Castillian #1: Sinner's Formula

"Scarlet, the straw—don't forget it. Put it in the milk tea right away so the pearls don't dry up," Liza reminded her while busy counting coins in the cash box.

"Copy that," she replied, raising one hand like a Scout making a solemn vow never to be clumsy again—despite not yet recovering from the trauma of the juice incident with Mico Cein Esguerra.

But while she was holding the straw and piercing the plastic seal of the milk tea, she didn't notice one small detail—the fresh lip tint she applied earlier while trying to look cute in the booth mirror. She didn't realize the same finger she used to apply the lip tint was now the one gripping the straw, and the tint had transferred.

"Scarlettttttt," Kathryn called in a hushed but urgent tone. "Booth inspection incoming—with Sir Marco. Fix those drinks, quick!"

In her rush, she handed the straw to Carla and stepped to the front of the booth to fix the displays. But before she could step down from the small stool she was standing on—BAM!

"AAAAHHHH!"

She slipped and slid down straight in front of—guess who—Mico Cein Esguerra.

She didn't know what hurt more: her knees, her pride, or the fact that her hand had landed squarely on Mico's perfectly white shoes, so pristine they looked freshly unboxed.

She bit her lip. "OH MY GOD. I'm so sorry! I'm really, really sorry!"

Mico just looked at her like he was already used to girls randomly falling at his feet.

"Are you okay?" He asked, offering his hand to help her up.

"H-huh? Yes! I'm okay! I'm used to falling—for you—uh, I mean off the chair—I mean, oh my gosh!" She rolled her eyes at herself and tugged her own hair in embarrassment.

Mico chuckled. Like, for real. A small smile formed on his lips as he looked at her.

"You're kinda funny," he said. "Are you always like this?"

Before she could answer, she noticed something felt off. She wondered why Keita and Uno kept staring at the straw in the milk tea she was holding.

And then—she saw the ultimate evidence of her shame: a bright red lip tint stain on the straw.

It looked like something your grandma would leave on her lipstick after Sunday mass.

"Oh. Oh. OH. Goddammit," she whispered-shouted, covering her mouth.

"Nice shade," Keita teased, barely holding back his laughter. Uno raised a brow casually. As for Mico? Silent—but you could see in his eyes that he was fighting hard not to laugh.

"Do you guys also have a kiss booth here? Is that why there's already a souvenir on the straw?" Uno quipped, earning laughs from the others.

"Go ahead, laugh! Just laugh it up!" She cried, covering her face with her apron.

---

"I can't do this anymore, guys," Scarlet groaned, lying face down on a bench.

"It's fine, girl," Liza said, patting her back.

"At least you made Mico smile, right?"

"Smile because I embarrassed myself!"

"Girl, out of all the girls chasing after Mico, only you managed to leave a mark on his straw. I'd say that's an achievement," Carla said, raising the straw she'd already cleaned—like it was a souvenir going into a time capsule.

"Don't make me feel like I'm rated SPG just because of one lip tint!" she yelled, burying her face in a pillow.

But even though she wanted the earth to swallow her whole, a part of her heart felt giddy. It wasn't the most graceful way to be noticed by Mico—but at least he noticed her.

Damn it, Scarlet. Seriously. Are you high on your own butterflies now?

---

[The Next Day – Still Intramurals Week]

"Scarlet!"

She ran to the booth when Keita called her like she'd just won the sweepstakes.

"What is it, Keita?! Someone might hear you—you sound like a raffle announcer from the barangay!"

"Shhh. That's not it. Guess what? Mico remembered you."

Her eyebrow shot up. "As in, he remembered me as the clumsy girl who humiliated herself in front of him multiple times?"

"Nope. Worse," Uno butted in while passing by to buy kikiam. "He told us yesterday's coffee? Was good."

She froze. "WHAT?"

"Yup," Uno confirmed while dipping his kikiam into the sauce. "He said the blend was just right. Not too sweet, not too bitter. Tasty." He even wiggled his eyebrows.

She turned to Liza, who was still organizing stocks. "Liza, were you the one who made the coffee yesterday?"

"Pretty sure it was you. I was the siomai girl yesterday," Liza replied.

Her mouth dropped open. "So I'm the one who made the coffee that Mico Cein Esguerra liked?! Me?!"

"You could totally woo him with coffee," Kathryn added. "Operation: Brew Love."

"Stop it! Don't start!" she replied, clearly giddy but trying to hide her smile.

They went to the bleachers to watch the game. Of course, Mico was the main highlight.

He wore Castillian's signature blue-and-gold jersey, sweaty and intense on the court.

"GIRL. LOOK AT THOSE SHOULDERS. Like they're carved from marble!" Carla squealed while zooming in with her phone camera.

Mico jumped for a shot—perfect arc, nothing but net. The crowd went wild. But for her, everything moved in slow motion.

Who wouldn't be drawn to a guy with a GPA of 1.0, PBA-level basketball skills, and abs you'd want to caress while crying over exam results?

"You okay, Scarlet?" Liza asked, chewing on a corn dog.

"No," she whispered. "My heart is not okay."

Even my uterus is trembling.