Page 23 of Between Here and There

The Santiagos’ spacious backyard, complete with its sparkling pool and lush greenery, is packed with people huddled around, eyes fixed on us. It’s oddly quiet, everyone watching with this kind of press-conference intensity, like they’re waiting for us to spill it all.

“Well…” I start, my voice a little shaky. I put the plate of food on the table and wipe my hands with a napkin. “We ran into each other weeks ago after not seeing each other for over a decade.” I glance at Joshua, the memory still vivid. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize him right away. There are familiar features that resemble his youth, but the tattoos, the soft stubble, and the muscles drown out all of it.

“And then we went on a date, both of us thinking we were strangers,” Joshua chimes in, his tone relaxed as he takes my hand. Apparently, I zoned out. “Which, by the way, was wonderful.” He turns to me, and his gaze is steady, comforting. His hand is warm in mine, grounding me. Like it did in the plane and the car ride home.

“And ever since we realized who we were, we’ve been inseparable,” he finishes, squeezing my hand slightly as he looks down at me with a reassuring smile.

“Ohhh, so he’s…?” Haley says as she makes a kissing gesture. I nod frantically and motion for her not to continue. My friends snicker, except for Bon. She grimaces.

“Anyway,” I say, looking at Josh. “When I started looking at Josh as more than my best friend’s annoying brother, he can be pretty great.”

Everyone chimes in with a chorus of ‘awwws’ that makes my insides squirm. Well, everyone except Freida and her niece Lucy who probably only visited town because Joshua’s coming home. I’m starting to feel uneasy by how they’re all still staring, probably still trying to absorb this new detail. I imagine what it’s like from their perspective. Before I left, I was with Rob, the ‘perfect’ guy. And now, I’m with Joshua, the player.

That’s right, folks! Joshua Santiago is with me, move along!

I try to maintain a smile, like how I usually do when I’m at the café dealing with entitled Karens. But I have a feeling it looks more awkward than I intended, so I just stop smiling altogether. I guess Joshua sees my awkward smile, because he steps in again, thankfully.

“And it’s easy to fall for Emily, too. She’s smart, she’s beautiful, she’s everything,” he says, and I blush. Dammit. I’ve always blushed too fast, and it never helped me in any situation.

“Well, I’m shocked. I never thought I’d see you spend a lot of time with one woman,” Tita Evie says to Joshua. “I’m proud of you, sweetie.”

“Even I surprised myself, Ma,” Josh says. He brushes my hand gently with his thumb. “Emily’s something else.”

We look at each other for a few seconds, and I drown in those eyes. They’re brown, like the color of chocolate. Even in the dark, they glisten. We’re doing great for people who fake-love one another.

“Anyway, we have to unpack,” Josh says, pulling us away from that charged moment. “If there are no further questions, we’ll get going for now.”

Since I know they’re still all staring, I take my hand away from his grip and loop my arm around his instead. He seems taken aback by my action but doesn’t say anything. Even through the lightest of touches, I can feel how hard his giant arms are. And then, true to its evil nature, my mind reminds me how these exact same arms were sliding around my body just two weeks ago…Dammit, Emily, snap out of it.

When we get out of their home, it starts to drizzle. I attempt to remove my arm from Josh’s so I can run next door to my house, but he halts me by pulling his elbow down so my arm is stuck between his.

“Hang on,” he says, arm still linked around mine. He removes his baseball cap and places it on my head, but it’s so big it falls down to my eyes. Josh chuckles and lets go of me so he could step behind me and adjust the strap to fit. “Okay, now go,” he says once the cap is already held in place.

“How about you?” I ask.

“I’ll be fine. You, on the other hand, get sick over dust. Imagine what rain could do,” he says. Before I can contest, he jogs toward the car in the rain.

“I still can’t believe it. You and Joshua Santiago?” Lila, my sixteen-year-old sister, says as she helps me haul my things into my old room.

“What’s so unbelievable about that?” I ask, trying to maintain my calm. I raise my eyebrows, provoking her to continue. I’m not in the mood to defend myself tonight. I just want to lie down and rest. It’s been a long day.

“Nothing, just… he doesn’t seem like your type. And, well, vice versa.” She smirks, clearly enjoying this too much. “But hey, I’m here for it. Cute power couple energy, honestly.” She flashes me a thumbs-up and a wink before retreating with a mischievous grin.

“Li, you were six years old when he left town. How in the world do you know if we’re not each other’s type?” I ask, curious.

“Um, ever since the Rob incident, you’ve been on the gossip train. And at the mention of New York, Kuya Josh was brought up. Julia says he was the neighborhood charmer. Like a living legend.” Julia is Manong Jose’s daughter, and she probably has front row seats to gossip since she helps sell the barbecues in the afternoon.

She’s not wrong, so I say, “For the record, he’s still a charmer.”

Lila rolls her eyes and steps out of my room. I go straight to the shower to wash the travel stink off me. After a quick rinse, I change into my tank top and pajamas and get ready to go to bed, ready to savor a moment of peace.

My room feels both familiar and foreign—like a forgotten memory. I haven’t stayed here since I moved to my dorm in college, then I went straight to New York after that. I take the time to look around, finding little trinkets that remind me of a certain period of my life.

As I brush my hair, I run my hand over the desk beside my bed, its surface worn out by years of cramming and studying. My old cork board is still cluttered with postcards and concert tickets from years ago, with snapshots of a girl who thought she had everything figured out. It’s almost surreal, like stepping back into a time capsule.

My bed still has the same faded floral comforter I always used in the past. I sit down on it, and the mattress squeaks just like it used to. I remember lying here, staring at the ceiling, imagining the life I’d have one day, far away from this little room. Funny how at the time, I couldn’t wait to leave. Now, part of me just wants to be that girl again, with her dream intact and her life on track.

Just as I’m about to completely lie down and rest, I hear a knock on my door. Sighing, I open it, only to find Bon, Kate, and Haley standing there, armed with food, wine, and grins that suggest my quiet night is officially canceled.

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