Lia was awakened by the sound of her alarm. She found herself alone in bed. She quickly changes her clothes because she hasn’t packed her luggage. On her way out of the room she saw Alex sleeping on the couch and then she remembers having a weird dream last night, in her dream Alex is kissing her while she’s sleeping that it feels so real looking at her sleeping friend.
She decided to wake her up afraid that she will miss her flight back home “Alex wakes up. You might not catch your flight. I’m heading out now. Bye!”
They didn’t meet after that but Alex was surprised to see Lia that she frowns “Why are you here?” she asked when Lia is walking to her. They are inside the plane going back to New York.
Alex just wanted to leave everything that happened in there. Her feelings. Her desire. Her wants.
Loving someone who is already married is a sin.
Loving someone who is married to a cheater is awful.
But loving someone from a far is somehow acceptable if you will not cross the line.
“I’m sorry but I am on this flight too. If you don’t want me to be here, I can switch seat” Lia didn’t like how Alex sounded like she doesn’t want her to be near her.
“It’s okay I am just surprised that we’re on the same flight” Alex thought that she might offended the girl so she quickly changed her way of talking to her.
When Lia is busy checking her luggage, Alex thought that she can finally start forgetting about her, she just wants to stop herself from falling deeply. She knows that it’s wrong and it will only bring her to nowhere other than a painful path. There is no hope but fate keeps on playing with her.
Lia is observing her, trying out figure on what she is thinking. The tension building within them is somehow very confusing to Lia that she is eager to find out what it was.
‘Alex, is there something wrong?” The other girl finally looks at her and shoot an apologetic smile for ignoring her.
“Sorry, just thinking about work and stuffs” Alex lied. All that was running through her mind is Lia but she is not ready to confess and she knows she can’t.
Sitting side by side makes Alex happy and scared at the same time. Happy that at least she can still be with Lia for the last time and scared of herself if she can control herself and makes another mistake again.
Halfway through the flight back to New York, Lia is fast asleep, banging her head left and right that Alex decides to offer her shoulder for her sleep comfortably.
“Can we still be friends after this trip?”
“.…”
“Will I ever see you again?”
“...”
“I want to be with you. I want to protect you from him”
“...”
“You don’t deserve someone like him. Can you open your heart for me?” Alex is talking with the sleeping Lia on her shoulder. The questions that she wanted to ask her but couldn’t find strength to personally tell her.
Tucking the hair that falls to her face Alex stare at her again like she’s memorizing every part of her tiny face before joining her to sleep with head leaning towards her with a bittersweet smile painted on her face.
Hearing the announcement of them already landed to New York, the two wakes up looking through the window double checking if they really home.
Lia looks up to see Alex looking at her waiting for her to straighten up before stretching her aching shoulder “Thanks for lending me you shoulder but are you okay? Does it hurt, your shoulder?”
“Nah, it’s fine no worries” they both laugh and talk for a little while before getting of the plane.
Alex and Lia went on separate ways upon getting off the plane. Lia went straight to the conveyor to get her luggage as she can’t wait to see her family again.
At the arrival, Lia has been calling her husband nonstop because Nick is supposed to be the one picking her up with their kids but it’s been an hour since she arrived but she still cannot get a hold of her husband.
Looking around hoping to see her husband, she saw Alex walking to her “Hey, why are you still here?”
“I bumped into a colleague of mine. We just catch up. How about you, why are you still here?” Alex lied again. She was waiting for Lia to leave just to make sure she is safe but after almost an hour she decided to finally approach her.
“I’ve been calling my husband but he’s not picking up his phone. I think I’ll just take a cab” Lia looks at the taxi bay and to her disappointment, there are no available taxi.
“Let’s go. I’ll give you a ride at this hour, it will take you another hour before you could book a taxi here”
“No, I don’t want to trouble you anymore, Alex. I’ll just wait here”
“I won’t take no for an answer. Let’s go” Alex grabs her luggage and walking away going to the parking lot.
Lia is smiling while shaking her head following her friend Alex. Despite being in the industry for so long, Lia really doesn’t have friends like those who she can always call to share her worries or problems or just to hang out.
Alex went to the Blue Corvette car that Lia didn’t imagine her to be driving “Alex, I don’t think our luggage will fit in your car”
Alex then realizes that her car is too small for their luggage. She’s pouting while thinking of ways to fit it in. Lia found her adorable that she can’t help but to pinch her cheeks.
True to her words that it will fit, Alex manages to put it all except for her bag pack “Lia, I never let anyone touch this precious bag of me. Believe me when I say that no one. But I will let you hold it so that we can go. But please care of it because my career is in your hands now”
“Sounded so dramatic like it will kill you when I scratch this bag. I didn’t know you have that side. You are so cute”
“There is more that you haven’t seen in me but if you want, I can show you” Alex seductively whispers to her as she opens the door for her. It makes her shiver and it feels like there’s a butterfly on her stomach.
With just 5 days there are a lot that she can feel that is very unusual to her. She is not the one to be easily flustered. Most importantly, it is very strange foe her to be attracted to some besides her husband, let alone it was a woman.
“Lia, where should I drive you?” they’ve been on the road for quite a while engage with different topics that Alex forgot to ask where she lives.
“North Hills”
“Are you serious? I live there too”
Fate is really playing on her. Why do they have to live in the same neighborhood? How will she avoid her then? Those are the things running through her mind. There is no way for her to distance herself to Lia.
Lia places her hand on Alex thigh and squeeze it a little “Wow! I can finally have a friend now. I really like you, Alex. I hope we could be best friends” A happy Lia tells her not knowing she’s torturing Alex with what she’s doing to her. Alex then chooses to hold her hand instead “That would be a good idea. We can hang out then”
She’s gambling, she’s betting to something that she doesn’t have a high chance of winning but willing to go all out for a chance of having a once in lifetime happiness…. if she will win at the end.
“Are you joking? This is your house?”
Lia was startled “Yes. Why?”
“That’s my house” Alex pointed to the house just across the street from Lia’s house and now there is really no reason for her not to see Lia.
“This is so unbelievable” Alex smirk knowing that she can catch her cheating husband on act.
“Come inside. I want you to meet my kids” Lia tells he while Alex is getting her luggage out of her car. As she walks inside the house, she suddenly felt something is not right.
The sound of the TV from the living room welcomes them. Lia saw her children watching their favorite cartoon.
“I’m home!” Lia surprised them and the kids run up to her.
“Mommy!”
“I miss you. Did you behave well?” She asks while she pick up her son Andrei then Andy notice that there is someone behind her mother “Oh kids, I want you to meet my friend Alex”
Andy went to hug her and Andrei wants to go to her and be carried by her that shock Lia because never did she saw her kids like that to someone they just met. They are not fond of someone else touching or holding them.
“Hi kids. How are you doing?” She greeted them
“Are you going to visit us more often now?” Andy asks as she hold Alex hand.
“If your mom will let me, then I will be here every day if I am not working” The 3 look at Lia with puppy eyes that they are certain that she will agree.
“Stop with those eyes. Okay Alex can visit if she’s not busy”
“Yehey!” the 3 rejoice and Alex bring Andrei down and started playing with them.
Lia have never seen her kids that happy before. She does play with them but Alex seems to have a charm that also captures her kids’ heart not only her.
As a mother, you will take whatever it was just to keep what’s making her kids smile and happy and that is Alex.
“Andy, where is Maria and your dad?” Lia asks while looking around where she can’t see them and Maria is supposed to be looking after the kids.
Alex pretended that she is not listening to them as she continues to play with Andrei who’s been giggling nonstop looking at her.
“They are upstairs” Andy answer. Alex cannot help it but to raise an eyebrow and she knew that something is going on upstairs. Lia didn’t ask anymore and about to go upstairs to check on them that Alex suddenly stops her.
“Can I ask for a glass of water, please?” Alex didn’t know what gotten to her. It was her chance but she knew it was not the right time for that not when the kids are around.
When Lia went to the kitchen, Alex intentionally drops the small vase that she saw just to get the attention of those who are upstairs. Lia frantically run to her and exhaled to see that the kids are not hurt “I’m sorry I broke your vase. I suddenly felt dizzy”
“That’s fine. Are you okay? Did you get hurt?” Lia asks while checking her. Maria came running down the stairs with a messy hair followed by her husband who is wearing just her boxer shorts.
Nick saw her wife and Alex and run back upstairs to change.
“Mrs. Jones, leave it me. Let me get the broom” Maria nervously walks away to the kitchen.
Alex is eyeing Maria and Nick; both are nervous and she is so sure that they are having sex and almost got caught leaving the children alone.
“Hon, I’ve been calling you. Why are you not answering your phone?” Lia asks her husband who is looking at Alex. The way he is looking at her is like those men at the bar.
“I didn’t know that you’ll be home today, I thought it will be tomorrow so I attended a video conference” Nick explains with a nervous laugh. By the way he’s behaving, makes him look so stupid trying to hide his crime.
“We already talked about it. Anyways, I want you to meet my friend Alex. She’s our photographer who happens to be our neighbor too” Alex smirk with the uneasy look on Nick and Maria is listening at the back. Alex is thinking of an idea on how to expose the two.
Alex extended her hand to Nick “Nice to meet you. I’m Alex” Nick changed when he felt something with how Alex is smiling at him. It was not a friendly smile but a smile that has a motive behind that he can’t figure out.
“Same here. Good to meet you. Nicholas Jones but you can just call me Nick. Your Alex…?”
“Just Alex. My last name is not important” She immediately cut him. She is really not comfortable to let others know her last name and also it is easy for her not to be track by her family.
Lia then realizes that she too doesn’t know her last name. Alex is so mysterious in her own way that she needs to hide even her family name.
While the adults are talking, Andy and Andrei is pulling Alex away from them because they wanted to play with her again. The married couple are watching how their kids interact with Alex that they never been like that even with their family member.
“Mama, come play with us” Andy says and Andrei the little boy copied her sister “Mama! Mama!’
Nick furrows her eyebrow; he doesn’t like how his kids is calling her ‘mama’ and how they easily open up to her
“Uhm. Excuse me” Alex carries Andrei and run to the living room. The children laughter echoed throughout the house. It was not a problem for Lia because she’s happy seeing her children happy.
When Alex and the kids are out of sight Nick angrily confronted his wife “What the fuck was that? Why are you letting them call her that?”
“I don’t know. Andy just calls her that. And I don’t see any problem with that”
“So, you will just allow them. You will not do anything to stop them?”
“What do you want me to do then? I don’t see anything wrong with that. Can’t just let it slide for our kids” Lia fight back. The argument is useless and should not be a big deal for them.
“There is something wrong with that. You won’t even ask them to be close to Maria and yet that woman they just met not long ago were so close with them that easily. Don’t you think that was unfair for Maria?”
“So, you being like this is because of her, because of Maria. It’s not my problem if they don’t like her with how they like Alex. I can’t force them to do something that they don’t want”
“Just do something! I don’t like that woman. Stay away from her”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Nick. She is not the issue her. You’re the reason why we are having this kind of argument. You’re being too sensitive with the relationship of our kids with Maria. I think before you think of someone else problem, you should think of ways how you will improve your relationship with your own children.
Lia didn’t know where her courage came from that she was able to fight her husband. She can hear him cursing as she walks away. She returns to the living room to join her kids and Alex.
“Everything okay?” Alex sat beside her letting the kids play on their own. She somehow manages to hear them talking.
“Yes, nothing to worry” Lia sigh as she put her hand on Alex thigh “You should go now, Alex. You haven’t had a proper rest”
“I am actually getting drained. Your kids is eating up every energy that I saved up” Lia laughs.
Unknown to them is Nick watching them. He didn’t like how the two is being so clingy and touchy of each other.
“Kids, Alex needs to go home say goodbye now” Lia announce that earn her a whine from the kids who doesn’t want to let Alex go. Andrei even started crying that Lia tries to stop him but no avail.
Alex picks him up and carry him on her arm “Pumpkin, stop crying. Do you want to walk me to my house?” he stops crying and nodded his head. “Can we?” She asks their mother who has no choice but to agree.
‘We’ll walk and wait for you up front” Lia told her upon seeing her 2-door car who can only fit 2 people.
“Mommy I want to ride Mama’s car”
“Car! Car!” Little Andrei chanted.
“It’s a 2 minutes ride. You hold Andy and I’ll hold Andrei” and that was what they did. The kids are really having fun with Alex company.
Alex let the family inside her house. Lia is at awe with how organized and clean her house was. The design is minimalist and she like how she made it so simple.
“You’ve got yourself a beautiful home”
“Thank you. Glad you like it”
They kept quiet for a while watching the kid play with each other. Andy and Andrei ae just happily running, screaming and laughing like they have never before.
“We better get going. We’ve caused you so much trouble already”
“Nonsense. I enjoyed their company, if you need a baby sitter, just feel free to knock on my door and I am more than willing to look after them” The truth is she doesn’t’t want the kids to be left alone with Maria who is having an affair with their father.
“I’ll take note of that. Kids time to go. Alex is tired” they didn’t whine anymore as they were visibly tired and sleepy already.
Opening that front door for them, Andy and Andrei walk out first hand in hand while Lia and Alex stay behind.
Before Lia follow her children, Alex grabs her on the waist. They were both surprised that makes her remove it instantly.
“Sorry. Can I have your number?” Lia chuckle seeing her being so shy.
“Silly. There you go” Alex is like a high school student asking her crush “Bye Alex” Lia kiss her on the cheeks before giving her a hug.
Back at the Jones residence, Nick is standing near the window watching the. Alex saw him glaring at her. She smirks looking at him before closing her door.