Softly, you whisper

Two

Two

"Four laps for skipping practice yesterday, Golveo." I groaned when I heard what coach said. Nakalinya kaming lahat at suot ang varsity vest namin. Vernon chuckled beside me. Agad ring umayos nang tumingin sa kaniya si Coach.

Kieran was beside coach and was drinking his water. He smirked when he recapped the bottle.

"Yes, coach." I said accepting my punishment. Inaasahan ko naman na magkakaroon ako ng iilang laps sa court. We usually take 3 laps and more push ups on the court before playing. Kapag nahuli o sinadyang hindi mag-practice, a lot is to be expected.

"And 60 push ups, Zoe."

Nanahimik na lang ako. When coach signalled us to warm up, I did our routine. We usually have 10 warm-up exercises, depende sa gusto ni Coach. Sometimes we hold the ball as an equipment. Nang matapos kami sa warm up ay may maikling laps na tatakbuhin.

Nakisabay ako sa pagtakbo sa kanila. When they were done, I continued jogging around the court. It was big enough for both basketball and volleyball. Sa kabilang side ay nandoon ang volleyball team ng school at nag-d-diving drill.

"Sige pa, Golveo!" I heard Vernon shouted. Narinig ko ang sunod-sunod na tawanan ng iilan naming kasama. Some girls in the volleyball team turned their heads on me. Nakita ko 'yong  pinsan ni Vernon na si Justice at nakikitawa kasama si Mallorie sa may bleachers. Siguro ay manunuod na naman ng laro at makikitawa.

The boys were already starting with the practice while I was sweating bullets while running. Nang matapos ako ay sumunod ako sa push ups na pinapagawa ni Coach sa akin.

"Do you still want to play on the next game?" rinig kong tanong ni Coach habang nagp-push up ako. I raised my head a bit, panting.

"Yes, coach."

"Then don't skip practices like these. You're one of the best players, Zoe. Kieran's good since he's the captain but I most likely recommend you to play on every game since you're a frequent scorer."

I don't really care about the score. I just enjoy playing and scoring is just a bonus. I chose basketball because it's what we all love to do. Sina Vernon at Kieran ang madalas ko talagang kasama kapag naglalaro lang sa bahay. I was close with my cousins on the mother side. Sa father side naman, halos babae ang nandoon kaya hindi ko masyadong kasundo. My sisters vibe with them.

Nang matapos ako sa aking parusa ay nagpahinga ako sandali. I joined the practice later on. Tinatawanan pa ako ni Vernon dahil hindi pa simula ng practice ay pinagpapawisan na ako.

"Damn those sweat, Zoe!" He chuckled.

"Shut up." Inagaw ko sa kaniya ang bola. I swiftly dribbled the ball feeling it slipping away from me. Napamura ako nang maagaw iyon ni Vernon sa akin. He went to the other side and I tried to catch up on him.

Naagaw ng kasama ko ang bola at ipinasa sa akin. My palms were sweating so I chose to pass the ball again.

Pumito si Coach. "Golveo, what are you doing?!"

"Pasmado!" Si Vernon iyon at tumatawa pa.

"Walang nakakatawa, Bevacque." Suway ni Coach kay Vernon. I smirked a bit and started guarding my opponent.

Natapos ang practice namin na pawisan ako. Si Vernon ay tawa nang tawa dahil sa kapalpakan ko ngayong araw. I couldn't hold the ball properly as if I was losing focus.

"You want to go to the pub? Pampawala ng pagod lang," aya ni Vernon sa amin ni Kieran.

Nagkatinginan kaming dalawa ni Kieran. "Sure." The latter replied.