Bystanders stopped to stare at Sage as he alighted from his 360 Spider that he haphazardly parked in the driveway. Nagmamadali niyang binuhat si Ken at tumakbo papasok ng ospital. Hindi niya man lang sinara ang pintuan ng kotse niya.

The staff was ready. Nakahanda na ang stretcher at agad na kinabitan si Ken ng swero at oxygen mask. The nurse took her vital signs as they rushed her into the emergency room.

Sage watched intently at the side as medical professionals crowded beside Ken. Sa hindi niya maipaliwanag na dahilan, napakahirap makita si Ken na nasa gano'ng state, nakapanlulumo. He suddenly remembered that he was clutching Ken's bloody phone. Hawak iyon ni Ken bago ito mawalan ng malay.

After checking the screen, he found three missed calls from Heidi. Ken was probably trying to call her teammate before she lost consciousness. Ayaw niya mang pakialaman ang cellphone ni Ken, this was an emergency situation and he decided to call back Heidi who, thankfully, immediately answered.

"Ken! Bakit wala pa kayo dito? Sorry hindi ko nasagot 'yong tawag mo kanina pero 'di ka na sumagot no'ng tinawagan kita pabalik. Si Lily rin, 'di sumasagot. Nasaan na ba kayo?" Hindi agad nakasingit si Sage sa tuloy-tuloy na pagsasalita ni Heidi. "Uy, bakit 'di ka nagsasalita?"

"Heidi, nasa ospital si Ken," Sage said weakly.

"What? Sino 'to? Naku, 'di mo ako mabubudol, kung sino ka mang nakakuha ng cellphone ng kaibigan ko," inis na sagot sa kanya ni Heidi.

"Si Sage 'to. We're at St. Raphael's Medical Center. She had a gunshot wound when I found her at the side of the road and she's unconscious right now."

"Oh my God," Heidi gasped, finally believing Sage after recognizing his voice. "Eh si Lily, is she with you? 'Di rin 'yon sumasagot ng tawag."

"Sinabi ni Ken na may kumuha kay Lily, hindi ko alam kung pa'no siya hahanapin. Can you help me with this?" he said.

"I'll report the incident and get Matt, we'll do everything to find Lily. Pupunta kami agad diyan." Heidi took a deep breath before continuing. "Salamat sa pagsagip kay Ken, I know you have your differences and you seem to hate each other—"

Sage cleared his throat to interrupt Heidi. "I don't hate her."

"Good to know." Rinig sa boses ni Heidi ang pagngiti nito. "Pakibantayan si Ken, bye."

He ended the call thinking that Heidi didn't need to remind him.

* * *

Lumapit ang isang doktor kay Sage sa waiting area. "Are you with the patient?"

"Yes, how is she?" The anxiety was evident in his shaky tone.

"She lost a lot of blood and is still unconscious. She's not in a critical condition anymore pero hindi rin stable. Maswerte siya na hindi tumama ang bala sa vital organs pero kailangan pa rin niyang sumailalim sa surgery as soon as her vitals become more stable," the doctor said.

"Is she going to be okay?" Sage asked, his eyebrows furrowed while his lips trembled.

"We're doing everything that we can," the doctor replied before leaving him.

He couldn't get the image of her bloody unconscious body out of his mind. Napakabilis ng tibok ng kanyang puso sa pag-aalala. Parang hihikain siya kahit wala naman siyang history ng asthma nang maisip ang posibilidad na maaaring hindi na magising si Ken.

Ilang minuto nang tulala si Sage nang lapitan siya ng isang nurse. "Sir, ikaw ang kasama ng pasyente, 'di ba?"

"Yes, ako nga," nagulat na sagot ni Sage. "Bakit? May nangyari ba kay Ken? Okay lang ba siya? Anong pwede kong gawin?"

"Kalma lang, sir. We're still closely monitoring her condition but for the meantime, can you fill out this form for us? We need the patient's info."

Kinuha niya ang form galing sa nurse at binasa ito. Unang tanong pa lang, 'di niya na kayang sagutin. He didn't even know her last name pero kung mag-alala siya, sobra-sobra.

Ken was a very complex and mysterious girl for him but if he really wanted to, he would've found a way to dig up everything about her. He had enough money for that but he never did. Kung malalaman niya man ang mga sikreto ni Ken, Sage wanted it to come directly from her because that would mean that she trusted him. And he wanted her to trust him.

He also respected the way she carefully guarded her identity and it restrained him from using underhanded methods in obtaining information. But really, everything just boiled down to one thing. Even if she was the main reason he was likely to lose the bet, he didn't want to upset Ken.

Sage stood in front of the nurse's station, gripping the pen with a shaking hand while staring at the patient registration form. Eh kung pakasalan ko na lang kaya 'to para 'di ko na problemahin 'yong last name niya?

He groaned. "Ano na namang kalokohan ang iniisip mo, Cedric Alexander Sage?" he said under his breath. He shook his head and noticed that the nurse was looking at him with a weirded out expression.

Sage cleared his throat, finally giving up on guessing Ken's last name. "Uhm, I can't complete this form, 'di ako sigurado sa information," he told the nurse.

He heard hurried footsteps of people approaching kaya lumingon siya "Sage! Nasa'n si Ken?" hinihingal na tanong ni Heidi. Matt was right behind her.

"Nasa ER pa siya. Do you mind completing this form? I don't know her last name," he replied.

"'Di ko rin alam eh, but he does," she said, handing the pen to her companion who took the pen and started writing.

Before Sage could take a peak, Heidi pulled him aside. "Let's not pry on Kendra's personal life." She gave him a polite smile.

"Bakit 'di mo alam pero alam niya?" Sage asked, genuinely curious.

"Magkakilala na sila bago pa nila ako maging friend so I'm not sure about the nature of their relationship. But they seem close. Pareho kasi silang... you know, may suplado vibes." Heidi chuckled. "They could be secretly dating and I would have no idea."

Nanlaki ang mata ni Sage. "You think he's Ken's type?" He then threw a quick disapproving look at Matt's direction.

"I don't know. Tanungin mo na lang si Ken pagkagising niya." Heidi cleared her throat. "Anyway, the police were able to track Lily's cellphone and it's somewhere in Muntinlupa. Sana nasa kanya pa ang cellphone na 'yon. The authorities are on their way—"

"I want to go! Gusto ko ring makitang okay si Lily."

"Alright, go with Matt. Ako nang magbabantay kay Ken."

* * *

Sage was driving to the location specified by the police. Matt was silently seated beside him, exchanging text messages with a detective from the precinct.

"Is there a problem?" Matt asked. "Kanina pa masama ang tingin mo sa 'kin. May ginawa ba 'ko?" He noticed how Sage periodically shot glances at him as if he did something illegal.

"Was I? Sorry, I've been distracted. Ang daming nangyari ngayong araw," Sage replied. "So, how long have you known Ken?"

"About two years," he replied, not convinced by Sage's excuse.

"So that was after she quit modelling, right? How did you meet? "

Naningkit ang singkit nang mga mata ni Matt at tumingin siya kay Sage. He was bewildered by the sudden interrogation but he saw no harm in answering. "We were classmates in uni and yeah, 'di na siya model no'n."

"So did you... uh, are you dating?" Sage's follow up question was more personal.

"Ano?"

It was a bit late but Sage seemed to have realized that it was a rude question. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. 'Wag mo na lang sagutin."

Matt suddenly burst out laughing. "Kaya ba kanina mo pa ako parang gustong sipain palabas ng kotse mo?" he said while trying to catch his breath. "Why would you even think that?"

"I—it's just a theory! Sabi kasi ni Heidi na matagal na kayong magkakilala. Tapos naalala kong marami siyang naging boyfriend as Selene so I thought, maybe—" Sage exhaled. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"I see. Para sa ikatatahimik ng kaluluwa mo, I'm confirming that we have never dated, we are not dating and it is highly unlikely that we will ever date. I don't think I'm her type anyway." 

"I see. So... alam mo kung anong type niya?"

"Tanungin mo na lang siya pagkagising niya."

"What? I, uh, it was just a random question. Wala talaga akong paki, to be honest." Sage kept his eyes in front but his ears were turning red.

Matt grinned as he shook his head. Someone wasn't being honest.