Freeing herself of her makeup, heels, and dress, Aless showered then pulled on comfortable pajamas. Hanging the dress up, Alessandra wished she hadn’t thrown away the sales tags.  She could have returned the dress.  Now it would sit her closet, unused, reminding her of her father’s most recent broken promise.  Checking her phone, Alessandra saw that she still had an hour before Bal came back and that Kay had sent a dm.  Responding, Aless asked how her trip was going.  With several colorful expressions, Kay expressed her misery.  Even on vacation, her parents couldn’t stop fighting.  Messaging back and forth for a while, Aless and Kay helped console each other as best friends do.  Sending a final happy birthday wish, Kay disconnected, and Aless checked the time.  Bal still would not be back for a little while.  Trudging down the stairs, Aless wondered what she should do to kill time.  As she drew close to the kitchen, Aless stopped in her tracks.  There were the distinct sounds of pans clacking together.  Someone was in her kitchen.  Palm sweating, a small part of Aless hoped it was her father, but the large part knew that was impossible.  Tiptoeing into the kitchen, Aless let out an audible gasp when she saw a tall man standing in her kitchen.  It took almost a full minute for Aless to realize that it was Bal.

“Bal!” Aless said, clutching her heart.  “How did you get in here? When did you get in here?”

Surprise, Bal spun around a chopping knife in his hand.  Seeing Aless, Bal laughed and relaxed.

“I got here like ten minutes ago.  I called for you, but you didn’t answer, and the door wasn’t locked so I thought you were in the shower,” he said.

“The door was unlocked?” Aless frowned. “I could have sworn I locked it.”

“I don’t know if you did or not, but it wasn’t locked when I got here.  I knew you had to be home since your car is here, so I thought I’d start working on dinner.”

“Uh, thank you.”

Wearily, Aless edged around the kitchen and took a seat.  She would have bet her life on the fact that she had locked the front door.  Yet if she had, how did Bal get in?  He also said he called for her, but Aless hadn’t heard him.  That really didn’t mean he hadn’t though.  The house was big, and sound didn’t travel well, especially into her bedroom.  As she thought, Bal moved around the kitchen, occasionally asking where some tool or ingredient was.  It was fun to watch Bal cook.  He moved fluidly and effortlessly.  Since she last saw him, Bal had changed out of his uniform into jeans and a tank top.  With his shoulders exposed, Aless could see that he possessed almost a whole sleeve gotong on his right arm. Unlike Aless’s gotong, Bal’s was tattoo was a steely gray edged in cream.  It reached from his shoulder to his elbow, elaborate and intricate.  Aless could identify at least four figures amount the rows of triangles, rectangles, arrows, and weaves. Four losses.  She couldn’t even imagine.  Biting her lip, Aless longed to ask who he had lost, but it was very rude to ask someone about their gotong.

Barely visible on his left shoulder, Aless saw the beginning of a triangular tattoo.  Its base ran three inches across the flat of his should then ran diagonally over his collar bone, meeting somewhere under his shirt.  The inside of the triangle consisted of three neat rows of triangles that alternated from black to skin-colored and three circles in the center that looked as if they were honeycombs.  Puzzled, Aless could not think what that tattoo was for.  It could have been for decoration as some soldier and warriors did.  However, Aless felt that there had to be more to it. 

Distracted by the tattoos, Aless didn’t realize that Bal was talking to her.

“I am sorry,” she said. “I zoned out.”

“It’s okay.  I said dinner will be done soon. What would you like to drink?” He said kindly.

“Oh, don’t worry about that.  I will get us something.”

Dashing off, Aless went to her father’s wine closet.  Aaron was an avid collector of fine wines, but he never actually drank.  Bitterly, Aless thought a nice bottle of wine was the least her father could do for her as she searched the shelves.  Settling on one that had the same birth year as her, Aless carefully pulled out the bottle and went back to the kitchen.  She opened and served the wine as Bal distributed the food between them.

“I made enough for leftovers,” Bal explained.  “In case we are hungry later or so you don’t have to cook tomorrow.”

“That is sweet of you,” Aless said. 

Seeing the bottle, Bal halted.

“Aless, that is a really expensive bottle of wine.”

“I know.  It’s my dad’s. He has a whole collection.  He won’t miss one and it is my eighteenth birthday.”

The steely glint in her eyes told Bal to drop the subject.  Pulling her seat out so she could sit, Bal watched Aless carefully.  Taking his own seat, Bal offered a small prayer to the Deity before they began to eat.  He had made some sautéed vegetable dish with strips of lamb belly. Initially, Aless did not know what the meat was since she had never had lamb belly before. Bal chose not to tell her until after she had taken her first bite. Luckily, the delicious taste outweighed the repulsion of the idea of lamb stomach and the two continued with their meal. 

As always when Alessandra and Bal hung out, they talked easily and laughed often. The only tense moment came when Bal expressed his disappointment that Aless had changed out of her beautiful dress.

“You look so splendid and luminous in it,” he said. “Why did you change?”

Feeling self-conscious, Aless looked at her pajamas.  Did she look bad like this she wondered?

“I don’t know.  I guess this is just more comfortable,” she replied.

“And more me,” she thought.

Sensing he had misspoken, Bal quickly changed the subject.  They finished the wine and the food after two hours, then moved to the living room to watch a movie.  Bal brought out a bottle of ice-whiskey he had bought for Aless’s birthday, pouring them each a glass.  Cheering, they took a swig and began to watch a movie. After two more classes of ice-whiskey, Alessandra felt her head spin as her body mellowed into a cool numbness.  Someone in the movie did something ridiculous and Aless burst out laughing, almost toppling off the couch.  Catching her, Bal shook his head in amusement. 

“I think you’re drunk,” he chuckled.

“Naw, I’m just tipsy,” Aless replied.

Her whole body and mind felt pleasantly mellow. 

“If your say so. You’re the birthday girl.”

“Damn right.”

Grinning, Bal pulled Aless closer so she could lean against him.  Her body had begun to sway and he worried she would fall off the couch.  Up close, Bal smelled like something metallic.  Not like Danny.  Something else.  Something Aless had never smelled before.  Fumbling and wobbling, Aless managed to drink one more glass of ice-whiskey.  She had totally lost count of Bal’s drink.  As the world became blurry, Aless stretched out on the couch, using Bal’s lap as a pillow.  Only when she laid down did the world stop spinning.  The alcohol now made her feel as if her body was torn between hyper-aware and half asleep.  She had never drunk so much before.  What the hell!  It was her birthday!

“Are you alright, Ale? Bal asked.

“Hmm.”

“You seem tired.”

“Hmm.”

Tenderly, Bal caressed Aless’s hair.  The soothing feel of it made Aless feel like a cat, ready to arch its back. In a while, Bal’s fingers began to lightly trace Alessandra’s jawline and neck.  Stretching out, Aless hummed, enjoying the sensation.  His touch was gentle that it gave Aless goose flesh.

“I’m glad I met you, Ale,” he said.

Blinking, Aless realized a different movie was on.  When had they finished the first one?

“I am glad I met you.  You are a good friend, Bal.”

“What if I say that I am attracted to you?”

Rolling onto her back so she could look up at Bal, Aless saw his deep blue-green eyes.  Once again, she was reminded of thick sea glass.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I am attracted to you.  I keep thinking about how you looked in that bathrobe and at the club dancing and tonight in that dress.”

They held each other’s gaze or at least tried to.  In Aless’s vision, Bal was becoming an undefined blur.

“Don’t you realize how beautiful you are?”

“You are sweet, Bal. Thank you.”

Rolling back to her side, Aless fixed her gaze on the TV again.  His fingers ran over her hair again.  They fell silent for a long time.  Just as Aless felt her eyes growing too heavy to keep open, something soft and warm brushed against her ear.

“Bal?” She murmured.

“Yes,” he breathed.

His mouth was just above her ear. The heat of his breath made her shiver. Sliding down her shoulder and arm, Bal’s hand came to rest on her hips.

“What are you doing?”

“Watching you.”

“Why?”

“Because I like you.”

“I like you too.”

“I want to kiss you, Ale.”

Gurgling a laugh, Aless closed her eyes and shook her head.  Stopping quickly, Aless felt the whole world spin and twirl around her.  His lips brushed against her ear again.

“Bal, you’re my friend,” she whispered drunkenly.

“I know, but I still want to kiss you.”

“But Danny…”

“He’s not here for you. I am.”

Bal kissed her jaw then neck, delicately.  Unable to stop herself, Aless shivered.  The alcohol made everything feel so good, but her mind knew that it wasn’t right.  Her mind struggled to tell her body no.  Pushing her shirt up a fraction, Bal laid his hand on her bare skin.  The heat of her body told Bal that this wasn’t a dream.  She was there. 

“Bal, I can’t. I have Danny.”

“Shush.  You aren’t doing anything.”

Furrowing her brows, Aless’s mind said this too wasn’t right, but couldn’t figure out how.  The ice-whiskey was numbing her thoughts.  Carefully, Bal turned Aless onto her back so she looked up at him again.  One hand slid across her stomach while the other slipped around her head, lifting her up slightly. 

“I just want to give you one birthday kiss,” he said in a thick voice.

“Danny will be mad.”

“He won’t know. Please…”

Before she could respond, Bal kissed her.  At first, it was light and breathy, but soon he pulled her tight against him, his mouth opening and kissing her lustily.  Unable to process what was going on, Aless did not react at first.  Then the wonderful sensation of the kiss caused Aless to do nothing.  For a brief moment, she enjoyed being kissed.  Bal’s kisses were so different than she had ever experienced before.  They were nothing like how Danny kissed her.  Danny.  His name struck her lethargic mind like a knife.  Raising her arms as quickly as her drunken body would let her, Aless pushed against Bal’s chest.  Her mind said no as she pushed with what little strength her body had left.  Feeling the pressure of her hands pushing against his chest, Bal stopped.  Panting, he looked into her eyes, which were squeezed shut.  Heart falling, Bal saw her tense muscles and expression as Aless’s body said no in exchange for her voice. 

“It’s okay.  I’m done.  I won’t kiss you again,” he said.

Looking at him through her lowered lashes, Aless could not see his expression, only the fuzzy outline of his face.  Stroking her hair, he kissed her forehead affectionately. 

“You can sleep now, Ale.  I won’t try that again.  You can trust me,” he said.

Turning her back on her side, Bal gazed at Aless as she curled into a tight ball, her head still on his lap.  Continuing to stroke her hair, Bal whispered to her sweetly, promising he wouldn’t hurt her, to be there for her, that she wouldn’t be lonely anymore.  It took a while but, eventually, Aless relaxed and fell asleep. 

She awoke in the morning with a splitting headache, alone on the couch.  Bal had left early in the morning, making sure not to wake her.  Heart aching, Aless searched the house for someone, only to find she was completely alone.  Among her foggy memories from the night, Alessandra recalled Bal saying he would be there for her and that she wouldn’t be alone anymore. 

“He was just drunk,” she scolded herself. “He didn’t mean anything he said…or did.”

The feel of his lips on hers made Aless blush.  How could she have let that happen?  What about Danny? Danny would never forgive her for kissing another man. But…wait…Aless had said no. She had pushed Bal away.  It wasn’t her fault.  Bal hadn’t listened and she had been drunk so she couldn’t do much.  Yes.  It was okay.  She hadn’t really done anything wrong. Everything would be okay.