No Strings Attached [SHORT STORY]

No Strings Attached [Tangled Sheets, Tangled Rules]

Tangled Sheets, Tangled Rules

I woke up tangled in sweat, tangled in sheets, tangled in a kind of regret I didn't even want to name.

Leo's arm was draped heavy across my waist, his skin pressed hot against my back. His breath ghosted over the nape of my neck, steady, calm, like he belonged here. And for a second—just a second—I let myself stay still. Eyes closed. Breathing shallow. Pretending this was normal.

Pero hindi ito normal.
Hindi ito dapat nangyari.
And most of all—he wasn't supposed to stay.

My chest tightened. Slowly, dahan-dahan kong inangat yung braso niya, careful not to wake him. The sheets clung to my bare legs, and the moment I slipped out, the cold air hit me like punishment. I grabbed the hoodie na nakakalat sa sahig—his hoodie, of course—and slipped it on. Amoy niya pa. Shit.

No strings.
That was the rule. Always.
Always had been, always should've stayed that way.

So why the hell did it feel like something shifted last night?

I padded into the kitchen, feet light on the floor, trying not to think too loud. My hands shook slightly as I made coffee, the silence of the apartment screaming louder than any alarm clock.

Minutes later, narinig ko siyang gumalaw. The sheets rustled, the bed creaked. My pulse jumped. I didn't turn around when he came out.

"You stayed," I said flatly, eyes fixed on the coffee I was pouring.

There was a beat of silence behind me. Then his voice, low, almost awkward: "Yeah. You asked."

"And you listened," I shot back, handing him a mug without looking. "That's new."

Our fingers brushed when he took it. I ignored the static in my chest. I sipped my own coffee, staring at nothing, while he leaned on the counter beside me. The silence was thick, heavy, dangerous. My heart was screaming things my mouth refused to say.

Finally, I forced the words out. "So... what now?"

I turned to look at him, my face blank, my eyes harder than I felt inside.

"You're not catching feelings, are you?" I asked, the challenge sharp in my voice even as my throat tightened.

He laughed. But it didn't sound like him—too short, too forced. "What if I said I was?"

My stomach twisted. Shit. Shit. No.

"No strings, remember?" I whispered.

He nodded, but his eyes stayed on me like he already knew I was lying to myself. "Yeah. Just sex."

I forced a smile, bitter at the edges. "Exactly."

But my hand shook when I set the mug down.

"I need to shower," I muttered, walking away before the air choked me.

Inside the bathroom, I cranked the water up hot, stepped under the spray, and let it scald me. Steam fogged the mirror, blurred everything but the mess in my head. I tilted my face up, water running down my hair, my body, trying to wash him off me.

Pero kahit anong init ng tubig, hindi niya natanggal yung init na iniwan niya kagabi. Hindi niya binura yung bigat ng mga braso niya when he held me after, or the way my chest clenched when he actually stayed.

And worse—God, worse—I wanted it again.

The door creaked open. I froze. I didn't have to look.

"Leo," I warned, voice low.