Maybe, Probably, Certainly (Project S: Spike/Waterboyy)

Chapter 4: The Kids Aren't Alright

A few weeks have passed and studying in the Faculty of Business Management started to take its toll on Than. His routine was established early on: classes, training sessions, sometimes hanging out with Puen or Achi, and the three of them trying to avoid a certain swimmer.

He tried to pretend that everything was all right, or at least that things would sort themselves out, but luck was not on his side. It was foolish of him to ignore reality in hopes it would go away; he should have known better. It's just that, for such a long time, his only objective was to get here, so he let himself forget that it would be just a first step on the long and winding road. I won't be making that mistake ever again, he thought to himself, as he exited the faculty office, where one of his professors expressed some concerns over his latest test.

Than stood on a busy corridor, not knowing what he should do. He felt like he was failing not only statistics, but also himself, his father and Puen. If he couldn't keep up with his studies, all of his efforts on the volleyball court would be...meaningless.

Than's dark musing where interrupted by a deep, masculine voice calling his name. He looked up to see a familiar face of his senior from a team.

"I thought it was you. I wondered when we'd meet here," said the fourth year student.

"You did?" Than asked doubtfully. He was so dumbfounded by this sudden presence there, he forgot he was ignoring this person. "P'." He added almost as an afterthought, because he didn't want to appear too overtly rude.

"Of course, since we belong to the same faculty," Kawin chuckled a bit, as if he knew exactly what went through the freshman's mind.

That was certainly a surprise to Than, who assumed that all of his fellow teammates chose to major in Sport Science.

Since it didn't seem like Than was going to say anything on his own, but his face projected dejection and not the usual dislike, Kawin gently seemingly offhandedly inquired.

"Is there anything I could help you? As your senior, that is."

"I don't think so..." Than started to automatically reject the offer, even though God only knows he could really use it.

"You've only got to ask." His senior said firmly and with so much candor, Than saw him, for the first time, in a completely new light.

Up to this point he was sort of hostile towards him, not the least because they were both setters competing for the same spot on the team, and he felt he was severely outclassed. The animosity started way back when he heard about him from Puen, the day his friend arrived at the University over a year ago. Kawin was the older brother to Petch, and during those first weeks he never failed to remind Puen, that St. Sebastian defeated them twice in a row. And later on, when the spiker managed to impress everyone on a team, and they needed to find a replacement captain on the spot, Kawin was one of the few ones that opposed Puen's candidature. Their victory in the National Championships somewhat mollified the setter, and they made a great duo, but it was obvious that the two of them still had unresolved issues.

"The thing is, I'm having some problems with Statistics course," Than finally admitted with much reluctance.

"Weren't your friends from the faculty able to help you with this? I know you're all busy as freshmen, be I remember that we were able to work out more difficult cases during group study sessions." The fourth year student wondered aloud.

Than felt embarrassed confessing that he wasn't friendly with people from his class and didn't attend any of those groups, but not reveling that would make him seem even more like an idiot who couldn't keep up, even after receiving help from others.