Chapter Text
It's been hours and Aina notices that Maven Lim hasn't looked at her all night. At all.
Not even in her direction.
And it annoys her. She clutches her cup tightly, staring at the rum and Coke that's been watered down but she still likes how it tastes. There's no way Aina is about to get wasted with more than half the crowd being men, surrounding her. She's not exactly school smart, but she's not that dumb enough to risk her life without a second thought.
She looks up again, hoping to catch the gaze of the person she's been trying to get the attention of, but to no avail.
And what makes it even worse is that she knows that Maven knows she's here, but she chooses to be a dick and ignore her.
She is practically the only reason Aina's here at this stupid house party, because the older one just loves grinding Maven's gears. There's just something about the way her eyebrow subtly twitches, or how her lips just curve in a perfectly executed frown, or how she clenches her jaw—Aina thinks Maven is just so goddamn irresistible like that.
There she is.
She stands out with her bright red hair, chopped into a messy wolf cut, a playful grin dancing across her lips as she listens to the person talking in front of her. Her fierce eyes, the pair Aina knows all too well, are focused on the conversation. Aina would feel jealous, but she's Aina fucking Arceta. She doesn't get jealous.
It's ironic, isn't it? Everyone in the party has their eyes on her, but she's desperate for the attention of the only person that doesn't seem to care about her presence tonight.
Soon enough, her own little world vanishes as she feels a solid arm wrap around her shoulder, and she almost laughs at the timing. Perfect, just perfect. Time to put on a show.
The only thing she turns is her head as she looks up at Jeremy, smiling widely. "Sa wakas. Saan ka galing? Kanina pa kita hinihintay," she muses, letting him tighten his hold on her.
Aina Arceta is a good liar.
She has nothing against Jeremy. She has known him since they were kids, and all she hears from her parents and his is that he'll be a wonderful husband to you. Jeremy is a good guy—handsome, rich, high-class, and he's a gentleman. Everyone pushes the idea of dating to the both of them; she's surprised they're still at it even though she's been putting it off for years.
Jeremy likes her too much for his own good. She could ask him to jump and he'd probably ask how high. And sometimes Aina wants to pity him, but how does he still not realize that she doesn't want him, not even a little bit?
He's everything she needs, but...
He smiles, charmingly. "Miss mo agad ako, ah?" he jokes, but she knows he's hoping for an answer.
One that he's never going to get.
Aina simply shoots him a playful glance as she turns her head back.
And, oh, does she love the sight in front of her.
Dark, brown eyes travel from her face, down to the arm around her shoulder. Maven has finally torn her gaze away from whoever she was talking to, and now her full attention is on Aina and Jeremy. For the first time tonight, the red haired has finally acknowledged her.
Push and pull.
Their favorite game.
Maven shoots her a look, and Aina knows exactly what she's trying to say.
What the fuck are you doing, Aina?
It's not enough, though.
Aina wants to piss her off so bad that she might want to pull her bright red out.
She wants to turn it up a notch.
Maven is going to regret ignoring her the whole night.
She sets her forgotten drink down on a table. She grabs Jeremy's other arm, and wraps it around her waist. She can hear the poor boy holding his breath, as if he doesn't believe she just did that. In a way, it's a win-win situation for the both of them. He gets to gloat that she's in his arms, while she gets to revel in the fact that Maven is absolutely mad at her right now.
The older one raises an eyebrow, as if challenging Maven to do something, anything.
She loves the effect she has on the red haired; it's her addiction to revel in the desire that Maven is so willing to show her.
No one else notices it, but the air between them is so thick with tension that Aina can almost taste it. The younger one has her arms crossed, jaw tensed up and eyes lit with fire.
"Bakit ang clingy mo today?" Jeremy asks, and Aina forces herself not to roll her eyes. She completely forgot about the body attached to the limbs that were wrapped around her. His arms are starting to get uncomfortable, but until a certain red haired does something, she'll keep it there.
"Nagrereklamo ka ba?"
He quickly shakes his head, and she almost laughs. Pathetic. "'Di ah. In fact, I'm enjoying it. Minsan lang 'to, eh."
"Oo, kaya 'wag ka masanay," she says, trying to sound like she was joking, but she hopes that he actually gets the message.
He stays silent, and she uses that as an opportunity to glance at Maven again, but she's gone. Her eyes scan the room, but nothing.
She's gone.
A smirk grows on her face.
"Uuwi na 'ko," she blurts out. Jeremy opens his mouth to say something, but Aina interrupts him. "You don't have to drive me home. Kaya ko na sarili ko."
"Pero Aina, gabi na—"
She slithers out of his arms, and fully turns to him. He looks like a kicked puppy, but Aina is not amused. The more he keeps her here, the less her chances are at catching Maven outside. She feels bad, it seems like she's a bit more bitchy than usual, but she cannot wait any longer.
"Jeremy, I'll be fine. Kaya please, let me go home na."
"It's too dangerous, babae ka pa naman. Nag-promise ako sa mom mo na babantayan kita." He reaches out to take her hand. It's big and rough, and her mind travels to red hair and soft hands that hold her like she's about to disappear at any second.
Aina subtly retracts her hand and sighs. "Enjoy mo muna yung party."
"Sino hahatid sayo?"
"Si Stella," she lies, starting to feel a little impatient now. "Siya yung sumundo sa'kin kanina."
He sighs. He knows there's no winning against her. No one wins against her. "Basta mag ingat, ha? Text mo 'ko pag naka-uwi ka na."
He's barely got the last word out before she dashes out into the cold, evening air.
——
Maven's not sure if she should just leave or come back in and get Aina. Her head feels like a mess, and it's all because of one person.
Tatanga tanga mo talaga, Maven Lim.
She hates the fact that Aina has got her wrapped around her finger like a fool. And she did it willingly. Walked right into hell with a smile on her face.
Aina Arceta was the type of girl Maven promised herself she would never mess with: rich, spoiled brats who are so used to getting what they want. Unattainable, out of her league, whatever you call it. All she knows is that she's being played like a puppet and Aina's the one holding the strings.
There's just something about the woman that she can't resist.
It's no secret that Aina is drop-dead gorgeous, no doubt the most beautiful girl Maven has ever seen in her life. The kind of face that people go insane for. Jeremy is a good example of that, Maven thinks.
She's no better, though.
"Ang sweet mo naman. Were you waiting for me?"
She doesn't need to look to know that Aina's wearing a smile on her face. She keeps her head down, back still leaning on the hood of her car. She's not about to give in. Just looking at Aina reminds her of how she was acting around Jeremy earlier. It just pisses her right off.
"No."
"Pakipot ka pa. Did you miss me? We haven't seen each other in... how long na ba? A week?"
She gets a whiff of Aina's perfume, and her long legs come into the red haired's line of view. Tangina. It doesn't help that she's wearing a black skintight bodycon dress that's hugging her curves perfectly. The dress isn't leaving much to the imagination, either. She resists the urge to pull her by the waist and bend her over against the hood. Maven's discovered that easiest way to resist her is to just simply avoid eye contact with her.
Aina is the epitome of temptation.
Once you give in, there's no turning back.
"Eh, ano naman? Mukhang busy ka naman lately sa aso mo," the younger one replies, crossing her arms. She almost laughs at herself. She absolutely does not have any right to be pissed off, but it's not like Aina is correcting her.
So, she lets herself feel.
"Huh? I don't have a dog, Mave." The older one moves to sit beside her, and Maven feels her car dip slightly. She tries not to think about the fact that their fingers are millimetres apart.
She's still not looking at her. "Meron. Jeremy pa nga pangalan, eh."
A laugh escapes the brunette's lips. "Wow, aso talaga? Ang sama mo, ha."
She didn't even deny being busy with Jeremy.
It's not like Aina can do anything about it, though. She knows for a fact that the brunette's parents are basically marrying her off to Jeremy the moment she graduates. Something about business. Maven will never understand rich people.
Aina intertwines their fingers together.
Her heartbeat quickens, and she hates herself for reacting this way to something as simple as holding hands.
A thumb brushes against her skin, so soft and delicate, and it's enough to send goosebumps across her arms. Another hand comes up, comes into contact with her cheek, and before she knows it, Aina is lifting her face up and she's met with beautiful, brown eyes. No matter how many times she's looked at Aina, she still gets breathless every single time.
Ang ganda.
"Baby, nagseselos ka?"
You really know how to get me, Aina Arceta.
Push and pull.
"Why would I be jealous of him?" She scoffs. She doesn't want to admit that the brunette's hand on her cheek feels good. "He is not on my level."
Sure, Jeremy's rich, handsome, a guy, and is the person Aina's parents want her to marry, but what has else does he have over Maven?
Everything, apparently.
Aina's hand travels down to her nape, playing with her hair and rubbing circles on her skin with her thumb. Maven almost loses her train of thought. If anyone was an expert at distractions, it would definitely be Aina. "Sure ka hindi ka nagseselos?" She shifts closer, leaning closer and closer.
The older one is basically now pressed against Maven, absolutely zero space between them. She's so close that all the red haired needs to do is move an inch and their lips would be touching.
"Aina..." her voice is dangerously low. The brunette is absolutely testing her patience, and she doesn't know how long she's got until she breaks and gives in to the temptation.
She's feigning innocence. "Hm?" She tilts her head. "'Di mo sinagot tanong ko."
"What? Of course I'm sure. And Aina... baka makita tayo," she whispers, but it doesn't seem like the older one cares, not one bit.
"You don't have to be jealous, you know?" Aina pulls Maven's hand that was intertwined with hers and guides it down to her thigh, exposed from the dress riding up her leg. As soon as Maven's hand comes into contact with her soft skin, she squeezes, hard. "You're the only one who gets to have me like this."
Maven feels drunk off the power that Aina's words gave her. She just knows what to say, or maybe Maven just wants her too much that she holds on to any part of her that she can have.
"Not even him?"
"Ikaw lang, baby."
And in moments like these, it feels like Aina is truly hers, no one else's. If only she would stop being a masochist and do something about it, maybe...
It's damn near impossible. Aina is out of her league. She lives in a completely different world than her, so far that she can only dream. Aina is going to get married, probably live in another country, have kids, get richer, and she'd only remember Maven as a distant college experience. Someday she'll be nothing but a name to Aina.
But for now, as she's guiding Aina to straddle her lap, as their breaths mingle together, as the only thought in her head is to kiss the woman in her arms, nothing else matters. Not Jeremy, not Aina's parents, not a single thing. The only thing that does is this moment and she'll be damned if anything ruined it.
"Then stop... messing around with him," Maven whispers, brushing her lips against the brunette's.
Aina hums playfully, playing with the drawstrings on the younger one's hoodie. "'Di mo nga ako pinapansin kanina eh," she drawls, laughing at Maven's nose scrunching.
"You looked like you were getting too cozy with your little dog, anyway."
A chuckle. "So nagseselos ka nga." She feels Aina's arms tighten around her shoulder.
"So what if I am?"
"Then you better do something about it."
Lips crash together. It feels urgent, desperate. Tongues explore each other's mouth, hungry for more. Maven's hands squeeze Aina's hips, pulling her impossibly closer. The older one tastes like alcohol, but she doesn't mind. Not when it comes to her. She missed this, missed having Aina all to herself. She can hear the brunette's little gasps, and it drives her further into insanity.
Aina's just way too good. She kisses Maven so sensually that she feels weak. No one has ever made her feel like this before, and she's scared that no one will be able to compare.
"Baby..." she murmurs into Aina's lips, breathless. "Ang ganda mo."
"I'm all dressed up just for you."
Oh, she really knows what buttons to push, how to prod and poke Maven. She knows her too well that it's actually terrifying. It feels like no one knows her better. Maven silently thanks herself for parking at the end of the street so they're not really visible to anyone.
"All mine."
Aina connects their lips once again, and they fall into a steady, but hot rhythm. The brunette's fingers tangle themselves up in bright, red hair, and Maven's hands rest on her thighs, travelling upward. She's sure by how hard she's gripping that it'll leave marks on her delicate skin.
"Na-miss ko 'to." I missed you. Maven's fingers ghost around Aina's skin, mapping and memorizing every inch of the brunette's body. Her lips dive down to kiss the latter's neck, sucking but not hard enough to leave a mark. A smirk erupts when she hears Aina release a soft sound of pleasure.
"Eh ako? Na-miss mo 'ko?"
Fuck it.
As she lifts her head to meet the eyes of the woman who has turned her life upside down, Maven swallows hard, tracing Aina's perfect features. Literally not a single flaw. It almost makes her mad how this woman in front of her, pressed against her and sitting on her lap, looks ethereal no matter the situation.
"I missed you, Aina."
Kung alam mo lang.
"Dapat lang," Aina says softly. A small moan escapes her lips when Maven's hands hike even higher, travelling under her dress. "Mave..."
"Hm?" She kisses up her collarbones, revelling in the fact that the brunette shivers ever so slightly every time she presses her lips against the golden skin.
"Please—"
A rustle stops them in their tracks. Maven quickly retracts her hands, pulling the brunette's dress down as much as she can. Aina pushes herself off as quick as she can, getting on her feet. They both stare in the direction that the sound came from, but it's too dark to see. She squints, trying to see what it is.
"Who's there?"
Another rustle.
Aina pulls her phone out, turning her flashlight on. When they see the intruder, they both can't help but laugh.
"A fucking bird... seryoso ka ba," the older one says, still laughing. "Epal 'to, ah."
The red haired smiles, standing up. "Ang ingay mo daw kasi eh."
A slap to her shoulder. "Ang yabang mo!"
"I'm kidding, 'to naman."
Aina breathes in relief. "Buti nalang ibon lang yung nakakita sa'tin." She fixes her dress. Her lips are swollen, there's red marks left by the red haired's fingers scattered across her thigh, and her hair is messy. Maven grins, proud of her work. She thinks Aina looks so beautiful in this state. "Imagine if someone saw us... that would've been bad."
Ouch.
The stupid smile on her face fades so quick.
She knew that Aina had a reputation to uphold, but she didn't think it would matter this much. She's implied it multiple times, that whatever they had going on, it had to be a secret that they would both take to their graves. Not even Maven's friends know about their little situation.
No matter how much she understood their arrangement, it would still sting when the older one said things like that. Sometimes she wonders... if she was brave enough to do something, say something... would things change? Would she be willing to risk everything to find out?
Wala naman akong karapatan.
Aina senses the shift in mood, so she grabs Maven's hand. "Mave?"
Push and pull.
"Tara na, hatid na kita pauwi," she says, voice quiet.
She figures that it's always going to be like this. It's not like she can complain, either. What can she do? Absolutely nothing. At the end of this, she'll be the one losing. She'll be the one who got the short end of the stick. In this arrangement, Aina's got nothing to lose.
She signed up for it anyway.
"What's with that frown?" Maven knows deep down that Aina knows what she's doing, and is thoroughly enjoying the fact that she holds so much power over the younger one.
Maven opens the passenger side door, and gestures for Aina to get in, but the latter stays rooted in place. "Wala, inaantok lang. Get in." All she receives is a shake of her head. "Kulit, ah. I said get in the car, Aina."
Begrudgingly, the brunette enters her car with a huff, and Maven follows suit. As she turns the car on, she feels a heavy gaze settling on her face, which she chooses to ignore. The more she gives in, the more she's sinking to the bottom.
The ride is silent for the most part. Aina's humming a song that sounds familiar although she can't quite put a finger on what it is. The younger steals glances at her when she thinks she's not looking, but Aina catches her every single time.
As they pull up to Aina's home, Maven feels a hand crawling to rest on top of hers on the gear shift. "Did you mean it?"
The red haired turns to her, an eyebrow raised. "Mean what?"
"When you said nagseselos ka kay Jeremy."
She clenches her jaw, meeting the older one's eyes. Aina's so hard to read. She can never tell what's going on in her mind or what she's feeling, and that's what makes it so much harder. She can sometimes be the sweetest, making efforts just to see Maven and spend some time together privately, but most of the time she's guarded, closed off and cold.
Of all the people she could've messed around with, it had to be the Aina Arceta.
"It doesn't matter if I meant it or not," Maven mutters, shutting the car off and leaning her head back against the seat.
Because why would it?
Nothing Maven says will change how this ends.
She hears the older one scoff. "It does. Kasi kung nagseselos ka, that means you like me. Do you, Maven?"
The silence is so loud. Aina's expecting an answer, and Maven isn't sure which one to give her.
"I think you should rest na."
"Maven Lim."
"I'll see you soon, okay?" She leans toward the middle, placing a soft kiss on the brunette's cheek, to intimate for it to be casual but she pulls away before she does something crazy like talk about her feelings. "Pahinga ka na, Aina."
The latter opens her mouth, to say something, and Maven was hoping so bad that she actually would, but at the last second, she shakes her head and gives the red haired a small smile. "I'll see you around, Mave."
Maven stares at her as she exits her car, eyes never leaving the figure until she enters her house. Her mind is running a million thoughts and all of them seem to be centered around the same person. It doesn't help that her perfume is still wafting throughout her car, almost as if to taunt her.
She hears her phone buzz, and when she pulls it out, she sees a notification with Aina's name flashing on the screen.
Goodnight, baby.