A boy next door who has been in love with his best friend for a long time but is unfortunately in the friend zone—that was how he imagined Lily's best friend. In his mind, Ken would just watch from afar as his heart breaks at seeing his best friend fall in love with the ladies' man, a.k.a. Sage Hermoso. Pero nagkamali si Sage. Maling-mali siya.

Ken extended her hand while Sage just stared at her, eyes wide and mouth hanging open in absolute shock. Ken had XX chromosomes, hindi niya inasahan iyon. Ibababa na sana ni Ken ang kamay nito nang makabalik sa tamang pag-iisip si Sage. Agad niyang kinamayan ang dalaga. Malambot ang kamay nito, another surprise for him.

Patuloy niyang tiningnan si Ken at habang tumatagal, na-re-realize niyang may hitsura din ang best friend ni Lily. Singkit ito, mas matangkad kay Lily nang kaunti, may straight jet black hair na halos hanggang balikat, mapupulang labi, at magandang hugis ng ilong. She had flawless skin, a slim figure, but a rather flat chest. She was wearing a gray tee under an unbuttoned plaid shirt, ripped jeans, and a pair of Stan Smith sneakers. Maraming tanong ang pumasok sa isipan ni Sage kaya minabuti niyang umpisahan na ang pag-i-interview kay Ken.

"You're really Ken? Bakit panlalaki 'yong pangalan mo?" Sage crossed his arms and leaned against the bookshelf. He looked straight into her eyes and did not blink, trying to establish dominance.

"Bakit pang-halaman ang pangalan mo?" Ken mimicked his stance and returned his gaze, unflustered and unyielding. Mukhang hindi ito magpapatalo.

"My grandfather likes gardening kaya lahat ng apo niya, may pangalang halaman. You didn't answer my question."

"Ken is a nickname, obviously."

"And your real name is...?"

"None of your business."

"Very nice to meet you, Miss None of Your Business. Malalaman ko rin naman 'yong pangalan mo in time, no need to be so hostile." He grinned. "Bakit mo ba sinasabotahe ang panliligaw ko kay Lily?"

"Panliligaw na ba 'yon? Parang wala ka namang pag-asa. Itigil mo na kaya?" She smirked.

"Kung wala akong pag-asa, why are you threatened?" he asked, returning the smirk.

Tumaas ang isang kilay ni Ken. "I'm not threatened. I'm just taking precautions 'cause Lily deserves better. Hindi ko siya hahayaang maging biktima ng isang fuckboy."

"Actually, she deserves the best and that's me. But really, you're making false claims. Nasa'n ang pruweba mong fuckboy ako?"

"Easy," Ken replied as she took out her phone and typed something. "Ginoogle ko lang 'yong 'Sage Hermoso girlfriend', ang dami nang lumabas." She began to read familiar names, "'Korean first daughter, Kang Eun-ji', 'Russian ballerina, Yelena Vasiliev', 'Australian tennis player, Chloe Ryan', 'Brazilian model, Monique Oliveira', 'Egyptian vlogger, Yasmin Eid', 'Filipina celebrity, Claire Monterro'—"

"That's old news!" Sage said to stop her after he cringed at the last name she said.

"Anong 'old'? Eh this year lang lahat 'to at August pa lang. Aminin mo na, fuckboy ka." Ken rolled her eyes. "Ever heard of the three month rule?"

"Teka lang, ano naman kung marami na akong naging girlfriend? Wala akong pinagsabay ever. And three-month rule? Total bullshit. Kapag naghiwalay kayo, wala nang pakialamanan. Kung nakita ko ang future wife ko kinabukasan ng pakikipaghiwalay ko sa isang ex, bakit ko naman siya paghihintayin ng tatlong buwan?"

"Ah, so this year, nakakita ka ng anim na future wife."

"Well, sa mga pagkakataong 'yon, akala ko nakita ko na ang 'the one'."

"Tapos nakita mo rin ang 'the two', 'the three', 'the four', 'the five' and 'the six'?"

"Napakagaling naman magbilang. Hindi ka talaga magpapatalo, 'no? Inggit ka lang ba dahil maraming nagkakagusto sa 'kin o gusto mong maging 'the seven'?"

"How about none of the above? I'm just keeping Lily out of trouble."

"Then your job is done. I'm not trouble."

"And I'm supposed to believe that?"

Bumuntong-hininga si Sage at tumayo na nang maayos. Clearly, he wasn't going to get his way with this fierce young lady. "Why are you so protective of her and so against me? Ex ba kitang hindi ko naaalala? In love ka ba kay Lily?"

Bubuksan na sana ni Ken ang bibig para sumagot pero biglang tumunog ang cellphone nito. She held up her hand with her palm facing Sage to signal him to wait before turning around and answering the call. "I see. Okay," she said as she ended the brief phone call.

"Hindi na babalik dito si Lily. May work emergency and I need to go and meet her. Makakaalis ka na at hindi mo na siya makikita. Sorry, not sorry," Ken said, turning back to Sage and giving him a smug, triumphant grin.

"Okay, aalis na ako para puntahan si Lily," sagot naman ni Sage. Ilang beses na siyang naisahan ni Ken sa pagpapapogi niya kay Lily at hindi na pwedeng maulit 'yon.

"I won't allow you to do that!" Ken said, raising her voice.

"Good thing I don't need your permission," Sage replied happily which further fueled Ken's annoyance. He took the phone from his pocket, dialed Lily's number then set it on loudspeaker mode.

Dalawang beses nag-ring bago sinagot ni Lily. "Hello?"

"Hi, Lily. Your friend here, Ken, says you can't meet me today. Totoo ba? You're on speaker, by the way."

"Yeah. I'm so sorry, Sage. Next time na lang."

"But I really wanted to see you. May work emergency ka raw. Maybe I can help you out."

"Hmm. Actually, may maitutulong ka nga. You're with Ken, right?"

"Yup. Nandito ang best friend mong kontrabida ng love team natin." He stuck his tongue out at Ken who rolled her eyes at him.

"Wala tayong love team," Lily said with a chuckle. "Ken doesn't drive so can you give her a ride? Dito lang naman sa Zafiro Mall Pasig, mga thirty minutes away from there. Tapos if you want, pwede mo rin siyang samahan. May mga kailangan lang siyang daanan bago tayo magkita."

"Sounds like a good plan. Narinig mo ba 'yon, Ken?" Sage looked at Ken who was now giving him a death glare. Siya naman ang ngumiti kay Ken at sinigurado niyang lumabas ang dimples niya.

"Give me that," Ken said, groaning. He handed her the phone. Panalo naman na siya.

"Lily," she said sternly.

"Kendra," Lily replied in a cheery voice.

"Ah, so it's short for Kendra. Akala ko Chicken," nakangising sabi ni Sage. He heard Lily's laugh on the line.

"Ang dami mong alam, Sausage," sagot sa kanya ni Ken. 

Mas lumakas pa ang tawa ni Lily at hindi rin napigilang matawa ni Sage, impressed by how quickly Ken came up with that.

Ibinalik ni Ken ang atensyon nito kay Lily. "Can you not call me 'Kendra'? Please?"

"Sure, Chicken!" Lily's reply earned him another glare from Kendra. "Pero gawin mo ang sasabihin ko. Sumabay ka na kay Sausage papunta dito. We both know why you won't drive."

"Pwede akong mag-taxi, hindi ko kailangan ng tulong nitong mahangin dito."

"I can hear you, you know," sabi ni Sage. Obvious namang siya ang tinutukoy ni Ken at mukhang nagtatalo na ang dalawang babae dahil sa pagbabago ng mga plano.

"You were meant to hear it," Ken replied as she stuck out her tongue.

Si Lily naman ang sumagot kay Ken. "May thirty minutes travel time kayo para magtalo. Basta, sumabay ka na kay Sage, okay? Kailangan ko siya dito."

"Ano namang magagawa nitong Airbender na 'to?" Ken asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Bakit 'Airbender'?" sabay na tanong nina Sage at Lily.

"Ang lakas ng hangin mo eh," sagot ni Ken.

Malakas na tumawa si Lily mula sa kabilang linya. At kahit siya ang tinutukoy, tawang-tawa rin si Sage. Wala talagang palalampasing pagkakataon si Ken para insultuhin siya. But surprisingly, with every passing moment that he spent with her, he was minding it less. In fact, he seemed to enjoy their repartee.

"Hay nako, Ken. Kung anu-ano talagang naiisip mo. Anyway, si Sage na ang magiging guest judge. 'Di ba sabi mo, marami siyang followers sa IG?" sabi ni Lily. "Ikaw na magsabi sa kanya ng details ng mga kailangan n'yong gawin."

"Ugh, fine," Ken said. Finally, nag-give up na rin ito sa pag-pigil ng pagkikita nina Lily at Sage.

"Good. Ikaw nang bahala, ah? Sa 'yo nakasalalay ang success ng event, good luck, bye!" With that, Lily ended the call. Wala nang magagawa si Ken kung 'di tanggapin ang tulong ni Sage.

"Tara na, Tsuper. Ie-explain ko na lang sa 'yo on the way," Ken deadpanned. She motioned for Sage to follow her as she walked towards the office's exit. Halata sa expression ng dalaga na hindi ito aaming kailangan nito ng tulong ni Sage.

Hindi na sumagot si Sage at sumunod na lang. Napangiti siya habang iniisip na hindi siya naisahan ni Ken sa pagkakataong ito. His smile grew wider when he realized that Ken just made getting Lily a lot more interesting because she's the real challenge.