After that morning, Marcus went straight home. He still wanted to spend more time with Nikka until her salon appointment but he was afraid he wouldn't be able to control himself this time. It took a lot of control in him to follow her again in her bedroom and spend time alone together.
So after having breakfast with her and her family, he excused himself by saying goodbye and promised to pick up Nikka at six o' clock tonight.
When he arrived at his apartment, he immediately jumped in the shower to cool off his body. He couldn't stop thinking about her, how he would love to kiss those small red lips. Her soft body against his... his mind does its trick of playing images of her that he could feel the heat went down to his groin. Thank God he is in his car when that happened, otherwise it would be totally embarassing in front of her parents.
The water continued to spray down on him as he tried to shut those images for good. He couldn't understand himself on why he was feeling this way towards her when just a few months ago she was nothing but a dear friend and a little sister. But he knew these feelings were not foreign to him. He had felt it before... several years ago when he was much younger.
'I cannot do this to Nikka', he told himself. 'She is so precious. I cannot risk to hurt her. Not her.'
Other women would be easy for him to not care at all since most of them would just throw themselves to him without any attachment involved. Just plain casual sex.
But Nikka was different.
The first time they met, he knew she was different. She was a typical Filipina, shy, conservative and reserved. It had been a long time since she met someone like her. It reminded him of someone... someone he had given his heart to, but only to have it broken.. and forgotten.
At first, he didn't want to do anything with her even if their parents would always get together. He tried to stay away as much as he could, making excuses to his stepdad to avoid her.
But then, he could not keep his distance anymore. The more he tried to stay away, the more he got curious of her and drawn to her somehow. He needed to know who she was, to see that sweet smile she gave him every time they saw each other. There was something about her that intrigued him so much that kept him awake most nights. He told himself finally that he needed to get to know her personally.
So he took the opportunity one summer when his family and hers got together to play golf. She was sitting by the benches as she read her book. He tried not to stare at her as she stretched her long flawless brown legs on top of the bench while he sat at the other end of it.
Nikka was wearing a pair of jean shorts and pink fitted t-shirt. Her white tennis shoes were moving on its own, as if to show how much she enjoyed what she was reading, and continued to ignore him. Her wavy long hair pulled up into a pony tail, showing her collarbones.
He could not stop admiring her. This girl was beautiful in so many ways he could not describe it. He was usually attracted to big-breasted women with fair complexion and blue eyes, but for some reason, he could not keep his eyes off her for a second. He forced himself to look away. If he wanted to get close to her, he needed to stop fantasizing her.
'She's just a child, Marcus. A child! Young and innocent. You could get jailed and penned as a 'cradle snatcher' if you continue with this stupid fantasy of yours,' he thought to himself. 'She can be your little sister, for goodness sake! Yes, that's right. He can be your little sister. Treat her like one and stay out of trouble.'
It's a decision he had to make so he could stop thinking about her as something more. He kept reminding himself several times so he wouldn't do a grave mistake of doing something he might regret later on.
They had become good friends since that day. He didn't even realize how he enjoyed her company and how easy it was to open up to her. He told her almost everything, even his little "adventures" with women. He wouldn't spill all the gory details to her, of course, but only to make her curious mind to know.
To him, their friendship was much more important, and he did not want to ruin that by making a move on her. He had been there before and he felt he could not take another heartbreak. It would surely devastate him because he knew his friendship with her was really special.
Marcus turned the shower off and wrapped himself with a towel. Facing the mirror, he scrutinized himself.
"You have to get a hold of yourself, buddy," he told himself. He once again reassured himself that this was nothing more but an attraction to her and that he needed to stop before he made another mistake.
Before somebody gets hurt... again.
***********
"Are you okay?" asked Nikka after a long silence on the road. "You're awfully quiet."
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Marcus replied, trying to sound normal. "Why wouldn't I be?"
He saw her smiled at the corner of his eye.
'Does she find this amusing? I am almost dying here,' he thought to himself, gripping the steering wheel. He had been trying to keep his control the whole day and now with what she's wearing, he did not know what to think anymore. He felt like she was draining all the self-control he ever had.
'Get a hold of yourself, buddy,' he told himself. 'She's off limits.'
But how could he not admire her?
Nikka was wearing a dress that would make any man desire her. Those breasts just did its justice in filling up her chest, enough for his eyes to keep feasting on it. Her neck was so inviting that he wanted to run kisses all over it, and her lips were so red that he longed to endlessly linger and savor its taste in his mouth. Her peeking right leg made his hand itch to touch it.
'Oh God, this is not right. What am I doing?' he asked himself.
Marcus looked at her again while the car stopped in the stop light and admired her beauty. A woman like her was like a gem, so precious and hard to find, that he could never forgive himself if he would ever cause her pain. He was doing her a favor by being her prom date and here he was fantasizing her. The least he could do was be a gentleman and forget his desires.
"You're really gorgeous," he blurted out before he could stop himself.
"T-Thanks," she answered, shoving a small strand of hair behind her ear.
"I'm actually honored to be your date today."
Nikka smiled. "I'm glad you are."
"Do you want to go somewhere?"
"W-What? Where do you want to take me?"
"Just a little detour before we go to our destination."
"O-okay," she agreed and moistened her lips.
So he turned the car to the next turn.
'Oh my god! Where is he taking me? Are we going to do it tonight? I was only thinking of him kissing me but I don't think I'm ready to give it up yet?' she panicked. 'What if I can't stop him?'
Nikka could taste the lipstick on her tongue as she kept moistening her lips. She heard Marcus sighed as they stopped in front of a dark corner at 42nd street. A few people were walking on the street and she could barely see him in the dark.
Turning the engine off, Nikka couldn't stop herself from getting nervous. Her heart was antcipating waht could happen next as she spoke.
"W-why are we here?" and her eyes widened as he grinned.
Leaning towards her, she was caught off guard and moved herself back to the headrest. Her breathing went faster as she smelled his musk perfume.
What was he planning to do with her.
Her heart stopped as she saw him, opened the drawer in front of her, and took a small box out of it.
She released a deep sigh of relief.
Marcus opened the box for her as she stared at what's inside it. I
"A corsage?" she muttered.
"Yes," he replied, taking it our of the box and wrapping it around her left hand.
"Just a little gift from me as your date," he said and gave her a peck on the cheek. "By the way, the hotel is a five-minute walk from here and I don't want to cause a scene so I decided to park here."
She smiled and looked at the corsage. Then she lifted her eyes to him admiringly.
'He is such a gentleman,' she thought.
"Just wait here," and he got out of the car. She saw him walked over to her side and opened the door for her. He bent down and took off her seatbelt for her, gazed at her lips for a moment and took her hand. He brought it towards his lips and gazed at her.
"Tonight you will be my princess and I will be your prince," and he gently took her hand as he led her out of the car slowly.
The cool breeze swept through her body and she shivered. So Marcus opened the back door to get her coat and wrapped it around her shoulders as their eyes met.
Just like any gentleman, he offered his arm for her and she slid her hand into it.
Nikka looked at him one more time, capturing a glimpse of admiration in his eyes. If this was a dream, she really would never want to wake up anymore.