Chapter 3

The day after that night we met, Bruce and I have immediately become friends. He brought me home safely and visited me at my place the day after, that was the time we got to know each other more. My horrifying experience with my offenders quickly escalated as they were immediately arrested and sentenced to court with the help of Yaku, who compensated me handsomely and Bruce's brother, as well as the consolation given by Millicent and Keshya who comforted me that putting them to jail for their fault is not wrong. It was hard to deal with fear after your safety was almost harmed.

The legalities dealing with my offenders' rash actions were easy dealt with however, the damage they had given me took a huge toll. I suddenly had a hard time getting into physical contact with other people, especially men, and it affected work, the only way that I could earn money and sustain myself. It affected me critically, that was when Bruce came to help me the second time around, he helped me cope with my trauma. During those times, I had wondered why I wasn't scared of him, especially when he held me in his arms that night, it was probably because I recognized him as my savior. I appreciate how he was so patient and caring with me dealing with my inner demons forcefully instilled by those bastards. I owe more than once already. 3 years have already passed, and our friendship has become as close as family.

"I feel like hell," Bruce said, while sniffling his beet red nose, his eyes squinting. He was lying down motionless on his bed, sweating profusely and his face pale yet hot with his nose beet red Today, I'm visiting this idiot's apartment after learning that he got sick. Who would have thought that this kind-hearted biggie would also be stupid enough to jog at night half-naked? What more is that it rained briefly that night. He cares so much about others' welfare but not his, how stupid.

"That's why you drink your med, idiot," I rebuked him, sitting comfortably on the side of his bed while handing out to him the medicine his doctor prescribed along with a glass of water. He let out a gruff sigh and sat up, leaning his back against the headboard, and obediently took his medicine.

"Hah, who the hell jogs at a rainy night without their top?" I mumbled, crossing my arms and he just shot me a death glare, making me laugh slightly.

"Thanks," he said groggily in appreciation then pulled his comforter over his head as he went back lay himself on the soft mattresses of his bed with his rear facing me.

I stared at his exhausted, crouching figure, covered in his thick comforter. I smiled a little when I noticed that he was showered in the sunlight, knowing that he likes to bask in the sun, like a cat. The other side of his bed was beside a wall that had a large window and was placed perfectly to the direction where the sun rises, so he always gets the chance to bask in it, unless it's a rainy day. It was still early in the morning, so the rays of the sun are a bit soft. It seemed to comfort him greatly since I could see the expression on his half-exposed face to have gotten relaxed, compared to his expression earlier.

I shook my head when I remembered that there's one more thing to do, pulling myself away from my reverie. "No, we're not done yet. Get up and eat your meal," I said before pulling the wooden breakfast tray from his wide nightstand and placing it onto his lap. He groaned in reply. "Or do you want me to feed you and shove this food down your throat?" I suggested.

He suddenly rolled over to face me, his tired eyes looking at me with a delighted glow, like how a puppy looks at its beloved owner. "Please?" he pleaded babyishly like a child asking for a favor from his mother.

"No way," I firmly rejected and smacked his arm playfully.

"Have mercy on the sick, please." He pleaded with another groan, and I froze. Damn. I never thought that this deep groan of his could sound so sexy and arousing. Wait, what am I thinking?!

Flustered by my own thoughts, I shove the tray closer to him, trying to forget what had just happened by persuading him to eat. "Whatever, just eat your food!"

"Fine." Bruce finally gave up with a sigh of defeat and sat up again. He examined the food served on the tray, his ocean blue eyes scanning at everything. "Greek yogurt, seriously?" he said and reached his humongous hand to take the harmless yogurt.

"What? They're my fave, and they're good for your body," I said in defense. Does he have to be mean to my Greek yogurts like that? He should be thankful that I gave him one.

"Right," he said groggily with a chuckle then looked at me, his eyes smiling as well as his lips. "Thanks."

My breath was almost taken away from the God-given sight. Bruce, sick and pale with his nose raging red, smiling handsomely under the sunlight is another level of prestige! "None taken. I'll be outside," I said then stood up, hastily zooming out of his room. Goodness, I'll die one day because of his breathtaking beauty! "Call me if you need me, okay?" I said while closing the room's door shut.

"Yes, mom," he replied nonchalantly which made me open the door and stick my head inside his room. Much to my relief, he was starting to eat his breakfast, starting with the yogurt he held earlier.

"Zip it," I warned, glaring daggers at him while sliding my sharply squeezed index finger and thumb over my lips.

"How am I supposed to call you when I zip my mouth?" he retorted with a smirk on his pale face before stuffing a spoonful of yogurt in his mouth, and I only continued to glare at him while slowly closing the door, neither of us taking our eyes off each other.

When I finally closed the door, I lazily sauntered to the couch and slammed myself down, letting my body sink into the deep cushions. I grabbed the remote that was resting on the surface of the lounge table and turned on the television, beginning to immerse myself into hours of blissful listlessness, a great start of spending your one week's paid break from your boss because the workplace needs to be renovated. I was actually scheduled to go on tiring and energy-draining hiking with Keshya and her boyfriend today after I got ran out of excuses to refuse her and decided to finally give in to her whims but after I heard that Bruce was sick, I found the perfect excuse to reject her and canceled my plans immediately with her. Plus, it'd be one way to express my gratitude and sincerity to Bruce by taking care of him while he's sick.

I yawned while grabbing one of the pillows resting, taking it in my arms, and hugging it tightly while changing from one channel to another. Time felt slow yet passed fast that minutes quickly became hours and morning had already transcended into afternoon, the sun was its peak and the day was almost ending. After seeing that it was time for lunch, I took the brazenness to invade Bruce's kitchen and whipped up some stew for us to eat. After having a sumptuous lunch, I went to his room to check on him and saw that he was as dead as a log so I just covered his bowl and rested it on his nightstand so he can eat it when he wakes up. I then spent the remaining hours leisurely watching random series on Netflix while eating snacks and drinking soda. I'm glad that Bruce gave me permission to take some snacks in his fridge, it made my leisure day feel even better. Getting tired of my position, I shifted myself from reclining on the cushions to sitting up, resting my aching back comfortably against the backrest. Who would have thought that lying down also tires us?

The sound of a door creaking open suddenly echoed and I automatically turned my head to the direction where the sound came from. I watched the door slowly open and reveal Bruce with his face groggy like he just woke up from a year's sleep and his dark mane styled into a fringed undercut that always looked neat became a disheveled mop of bed hair. He wasn't sweating anymore but his shirt was wet like he ran a marathon. Nonetheless, he still looks handsome as always.

"Here," I told him, patting the remaining space beside me and continued busying myself watching the T.V. while he sauntered towards my direction sleepily, his footsteps' pattern in a mess that made him look like a zombie in an apocalypse.

As soon as he arrived, he slammed himself on the cushions, face first. I looked at him and reached a hand and ran my fingers through his hair. I almost cursed realizing how soft his hair was. "You okay now?" I asked while he crawled slightly to hug my waist and rest his head on my leg. The smell of salty sweat trickled my nose, but I didn't mind.

"Better than earlier," he answered, his voice sounding sleepy. "I ate the soup, but I'm still hungry so I got up to have more."

"Then get off for a bit. I'll get you some soup."

"No." He refused and hugged my waist tighter. What a rare yet nice view to see.

"Oh yes, you biggie," I tapped his sharp shoulder lightly and he finally got off me.

I immediately went on my feet and my way to his kitchen. When I arrived, I immediately spotted the pot where I cooked the stew, standing still and static on the stove that I immediately switched on. I then leaned on the kitchen island behind me, waiting for it to heat up and boil since it'll only take a while. As soon as steam went out of the safety valve, I took my cue and switched the stove off and was about to open the dishrack cabinet to take out a bowl and a spoon when I felt a presence coming near me as a large shadow dominated my figure.

"Is the soup there yet?" Bruce's voice asked and I turned my head to answer him, but I screeched instead as I felt my heart jump out of my chest in surprise instead.

"What the hell, Bruce?!" I almost screamed at him in surprise. He was half-naked!

"My shirt was sweaty," he simply excused with a shrug. "What? You don't like what you see?" he then asked, his lips stretched into a sly smirk. Ha, that sounds like a challenge.

"Oh please. Do you really think I'd just mellow for a piece of this" I said with a smirk then I walked closer to him to reach a hand and put it softly on his hard chest. Starting to run it down to his hard sternum, I thought that his muscular chest was firm, yet it felt soft and wondered how it worked it that way or men's chests were usually that way.

He groaned and suddenly took my hand away from him. "Stop that," he said, his eye looking at me with a perilously.

"Why?"

After asking that, I felt the air around us suddenly shifted. The comfortable atmosphere was suddenly exchanged with a heavy, suffocating tension that I cannot name. We kept staring at each other, and I noticed that Bruce's gaze was changing into something else, he wasn't looking at me softly anymore but rather piercingly like I was some kind of delicious prey. I gasped when he suddenly held my midriff and lifted me up then set me down on his counter. He then leaned close to me, resting his palms on the surface, our fiery eye contact maintained.

"Because I might not be able to stop myself," he said dangerously with a deep voice, his jaw clenched tightly, expression fervent yet perplexed like he was holding himself back, but he doesn't understand why at the same time. I froze when I felt a weird sensation spreading all over my body seeing his expression. Geez, I'm getting aroused. I was no stranger to this feeling of my body heating and yearn for intimacy, but after what I had gone through 3 years ago, I never thought that I'd be able to feel this way again.

I looked down and saw his tent pitching, almost touching my stomach. It seems that I wasn't the only one feeling that way. "Then don't stop," I said, held his arm, and pulled him closer to me. Our breaths mingling, skins in close contact tingling, bodies heating. "Take me," I whispered covetously. I want him to take me.

"There's no turning back after this, you know," he said through gritted teeth.

"I know," I said before finally leaning closer until our lips touched, letting the burning desire in my body take control of me. On that one lazy afternoon, with the sun at its highest peak, the television on, and the hot pot of soup untouched, our bodies became one by passion ignited between us.

It didn't just stop that day. We continued to do it one day after another. We did it everywhere, his apartment, mine, my workplace, the restaurant where we ate dinner together, everywhere. We tainted each place we went together with our juices as we fulfill each other's carnal needs with our level of emotional intimacy separated by the border names friend. However, as time passes by and we continued to ignite each other's bodies in passionate warmth, I was slowly feeling something different It wasn't just fondness when we hold each other tight and do it. I also get excited by the thought of meeting him and doing random things together with him. I slowly began getting conscious when he's with me, and every thought he shares matters so much, especially when it's about him and me.

"I'm close," he said, moaning as he hastened his pace, thrusting in and out of my flesh right on the spot that made me twist my insides tight as I gripped tightly on his well-defined arms that my nails almost sinking in his skin, moaning out loud because of the pleasure his thrusts bring to my flesh.

"Yeah... there! Hit me there!" I cried heatedly, ignoring the fact that his neighbors might hear us while gritting my teeth, and moving my hips to match with his rhythm. The lewd sound of our skin slapping echoed in the four corners of his nightish room keeping up with our moans, made us both more aroused and move against each other impulsively as we want to dominate each other more.

As I felt a familiar tension began building below my stomach and his length penetrating in me become bigger like it was going to explode, Bruce groped my breast with one hand, squeezing it in his large palm tightly while I wrapped my arms on his thick, vein neck, pulling him closer. He obediently leaned his face closer to mine and I lifted my head so I could kiss his lips before we come. Just as our lips came in contact, we both reached our climax.

He kissed me one last time before pulling himself out and immediately stood up to dress up while I remained on his bed while panting, legs shaking and in the state of heavy drowsiness while lounging in the comforting darkness of his room and staring at his broad, muscular back that was gladly exposed by the shining moonlight. Damn, I can't keep up with this guy's stamina. How come he's not panting after doing four rounds?!

"Hey, come on, we need to eat dinner," he said, turning his head to look at me.

"Carry me?" I raised my tired arms up to him.

"You big baby," he said, chuckling and bending down to take me in his arms along with the comforter that I hurriedly wrapped myself on.

"Your big baby," I retorted as he lifted me into the air with a smirk on my face, making him laugh more, and started walking out of the bedroom, going to the dining area while carrying me like a giant sushi roll.

He effortlessly grabbed a chair and painstakingly placed me down like a fine piece of chinaware meanwhile I remained still like an obedient child, staring at the fast-food neatly placed on the table. My eyes widened and sparkled as my mouth watered when a familiar thing hit my sight.

"Wow, Greek yogurt!" I exclaimed and took the three familiar-looking containers to see if it was real, immersing myself in the brimming happiness that I got to eat my favorite food tonight. It's real! There's not only one but three of them!

"Of course, I knew you like them," Bruce said while sitting down and I froze, staring at him as my heart begins thumping loudly like I was having severe palpitations. It wasn't because I was tired from our heated session, it was rather from something else. Ah, how could I be so dumb to not realize it sooner?

Starting from the little gestures he makes, the way his face expresses his emotions as well as how he laughs, how he looks when he basks in the sun, the way he sweats and moans during our licentious nights and makes me feel good. Everything he does makes my heart grow fonder of him, and it goes to a point that it won't be labeled as platonic love anymore. On that very night, all the confusion about my feelings for him came to a straight conclusion that I love him. I'm in love with Bruce.