Dylan did not expect that he would hear these two words again from Ballsie's mouth. This was a plot twist he did not expect.
"Kuya Kenkoy?!" Ballsie's wide eye was the only expression Dylan needed to capture what he also felt in the moment.
"Shit, don't tell me that her childhood crush is Ken! This has got to be some kind of joke." Dylan thought as he stared at his friend. "I just hope Ballsie is mistaken. How can that be and what are the chances that my friend and her childhood crush is one and the same?!"
"Beh? Is that you? Gian's cousin, right? Oh my god! I thought you looked familiar. How have you been?" Ken then gave Ballsie a tight hug.
Too tight. Also, too long of a hug for Dylan's liking. He had the urge to pry Ken's arms out of Ballsie's shoulders as he hugged her. Dylan looked at Ken with dark eyes as he observed the two as they embraced.
"Ahem, you guys know each other?" Is all what Dylan just managed to say as he cleared his throat. He placed his hands in his pocket and clenched his fists inside. There was an unsettling feeling inside his chest that he couldn't explain and was equally surprised with why it settled there.
"Yes. Beh is my childhood best friend's cousin! Small world, huh?" Ken briefly looked at him as he let go of Ballsie then he focused all his attention back to her again. "Beh, how is your Tita Betsy? I still talk to Gian, but it's been ages since the last time I saw him in person. He's now in Singapore, right?"
"Beh??? Why the hell is he calling her 'Beh'?!" Dylan thought as he clenched his fists even tighter inside his pockets. The way Ken addressed Ballsie sounded like a term of endearment and Dylan did not like that one bit. He looked at Ballsie who was now blushing and had a smile on her face.
The unsettling feeling inside his chest was threatening to rear its ugly head when Dylan felt a sudden nudge at his back. He looked at his side and was surprised to see that Tori was already beside him, smiling from ear to ear.
"Sir Ken, I have a song for you. It goes like this. Ahem!" Tori cleared his throat then proceeded to sing, albeit tone-deaf.
"It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all. It's a small world after all, it's a small, small world!!!!" He proceeded to clap his hands like the lunatic he was.
Dylan nudged Tori back and mouthed to him to quit joking around. Tori with a naughty gleam in his eyes, whispered, "Cutie Sir Ken, one point. Gorgeous Sir Dylan, zero point. Zilch. Nada. Bokya. Olats. Lotlot and friends."
"Well, I have a stat for you too, Tori. Annoying Tori, zero Christmas bonus." Dylan scoffed back.
Tori's smile disappeared from his face, and he bowed his head. He bit his lower lip and whispered back, "Sir Dylan, I was just joking. If you need help though - you know, with Ballsie - I can help you. I need my Christmas bonus. Please don't take that away."
Dylan looked at Tori with stoic eyes. He then glanced at Ken and Ballsie who were still talking and trying to catch up. Dylan felt annoyed that he didn't hear all of their conversation because of Tori's non-sense.
"...so your whole family is still in Australia, and you're the only one who came back here? Wow! That's amazing! And really brave. It's hard to be alone." Dylan heard Ballsie say as he started listening again to their conversation.
"Yeah, it is hard to be alone, but I am learning a lot. Life is the best teacher, you know." Ken smiled back at Ballsie as he stared piercingly at her.
Dylan looked at him and he had this urge to drag him out of his house. He fought this urge because Ken had been a great friend to him after all. Or was he? Now, he couldn't be so sure. Dylan couldn't wrap his head around as to why he was feeling such animosity towards his friend. He couldn't also explain why he wanted Ken to stay away from Ballsie.
"Dylan. Whatever you're feeling, please nip it in the bud. It's unwarranted. One word - Olivia." A voice inside Dylan's head reminded him that he couldn't have any feelings for Ballsie.
"Bro, are you there? Anybody home?" Ken waved his hand at Dylan's face. Dylan realized that Ken had been talking to him and he had been completely out of it. Dylan had been staring mindlessly at Ken and Ballsie and he must had looked completely bored out of his mind.
"Yeah, I heard you the first time, Ken."
"So... bro. You ready?"
"Ready for what?"
"Bro, I thought we were going to play ball."
"Ah, right. Ok, let's go. Let me just go to my room and change. I am still in my suit." Dylan loosened his tie and started to walk towards the staircase that led to the second floor of his house. He was about to go up when he suddenly had an idea.
Dylan completely removed his tie to loosen the tension he had been feeling; he made a U-turn, and he went back to the foyer where Ken and Ballsie were still talking.
"Ken! I don't want to play basketball. Let's box instead! What do you say?"
