Chapter 4 – White Rose

• Mhia was startled when the phone rang beside her. She stared at it for a while before lazily answering.
• “Hello?”
• “Why aren’t you answering my calls?” her boyfriend Cendrick’s voice came through the line.
• She bit her lip. All of a sudden, she felt guilty. However, her subconscious said that she shouldn’t. They were equal now; both did what they shouldn’t have done while being in a relationship.
• She wanted to slap herself. Why did she do that in the first place if she would feel this way? And she— no! They didn’t do it just once; she and that stranger repeated it until they both fell asleep from exhaustion.
• “Mhia…?” Cendrick’s voice sounded concerned on the other line. “Is there something wrong?”
• She tightened her grip on the phone. She was currently in her flower shop, inside her small office there. Just like before, she had been staring blankly for a while.
• “Is there supposed to be?” she replied after a few moments.
• “Oh, why do you seem so hot-headed? I’m just asking,” he defended.
• She sighed, then shook her head. “Can we talk about this later? I’m busy right now,” she said after a moment.
• “Alright. I’ll drop by your office after I’m done here.” Cendrick was an engineer at a large company, and his office wasn’t far from her flower shop.
• “No, Cendrick. Let’s meet later,” she insisted. Even though she couldn’t see him, she knew his eyebrows were furrowed.
• “Tell me the truth, do we have a problem? Because I feel that there is,” he guessed.
• She shook her head in frustration. “You know why I’m acting like this,” she replied meaningfully.
• “No. I don’t know why you act like that. I’m not a mind reader, Mhia.”
• “Really? You don’t know why I’m acting like this? Do you want me to tell you now?”
• He didn’t respond.
• She chuckled bitterly. “See? You knew why, so don’t push for what you want to happen. I have a lot to do now. Let’s meet later. Bye!” With annoyance, she hung up the phone. She was sure that Cendrick was surprised. It was the first time she had done that to him.
• He deserved it anyway, she thought before falling silent again.
• The events of the previous night still played in her mind. It repeatedly heated up her emotions. Consequently, she unconsciously licked her lips. It felt like she could still feel him. His soft and warm lips, even his sweet breath.
• She closed her eyes involuntarily. There was something inside her that suddenly came alive. The unusual warmth that was swaying through her whole body, just thinking about what the man did to her, made her lose control of herself.
• She got wet just by thinking about that stranger kissing her. Something that had never happened to her before. Even with her boyfriend Cendrick, she never felt that way. Like she was so aroused and thirsty.
• She looked down, in between her legs. Aside from her sore thighs and legs, the space between them hurt too.
• Both of you never rest, right? Of course, that would hurt, a part of her mind taunted.
• She blushed. Why did her mind suddenly become so lewd? Shouldn’t she be worried right now? Because no matter how you look at it, what she did was still wrong. Even if it was just revenge, she and Cendrick were still together! And she was starting to look like a cheater like him!
• You don’t need to feel guilty about what you did, because your boyfriend is an a**hole. You’re both guilty, Mhia.
• No! You’re completely wrong. You shouldn’t have done what he did. You’re a two-timer!
• No!
• Yes!
• “Enough!” She quickly stood up because of the little argument in her mind. She immediately sat down again when her hips throbbed.
• If someone saw her at that moment, they would think she was losing her mind. So, before that happened, she left her small office. It was better to distract herself with the beautiful flowers surrounding her. Even though her body was hurting, it was better that she was doing something. At least, her mind wasn’t filled with nothing but lust.
• “Rexie, is Mrs. Del Mundo’s order finished?” she asked her assistant, the only other person there.
• She only hires people for big events. She’s reluctant to allocate resources, aside from paying them. Her flower shop isn’t that big, after all. She built it through her own efforts. That’s been her dream since she was little. Somehow, she’s making a profit. Her shop is located at the center of a bustling establishment in the Metro. That’s why many people also visit there. She even has regular customers in two years since she opened it.
• “Yes, Ma’am. I am just waiting for the courier,” Rexie replied.
• “Oh, for Mr. Salcedo? He wants the delivery to be on time. You know that when it’s their anniversary, flowers are never absent,” she said.
• “It’s already done. I sent it earlier.”
• She nodded. “Okay. What else needs to be taken care of? Do we have any orders for this week?”
• “Someone called earlier. Here’s their order.” Rexie approached her and handed her a sticky note with the customer’s order written on it.
• She read it. “Alright. I’ll take care of these,” she said.
• She put on an apron to avoid getting her clothes dirty. The customer’s order was for in-house plants. There were five of them, so it would take her a while.
• She put on her earphones and opened her Spotify. She played her favorite band, Eraserheads, before starting work at their working table. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn’t notice the new customer entering.
• The customer looked around before approaching the counter. Rexie immediately attended to him.
• She was facing the glass wall with vinyl blinds, so she didn’t notice the customer who was staring at her. He furrowed his brow before scanning the entire flower shop.
• “Ma’am Mhia,” Rexie called to her. She was startled when she turned around. It seemed like her assistant had been calling her for a while.
• She removed her earphones and faced Rexie. “Do you need something?” she asked.
• Her assistant nodded. She handed her another sticky note.
• She removed her gloves before taking it still looking at the notes in her hand. “Hundred pieces of white roses…” she read aloud before heading to the large cooler. She still didn’t notice the customer standing aside and watching her every move.
• “There are so many of these. The recipient is lucky,” she continued as she took out a bunch of white roses. The cooler kept their flowers fresh.
• “But why white? Isn’t it usually for—” She dropped the flowers—luckily, the customer caught them; otherwise, she would’ve wasted a lot of flowers.
• “Oops!” she said.
• She gazed at the handsome face in front of her. Even though he hadn’t had a haircut or shave, he still looked handsome. Neat. That was the right description for his appearance at that moment. Unlike last night, when he looked like a disheveled hermit.
• The man just tied his hair with a rubber band at the back. It was clear he had just showered. His clothes weren’t afraid of the iron either. He wore a neat brown polo shirt with black denim jeans. He also wore black boots.
• “Miss...?” he whispered.
• She quickly lowered her head. Amusement was written on his face. She couldn’t help but blush, especially when she remembered what happened to them last night.
• She immediately took the flowers from his hands and returned to her working table without a word. She arranged them according to the man’s preferences.
• She felt embarrassed. That’s when she remembered the ring she saw him wearing last night. She thought nothing of it then. After all, she hadn’t seen any photos in the man’s penthouse. He was alone there.
• But what if he just had a fight with his wife? And he’s buying flowers to appease her?
• She wanted to just sink into the ground. What possessed her last night to do such a thing? If she wasn’t too affected by what was happening in her relationship with Cendrick before, she would never have done such a thing. And she would not be eating by her conscience now.
• Shameful!
• She never wanted to hurt anyone’s feelings, especially those women like herself. Because she didn’t want them to experience what she was going through.
• Was she being immediately punished?
• “Miss...?” The man’s voice brought her back to the present as he stood beside her. She hadn’t noticed he was already there.
• “Y-yes?” she asked, not looking at him.
• “Is it going to take much longer?” he asked in a husky tone. She almost closed her eyes if she hadn’t stopped herself.
• “N-no. Just a moment.” But in her haste, the scissors she was holding accidentally cut her finger. “Aw!”
• The man approached her. And to her surprise, even Rexie, who had been staring at him, he put her finger in his mouth.
• A mix of terror and stinging sensation washed over her. She couldn’t help but gasp loudly, even Rexie did.
• Suddenly, what happened between them last night came back to her. It felt like she was burning, so she quickly withdrew her hand.
• “T-that’s unhygienic,” she said as an excuse before turning to Rexie. “You can continue this. Excuse me,” she commanded, turning her back to the man.
• Without looking back, she hurried to her small office. As soon as she closed the door, she leaned against it, her heart pounding wildly. It felt like she was riding a roller coaster with how fast it was beating.
• She inhaled, then exhaled. She couldn’t calm down and repeated the process until she regained control of herself.
• God! Out of all the times, why did they have to encounter each other again on that day? They could have met next week, next month, or next year. But what the heck, it was just a day ago!
• Gosh! It wasn’t even a full day because she had only returned home in the early hours of the morning!
• She sighed deeply. She stopped when she remembered something.
• “You better be ready, Tiffany,” she said with determination.