I'm Guilty, My Beauty[COMPLETED]

"Is that what you're meditating about? Getting a girlfriend?" Clarence was totally bewildered by this man's thoughts. "Is it really that important for you to meditate for it?"

"I'm not meditating to get a girlfriend. Come on! Why would I do that?" The reporter whined, only to give his boss a developing grin. "But I'm 26 now and never have one. Or how about Beauty, hehe."

"You dare?" Clarence challenged him with a grim face.

"No, Boss. Can't you take a joke? Boss, please, I'm an only child!" He started begging. "Whenever I'm home, my Ma has been asking time and time again when I will ever bring home a girl."

Looking around for them, Beauty managed to step in at Ronald's last sentence. "What? Just bringing home a girl? Then I'll go then."

Both instantly shouted, "NO." "Not you."

"Hey, you two, why not me?! Am I really that bad-looking?" Beauty was sulking now, puffing her cheeks. Clarence pulled her to sit beside him, pushing Ronald to the other edge of the bench.

"Beauty, you're beautiful, but Ronald is supposed to bring a girlfriend, not just any girl."

"Oh, I see. Sorry for speaking without hearing the whole conversation."

Seeing the way Clarence held Beauty's hand made Ronald more jealous. "Gee, you two are so sweet. Are you two dating?"

"No, not really." Beauty shyly pulled her hand away from the man's hold.

Facing Ronald, the boss answered confidently, "We will be in the future. I'll just introduce girls to you, but I won't promise anything. You have to work hard for it."

"OK, fine, and thanks in advance. You better make sure our Beauty here is happy, or else I'll punch you." A glare glinted from Ronald's eyes. "Don't make her cry or hurt her. I, Ronald Kidlat of Pasil, will make you sorry if she cries because of you. You get that?"

"I can assure you. I won't make her cry."

Both men were talking back and forth, neglecting the girl who was the topic of their discussion.

"You two ... grrr, talking as if I'm not around?! And you?" She stood up and angrily pointed her finger at Clarence. "You seemed so confident to make me say 'yes' to you."

"Come ... sit down, calm down. I told you I'll wait. Don't mind his words. Relax, see the breeze is so cool. I'll miss this place. Such wonderful memories." He spoke softly while his left hand grabbed her right hand then pulled her down to sit beside him again. As she sat, she shook his hand off his grasp.

The atmosphere between the three drastically changed. They fell silent. The wind blew on their faces.

Minutes passed, and Beauty's head fell to Clarence's shoulder. She fell asleep while waiting. Clarence placed his left arm on her shoulder to steady her body. He felt satisfied with their kind of relationship for now. She was no longer too distant from him after learning about his feelings. He could also show his affection openly.

As of the moment, he threw the 'Your Romeo problem' on the back of his mind, believing a solution would show itself in the future. That's what he thought.

After more minutes, Ronald's head fell on Clarence's other shoulder as well. He shook it off, waking the sleeping man who drowsily looked at him. "Just lie down somewhere. There are more free seats around."

After hearing his Boss' words, he stood up and then went to another empty bench to sleep.

. . . . .

In Cebu Prestige Hotel, their bags were taken by a bellboy. Clarence brought them to the hotel's exclusive restaurant where only hotel guests could come and dine. They sat at a table good for four at the corner. The table was made of redwood, polished well to a point it could reflect faces like a mirror. The chairs were made of the same material and given the same treatment.

Each seat already had plates, napkin-covered spoons and forks, and clear tall glass. The waiter took away the extra set upon confirming their count. The whole place was plainly for a buffet, but extra orders in a menu were also available.

"Come, bring your plates with you. Let's eat first," Clarence declared while helping Beauty with her plate.

"Wow, only a few are eating here, but there is a lot of food." Ronald was glancing around as he followed the other two ahead of him.

"This is a restaurant serving the hotel guests only. It's still an hour before lunch, the other guests will arrive anytime soon. Just help yourselves. You can come back if you need more ... do you want this?" Clarence explained while helping Beauty with her servings.

She just stood beside him while he was putting the food on her plate first before his own. His left hand was holding his plate while the other was doing the serving. He was so caring, and everyone saw that, making her embarrassed.

"How about me? Give me a few slices of that," said Ronald.

"You can handle yourself ... do you want more sauce?" He answered the other guy while continually serving Beauty.

"Clarence, just let me do it. It's so embarrassing ... people are watching," whispered Beauty to Clarence.

"So what? I want to do this. Well ... give me your plate, and go get some sweets and fruits you like."

Beauty obeyed silently and took another plate. She was growing self-conscious about the way he gave her so much care and attention while some guests would smilingly look at her and Clarence. The truth, some of these people knew Clarence. This was the first time they saw him serving a lady personally. While looking at Beauty's shy face, they smiled and nodded with approval.

"Well, Clarence, you brought a special lady with you. Later, your mom and your dad will go bonkers seeing this beauty. What's her name?" An elderly man approached Clarence as he was on the way to their table.

"Oh, hi, Mister Moya, glad to see you here. Don't you have a meeting now?" Clarence avoided the elder's gossipy mouth.

"It's still lunchtime. The meeting will be for later."

"Let's eat and leave this place as soon as we can," Clarence said after Ronald sat down.

"I want to eat more." Ronald felt bad, leaving soon when he had not gotten his fill yet.

"You can stay, but you shouldn't answer unnecessary questions from people you don't know." The two wondered why but didn't ask. Yet, they were curious.

"Oh, I change my mind: we will wait while you eat more. Honestly, I didn't know but there seems to be a meeting happening here soon. These people sitting here are mostly my parents' associates. These are members of the culinary organizations in the Philippines. They can be friendly, but there are a few whom you shouldn't trust. Like that guy earlier. Any gossip about me will be his meal to ruin my parents standing in this circle. In fact ... my parents might be here as well."

After saying the last sentence, his parents came in and spotted them. Claire walked fast as if running toward them with a big grin.