In Love With You

Chapter 76

Just when you think things can't get any worse, they do…  I've learned that life is like hour glass sand…  Sooner or later, everything hits rock bottom, but all you have to do is be patient and wait for something to turn everything back around…

Traffic was bad and Alexa, being in a foul mood even before they left the house, cussed each time she stepped on the break…  David tried to lighten up the mood but his friendly banters were met with smirks and a more curses…  She expertly weaved her way through traffic and honked at anyone who would cut her off…  David wasn’t impressed at all though and could only shake his head…  He thought his driving was bad enough but Alexa was worst …  Sarah sat quietly at the back as she did not want to provoke Alexa…  Jackie who was tailing Alexa could only watch her helplessly…

Val :  Crissy, remind me not to get in the car if Alexa would be at the wheel…  (All of them laughed…)

James :  And I thought David’s driving was bad…

Jackie :  Crissy, why did you allow her to drive?

The road that led to the resthouse was winding and sometimes near the edge of a steep cliff…  The view was breathtaking sans the tall buildings of the city blocking the horizon…  But looking down, David did not like what he saw…  He thought it was a long way down the cliff and with the way Alexa was driving, they would be there at the bottom in no time…

David :  Will you please stop right here?

Alexa :  What for?

David :  Just……  Stop the car, will you?  (David got out pulling her with him she had to crawl out his side of the door…  David told Sarah to stay inside…)  What’s bothering you?  You are scaring me don’t you know that?  (Alexa was embarrassed being told off about the way she handled the wheel…)

Jackie who drove leisurely allowing James and Val to enjoy the view of the famous Taal Volcano, saw them parked at the side of the road and thought something was wrong…  She stopped along side them…

Jackie :  Is there something wrong?  Why did you stop?

David :  It’s alright Jackie…  Go ahead…  We will be right behind you in a while…  I just want to admire the view…  (Jackie eased on the gas and moved on…)  I’ll drive you go inside…  (He opened the door and Alexa slid on the passenger side of the car…  Alexa knew it would not be wise to argue with him now…)

From the rear view mirror, Jackie saw David moving to the driver’s seat…  She decided to slow down and wait for them…

Jackie :  Probably David got scared so he took the wheel…

James :  Good for him…  (Everyone sighed with relief…)

Jackie :  You’d be surprised, James, that is one of the reasons why I hired a driver for her…  Where her job is concerned, patience is her virtue…  Unfortunately, it’s just not so when she’s behind the wheel…

Jackie turned and entered the gate that led to the subdivision…  David saw a guard coming out of his post and saluted to the driver of the car infront of them…

David :  Are we here?

Alexa :  (Seemed to be jolted from deep thought…)  Huh?  Oh yes…  Please roll down your window…

David loved the view where the road led them and from where they were traversing, the volcano seemed to be closer and he suddenly felt eerie…  From afar this tiny cone mound sitting in the middle of the big body of water looked calm and majestic… and lonely…  And the longer he looked at it, this odd feeling seemed to reveal what laid beyond its mystique…

There were a few houses around the area they were negotiating and most of them seemed to be empty and lonely…  David thought the place was idyllic for Alexa’s respite since she had to spend most of her time in the city owing to her job…

After a few more minutes of driving, they came to a place where the houses were fewer, bigger and far in between…  One caught David’s eye as it was sitting at a vantage pointand no one could miss it without appreciating…  David thought unlike the ones they just passed by, he felt different about this house…  That even if it would be empty and seldom visited by its owner, it could never look lonely with a beautiful garden to compliment it…  He got the feeling that one without the other would destroy its existence…  The garden provided a warm welcome and the house assured a comfortable place for its visitors, he thought…  David could not take his eyes off it and wondered what kind of people lived in it…  He was sure of one thing though…  Its owner wasn’t selfish…  He did not even put a fence to hide his garden…  From the road, David could see the graveled pathway leading to a round dais with a bird fountain in the middle…  He had always wanted a house with a beautiful garden to settle with the woman he would spend the rest of his life with…

He turned to look at Alexa who seemed to be thinking of something else looking out the window devoid of all expressions and pictured himself with her in his arms by the fountain…  At that beautiful part of his reverie, he sought to hold her hand startling Alexa…  David’s eyes were already on the road when Alexa looked at him and there she saw a blissful expression…  She imagined him in a beautiful place, loving it…  When she saw the garden up ahead, she could see him in the middle of the dais standing by the fountain with her in his arms…

Alexa :  (A smile formed on David’s face prompting her to ask…)  Where are you, David?

David :  (He looked at her briefly and turned to face the road again…)  Somewhere with you…  You felt it, right?  You saw yourself there too, right?  (He raised the hand he held to his lips…  Both of them seemed oblivious of another passenger at the backseat who was totally loving the scene happening right before her eyes…)  I could feel you were there with me…  My heart understands now…  Your mind can be at peace even when I’m not with you…

A more intricate detail of the garden and the house were unfolded as they drove near…  With its big windows David could almost picture what its rooms would look inside…  That although bare, sans its decorations, the view of the majestic volcano and the nature surrounding it would be enough to enhance them…  Suddenly he felt an urge to be inside this house…  As they rounded the corner, David saw a familiar van parked just outside the wooden gate prompting him to ask excitedly…

David :  Is this your place?

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