Chapter 1

It was around nine o'clock in the evening in the city of Makati in the Philippines when Dino and his older brother Gian were watching a 100-meter freestyle swimming competition on television in the living room. Their loud voices filled the whole house as both of them cheered for the swimmer they were betting on. The swimming competition was taking place in Norway, so it was afternoon in the timezone of its location. Dino, as usual, had placed his bet on Ivan Sadovsky, a very handsome blue-eyed and blonde-haired Russian swimmer of whom he has been a fan of for about five years already.

"I'm placing my bet on Ivan, Kuya* Gian!" Dino said confidently as he watched the swimmers line up for the upcoming freestyle swimming competition. "I bet he'd win! What about you?"

"Ivan from Russia, right?" Gian asked with a smirk.

"Yeah!" Dino exclaimed confidently with his hands on his waist and his head held high. "He'll win! I'm sure of it!"

"Okay," Gian replied with a smirk and a nod. "Then I'll be placing my bet on Anton of Ukraine!"

"Alright!" Dino burst out in his high voice. "I'll bet five hundred pesos that Ivan will win. What about you, Kuya?"

"Okay! I'll be betting the same amount!" Gian exclaimed cheerfully after thinking for a moment. "Challenge accepted, Dino!"

"Okay! It's a deal then!" Dino said with his index finger pointed at his older brother as if declaring a war.

Gian just nodded in response before looking at the television again and saying, "It starts now."

"Yeah!" Dino answered in an excited voice. "Here they go!"

On the television, all of the swimmers were already bent over as they positioned themselves for the start of the race. A few seconds later, the referee blew the whistle and the swimmers dived into the water before beginning to swim their best and fastest.

Dino and Gian continued on cheering for the respective swimmers they each placed their bet on as the swimmers swam both fast and gracefully.

"Go, go, go, Ivan!" Dino cheered repeatedly with his right fist swinging in the air.

"Go, go, go, Anton!" Gian cheered while tapping loudly on the table.

Dino and Gian continued to cheer loudly as the swimmers named Ivan and Anton were in a close fight - they were ahead of the other swimmers and they were side by side as they swam as fast as they could. Dino could see that neither of them was slowing down, and that they might even get to the goal simultaneously.

[Ivan, come on! Win this!] Dino thought as he watched with his fists clenched tightly and his breathing stopped as he watched the two swimmers reach the goal.

Finally, both Ivan and Anton reached the goal. Ivan won, with the time difference between himself and Anton being only 0.1 seconds.

"Yes!" Dino exclaimed cheerfully and lively with his clenched fists raised in the air. "Ivan won! And that means I won our bet, Kuya Gian!"

"Yeah," Gian replied in a tone that was admitting defeat. "I'll be paying you five hundred pesos then."

"Yay!" Dino exclaimed cheerfully.

Before we proceed, let us describe how Dino looks like.

Dino has a rather attractive face, with his thick black hair styled, tousled and combed neatly and his hair bangs framed his face nicely and neatly. His body was of an average build, and he stood at the height of 175 centimeters (about 5'9"). His smile looked pure, innocent, and beautiful, which would most likely catch the attention of even men and boys. His clear and beautiful brown eyes sparkled with joy whenever he saw something that he liked or loved. His lips were also pinkish, making them look rather kissable. His nose was sharp, and his fair skin was just of the right color, that is, not too pale or too tanned. Overall, he would be described as a cute and pretty boy by girls.

Gian took the yellow five-hundred peso bill from his wallet and handed it over to Dino.

"Here," Gian said with a face that looked rather disappointed as he held the bill between his thumb and index finger.

Dino took the bill from Gian's hand and said, "Yeah! Thank you, Kuya!"

"No problem," Gian replied in a rather awkward tone. "Anyway, I won't be betting again for now."

"Why not?" Dino asked curiously.

"Well...I'm saving up for something," Gian replied while grinning.

"Oh...Okay," Dino answered with an innocent smile. "Yeah. It's best if you won't bet your money on anything for now."

Gian nodded and replied, "Yes, and that's why I'm stopping it now. This ends here."

Dino laughed and answered, "Then I'll remind you about that just in case you forget, Kuya."

Gian grinned and responded, "Sure, Dino. Thanks."

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The next morning, Dino waited for his best friend Eric to come out of his house. It was their first day of college, and they will be going to the same university together. Additionally, both of them were marketing majors.

[I wonder how long it's going to take him to get out.] Dino thought before looking at the time on his Android phone.

To his relief, there was still more than one hour left before their first class, and the university was not that far, so they still had plenty of time. Dino looked around as he waited for Eric while also whistling to keep himself from getting bored. Then a beautiful white cat came into his sight. It meowed before rubbing itself against Dino's pants. Dino bent down to pet the cat before stroking and scratching its head gently. Then he noticed that the color of the cat's eyes were different. One of its eyes was gray and the other was blue.

"Wow! You have such beautiful eyes, you cute kitty!" Dino declared while grinning and gazing at the cat's eyes innocently. "I like you!"

[I wonder whose cat this is though.] Dino thought. [If she doesn't have an owner, I'd love to adopt her!]

Then Dino took a stick that he found nearby and used it to play with the cat. The cat responded by scratching and biting the stick playfully. Dino laughed innocently while playing with the cat, making him feel like a kid again.

A few minutes later, Eric came out wearing his casual clothes and his school backpack. Dino saw him and stood up while also holding the white cat gently in his arms.

Before we proceed, let us describe Eric.

Eric stood at the height of 180 centimeters (about 5'11"). His black hair was tousled neatly and his brown eyes shone with excitement. He has a rather attractive face, with the dimples on his cheeks noticeable whenever he smiles. He possessed a more muscular and larger build compared to Dino. He has nice thin lips, and his nose is sharp. Overall, he would be described as a handsome guy by girls.

"Eric! Finally!" Dino exclaimed cheerfully.

"Yeah!" Eric responded with a gentle smile. "Oh, you're holding that cat!"

"Yup! It's so adorable that I can't resist holding it!" Dino answered while stroking the cat's head gently. "Do you know whose cat this is?" Dino inquired curiously.

"Yes," Eric replied with a nod and a smile. "It belongs to Mr. Cartera, although it comes here often in the morning."

"I see," Dino responded. "Since when has it been coming over here?"

"Since last month," Eric answered. "It would play with me before I go to the market in the morning."

"That's great!" Dino blurted out cheerfully. "So it has been playing with you since last month, but you didn't tell me."

"Yeah. I'm sorry for not telling you, Dino," Eric answered apologetically.

"It's okay, Eric," Dino replied while showing his innocent smile.

"Thanks, man," Eric replied in a cheerful tone. "Anyway, shall we go now?" Eric asked while showing his nice smile.

Dino nodded and replied, "Yeah!" Then Dino put the cat down and, while smiling, said, "I'll see you again soon, kitty! Bye bye!"

The cat meowed adorably as Dino stroked its head gently before he and Eric proceeded to head for the university, with the two of them walking quickly side by side.

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Definition of Terms

*Kuya - A Tagalog honorific which generally means "older brother". It can also be used when addressing any guy who is a few years older than the speaker.