Adam watched the look on Eva's face transform from shock to awe then to denial, his heart hammering against his chest. God, she looked more beautiful than ever, and he'd missed her so bad.

“Adam.” His name tumbled from her lips breathlessly. Before, it would've made him burn with molten desire, but today, all it did was prick him with guilt.

“Wait!” The man she'd been kissing earlier said, eyes widening as he looked at Eva. “That's Adam? As in Adam Garcia?”

“The one and only.” Adam stepped forward, figuring Eva had told him about them. “And it's not a pleasure to meet you.”

“You're the stupid idiot who broke Eva's heart?”

Adam gritted his teeth, any comeback he would've had dying right in his mouth because he knew the guy was so damn right. Only a stupid idiot would judge a woman like Eva so quickly.

Ignoring him, Adam focused his gaze on the woman he was after, finding her eyes still transfixed on him like she couldn't believe he was standing there. “Eva...”

She seemed to snap right out of her daze. “What? What are you doing here?”

“Can we talk?” He said tentatively.

“I have nohing to say to you.” Her voice throbbed with hurt and hostility, the same kind that filled her eyes.

“Please Eva. I know everything looks extremely bad, but there's an ex...”

“What part of she doesn't have anything to say to you does your idiotic brain not understand?” The guy stepped in front Eva defensively, gaze filled with antagonism and another emotion that pleased Adam. Insecurity?

Eva held him by the shoulder, causing him to face her. Adam's hands balled into fists as warmth suffused her expression. “Let me handle this, Xander.”

When she turned to Adam, the warmth had vanished from her face, replaced by total coldness. “Mr. Garcia. Please get out of here. You're not needed.”

“Please, Eva.” Adam attempted to step closer and stopped when she raised her hand up to stop him. “Please, I'm not asking you to take me back or anything. Just give me the chance to explain myself. Let's talk, please.”

Conflict roved through her eyes, as if she was considering his request. She looked at Xander and whispered, “Text me when you're free.”

Then she pressed her lips to his before running into her house and banging her gate shut. Adam and Xander stood facing off, jealousy burning through Adam's veins as he scanned the man who was now having the luxury that had once been his.

A luxury he'd thrown away like an idiot.

“Listen to me,” Xander said, voice spiteful and nostrils flaring disdainfully. “You had your chance with Eva, and you threw it into the garbage. She's with me now so back off.”

“What?” Adam couldn't help but sneer cynically. “You're afraid she's gonna come running into my arms?”

“I wouldn't be so confident if I were you.” The man shot back. “Eva hates you now. She wants nothing to do with you, you would only he wasting your time.”

“That's not what her eyes told me. She may be hurt, but she's very much in love with me. Maybe she feels something for you, but what she feels for me is much much stronger.”

They glared at each other for what felt like minutes, both of them breathing heavily, shoulders squared belligerently. Finally, Xander straightened. “May the best man win.”

Adam snorted at the declaration, watching as the man went to sit in his porch, then drove away. He looked back at Eva's gate and his chest tightened.

Well at least she was now aware that he was back, he thought wryly.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

Eva ran into the house, banging the door shut, her heart careening so violently against her chest she feared she was going to have a heart attack. Her constricted chest made breathing a fiendish accomplishment.

She saw her mother in the livingroom reading a magazine with her glasses on. The woman tilted and saw her, panic seizing her expression immediately. “Eva...”

But Eva ignored her mother as she stomped up the stairs, never stopping until she was in her room and had banged her door shut. She slumped her back against the door, her hands flying to her mouth as the tears spilled from her eyes. Her back slid against the hard slab of wood.

He was back. Adam was really back. She couldn't help more sobs from rocking her body. Why now? Why when she was just beginning the process of getting over him? Just when she had decided to give herself a chance with another man?

Footsteps fast approached, and a moment later someone was knocking furiously at the door. “Eva, dear, please open up. What is going on? Did Xander say something to you? You were so happy.”

“Mum, can you please leave me alone?” Eva shouted, then sighed. If she sent her mother away now, the woman would be rendered with worry until Eva spoke to her.

Standing up, she opened the door, meeting her mother's worried gaze. As soon as they woman stepped in with opened arms, Eva threw herself at her.

“Dear, are you going to tell me what is wrong?” Her mother asked, stroking her hair softly. “Did Xander say something to you?”

“It's not Xander.” Eva clarified, voice hoarse. “It's Adam. He's. . . he's back mother.”

“He's back?”

“Yes. He said he wanted to talk. Offer some explanation. I run. It felt like too much to take at once.”

“Do what you think is best dear, but I would advice you hear what he has to say.” Her mother voiced tentatively.

Eva wasn't so sure about that.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

Adam entered the bar where he and his friends loved to come to discuss stuff over alcohol. Most of the time it was quiet, but occasionally there was a band playing some music. Today was one of the latter days. A band of four people were on the makeshift stage playing some jazz music.

It was just his luck that they were playing his father's favourite song. Adam grimaced. It was these little things that made him miss his father so much.

He spotted Raul and Lucas at their usual table and went to join them. “Yo, guys.” He said, fist bumping with each one of them before slumping into one of the free two chairs available.

“Where's Alfredo?” He asked, frowning.

“Sorry dude,” Lucas shook his head regretfully. “I don't think he's coming.”

“He's still angry with me.” Adam said in exasperation.

“More like pissed off.” Raul corrected. “He never received the proper apology he wanted, forgotten?”

Adam had to groan. Among all the people he'd reconnected with a month ago, Alfredo was the only one who had refused to give him the time of the day.

Even after Adam had apologized profusely for saying those things to him at his father's funeral, Alfredo had told him he was worth more than receiving an apology over the phone and had refused to pick up Adam's calls since.

“How are things between the two of you by the way?” Adam asked after a while.

Raul grimaced only slightly. “Good, I guess.”

Adam nodded. Lucas had told him about how Raul and Alfredo had been putting him on the spot for weeks. Then he'd snapped and told them to go figure out their shit because he was tired of being the only person talking to two people in a three people conversation.

Raul and Alfredo had come to a compromise to try to make things as normal as possible. Now things were better if not back to normal.

“Anyways, how did things go with Eva?" Lucas was the one who asked.

The memory of Eva letting that guy kiss her had Adam glaring at his best friends. “Didn't you guys tell me there was nothing going on between her and that guy?”

He'd been so hopeful that he would come to find zero obstacles that he'd hitched a ride with someone he'd met in Australia in his private jet so he wouldn't have to book a flight which wasn't coming on anytime soon. Seeing Eva and that guy had nearly murdered his hope.

“Oh,” Guilt reflected on Raul's expression. “June told me later that day that Eva had finally decided to give Xander a chance. You were probably in the air by then.”

“Fuck.” Adam clenched his jaw, balling his hands into fists. “He was kissing her when I saw them, Raul. I swear all that I wanted to do was commit murder for the first time. That stupid dude even had the guts to issue a bet with me.”

“What?” Lucas said, then took a swig from his beer bottle.

“He said may the best mam win. He's so confident that Eva hates me. That she wants nothing to do with me anymore.” The anger in his chest gave way to a hard-stabbing anxiety, and he looked at Raul desperately since the man was the one who got the most chance to see Eva. “Raul, do you. . . do you think she hates me?”

Raul was just about to say something when his eyes strayed to the view behind Adam. “Someone finally changed their mind.”

Adam turned to look at who he was talking about, finding Alfredo walking towards their table. He managed a smile, seeing that as a good sign that his best friend was ready to forgive him. Getting up, he opened his arms wide in wait of a hug only to receive a punch on the mouth.

“Bastard.” Alfredo growled.

The blow hit hard, sending Adam hurtling violently to the side. He would've fallen if it weren't for the table he held on to. He felt something trickle down his chin and knew his lip was bursted.

“I deserve that.” Nodding, he dabbed at his bursted lip and watched the blood on his thumb, knowing this was just Alfredo's way of releasing the anger he'd been harbouring for quite a while now.

The man seemed to be in a spree of fury. “Idiot! Bastard! Fool! Unscrupulous jerk!”

Lucas and Raul were bowling over with laughter, until Alfredo suddenly added, “Pyromaniac.”

Their laughter ceased as they both gave Alfredo a confused look. “Pyromaniac?” Lucas asked, brows creased.

“Uh, I mean yes! Adam set everyone's emotions on fire when he left. And he. . . he. . . he...” He groaned. “Forget it, it just slipped out. But that's just beside the point. The point is I want so bad to grab a bottle and smash it over this jerk's head.”

“Jeez, Alfredo. I've tried to apologize for that insult...” Adam begun.

Alfredo cut him off. “I didn't even care about that insult. All I needed was for you to show me that you were really sorry. Going away for four months before calling to try didn't tell me that about you!”

His chest was rising and falling rapidly now. Adam sighed, sinking back into his seat. Alfredo took the one that flanked him on the right.

“Okay, so I'm finally in front of you and I can give you a proper apology.” Adam begun. “I'm sorry, Alfredo. I'm sorry for insulting you and then going away like you don't mean nothing to me. You mean a lot to me. Forgive me?”

“Ugh, staaap.” Lucas groaned. “That looks like a love confession or something.”

Raul chuckled, only to be silenced by Alfredo's glare. Adam had to battle a smile. Alfredo called one of the bartenders to order a bottle of tequila. Adam ordered along with him.

The man waited until his tequilla had bee served and he'd taken a swig before looking at Adam. “I'll think about it. ”

“What?” He said incredulously. “After all the heart felt things I said?”

Alfredo shrugged. Lucas and Raul laughed. Adam groaned. If Alfredo was finding it hard to forgive him, what more Eva whom he'd hurt more than anyone else?

He looked at Raul, dreading to once again ask the question he'd asked before Alfredo had arrived. “Bro, do you think she hates mem”

Raul drank from his bottle before answering. “To be honest, there's a possibility she does. You don't know how many times I've seen her trying to hide her tears when your name came up and I still hadn't heard from you during the first month you were gone. That one time later when you called while I was with her only to hang up when she took the phone from me, it broke her even more. She fucking broke down in front of me. I couldn't even tell her why you were refusing to contact her because you didn't even tell me.”

Adam felt his heart squeezing with every word his friend said. “When Xander came along, Eva barely tolerated him. If she's going out with him now, then maybe it's because she has moved on. Or she's still trying to.”

God, for his fucking sake, he hoped it was because of the latter.