Chapter 15

July 14, 2010

Early in the morning.

Edward had just woken up.

He felt good and was in no rush to get up. The sheets are soft, and the air in the apartment is at the right temperature.

Edward rolled over to look at the clock.

4:47 am.

He yawned and stretched his arms.

Because of the low temperature, he can see his breath in the air, and his face turns red when he smells it; "It stinks"

Slowly getting out of bed, he ignored the creaking as he got up.

Rubbing his head and feeling his own soft hair, he felt good as his fingers ran through it and, at the same time, thought it was almost time for a haircut.

It had been three months since his last haircut, and his hair was almost shoulder length, which was just right for hair cut style he wanted to try the "Wolf Cut".

It's a woman's hair style, but some men have tried it in future time and space, and it worked well for them.

"I'll do it later." Edward sighed and then began his morning routine.

He showered, brushed his teeth, and put on clean clothes. Then he went to the kitchen and started preparing breakfast.

At around 5:10, his parents had already woken up.

As they were eating, Edward asked, "How's your work mom?"

His mother sighed a little and said, "Same thing. Nothing has changed in the shop; you know that. It's the same routine every day."

His mom was the shopkeeper of a small store in the market, selling various items from groceries to hardware.

The store was not their own, and her job only involved managing it and taking care of the customers.

"How about you dad? How was your work?"

"Busy as always. There was a lot of work, but we got it all done, so I can relax for a bit."

Edward's father was a truck driver for a logistics company. His work involves traveling to different cities and delivering goods to their respective destinations.

He was often away for long periods of time, sometimes for days.

Edward chatted with his parents for a while, and after breakfast, he went to wash the dishes.

At around 6:05, he saw them off and locked the door.

Turn on the TV and watch the news for a while.

The weather report was the same as always: the temperature was a bit low and the weather was going to be cloudy.

A while later, he got up to go for a morning run, and by the way, he went to the barber shop to get a haircut.

Time passed in a blinked.

In the afternoon.

Edward had just finished today's recording and was about to pack up and head back home when he suddenly received a text message from Jake.

Jake: 'Before 3 in the afternoon, at Karen's place, don't be late.'

'Oh sh*t,' Edward almost forgot.

Today was Karen's birthday, and they had planned a party to celebrate it.

Edward had almost forgotten about it because of his hectic schedule lately.

But now that the memory was coming back, he immediately replied, "I know, I will be there."

Jake: "Don't forget to bring the present."

Edward: "I will not."

This time, he's not lying; unlike Jake's birthday last time, he didn't need to prepare a present because he was a guy, but Karren was a girl, so Edward spent two weeks worth of his allowance to prepare a present for her in advance.

Arriving back at the apartment, Edward put the guitar in its case and then changed into something more formal.

At 3:00 in the afternoon.

Edward arrived at Karen's residence.

The financial situation of Karen's family has always been the best in the group, not to the point that they are rich, but their house is big and the land around it is huge. They have cars, and they don't have to worry about not paying their bills.

In the Philippines, where the ratio of poor to rich is high, their livelihood is already the best among the common people.

Karen's house is the biggest in their street, so it wasn't hard to find.

Upon arriving at the place, he first called out from the outside before he was invited inside.

Upon entering, he found that the group was already complete and that he was the last to arrive.

"Wooah! That's a strange hair cut you got?" Alfred, the wannabe bad boy, greeted him with a remark.

"Isn't it? It's called Wolf Cut; what do you think?" Edward smiled and looked at Alfred in satisfaction, as expected of him. Although he was messy, he still had a keen sense of fashion.

"It's cool; where did you get that hair cut?"

"F.R. barber's shop, just a few steps from the internet cafe we used to play.

"F.R., the one who is owned by the gay duo, Francis and Ryan?"

"When did you become homophobic?"

"You mean, you like gays?"

"Fuck you, I don't like them. I just don't think that guys should hate them because not only do they give us more girls, they even take away the guys, you know what I mean?"

"That... I think what you said makes sense."

"See? Francis and Ryan are great, and they are not real gays; they are bisexual, and they were into each other."

"Do they give discounts?"

"It depends; handsome guys like me could usually get discounts, as for you..."

"Fuck you, I'm asking a serious question, damnit!"

"Eh? I'm also serious; you know, gays give handsome guys preferential treatment over ugly guys."

"Handsome, my ass! When did you become handsome?"

"I've always been handsome."

Edward and Alfred bicker at each other without caring about the onlookers who were enjoying the play when suddenly the birthday girl comes interrupting their conversation.

'She's really beautiful.' Edward nodded inwardly and then glanced at her revealing hips due to her small denim shorts.

He had to say that if it weren't for being experienced and the countless pornographies he had watched in the previous time and space, he might be moved by them.

However, even if it does not affect him, the same things may not be the same for others.

And as he expected, the guys around were all staring at Karen lustfully.

He didn't blame them, though.

Her body is just so sinful.

Coupled with the fact that they are going through puberty, etc., it's a normal reaction for guys towards the opposite sex.

"Yes, isn't she beautiful? Are you done staring yet? Back off, okay?" Jake's annoyed voice woke the others from their messy thoughts.

"Tsk, show off." Alfred snorted, but if one were to look closely, bitterness and envy were written all over her face.

The other guys are not much better; they are also envious.

Edward shook his head and smiled wryly.

Soon, the party began.

They ate cake, drank fruit juice, and played games.

When evening came, they had already played enough.

It was at this time that Edward gave her the present he had prepared for her.

"What is it?" Karen asked curiously as she took the box; it's quite big, and it seems that there's a lot inside.

"Just some chocolates, flowers, and a teddy bear? I heard people on the internet say that girls like them."

"Woah! Thank you, Ed. You're the best!"

"Hehe, better than Jake?"

"Hmph, that bastard, give me a pair of underwear, tsk pervert.

"...."

A while later, Edward sat on the couch not far away and was texting his mom.

"So, what's with that being better than Jake, you mean?" A voice sounded behind him, startling him so much that he almost dropped his phone.

"Geez, can you not scare me like that?" Edward turned around and glared at Angela, who was smiling innocently.

"Hehe, sorry about that; I just can't help myself. Anyway, why did you say 'Better than Jake'?"

"What do you mean? I don't remember saying that."

"Really?"

"Really, what are you doing stalking while other people talk?"

"I'm not stalking."

"Heh, are you jealous?"

"You!! Fine, I won't talk to you."

Time passed, and after fooling around with Angela and others for the rest of the night, the group finally disbanded.

When he got home, he was scolded again, but this time it was not as harsh as before because he was not as late.

End.