Mia was at a loss for words while both Nate and Luke panicked.

"Hala, 'di puwedeng umuwi nang ganyan si Tristan!" Nate said.

"I know, and patay rin tayo kay IC 'pag naabutan nyiang ganyan si Tristan," Luke replied. "Ahjussi, gumising ka na," he added as he tried to shake their team captain awake.

"Luke! Nate!" Parang nakakita ng multo ng dalawa no'ng may babaeng tumawag sa kanila. "Nakita n'yo ba si Tristan baby?" Medyo malayo pa 'yong babae sa kinauupuan nila kaya 'di nito nakitang nakahiga si Tristan sa mga hita ni Mia.

Bago pa man ito makalapit, tumayo na si Nate para salubungin ang dalaga. "Yeah, he went this way," he said as he steered her to the opposite direction.

"Uhm, nandito si Tristan," Mia said to Luke who seemed to be in deep thought.

"Oo nga pero si IC 'yon," Luke replied. "It's not a good idea to let her see Tristan in this state."

"Why?"

"Team manager namin si IC. She is also coach's daughter and Tristan's not-so-secret admirer. She can be a bit obsessive when it comes to Tristan. Alam niyang napaka-good boy nitong ahjussi na 'to so we'll definitely be blamed for him passing out. Lagot kami sa next training."

Well, Tristan's current condition was kinda their fault but it wasn't the right time to point fingers. "Okay, so pa'no na? Parang bukas na gigising si Tristan—"

"Luke, tara na!" Bumalik na si Nate pero 'di na nito kasama si IC. "We should get Tristan home while IC is distracted."

"We're all too drunk to drive," Luke said. "And Mia, paano ka uuwi?"

"Pwede naman akong mag-cab." She smiled.

"It would be risky to go home on your own. Maybe we could drop you off, sa'n ka ba nakatira?" muling tanong ni Luke.

"Ainsworth Park sa New Manila, are you going in that direction? It's really no big deal if I have to go home alone, kaya ko naman," she said, sincerely not wanting to trouble any of them.

"Really? Tristan lives in the same village. Sakto, idadaan ka na namin," Luke replied.

Mia's eyes widened in shock but she tried to keep her calm. Posibleng kapitbahay niya lang pala si Tristan all this time pero wala siyang kamalay-malay. She couldn't be blamed though, Ainsworth Park was pretty large and its wealthy residents kept mostly to themselves.

"Sure kayong okay lang?" Mia asked again.

"Yes, yes, let's go!" nagmamadaling sabi ni Nate. "Naghihintay na 'yong boyfie ni Tristan sa labas."

"Boyfie ni Tristan?" Mia asked, quite confused as she followed the boys who were supporting their unconscious friend towards the exit.

The two boys laughed. "Yeah, Valerian. You didn't know? Mag-jowa kaya 'yon," Nate said.

"For real?" Mia's mouth was hanging open in disbelief.

Lumakas pa lalo ang tawa ng dalawa. "Kidding, they're both straight as far as we know but there was an incident—pero si Tristan na lang ang tanungin mo," Luke explained in between chuckles.

* * *

The four of them finally got out of the club and met Valerian, the team's goalkeeper. He was waiting in the driver's seat of his Aston Martin. Nate opened the back door and settled Tristan inside with Mia's help. Sumunod namang pumasok sina Mia at Nate.

Luke sat in front and eagerly introduced their new companion to Valerian. "Mia, meet Valerian. Valerian, this is Mia, ang aagaw kay Tristan from you."

"Loko, 'di kita pasakayin eh!" Valerian scolded Luke. "Hi Mia. Pagpasensyahan mo na 'tong dalawang 'to, lagi kasing natatamaan ng bola ang mga ulo nila kaya ganyan," he added, smiling at the girl.

"Nice to meet you, Valerian. I'm a huge fan, ang galing no'ng huling save mo do'n sa last match n'yo against Hong Kong," she replied with a hint of excitement in her voice.

"Wow, she's actually a fan na nanonood ng games!" Nate said. "Akala ko fan girl lang ni Tristan kasi pogi 'tong bata natin. No offense, Mia."

"None taken," Mia said, smiling at him. 'Di lang dahil pogi, mabait din at matalino at matipuno at mabango at—okay, I should stop thinking about him now.

"So where do we drop off Mia?" Valerian asked. "And paano si Tristan? We can't exactly drop him off at his place in that state."

Luke and Nate stayed silent. "Guys?" Valerian didn't like their silence. He seemed to sense it too, may kalokohan na namang binabalak ang dalawa.

Tristan suddenly moaned in his sleep and shifted his position to face Mia. He nestled his head on her shoulder and draped an arm on her torso. Tristan's actions made her heart beat three times faster and her face three times redder. Damn, Tristan, tagal kong hinintay 'to!

"Oh shit, sorry, Mia. Nasasamantala ka na pala ni Tristan diyan!" Nate said as he tried to pull off his sleeping friend from the girl. Ngunit mahigpit ang kapit ni Tristan kay Mia kaya hindi iyon madaling nagawa ni Nate.

"It's okay, hayaan na lang muna natin siya," sagot ni Mia. Kahit hanggang bukas na kaming ganito, ayos lang.

"So okay lang din bang sa inyo muna siya hanggang magising?" Nate asked. He was pretty smooth there.

"Huh?" Once again, naguguluhan na naman ang dalaga.

"What the hell, guys? 'Di na kayo nahiya kay Mia!" Valerian chided.

"Wala na kasi kaming maisip eh. His drink was spiked so for sure kaya medyo matagal pa yan bago magising. I was recently kicked out by my dad so I'm crashing at Luke's. Kung dadalhin natin si Tristan do'n baka pareho na kaming palayasin ng girlfriend nito. Then there's this issue about the two of you. Would you really want tabloids to publish photos of him sneaking out of your place so early in the morning?"

"Why are you guys so careless?" Valerian groaned. "Ba't 'di n'yo binabantayan mga iniinom n'yo?"

Fearing that the argument would escalate, Mia decided to intervene. "Wait, don't fight, guys. Actually, okay lang naman sa 'kin. Tristan can stay at my place until he wakes up. He lives in the same neighborhood anyway. 'Wag na natin siyang pahirapan pagkagising."

"Are you sure?" Valerian asked.

"Oo. Pero pwede bang malaman kung bakit hindi siya pwedeng umuwi na lang sa kanila?"

"Well, here's the thing. Tristan's parents have really high expectations from him. Sa totoo lang, ayaw nilang mag-football si Tristan. They wanted him to focus on the family business. Of course, as the perfect son, ayaw niyang sumuway so he begged them to let him play. Napapayag niya naman sila Tita pero bawal siyang magkamali. If he fucks up, it's good bye football for him. And obviously, going home drunk from a wild party would be trouble for him," Nate explained.

Mia was pretty shocked to hear this. 'Di niya inakalang gano'n kalaki ang pressure sa crush niya. She remembered how passionate he was every time he talks about football in interviews and it would probably break her heart just as much as it would break his if he stops playing.

"So okay lang ba talagang sa inyo muna siya?" Nate asked.

"Yes, of course. I wouldn't forgive myself if my favorite team loses their captain."

"Thank you so much! Promise, bibigyan kita ng tickets para sa lahat ng natitirang games this season," Nate replied gleefully.

* * *

Luke and Nate carried the still sleeping Tristan to Mia's room when they arrived at her place. Buti na lang at kasalukuyang nagbabakasyon sa Istanbul ang tita niya. It would definitely be difficult to explain why some hot guy was going to sleep over in her room. The two guys thanked Mia one last time before heading out.

Umupo siya sa kaliwang bahagi ng kama at tiningnan ang natutulog na Tristan habang pinapakalma ang puso niyang kanina pa mabilis ang tibok. When she woke up earlier that day, she never expected that her long-time crush would end up on her bed. Napakaraming nangyaring kinatuwa niya nang lubos kaya 'di na siya magugulat kung magising na lang siya bigla at matuklasang panaginip lang ang lahat ng iyon.

Mia wanted to wait for him to wake up because Tristan would surely be perplexed upon waking up in an unfamiliar place but she was also very tired. Sinubukan niyang labanan ang antok pero unti-unting pumikit ang kanyang mga mata.