Chapter 5 Four

Justin didn't inform me that he planned to give me a tour of the entire Site four! And of all times, he chose when the sun was scorching hot. He could have done it later in the afternoon. Sigh.

Fortunately, I brought my bag, and my umbrella was inside. I quickly retrieved it and hurried to catch up with Justin. I raised my hand to shield him from the sun. He glanced at me because of my action, and I gave him a hesitant smile. But damn, he completely ignored my smile and focused his gaze back on the road.

His reaction left me dumbfounded. This guy is so hard-hearted! What did I do to deserve this treatment from him? And the way he acts as if we don't know each other? He's so cold, as if I committed some grave offense against him! Meanwhile, he's the one who betrayed me –

My train of thought was interrupted when Justin spoke. At first, I thought he was talking to himself because he spoke as if he was having a conversation with someone, yet he continued to look straight ahead without acknowledging my presence. I realized that he was actually addressing me –

"It's not really that hot, I guess you can keep your umbrella." Well, I was the only one holding an umbrella between the two of us, right? And because I was looking at him while we walked, I failed to notice the metal barriers on the road. Then, to add to my misfortune, I was wearing heels, which resulted in me stumbling and kissing the ground.

"Ouch! That hurts!" / "Joanna!" We both exclaimed at the same time.

I immediately complained, and as I examined my palm, I noticed some small stones stuck to it. There were also minor cuts, but fortunately, they didn't bleed. When I looked at my knee, the pain intensified due to the large gash I obtained from the fall. Some small stones were also embedded in the wound, causing it to bleed slightly from the abrasion.

I gently blew on it to alleviate the pain, and to my surprise, Justin knelt down in front of me. I briefly looked at his face, and for the first time since we met yesterday, I saw some emotion in his eyes – he seemed worried about me?

"You're really clumsy, huh?" he teasingly said. As if I was the one who got hurt, yet he had the audacity to say that! Ugh! This Bakulaw is so mean, just because he's handsome! Out of annoyance, I glared at him directly and refocused my attention on my injured knee. Ouch! It hurts! And to my surprise –

"Waahh! What are you doing, Justin? Put me down!" I said to him. He suddenly got closer – I thought he was just curious about what happened to my wound. But no, he lifted me up, bridal-style.

I bit my lower lip, trying to suppress all the irrelevant thoughts that came to mind. Damn it! I should forget about the past. I could feel my face getting hotter. I hope Justin doesn't notice! I'll embarrass myself in front of him for sure.

"Reminiscing something?" Justin asked while he continued walking, and I had no idea where we were going. I didn't want anything to happen now except being swallowed by the ground! Urghh! Damn it! I'm starting to desire him again!

I felt his chest vibrate as he laughed, and my heart was about to burst out of my ribcage! I couldn't help but laugh too because of Justin! Then, I noticed myself smiling.

Justin eventually brought me inside a large, unfinished building. We walked further inside until we reached what seemed to be the office area for the engineers working on the building.

Even on the way to the office, people kept asking me what happened. I didn't know if I should answer or not since Justin was ignoring them. He's such a snob! Almost all the workers we passed by asked, "Sir, what happened?" Well, they were all men anyway.

Or was it just my imagination, or did the annoyance on Justin's face become more evident because of his intense glare and his clenched jaw? I was put down by Justin on a black leather sofa.

"I'll just get the first aid kit." I nodded slowly, and as he disappeared from my sight, I let out a sigh of relief. I couldn't help but wonder what happened to Justin in the past seven years. Why is he suddenly speaking in English all the time? Back then, he spoke in Tagalog.

Justin didn't take long to return, carrying a first aid kit, and he grabbed a monobloc chair to sit in front of me. He glanced at me before focusing on my wound and let out a sigh. He attempted to lift my foot to place it on his leg, but –

"Ouch! Justin, that hurts!" I swatted his hand away. I sat down and gently blew on my injured knee. I heard him sigh again before he took a seat on the same sofa.

"Next time be careful, Joanna," he said to me. I pouted, nodded, and attempted to blow on my leg again. He carefully took it and placed it back on his leg. This time it didn't hurt as much since we were closer together.

He took some cotton and applied betadine to it. Slowly, he dabbed it on my wound. I felt as if the cotton and his hand weren't there. He even blew on my wound, and all I could do was watch him.

In the past seven years, hardly anything had changed about Justin. He still had that handsome appearance. How did he manage to maintain it? I couldn't help but feel sentimental and wonder if he missed me too during those years, just like how I missed him. Did he search for me? Did he feel hurt when we separated? I had so many questions, and I wanted to ask him everything, but I lacked the courage.

"Done. You can also stop staring at me, Joanna," he said coldly. So, he's back to being cold towards me? My lips involuntarily trembled at his words. I pressed my hand to my forehead and couldn't bring myself to look at him to express my gratitude.

"Uhh... t-thanks." I didn't receive a response from him. Our gazes shifted simultaneously to a woman who just entered the room.

"Justin, they told me you're here! So, I came here right away to see you. I missed you!" The woman exclaimed excitedly. Her voice was loud, and it seemed like she didn't notice my presence because she quickly approached Justin. I thought she would just give him a hug, so I was shocked when she suddenly kissed him on the lips! I could do nothing but watch my husband kissing my best friend, Lenita!