ACE
"What? Why?" He sat up. He was surprised by her reaction. He automatically put on his pants while Gina quickly entered the bathroom. When she came out, she was already wearing a robe.
"Get out of my house."
"What did I do? I thought you wanted me as much as I do."
"I thought you came here because you missed me?" She said, breathing hard. "Now I know why you came. You just came here to find out if you got me pregnant."
"That's not--"
"Well, here's a news flash for you, Zorro. I'm on the pill. I've been on the pill since we got married. I'm not pregnant, so don't worry about that. Now, leave my house!"
Instead of leaving, he just put his hands in his pocket. "Don't you want me to be the father of your child?"
"Are you always this stupid? or is it just me?" She threw up her hands and walked away.
He followed Gina into the living room, where she stormed around the room. He tried to control his temper." I don't understand you, Gina."
"I'm taking pills because if something happens to us, you're not responsible. I didn't want to trap you!" Gina yelled at him. "I have no idea how I'm going to continue my love for you when you offer me nothing in return, except obligation and macho attitude. But I'll tell you this, Ace Roderick Soler III, Maybe I won't stop loving you until you disappear from my life. So you may leave now. I want to be sane again."
"Do you love me?" He asked quietly.
"Yes, I love you, Ace. What do you think that--" she gestured wildly toward the bedroom. "--that was all about?"
"I love you, too."
"W-what did you say?"
He took advantage of her stillness to approach her. "Wo Ai ni, saranghae, te amo, je t'aime, mahal kita, I love you, Gina."
GINA
She swallowed what she heard from Ace. "But why did you say you wish we hadn't met?"
He frowned at what she said. "huh?When?"
"When you had a fever and I recorded you."
"I don't think you can hold me responsible for what I have said in a fever, sweetie. But that's not how I feel. Do you know you are the one who made me aware so that I can reevaluate myself and my dreams. I'm not comfortable looking that deeply into myself." Ace pulled her and hugged her, tucking her head under his chin. "Gina, you turned my world upside down. I didn't know how to handle it. All I could see was the job I had to do. And you kept getting in the way."
She felt his hugs suddenly tighten. "I feel in love with you anyway. Maybe I was just too coward to confess to you, and I was waiting to hear the words coming from you first. I'm just afraid that if I show my true feelings for you, it would leave me too vulnerable. Just like what my father experienced. I'm afraid you'll leave me, too. And I'm still afraid of that."
This time, she hugged Ace too. "I won't ever leave you, Ace. I promise!"
"I want to marry you again, Gina."
She leaned back at the hesitation in his voice. "Maybe we shouldn't rush, Ace. How is your work?"
She saw him scratch his head. "I love what I'm doing, Gina."
"Of course you do."
"I know it's not cool to say this out loud, but I really love my job. Because I believe that there is really justice and fairness. If I stay in this job, in some way I will be able to help people who aspire to achieve it."
"Well good. So do I. What's the problem?"
"I can't guarantee you with one house, one place to raise our children. Promotion often means relocation. And I expect to climb the ladder."
"All right," she answered.
"If it happens, we are like NPA."
"Huh? What NPA do you mean?"
"No Permanent Address. When you dream of having your own house and a lot for your children, I might not be able to fulfill that. There is a chance that our future children will move from school to school if I am reassigned to another place."
"Well, if that happens, I don't have a problem with that at all. I'll pack up the house and arrange for a mover and off we'll go."
"You said you wanted your children to have stability. A sense of place. That's what I can't promise you."
"I also said I was building a career at home so that I could be there with them. And for me, that's stability." She rested her hands on his chest. "Did you say that because you see that I am a homebody and it won't work for us? I can build a home anywhere, Ace. All that matters to me is that we share a life together."
"Didn't you regret that in the end?"
"Ace. I love you so much. And I loved you when you took care of me, spoiled me and worried about me. I also loved you when you ignored, rejected and ordered me. That's how love is, right? It won't be easy all the time. But the love's not going to change, except to deepen. My home is you, Ace, and home is wherever you are."
ACE
He combed and stroked Gina's long hair, and then he cupped her face with his hands. "Then I think the first order of business should be another wedding."
Gina didn't answer, and instead her finger drew the letter Z on his chest. His heart slammed into his sternum, jump-starting desire again.
"Do you know that for three months I really couldn't forget you, Ace? And do you know that there is a man who really made me feel what true love is? But when he proposed, I rejected his marriage proposal because of that red teddy bear." She pointed the red teddy bear on display in the living room.
"Huh? What's the thing with that red teddy bear?"
"Because I asked for a sign from the Lord that when someone gives me something that reminds me of you. That means you will come back. The guy gave it to me before the day he proposed. Did you see that it's not just a teddy bear? It's a Zorro teddy bear."
"Yeah, I see." He said. He let his imagination lock in the image before he kissed her, thoroughly, possessively, dangerously, dragging her closer and closer. "Then again," he said against her lips. "I think tomorrow might be a better day to plan a wedding."
"And a lifetime." She said.
He held her near to his heart and closed his eyes. "Yeah sweetie, and a lifetime." He responded softly.
*****