Page 14 of Between Here and There

Wait. A. Minute. I’m also going to Manila for a wedding in five days. And I’m supposed to get a call from Bon’s brother. Bon’s brother lives in Manhattan. Isn’t he an engineer? Construction, or buildings, or…

I blink rapidly, pushing the thought down. It can’t be him. It’s too crazy, too unlikely. I brush it off as he dials a number on his phone, hoping to distract myself from the rapid-fire questions bombarding my mind.

“I hope she answers. I forgot all about it. Bon will kill me if she finds out I never called her.”

That’s when my brain screeches to a halt, locking onto the name.

Bon.

I blink again, once, twice. My mind races, tangling up in the possibilities. Five days. Sister’s wedding. Riding home together. Bon. I feel my pulse quicken, my breath coming in shallow bursts. What’s the probability that a woman named Bon, who has a brother that works as an engineer in Manhattan, is getting married in five days?

The pieces fall into place like a slow-motion crash I can’t stop watching.

No.

No. no. no.

NO.

NOOOOOOOO.

The gasp escapes me before I can stop it, and my phone vibrates in my hand.

He looks at me with a mix of curiosity and confusion, then glances down at his phone, then back at me. Haley’s words from our last FaceTime echo in my head: ‘Like a tan and tattooed Hemsworth brother.’ Shit.

Hi, Universe. Now would be a good time for that mysterious murder.

I sigh. “Joshua… Bon’s brother Joshua?” I say, still in disbelief. I look at him, scanning for any indication that he was the Joshua we grew up with but I can’t find anything. I know he lives here, but I never really thought about Joshua Santiago since he left the neighborhood ten years ago.

I glance at him, his phone still in his ear, as if expecting someone else to answer. I reject the call, and the ringing stops. He’s still staring at his phone like it’s the first time he’s seen one.

And then he looks at me and our eyes meet. “Emily?” Joshua doesn’t remember me either. I guess I don’t blame him. I’ve changed a lot since I was fourteen. My hair, for instance, used to be short and jet black. But when I moved here, I started to dye it light brown and let it grow to my elbows. I look like a completely different person, and apparently, so does he.

“Yup. It’s me. Emily,” I say, trying to sound nonchalant even though my insides are going crazy. His eyes go wide as the realization dawns on him. Holy shit. I actually gushed about that kiss to Bon, Haley, and Kate. I recounted every detail with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for celebrity gossip—completely oblivious that I was talking about Bon’s brother.

I can’t believe it. I kissed Joshua Santiago and I didn’t know it. Joshua, who spent the better part of his teenage years babysitting me and Bon. Joshua, who was like an extra sibling to me. Joshua, who changes girlfriends faster than he changes clothes. This is a disaster. No, this is catastrophic.

I glance at him again, and he looks like he’s still processing this too. Oh, boy. He regrets it, doesn’t he? That he kissed me? I feel the panic coming, and when he looks at me, I expect him to get angry or completely ignore me. But he… laughs.

“No way. Emily Rodriguez? The genius kid with the dust allergy?” Joshua says, his eyes widening with a mix of recognition and amusement. I can practically hear the smirk in his voice. I guess decades aren’t enough to erase a person’s quirks in someone else’s memory. Joshua might have been a responsible older brother, but he was also the kind of older brother who would tease, annoy, and make you so mad you cry in your room after he tells you that he used your favorite rag doll as a vomit-absorber after a house party.

“I’m kidding,” he adds with a chuckle. “I meant to say, Emily Rodriguez—my sister’s best friend who practically lived in our house.”

I can’t even process the absurdity of this. I put my hands over my face. “I can’t believe this. I can’t believe this. Oh my god, wekissed. I cannot believe I enjoyed a kiss withBon’s brother,” I blurt out, my breathing coming in ragged bursts. “I should have known something like this would happen. I shouldn’t have let loose like that.” My heart is racing as if it’s trying to escape from my chest. I bang my head on the headrest and try to steady my breathing.

I anticipate a reply from him, but nothing comes. So, I look over at him, half expecting him to be as flustered as I am. But instead, he’s smirking. And surprisingly calm. “How are you not freaking out?!” I demand.

“First of all, thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed our kiss,” he says, placing a hand over his heart and giving me a sarcastic smile. In that smile, I see a flash of the boy I once knew—the same mischievous glint in his eyes and that annoying grin that’s really just attractive now. Time has transformed us both, but some things haven’t changed at all.

“Second of all, why would I freak out? It was a good kiss, but it was just one kiss, Em. I’m sure you’ve had more meaningful nights with other strangers. You don’t have to freak out about it.”

And there it is—a punch to the gut. Of course, it’ssome to overthink and ascribe more meaning to that kiss than it deserved. He’s right, though. At the time, he was just a stranger. We had fun, and now it’s just a memory. And I shouldn’t probably correct him if he thinks I’ve had meaningful nights with strangers. Maybe it’s better for me to just let him think that.

“I have a question, though,” he says after a while, shaking his head as if he’s trying to reconcile the memory with the present. He goes silent for a moment, clearly deep in thought, then narrows his eyes at me. “Isn’t Emily supposed to be a big-shot Wall Street accountant?”

I completely forgot about the whole facade I put up. He saw me at not just one, but two different jobs. There’s no way I can lie my way out of this one. It’s like life has been continuously throwing me curve balls and I haven’t dodged a single one.

I let out a heavy sigh. “Well, Emilywasindeed a big-shot Wall Street accountant for about ten months. Then the universe decided her talents were better suited for managing espresso machines. And it’s been a month since she lost her job. She hasn’t mentioned this to anyone in Manila to avoid the judgment, so she’s begging you not to rat her out.”

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