired with a navy blue skirt and heels – a stark contrast to her chill white shirt/jean shorts/flip-flops outfit the other day. She looks amazing in both.
"Jade!" She greets you with a huge, infectious grin on her face. "It's nice to see you."
You give her a beso and a loose hug without hesitation and you would smile, but the goosebumps that dance through your body when her skin meets yours shock you. When you hugged her at the beach, you told yourself that the electricity you felt was just because she's a new friend, but her warmth and her sweet, heady, Althea scent assault your senses once again, like they did the first time. If you weren't at a public place and in front of her friend, you probably would have prolonged the contact. Like what you did at the beach. Because... because... it feels nice? Before you can make sense of why your body is reacting that way, she pulls away and puts a respectable distance between the two of you.
"Nice to see you too," you tell her sincerely, even if your skin is still buzzing with the contact you two had. What is wrong with you, seriously? "Small world."
"I know. Do you go here often?" she asks you. Her friend, who's probably around three inches shorter than you and Althea, gives you both a curious, probing look.
"No, actually.This is the first time I've eaten here. I wanted to try something new, and it didn't disappoint," you answer.
"I'm glad. This is my favorite restaurant and I personally get offended when people don't like it." She says it jokingly but she's probably serious.
"Anyway, this is Batchi, my best friend. She's a photographer too," she points to the short-haired woman by her side, who in turn gives you a very charming smile, which you return. "Batchi, this is Jade Tanchingco. She's the Glamour cover girl I photographed two days ago."
Batchi offers you her hand, her charming smile replaced with a shit-eating grin and a mischievous glint in her eyes. "It's nice to finally meet you,Jade," she tells you as you two shake hands. "Althea told me she enjoyed the photoshoot. I can see why. And to think she didn't want to do the shoot at first."
Awkward Meetings, Late Night Phone Calls
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