Tori fumbled with the car keys as he hurriedly ran to catch up with his boss. Dylan was already a few steps ahead of him and was clearly in a bad mood. Tori immediately unlocked the Lexus SUV as soon as he reached the car and was about to open the driver seat door when Dylan cleared his throat and motioned to him to open the back door.
"Ay, Sir! Sorry po. Hahahaha, I'm kind of jittery because of the coffee. Ballsie made it stronger than usual. Here you go, Sir." Tori managed to nervously say as he opened the back passenger door for Dylan.
Dylan sighed as he sat at the back, "What a way to start the day!" He silently uttered to himself. He placed the coffee tumbler in the cup holder and placed his breakfast on the seat next to him. He looked at it while he wore his seatbelt and debated if he should eat it or not. He decided not to eat it as Tori pulled out of the driveway and out of their street. Instead, Dylan opted to sleep along the way, so he instructed Tori to drive smoothly and avoid any potholes so he could sleep peacefully. He leaned his head on the car headrest and was about to close his eyes when Tori yelled at the front.
"SIR! Aren't you going to eat your breakfast? You know it is still warm, so you better eat it before it gets cold. It's really good, Sir. And the coffee too! I know I said it's stronger than usual, but it's tastier. I think it'll be good for you to drink ---"
"Tori, do you want to live another day?" Dylan interrupted him. "Didn't you hear me earlier? I said drive smoothly, so I can sleep. Did I say anything about eating?!"
"Sir, I'm just saying you better eat now, so you can sleep later. Our trip will take longer too because of traffic. Eat now, then you can sleep uninterrupted." Tori looked at Dylan in the front view mirror and gave him a little wink to try to convince him.
"Let's just go to Starbucks later, let me sleep first."
"But Sir, why do you need to go to Starbucks? You're going to buy the same thing? Coffee and a breakfast sandwich? Why don't you just eat what was prepared for you now?"
"Wait, who is the boss here? Last time I checked, I'm the one who signs your paychecks. Tori, I don't need you to tell me what I need to do, ok?! Please, just drive!"
"Um, Sir. If you are not going to eat your breakfast, can I have it? I know Ballsie put extra love, I mean, extra sausage and extra cheese in that biscuit. If you don't want it, I'll gladly eat it. You can have your Starbucks later, you know their biscuits are good too, maybe a bit overpriced, but I guess it's just as good. I thought Chinoys like you were frugal, but I guess you are the exception, Sir Dylan. You waste so much ---"
"God, shut up Tori! Ok, ok. I will eat this goddamn breakfast biscuit!" Dylan tapped the leather seat in resignation. He grabbed the foiled breakfast and opened it slowly. Tori was right - it was still warm, the cheese was still somewhat melted, and it was not yet congealed. He looked at it then looked at Tori at the front. Tori was looking at him intently, patiently waiting for him to take a bite with a teasing smile.
"Are you for real, Tori? Are you literally waiting for me to take a bite? Why don't you keep your eyes on the road, huh?"
Tori just chuckled and eventually left Dylan alone to eat in peace. "Ok, Sir! Enjoy. I won't say anything anymore. Just enjoy your breakfast, then sleep. When you wake up, we will be in Tagaytay!"
Dylan took a bite and savored the flavor of the sausage and cheese biscuit - Tori was right again. Ballsie put an extra sausage patty and she put an extra layer of American cheese on it. It was tastier than when Manang Susan would make one for him. The biscuit too was perfectly crisp on the outside and still chewy from the inside. As he took another bite, Dylan could feel Tori's eyes watching him from the front.
"Oooh, Sir! What did I tell you? It's good huh?! Hahahahaha, you always don't believe me!"
"Tori, I thought you weren't going to say anything anymore? You really can't control yourself. Please, Tori. Today is not the day to annoy me. I've only had a couple of hours of sleep - thanks to Ballsie and her loud snoring." Dylan managed to say in between bites.
"Sir, maybe she was just too tired. You know, I snore too if I've had a long day. You know Baguio is not close to Manila, right? It's about 4 hours of travel. And that's without traffic. Ballsie probably had to wake up in the wee hours of the morning yesterday, go to the bus terminal, you know wait for the bus, then spend about 4 hours traveling. That's tiring in itself. Then she waited for us too for a few minutes at the bus terminal, then we had another hour of traveling from the terminal to the house. Not to mention, Manang Susan had to show her the tasks to do at the house. Then she had to cook dinner too, remember? Oh man, I'm just tired recounting it." Tori shook his head as he looked straight on the road.
Dylan chewed on the last bites of the breakfast biscuit; he also took a sip of the coffee Ballsie prepared and was surprised how the coffee tasted so robust and flavorful. It was not bitter too, it was just perfectly brewed. He screwed the lid back as tight as possible and placed the tumbler back in the cup holder.
"So, Sir Dylan. How was your breakfast? Perfect right, real tasty and warm with a small serving of guilt?" Tori winked at him again. Dylan swore that if Tori wasn't the best driver he ever had, he would've fired him already.
He was right though - Dylan did feel guilty for how he treated Ballsie earlier. He did not even think about how tired she must had been from yesterday's events. Feeling a little remorseful from this morning's interactions, Dylan looked out the window and realized that the sun had already risen in the horizon, its molten, fiery red streaks were now peaking from the tall buildings that towered the Manila skyline. Dylan put on his sunglasses and laid his head on the car headrest.
"Sir, you're going to sleep now?" Tori asked.
Dylan did not reply. He let Tori think he was asleep when in fact, he was now wide-awake from the guilt that had been bubbling inside of him.
