NOTE!: If you are reading this now, I'm so glad to have gotten this far into the story. I'm so happy you are reading this. Thanks so muchhhh! As always I appreciate every read, votes, comments, reading lists...I also like to comment back! :)
Anywho, again, there are Filipino words. English translation & meanings are under parentheses. Enjoy this next chapter! Starting chapter 8 I will start changing point of views. Hint: you'll get to see what's in that brain of Jay's. :)
I'm also dedicating this to @DaggerInMyHeart...because she's been a fan since the beginning. :) <3
Also...the video on the side, ignore the lyrics. Some of them are wrong. :)
CHAPTER SEVEN
Everyday should be a new day
To make you smile and find a new way
Of falling in love
Falling In Love—McFLY
Saturday was Penny’s favorite day of the week, and today continued that tradition. She and Jay were trying again, and Tom, Nathan, and the rest of the guys took the news fairly well; that morning started off perfectly.
When it was time for them to part however, that saddened her. The band had to drive down to Downtown LA for a meeting and magazine photoshoot, and she had to go to her last cardio class for that final. She gave each member, except Jay, a kiss on the cheek before she left, since she was in a happy mood, and Jay a sweet peck.
“Stop by KV’s when you’re done?” Penny pleaded to the guys. “Josie would be so happy to see you guys.”
“Of course!” Nathan grinned. The six of them huddled for a group hug, squeezing Penny in. Clearly, they all didn’t want her to leave.
“It’ll only be a few hours, give or take!” Penny giggled. She managed to squiggle her way out of the hug and walked to the door.
“Not so fast!” Jay gently grabbed her arm and pulled her back for a proper kiss. She smiled into the kiss and let the kiss linger.
“Now we’re going to be late!” Nathan scoffed.
“When are we ever early?” Siva poked Nathan’s arm lightly. “You’re not even dressed yet!”
Tom examined his trackpants and shirt. He looked at the others as well, realizing that they were still in their jammies. “Hey—hang on a minute…we’re all not dressed yet!!”
“Oh fuck.” Max exclaimed.
Penny pulled from Jay’s kiss and grinned. “Good luck getting there on time!” She left their hotel room laughing as the five boys dash to their rooms to get dressed.
Penny went straight to cardio class from the hotel. It was an easy A, since the professor graded everyone for attendance. After those long two hours, she went back home to shower. She washed off the dirt, sweat, and tears she had encountered within the last 24 hours. She reminisced what happened from the moment Tom visited her at KV’s until this morning at the hotel. Now that her summer will start soon, she knew a different kind of adventure was going to happen: she was going on the road with The Wanted, and she couldn’t wait.
She wrapped a towel around her hair turban style and wore a cotton towel robe as she got out of the shower. She walked out to her room and hummed a random tune while she pulled open the underwear drawer. That was when she remembered Jay’s phone.
As she picked out new underwear, she also reached her hand deeper in the cabinet for that phone. Her fingers brushed past something sleek and slippery, with a round dent toward the end. She found it.
She pulled it out without ruining the organization of the drawer and pushed it closed. She studied the black iPhone, slowly spinning it around. It was definitely one of Jay’s lost phones.
She smiled at the dark screen, seeing her reflection. She couldn’t believe she was going to give it back to him later today. Jay will be so happy that one of his phones was found. Immediately she stuck it in her purse and went to get ready for work.
Penny decided to wear a yellow lace dress with matching flats to work today; she was especially cheerful as the sun. She walked into work and already saw some familiar studious college students at the café with large headphones over their ears, studying hard. She waved at the morning barista, a former classmate, and continued to walk down to the back. She hummed that same song she hummed earlier, catching the attention from her favorite cousin, Josie. Josie, wearing a shirt, jeans and a pink tutu, skipped over to her.
“Hi Ate (Ah-teh; older sister/cousin) Penny!” She greeted her with a hug around the waist.
“Hello my little pinsan (pin-san; cousin)!” Penny squeezed her close. “How was your night last night?”
“We had macaroni and cheese for dinner and watched Pirates of the Caribbean on TV! Orlie Bloom is maganda (ma-gan-da; beautiful).”
Penny laughed and continued to walk to the back, where the staff room was. “Oh, Josie…you’re still too young for him.”
“I can dream! He’s my future husband!”
Shaking her head with a smile, Penny entered the back room walked by her aunt, who had just finished her lunch. Her aunt immediately eyed her curiously. Penny greeted her with a kiss on a cheek before she made her way to her locker.
“Morning Tita (Tee-tah; aunt).”Penny still felt her aunt’s eyes crawling on her back. She stuffed her purse in her locker and shut it. She looked back and raised her eyebrows. “…What is it?”
“You just look…different. Tumingin ka masaya (To-meen-gan kah mah-sah-ya; You look happy)…” She furrowed her brows, deep in thought. Penny watched confusedly as her aunt’s eyes began to widen and continuously pointed at her. “Oh! Ohhhh. You had sex! And it was good!”
Penny gasped in shock as her cheeks burned immediately. Thankfully, the door was closed. “Tita!!! Oh my God, do you have to say it like that?!”
“You know me! I’m loud!” She was grinning ear to ear. She stood up and hugged her niece. “So! Who was it? Sino (See-no; Who)?”
Penny bit her lip with a smile. She knew after that she wouldn’t be able to stop smiling. “Well, remember that young man you couldn’t remember the name of…?”
Aunt Kelly screamed in excitement. “Jay!? Talaga! (Ta-la-ga; really) My God, Jay?! Are you back with him again?” Penny nodded and her aunt gave her the biggest hug ever. “I like him! He is good for you. Don’t let him go like last time, okay? I didn’t like you all sad and depressed.”
“Not to worry, Tita,” she said reassuringly with a smile, “It’ll be okay now.”
That afternoon, Penny sat at the practically empty café, checking on her Samsung Fascinate Android phone. She caught up with her emails from friends, texts, and even voicemails from last night. Surprisingly, most of the voicemails were from Danny.
“Hey Penny, it’s Danny. Just wanted to make sure that you’re okay. I really want to see you. We haven’t seen each other for a month. I know Tom mentioned that he might have revived old memories earlier this evening; he felt really bad”—Typical Tom, Penny thought to herself—”Talk to you soon—beep; new message—I’m stopping by KV’s tomorrow.”
As if on cue, the sliding entrance slid open, and in walked Danny Fuentes, whom Penny still consider as her long lost brother. He came in wearing a suave looking business suit, searching for someone, presumably her.
Penny watched him remove his sunglasses, which revealed his brown eyes. He was Filipino like she was, but had darker skin. The suit fitted him well, almost making him look like some sort of sexy secret agent.
“Who is he? He’s cute,” said the new afternoon barista across the counter. She’s an almost sophomore at Sunshine who had just started working at KV’s for the incoming summer sessions. Barely nineteen, she was eager to get a job to get away from home for the summer, especially since she happened to be Penny’s ex-boyfriend’s stepsister. Despite the relations to her ex, Penny considered her a good friend.
“That’s Danny, Hales.” Penny smiled and went up to greet him. “Danny!”
Danny’s face lit up the moment he saw Penny. “Oh! Pen, hey!” I was so worried about you.” They greeted each other with a long embrace.
FLASHBACK—Early March, an hour after The Wanted left town
After an hour of crying, Penny stared at her bed with untidy sheets and pillows with large dents in the middle. She particularly stared at the pillow on the left, where Jay last slept. He was gone, and she was devastated.
It was her very first heartbreak that no one knew about, that heartbreak she never knew coming. She sat on his side of the bed and smelled that cologne he wore, still lingering around her. Her lips quivered as she pulled the sheets to her nose, to take in that scent once more. He had always smelled good. The funny thing was, the many times Tom and Nathan came in they had never noticed Jay’s familiar smell. It was probably because he was also there in person too.
This was so strange of Penny to react this way. She and Jay were simply playing by the rules. Yes, they were attracted to each other, and they did many things a couple had done…but in the end, it was all fun and games. However…nothing else can explain the feelings that showed the moment they first met…
She was in love with him. And she broke the rule. The question now, was he in love with her, too?
No, he wasn’t. He left her without saying goodbye. Which meant that he led her on, that the two months they spent together was simply just a joke. He followed the rules.
She squeezed her eyes shut and sobbed into the sheets. She was utterly upset with herself. A clever guy like Jay, in love with her? A guy who made her laugh, played silly pranks with her, stayed with her watching movies or having conversations till the early morning, in love with her? A perfect guy who was a member of a popular boy band, in love with her?
She was kidding herself. It was probably part of his master scheme, part of his way whenever he gets close to his fans. But, she wasn’t just a fan…she was his bandmate’s best friend. He couldn’t have played her…otherwise, if she ever told Tom, Tom would give him what he deserved. But she didn’t want that to happen.
Penny sniffled as she let go of the sheets and forced herself to stand up. She was going to have to wash these sheets later, but she knew she wasn’t going to for a while.
She left her bedroom and surveyed the living room. The scent of popcorn from last night still hovered the air. She closed her eyes as more tears fell. When she opened them, she noticed a black rectangular object sitting on the table. She moved closer to the table to get a clearer look. Its edges on four corners were curved, with a large slippery flat screen and a round button on the bottom. It was Jay’s iPhone. He left it here…
The whole band, even Jay, had told her that Jay was prone to losing his phone. This was probably one of those times. She picked it up delicately, examining its beauty. He was always checking his phone, updating his Twitter, a social network she didn’t have. He liked keeping in touch with his fans. Out of sheer curiosity, she pressed the round button.
The screen’s light illuminated her face, showing many notifications she had no idea what of. The only thing she recognized was Nathan’s Twitter name, and he wrote something in relation to Jay’s missing phone:
“NathanTheWanted: It appears that our friend has managed to lose his phone yet again…”
Penny sighed sadly. What was she going to do with the now…throw it away? She groaned and set it back on the table, with her thumb accidentally pressing the round button again. The screen’s light was still bright, displaying Jay’s phone wallpaper. She furrowed her brows, leaning forward to see the wallpaper.
It was a picture of her. Sleeping peacefully on her bed, with the covers over her body.
She went numb. Before she had more time to react, she heard the front door cracked open. The familiar, smooth voice of Danny was heard coming inside. Penny slipped Jay’s phone in her back pocket, pulled a tissue from the Kleneex box nearby and wiped her tears.
“Hey Pen, I brought you some breakfas—” He saw Penny wiping her tears. Immediately he went over to her with a look of concern. “Penny, what happened?”
“O-Oh…” She smiled with a sniffle. She had to think of something, fast. “Nathan just sent me a really sweet message via email before he and Tom departed. He’s just…really sweet.
“Aw, hey, come here…” He frowned, giving her a warm embrace. She was surprised he took that well. “They’ll come back soon enough. Heck, I miss Tom already. We hardly got to hang out while he was here.”
“Things got really hectic at school, huh?”
“Most definitely. But. I got time for my favorite girl.” He grinned and showed her a brown paper bag filled with chocolate filled croissants. This made Penny cheer up a little.
She sat at the table while Danny, the gentleman, started gathering plates for their breakfast. She couldn’t help but think, though, that Jay had her picture on his wallpaper. Did he feel the same way, too? If he did, why did he leave without saying goodbye? If he didn’t…either way it probably didn’t mean anything. She didn’t mean a thing. And neither did he.
PRESENT DAY
“Everything’s okay over here!” She said cheerfully as she studied him. “Gosh, Dan, are you trying to steal Tom’s hairstyle? Cause it’s looking good for you.”
It was true; his hair was spiked up, similar to Tom’s. He laughed. “We do share similar qualities you know.”
“And the suit?”
“Oh, this? I gotta head back to that internship at the law firm in an hour. But, I can stay for a while.”
The two of them sat at the café, catching up on their lives. Haley the barista offered coffee for Danny. He immediately accepted. Penny told him of her night; naturally, she skipped the parts about Jay.
“So where’s Erin?” Penny asked as he took a sip of his hazelnut coffee.
“Studying for her finals.” He replied with a smile. “Always studying, that one. Think we can reschedule that reunion dinner soon?”
“Of course we can, Danny boy!” Tom’s voice rang through the whole store. Both Danny and Penny turned toward the entrance: The Wanted has finally entered the building.
Danny grinned from ear to ear as he stood up to greet his old friend. “Tommy boy!”
Penny noticed the guys’ photoshoot attire, all wearing graphic shirts, jeans and various shoe wear (boots, converses, sneakers and the like). Max and Siva had some nice simple blazers on and Nathan wore a colorful cap over his head. Tom simply didn’t wear anything over his shirt. Jay, however, despite the warm weather outside, wore a black leather jacket. She smiled at him when she realized he was staring at her.
Suddenly, the sound of kitchenware clanked loudly on the tiles behind the counter. Some bounced back and forth. Another crashed and rattled. The band, Danny, and Penny turned their attention to, not to Penny’s surprise, Haley, who seemed to have made the commotion. Shocked and quickly turning red in the face, her mouth made an ‘O’ shape.
“Shit!” She slapped her hands over her cheeks, startled. Penny immediately rushed to her aid. “I am so sorry, Penny…I-I just…I…”
Haley had dropped a few empty blender cups; neither were cracked or broken, but it was a mug that broke. Penny knew that mug well—her aunt needed to get a new set anyway. She smiled calmly, “It’s okay, Hales. Don’t worry about it.”
Everything alright, Pen?” Nathan and Jay stood near the small door that was attached to the counter.
Haley immediately hid her face from them, Penny noticed. She seemed to be making an attempt to distract herself by surveying the things she dropped. Penny remembered she was a fan. She started to smile until she saw the long, diagonal line of a fresh cut on Haley’s ankle. “Oh Hales…you’re bleeding.”
“What…?” She followed Penny’s gaze and also noticed the cut. There were three droplets of blood dripping slowly, starting to tickle her. She started feeling it. “…That must’ve been the mug.”
She whimpered lightly as she and Penny carefully walked over the broken pieces of the mug. Penny set her near the back door that led to the kitchen. As Penny calmed her down, she turned to Nathan. She had an idea.
“Hey, Nath, do me a favor? Can you help my good friend Haley clean up this gash?”
“Sure.” Nathan immediately accepted. He made his way behind the counter past the broken mug pieces and blender cups on the floor.
Haley made a small audible gasp. She was too late to react. “Oh, oh no, that really isn’t necessary—”
“Great!” Penny clapped her hands as Nathan stood next to her. “Nathan, this is Haley; Haley, Nathan. You know where the kit is, right, Hales?”
“…Yes…” Haley replied shyly, only glancing at Nathan a few times. Nathan smiled softly. “I-I’ll lead you to it.”
Haley turned to the door, which Nathan opened and held for her. She blushed harder.
As they went inside and the door swung closed, Penny began to pick up the blender cups and set them aside. She grabbed the broom and swept the broken pieces into the dustpan. A few minutes later, she kept it there and leaned backwards against the counter. She found herself staring at the kitchen door and wondered what she just did.
“You are playing matchmaker with them, aren’t you?” Jay said in her ear. He had hopped on the counter table and sat on the opposite end.
Penny turned around and smiled innocently. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.”
He raised his eyebrows and scoffed with a laugh. “Penny! Did you not see how she was avoiding Nath? Nath clearly looked smitten by her! You just sent them do their doom!”
Penny grinned. That might have been the plan; Haley was cute with her body shaped like an hourglass. Her straight long hair was the color of rich brown, and her eyes emerald green. Of course Nathan would be smitten by her. She was the complete opposite of her stepbrother, that’s for sure. And, Haley absolutely adored Nathan. So what other better ways to meet him when he can be the one to mend her slightly injured ankle?
Jay spun around the counter to face her. “Clever, Penny. Really clever.” He finally greeted her with a soft kiss. Penny kissed back, not letting go. She pulled him closer to make him stand with her.
“She’s a fan,” She explained, “I just made her dream come true.”
He began to giggle. “It reminded me of that time when we snuck in the back after I slipped on this very floor. I was trying to make you a cappuccino, remember?”
Penny also giggled at the thought. She slapped his chest lightly and said quietly. “Shh! My aunt still doesn’t know about that!”
They both continued to giggle amongst themselves. That day was when Penny first brought Jay to the store. Her aunt was already in love with him the moment he walked in. Josie and her little friends kept following him, too; they were completely marveled by his cuteness. Penny also remembered that after she helped Jay clean up the mess in the kitchen, Jay persuaded her to play nurse behind the kitchen…
“Oh my gosh, Jay…” Penny held her stomach from giggling so much. She then noticed behind Jay that Danny was coming over. Her giggle suddenly went abrupt, sounding as if she had a hiccup. She covered her mouth.
“Hey Pen, I have to get going now.” Danny announced.
Jay stiffened next to her. Already, Penny noticed the tension between them. She even noticed Tom in the background between empty tables with Max and Siva, watching them cautiously. Why do they not like each other? She wondered. Whatever happened between them must’ve been seriously bad…
Danny glanced at Jay, who finally turned around and snaked an arm around Penny. Danny wasn’t impressed. “Jay.”
“Danny.” Jay replied coolly. He squeezed Penny close, with their waists touching. Even though Penny was confused, she didn’t want to start anything. She was slightly afraid to.
“Phew…” Penny exhaled a breath, hoping to break the silence and the tension between them. “Um…I’ll see you later, Danny? It’s really nice of you to stop by.”
“Oh, yeah…next week,” He was himself, relaxed, for just a few seconds. “Tom agreed for next week before he goes on that promo tour.”
“Great!” Penny let out a smile. “I’ll see you and Erin then!”
“Yeah, bye.” He turned around, avoiding Jay’s cold stare and left. It was then Penny felt Jay’s muscles slowly beginning to relax. Even Tom looked relieved.
“That was a close one…” Said Max amongst Tom and Siva. They both nodded in agreement.
They let go of each other. Penny looked at Jay, her eyes searching his for answers. But right now, he looked unreadable. She asked him, calmly. “…Jay?...What the hell was that about?”
Jay rubbed his face with his hands and sighed, exasperated “You wouldn’t believe it if I told you, Pen…” He slid over the counter and silently walked past Tom, who eyed him curiously. He, too, had the same question in mind as Penny.
Penny frowned. She figured it was serious. It was best not to ask him about it right now, and let Jay cool off for a while.
She watched him walk past the entrance door, where Josie came running in. She and Aunt Kelly had just come back from lunch. Josie squealed. “Kuya (Koo-yah; older brother, cousin, friend) Jay!!!”
Jay’s face immediately lit up as he took her in his arms. Of course he had to bring out his smile whenever he’s around Josie; for now, he had to put that anger aside. “Little Jo! Wow, you’ve gotten a little taller, haven’t you?”
“Kuya Siva, Kuya Max!” She shouted as she saw them at the café. The two of them then followed her and Jay to the children’s section. Tom, however, greeted Aunt Kelly as she walked straight to the cashier table, where she noticed a customer heading towards it with books. He looked to Penny, who was still standing there, still trying to process what had happened. He walked over to her and slid his hand in hers.
That woke her up a little. She looked back at Tom as he squeezed it lightly, letting her know that it will be okay. “Just give him time.”
Yes, Penny thought to herself as she nodded, Give him some time to cool off.