“Jothea, you already have a boyfriend? Who?” my classmate asked me more. Some of them immediately glanced at me, well, except for Savannah, who was just staring at Raviel’s hand to see if one of his fingers would come down.
“Don’t ask Jothea furthermore if you don’t want to have a heart attack,” Savannah hissed when she noticed that my classmates were waiting for my answer. How can I answer their question?
“Fine!” our classmate uttered in dismay. “Okay, put your finger down if your boyfriend or girlfriend is here at the camping.”
My classmate was overly surprised when he saw my finger coming down again.
“Shocks! Jothea, are you for real? Who the fuck is your boyfriend? I’m curious! I’m freaking out, y’all!” he shouted while ruffling his hair like he was wearing a wig.
“Stop it, Joe! Stop putting Jothea on the hotseat! You’re bullying her again!” Atacia hissed. “Put your finger down if you don’t want to do the dishes!”
“Oh, honestly, I want it!” our gay classmate admitted that had been targeting me for a while.
And because of that game, Savannah and Raviel were left behind because we ran out of fingers first. Everyone has left us. Only then did we notice that we were the only ones waiting. The four tables next to us also have no people anymore. It only took us a little longer to notice because we were playing.
I noticed that Ismael was also left behind to clean the grill where he grilled meat. In fairness, he knows something about such things. Even if he could order a student to do that for him, he still does it himself. I’m impressed.
“Jothea,” Raviel called me, while we were busy cleaning our table. The quantity is as sparse. It was as if my classmates made a mess on purpose because we were the ones to clean up.
“Yes?” I asked, looking at him.
“I was just wondering who your boyfriend is.”
I couldn’t look away when I heard that from him. I felt nervous for a moment, especially when our hands touched. No, he held it.
I was about to speak when I heard a crash. I immediately turned to where that sound came from and saw Savannah’s leg bleeding while staring at us.
“Sav? What happened?” I asked worriedly as I walked towards her. That’s when I realized that she had broken a glass and cut her leg with a piece when it splashed on her.
I panicked because I didn’t know what exactly to do, and the initial reaction I blurted out was to call someone for help. “Ismael! Savannah!” I called him as if he were the only person who I automatically called whenever something happened to me or around me, pointing to my friend, who’s now on the floor helpless.
From a distance, Ismael ran towards us. Worry is on his face. I was even the first one he checked, even though I said it was Savannah who needed help.
“Don’t pick up the glass. I’ll be back. I’ll just take her to the clinic,” explained Ismael. I just nodded as I watched them walk away from us.
I just saw myself crying while my hands were shaking. I remembered Roxsielle again when I pushed her and saw the blood on her thighs and feet.
“Professor Mondalla is your boyfriend, isn’t it?” I turned to Raviel when I heard him speak. I saw him looking devastated. I haven’t answered yet, but it looks like he already knows the truth based on the reaction on his face.
“You know that it is forbidden for us students to be in a relationship with our professor, right?”
I gently nodded. I was too stunned to speak. I don’t know where this conversation is going, but I feel scared. What if Raviel tells everyone about Ismael and me? Am I going to ruin the man who has helped me all this time? This is what I am afraid of. What will happen to me? What about Ismael’s dream of being able to teach here safely and watch over his sister?
Sadness gnawed at my chest. I will be the cause of Ismael’s downfall. Because of what I did, he eventually liked me. Everything got complicated.
“Then, why do you keep going anyway? You know the code of ethics, and I’m sure he’s also aware of that.” The anger was evident in his voice.
“We have feelings for each other,” I answered as if I had to prove to him my feelings for Ismael.
“Feelings? Are you sure? Does that professor really like you, or is he just using you for his own purposes?”
I frowned. “What are you talking about, Raviel? Ismael never used me. Where did the things you say come from? Besides, why do you care?”
He came closer to me and stared at me deeply. “I’ll give you time to break up with him, Jothea, or else I will tell it to the board of members,” he said firmly. “If you really need someone to be with you, I can be that guy. You don’t deserve to be with some other guy who’s older than you. You don’t deserve him.”
He left me. At that moment, my strength seemed to escape me. I almost dropped the glass I was carrying, and if Ismael hadn’t come, it would have ended up falling on my feet just like what happened to Savannah.
“Hey, are you okay?” Ismael asked with concern. I glanced into his eyes, and in an instant, I felt that I wasn’t starting at all. I have fallen for him deeply. And even if I resist it, I can no longer deny the truth-I already love him.
“Where’s Savannah?” I changed the subject because I don’t want to talk about me, us. If I continue what the two of us have, what about him? What would happen to him?
“I left her with the other faculty. They are treating her; perhaps they will take her to the hospital because the bruise is deeply buried in her foot,” he explained to me. “How about you? Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m going to put these away,” I stated as I went to the table to get the tray of dishes to wash.
“I can do that for you. Let me,” Ismael approached and took the tray from me to take it to the faucet near the resthouse. I couldn’t stop him anymore when he put them on the sink. I just sighed and started washing them. It’s a bit difficult because it seems like the light over here is about to die, or is it just that dim?
“I feel like you’re ignoring me.” I felt Ismael walk behind me. His body touched mine, and that stopped me from washing the dishes.
“I am not,” I muttered, trying my best to focus on what I was doing, but his husky voice near my ear was somewhat distracting.
“Is this something to do with Raviel?” he asked more. “He left you when he was supposed to help you.”
“No, I told him he can go. I can do it by myself, so you can also go now.”
“No, I’m still washing my hands.” He spread his hands over there in front of the water coming from the faucet. I felt his body hugging me even more.
“What are you doing? Someone will see us,” I annoyingly whispered, even though I really just wanted to stop myself. I am attracted to what he does. How am I supposed to suppress myself even more?
“I told you, I am just washing my hands, but I can’t seem to clean them. Can you wash them instead?” He held my hand, making me even more unable to concentrate on washing. That’s when I noticed that his hand was full of dirt and charcoal and also full of burns. I can’t help feeling sorry. He did his best to prepare the food for us, even though he wasn’t used to grilling in an ordinary griller.
Even though I didn’t order it, my hands moved spontaneously to wash his hand. Carefully. Because I don’t want his hand burns to hurt or sting even more. He should’ve run these hands with water earlier.
I soaped some parts of his hand to remove the charcoal. I can’t help but nag. “If you don’t know how, you can have someone else do it.”
“I want you to eat what I cook, but unfortunately, you are not eating any meat.”
Then he heard what I said to Raviel earlier, and that’s why he got burned.
“I am not that picky. I just don’t want to take what Raviel is giving me,” I admitted to him.
“Then, it really has to do with Raviel why you keep on acting like this.”
I couldn’t answer anymore. I don’t want to lie to him. “It’s done. I’ve removed the dirt from your hand. Now, let me go, so I can finish these.”
“I’ll help you.”
He took the plate and washed it. Now, how can he say that he’s helping me when, in fact, I can’t move to do what I need to do because he’s like this? “This is insane,” I commented.
“You’re making me insane.”
I just closed my eyes when I felt his breath hit my ear. It’s tickling.
“Ismael, please stop. Let me do this alone,” I begged calmly. “I want this washing to be over so I can devote my full attention to you.”
He stopped washing the dishes for a moment when he heard that from me. I heard him clear his throat and eventually decide to follow my order, but I thought he was going to back away, but not yet. He holds my chin and lifts it up to claim my lips. He is kissing me from the back. My head was on the side, and I was struggling a bit, so I dropped what I was doing to face him. I eagerly kissed him back. He really has something to do with my body; it automatically responds to him.
I grabbed his shoulder as he completely leaned me against the sink. My hand was wet, but he didn’t care because he just continued to give me sweet kisses. He’s devouring me as if I were his favorite food. I savored his soft tongue that also hit my tongue.
“Be fast,” he mouthed when he released me. I can still feel the heat on my cheeks because of what we did. “I am not that patient, Jothea.”
He walked just there at the back while watching and waiting for me to finish washing the dishes, but it is the truth when he said before that he is impatient. He came to me again to rinse the dishes I had already soaked in bubbles; together with the spoons and bowls, he helped me. So, he really can’t wait? I just laughed in silence, but I couldn’t stop thinking why he is also good at washing dishes. Not all rich men can do this.
“Done?” he asked when he saw we were done. He was about to kiss me again when I backed away.
“Not here, Ismael.”