#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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APRIL 10, 2023・MONDAY・8:46
JR presses the flush button on the urinal and zips up his pants. He goes towards the sink and turns on the tap to wash his hands. On his peripheral, he can notice some guys staring at him from outside the door. He turns to look at them.
The two of them look at each other and shyly walk towards him.
"Hello." The tall one says in a very deep voice.
"Hi?" JR says, confused. He finishes washing his hands and wipes them with his handkerchief.
The tall one looks at his friend and shrugs, egging him on.
"Kuan...Kaila mo'ng Escano, pre?" the shorter one asks. "Katong si Maya ba. GAS man yata to siya. Diba amigo man mo ato niya?"
"ERM...DO YOU KNOW ESCANO?"
"HER NAME'S MAYA. I THINK SHE'S FROM GAS? AREN'T YOU GUYS FRIENDS?"
JR doesn't respond, confused and a bit taken aback. He nervously swallows. "Ngano diay?"
"WHY?"
"Naa to siya'y uyab, pre?"
"DOES SHE HAVE A BOYFRIEND, PRE?"
The tall one pats his friend's shoulder and walks over to the urinals to piss.
JR hesitates at first, unsure of what to say. "Er...wala."
"ER...SHE DOESN'T, NO."
"Katong lalake diay? Katong pirme naa sa iyahang instagram?"
"WHAT ABOUT THAT GUY? THE ONE FROM INSTAGRAM?"
"Si Noel?"
"NOEL?"
"Oo, kato siya. Uyab pa sila ato?"
"YEAH. THAT ONE. ARE THEY NOT TOGETHER?"
"Dili na."
"NOT ANYMORE, NO."
A huge smile appears on the short one's face, he holds his hand up, waiting for a high five. "Nice," he says.
JR awkwardly returns the high five.
"Okay. Kato lang. Salamat," the short one says excitedly before heading over to the urinals to join his friend.
"OKAY. THAT'S...THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU."
"Okay," JR mutters, probably not loud enough for them to hear. With one last puzzled look at the two of them, he walks out of the restroom.
He takes his time, making his way through the classrooms, peering into each one through their windows. He passes by the Science Lab and gets a sudden jolt of panic as he sees Hazel inside, seemingly doing a report.
