an unwelcomed, or extra person. 

_______________________

I didn’t notice the number of text messaged I received until I arrived at the Aquarium center in the city.

Eleven messages.

All from the same person.

And all with only three words.

“You there yet??”

I made a quick call to Jett. He picked up after one ring.

“Hey babe! You here yet? If you are—that Xandie guy is late, cuz’—“

“O-Oh! Um, Xander gave me a ride here you see, so um…” I said quietly into the phone, but apparently, Xander could hear what I was saying as he raised an eyebrow.

Jett was silent on the other side of the phone.

“You agreed to let him drive you? Babe, but that’s dangerous! You should totally avoid guys like him who prey on cuties like you!” Jett warned exasperatedly.

“U-Um, I don’t think he’s preying on me, and I’m not that all cute either s-so—“

All of a sudden, a hand slipped into mine, gently taking hold of my cellphone.

Xander leaned down, turning the receiver so that he could speak into it.

“We’re here. Neither of us are late. Don’t be such an impatient kid,” And with that, he hung up on Jett.

“There, done,” Xander smirked wolfishly, handing my mobile back to me and slipping his hands into his pockets, thumbs out.

I couldn’t help but let slip a careless smile.  

That was mean, and I probably have to apologize to Jett later but—

It was…funny. Just a little.

O-Okay maybe a lot.

But it was still mean to call Jett a kid.

“Jett’s only a year younger than me,” I pointed out soon after, looking up at Xander as we walked from the parking area to the main entrance.

“So—he’s twenty,” Xander nodded, as if acknowledging the fact but not giving it a second take. He led the way very naturally, as if he had been here a couple of times.

I nodded.

“I think Giselle might have an older mental age compared to him,” Xander joked, pretending to consider this fact very seriously.

I tried to hold back my laughter, hitting Xander on the shoulder but realizing that my hand hurt instead.

We arrived at the main entrance, and spotted Jett immediately.

.

He was dressed quite maturely for his age—in a navy pea coat and black boots. His hair looked like it took ages to style.

As we approached him, Jett’s eyes lit up and he came jogging over.

“Babe! What was that all about?” He held up his cellphone, raising an eyebrow.

“O-Oh! I’m so sorry, um, well and Xander is too—right Xander?” I gave him my best glare but Xander’s smirk only widened in amusement.

He turned to Jett, giving him a shrug. “You were being an impatient kid.”

To my surprise, Jett turned to me, pouting. “Baaabe! He’s such a bully!”

“J-Jett! Didn’t I tell you to stop calling me that already?”

“Aw, you’re so cute when you’re angry!” Jett clung onto my arm fondly.

W-Well, I wasn’t really angry, just…maybe a little embarrassed, and annoyed.

“Um, so shall we start queuing? I-It’s really long…” I glanced at the long line outside of the main entrance.

“I know right?? And it’s a Friday morning! Ugh,” Jett groaned.

I turned to Xander, about to ask for his opinion—

But Xander was staring at Jett.

He had a strange frown on his face, a mixture of confusion and something else.

As if he couldn’t figure him out.

If looks could kill, Jett would be dead by now.

His stare was frightening.

Not a glare, just—

Dead.

Emotionless.

“X-Xan…der?” I tugged at the sleeve of his black coat to gain his attention.

His gaze lowered, turning to me. “Sorry Angel—just thinking.”

He smiled.

Meanwhile, Jett hadn’t noticed out small exchange. He was too busy complaining about the line.

Xander tapped sharply on Jett’s shoulder. “Shut up. You’re making too much noise. People are staring.”

Jett pouted angrily, sticking his tongue out at Xander.

Suddenly, the latter took my hand in his and started walking towards the entrance, bypassing the queue entirely.

“E-Eh? Xander? Where are you going?”

“That’s right! Let go of my Chip!”

Xander walked straight ahead, leading with confident strides, he took us to a special queue titled ‘VIP pass’.

“Morning Mr. Jaxon!” The man at the entrance greeted.

Xander smiled politely in return, flashing the attendant two passes. “Morning. I made an extra reservation on the phone, paid in credit—under the name Jaxon.”

“Right o’, got it Sir, go on in!” Beamed the enthusiastic male as he ticked off something on a list.

With excitement tingling at my fingertips, I stepped into the Aquarium, along with Xander and Jett.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

(A/N: Hello my dear! ^^ Cuppie is not promoting the building of Aquariums, or encouraging any of you to visit it. Just a reminder that I love all sea creatures and every part of nature—good or bad.)

It was huge—much bigger than how it looked from the outside.

A life-sized model of an ark took up the whole stretch of the building, and the marine creatures were only found a few floors beneath.

It was dim, and much colder than I thought it would be.

A huge arch stretched above us, spanning tens of meters—we were walking inside of a shark tank. The large marine creatures glided through the water above, left, and right.

.

I-It wasn’t much of a pleasant experience seeing the sharks, really. Their emotionless eyes and dead stare made me recoil from the glass. The fact that they were at such close proximity kinda scared me too. After all, it was the first time I saw a real life shark.

Jett was really eager. He begged me to take pictures with him, shooing Xander away and asking him to take the picture for us instead.

“Jett, that’s not very nice…Xander was the one who brought us here. He even paid for your ticket,” I chided, turning to him with a frown.

“Fine, fine—let’s take a selfie then.”

Uwa…I really…hate taking pictures.

“Hey! Look, what’s that? Wicked…”

Jett walked briskly ahead, leaving Xander and I far behind.

“Don’t like the sharks?” He asked out of the blue, smirking.

I lowered my gaze, embarrassed. “I-I guess…”

Xander laughed shortly, pointing in another direction as we exited the arch tank into a darker area. “I think you’d like the jellyfish.”

J-Jellyfish? I’ve always wanted to see jellyfish!

I felt my spirit lighten, and I nodded quickly.

“O-Oh wait, how about Jett?”

“He’s probably all the way up front. We’ll catch up with him later,” Xander reassured me, leading the way. “Watch your step,” He pointed to a faint silver line on the carpeted floor, which I had barely noticed.  

It was really dark.

“Thank you,” I said softly, relieved that I didn’t fall and make a fool out of myself.

Xander passed his fingers through my hair—like a pat on a head, just…just that it felt better than that.

I felt the tips of my ears and cheeks grow hot—and internally thanked the lack of lighting.

“Here,” The tall figure pointed to a glass panel that several people were crowded against. It was dark, and at first, I couldn’t see anything.

Then, after a couple of patient seconds, a faint, pinkish glow appeared. It looked like an unidentified glob, floating in dark waters. But then I saw trails of what looked like party streamers, which matched the color of the glow.

It moved upwards slowly, languidly. Then there were a few more, about seven—all floating lazily. Their caps flopped up and down in a dreamy manner and I found myself mesmerized.

I could stay here all the day and stare at this.

“I come here pretty often,” Xander lowered his voice so as to not disturb the enthralled crowd.

Oh, no wonder the guy at the entrance knows him.

“Why?” I asked quietly.

Xander sighed, “Here, in this city—it’s far from the beach. Stuck in these sort of places for five years, I kinda…missed it. The sea.”

He missed the beach?

Not the beach maybe—just, the beach that reminds him of beach volley.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

[Xander]

“This is the closest I can get,” I smiled, nostalgic, “To where I want to be.”

Beside you.

The beach.

The sea.

It reminds me of the times we spent together.

“Oh…beach volley?” My angel asked softly.

I paused, hesitant.

“I guess,” Lies.

Chip smiled warmly. “I see.”

I led him to a smaller tank filled with baby jellyfish, and he drew towards it instantly. “U-Uwa…so…fluffy…”

“They can kill, you know,” I stated, amused.

“I-I know that!” He turned sideways, pouting before he returned his gaze.

I watched as his eyes were illuminated by the natural glow of the jellyfish.

Beautiful.

“I want to be…as close to the sea as I can get. To the beach.”

My angel glanced up curiously. “Is that why you want to be…um, a captain?”

I swear I saw a faint blush tickle his cheeks, but it was dark—

“A cruise ship captain, yes.”

His adorable blue eyes widened in awe.

“T-That’s really cool.”

I laughed, and we turned back to the jellyfish.

I am a lost ship,

In the middle of a long voyage—

Looking for the perfect harbor to dock at—

Someday.

“E-Eh?”

“What’s wrong?” I asked, peering closer at the glass.

“That jellyfish. It’s tinier than the rest. I-It’s two times smaller…”

“Growth deficiency? Perhaps. Or maybe it’s a newborn.”

“Poor thing…” Chip stared sadly at the tiny jellyfish, both hands placed against the glass.

.

“Like giant stingrays?” I asked, eager to show him my favorites.

Chip shook his head immediately, looking rather afraid at the name.

“It’s not really that scary!” I laughed, gently taking hold of his hand and leading him to the main amphitheater. It wasn’t that dark now, with the panoramic marine vista emanating a turquoise glow.

“U-Uwa, it’s huge…” My angel’s lips parted in amazement as he scanned the entire glass panel.

“Spans a total of 108 feet, 27 high.”

 A giant manta ray glided past, and Chip jumped backwards.

 A whale shark followed soon after, and Chip darted behind my back.

“Is it over?” He whispered.

I was holding back my laughter. “Yes…yes it is.”

But you know what?

I didn’t realize it.

Not five years ago.

I didn’t realize—

That I have already docked at a harbor.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 

“Angelfish?”

“Eh?”

“Wanna take a look at the Angelfish?”

Again, the tips of his ears turned a shade darker. “S-Sure.”

I brought Chip to a wide cylindrical tank in the middle of a circular room.

“Exotic fish.”

“E-Exotic?” He repeated, as if in surprise.

“Yeah,” I pointed to a beautiful red and white-striped fish with triangular fins. “Peppermint Angelfish. One of the rarest fish in the world.”

His gaze fixed on the marine creature making its way about the cylindrical tank.

There was someone snapping away on his camera beside us, and I was about to tell him to turn off his flash when I realized that it was Jett.

“Turn off your flash,” I snapped, and he looked up from the screen of his high-speed camera.

“Oh, it’s just you,” He ignored my warning and continued to take pictures of the fish.

“Xander?” Chip noticed our little exchange, reluctantly leaving the fish and approaching us.

“Hey cutie! I was looking for you,” He kissed Chip abruptly on the forehead and fuck, I wanted to rip his limbs apart.

“J-Jett—what are you—why did you—” My angel stumbled over his words, rubbing the spot where the leech’s dirty lips touched.

“Aw, but—” I grabbed Jett’s camera, switching off the flash function.

“Hey! What are you doing?” He snapped, snatching the camera back.

“Turning off the flash,” I replied simply, and Chip turned on Jett with an adorable glare. “C’mon let’s get some lunch.”

“Oh! Oh! Free?” The leech was filled with an unknown energy all of a sudden, getting between Chip and I.

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Yay!”

“B-But Xander, I don’t think it’s polite for us to—”

 I smiled down at him.

“It’s okay. Let me, just this once,” Chip hesitated, then nodded shyly.

Persuasive skills.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

[Chip]   

Xander was too kind. He treated us to an expensive buffet—I tried to eat as much as possible but I couldn’t even finish half of what Jett ate. Xander himself had a huge appetite.

I apologized for being a total waste of money after the lunch, but Xander laughed and waved it off.

.

He drove us back to town and dropped Jett at his doorstep, and then both of us were alone.

Again.

“The four-hundred cupcakes…”

“E-Eh? So soon? It was supposed to be delivered tomorrow, r-right…?” I jumped, wondering whether I could possibly have forgotten the date for delivery.

“Yes, yes tomorrow—you didn’t remember it wrongly Angel,” Xander glanced at me sideways, flashing a reassuring smile.

“O-Oh, phew,” I sighed, but the abnormal speed of my heartbeat didn’t seem to recede.

“I was just wondering…whether you’d like to come to Giselle’s birthday party, tomorrow.”

I blinked.

Oh…so that’s why he ordered so many cupcakes…uwa, I’m so dumb, I actually forgot about Giselle’s birthday.

“Uh—it’s okay if you’re busy, really. I understand. You can drop in anytime—how about in the evening?” Xander went on, and he looked a little troubled because of my silence.

“Oh! Um, no, n-not really…I’m just…you know…Bill…” I left my sentence hanging, already sure he could connect the dots.

The tall figure sighed. “Dammit.”

“I-I’ll give it a try though, really.”

What—did I just say?

“Really? Thanks—that’s great. Giselle would be so happy.”

Why—did I just say that?

“Just a notice, the address for the party is different from the one I indicated for delivery, so—“

Wasn’t this supposed to be the last time I’d ever—

“I’ll drop by again later then,” Xander finished with a charming smile, and I couldn’t seem to hear anything that he had said before.

I promised—

Promised myself.

That I would never,

Never fall in love—

Ever again.

So why?

Why am I making this so,

So hard for myself?

Even so—

Why?

WHY AM I FALLING—

FOR THE SAME PERSON?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A/N: It's so strange how your heart never works the way you want it to. It never listens to you—and yet, you are expected to listen to your heart. The heart is unfair. 

So unfair.

How is it possible to fall in love with someone again, and again, and again, and again?  

And perhaps—forever?

Well, that is Love isn't it?

The one that defies all laws and conservations of this world. 

-Cuppiecake. ^0^/

Oh, yes. The Bonus Chapter has been posted! :3 No angst, no tears, I promise. Okay, maybe a little. But tears from laughing. LOL. 

Check it out on my profile! ^^