#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.
...
I'M ALREADY HOME, WE ALREADY FINISHED. LOL. I ACTUALLY OWE HIM MONEY.
MAYA: OH. I THOUGHT YOU WERE WITH HIM.
JR: NO, I WENT AHEAD. I THINK HE'S WITH ALJUN RIGHT NOW.
MAYA: I THOUGHT HE'D BE HERE IMMEDIATELY AFTER.
JR: I DON'T KNOW. MAYBE HE'S ON HIS WAY THERE.
Somebody knocks on her door. "Te, naa si Kuya Noel sa gawas!" Mariel, Maya's younger sister exclaims from the other side of door.
"ATE¹, KUYA² NOEL IS OUTSIDE!"
"Okay by³! Ingna pagawas na ko." She gets up from her bed and quickly fixes her hair in front of the mirror.
"OKAY BY! TELL HIM I'LL BE OUT IN A SEC."
Maya sends a text to JR.
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MAYA: HE'S HERE
JR: OKAY. DON'T FORGET TO USE PROTECTION.
MAYA: BUANG⁴
*
Maya joins Noel and sits at the cement railing of their front porch. "Hi," Noel says.
"Hi," she says, followed by a quick peck on his lips.
"Kumusta si May-may?" Noel asks.
"HOW'S MAY-MAY?"
"Naa didto. Akoa siya giingnan nga magstudy. Tabangan na pud to nako unya sa iyahang assignment."
"SHE'S INSIDE. I TOLD HER TO STUDY. I'LL HELP HER OUT WITH HER HOMEWORK LATER."
"Wow, ka-helpful ni ate Maya uy."
"WOW MAYA, YOU'RE SUCH A HELPFUL BIG SISTER."
They laugh. Maya gently smacks his shoulder with the back of her hand.
"Asa diay mo nangadto ni Aljun?" Maya wraps her arm around his and rests her head on his shoulder.
"WHERE DID YOU AND ALJUN GO?"
"Ha? Kato gani, nagpaphotocopy sila sa libro nako."
"WHAT? I TOLD YOU, WE WERE PHOTOCOPYING MY TEXTBOOK."
"Aw, abi nakog naa pa moy gihapitan kay nag text man mi ni JR nya ana siya nga niuna na daw siya ug uli."
"OH, I THOUGHT YOU WENT SOMEWHERE AFTER BECAUSE JR AND I WERE TEXTING AND HE SAID HE WENT HOME FIRST"
Noel smiles. "Wala uy. Erm...pagkahuman niya ug uli, niuli na pud si Aljun tapos kato, nidretso nako diri. Ngano diay?"
"YEAH. ERM...ALJUN IMMEDIATELY WENT HOME AFTER JR. AND THEN I CAME HERE. WHY ARE YOU ASKING?"
"Wala lang." She purses her lips.
"NOTHING."
"Nagselos ka kang Aljun?"
"WAIT, ARE YOU JEALOUS OF ALJUN?"
Maya looks up, confused.
"Nagselos ka kang Aljun no?" Noel teases.
"YOU'RE JEALOUS OF ALJUN, AREN'T YOU?"
"Wala uy," she says. Noel starts to tickle her hips.
"NO, I'M NOT."
"Nge selosa." Noel continues to tease her hips and they both laugh.
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"OH NO, SHE'S A JEALOUS TYPE."
"Tama na." She tries to swat his hands away.
"STOP IT."
He finds a different spot on her hip to tickle. "Dili ko. Haha, selosa ug gilkanon."
"NOPE. JEALOUS AND TICKLISH!"
She pushes him off the railing and he lands on the ground just a few feet below her. "Tama na."
"STOP."
He rests on her knees and looks up at her. "I love you."
She mouths I love you too and reaches down to kiss him. Suddenly, his stomach rumbles and they stop to laugh.
"Gigutom ka baby?" Maya asks.
"OH, YOU HUNGRY, BABY?
Noel smiles, a bit embarrassed.
"Ali, lami kaayo ang giluto ni ante kakay."
"COME INSIDE. MY AUNT KAKAY COOKED DINNER."
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1: ATE (read as ah-teh) means "big sister". It isn't necessarily used for siblings. You can use ate for anyone older than you. It can also be shortened to just te.
2: KUYA (read as kuh-yah) means "big brother". Same application as ate. Can be shortened to just ya.
3: BY (read as bee) is short for "baby"
4: BUANG (read is boo-ang) literally means crazy. But it can also be used in the same way you use "Dumbass" or "Idiot".
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