CONTENT WARNING

This chapter contains mature and sexual themes and a lot of profanity that may not be suitable for a very young audience.

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Danilo had spent the remaining fifteen hours of his waiting time in the park. He stayed in the Rose Garden for the day to avoid his ex-boss near the lake, but when evening came, he moved to where he would meet Dulnuan.

Despite his excitement, he forced himself to nap to have the strength for tonight. Not just to pass through the veil but to be with Dulnuan.

7:46 p.m. He checked the time. Only a few more minutes to go.

At this time of the evening, there were still plenty of people in the park, though it was already Sunday night.

AT 7:48 p.m., he stood up from the bench he'd been sitting on and walked up to the spot Dulnuan told him about--the spot where the veil was thinnest at night. He looked up at the moon, round and dazzling bright.

"Danilo, you're here."

He looked down to find Dulnuan in front of him. He grinned. "I'm here," he said.

A passerby looked his way. He was talking to no one. But it didn't matter. These people didn't matter. No one else was more important to him at this moment than Dulnuan.

"So, what do I do?" he asked.

"Come to me," Dulnuan said. "Just come forward to me."

Danilo took a deep breath. He was ready and unafraid. He trusted her, and when she nodded, he took a step toward her.

A chill climbed up his spine. The hairs on his arm and the back of his neck rose. A gripping sense of terror burst in his chest, but he pushed forward. "I'm coming to you, Dulnuan."

Her eyes were determined, encouraging him to continue. She raised her arms to him and caught him in an embrace when he passed.

The cold feeling faded. The alarming sensation dissipated. He looked at their arms tangled with each other. He could feel her. Touch her.

He gazed at her face--no longer the transparent girl he saw every night for the last week. She was full, solid, and here in his arms. He grinned. "Did I make it?"

"Yes," she laughed. "You're here."

He let out a shuddering breath and glanced around. They were no longer in Burnham Park. It was a forest--full-grown pine trees overtook the land. He craned his neck, face to the sky to see its dimness. It wasn't day or night. It was dusk, graying the surroundings in an eerie manner.

"Come. I want to show you where I live." She took his hand and looped their fingers together, guiding him through the forest.

"So, is this the other side?" Danilo asked as they walked, twigs crunching under his feet.

"It is a layer of it," Dulnuan said. "This is the outermost."

"Really? How many layers are there?"

"I don't know. I have not ventured deep enough to find the other end. But I have found at least seven layers," she explained.

This was some Divine Comedy shit. Danilo had not read the book, but he remembered his teacher in high school telling the class that Dante Alighieri wrote about the nine circles of hell.

He wondered what was in each layer of the other side. And why were there so many? But it wasn't important now.

He glanced down at their intertwined fingers and smiled. "I'm so glad I'm finally here."

"I am delighted as well." Dulnuan's happiness was evident, reaching her eyes.

They soon came to a village. Danilo saw several huts made of bamboo and dried nipa leaves. Lamps were lit inside their windows, but no one appeared to be home in each one.

"Are you alone here?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered. "Come. This is my home." She pulled her to one of the bigger huts in the middle of the village. She let go of his hand as she climbed the ladder and entered the open door.

Danilo followed her inside and found a dimly lit and cozy space. It smelled of wood, earth, and fire. The hut was filled with small objects--trinkets from the world of the living. There was a stack of CDs on a table beside a Converse shoe without a pair. A belt. Several pieces of jewelry. A telephone. Pens and pencils. Books. Jars. A Nokia phone. A pack of hair ties. And so many more.

It was Dulnuan's treasure trove.

"This is--" Danilo gaped.

"My collection," Dulnuan smiled. "Welcome to my home."

"You lived here?" he asked, realizing this village was Kafagway--the land before the American developments.

"Yes."

"With your husband?" Danilo asked. Jealousy stung his heart. He'd never said her husband before. He always referred to him as the chieftain. And saying he was Dulnuan's spouse made him bitter.

"No. This is my family's home. I shared it with my twelve siblings."

Danilo was relieved. He wouldn't be able to bear it if he'd started imaging where Dulnuan and the chieftain had fucked inside this hut. He wondered if she still remembered her husband. But if she did, Danilo would make her forget. He would touch her in ways her husband never had and make her head-over-heels crazy for him.

He stepped closer to her without saying a word.

Dulnuan stared at his movement, parting her lips. She froze, unmoving, as he leaned his face to her cheek and whispered in her ear.

"You said you'll be ready for me." He pulled away to look into her brown eyes--deep dark orbs, pupils enlarged.

She swallowed. "I am," she breathed out.

He inclined his face to hers, letting the tips of their noses touch. If she were any other girl, he would have already smashed his lips to hers. But this was Dulnuan. And he wanted to savor her, to savor this moment and please her.

"What do you want to do?" Dulnuan tilted her face up to kiss him, but he pulled away. Her brows furrowed, and hurt crossed her face.

Danilo leaned back down, smiling. "What do you want me to do?" he returned.

She blinked, and the side of her lip curved up. "You want me to say it?"

"Yes."

"You want me to say that I want you to make love to me?" She moved her lips closer to his so he felt her warm breath. "You want me to say I want you on top of me? You want me to say I want you inside me?" she teased.

"Yes," his voice cracked. Damn, she was good.

"No," she said and stepped back. "You are not going to make me work for it."

Danilo reached for her waist, pulling her to him and pressing their bodies together, grinding his hardness over her hip. "Fuck! You feel so good."

She gasped. Their noses touched again. "What do you want to do with me, Danilo?" she asked.

And he yielded. "I want to taste you."

"Go on," she urged with a nod.

He pressed their lips together, and heat exploded between them. They started with a slow kiss, but when Dulnuan poked his tongue with hers, he couldn't take it. He kissed her deeply and hungrily.

He grabbed the back of her neck to press her closer to him as if he couldn't get enough while his other hand held her steady by the waist.

Only when she moaned with pleasure did he pull away to let her breathe. They were both panting, heaving from just a kiss.

Danilo pressed his lips to the curve of her neck, making her call out his name.

"Danilo." She laced both of her arms around his shoulders, pressing her chest to his.

He licked her skin, tasting the beautiful morena he'd been craving for days. "You taste so good." His tongue moved from her pulse to her collarbone.

"Mmmhh..." she returned.

His hand moved from her waist and down to the mound of her butt, gently caressing. "You feel just like a woman should."

She giggled. "You are flattering me," she murmured.

"No. I'm telling the truth." He swept her legs from the floor and picked her up, looping her legs around him and pressing his groin to her. "Now, where the fuck is your bedroom?"

She giggled again. "Over there." She inclined her head toward a door at the corner of the hut before she leaned down to him. It was her turn to taste him, giving the skin under his ear soft kisses and making puckering sounds.

"Fuck. You're good," Danilo said as he moved across the hut and entered the door. The room was clean--no treasures or trinkets cluttered anywhere. Only a palette bed rested at the center. He sat down on the edge of the bed, so she straddled him.

Dulnuan pulled away from his neck and looked down at him. Then she started to sway, grinding and pressing herself to his aching and hardened length. She moved like a dancer on him, moaning with pleasure.

Fuck, she felt so good.

He let himself enjoy the performance as his hands guided her by her hips. "Shit. I want to fuck you."

Dulnuan moaned in agreement.

"I'm going to make you scream," he grunted. His hand moved up her belly underneath her shawl, pushing up the cloth and tugging it over her head, revealing her naked body. No bra.

Her aching peaks begged to be sucked. He grabbed onto her breasts as she continued to grind. He opened his mouth and consumed her sensitive tip, flicking his tongue over the nipple, then lightly tugging it with his teeth and rewarding himself with another pleasured moan.

"Danilo," she said his name and curled over his face, pressing her chest closer to him. "Please," she begged.

He pulled from her breasts to look up at her. "What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"Make love to me," she said.

"Yes. I'm going to make love to you."

Her dark eyes became stormy. Her face was flushed. She gaped as she pressed herself down and deeper into his stiffness, clearly craving and upset with the clothes between them.

Danilo pulled his shirt over his head, to be fair, showing her his abs.

Her eyes widened with hunger as she took him in. She stopped grinding and groped at his chest, running her palm from his clavicle, over a nipple, and down to his stomach. He moaned at her touch, and she smiled, proud that she was able to make him.

He fumbled at her tapis, finding the end of the wrap and tugging it loose, then pulling it off and letting it fall to the floor. Now, Dulnuan was fully naked. No panties.

"Oh. Yes," he said as he looked at her, from her round and youthful breasts to her beautifully carved belly to the deliciously tempting bush between her legs. He grabbed onto her ass and rolled her over on the pallet bed so that he was on top of her. He gazed down at her. "We're finally together," he whispered. "I want to taste you."

"Mmmhh." She nodded her approval.

He spread her legs apart and ran his fingers over her flower. They came away wet. Shit. "Is this for me?"

"Mmmhh." She nodded again.

He kneeled over her. His erection bulging under his pants. That would have to wait because he wanted to pleasure her first. Raising her legs over his shoulders, he dove for her center and took her flower in his mouth.

Dulnuan whimpered. "Danilo." Her fingers fisted in his hair as she pressed his face against her. "Danilo. Danilo." She kept on saying his name, and he kept on licking and sucking.

He twirled his tongue over her nut, and she shuddered. "Please!" She begged.

He pulled away and looked up at her. "I told you I'm going to make you scream." With swift movements, he kicked off his shoes and removed his pants and boxer briefs, letting his erection hang out.

She reached for him and took his length in her hands, making him shiver at her touch. She stroked him gently, preparing him for the ride.

"Do you want that?" he asked, his muscles tensing with how much he restricted himself from just putting it in and fucking her. No, he wanted this to last for more than ten minutes.

"Mmmhh-humm." She swallowed, unable to say words. Her flower was pulsating with eagerness.

Propping his elbows on each side of her face, he leaned down to kiss her, gently brushing their lips together and making her taste herself. Their tongues moved as one, searching for union and sharing each breath.

With his hardness still in her hand, she guided him down, lowering him to her opening. She rubbed his tip against her wet and warm sex.

Slowly, he thrust himself into her, and she groaned on his lips as, inch by inch, his length forced in. Stars exploded. Steam erupted. He pulled away from her lips to let her breathe and whimper. "You." Thrust. "Feel." Thrust. "So." Thrust. "Good." Thrust. Every entry was a hit of that drug he'd been yearning for.

"More," she begged, her fingers digging into his shoulders.

"You're so wet." He drove himself into her, and she devoured him.

"More."

His movements picked up pace, pulling in and out of her faster and with urgency. His whole body heated, and he could feel her nearing, too.

Her muscles contracted against his length. "Danilo!" she screamed his name.

"Fuck! I'm coming!" His body shuddered at the apex of his pleasure, and the pulsating ache became an explosion. "Fuck!"

Dulnuan's flower squeezed his erection. She closed her eyes and craned her neck. Her thighs clamped against him. She convulsed once, twice, thrice, several times, and thrashed under him, giving him a long and satisfied "Ooooh!"

Danilo kept thrusting, digging deep into her until there was nothing left of his seed to release.

When they were done, they were both out of breath.

He looked down at her, keeping himself inside her for a bit longer. He grinned at how flushed and dazed she looked. "How was that?" he asked.

"Mmmh." She still couldn't speak.

Before he rolled off her, he pressed a gentle kiss on her lips. They cuddled afterward with her head tucked in the curve of his shoulder. Their bodies tangled with each other. His mouth pressed to her hair. And they let the intense tiredness take them away into a restful slumber.

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☠ Fun Fact: 

One of the best coffees in the Philippines is Benguet Arabica Coffee, which comes from Benguet, the province where Baguio City is located. 

Coffee farmers in Benguet showing off one of the best coffees in the country.

https://philcoffeeboard.com/benguet-arabica-listed-in-ark-of-taste/