Absinthe

Chapter 40: Two Truths And A Lie

I woke up to a familiar feeling of warmth and deep-rooted satisfaction. Like drinking a perfect cup of hot

chocolate with melting marshmallows on top on a cold winter night in Seoul. I struggled to open my

eyes despite the gentle rays of the sun inviting me to get up and make the most of the morning. What's

more, I enjoyed the feeling of the strong, lean arm holding me in place. It reminded me of the way my

long-term ex-boyfriend would hold me whenever we spooned after sex.

Wait. Whose arm is this?

I opened my eyes to find Jiwoo sleeping comfortably beside me. He still wasn't awake even with the

room bathing in sunlight, which I realized was more blinding than gentle. When had I parted the

curtains? I removed Jiwoo's arm off me and forced myself to sit upright. That was when I realized that

the two of us were naked except for our boxer shorts. And then the memories of the night before came

flooding back.

"Guys, they're awake!"

I felt Jiwoo stir beside me and my heart skipping a few beats. Reluctantly, I turned my head toward the

windows and squinted at the figure standing there: Derrick.

"Thank God," came the voice of Vivi followed by Nico's.

"Well, well. It looks like some of us had too much fun last night."

I snatched a glance at the clock on my bedside table. It read 8:45. Fuck! We had all agreed to leave

Manila at around 6:00 AM. And from the looks of things, Nico and Vivi had been in the house since

then. Somebody kill me now!

I pushed Jiwoo in an effort to wake him up. He shifted again and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"A little privacy, please?" I begged everyone. Thankfully, they seemed to understand and exited the

room one after the other.

I wanted to cry at that moment, but there was still that lengthy drive to Benguet. I should deal with the

now and deal with the previous night much later.

The inside of Nico's Lexus was comfortable and nothing short of grand, though it wasn't as luxurious as

mine nor Derrick's. He was driving off a busy EDSA with Vivi in the passenger seat. She was flipping

between radio stations to find something she liked. I was not particular about them—I just hoped she

would choose something bearable. I didn't think I could stand the awkwardness between myself and

the guy sitting beside me if the DJ were to start talking about love and relationships.

"That was a nice kitchen you got back there," Nico said. "German-made fittings?"

"Yeah," I answered nonchalantly. "Were you guys able to eat breakfast?"

"We did," Vivi said. "Your cute roommate graciously allowed us to cook some stuff."

I felt my stomach growl a little and hoped that none of them heard it.

"We saw some coffee buns," Nico said. "We threw them away, though. It looked like you forgot to put

them in the oven. It's a shame really. The streusel topping looked amazing."

I had this habit of face-palming myself even before emojis became a thing. Sometimes, I use two palms

instead of one because of how embarrassing the situation is. In that moment, I did the latter.

"We can stop by Starbucks and grab something if you guys are hungry," Nico offered.

"Nah. We're good, man," Jiwoo answered.

Could he not speak for himself only? I had done most of the cooking last night, and all he did was the

pastry cream of our failed coffee buns!

"If you say so," Nico said, smiling at us from the rear view mirror. "We did pack up your sandwiches.

And we managed to salvage some of the muffins, but most of them got burnt."

That was all Jiwoo's fault. If he hadn't made a move while we were cooking, we would not have left all

those goodies in the oven. And we wouldn't have been two hours late.

"Coffee?" Jiwoo asked, offering up a metallic tumbler from Starbucks UK.

I took it and drank eagerly, hoping that the caffeine would give me the confidence to face the 8-hour

ride with Jiwoo only inches away from me.

Nothing had happened between us, but we almost had sex. And he had seen me crying my eyes out

while reading JM's letter. Ugh. Someone kill me now, please.

"I miss Chico and Delamar," Vivi commented as the DJ's voice blared out of the car's speakers. "It's

hard to find someone of their caliber these days."

I nodded in silent agreement. Faye and I were fans. We had cried when we found out the two had had

a falling out, not just professionally but personally as well.

Nico continued to drive for the next two hours, and the other three of us were content to just hum along

whatever song the DJ played on the radio. The scenery didn't change much as we barely made it out of

the metro. Had we left by 6 AM, we would have probably been halfway our trip by now.

"Hey guys, wanna play a game?" Nico asked. "Two truths and a lie? We've been together for a while,

but we barely know each other."

"I'm in," Vivi replied.

Jiwoo glanced at me before he answered affirmatively, and all of them looked at me for my answer.

"Of course," I said, forcing a smile.

"Great!" Nico said. "I guess I'm starting then. I'm half French. I grew up in Paris. I'm straight."

"That one's easy!" Vivi remarked. "We know for a fact that you're half French and you're straight. The

lie must be Paris. You grew up somewhere else."

"Really? I'm straight?" Nico asked mockingly. "If Jiwoo hadn't so obviously barricaded BJ—"

Jiwoo coughed, and Vivi giggled.

"He's straight," I said. "Nico never set my gaydar off. That's proof enough." All three of them laughed.

"I have Grindr, though."

My eyes widened, and Vivi made an audible gasp. "The gay app? The literal gaydar?"

"Uh-huh," Nico said with a chuckle. I figured it was a joke.

"Seriously, though. Where did you grow up?" I asked in a persistent tone.

"Brittany," Nico answered. "Although we moved to Paris when I was 15, we lived there for about 3

years before coming here."

"Brittany?" Jiwoo asked. "That sounds like some blonde bitch's name."

Nico and Vivi burst out laughing at that comment, which I found to be an indication that Jiwoo was an

uncultured swine.

"My turn," Vivi announced. "I lost my virginity at age 13. I have had exactly 17 boyfriends and 2

girlfriends. I own two dogs and a cat."

"Whoa," Nico said, smiling from ear to ear. "You dropped bombs, man."

"Yeah, that's pretty difficult," Jiwoo chimed in. "I'm guessing the lie is you losing your virginity at 13."

"I think it's the second one," I said. "You don't look like you're into relationships. There's no way you've

had that many exes."

"BJ's right!" Vivi said excitedly. "I've had only 2 exes in total."

"And you slept with one of them when you were only 13?" Jiwoo looked scandalized.

Vivi gave him a smirk. "You don't go asking ladies about their past sex lives, stupid."

Nico laughed and reminded Jiwoo that it was his turn now. I glanced at Jiwoo and saw him scratching

his head, his lips curled into a pout. The very same lips that had tasted like sugar and peanut butter

yesterday.

Shit. Why am I remembering these things?

"Uh... Let's see," Jiwoo started. "I have four younger half-brothers. My dad's Korean. I'm in love with

someone in this car."

I wanted to slap him. Why did he have to make our innocent game awkward as fuck?

"It's obvious," I said. "It's the last one. Next!"

"Hey, wait a second!" Jiwoo protested. "That's not it. You're wrong."

"No, I can't be wrong. Next!"

"What the hell?"

"Well, you do have four younger brothers," I explained. "And your father's Korean. That leaves the third

one as the lie."

"I don't have a father," Jiwoo stated angrily. All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

"So how were you born? Your mom's capable of asexual reproduction?"

I didn't know where my anger was coming from. All I knew was that I was beyond exasperated. His

statements were nothing short of cringeworthy, and he must've thought he was so cool saying them out

loud.

"Chill," Nico said. "It's just a game."

"I'm not playing anymore," I declared.

"Me, neither," Jiwoo said.

The audacity! I should not have agreed to taking a single car. I could have been driving in peace,

singing along to songs I liked, instead of being stuck beside an asshole.

"Why are you angry? Is it because of yesterday?"

"Oh, shut the fuck up!"

"Hey," Nico raised his voice. "I said chill!"

I turned to the window and crossed my arms. "Can I drive?"

Nico quietly surveyed the situation, and I saw Vivi giving him a nod. Nico steered us toward an

emergency shoulder, put the car on park, and unlatched his seat belt.

I did the same and hopped out of the car. I noticed that Vivi had gotten out, too. For a second, I thought

Jiwoo was about to ride shotgun so I was about to protest, but Nico shushed me.

"I'm sitting in front," he said.

"Sorry."

I drove for the next three or four hours in relative silence. Vivi and Jiwoo slept in the back, and Nico

kept me company by telling me stories about himself. I checked the clock—it was already a few

minutes past one.

"I'm taking the next highway rest stop," I told Nico. "We can all use the washroom or something. And

get more food if you don't like my chicken sandwiches."

"Nonsense," Nico said. "You made them, so I bet they're amazing. Although it's hard to argue with that

first bit. We can stretch our legs, too."

Nico woke Vivi and Jiwoo up once I had successfully parallel parked in the crowded parking lot. I did

not wait for either of them to wake up, though. I freed myself from the seatbelt and bolted out of the car.

"I'm going ahead!" I called out to no one in particular. "Meet you at Starbucks!"

I took a long leak in the urinal, washed my hands, and splashed my face with cool, refreshing water to

wake up my senses.

"BJ?" I heard someone say.

I looked around and spotted JM.

My week could not possibly get any worse.