Niko regularly checked his social media account to see who 'liked' his videos. He also read the comments of the parents of his students. As Niko conducted more lessons, the number of likes increased. Most of the names were familiar and from his friends. There was one 'liker' that repeatedly liked his videos whom he wasn't familiar with.
"Riki" was the name on the account. In Niko's mind, a "Riki" is a character in one of his video games.* Niko clicked on the default picture, a pair of sneakers. However, the page only bore the name "Riki" and was private. "Riki" and Niko didn't have any common friends either. Niko wondered how "Riki" discovered his page and videos. There were other 'strangers' who sent their replies to his videos but most of them were his friends, acquaintances, and friends of friends. He couldn't also explain why he was very curious of this "Riki" person in particular.
---
"Naniniwala ka ba sa destiny?" Sam, his friend, asked. They were both at the relief facility. They were on a short break from transporting boxes from the disinfecting area to the other sections of the facility.
"Anong pinagsasasabi mo?" Niko looked at Sam. They were both wearing caps with face shields, their masks down to their chins because they were eating.
"Destiny. Tadhana. Yung sa Crash Landing on You"
Niko looked at Sam in confusion.
"Sa Netflix. Yung mga bida, si Se-ri at Capt. Ri, nagkita na pala sila dati pero di nila alam tapos, nagkita sila ulit and yun, naging sila."
"Aldub, ganon?"
"Parang ganun. Diba sina Alden at Maine, nagkita sila dati tapos yun, nagkita ulit. So baka, kayo nitong Riki na to, nagkita na kayo tapos magkikita kayo ulit or eto yung first encounter nyo so malamang may kasunod pa..."
"...hay ewan!" Niko shook his head.
"Pero naiisip mo yang Riki na yan..."
"Yun nga e. Weird no?"
"Weird nga. Sabagay, weird ka naman talaga." Sam teased.
"Ulol!"
"Pero pare, salamat talaga sa mga lessons mo sa mga bata. Hangang-hanga si Din sa tiyaga mo."
"You're welcome" Niko said, smiling. He missed being in a physical classroom.
"...bakit di mo kaya i-message yang "Riki" na sinasabi mo?" Sam said after a while. They were on their way back to the disinfection area.
"Bakit?"
"Malay mo kung gusto din nya i-enroll yung anak nya sa klase mo..."
"Hmm...sabagay..." Niko thought but the thought of messaging a stranger to ask what they needed wasn't on his mind. "...antayin ko nalang na sya mag-message" he thought to himself. "...sana soon..."
