Love At First Sit

Old Flame

He gestured for Roxanne to sing the next stanza.

She let out a breath, fighting to keep the guitar steady on her lap. She sang the refrain and tried not to burst into tears.

When the song ended, the crowd applauded their appreciation.

Roxanne ran to the backdoor and Chris followed her.

"Ging," called the familiar voice again.

"Stay back!" she shouted. "Don't come any closer!"

Chris stopped. He started to walk back slowly, holding his hands up. He removed his cap and his eyeglasses.

She took him in slowly and painfully while his gaze rested unwaveringly upon her.

"Ging, please we have to talk," Chris softly said. Roxanne just looked at him with tears all over her face.

"What is there to talk about?" Her voice was shaky.

She wanted to unleash her wrath, but now that he was standing in front of her, she didn't know where to start. Chewing her bottom lip, she steeled herself to begin the conversation they needed to have.

"Why are you here?" she asked. The tears dried up and were replaced with burning fury in her eyes.

"I came back for you," he said, reaching out to her. "I came back for the three of you."

"That's a load of bullshit!" She laughed as her head spun with memories of the time he turned his back on them. "Why now?"

If he'd had the balls to come through her door and tell her he wasn't ready, she sure wouldn't have spent the rest of her life crying over him.

She was angry with him. But mostly, she was angry with herself for feeling the way she did. She told herself to move on, but it was easier said than done.

"Ging, the crowd is looking for you." Roxette emerged from the back door. She was surprised to see Chris and a crying Roxanne standing on the pavement. "What are you doing here?" Her eyebrows rose. She walked over to Chris and pointed a finger in his face.

"Ma..." Roxanne grabbed her mother's arm. "Go back inside. Let me handle this, please."

"No! You go back inside Roxanne Virginia! You're not talking to this man." Her mother dragged her back inside, knowing her daughter's heart was probably ripped to shreds seeing the man who'd walked away from his responsibilities. Roxette turned to Chris again. "Get away from my daughter. She's just starting to live again. Go back to hell where you came from!"

Roxanne was strong in a lot of ways...always had been...but her mother had seen the tears she'd shed over the years. She shouldn't have fallen in love with her childhood sweetheart, Chris, but she did. And everything Roxette wanted in life for her daughter started to play out like a sad memory of her own life.

Roxette moved to push the door further open, but Chris held out his hand, stopping her. "Please Tita, I need to talk to her."

"Do not call me Tita," Roxette said between clenched teeth.

"Ging, talk to me, please. Just hear me out," Chris pleaded. She didn't respond.

Roxanne had a huge argument in her head.

"Ging, please," again he begged, his voice on the edge of desperation.

Roxanne took a deep breath. "Just ten minutes."

"Ging!" Roxette shot her a frustrated look.

"Ma, I got it."

Roxette sighed heavily and closed the door behind her.

Stunned silence reigned. Roxanne inhaled large gulps of air to prevent from dissolving into a sobbing mess.

So many unspoken words lay between them, so many unresolved feelings. She was overwhelmed by his presence. She missed him. She was mad at him. Her emotions were all over the place.

"I don't care if we stand here and stare each other for hours. Talk to me. Say something...anything, please. Curse me. Shout at me. I know you hate me."

"You're damn right I do," she snapped. "When did you get back?"

"Last summer, when Lolo Armando died. Mom and I came back to attend his funeral. That's when I found out the truth," he said, his voice was trembling. "I came here to Manila and looked for you. I saw you, Ging...with the twins. I wanted to tell you I'm back. I was such a coward 'cause I'm still dealing with my own crap."

"What truth?"

"Mom lied to me. She told me that you'd had an abortion and that you'd run away with someone else," he choked out. "I...didn't want this to happen. I didn't know you gave birth," he struggled to form his words.

Her eyes widened in shock. "And you believed her?"

"I was so dumb to believe her." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Look, family is important to me. My mom is all I have left." He swallowed. "I can't abandon her. And she didn't want me to."

"So it's much easier to abandon us?" She'd gone from hurt to full-on pissed off.

"I was young, confused, and was hurt when I heard the news. I wanted to go back to confront you, but I couldn't. I didn't have any means to do it back then."

"I was nothing to you and you've made damn sure of that!" she yelled at him, her voice filled with rage. "You don't know what I went through when you left us." Her eyes blurred the image of him as tears flooded her face.

He was hit by a tidal wave of guilt.

"I'm sorry, Ging. I'm so sorry..." He moved his hands gently on her shoulders, hoping to soothe her. But the gesture only added fuel to the fire that was already spreading inside of Roxanne. She shoved him away, pushing him hard.

"When you left, you took everything that I lived for . I was more ready to move on than I thought I'd ever be. And then I saw you. And then tonight..." She felt the tears stinging the back of her eyes but she held on, putting on a brave face.

"God knows I never wanted to leave you. I never wanted to abandon our children." He stepped closer again and tried to touch her arm. This time she didn't pull away.

She stared into his eyes. "I waited for you." All control vanished and she began to weep in earnest as she hit his chest.

He cupped her face in his hands. "I'm here now, right now, and I'm not going anywhere." He pulled her to him, holding her as they both cried.

She trembled against him, but he held her until she stopped shaking.

"It will not make any difference now, Chris," she managed to choke out as her sobs became debilitating. "Go back to your mom. We don't need you. Please just go," she whispered.

"I'm not going to leave you again. You don't have any idea how much I missed you."

Her hand reached to touch his face. Roxanne was losing it. She was losing her grip. She was losing control. She was clinging desperately to the idea of family.

"I've missed you...so much," she said, before she felt his mouth on her.

Roxanne's lips parted softly, letting the tip of his tongue slide in slightly. Her hands reached up to his neck and pulled him in as their mouths locked and their tongues danced, and their moaning filled the quiet street.

Chris pulled away breathlessly, resting his forehead against hers. They stood together, noting each other's heartbeats.

The moment they shared rekindled their passion, fire and love for each other.

All of which was witnessed by Wish, who'd just arrived to start his first shift.

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A/N:Yay for a new chapter! Moving on...is it that easy? Is it really that easy?Relationships are like glass. Sometimes its better to leave them broken than try to hurt yourself putting it back together. Nobody said it will be easy but sometimes the hardest decision to make are the right ones.