"Elka, everything is ready, right?" 

Zinnia asked me as I placed the last piece of red velvet cupcake on the tray. 

"Everything is perfecto!" I said, wiping my hands on a tissue before taking the tray and walked outside to our backyard. 

Lily's baby shower was the most awaited day of my life. Me and Zinnia took care of everything for the event, from sending invitations to setting up Lily's favorite baby pink roses on every corner. We put our everything into this just to see our friend who had seen us in our worst, our mentor who guided us from wrong to right, our lamp that shined brightly in our dark days and showed us the way to happiness. And yes, we succeeded on making the pillar of our trio blissed out as we saw Lily's face beaming with her beautiful dimple smile, Andrew standing next to her with his hand around her waist, his small gesture of love. They were posing for our photographer of the day aka Sandra, who was instructing them to smile and pose like a professional one.

Lily was wearing a long v-neck boysenberry sequined portrait dress with a white sash over it which read 'MOM-TO-BE' in big red italics. Her long brown wavy hair was curled up at its end. Andrew wore a matching shirt as her dress color with a black formal pants. Both looked like a perfect and idyllic couple that would make any single ass weep. They both were the epitome of destined lovers whose bond was unbreakable and I couldn't be anymore happy for her. My eight months old godchild was witnessing their parent's unconditional love- from a tragic beginning to a blithe ending. That unborn child couldn't be anymore lucky. 

"Cupcakes are ready everyone!" I screamed on top of my lungs out of sheer excitement, even though there were only guests that could be counted on fingers. 

"Geez, Elka! Calm down, girl," Lily said, taking a cupcake and giving me the 'behave yourself' look with a small smile playing on her lips. 

I giggled at her reaction and within seconds, the cupcakes were all taken leaving just one on the tray. I was relieved that they showed the courtesy to leave at least one so that I could have a taste of it. My mouth was already drooling when I was arranging them for the guests and it would be a shame to myself, who was a foodie by heart, if I didn't get a bite. I kept the tray on a nearby table and took the cupcake. As I was about to take a bite of the mouthwatering piece in my hand, a voice from behind stopped me. 

"Don't! Even I want that."

Already knowing who that was, I turned around with an annoyed face to see my boyfriend hopping on his feet and coming towards me. After my eyes caught his figure, the cupcake didn't make me crave for it anymore. Instead, it was Danish that made me crave for him with a white button down shirt tucked inside black jeans. His messy hair was neatly tied into a manbun, exposing his forehead and that alone took my breath away. I noticed Lily's cousin sister not taking her eyes from him but that didn't evoke any type of jealousy or possessiveness in me because I knew. I knew that whoever came or whatever happened, he was mine. 

Hiding my desire for him, I put up a scowl face when he came and stood next to me. 

"I want that too. It looks yummy," he said, his hands coming for the cupcake in my hands. 

In a swift motion, I turned the other side and took a bite of half which made Danish appalled.

"You evil!" he said and pouted.

"Don't even try. You're not cute," I retorted with a lie, my mouth stuffed with cake to which he rolled his eyes. "Why are you late?"

"I had to pick someone up," he said, wiping off the small crumbs from the corner of my mouth.

"Who?"

Danish looked behind him which made me follow his eye line and when I did, I squealed in happiness and ran to the person after throwing the cake at Danish, which he got a hold of. 

"Daniel!" I screamed and jumped on him, hugging him tightly. 

"Woah, girl!" He laughed and hugged me back, lifting me off the ground. He was shorter than Danish but definitely taller than me. 

"Oh, it's so good to have you back," I said, still clinging onto him, like a koala on a tree. 

"Thanks, Elka."

I retreated from the hug and dragged him towards Lily, Zinnia and Andrew and then introduced him to Amy and Clay who came a few minutes later. As I stood next to them, my eyes unintentionally searched for him. 

I caught Danish sitting on a corner, wiping his mouth and hands with a tissue after eating the cupcake. I smiled at his gestures from a few centimeters away and my mind recalled abstractly- the person who he was before and who he was now. The person who only hurt everyone but now, trying to not hurt anyone even with a single expression. The person who changed for good and was still changing for the best. 

A week before, I took him to a person that he was longing to see and ask for forgiveness. I planned a meeting between him and Aesha Manzil, the girl who suffered because of the old Danish. I talked to Candice, Clay's sister, and searched for Aesha for five days without giving up. And my jaded quest was fruitful as I got Aesha's address with the help of my Pappy. 

To my surprise, she was still living in Auckland but under another name, another identity. She got a makeover and changed her name to Isabel and worked in a salon after dropping out. It might seem she was being dramatic with the whole identity change, but for her, it was the best decision. She left her parents and country and came here with the hope of graduating with flying colors but life had different plans for her. She didn't have any other choice but to stand on her feet alone and after much trying, she was finally independent and happy with a promising and loving boyfriend. But still, I felt Aesha and Danish had to talk about whatever happened, as Danish was desperate to apologize to her. 

Danish didn't have a clue about what was going on until he saw Aesha in front of her boyfriend's house, smiling at him. I left them alone to talk and waited outside for almost 45 minutes, leaning on his bike. I felt relieved and happy when I saw them coming out of her house, smiling and laughing like old buddies. I was relieved that Danish didn't have to carry the guilt anymore on his shoulders as Aesha forgave him. Because at the end, both regained the long lost happiness after going through a lot and keeping the grudges would only kill them more. 

I took steps towards him. Upon seeing me, he broke into a smile before asking, "What's that word Lily says?"

I frowned at his question and sat next to him. 

"What word?"

"Oh, yes. You look pulchritudinous!" he said, making me laugh. 

"Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said, planting a kiss on my cheek.

I was wearing a yellow sundress with sunflower patterns with my curls let loose. Lily bought it for me, saying she would be as happy as a sandbox if I wore this to her baby shower party. And so I did!

"How is Daniel?" I asked, looking at Daniel who was conversing with Lily's father merrily. 

"He's getting better. The chemo is doing good on him," Danish said, taking my hands on his and looking at his brother like me.

"Also..."

I averted my gaze from Daniel to his little brother and asked, "Also?"

"He's got a girlfriend now," Danish said, his smile now wider.

"Woah, really? Who is it?" I asked eagerly. 

"Gianna. She's his nurse and is also a Philippian. I met her today when I picked him up from the hospital and she's amazing. Perfect for my brother."

"Oh my God! Dan, I'm so fucking happy!" I said and hugged him as I couldn't hug Daniel who was like 40 centimeters away from me.
"He deserves the best girl in this whole freaking planet."

"See, I love my brother and all and I wish him the best. But I think he's not that lucky," Danish said, making me pull back from the hug and look at him questioningly. 
"Because the best girl in this world is with me!"

"Oh, here we go! The sappy Danish!" I rolled my eyes playfully and shook my head with a smile.

"I don't mind being sappy for the cold hearted Elka because," he grabbed my chin and pulled me closer, "I know deep inside you like it, baby."

With that, he crashed his lips on mine and in no time I kissed him back. Our lips synced perfectly with my hands going to his nape and his going to my waist, pulling me closer. But our moment of nirvana was horned in by Zinnia with her screech.

"This is a family function, you assholes!"

"Zin, language! This is a family function like you said right now," Lily hissed at her.

"Oh sorry, my fault. But look at those two," she whined, pointing her finger at us, who were now walking towards them.

"Zin, the holy angel, do I have to remind you how I woke up today? Without setting up my alarm?" I asked, my eyebrow arching challengingly. 

"Shut up!" Zinnia smacked my arm playfully to which Sandra and everyone who knew the inner meaning laughed. 

"Ok, everyone. It's time to have lunch. The food will be served right away," I said smiling at the guests and walked inside with Zinnia, Danish, Amy and Clay following me. 

As soon as I stepped into the kitchen, my phone rang, vibrating on the kitchen slab. I took the call with a smile on my face.

"Hey, mom!"

"Elka, sweetheart. How is everything going?" mom asked from the other side, her voice booming with sheer happiness and excitement. 

"Everything's perfect, mom. We are gonna serve lunch right now," I said, setting the cups with my free hand.

"Good. Is Danish there?" she asked and I could feel her wriggling her brows.

"Yes, mom! Of course he is here," I said, looking at him, who was busy wiping the plates with Clay. 

"I'm so happy for you, Elka. I really am," she said. "You deserve all the happiness after what you have gone through. I love you, sweetie."

"I know, mom. I love you too," I said.

"Ok then, get back to work." She laughed. "I bet there's a lot to do for you as a godmother."

"Oh, yes. I have indeedy!" I laughed. "Bye mom, will call you later."

"Yeah, ok. Bye sweetie. Tell everyone I said hi."

"Yeah, sure."

"Ok, bye. I love you."

"Mom?" I called her before she could hang up.

"Yes?"

"Tell dad I said hi," I said, biting my lower lip.

It took a few seconds for my mom to reply with a smile I couldn't see but was sure about its presence, "Yeah sure. Bye. I love you."

"Love you too, mom."

»»---------------------►

After a feast of fresh salad, pasta salad, couscous, finger sandwiches, quiche, mini chicken pot pies and soup, everyone was delighted and satisfied with their stomach full. And it was time for the gender reveal. 

The gender reveal was planned by Danish as the doctor gave him the slip of our godchild's sex. He kept it a secret from everyone, even me because he knew how peppy I was with the mere thought of the baby. 

Everyone gathered around Lily and Andrew, who were standing in front of a large bedazzled box. I was jumping, holding Danish's hands as he smiled at me and my giddiness. 

"We are going to open the box!" Andrew said, excitement evident in his voice. 

"Oh, open it already goddamnit!" I yelled, making everyone laugh. 

"Lily, on three. One, two, three."

Lily and Andrew opened the box and came out helium balloons of sparkling pink and blue colors. We were all confused for a second before Sandra yelled, "Oh my God!!! It's twins! A boy and a girl!"

With that, everyone erupted into a joyous moment of hugs, kisses and happy tears. I hugged Danish and pecked his lips before hugging Lily and Andrew. I literally jumped on Zinnia with my legs around her waist as she spinned me and we were screaming, "Twins!"

»»---------------------►

As the sun went down the horizon with its rays waving goodbye to the purple hue sky, soft music started playing, making most of the people sway and sync with the rhythm. 

Amy and Clay, Lily's mom and dad and a few couples were dancing to the love songs. Me, Andrew and Lily were settled on a table while Zinnia and Sandra went to set the dinner. Danish went to drop Daniel at his girlfriend's house and that idiot left his phone behind. 

"I want to drink soda," Lily said out of nowhere. 

Me and Andrew looked at her simultaneously. 

"What makes you want to drink soda now?" I asked.

"Cravings of a pregnant woman, understandable," Andrew said. "But no, no soda."

"Why?" Lily asked. 

"Pregnant women shouldn't drink aerated drinks." Andrew replied. 

"Who said that?"

"I have heard it."

"No, we can drink soda during pregnancy. It's fine," she said. 

"No you can't!"

And the scuffle went on for some minutes until I interfered them as I couldn't take anymore of the couple fight. 

"We will ask Google." I put forth the easiest and slightly untrustworthy method. 

They nodded their heads to my idea. I took Danish's phone which was next to me as I left mine in my room. 

I unlocked his phone with the pincode he shared with me, it was the date when he joined my college. As my finger tapped on Google icon, the web opened with a long list of search history. As I was about to type about pregnancy and soda, my eyes caught a glimpse of the word philophobic in his history, below the search engine. I swiped above and saw the list which made my eyes welled up.

how to help a philophobic

how to love a philophobic

how to support a philophobic 

how to make a philophobic happy

how to make a philophobic feel loved

how to be a good boyfriend to a philophobic 

The thought of Danish searching up and going through these for me put a smile natch on my face with tears brimming in my eyes. I knew he had put in a lot of effort to make me happy, loved and feel blessed and I loved him for that but when I saw these, it uplifted the love I had for him even more.

"Elka, you okay?" Andrew asked, seeing me all teared up.

"Baby, what happened?" Lily asked worriedly, followed by Andrew to which I shook my head with a smile.

"Nothing," I said, grabbing a tissue paper from the stand and wiping the small tears that were stuck on my eyelids. 

"There he is," Andrew said, making my head snap towards Danish, who was walking towards us. 

But before he could reach us, I got up and walked towards him and held out my hand which made him baffled. 

"May I have a dance with you, Danish Rivera?" I asked, as elegant as possible. 

He chuckled and took my hands in his before saying, "I would be honored, Elka Alastair."

With that we went to the center and moved slowly and gracefully, our hands intertwined with my other hand on his broad shoulder and his securely wrapped around my waist. We danced to the perfect song for the night- At Last by Etta James. 

At last
My love has come along
My lonely days are over
And life is like a song

"You know," he said, making me look up at him. "I never took you for a slow dancer after witnessing the way you danced at my party." 

I laughed at his wit. "Well, I wasn't alone that night."

He chuckled and said, "We are some wacko of a couple." 

We laughed together at his accurate definition of us as a couple. I looked at him with pure love in my eyes and saw his dark brown orbs radiating the same feeling as mine. He smiled before pressing a long kiss on my forehead that made me close my eyes and lean into his warmth. I rested my head on his chest with his chin resting on mine and we swayed slowly to the lines of the song. 

Oh, yeah, yeah, at last
The skies above are blue
My heart was wrapped up in clover
The night I looked at you

My eyes went to Lily and Andrew. Andrew had his ears pressed on Lily's belly, waiting to hear and feel the kicks of their bambinos while Lily was smiling with her hands going through his curls. 

Zinnia and Sandra were visible to me from the kitchen window and I saw Sandra laughing as Zinnia peppered kisses on her neck from behind. It was obvious they were hooked to each other even if they didn't make it official.

Clay was being Prince Charming, making Amy or his Cinderella spin and land on her feet to which she blushed like a ripe tomato. And her face reddened more as he whispered something in her ear. 

I was here, in the arms of my lover boy, seeking warmth and comfort as I nuzzled my head on his chest, taking his strong cologne that I would never get tired of. 

Never in my life I thought I would experience love like others as it was my worst nightmare, frightening demon and my slow poison. When I was losing hope, a guy came out of the dark and put me into light that made me euphoric and broke the wall I built. He made my monochromatic world filled with colors. We then made our own paradise where we are the only ones, making everything around us non-existent. We became each other's armor that made us strong together against any war our life threw at us. We were there for each other, through thick and thin, through rain and storm, through sunshine and rainbow. We engulfed each other with the love we had for each other and no great power in this entire universe could break it, more like we wouldn't allow it to break it. We were a beautiful mess.

To make a philophobic in love was an idea that even the Aphrodite gave up. Probably an idea that everyone had no hope for. But Danish Rivera proved them wrong by making Elka Alastair, a philophobic, fall in love with him. Deeper than the oceans, higher than the ether, I was in love with him. 

And I found a dream that I could speak to
A dream that I can call my own
I found a thrill to press my cheek to
A thrill that I have never known

"Dan," I called him, making him look down at me. "I love you."

Oh, yeah, yeah, and you smile, you smile
Oh, and then the spell was cast
And here we are in Heaven
For you are mine at last

He flashed his beautiful smile that pulled me into a whirl hole before saying, "I love you too, my Sunflower."

THE END

At last
My love has come along
My lonely days are over
And life is like a song

»»---------------------►

To all philophobics out there,

DON'T LOSE HOPE. SOMEDAY, SOMEONE WHO DESERVES YOU, CHERISHES YOU, LOVES YOU IS GONNA ENTER YOU LIFE AND MAKE YOU THE HAPPIEST AND BLESSED IN THIS WHOLE CRAPPY WORLD. JUST WAIT FOR THAT DAY AND THEN YOU WILL SEE HEAVEN. YOU'RE NOT ALONE IN THIS. THIS AUTHOR IS ALSO WITH YOU.

Thank you so much for reading my book. It means a lot! Hope you enjoyed it. Thanks again!