Chapter 48: Chapter 48

ROYCE

At precisely 1 PM, the team was complete. Nelly and I were the last ones to arrive at the Racing Track. Rico, Santi, Leo, and Andi were already in their racer suits. Well prepared for our scheduled Sunday drag racing practice. "Guys, you know my girlfriend, right?" I said as we joined in the group patiently waiting for us. Nelly's hand entwined with mine.

"How could we forget?" Rico was quick to answer.

"Hi, Nelly," Andi and Leo said in unison and raised a hand in greetings.

"Hi, guys," Nelly responded as she pressed her lips in a thin line. She's still a little shy around my friends.

"Sweet..." I heard Santi. His voice had a trace of tease as he prolonged the word, a sinister smirk plastered on his lips. I shook my head and ignored his mischievous behavior. Nothing new to this fella.

I headed on my quarter with Nelly to change for my racer suit. "Royce, it's uncomfortable being the only girl here. I was expecting they'd have companies as well."

Nelly complained, sitting on the couch watching me undress. I didn't bother to go to my wardrobe to change clothes. There's nothing more to hide anyway.

"I asked them not to bring in some company." I playfully winked at her to give a hint of what was coming.

"What is it now?" Her eyes narrowed. Locking stares at me; she seemed to be thinking of an idea she could squeeze from her head. But she lowered down her head when I was half-naked, leaving my boxer and sleeveless shirt. I winked at her for the second time when she glanced up again. And as expected, she rolled her eyes, her way of ignoring me.

"Make it fast," she said as she stood up and headed to the door, a corner of her lips curled up, her cheeks blushed.

How cute. I giggled. It took a few seconds to dress in my racer suit and followed Nelly outside where the boys were waiting.

"Shall we start?" Rico asked as he zipped his black racer suit.

"Sure," they answered in unison.

A minute later, 5 cars are in the racing field lining up, vying for first place. This is the usual scenario every Sunday afternoon, like what we've agreed. The tire, brakes, and the machine were the only noise on the racing field. Nelina held the flag just a meter from the starting line. When all was settled, she put the flag down, indicating the start of the race.

I must be lucky to have Nelly with me, the urge to impress her dominated. The challenge was on, and I took it gravely and focused on the goal for the next few minutes. Until I was the first to cross the line, I was elated to win the first race.

We've had a few races where I declared victorious twice, and others had fair winnings of one. We decided to have a break at the cafe at precisely 3 in the afternoon. Nelina was sipping her favorite matcha milk tea while the boys and I had a cold men's drink.

"This is unfair for us not having a date," Santi started a conversation. His message came as a complaint; not having a girl by his side was unusual for him. It didn't surprise me; he's a playboy, just like my best bud Leo.

I snorted at his words. "Come on, bud, it's just a day or hours. You'll have it later," I answered as I placed down my drink.

"I'm sorry, bud, but I have to agree we're missing a lot. If only you asked Nelly to bring Marica with her. It would come out fair," Leo seconded Santi as he looked sideways at Nelly, sitting next to my right.

Rico and Andi's exchange looks after Leo's a somewhat apparent confession about liking Nelly's best friend. Perhaps there was something I missed between the two of them. Leo is my best friend, but we are the opposite of having a woman beside us.

Leo has no problem exchanging a girl every month. At the same time, I couldn't even picture myself being with a different woman in a year. They say birds of the same feather flock together, but it's not applicable in our case. Growing up together since we were in grade school made our bond tighter than a best friend. We treat each other as brothers even in some ways; we're the exact opposite.

Nelly took it gently, an open-lip smile crept.

"Royce didn't mention anything about you and Marie. Care to share a story?" She asked as she shrugged her shoulders at me, conveying she had no idea about the two.

"Nothing just wanna hang out with her. She's witty and an excellent talker; we get along very well," Leo deadpanned.

I was amused that he gets along with Marie. Although I didn't have a terrible experience with Marica, she appeared to be quite strict in front of me. Remember the last time we faced each other in Palawan, where he had to defend Nelly. Probably she was just overprotective of her best friend; that's why I'm getting a different approach.

Rico chuckled. "What do we expect?"

"Yes," Andi seconded. "How about we shift to our love birds here," he added, his eyes landing on Nelly and me back and forth.

"Guys...," Nelly chimed in. "We're here for your racing practice, don't divert your attention to us," she added as she shifted on me. Nelly's eyes dilated; she seemed to be sending an SOS flag, her face flushed.

"Yes, she's right," I seconded as I squeezed her shoulder to back her up. "And besides, I won't allow you to bully my girl," I winked at Nelly.

"Come on, you're making it hard for us to last another hour around you both," Santi pointed his finger at Nelly and me. The group laughed at his desperate look. The laughter lasted for a minute before the conversation turned to our drug race.

I should have seen what was coming, but I didn't think so because she hadn't been on the racing track for years. A slender woman, standing 5' 8 wearing a red racer suit, was on her way to our table. It was not the surprise I had planned.

And again, I wasn't expecting that she'd do what she did. Before I could stop Roxie, her lips landed on my cheek.

"Happy birthday," she whispered, her rough voice barely reaching my ear.

She remembered my birthday, which was a week from now. I glanced at Nelly; she gave me a blank stare.

"Back off," I said as I pushed Roxie enough for her to step back. "What do you think you're doing?" I said as I stood up, my voice calm. She was a few steps away from Nelina, next to my seat. I made sure she wouldn't be able to do something crazy to my Nelly; my hand was on Nelly's chair.

"Babe..."

"Stop it," I retorted to cut her off. I showed no interest in what she was about to say. The other boys didn't say a word, sipping their drink while watching us.

"Look, I know I was gone for a long time. I left you; it was all my fault. But I'm here now; I can explain. Just give me some time. Babe, please," Roxie said; her voice was soft, surprising to me. She wasn't close to this behavior before. Roxie never begged; I know her too well.

"Enough, Roxie, I know everything. Let's stop wasting both of our time. Please leave," I said, my hand motioning to the door. But instead of leaving, she took my hand and pulled me. Fortunately, I was stronger than her. She failed. I retrieved my hand.

"Was it because of that woman? Do you know her well? That woman doesn't fit our kind." Roxie raised her voice, acting arrogant, showing her genuine behavior. Her hand was pointed to Nelina. "She-"

"Roxie," I cut her for the second time. Roxie jolted to the tone of my voice. I gritted my teeth in disbelief. I questioned myself how I had ever fallen in love with this woman before. She was raised in a prominent family but lacked good manners.

"That's none of your business. I don't even know why we're having this conversation."

"We have to, we can fix this, just like before. Remember? You were sweet, passionate, and consistent. You never failed to surprise me," she said, her eyes sparkling like she was in love. But I couldn't find a space in my heart to reciprocate.

"None of these things matter now. We're over; there's nothing left between us. Roxie, save yourself from humiliation. Move on."

"No, that woman doesn't deserve you. She's nothing compared to me. A filthy, social climber," Roxie said as she pointed at Nelly again. I wonder what would be Nelina's reaction now. I hid her behind my back to protect if Roxie would go a little crazier.

"Roxie, stop humiliating yourself and have some dignity."

I said it on her face as I roamed my eyes in the corners of the cafe where people had been staring at us. She did the same before staring back at me with her defeated eyes.

I didn't mean to be rude, but she crossed the line. I repeatedly confirmed that she was just a woman in the past that I was with. I didn't feel anything. Roxie must take care of herself and pull the pieces together instead of relying on other people to do it for her. She must learn her lesson.