Work in Progress

Chapter Three

"I was so freaking nervous! I don't know how Kyle remained so calm the whole day."

Leah stared intently at her laptop screen as her cousin and best friend Ria went on one of her typical rants over Skype. She had just started her on-the-job training with their other best friend, Kyle at a small law firm.

"Speaking of Kyle," Leah said, adjusting her camera. "Where is he?"

Ria picked up her phone and began tapping into the screen like there was no tomorrow. "Probs playing with his PS4 again. He said he'll join the call in 5 minutes."

As Ria said that, Leah felt butterflies in her stomach. Knowing Kyle could appear in their call at any given moment made Leah anxious. She's been in love with him since they were in Grade 6, after all.

"Oh, ano₁?" Ria glanced at her laptop screen. She must've noticed Leah slowly distancing herself from reality: something she often did whenever she got lost in her feelings.

＿

₁ Tagalog for "What?"

"Nothing. It's... Nothing," Leah tried to play it cool but deep down Ria knew that something was bothering her. She always could tell when something was wrong with her cousin but she just let it go and continued tapping on her phone.

Sometimes Leah felt as if her parents and Ria's parents knew that their two daughters were bound to be best friends. It couldn't have been a coincidence that their names were so similar but being 5 months older than Ria, Leah knew that her aunt and uncle copied her parents even though they constantly deny it.

"Oh! Kyle's trying to join the call!" Ria exclaimed as she accepted his request. Suddenly, Leah's screen split into three as her and Ria's videos made space for Kyle's.

Once his video loaded, Kyle was staring blankly in front of him. When he realized that his two best friends could actually see his video he waved at the camera with a PS4 controller in his hand. "Oof I didn't realize my video was on! Hey guys. Wassup?"

Leah let out a coy smile. "How was your first day at work?"

"It was a breeze. Easier than I expected."

Leah and Ria rolled their eyes. He's so yabang₂!

＿

₂ Tagalog for "cocky"

"Oh, by the way, we're still on for lunch tomorrow right?" Ria asked, still typing on her phone but this time, with intense aggression.

"Yeah, I can have lunch. Our offices are close to each other naman (anyway)." Leah replied.

Kyle cleared his throat. "Will you be bringing the 'Greek god' intern, Lee? You know he has to meet your best friends at some point." He was so focused on his game that Leah wished she was his TV so he could pay just as much attention to her.

Leah's stomach turned as he asked that. Why doesn't Kyle realize that he's the one I like and not Max? "There's nothing going on between Max and I, okay?"

Ria and Kyle scoffed in unison. "Okaaaaay!" They both said sing-songily.

Ria looked up from her phone and began pointing it towards the screen as she spoke. "Just saying Lee, you shouldn't be afraid to put yourself out there. You're 21 and reaching your senior year of college."

"Right now I'm just focusing on myself and my OJT, you guys. Plus Max won't even be here for the long-term. He's going back home to America once his internship is over."

Kyle raised his eyebrows. "So you've thought about it, pala. Momol₃?"

＿

₃ Momol is an acronym for "make out make out lang" which basically translates to "just making out"

Leah groaned. "No!!"

Ria and Kyle snickered. Something about teasing Leah together brought both of them pleasure. It was just too easy.

"Anyway, I'm gonna get ready to sleep na₄. I'll see you guys tomorrow." Leah said while waving at her two best friends.

＿

₄ Tagalog for "now"

Ria and Kyle both said goodnight and Leah left the call.

As she laid in bed, she thought about the possibility—or rather the impossibility—of her and Max. Though as she imagined the two of them, his face slowly morphed into Kyle's.

Much better.