Chapter 37
The café was calm and cozy, half of its tables empty. Late afternoon light spilled through the wooden blinds. Faint music played overhead—old love songs no one paid much attention to.
Kairi and Miss Herrera sat by the window.
Kairi had a ham and cheese sandwich and iced coffee in front of her. Si Miss Herrera naman, cappuccino with delicate foam art and a small butter croissant.
For a while, tahimik lang sila. Resting.
"I like this place," Kairi said, tapping her straw against the ice. "It's still."
Miss Herrera glanced at her. "That's more your style."
Kairi gave a small shrug. "I don't like too much going on."
"I know," Miss Herrera murmured, cutting into her croissant. "Which is why I was surprised you really came."
Hindi agad sumagot si Kairi. She just stirred her drink slowly, the soft clink of ice filling the silence.
Then, softly—
"Because you were there."
Miss Herrera blinked, as if caught off guard by the honesty—pero hindi siya umiwas ng tingin. She just studied Kairi, quiet and thoughtful.
"You could've said no."
"I didn't want to."
Bahagyang napangiti si Miss Herrera sa narinig. She looked back down at her plate, but her expression stayed—just a little softer than before.
Kairi leaned her elbow on the table, picking at the edge of her sandwich. "So. What's your plan for the rest of the day?"
Miss Herrera tilted her head, as if weighing how much to say. "I'm going home."
"Like...home home?" Kairi asked. Naalala niya kasi ang kwento ng guro dati na sinusubukan niyang umuwi sa bahay nila kapag may time o kaya.
Miss Herrera gave her a knowing look. "And what exactly does home home supposed to mean?"
"You know," Kairi said. "Family house. Childhood bedroom. The place where your embarrassing childhood photos still exist."
Miss Herrera laughed softly. "Yes. That one."
"Where?"
"Out of town," sagot ni Miss Herrera, sipping her drink.
Kairi narrowed her eyes. "That's vague."
"I like being vague."
"Are you hiding something?"
Miss Herrera smirked. "Only my peace."
Kairi rolled her eyes. "So...secret mountain house?"
Miss Herrera shook her head, amused.
"Private beach? Hidden forest cabin?"
"I like nature, but not enough for that much maintenance."
Kairi squinted at her. "A hacienda. And may mga kabayo."
That made Miss Herrera laugh—this time, iyong totoo. Walang filter. Walang control.
"You think I grew up in a hacienda?"
"You've got that energy."
"What kind of energy is that?"
"The kind that makes people fix their posture when you enter the room."
Miss Herrera gave a dramatic sigh. "Fine. Yes. I live in a hacienda. With a mango orchard. And a private chapel."
"And a fountain."
Miss Herrera nodded, sipping again. "Naturally. There's a family peacock, too."
And they both laughed, and it lingered.
Outside, the sun dipped lower, casting warm shadows on the table between them.
Kairi rested her chin on her hand, eyes filled with curiosity. "You're not going to tell me, are you?"
Miss Herrera arched a brow. "And ruin the mystery?"
Kairi leaned closer, playful. "You know, malalaman ko rin eventually."
"Is that so?"
"You underestimate how annoying I can be when I want answers."
Miss Herrera stirred her drink slowly. "On the contrary. I'm counting on it."
Bahagyang napahinto si Kairi—not quite smiling now, just watching her. May kung anong shift sa boses ni Miss Herrera. A softness. A flicker of something more.
Nagtagpo ulit ang mga mata nila, and the rest of the café blurred into silence.
Then Miss Herrera tilted her head, as if she realized she'd said too much, and gently set her fork down.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked.
Kairi blinked, slowly coming back to herself. "Yeah. Let me just finish this."
Miss Herrera nodded and leaned back in her chair, waiting.
And Kairi, as she took one last bite, knew she'd ask again about that childhood home. Not today. Not tomorrow.
Pero balang araw, she would.
And Miss Herrera would answer.
Saturday evening, Kairi lay sideways on her bed, one arm folded under her head, the other lazily scrolling through her phone. The soft glow from the screen lit up the faint smile on her face—small, quiet, the kind na hindi mo agad malalaman kung anong pinagmulan.
Maya sat cross-legged by the headboard, highlighter tapping lightly against her knee habang naka-focus sa notes niya. Zoe occupied the desk, glaring at her laptop screen with intensity.
"You're smiling," Maya said suddenly, squinting at Kairi.
Kairi didn't look up. "No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are," singit ni Zoe, spinning in her chair just enough to glance over. "That's a very specific smile. Like post-confession smile. Or post-kilig smile. Or 'I-know-something-you-don't' smile."
"I'm just on my phone," Kairi replied, trying to keep her voice even. Pero halata ang tuwa.
Maya leaned forward. "Did something happen?"
Kairi shrugged, still scrolling. "Define something."
Zoe narrowed her eyes. "Okay, so not nothing."
Kairi finally looked up nang hindi nawawala ang ngiti. "Hmm...we're okay."
Zoe blinked. "Who's 'we'?"
"Wait—wait. You mean Miss Herrera?" Maya asked, eyes wide.
Kairi didn't say anything. Pero the silence said it all.
"Oh my—" Maya hissed. "So you are okay now? Like, more-than-okay okay?"
Kairi rolled onto her back, letting her phone fall to her chest. "We talked."
"You talked," Zoe repeated, tone skeptical. "That word is working overtime lately."
Kairi laughed softly. "It wasn't like that."
"Was it like 'casual school hallway' talk or 'private, meaningful eye contact' talk?" Maya asked, too invested.
Kairi paused. "More...coffee shop after volunteering with kids kind of talk."
Both girls froze.
Maya's voice dropped a pitch. "You two had coffee. After a volunteer event. Alone?"
Zoe gaped. "Soft lighting café kind of alone?"
Kairi pulled her blanket over her head. "I hate you both."
Maya tugged the blanket back down. "Nakangiti ka na naman!"
"You guys are being dramatic," Kairi muttered, but she was laughing now.
Zoe grinned. "So, anong nangyari? Spill. Anong sinabi ni Miss Herrera? Did she look at you like—like you're made of stars or whatever?"
"She always looks at her like that," Maya added.
Kairi groaned and buried her face in a pillow. "We didn't do anything."
"Yet," Zoe corrected.
Kairi threw the pillow at her. "You're impossible."
Maya leaned back, still smiling. "Pero glowing ka."
Hindi ito itinanggi ni Kairi.
Kasi totoo. They were more than okay now. Hindi lang patched-up or cautiously distant—but something steadier. Closer. Softer.
May linya pa rin sa pagitan nila—unspoken and real. But it wasn't a wall anymore. It felt like a choice. Isang boundary na pareho nilang nakikita, pareho nilang iniiwasan pero hindi nila tinatanggihan.
It didn't stop the way Miss Herrera looked at her now.
Didn't stop the way they spoke—quietly, with weight.
Didn't stop the smile Kairi still hadn't shaken off since they left the café.
"Okay," Zoe said suddenly, stretching her arms before typing again. "At least we know we won't get roasted sa Monday."
Kairi looked over. "What makes you think that?"
Zoe glanced over. "Uh, because your situation with you-know-who seems...not murder-y anymore?"
Maya looked up from her notes. "Yeah. She might go easier on us."
"Doubt it," Kairi muttered, pulling her blanket up to her chest. "She still might throw us the hardest, most soul-sucking question just for fun."
Zoe groaned. "Ugh. Don't say that."
"What? Seryoso ako," Kairi said. "She enjoys it. That thing she does—when she tilts her head, raises her eyebrow. I've seen lives flash before eyes."
Maya covered her face with her notebook. "I'm not built for that kind of trauma."
Kairi smirked. "You think just because she's not mad at me anymore, she'll go easy?"
"Yes?" Zoe said, hopeful.
"No. Duda ako," Kairi said flatly. "She might go harder just to maintain the illusion of fairness."
Zoe slumped in her chair. "Great. So we're all gonna die."
"Not all," Maya muttered. "Just whoever she decides to laser-focus on."
Zoe pointed at Kairi. "So, you."
"Tama," Maya agreed. "As long as it's you, Kai, safe kami Zoe."
Kairi glared. "Wow. Love the solidarity in this group."
Zoe shrugged. "We're just saying if someone's gonna be thrown into the academic flames, it might as well be the one na kanina pa mag-isang nakangiti."
"I'm allowed to smile," Kairi said, hiding her face with her pillow again. "It's legal."
Maya raised a brow. "Is it legal after having café moments with our teacher?"
Zoe leaned back in her chair. "That sounds like a spin-off title."
"Shut up," Kairi groaned into the pillow.
They laughed. And somehow, kahit magulo ang kwarto—papers, open tabs, deadlines—it didn't feel so heavy anymore.