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Mark looks at Haechan who’s currently scrunching his eyebrows as he struggles with his hand placement on holding the cue stick.
“Nakakairita!” he shouts as he drops the stick sa billiard table. Aminado naman si Haechan sa sarili niya na hindi talaga siya marunong mag laro ng billiards at tanging 8 ball lang sa cellphone ang alam niya.
“Sabi na nga di ka marunong eh, may pa 1v1 kapang nalalaman” paasar na sinabi ni Mark. Humakbang ito papalapit kay nakababata at pinulot niya ang cue stick habang tinitingnan ang nakasimangot na kasama niya.
“ganito kasi yun-” agad na napaatras si Haechan pero kinuha ni Mark ang kanyang kamay para turuan.
“Excuse me close ba tayo?” nakasimangot na sabi ni Haechan pero agad rin naman sumabay sa mga instruction ni Mark.
Haechan couldn’t believe how they ended up like this. With Mark’s hands on top of his—guiding him and going through the basics of playing 8 ball. He misjudged, it wasn’t like the game that he played on his phone during his free time. There were no line guides on what ball to hit, there was no gauge to measure the force that it took to hit the ball, and the mere fact that he was in a place like this in the first place makes him wonder how did he end up in this situation.
8 hours ago
Haechan lazily looked at their classroom’s window while their professor talked about the effects of El Niño and La Niña on soil structure. Their class was soil sciences and he had already read through the readings from the night before and made his notes hence he let his mind procrastinate. He could see his classmates merrymaking at the back in his peripheral vision.
“And if La Niña were to hit after a long period of El Niño, what would happen? please relate it with our previous lesson in the absorption capacity of soil. Mr Lee baka may gusto kang i share sa klase kasi kanina kapa nag iingay diyan sa likod” Haechan smirks, deserve nga ng gago mag recite.
Haechan couldn’t really explain their dynamics pero ang alam niya lang ay ever since their first year meron ng tension na namuo sa pagitan nila ni Mark. It all started when the rankings for their subject in zoology came out and the top scorer was a Lee, siyempre kasalanan ng prof nila na hindi spinecify na sino dahil tatlo silang Lee sa section.
That certificate was his.
It wasn’t Mark’s and hindi manlang spinecify ng prof nila until 3 days later nung lumabas na yung grades. Hindi manlang binalik ni Mark yung certificate niya.
“Uhm sir, I think dahil po sa” Napatingin si Mark sa mga kasama niya na tila humihingi ng tulong. He knows deep inside na wala siyang maisasagot sa tanong ng prof niya pero he had no choice but to try.
Haechan crossed his arms, watching in amusement as Mark fumbled for an answer. Alam niyang wala talaga itong alam sa topic, kaya he decided to enjoy the moment.
“Dahil po sa… ah, ang soil po ay mas magiging… ano…?” Mark trailed off, glancing at his friends for help, but they all looked away, suppressing their laughter.
“Mas magiging ano, Mr. Lee?” their professor pressed, raising an eyebrow.
Haechan smirked before sighing dramatically. “Mas magiging prone sa erosion, sir, kasi dahil sa prolonged dryness ng El Niño, nagkakaroon ng cracks sa lupa, making it less capable of absorbing water. Pag dumating yung La Niña at malakas ang ulan, hindi agad maa-absorb ng lupa yung tubig, leading to runoff at erosion.”
Their professor nodded approvingly. “Very good, Mr. Lee. But next time, let’s give others a chance to answer first.”
Mark clenched his jaw but kept quiet, glaring at Haechan from the side.
At that moment, Haechan knew—he just won another round in their never-ending silent war.
Present time
“Okay, now try hitting the cue ball,” Mark instructed, his breath warm against Haechan’s ear.
Haechan swallowed, gripping the cue stick tighter. “I-isa lang ’to, hindi ’to quiz bee, bakit ka ang seryoso?”
Mark chuckled, stepping back slightly but keeping a hand on Haechan’s to guide him. “Kasi competitive ako, and if matatalo kita dito, that means we’re even.”
Haechan scoffed but said nothing, choosing instead to focus on the game. He took a deep breath and attempted his first shot.
The cue ball rolled… and completely missed its target.
Silence.
Then, Mark burst out laughing. “Ang galing! Ang galing mo
Haechan groaned, turning to glare at him. “Alam mo, may choice ka naman na wag kang epal, diba?”
“Pero hindi ko pinili,” Mark grinned.
Haechan sighed, shaking his head. Maybe, just maybe, there was a reason why he kept getting caught up in these moments with Mark.
Haechan groaned as he watched Mark sink the 8-ball perfectly into the corner pocket, sealing his victory.
“And that’s game!” Mark grinned triumphantly, twirling the cue stick in his hands before setting it down on the table. “Mukhang talo ka, Mr. Lee.”
Haechan scoffed, crossing his arms. “Nagkataon lang. Beginner’s luck mo lang ’yan.”
Mark chuckled, stepping closer until they were only inches apart. “Beginner’s luck? Hindi naman ako katulad mo na umaasa lang sa swerte, diba?”
Haechan opened his mouth to retort but stopped when Mark suddenly leaned in, lowering his voice. “Since nanalo ako, may utang kang isang bagay sa’kin.”
Haechan raised an eyebrow. “Tsss. Ano na naman?”
Mark smirked before tilting Haechan’s chin up with his fingers. “A date.”
Haechan’s eyes widened slightly, caught off guard. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me,” Mark whispered, eyes flickering between Haechan’s lips and eyes. “Isang date. Bukas ng gabi.”
Haechan could feel his heart pounding against his ribs, but he refused to let Mark have the upper hand. “And what if I say no?”
Mark only smirked wider. “You won’t.”
Before Haechan could process what was happening, Mark leaned in and pressed a soft but firm kiss against his lips. It was quick, but enough to leave Haechan completely frozen in place.
When Mark pulled away, he looked entirely too pleased with himself. “I’ll pick you up at seven. Wag kang tatakbo.”
Then, with one last playful wink, he turned and walked away, leaving Haechan standing there, stunned, his heart racing, and his lips tingling from the unexpected kiss.
“Damn it,” he muttered under his breath, hiding his growing smile.