Chapter Text
The members are having their usual movie night in the master's bedroom turned into a massive pillow fort, complete with bottles of soda and assorted snacks. Having just recovered from the horror movie suggestion from last week, they choose a random romance movie off of Netflix's vast catalogue this time.
In hindsight, they probably should've checked the content warning properly instead of relying on the cheesy poster design for their pick, because the soft pastel pink colors and the main leads posing with lovestruck expressions on their faces gave innocent first love vibes, and not—
"Ay piskit," Colet mutters under her breath. Maloi screams over the sudden scene shift.
Stacey and Jhoanna both have their hands blocking each other's view in a futile attempt to unsee the bed scene playing on screen, with Aiah throwing a whole entire blanket over Gwen sitting still as a statue, unable to do anything else.
In the commotion, almost everyone forgets their youngest member with her gaze transfixed on the TV, taking everything in.
Mikha realizes this several seconds too late and finally has enough of the nonsense, pressing skip on the remote until they get to a part with the actors all fully clothed and a safe, god-fearing distance away from each other.
"Guys," Stacey says after they've all stopped acting like headless chickens. "Next week, manood nalang tayo ng Blu-ray ko ng World Tour In Your Area."
"Shee?" Mikha pauses by the door entrance. While the other members file out of the room after the movie to rest in preparation for tomorrow's schedule, Sheena remains cocooned by blankets on the pillow fort, staring at the Netflix menu.
She looks up at Mikha with an unreadable expression on her face.
"Tara? We have early dance practice pa."
"Una ka na. May iniisip lang ako."
Mikha's eyebrows knit in concern. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Umm, hindi naman. Ano lang..." Sheena shakes her head. "Wala. 'Wag na."
Mikha doesn't register the blush on Sheena's face until she brings up a pillow to try to conceal it. Confused, she closes the door and walks over to where Sheena is currently sitting.
"Anong wala, eh you're blushing nga oh." Mikha sits in front of Sheena and carefully pries the pillow away. "I promise I'll listen."
The steady whirring of the stand fan fills in for the silence that takes over while Mikha waits for Sheena to speak. She adjusts the pillow and places it on her lap.
"Nagka-first kiss ka na ba?"
Mikha's eyes widen in surprise. Sheena has always had a curious mind, and it isn't out of the ordinary for her to bring up seemingly random topics whenever she's in a mood, but Mikha still isn't prepared enough to hear that question of all things. "Huh?"
"Sabi ko naman kasi 'wag na—"
"No, no, nagulat lang ako... but, yeah, oo naman," Mikha says, adding, oddly feeling like she needs to go into a little more detail beyond the simple yes/no response. "It wasn't anything memorable, honestly. Wait, hindi ka naman NBSB ah."
This prompts a snort out of Sheena. "Mikhs, saan ka nakakita ng Grade 2 na nagki-kiss agad?"
"Grade 2??"
"Puro happy crush nalang yung sumunod, tapos kinuha na 'ko ng PBB. Tapos, ito. So paano magkaka-experience?"
"Sabagay." Mikha decides against pointing out the absurdity of considering a relationship between eight-year-olds as anything serious. "I-kiss na lang kita para ma-experience mo na."
She fully expects Sheena to either 1) cringe and slap her arm for the joke or 2) laugh loud enough to make one of the members return and check what the commotion is about. And then they'll all leave the bedroom and put this strange night behind them and continue on with their lives like usual.
Instead, because apparently the "romance" movie hasn't caused enough disturbance in the balance of the world, Sheena leans a little closer, all traces of amusement gone in her expression. There's an odd mix of hesitance and determination in her words. "Kung okay lang sa'yo."
"I was joking..." Mikha clarifies, words trailing off. The pillow feels heavy on her lap.
Sheena sees the way Mikha wants to retreat and reaches across the pillow to hold her hand. "Alam ko. Pero may sense din kasi... sabi mo, wala lang yung first mo eh. So pwedeng yung akin, test run lang din? Saka tayo lang naman nandito."
Mikha hears the appeal to logic and is frankly inclined to agree; the idea of Sheena kissing some faceless man somewhere that isn't their shared space, where other uncontrollable factors might end up putting her in the tabloid headlines, makes the suggestion valid the longer she thinks about it.
There's also an unnamed part of her that's not governed by rational thought that wants to know what it's really like to kiss Sheena outside of her 3 AM dreams after crashing out on caffeine.
She gives Sheena's hand a gentle squeeze. "Okay. Sige, um, go for it when you're ready?"
Mikha sits up straight. Her eyes flutter shut when their noses brush against each other, holding her breath at the lightest pressure of lips against hers. Her pulse quickens.
The moment breaks when Sheena giggles and ends the kiss.
"Bakit ka tumatawa?" Mikha whines, wondering if her face is just as red as hers at the moment.
"Feeling ko mas kabado ka pa kasi, Mikhs. Sigurado ka bang sanay ka na?"
"This isn't about me, Shee," Mikha deflects. "Kamusta?"
Sheena pulls away and looks up at the ceiling, stroking her chin in contemplation. "Gets na kita sa sinabi mo. Parang, 'yon na 'yon? Ang intense kasi nung sa pelikula, so akala ko... Ayun. Ganun."
There is no edge in her tone or malice in her observation, but Mikha hears the challenge, regardless. It's as if a new world of possibilities has opened now that they've gotten the first one out of the way; what's another kiss or two (...or ten) gonna change at this point?
Mikha scoots closer and pushes the pillow away.
"Mikhs...?"
"Gusto mo ba?" She cups Sheena's face, waiting for her to agree. She feels the tiniest of nods, and she continues. "I'll make the next one count. Follow my lead, okay?"
Mikha keeps the pressure gentle but firm when their lips meet this time. She doesn't want to rush; she doesn't want Sheena to leave the room thinking kisses aren't supposed to feel like anything at all.
She tilts her head a little to the left. Heat curls at the pit of her stomach when she feels a trembling hand glide against her arm, fingers anchoring onto her elbow in an effort to stay tethered to the moment. She swallows the gasp that escapes Sheena's mouth when she shifts her attention to her upper lip and strokes her cheeks with her thumbs.
Mikha breaks away when the need for air becomes impossible to ignore. Sheena tugs at her elbow a little too hard, and they fall into the blankets, Mikha catching herself at the last second so she doesn't accidentally smother her. The distance between their faces is almost nonexistent at this angle; Mikha barely hears the whispered "Isa pa," and then they're kissing again.
She's had better, more skilled kisses before—men and women who knew the precise angles and the correct amount of pressure and the right timing for when to use their tongue.
Never has a kiss made her feel like it's the most natural thing in the world to do, like maybe the universe created her to kiss one person, and one person only, until now. Desire rushes through her veins when their legs tangle into place. Sheena's hand travels from her elbow to the dips of her shoulders and then to her nape, keeping Mikha in her position.
Perhaps it shouldn't have come as a surprise that Sheena picks up the idea fast, but Mikha is still overwhelmed at how Sheena's kissing her as if she's mastered the curve of her lips; as if she's already used to the warmth of her mouth, on an urgent task to replace all the oxygen in Mikha's lungs until she no longer needs to pause and breathe again.
Eventually, Sheena pulls away. Mikha knows they have to stop. She can get up and walk away now; she's probably demonstrated enough intensity for an entire lifetime at this point.
The sight of Sheena underneath her with her flushed skin and heaving chest and kiss-swollen lips makes rational thinking so, so difficult, unfortunately.
She whispers. "Tell me to stop and I will."
Sheena shakes her head. She holds onto Mikha's waist, hands slipping inside her shirt. There's a depth in her gaze that Mikha has never seen in all the years that they've known each other.
"Isa pa."
Mikha loses count of how many times she hears those words that night.
"Morning," Maloi greets Sheena with a hoarse whisper, eyes barely open as they sit on the table to eat breakfast. "Di na kita nahintay bumalik sa kwarto, sorry. Antok eh."
"Okay lang, ate."
Maloi hums. "Napano yan?" She points at an odd-looking bruise on Sheena's neck.
Sheena loses all remnants of sleep, nerves blaring in alarm. Her hand immediately flies up to cover her neck. "Wala. Insect bite."
Across the table, Colet narrows her eyes at Mikha, whose gaze is resolutely fixed on the bowl of Lucky Charms in front of her. She mutters under her breath. "Mahilig na pala mag-English mga insects sa unit, ano?"