Winter Wonderland

Prologue

  Christmas. It means something for everyone. Like, seeing your family again, vacation from work, falling in love, having some excuse to bum around, food…Holiday food that’s always big and scrumptious, gifts…Well, you receive a lot when you’re young—you should give a lot when you get older. It’s one big happy season.

  And at the same time, it’s one of the saddest times in the world. Some people get depressed, some people just want the holiday to pass by. Ironic, but very true. Especially when you’re the Iron lady who in reality is still so fragile about a guy she never really got over with… Or when you’re in a “friends with benefits” situation… Or someone who opted to spend the holidays alone in Maldives. Maybe, you’re a singer in a smoky room. Or maybe, you’re the one who already had everything but realized you weren’t ready for it.

  Christmas. We all have our stories.

  Concrete Jungle

  If I can make it here, I can make it

  Anywhere that’s what they say

  New York, concrete jungle

  Where dreams are made of

  There’s nothing you can’t do…

  Charles loves listening to that song. Why, he loves New York. He’s been living in New York for a couple of years now. And he made it there. He and Carly, his bestfriend, housemate, workmate made it there. He’s the art director of Catwalk, one of the country’s leading fashion magazines. Carly is the editor-in-chief. He was inside her office that afternoon, discussing plans for the next issue when he saw her flare up again. Well, she always did. Years ago, back in college when they were still in the Philippines, she was always light-headed, always forgiving, always just so…cool. Now, she’s definitely the iron lady, very much the perfectionist. But oh well, she always still looks poised—even when she’s mad. Maybe it had something to do with the way she dresses up, he thought. Today, she had her hair up in a bun and she was wearing a red trenchcoat. Inside was a perfect white blouse and tucked in the collars was a black scarf that complemented her black A-line skirt, beautiful stockings (you should see it, it’s a work of art!), and those exquisite Chanel boots. She looked perfect.

  But today, the iron lady strikes again.

  Carly’s assistant, Gabrielle comes in the room holding some dresses in Peach color. Carly stood up and looked as if she wanted to kill her.

  “What are those?” She said.

  “Uhm, the dresses you were looking for…I also had them dry-cleaned.”

  Carly took a dress from her and held it up, “I told you to bring me the dresses in Beige, not in Peach. There’s a big difference.”

  “I’m…I’m sorry, I thought…”

  “Carly,” Charles said but Carly shut him up with a hand.

  “Do you know what you’re doing?” Carly said, “Don’t you have a sense of color? Oh, and can’t you see that what you did is just wasting my time? We have a very important issue to come up with and now this?”

  “I’m so sorry…” Gabrielle said, almost wanting to cry.

  “Get out of my room and when you get back I want to see the clothes in Beige, do you understand?”

  Gabrielle nodded her head, “Sorry…” She muttered as she scampered out of the room. Carly sighed as she got out.

  “Chill,” Charles said, “I mean, come on, there’s not exactly a big difference between beige and peach…” He smiled.

  Carly shot him a dagger look.

  “Sorry.” Charles smiled.

  Carly sighed as she poured herself a glass of Apple Cider, she drank some and then spoke to Charles, “So,” She said, “What was it you were gonna tell me?”

  “Oh, that…” Charles smiled sheepishly, “Actually I wanted to ask you if I can head out earlier? Uhm, I mean, I’m already done with my work for the day so…”

  “Does this have anything to do with that new guy you’re seeing?” (Yes, guy. Charles is gay. He outed himself to her back in junior year. For the record, he may be gay but for Carly, he’ll always be one of the bravest and most wonderful guys she knew.)

  Charles just smiled.

  “Okay, that smile means I should say yes, right?” Carly smiled. Even if she was having a terrible day, Charles never failed to make her smile.

  “Uh, yes?”

  “Fine,” Carly said, “As if I can say no…”

  Charles hugged her, “Oh, thank you!” He said, “So, I shall go now?”

  “Go…” She smiled and kissed him goodbye. Charles closed the door as he got out of the room, leaving Carly alone, plopping down on her chair. She always felt alone, anyway. But if that’s the price she had to pay for her job, she didn’t care. Or at least, she thought she didn’t care. After all, she had the whole world on her shoulders. Being the youngest editor-in-chief of Catwalk, she had to make sure that everything was going well in the magazine so it wouldn’t go in the pits again as it once had before the publishers decided to reformat it and allow her to be the editor-in-chief. She could not let that happen again. She was then surprised when her phone rang, distracting her from her thoughts. What surprised her even more was seeing that a number with a Philippine area code was calling her.

  “Hello?” She said.

  “Carly!!!” The person on the other line said.

  “Uhm, who’s this?”

  “Carly, it’s me, it’s Anielle…” Anielle is her friend from the Philippines. Well, actually, it was Anielle’s older brother, Alfred, that was originally her friend but they grew to be closer and were like real-life sisters until she left for New York three years ago when she was 22. They only catch up through the internet until today.

  “Oh, my, it’s you…” Carly said, “Hey, how’s it going?”

  “Oh, it’s good!”

  “So…what made you call?”

  “I’m getting married in a few weeks!”

  “Wow, oh that’s…That’s good news!” Carly said, “With what’s his name? Jenner?”

  “Oh, we broke up,” Anielle replied, “I’m getting married to Kurt. We met 3 months ago.”

  “Oh, and you are getting married?”

  “I know, right?” Anielle exclaimed, “Whirlwind romance! Whod’ve thought!” She laughed.

  “Oh,” Carly said, “And…what does this have to do with me?”

  Anielle laughed, “I’m getting you as my maid of honor!” She said, “I mean, I don’t have a lot of friends and you’re like, my sister so…”

  “Oh, Anielle, I’d love to but…” She was gonna say “I’m busy” but before even doing so, Anielle had already cut her off.

  “I’m not gonna accept no as an answer,” Anielle said, “Please? I haven’t asked you for anything in a long time…I need you there.” She went on, “Besides, Christmas is also just around the corner, I’m sure you could get a leave or something…And then you can stay with us here since your family’s away, right?”

  “Anielle,”

  “Please?” She said and then, “Oh, sorry, I gotta go, I’ll see you in a week?”

  “Anielle,”

  But Anielle has already put down her phone. Carly sighed as she plopped harder on her chair.

  ***

  Carly opened the door to the house that she and Charles share, dropped down her Chloe Satchel handbag on the floor, opened the light and was surprised to see Charles making out with a guy on the floor.

  “Oh my God…” Carly said.

  Charles and the guy (who actually turned out to be a hot, Italian-looking guy who looked like a cross between Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp) were surprised as well. They stood up and looked at her.

  Charles smiled, “Uh, Carly, this is Paulo…He’s Italian.” He smiled even more.

  “Hi,” Paulo smiled in his authentic Italian
accent.

  I,

  Carly smiled, “Buono Pomeriggio…” She said.

  “Oh, you speak Italian!” Paulo exclaimed, his black curls bouncing, “That’s so cute!”

  Carly smiled, “Uh, thanks…” She said, “I’ll just…I’ll just be in my room…” She said and made her way to her bedroom.

  “She okay?” Paulo asked Charles.

  “Oh, she had a rough day…I could handle it.” Charles smiled.

  “Okay, anyway, I have to get going then…” Paulo smiled as he kissed Charles, “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Charles said happily. A few seconds later, Paulo was gone. He then made his way to Carly’s bedroom. There he found her lying down on bed while still wearing her boots.

  “Okay, too tired to take off your boots, eh?” He said as he sat down beside her and took of her boots. “What’s goin’ on?”

  “Nothing…”

  “Oh, you can’t lie to me, Carly…” Charles said, “I know you well enough to know that when you get home and you lie down on bed without even taking your shoes off, it means there’s something wrong…”

  For some reason, that made Carly laugh lightly. She got up and sat down beside him.

  “So what’s the emergency?” He asked her.

  “Anielle called.”

  “Anielle?”

  “Alfred’s sister.”

  “Your friend Alfred? Filipino Alfred?”

  “The one and only.”

  “Oh.” He said, remembering how a few years back, she was so hung-up on what could’ve happened between her and Alfred. Unreciprocated love. That was it. “So, what’s up?”

  “Anielle’s getting married.”

  “Hey, that’s good news! Why so glum?”

  “Well, she’s making me her maid-of-honor.”

  “So?”

  Carly looked him in the eye and sighed, “Don’t you get it?” She said, “That means I have to go back to the Philippines…”

  Charles cut her off, “Which is okay, I mean, it’s almost the holiday season, you can get a leave…”

  Carly sighed harder, “Charles, it means I have to stay with Anielle at her home, with Alfred. My parents are away, remember? And besides, I have issues with them…”

  “And issues with Alfred?”

  “He hates me.”

  “Come on, Carly, it’s been years! You were younger then…”

  “That really doesn’t change anything.”

  “How can you be so sure?” He said, “It’s been years, the guy could’ve softened up by now…”

  “Or, he could’ve toughened up even more.”

  “Just like you?”

  She just looked at him.

  “Carly, Anielle’s inviting you to be part of her wedding. You’re going home for her, not for Alfred…” He said, “Besides you need a break…And I need the house for me and Paulo.” He smiled, “Only joking…”

  “I know you’re not…” She smiled.

  He laughed, “Seriously, you should go.” He told her, “You need a break. It’s the holidays. See what happens,” He said, “You just never know.”

  She just looked at him, not really knowing what to say.

  ***

  “She is such a dragon lady!” Gabrielle, Vince’s girlfriend’s Rina said while they were in a bar that night. Apparently, she had a little problem with her boss earlier that day. “What’s the difference between beige and peach anyway?”

  But before Vince could say anything, his phone rang and he had to answer it. It was Vivienne, his bestfriend (and one time girlfriend) on the line.

  ***

  Vivienne was dizzy. No, more than dizzy. She felt like she was gonna faint. She drank too much that night and so she had to drag herself to this coffeeshop and call her bestfriend, Vince, to bring her home.

  “Vince,” She said.

  “Hello?” Vince said.

  “Can you pick me up?”

  “Why? What happened?”

  “Nothing, I’m just…”

  “Drunk?” Vince finished for her.

  “Oh, I was just trying to celebrate how I finished my newest story…” Vivienne said. She was a writer.

  Vince sighed. This has happened so many times already. “Where are you?”

  “Cresecent Café…”

  “Okay, stay right there, I’ll be there in a bit, okay?” He said, “And don’t go anywhere near a guy.”

  “Okay…” She said, “Thanks Vince…”

 

  ***

  “What was that?” Rina asked as Vince put his cellphone back in his pocket, “What happened?”

  “Uhm, I’m sorry, I have to go, it’s an emergency…”

  “What? Why?”

  “Vivienne’s drunk, she didn’t bring her car with her, I have to pick her up…” He kissed Rina goodbye, “Sorry.” He said, “I’ll call you.” He then hastily ran away.

  ***

  Vince carried Vivienne and opened the door of his van. He laid Vivienne down on one of the seats and she pulled him close to her, his head resting on her breasts. He closed the van door and looked at Vivienne.

  “Vivs,” He said. But she was already asleep.

  He sighed and strapped the seatbelts on her. He then made his way to the driver’s seat and started driving. After all these years, he’s still in love with her. They were together when they were in junior year in college, but he knew for a fact it wouldn’t work. She was still in love with someone else then. Still, he gave it a try. Maybe, she’d fall in love with him, he thought. After all, they were friends. But things just got messy. She said, being in a rebound relationship was a mistake and that she was sorry. She stopped talking to him for months, until one day when he asked her if they could go out for coffee. She agreed, only to tell him she was finally over the first—not because of him, but because of someone else. Months later, when it was over between her and guy number two, he tried to woo her once again but unfortunately, things were messy again. His fault, this time. He accused her of so many things, like, she would never be able to love him, that she didn’t care about him…Well, he was drunk, but that’s not an excuse. She was so mad, he thought she would never talk to him again. But months later, due to her loneliness and the pressure of graduating, they started talking again. And since then, he decided not to do anything—unless decided. They would talk sometimes and they became friends, bestfriends again almost a year after graduation. There were impromptu make-out sessions, which led to nothing because she would never want to talk about it. So, here they are, years later, friends (with benefits, as others would say), and although he still loved her, he couldn’t just blurt it out for fear it would cause her to stay away from him.

  He stopped in front of his house and brought her to his room. He kissed her on the forehead as he laid her down on bed, and laid a comforter on the floor. Hours later, he fell asleep.

  Tropic Thunder

  Margot has always been the tough girl. And tough girls travel alone.

  Well, at least that’s what she thought. She asked for a three-week leave from her boring office and now here she was, in Maldives, vacationing alone for the coming holidays. She was wearing a white bohemian top, flowy, thin, the type that would make guys take a double look at her and some really short shorts. She also had her shades on as she walked to the reception area of this resort she’d be staying in.

  “Margot, this is Terrence,” The receptionist said as she introduced a guy who was wearing a wife beater and some floral shorts to her. Despite the floral shorts, he looked hot. He had short, black hair, beautiful deep-welled eyes and his lips…Oh his lips—they were perfect, she thought. “He’ll accompany you to your room.” The receptionist said. She was a burly woman. “Terrence, come on, get her bags. The Palm room.”

  Terrence looked at Margot. Margot pursed her lips. He held her large, red suitcase and her duffel bag. She followed him to a room near
a Palm tree. It was definitely a cabin, just with air-con. Maldives is a tropical place, there wasn’t any snow.

  “So, this is where you’ll be staying.” He told her, definitely noticing the thin fabric of her clothes. She’s hot, he thought.

  Margot looked him right in the eye. She felt like she wanted to kiss him right then and there. Oh, but he’s a stranger, she thought. “Thanks.” She told him, tucking a strand of her long, curly black hair in her ear.

  “If you need anything, I’ll just be around.” He said, his deep voice so obvious.

  “Yeah, thanks.” She told him.

  “See you.” He said and then went out.

  ***

  Margot was walking along the shore that night wearing one of her white tunics, still flowy, still thin and some short shorts when this old, Spanish guy walked up to her. He’s not what I want, she thought. He’s like, even older than my dad!

  “Buenos Tardes, Beautiful…” The Spanish guy said, “Care to swim with me?”

  “Uh, no, thanks.” Margot said, wanting to just run away but not wanting to look like a fool.

  “Well, what about a glass of wine?”

  Margot said no again, but the Spanish guy kept going on and on. Not too far from them, Terrence was watching. When he felt like she was being annoyed already, he ran to them, holding her by the arm which surprised her.

  “Hey,” He told the Spanish guy, “Keep your hands off my girl.”

  “Oh,” Mr. Spanish said, “You certainly have no taste in men.” He told Margot, looked at the two of them before walking away.

  “Eew.” Margot muttered as she allowed Terrence to walk her back to her room. He took a deep breath as he got in. She surprisingly closed the door behind them.

  “I’m your girl?” She asked him, smiling naughtily.

  He didn’t say anything. Instead he walked up to her and kissed her. Surprisingly, she kissed back. She then led his hands to her breasts and a lump formed on his throat as he touched them through the thin fabric of her top. They made out for a couple of minutes until he pulled back.