Chapter 1: The Morning After
I stretched my arms out wide, yawning loudly as if I was the only person in bed. I froze as my brain finally caught up and reminded me what I had been doing before I passed out at 4 in the morning.
I was balls deep in Selene.
Fuck. I had a one-night stand last night. I never do those things—well, there was a time when I was young. But I've never done it for a long, long time now. And last night was different from those drunken mistakes of a young, dumb kid.
It was hands down the best sex of my life.
I opened my eyes and slowly looked for her body beside me. But there was nothing but the scattered pillows and the comforter on the bed with me. If not for the empty foil packets on the floor, I would have thought that last night was just a fucked up wet dream.
But it happened. She fucking happened to me.
I don't know why this shocked me and left me staring at the ceiling for a solid five minutes. She repeatedly told me this was just a one-time thing. A one-night-stand.
A rebound.
Her sneaking out of my hotel room without leaving a note might be for the best. If just spending a night with her had already shook my core, nothing good would come out of waking up next to her.
This is for the best.
Gingerly, I sat up and decided to get a fucking grip. I relied on my daily morning routine and went about my morning on autopilot. I took a shower to try to erase what happened last night, even though I knew the scratches on my back won't heal for at least a few days.
Who am I kidding? I can still hear her gasps and whimpers, the little sound she makes when she is about to come. I can still feel her lips on my skin, her soft and pliant body against mine, and her walls flutterring and spasming around me. I can still feel her... I can still fucking taste her.
Groaning, I succumbed to the temptation and relived what happened last night with my hand under the shower.
***
I just finished getting dressed after my shower when my phone started ringing. I picked it up as soon as I read who was ringing me this early.
"Hey, J. What's up?" I aswered my best friend's call after the third ring.
"Where are you?" she asked in a way only Jamie can ask this early, aggresively.
"I'm in my room," I answered, rolling my eyes at my best friend, and my brother's wife. "Why? I thought the wedding festivities ended last night."
"Yeah, tapos na kagabi," she shotback without missing a beat. "Pero hindi ka man lang ba magpapakita sa amin after?"
A decade later and she still hasn't changed. She's still as dramatic as ever. But that's what we loved most about her, so I can't complain much. Her dramatic ass is not just entertaining to behold, but it also indicates her fierce loyalty to us, her people.
"That's not what I'm saying," I said, trying to explain to her. She's always extra grumpy in the mornings, I don't know how my brother does it. "I'm just asking if I missed something important."
"Fine." I can almost see the huge eye-roll she's doing right now.
"Why are you calling me this early, anyway?" I asked, noting the chaos around her on the other line.
"We're at the hotel's restaurant, eating breakfast. Why don't you come down and eat with us?"
I was planning to order room service for breakfast this morning, but I guess that's out of the picture since Jamie called and asked for an audience.
"Who are you with right now?" I had to ask. I won't go if our father's there and she knows it. I could only stomach seeing him for a while and I saw him plenty yesterday. I've reached my limit.
"River and the kids," Jamie answered softly, knowing what I was really asking.
"Okay, I'll be there in 15 minutes."
Jamie snorted a laugh. "Make it 10, Anakin's waiting for you."
I couldn't help the grin forming on my lips. I just really love my pumpkins, her and my brother's kids. "Alright, then. I better run."
If I have to make it in 10 minutes, I have to move fast. I pocketed my wallet and keycard as fast as I could, then wore my wristwatch as I exited my room.
I was about to drop the call when Jamie stopped me. "Wait, Lake!"
"Yeah?" I asked absentmindedly, pressing my phone back to my ear.
"I'm really glad you're back for good. The kids are excited to play with their favorite hankle every day."
Fuck. It will break their hearts when I tell them the truth. How do I break the news to my family that I am not staying? That they will only see me through a screen again and that they probably won't see me again after a long ass time?
I cleared the lump in my throat and reverted to Fun Uncle Lake. "I am their only handsome uncle, of course, they're excited to see me."
Jamie started chuckling. "Isusumbong talaga kita kay Kade."
With a smile, I entered the elevator and pressed the button to go to the hotel's restaurant. "No need, he already knows that. Even his future kids will pick me as their hankle."
"Whatever! Bilisan mo na bumaba, baka maubusan ka ng options dito sa buffet."
***
"Uncle Lake!" Anakin screamed as he saw me walk towards their table.
"Hey, kiddo," I greeted back as I messed with his hair. I looked around the table then gave my brother, River, a nod and tapped Jamie's shoulder. "Hey, guys."
"Hi, Uncle Lake," River's girl twin Amidala greeted me with her shy smile.
I moved to her and gave her a kiss on her head. "Hey, Princess."
"Uncle Lake! Uncle Lake! Let's get some chocolatesss!" I looked down and picked up the little dude who was hanging on my left leg.
"Hey, Percy," I greeted Jamie's twin, her youngest boy. "Isn't it a little early for chocolates?"
His little pout almost killed me. "But mommy said it's fine."
I looked at his mom for guidance and she was smiling back at us. "He ate his veggies so he's getting a pass. He and his ahia can get chocolate cereals for dessert."
Ahh, the ultimate weapon of parents of picky-eater kids—compromise.
"Alright, then." I reached my free hand towards my oldest nephew as his little brother kept clinging to my neck. "Let's go, Anakin. Show us where the good chocolate cereals are."
My oldest nephew jumped out of his seat with a huge grin on his face and took my hand, tugging us towards the breakfast buffet station.
We were about to reach the table filled with different variations of breakfast cereals when Percy screamed and pointed at a sleeping baby in the black stroller near us.
"Forest!"
Looking at my nephew, I couldn't help but smile at his excited little grin. "You know that kid, Percy?"
He nodded at me eagerly. "It's Tita Selene's baby!"
I froze at the mention of that name.
"Whose kid—?"
I wasn't able to finish that question because I saw the baby's mom suddenly appear at his side with the little blanket on his body. Our eyes met when she stood up after. Her gaze wandered at the scene in front of her.
From what happened last night, I thought she was going to dismiss us. But she flashed us her beautiful smile and started waving at us. "Hi, kids!" she even said to us, I mean, to the kids.
"Hello, Tita Selene!" Anakin greeted back as he pulled us towards them, my hand being tugged by his little ones.
Shit. I never thought I was going to meet her again, just hours after we hooked up.
My gaze wandered back to the sleeping baby boy in the stroller next to her. This isn't fucking happening right.
Fuuuck. Never in my wildest dreams that I will also get to meet her son.
My eyes went back to her and saw how amused she was at our current situation. Why does it feel like I am the only one who's freaking the fuck out right now? Why does she look so composed? So pristine.
So fucking perfect.
Perfectly made up. Not a hair out of place. Dressed immaculately.
And cool, calm, and collected.
She looked so different from the delirious woman screaming and shaking in my bed just a few hours ago, begging for me to never ever stop.
She must've noticed the thoughts swirling in my head by the gobsmacked expression on my face. I watched the slow smile she had for me last night appear again as we finally reached them.
"What? Not your usual MO, Lake Ongpauco?"
Before I could choke back an answer, Jamie appeared out of nowhere and hugged Selene, she's hugging my Selene.
"Oh, I see you've met our Selene," Jamie says to me after pulling away from my one-night stand.
"Huh?" I answered, still in shock.
I watched Jamie roll her eyes as she started introducing the two of us to each other. "Selene, meet Lake. River and Kade's long-lost cousin."
Selene raised her hand and wiggled her fingers in her attempt at a half-assed wave as if I wasn't having a blast last night between her thighs. "Hi, Lake."
Jamie turns to me and points at Selene. "Lake, meet Selene Valdez, River's executive assistant."