Leading Risk

CHAPTER 10

"WESLEY! YOU i***t!"

She yelled teasingly, but her brother just glanced at her while standing under the ring net.

"What role does Wes play there?"

She asked jokingly.

"Ball snatcher," Yna replied, who had been throwing shade at the girls behind them.

"Oh, I thought he was just an extra."

She shot back sarcastically.

She caught a glimpse of Celi, who had been jumping for joy, probably because of the handsome players in the game and the spectators.

Her eyebrows raised when she realized she’d bet on the opposing team. It was only the first quarter, and Kuya Lester’s team was leading in scoring.

They all jumped up when Kuya Lester attempted a three-pointer.

When it went in, it felt like they had just won the lottery, with Yna and Tita Mean bouncing off the ground in excitement.

"Wow, Dizon is amazing!"

"It suddenly got hot!"

"As long as Wes is handsome, haha."

"i***t, he’s just the rebounder."

She looked back at the girls she had been hearing behind her.

"That’s gonna hurt."

One of them said, grinning.

"What do you mean?"

She asked curiously, noticing the overly made-up girl, who looked like she had splashed on the blush.

"Being a rebounder," the girl replied sharply while adjusting her seating position because her side ached from jumping.

Kuya Lester’s team won the first quarter but flopped in the second, making her anxious about her bet.

"s**t, my fifty pesos."

She mumbled, eyes darting to Wes’s group, who were now resting at the side.

The opposing team called a timeout because one of their players twisted an ankle.

"Wes, guard Santos."

"And you, Salvador, don’t stray from the net."

"Lester, you’re our scorer, understood?"

"Casimiro and Poblete, watch the shooter from the other team."

Huh? She was surprised when they suddenly had a coach, who hadn’t been around during the first and second quarters.

"When did you become the coach, Tito Bato?" she asked, frowning.

"Shut up, you little brat," he replied, rolling his eyes.

She stomped off to open the cooler and grab her remaining Zesto. Returning to her seat, she glanced at the opposing team, who were now tending to their injured player.

"This match is really close," Yna commented seriously, eyeing the scoreboard. It was the third quarter, and the game had intensified.

"I hope Wes’s team wins!"

She said nervously while finishing off her Zesto.

"Don’t be so dramatic, girl."

She shot Yna a teary-eyed look.

"I bet fifty pesos! We won't even have fare home."

Yna’s eyes widened, and she tugged on her hair in surprise.

"We can just walk, it's exercise."

She suggested, fixing her hair that Yna had messed up.

"You can walk alone."

Yna replied, half-joking. She sweetly smiled at her but then grimaced at Yna's annoyance.

"Is Lucriana not playing?"

"I don’t know."

"Too bad, he was just here a while ago."

"Well, he left just as we noticed him."

Yna shrugged, while the girls behind her gossiped again. She ignored them and focused on the court, where the game was resuming.

She noticed Celi’s group celebrating on the other bench after their team shot a three-pointer.

She shook Yna, feeling anxious.

"My fifty pesos, Lord."

She murmured hesitantly while watching the game intently. Her anxiety grew with the loud music blaring from the nearby speakers.

"DEFENSE!"

She squeezed her eyes shut as the crowd around them stood up.

"YES!!"

She was startled when Yna suddenly pulled her up.

"THEY WON, WES!"

Yna shouted excitedly, prompting her to quickly turn and look at the scoreboard and the court where Wes’s group was celebrating in the middle.

"OMG! I WON THE BET!"

She exclaimed, facing Yna.

They both jumped for joy while Tita Mean collected their winnings.

"CONGRATS WES! WE CAN HAVE TAKOYAKI!"

She almost charged at him when she saw him.

"Don’t come near me!"

He replied with confusion.

"What’s your problem?"

Instead of answering, he just pointed at the towel hanging on the benches.

She grabbed it and tossed it at his face while beaming.

"I only have twenty pesos left."

She complained as they walked home.

That was all that remained from her winnings since the other two treated them to takoyaki.

They decided to walk home together, with Yna and Wes while Tita Mean had left them since her husband was calling her.

"Wes, who is Lucriana?"

She asked as she blew on her takoyaki.

"Why? Do you have a crush on him?"

He smirked at her. Oh no, the judge!

"Shut up! I’m just curious. The girls behind us earlier kept talking about Lucriana."

She defended herself, glaring at him while biting into her steaming hot takoyaki.

"I don’t know him personally, but I think we’ve talked before."

He said while removing the hair tie from her hair.

"And not gonna lie, he’s quite the looker."

He continued, demonstrating what a well-built guy looks like.

"Does he have abs?"

She grinned at Yna, enjoying her question.

"I’ll report you to Ryan."

She teased, but Yna just rolled her eyes.

"Report me! I don’t care."

Wes and she burst into laughter at Yna's response.

"Are you two fighting again?"

Instead of answering, Yna just shot her a dirty look, so she acted like she was zipping her mouth.

She glanced around, noticing they were almost alone on the street.

It was getting late, and a shiver ran through her as the cold wind brushed against her bare legs.

"Why did I wear shorts? It suddenly got cold."

She murmured, quickening her pace.

"Oh, by the way, where’s Kuya Lester?"

She asked since he wasn’t walking with them.

"Oh, I saw him earlier with his girlfriend, Mica."

She nodded as they continued walking.

She sighed, realizing they were still within the subdivision and had a long way to go, but it was fine since she felt a bit stressed over the past few days.

She unconsciously smiled.

At least the air was fresher here; subdivisions really did have expensive air.

She rolled her eyes at her own thoughts, looking around at the houses.

"Wesley?"

She stopped when Wes halted in front of them. They had been walking behind him.

"Oh, Charlotte? What are you doing here?"

She heard Wes ask, curiosity piquing as she peeked at the girl he was talking to.

Her eyes widened when she recognized who it was and it's companions.

"What the hell?"

She murmured, quickly hiding behind Wes.

"I’m with my friends. We also watched the game earlier."

She heard Charlotte reply, noticing Yna raising an eyebrow at her, so she just smiled back awkwardly.

"Oh! Congrats on winning!"

Charlotte said cheerfully, clapping her hands.

"Thanks, I hope you enjoyed the game earlier."

Wes replied shyly. She grimaced at Wes's back.

So this is how he flirts? So lame.

"Of course!"

Charlotte answered with an irritatingly high-pitched voice. She couldn’t help but notice the pitch in her tone.

"By the way, I’m with my older sister and cousin."

She felt nervous glancing behind Wes at Yna, who was now giving her an exaggerated eye roll.

"Really?"

She rolled her eyes again at Charlotte’s voice, which was still high-pitched.

"Hello! I’m Charlotte. I'm schoolmates with Wes."

She hesitantly faced her, plastering a fake smile on her face.

"Hi! I’m Leyie, and this is my cousin, Yna."

She introduced herself, not breaking eye contact with the girl in front of her. She could hardly swallow as she felt that man's intimidating gaze.

What on earth Kai and this attractive man doing here? With this girl?