Ballsie's day so far could be just summed up in one word - unbelievable. She started off her day dealing with a moody boss, and then for the rest of the day, Manang Susan showed her the rest of the house and the rest of her tasks. Ballsie's jaw dropped when she saw that the house was actually seated in a vast area of land. She thought the lanai was the rest of the backyard, but she didn't realize that Dylan also had an infinity pool at the other side of the house, plus a fenced basketball court next to the outside porch. She asked Manang Susan if she had any more surprises for her, and the elderly woman just laughed at her.
"Don't worry Ballsie, you don't need to clean the pool or the basketball court. Tori actually cleans the pool. One tip, if you're actually looking for Tori and you can't find him anywhere in the house, you can bet your life that he is lounging by the pool area. Then, as for the basketball court, that's where you can find Dylan most of the time. Ooh, and you really don't need to clean it too. Dylan makes sure that he doesn't leave anything behind when he and his friends play ball."
Ballsie listened intently to Manang Susan as she enumerated all the other tasks she needed to do for Dylan and her daily tasks at home. Manang Susan even provided her an actual list to follow in case she forgot. She also reminded Ballsie that she would need to sleep in the same room as Dylan every night even if this was not indicated on her list:
Mondays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch early in the morning so Dylan can bring it to work, cook dinner. Check the unused guest rooms and see if any of the rooms need cleaning.
Tuesdays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch (No lunch for Dylan), cook dinner. Clean Dylan's room, bathroom.
Wednesdays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch early in the morning so Dylan can bring it to work, cook dinner. Clean your room and bathroom. (Tori cleans his own, so no need to worry about his).
Thursdays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch, cook dinner. Grocery day. Check refrigerator, supplies before you go to the grocery. Go to dry cleaner to drop off Dylan's suits. (*Tori will drive you to grocery, dry cleaners). Prepare smoothie for Dylan, Dylan's gym day.
Fridays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch, cook dinner. Go to dry cleaner and pick up Dylan's suits. (*Tori will drive you to dry cleaners). Laundry day for Dylan's remaining clothes, use washer and dryer. Prepare smoothie for Dylan, Dylan's gym day.
Saturdays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch, cook dinner. Prepare smoothie for Dylan, Dylan's gym day. Do your laundry if you need to, you can use washer and dryer.
Sundays: Cook breakfast, cook lunch, cook dinner. Prepare smoothie for Dylan, Dylan's gym day.
Manang Susan also gave Ballsie Dylan's work schedule:
Mondays to Wednesdays: Dylan works on-site.
Thursdays to Fridays: Dylan works from home.
Saturdays to Sundays: Off days for Dylan, not unless he needs to fly out for oculars, site inspections.
As overwhelming as it all sounded, Ballsie knew she can do all the household work easily. The tasks were manageable enough; in fact, she had been doing the same chores at home so it wouldn't be much of an adjustment for her. However, Ballsie did not know how to feel when she found out that Dylan only works on-site three days and would be pretty much home bound for the rest of the week.
"Great, I guess many opportunities then to either make fun or scold me." Ballsie sighed and shook her head in disbelief. She looked at her watch and it was almost noon time. Manang coaxed her to head to the kitchen and cook something for their lunch. Manang just instructed her to look at the refrigerator and think of something she could cook from the ingredients in the fridge. Ballsie inspected their freezer, and they had chicken thighs and drumsticks. She figured chicken adobo would be easy to make so she decided to cook it for lunch. She knew Manang Susan liked her adobo when she visited their home once, so she did not even check with her if she had any other preferences. Ballsie then looked at the cupboard and she found all the other ingredients needed to cook her dish. She took out the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, garlic, bay leaves, then she went to work.
Mid-preparations, Ballsie was interrupted by Manang Susan giving her a heads up that Dylan and Tori were on their way home. She instructed Ballsie to cook a lot since Dylan and Tori would be joining them for lunch. So Ballsie added more chicken and adjusted her ingredients accordingly. To save time as well, Manang Susan went ahead and cooked the rice, so Ballsie didn't have to worry about it.
"Well, better face him now. Why prolong the misery, Ballsie." She thought to herself again. The chicken adobo would be cooked by the time they arrive. She let the adobo simmer to perfection then turned off the stove once it was ready to be served. Manang Susan already fixed the dining table and had four sets of plates, spoons, forks, and glasses.
"Ay, Manang! I did not have time to make any dessert! Will Sir Dylan mind? Do you think I should whip up something really quick? Not sure what we can make quickly?" Ballsie said worriedly as she remembered how her boss had been so keen in the tiniest details. A meal without a dessert might push him over the edge and might give her the second strike at work. Even with Tori and Manang Susan's reassurance that she would not get fired, Ballsie still felt worried if she did not deliver and if she did not go above and beyond with her tasks.
Ballsie was about to run off and inspect the fridge once more, when a now familiar voice echoed from the foyer.
"Oh, my dear, I'm home!"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ballsie stopped in her tracks when Dylan and Tori appeared in the kitchen carrying a few boxes in tow. From the looks of it, Ballsie guessed the boxes were food items.
"Oh my dear Nanay Susan, I'm home!" Dylan said as he looked at Ballsie, but gave Manang Susan a kiss on the cheek.
"Um, since we were already in Tagaytay, I took it upon myself to buy buko pies and some tarts. I heard from a friend that these ones are really good. We can have them for dessert."
Ballsie's ears perked up when she heard this; she wouldn't need to worry about dessert after all. She also heard that buko pies from Tagaytay were delicious. Her mouth started to water when she thought about eating them for dessert.
"Well ok. Let's all eat and just enjoy the rest of the day." Manang Susan exclaimed as she clapped her hands in excitement. "But wait Dylan, do you need to go to the office? Today is Tuesday, don't you need to be onsite?"
Ballsie looked at Dylan and it seemed his eyes never left her. He was staring intently at her again as he replied with a serious tone. "Nanay Sue, I am done for the day. I am all yours."
