Dylan just had to smile to himself when he saw the effect he had on Ballsie. He was used to women ogling at him, so it was not a new occurrence to him when Ballsie just mindlessly stared at his bare chest.
He took off the towel around his waist and towel-dried his damp hair. He was not completely naked underneath as he was wearing his favorite grey Calvin Klein boxers. Knowing all too well that he cannot walk around the house now with just his underwear, he then went to his walk-in closet and opened one of his cabinet drawers and grabbed a white cotton t-shirt and his black pajama joggers. He dressed for the night and combed his hair; after he groomed himself, he felt he had a few minutes to spare before Nanay Sue would come and get him for dinner, so he grabbed his laptop from his nightstand and laid on his bed.
"Let 's see what else needs to be done at work," he said aloud as he opened his work e-mail. Just as he opened his inbox, his Microsoft Teams pinged, signaling he had received a message. The message came from one of his friends, Ken. Ken had been his friend since his university days and now has been a colleague at work as well. Ken joined his architectural firm that he established two years ago and was one of his junior architects.
Dylan decided to read the Teams message first before opening any e-mails from his inbox.
"Yo, bro! You left work early today?! Wow, that's a first! Anyway, listen - I heard back from our client, Mr. Mendoza. He wants us to do the ocular tomorrow. Will text you the exact address. The lot is in Tagaytay, so you know how it is. Alot time for traffic. Be there at 10 am! Our engineers will be there too. So, did you have a date today? Is that why you left early? LOL. Nah, just kidding. See you tomorrow!
Dylan combed through his hair with his fingers and sighed. "Another ocular!" He liked being an architect, but he felt at times his work had become repetitive. He was thankful though, because at his age, he was able to establish a successful architectural firm. He knew he wouldn't have been able to achieve the things he had accomplished so far if it weren't for his dad's wealth and connections.
His dad. The thought of him sent Dylan in a rabbit hole of memories that were both good and bad.
Coming from a strict Chinese family, his dad had always been a stickler for the rules. His number one rule - you do not cross family. Family should always come first and you always, always follow tradition. His dad's personality was an interesting dichotomy of being a risk taker when it came to his businesses and a control freak when it came to his family. On one hand, he was a solid businessman through and through, with the business acumen and flexibility to lead multiple mergers and acquisitions. On the other, he was a self-righteous man when it came to decision-making in his family life - there was no other way, but his way; whatever he said was pretty much bible and you had to follow everything to a tee.
Dylan's heart felt heavy when thoughts of his dad crossed his mind. He abruptly closed his laptop and decided that it wasn't the time to do work anymore. Thankfully, the heaviness he felt inside was subsided by a light knock on his door.
"Nay Sue, come in!"
His door slowly opened and to his surprise, Ballsie peeked right in.
"Ah, Sir Dylan. It's me. Manang Susan told me to come get you. Dinner is ready, Sir."
"Ok, thank you Ballsie," he spoke nonchalantly. "Just wait for me, let's go downstairs together."
"Ah, ok po," she replied curtly.
Dylan got up from his bed and strode off towards the door. Ballsie remained outside and waited for him. He briefly saw her fidget with her hands, a clear sign that she was uncomfortable.
"Ok, let's go." Dylan said as he reached her. He made sure to look in her eyes and to smile when he finally spoke to her.
They walked the second-floor hallway in awkward silence and when they reached the staircase, Ballsie stopped and signaled Dylan to go down first.
"No, Ballsie. Ladies first. After you, please," he gestured with his hands and urged her to go first.
"Thank you po, Sir," Ballsie replied politely.
Dylan then closely inspected Ballsie from behind as she was going down the staircase. She was still wearing the same outfit as earlier when he met her. This time though, he clearly saw how petite she was in stature. She had a petite frame, and her arms and legs were long and slender.
She has a nice butt too. Oh my god, Dylan! Why are you now ogling at her? Dylan thought to himself. He smacked the side of his head lightly to get the dirty thought out of his head.
As they both approached the dinner table, Manang Susan was completing their dinner spread. Dylan looked at the table and they prepared what he requested - fettuccine alfredo with shrimp; they also prepared Caesar salad, and for dessert, Manang Susan got the left-over brownies she baked yesterday. Tori was also ready for dinner. He assisted Manang with the pitchers of water and calamansi juice.
"Ok, you two. Let's eat!"
