DV Series: decoding the boys ✔️

1 - game || edited

Javee De Villa

This is nerve-wracking.

It was our varsity team's first game this season and Centrex University kagad ang kalaban. For the longest time, sila talaga ang campus rival namin kaya maraming nag-aabang sa game ngayon. On top of that, marami ring nakatutok sa pagtatapat ulit ng star players ng bawat team.

We were on the way to the venue, though we were currently stuck pa sa traffic. I gripped my phone tighter and looked out the window, mas lalong kinakabahan. The car was barely moving down the Macapagal road. Baka ma-late kami.

Biting my lip, I started tapping a finger to the edge of my phone.

"Chill, J. You're starting to look like your brother's stage mother," Lhyle, my only guy best friend, said with an easygoing laugh as he hit the brakes when the car in front of us stopped yet again.

"I can't help it,"sagot ko sa kanya. "This isn't just any other team, you know that. We're up against someone big."

"So? Our team's just as good. Have some faith in your brother. He's not our star player for nothing."

He was right, of course. Si Kuya Jacob nga ang ace player namin, a feat that he was definitely proud of and made little effort to hide. Yung biglang pagsikat niya talaga ang rason kung bakit lalo pang tumindi ang rivarly between Intersci and Centrex (which had been a thing since forever) kasi napakita niya ngang kaya niyang makipagsabayan sa Centrex, who were known for bagging the championship numerous times in the past.

It was precisely why this specific match made a buzz on social media days leading up to it. Halos lahat ng kilala ko, sa face-off lang ng dalawang team nakatutok.

But this rivalry on court wasn't the only reason why these teams were closely anticipated. Honestly kasi, kung rivaly at clash of skills lang usapan, then mas interesting ang competition between UTA and Constello kasi sila rin ang madalas manalo sa cheer dance competitions. No, the match today was controversial because of something else entirely. Something that everyone knew about—even the media—but wouldn't speak of in the open air dahil sa mga high profiles involved.

Open secret na nga na merong bad blood between the two basketball teams, at ilang beses na rin talaga silang nagkaalitan outside the court. I'm talking about actual brawls and physical fights. Kung bakit, I also didn't know.

"Do you really think we can win?" tanong ko sa kanya.

"Oo naman. We have a good line-up this year. Saka mas gumaling pa kapatid mo since last year."

"Tingin mo he can score a lot today?"

"Bakit ba ang kabado mo? 'Di mo naman first match 'to."

"Eh kasi. This is the first time I'm watching him live."

"And?"

"Okay, fine." I blew out a puff of air. "We had a bet. I wanna know who'll win between my brothers."

"Bet?" Tumawa si Lhyle. "On what?"

"How many points he can score."

That was also why I felt more eager and excited than the usual. For the longest time, pinagmamayabang na ni Kuya ang galing niya sa court, so my siblings and I decided to play a silly game. We made bets on how many baskets he'd make. I opted for twenty points just to play safe, which he wasn't happy about kasi offensively low daw, but I didn't know enough of his actual skills to bet more than that.

My brothers, however, were a different story altogether. They went wild with theirs, betting their precious valuables on the line.

Hindi ko na nahintay si Lhyle at halos magmadali ako papasok ng entrance nang makarating kami sa arena. Ang daming tao sa loob, as expected. Habang hinahanap ko ang seats namin, my attention drifted over to the court.