#Yatiz is a story focusing on the lives of young people in a small seaside municipality called Carmen in the southern part of the Philippines. The name is based on a cuss word here, "Yati/Yatis" that has no English equivalent but is closest to WTF.
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FEBRUARY 28, 2023・TUESDAY・12:19
Maya quietly stares at Noel and JR who are eating at another karinderya next to Colitz.
They're chatting and laughing amongst themselves.
Maya buries her head on her backpack.
"Wala gihapon ko kasabot nganong mupadayon gihapon ta ug upload atong episode sa 8-Inch. After atong gibuhat ni Julio, abi nako'g nakatuon na si Pamela. Mura hinuon nato sila ug ginareward sa ilahang ginabuhat," Mariz says as she checks her phone for the time.
"I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY WE'RE STILL GOING AHEAD WITH UPLOADING THE 8-INCH EPISODE. AFTER WHAT JULIO DID, I THOUGHT PAMELA HAD ALREADY LEARNED. INSTEAD, WE LOOK LIKE WE'RE REWARDING THEM FOR THEIR BEHAVIOR."
Maya doesn't respond.
She looks at her, and then to what she's staring at. She sighs and looks back at her. "Wala pa mo nag-isturya?"
"YOU HAVEN'T TALKED TO HIM YET?"
Maya looks down and shakes her head.
She rolls her eyes. "Tapos kita mga babae ang 'dramatic' ug 'emotional'?"
"AND WE'RE THE 'DRAMATIC' AND 'EMOTIONAL' ONES?"
Maya doesn't say anything and just continues resting on the table.
"Maya..." Mariz gently elbows her. "Kung dili gyud siya gusto muisturya sa imoha, ayaw na ug hulat. Naa man ka'y karapatan para mag-explain sa imohang side."
"MAYA..."
"IF HE DOESN'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU, DON'T WAIT. YOU ALSO HAVE A RIGHT TO EXPLAIN YOUR SIDE OF THE STORY."
Maya gives her a sad look and rests on her shoulder.
"Awwe...Smile, baby girl. Ma-okay ra lage ang tanan," Mariz says as she wraps her arms around her.
"AWWE....SMILE, BABY GIRL. EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY."
She nods. Her gaze involuntarily drifts back towards the boys.
JR catches her staring and weakly smirks at her.
Sipping his Coke, Noel notices JR staring at something. He turns to check who it is. Slowly, it sinks in that he's staring at Maya.
She shyly smiles at him.
For a second, he just stares at her, probably thinking of what to do. Eventually, he just coldly nods and turns to face JR again.
Mariz quietly stares at her and purses her lips. "Okay..." Mariz exhales and lets go of her. She takes out her earphones from her bag and untangles it. "Ayaw ko ijudge pero..." She hands Maya one earphone. "...mao ni akong ginapaminawan, especially ug medyo sad ko. Pang-confidence boost."
