Imperfect Desires

Meanwhile, at a posh cafe somewhere in the city...

Cali had drunk three cups of Americano with four slices of strawberry cheesecake since the time she had come to the cafe. While she was at her fourth, Darren held her hand and scolded, "It's enough already! Caffeine is not gonna help with your anxiety. You're just making it worse." He took a pause to add, "Also, you're making me really angry by eating so much cake before my eyes."

"What's up with her?" was Francesca's question as soon as she saw Cali's condition. "Cal, I've never seen you looking this tense. Tell me what's wrong."

"She told Dylan she likes him while she was drunk," stated Darren without even hiding his amusement at all. 

"What? Really? What did he say?" It was no secret to Francesca that Cali liked Dylan for a long time now. She had always been like a friend to Darren more than a mother and that's why he never hid anything from her. 

"He kissed her," answered Darren making Cali groan as the memory of the kiss replayed in her mind all over again. She should have known better than to share anything with Darren. This friend was certainly going to enjoy teasing her now.

"Wow! That's good news," Francesca clapped her hands together in excitement. "Then why do you look so down, sweety?"

"Because..." 

"Shut up, Regi! What are you, her interpreter, or something? Let her answer for herself." Darren zipped his lips instantly. She caressed Cali's hair, and went on, "You tell me, sweetheart. What's wrong?"

Cali looked up at Francesca. "You know Dylan's nature, don't you?"

Francesca nodded her head. "He is way too confused in his life."

"Exactly. That's why I'm not even certain why he kissed me. Perhaps, it was on impulse or maybe he was trying to confirm something."

"There is also a possibility that he likes you as well," concluded Francesca making Cali's eyes to shake slightly. 

No matter how much she wanted that to be true, she couldn't bring herself to believe in those fantasies even for a second. If it didn't turn out to be true, she'd be only hurting herself and she didn't want to do that.

"He doesn't like me. He must be slightly shaken at the moment because of my confession. He clearly told me before that he'd never date anyone in his friend circle or anyone related to his friends for that matter." Then she glared at Darren as she added, "This is all your fault! You set that stupid bro code and he is a dummy who won't dare to go against you. Even if he really had any feelings, he won't do anything about it because of you."

Francesca also narrowed her eyes at her son, "So not fair, Regi. How could you?"

"Mama, don't take her side. Back then I didn't know that she had feelings for Dylan. And besides, if she had been as confident as Qiuqiu, she would have gotten him even before Qiuqiu got in the picture."

Cali hated it when he brought up the past. Indeed, she had come into Dylan's life even before his ex did but apparently, that little girl was quite confident about her feelings which Cali could never be and ended up losing Dylan to that little girl. And worst of all, that little girl ended up screwing his feelings so badly that he didn't even want to open his heart anymore now.

"Regi, don't bring that past up. You're hurting her," reprimanded Francesca.

Darren shrugged his shoulders. "I'm just trying to push her to not do the same mistake as she did before. You think Dylan can't find another Qiuqiu? You think if you let it go this time again, another Qiuqiu won't be able to snatch him again from you? For how long are you planning on staying this way?"

Darren placed his hand over hers and sighed out, "You and Dylan both are very dear to me and as much as I want you to be together, I don't want you both to hurt each other. Because you know Dylan's last relationship messed him pretty badly. He still doesn't trust people. But with you, it's different. He already trusts you more than most people around him."

"Regi is right, sweety. You should stop with the 'what ifs'. It's not taking you anywhere. You came all the way to his city because of your personal matter can be considered a blessing and God's way of telling to take control of your life. Stop living like a nun already." Francesca stroked her cheek as she added, "Don't doubt yourself. Dylan is actually quite simple. If he kissed you, I can assure you that he didn't do it on impulse. He wouldn't ruin a friendship over impulse."

"You think so?" Cali looked so uncertain that it made Darren want to laugh at her. He had never seen her looking like this before. 

"I know so," answered Francesca. "He grew up before my eyes. I know what kind of person he is."

 If Francesca was the one saying this, Cali could only choose to believe her. Recalling something, she looked at Darren and said, "Regi, I met your girlfriend last night." Darren wasn't surprised to hear that now. "She's... Something."

Darren rolled his eyes at her, "She's not my something. She's my everything."

"Cringy..." muttered Cali making Francesca laugh. "He had been a smooth player since the time we met but I never took him to be this cringy as well."

"Well, I raised him and it's still my first time knowing my son is capable of talking this way."

"He's whipped even more than the whipped cream."

"If this is another roasting session of Regan Salvay, I'm gonna leave," announced Darren feeling annoyed with these two women teasing him non-stop. He didn't even say anything wrong. Xiu is everything to him. Where was the lie in that sentence?

"We're not roasting you," said Cali.

"Na-ah! We're simply loving this version of lovestruck Regan Darren Salvay." Francesca had a big smile on her face as she looked at her son. "Seeing you in love is really a sight."

"I can't help it. I find my beginning in her eyes and I honestly feel like I can lose myself..." Darren looked at Cali and went on, "You should learn something from my Sweets." Cali quirked her brows at him in confusion. "She was the one who asked me out on a date. She even clearly stated she didn't know what feelings she had for me but she was willing to venture into the unknown." Darren had a smile playing on his lips as he remembered the day Xiu asked him to be his boyfriend. "You already know you love him, why are you still hesitating then?"

"Well, not everyone is as brave as your Sweets," stated Cali.

"I know, there is only one Sweets and she is already mine." The look of pride on his face was really something. "But that's not the point here. The point is that you need to clear up this whole mess. Actually, you should have done it before coming here. Why did you even choose to avoid talking?"

He was upset with her and even more upset that Dylan hadn't told him anything until now. Normally, he would come running to whine around but this huge matter, he was choosing to hide from his best friend? Darren wasn't willing to believe that. But then why was Dylan silent 'till now?

What Darren overlooked here was that now, Dylan had a sister-in-law to run to as well. Because in this matter, Dylan needed to hear an opinion from a third party who wasn't involved with Cali. But Darren was a friend of his and Cali as well, he didn't want his best friend to be put in a difficult position where he would have to take sides.

He knew Xiu was gonna be neutral since if she accepted him as a brother or as a friend, she could be pretty brutal with words when she wanted to be. Taking sides wasn't really her thing.