"I want to follow you. Please take me with you…,"
"But Little rice ball…,"
"Since he wants to come with us I don't see any problem with that. You can always send him back home later, right?" Raymond chimed in seeing that Anthony was against the idea of returning to his family.
"You are right Brother…," Anthony trailed not knowing how to address him.
"I am Raymond and he is Derrick," Raymond introduced himself to the confused Anthony.
"Guys, you don't know how troublesome my stepmother…,"
"I don't think it will be as troublesome as his wounds getting infected hmm," Derrick cut in.
Joanna's gaze moved from her brother's pleading face to Raymond's.
Although Raymond looked alright at the moment Joanna was worried whether he will still be fine if she decides to send Anthony home before she gets his injury treated.
Even though she sends Anthony home, that won't make her cruel stepmother hate her less.
Instead, she would end up blaming her for everything so why should she put another person's well-being on the line despite knowing the outcome?
"Let's go home," Joanna grabbed Anthony's hand and led the way.
As they made their way home, they garnered a lot of attention because of Raymond's bloodstained clothes.
And because of this Derrick had to take off his jacket and give it to Raymond.
The moment they got home Joanna rushed to get the first aid box while she left the guys in the sitting room.
She returned some minutes later with the first aid kit.
"Raymond, are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?" Joanna asked for the third time to make sure that getting the basic first aid treatment was all he needed.
"For a celebrity like him, going to a hospital is a hassle. So many speculations will circulate because of the injury. Rumours of all kinds will spring forth and people will not care about the truth anymore," Derick responded calmly.
"Getting treated by those magical hands of yours is way better than having to deal with those annoying doctors and paparazzi," He added playfully.
"You definitely have a way with your words. Your girlfriend will have a hard time dumping you," Joanna jokingly said.
She opened the box and brought out the materials she would require.
"Take off your shirts," Joanna ordered with her attention still on the items laid on the table.
"What!" Raymond and Derrick exclaimed with their mouths hanging open.
Their astonishment made Joanna shift her attention to them.
"Why do you both look so surprised? Did you expect me to treat his wounds with his clothes on…,"
"I think it's durable this way…," Joanna's fierce glares made Derrick pause what he wanted to say.
"You talk as if I will die if I see his naked body," Joanna jokingly said. She brought out the white scissors and was about to cut Raymond's shirt but Derrick held her hand.
"I don't know about dying if you see his nude body but I can assure you that you will suffer from a nosebleed when you set eyes on his heavenly body…,"
"Will you stop delaying his treatments because of your jokes? I will not only take back all my compliments but I will get mad at you if you keep this up," Joanna scolded.
She sneaks a look at the clock hanging on the wall. The thought of Amos returning to meet the two guys in his house made her shudder.
[I am afraid he will kill someone if I don't conclude this quickly and send them away. I don't want to ever see him mad to that extent]
Joanna shook her head violently to get the thoughts off her head.
I will be gentle so don't worry," Joanna assured Raymond before she brought the scissors close to the hem of the clothes.
"Big Sis, Mum and my teachers always say that boys and girls should always maintain a distance. So why is it that you are the one who wants to treat him?" Anthony asked, frowning.
He walked closer to where Joanna sat beside Raymond.
"Hehehe… you are not only very innocent but also very cute. I can't believe you remembered what your teacher had said even at your age," Derrick said beaming.
"That is because I have a good memory," He replied with pride.
He tilted his head to stare at Joanna once again.
"Also, won't Brother Kay be furious if he sees you getting so close to another man?" Anthony asked innocently.
"Brother Kay?" Derrick asked, his suspicious gaze centred on Joanna. "Is that your boyfriend…,"
"No, he is more than that," Anthony cut in, sounding very upset. "Brother Kay is the…,"
"Little rice ball, haven't I told you not to cut in when adults are talking?" Joanna questioned sternly.
She couldn't believe that the secret she had been trying to help Amos to keep was almost disclosed by her angry little brother.
"But…," Anthony went quiet the instant his gaze met Joanna's piercing eyes.
Derrick wasn't satisfied with the little information he got so he made up his mind to fish for more information.
"Seeing how you are protecting your sister from getting close to him, I guess you must really like him a lot right, Tony?" Derrick asked meekly.
The little boy was way too innocent to understand the minds of the adults so he went ahead to say how he felt.
"Yes, I like him very much and he likes me a lot too but the truth is he loves my sister more," Anthony said. A sweet smile lingered on his face as he talked.
"Ooh… even though he loves your sister how do you know that Ray doesn't love your sister as much…,"
"That's not true. Brother Kay doesn't only love my Big Sis but he said he can do anything for her," Anthony argued with him. He refused to let Derrick win the argument.
"I bet he was only lying. I mean lying is what men excel in…,"
"Hey, don't speak badly of my brother Kay because he is not like that," Anthony defended sternly.
With Joanna's attention focused on Raymond's injury she wasn't paying attention to their discussion.