Kape
Jhoanna’s day started before the sun had fully risen. It wasn’t that she particularly liked waking up early, but she liked how quiet it was in the early hours.
Before the city came alive, before voices overlapped in endless chatter, before she had to navigate through crowds of people who always seemed too much.
Her morning routine was simple: black coffee, a few stretches, and a book in her hands while the world outside remained still.
The street below her unit was mostly empty, save for the occasional early commuter or the bakery down the block opening its shutters.
The scent of freshly baked pandesal drifted through the air, mixing with the crisp morning breeze.
Jhoanna liked this. The solitude. The predictability.
Then her phone vibrated.
She glanced at it, already knowing who it was before she checked.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘏𝘶𝘺, 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘬𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘣𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘰 𝘴𝘢 𝘙𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘭?
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵, 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘮 𝘬𝘰 𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘵.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘰 𝘣𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪 𝘬𝘰 𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘮 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘢𝘱 𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢?
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘉𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰, 𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪 𝘬𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦-𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘭𝘺.
Jhoanna sighed and set her phone aside. She wasn’t going to humor Maloi this early in the morning.
It was the only class they happened to share, a result of Maloi switching her original schedule to better fit her architecture courses.
They’d met in this class during the second semester, and now, halfway through, Jhoanna still didn’t understand how the girl had so much energy. It was as if Maloi was always buzzing with life, no matter the hour.
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Across the city, Maloi’s day started differently.
“Ateeeee, gumising ka na!”
A pillow smacked against Maloi’s head, and she groaned, burying her face into her blanket. “Five more minutes.”
Her little sister, Sheena, was having none of it. “Jologs naman toh, mamaya late ka na naman tapos ako pa sisisihin mo, nakakainis.”
“Ang daming sinabi bebe, ang aga-aga.” Maloi mumbled, but she dragged herself up anyway, hair sticking up in all directions.
Their house was never quiet. The TV was already blaring some morning show. Her mom was on a call, probably already dealing with work. Sheena was running around, complaining about how irritating her teacher was.
Maloi barely had time to sit down before her sister swiped her last piece of toast, and she had to chase her around the kitchen.
There was no peace, but Maloi never really looked for it. She liked the noise, the energy, the constant movement. It made things interesting.
By the time she left the house, she was almost running late, but that was nothing new. She slipped her headphones on, blasting OPM, and pulled out her phone.
Still no reply from Jhoanna.
Grinning to herself, she typed another message.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘗𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘰 𝘴𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘶𝘴, 𝘪𝘧 𝘮𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢, 𝘣𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘰 𝘢𝘬𝘰 𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘬 𝘵𝘦𝘢.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘐𝘧 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘰 𝘢𝘬𝘰.... 𝘖𝘬𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦, 𝘣𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪 𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢 𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘦.
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Jhoanna arrived at campus ten minutes early, as always. The moment she stepped inside the university gates, the world shifted—no longer quiet.
Groups of students gathered near the entrance, talking loudly about assignments they hadn’t finished or weekend plans they were already making. Someone was blasting music from a Bluetooth speaker. A couple argued near the benches.
Jhoanna ignored all of it.
Her first stop was the coffee shop near the library, a small, tucked-away place that most students overlooked in favor of the trendier cafés by the main building. Here, at least, she could enjoy one last moment of peace before the day officially began.
She ordered her usual—black coffee, no sugar. She wasn’t expecting another message from Maloi, but when she glanced at her phone, there it was.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘚𝘢𝘯 𝘬𝘢, 𝘑𝘩𝘰? 𝘏𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪 𝘱𝘢 𝘢𝘬𝘰 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦 :𝘋 𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘬𝘢𝘱𝘦 𝘬𝘢 𝘯𝘢?
Jhoanna rolled her eyes.
𝗝𝗵𝗼𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗮: 𝘠𝘦𝘴.
The reply came instantly.
𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗶: 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘢 𝘯𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘩𝘢𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘢 𝘺𝘢𝘯?
Jhoanna locked her phone before she could be tempted to respond. She had learned early on that engaging with Maloi was a slippery slope. The more you fed into her antics, the more relentless she became.
She sipped her coffee, listened to music, and made her way over to class.
Meanwhile, Maloi was sprinting across campus, dodging students like an expert. Now regretting wearing a hoodie despite the already rising heat.
In one hand, she clutched a hastily bought cup of coffee; in the other, her phone, where her last message to Jhoanna remained unanswered.
She skidded to a stop just as her professor reached the door of their classroom, balancing a stack of folders and a cup of coffee.
“Good morning, Ma’am!” Maloi chirped, quickly stepping in to take some of the folders from her hands. “Bigat po n’yan, ako na.”
Their professor raised an eyebrow but let her help. “A rare sight. Maloi arriving on time and offering assistance? Are you sick?”
Maloi grinned. “Just trying to be a better citizen, Ma’am.”
They walked into class together, and Maloi felt the stares of her classmates, most of whom knew her usual habit of running in five minutes late with some ridiculous excuse. She didn’t care. What mattered was that when she scanned the room, she spotted Jhoanna already in her seat, reading.
Maloi sauntered over and slid into the chair beside her.
“Ang bait ko, ‘no?” she whispered, setting her bag down.
Jhoanna didn’t even glance at her. “You’re trying to win points because you were late last time.”
Maloi gasped in mock offense. “You wound me, Jho. Can’t I just be helpful out of the kindness of my heart?”
Jhoanna finally looked at her, unimpressed. “You don’t have a kind heart.”
Maloi clutched her chest. “Ouch. So heartless.”
Before Jhoanna could return to her book, Maloi nudged her knee under the desk. “Anong music mo?” she asked, nodding at the earphones still hanging around Jhoanna’s neck.
Jhoanna debated ignoring her. But experience told her that Maloi would just keep asking until she got an answer.
So she pulled out one earbud and, without a word, handed it to Maloi.
Maloi’s grin widened as she took it and popped it into her ear. When the song started playing, she blinked.
“Ang emo naman nito.”
Jhoanna rolled her eyes. “Then don’t listen.”
But Maloi didn’t take the earbud out. Instead, she leaned back, arms crossed behind her head, smirking like she had just won something.
And for some reason, Jhoanna didn’t take the earbud back.
A moment passed before Maloi set something on Jhoanna’s desk. A cup of coffee.
Jhoanna stared at it.
“Wala lang,” Maloi said with a shrug, already looking away, pretending it wasn’t a big deal. “Baka gusto mo pa rin.”
Jhoanna eyed the cup suspiciously before glancing at Maloi, who was still acting like she didn’t care whether Jhoanna took it or not.
“I already have one,” Jhoanna pointed out, lifting her half-empty cup as proof.
Maloi shrugged again, nonchalant. “Eh ‘di dalawa na. Wala namang overdose sa kape, ‘di ba?”
“Gusto mo bang mag-palpitate ako?”
Maloi’s forehead creased as she stared at Jhoanna, processing her words. Then, without a word, she reached out, attempting to take the coffee back.
But Jhoanna stopped her.
Her fingers wrapped around Maloi’s wrist, firm but casual, as if she wasn’t even thinking about it. For a second, neither of them moved. Maloi’s eyes flickered to Jhoanna’s hand on hers, then back up to her face.
Jhoanna met her gaze, “Sabi ko lang, gusto mo ba. Hindi ko naman sinabing ayaw ko.”
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴.
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The moment their professor dismissed them, Maloi was already out of her chair, stretching like she had just survived something physically exhausting.
“Grabe ‘yung discussion, ang daming babae ni Rizal,” one of their blockmates scoffed, slinging their bag over their shoulder.
Maloi clicked her tongue, smirking. “Kaantok naman, ang sakit sa ulo, but look at me—ganda pa rin.”
Laughter followed. It was so typical of her, really—Maloi could throw herself into any group and somehow make the conversation revolve around her without even trying. It wasn’t just charm. It was her.
Jhoanna, still seated, calmly packing her things, had no intention of paying attention.
At least, not until she heard her name.
“Si Jho, pupunta ba mamaya?”
Before she could respond, Maloi was already beside her, leaning down with that mug grin of hers.
“Good question. Jho, pupunta ka ba?”
Jhoanna sighed. “No.”
Maloi clutched her chest like she’d been personally offended. “Wala man lang kahit konting excitement? Hindi mo man lang itatanong saan?”
“Wala. Hindi.”
Before Maloi could launch into another round of convincing, a voice cut in.
“Maloi.”
It was Trina. Tall. Gorgeous. The type of girl who always carried herself like she knew exactly the effect she had on people.
She walked up to them, eyes flickering to Maloi, lips curving into a slow smirk.
“You’re going to Mikha’s party later, right?”
Maloi turned to her, still smirking. “Of course.”
Trina stepped closer—too close. “Good. Sayang naman kasi kung hindi kita makakasama.”
Jhoanna, who had just finished zipping up her bag, raised an eyebrow.
Maloi, clearly enjoying the attention, leaned slightly toward Trina. “Hmm. Parang gusto mong sabihin na ikaw na lang ang plano ko for tonight?”
Trina tilted her head, her gaze dragging over Maloi in a way that wasn’t subtle. “Depende. Open ka ba for exclusive invites?”
Maloi chuckled. “Depende kung sino nag-iimbita.”
Trina grinned. “Baka dapat ikaw na lang sumama sa’kin buong gabi.”
Without noise, Jhoanna made her way over to them.
Then, she exhaled sharply through her nose.
“Yves.”
“Alis na tayo.”
Maloi blinked at the sudden interruption, momentarily caught off guard. But then, as if flipping a switch, that ever-present grin slid back into place.
“Uy,” she drawled, tilting her head. “Biglang nagmamadali?”
Jhoanna didn’t answer immediately. She just leveled Maloi with a look, the kind that didn’t need words.
“Akala mo may forever dito?” she finally said.
Maloi laughed, a low, amused sound, before turning back to Trina, as if this was just another joke to her. “See you later, babe.”
Trina smirked, eyes flickering toward Jhoanna for a second before locking back onto Maloi. “Don’t keep me waiting.”
Jhoanna rolled her eyes and turned on her heel, already walking ahead, not checking if Maloi followed.
But she did.
Maloi jogged a little to catch up, falling into step beside her. She bumped their shoulders together, still grinning.
“Bakit parang galit ka?”
Jhoanna scoffed. “Ano namang ikakagalit ko?”
Maloi only grinned wider. “Ewan ko rin?”
Jhoanna bit back a retort, trying to ignore the slight irritation that was bubbling up inside her. “Okay.”
Maloi leaned forward, “Lunch tayo?”
“Lunch?”
“Yes. Kain tayo?”
“Kakain?”
“Yes po, kain tayo.”
“Kumain ka mag-isa mo.”
Maloi chuckled, unfazed. “Wala na bang chance na makasama kita?”
Jhoanna didn’t answer, just turned to walk ahead, her footsteps quickening as she left Maloi trailing behind, still grinning like she always did.