SET

Khai's POV

I eyed the ball as it traveled midair from the other side of the court. The wing spiker of the Beta team of La Verde barely managed to save the ball, so it came floating midair without aimed direction. The white ball was so clear in my eyes as it approached the left side of our court.

"Chance ball!" Justice announced as he calmly slid himself to the left side, the familiar killer smile plastered on his lips. That smile is an indication that his reception will be perfect. Before the ball touched his hands, he looked at me and signaled. When it bounced from his hands, the ball went into my direction, an angle ever so perfect that it enabled me to set it to my target spot. The ball fits perfectly on my hands. It was light so I was able to swiftly toss it to Ram. "Kill, Cap!"

When the ball reached my target point, Ram hit the ball hard. It touched the ground on the other side that is unguarded. It was the same point I wanted him to hit, and he did. It landed on the perfect spot, gaining us a point and a win for the set.

A loud whistle echoed in the gym followed by the claps of our coach. "Alpha team won!" He looks satisfied with our game with the second team. "Beta team, you have improved a lot. I am glad that both the teams were putting effort. We will not have any training left for today. Rest and study for your exams. Remember that those who will fail a single subject will not be allowed to play for the season tournament. Discipline, team, got it?"

"Aye, sir! Lav U!" We chanted in unison, before laughing our lungs out. Coach heaved a deep breath while shaking his head. He looks so done with everyone.

It is only 7 in the morning. Today is a Wednesday, and we just finished our early morning training. We have been in the gym since 4 o'clock.

After fistbumping everyone, I immediately grabbed my things and went back to the dorms. Nag-aaya pa nga na maglugaw ang mga mokong, pero hindi ko na lamang sila sinamahan. I decided to just take a bath in my unit and sleep for the rest of the morning. My classes will be at 3 p.m. so I will have ample time to sleep and do everything I need to do later.

I was woken up by my alarm at exactly 11:30. I opened my phone and found some notifications. My phone was flooded by messages from our group chat.

GC Ka Soho

Justice: Tara inom mamaya. Hapon naman ang klase ng lahat bukas 'di ba?

Ram: Hukluban ka. Sige.

River: G.

Justice: Hoy @Kai sasagot ka o ipapatanggal kita sa team?

River: Ang hindi sumama, malo-lose streak for the rest of the year.

Ram: @Kai 9 p.m.. Wala kang magagawa. Susunduin kita.

Justice: Ako rin ba, laloves? 🥺

Ram: Choke.

Justice replied with a smirking emoji. I laughed at the messages. Justice can always find a way to flirt with Ram. Sanay na sanay na ako sa kanilang dalawa. Hindi ko nga alam kung nagbibiro pa ba minsan itong si Justice. Iyong isa naman ay walang pakialam at madalas na hindi pinagtutuunan ng pansin si Justice.

I told them I am going with them. Hindi ako mahilig sumama sa mga ganitong ganap, dahil una sa lahat, ayoko ng alak. I have a very low alcohol tolerance. Kaya kadalasan ay kaunti lamang ang iniinom ko. Samantalang ang tatlo kong kaibigan ay pare-parehong halimaw kung uminom. Sila iyong mga taong pwede mong idayo ng inuman at sila pa ang huling tutumba. Pero ngayon ay sasama ako dahil hindi ko sila sinamahan kaninang umaga. Mahirap na, baka magtampo pa.

Dahil 12 o'clock na e nagsimula na akong maghanda para sa pagpasok. Sa ngayon ay dadaan muna ako sa library at magbabasa muna para magpalipas ng oras.

Today, I am wearing my type B uniform, my scrubs suit. The top is green in color while the pants is gray. I also put on my glasses before getting my bag and leaving my room.

Naglalakad na ako papunta sa library nang maramdaman ko ang pagkalam ng sikmura ko. Oh, right, I forgot to eat both lunch and breakfast. I should go to San first. I need to buy something to eat. Cafe San is near the library, anyway.

Just as I was passing the San Lazaro building, my eyes caught the sight of a tall man leaving the said building. The sun was hitting his face, and he became a more beautiful sight. He is wearing a white long-sleeved polo and a pair of black slacks and black shoes. The black lining on the pocket and the collar of his polo tells me that he is a culinary arts student. He smiled while talking to the three other people he was with, canines showing and complementing his features. His hair was down, and is fixed neatly. He was that barista last Friday, right? The one on the counter? I wonder what his name is. His matcha latte is a lot better than the ones I usually am having in Cafe San.

But wait...

Did I just call a man beautiful? I mean, there is nothing wrong with that, but did I?

I didn't know if he saw me, but I think we made eye contact, although I wasn't sure because I quickly turned around. Baka mapagkamalan pa akong may gusto sa kanya e.

When I reached the cafe, I saw Justice on one of the tables, sipping his strawberry lemon drink. I can't believe he is reading. Kailan pa 'to natutong mag-aral? Nilampasan ko lang siya at pumunta sa counter. I ordered matcha latte, of course, and a spam eggdrop sandwich. Sandwich na lang dahil wala pa akong gana na kumain ng rice. Mamayang dinner na lang siguro.

"Kumusta? Nakausap mo na ba siya ulit?" My brows furrowed because of Kuya Jay's question.

"Who?"

"The barista last friday?"

I answered with a shrug. "No, but I think I saw him before I got here."

The telephone beside the cashier started ringing. "One second." Kuya Jay fetched the phone and answered the call. I signaled him that I would be sitting on one of the tables which he answered with a nod.

I walked towards Justice and I found out that he is actually solving math problems. "Is this for real?" It seems like I got his attention because he looked at me and smiled. "Ano ka ba, ako lang to 'no? Tsaka iinom tayo mamaya e, dapat wala na akong iisipin na acads. Matutuktukan ako ni Cap kung hindi ko pa 'to tatapusin. Tsaka para mo na ring sinabi na hindi ako nag-aaral ah?" Tinaasan niya ako ng kilay kaya natawa ako.

"You really don't study. Kilala ka na ng batas. I am going there na. God bless you." He only laughed before resuming what he was doing. "Kita-kits."

I sat down on my usual spot. Kulang na lamang siguro ay lagyan ko na ito ng pangalan ko o kaya naman ay ng reserved sign. Wala na kasing halos na nakakaupo rito dahil lagi akong dito pumupwesto.

Should I just read here? Ganoon din naman. Magsasayang lang din ako ng oras kung pupunta pa ako sa library after kong kumain. At ngayon ko lang din naalala na bawal nga pala ang pagkain at inumin sa lib.

I opened my book and started reading when my order arrived. It was Kuya Ren who delivered it to my table. "Here you go. This is a special matcha latte prepared for you only. Your payment for your drink was sent back to you. This drink is free," he then raised his eyebrows playfully. "Swerte mo, bebe," natatawang sabi niya bago nagpaalam na babalik na sa counter. Kuya Ren is like Kuya Jay. They were two of the owners of this cafe, but they both are working here with their other employees from time to time. I have been close with them since I first got here. Ever since, they were treating me as their little brother, so this cafe holds a very special place in me.

But why am I lucky? What is he saying? Tiningnan ko ang matcha at tinikman ito. Weirdly, my drink is in a glass mug with a lid on it.

My taste buds stimulated something in my brain that made me remember the smile of the barista who prepared the matcha latte last friday, as well as the taste of the drink. This is the same matcha latte I tasted last week. Who prepared this? Hindi naman ganito ang timpla nina Kuya Jay at Kuya Ren, dahil magkalasa lamang naman ang timpla nilang dalawa at ng iba nilang employees dito.

Halfway through eating and reading, I noticed something on the mug. Wait...

What? Something was written in green on the mug. It wasn't visible at first because it was the same color as my drink. Nakita ko na lamang ito ngayon. Akala ko pa kanina e design lamang ito noong mug. Hindi ko pa naman ito nababasa nang buo dahil hindi ko pa nauubos ang inumin. The only words I can read as of now are 'I hope you'. I hope you what?

I am curious about what was written but I don't want to defeat the purpose of the one who gave this to me. I also hate spoilers so I will wait until I finish the drink. I am sure that the one who gave this to me is also the same person who gave me the cream puffs. I took out the note I got last week and compared it to the visible letters. The handwriting is the same.

I want to meet him again so that I can thank him. His matcha latte also might be my most favorite drink now. Also, to pay him back for these? Because no joke, the matcha is matcha-ing...?

When I noticed I was staring nowhere longer than necessary, I immediately put the mug down and continued reading. The topic is about the minimum inhibitory concentration which has some computations in it. I decided to do an advanced reading on microbiology. Microbio is my favorite subject, that's why I always do some advanced readings for this. Also, we'll have a laboratory class later, and if I remember correctly, our professor told us we'll have pre-laboratory discussions later, as well as the experiment proper. It is about this lesson, I think. It's better that I know what the procedure is, para hindi kami ma-late ng uwi mamaya. Kailangan ko pa namang magpahinga pagkatapos ng klase dahil lalabas kami mamayang gabi. I would need tens of thousands of tons of energy later. Sigurado ako na marami ang tao mamaya sa pupuntahan namin, idagdag mo pa ang maingay at masikip na paligid.

It was around two-fifteen when I decided to leave the cafe. I bid goodbye to my two kuyas and left with the mug which I didn't know was mine.

Halfway through walking, I noticed some high schoolers playing volleyball on the school field. I sat on a bench and sipped my matcha latte. I will only watch them play for a few minutes.

They looked so happy while playing. It made me smile somehow because it made me look back to when I was a kid and dreamed of playing on the big courts with great players. I have reached that dream now, and who would have thought that I would be known?

I was busy thinking about my past self who once dreamed, when my eyes caught a glimpse of the ball that is now approaching my direction. I smiled when the sun's rays hit it perfectly. I looked at the one who rarely spikes.

"Kid, kill it!" I tossed the ball to him, and from there, I saw a small smile on his face before he nodded. He jumped a bit and hit the ball gracefully. His other playmates were shocked. His eyes were sparkling with joy as he ran to me and thanked me.

"You have a future in court." I ruffled his hair and turned my back on them. I need to go now.

Just when I was about to get my mug, I noticed that my drink was now empty. The remaining latte a while ago is now on the ground, and it is dripping from the bench. A pout formed on my lips. No...

That was my special matcha latte...

I picked up the mug, and I realized I can read the words written in green ink already. The pout on my lips disappeared as I read the message.

'I hope you
enjoyed the drink
I made specially for you.
Review well for your exams, puff.

Love, 
Stranger'