James walked up to Nadine's bedroom door and leaned on the door jamb. He stayed there for a second, watching her turned around, packing for her trip.
"Toothbrush, pantulog, outside clothes..." She muttered to herself.
"Hey" James said, softly.
"Jusko po!" she jolted and placed a hand on her heart as she realized who it was. "James!" She was trying to catch her breath. "You scared me... Anong ginawa mo dito? How did you even get in my apartment"
"Um, I was gonna knock, but the door was cracked open, so I just walked in... Sorry... I just wanted to say 'goodbye' to you before you leave for your flight"
"Oh... Ok..."
There was a pause. Finally James broke the silence, "Nadine, are you really gonna go?"
Nadine chuckled sarcastically, "well, yeah... Bakit- bakit hindi? Meron bang reason na... I shouldn't go?"
"Well, a month is a long time. I mean what if something happens to you? What if you meet someone who..."
"Who what, James?" She asked, a bit irritated.
He stopped and thought about whether or not he should continue that sentence. "Wala. It's just- a month... I'm just worried about if you'll be okay..."
"I'll be fine. I just need a vacation" she said, looking down.
"Okay then... Um- have fun in the states"
"Thanks, James. Ingat ka dito ha?"
"I will. You too, okay? Please be safe"
She just smiled and nodded. He smiled in return, stuck his hands in his pockets, and headed out the door.
She sighed as she plopped onto her chair. She thought about why she was leaving. I guess I just needed a break... Some time to figure what all this meant. She thought.
It happened during the dinner party at a restaurant, celebrating the success of OTWOL. Nadine felt so stuffed and decided she needed some fresh air. So she took a walk outside.
"Hey, wait up, Nadine!" She turned around.
"Oh, hey James" she smiled.
"Hey, what are you doing out here by yourself? It's not safe"
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Ano ba yan- I can take care of myself naman" she chuckled.
"I know. I know. But I just wanted to come out here" he smiled, looking up at the stars.
"Nice night, huh?" He asked.
"Yeah... You can really see the stars tonight, huh?"
"Yep..." He said, as he watched her stare and the night sky. "Hey, you know what this reminds me of?"
"Ano?" Nadine raised an eyebrow.
"The scene before Clark proposed. The scene where we laid down on the grass and watched the stars. Maalala mo ba?"
"Syempre naman... How could I forget?" She smiled at him, trying to figure out what she meant by that.
They stood there in silence for while, just staring up at the stars.
"I'm gonna miss this" James broke the silence.
"Ang alin?" She was confused.
"I don't know... This. Being just with you, late at night. With On the Wings over, we won't have late night shootings and won't see each other everyday and night" he said with sincerity.
"Mabuti na wala nang late night shootings. I can finally get some rest" she responded, oblivious to what he was trying to get at.
He was a bit sad that she didn't get what he was saying, that he was going to miss her.
"Haha yeah" he fake chuckled, trying to brush off his lightweight sadness.
He tried to convince himself that he shouldn't try and start anything, but the words just continued to spill out.
"Will we still be friends?" He asked, even though he knew the answer.
"Syempre naman" she scoffed, "bakit hindi?"
"I don't know... Just wondering"
"We're still a love team remember?" She chuckled, but still a bit confused.
"Yeah, but we won't see each other as often" he pouted.
"Ano mo ibig sabihin? We can still hang out. We'll still have projects together"
"I guess..." He took a step closer, "but we'll have more time apart... More time for you to hang out with your friends... Meet new people... Meet new guys..." He rambled on.
She looked up at him. Eyes locked with his. She tried to smile off the tension that was building up.
"James, YOU'RE still my partner. No one else" She nodded, hoping that answer would suffice.
She was confused. So many thoughts ran through her head, at the time. He took another step closer, so he was right in front of her.
She didn't know what he was trying to get at here. And he didn't think anyone could be so oblivious as to what he was trying to get at here.
He cupped her face and rubbed small circles on her cheeks, "Promise, I'll be the only partner in your life?" He asked, not sure himself what he meant by 'partner'. Nadine gulped, also unsure of the context of his question. She nodded anyway.
"Good" he responded, "because you're the only one in mine" He then let go of her and began to walk back inside the restaurant, leaving her confused as hell.
Nadine sat there, thinking about that night. She remembered how the following morning, she tried to get him out of her head, but couldn't seem to do so. He was everywhere, social media, TV, their cut-outs were even in every single goddamn Jollibee. She couldn't escape him.
It's a good thing I don't have any upcoming projects with him anytime soon.
A couple weeks passed and she still couldn't seem to escape him. So she decided that she needed a vacation. One to clear her mind. She was happy about her decision, but she knew there would be someone who wouldn't be happy about it.
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Hey guys! Started a little story. This one won't be long, and I'll try and update more often! About my other story, I really don't know what I wanna do with it, so please, if you guys have suggestions as to what you wanna see happen, please tell me!
