A Collision of Hearts and Heroes

Chapter 40

Clarissa's POV

New Battlefield

"One!"

"Two!"

"Three!"

"Start!"

The electrifying burst of energy coursing through my veins as a wave of excitement consumed me entirely. Wearing our black and maroon bikinis, Zedi and I revved up the jet ski the moment our friends finished counting down. Sumalubong ang marahas na hangin mula sa dagat na naging dahilan upang liparin ang buhok namin sa likuran.

"Let's go fucking fast, Zedi!" I shouted as I maneuvered the jet ski at full speed.

I threw my other hand into the air, shouting once more with eyes gleaming in pure thrill. Naiwan si Zedi sa aking likuran ngunit ilang segundo lang ay napantayan niya na rin ako. A grin stretched across my face as I gripped the jet ski handle again and turned to face her.

"This is fucking awesome! Come on!" She shouted back before steering her jet ski in the opposite direction.

I got it right away and quickly swerved to the other side. We were drawing trails of whitewater as we raced across the sea. Nagtatawanan kami habang ginagawa iyon at paminsan minsan pang nililingon ang pinanggalingan namin upang tingnan kung gaano karaming bula at bakas sa ibabaw ng dagat ang nagawa namin.

When we got enough of it, we decided to head back to the shore where our remaining friends were waiting. Obienna has decided to follow us to Zambales and arrived this morning with Kuya Emerson, so there are quite a lot of us here now. Nang makalapit kami sa kanila ay nakita kong nakasakay na rin ng jetski ang ibang kalalakihan naming kaibigan.

There are already fourteen jetskis available that I suppose our friends rented. Ang iba ay hindi pa nakasakay kagaya nila Gasper at Gaviel—habang ang iba naman ay halatang hindi na makapaghihintay paandarin ito.

"I just know Kuya Gaviel and Kuya Gasper were practically drooling while staring at Ate Atherelle and Ate Arie," Hazel said, clicking her tongue as if playfully scolding the two.

Kaagad na nagtawanan at nagkantyawan ang mga kaibigan namin nang marinig iyon. I glanced at Gasper, who had clearly been watching me the entire time Zedi and I were out at sea on the jet ski. I raised an eyebrow at him, and that simple gesture made him smile.

"Ang ganda, e," saad niya nang nakatitig sa akin.

"Kaya ayokong nai-inlove, e, ang cringe." Lyle shoots a playfully disgusted look as he settles onto the jet ski.

"True!" Alchie agreed as he hopped on the jetski beside Lyle. "Jetski nalang tayo. Magpabilisan tayo ng takbo hanggang sa matanggap nating wala tayong kwenta sa mundong 'to." He was yapping sarcastically, which had all of us bursting into laughter.

"Let's go, mga walang kwenta sa mundo!" Adrian shouted as he sped off on the jet ski, heading straight toward the sea.

"Hala, nang-iwan ang gago," the others mumbled under their breath.

Dahil doon, nagsimula na silang magpaandar ng jetski isa-isa, naghahabulan habang sumisirit sa tubig. Dryvian and Hazel stayed by the shore, watching us from a distance. Hazel wasn't allowed to ride a jet ski yet, and Dryvian chose to stay with her to keep her company.

"Wait! There are too many of us. Allowed ba tayong magsabay-sabay?" Zedi asked in a bit of a worried tone.

"Yup! Since the area was spacious and there were no other swimmers, they eventually permitted us," si Gaviel ang sumagot.