(Pre-Dawn — NLEX Rest Stop)
The bus headlights carved a pale tunnel through fog and empty road.
Mika Yamaguchi Alvarado stood beside the luggage bay counting boxes like they were sacred numbers.
Six coolers, four bags of jerseys, two clipboards.
One missing water crate.
"Coach, we're missing hydration unit B."
Coach Yssa yawned. "Mika, it's four a.m. We're missing sleep too. Balance."
Then she boarded the bus.
Mika climbed in last, gripping her list.
The boys were half-awake, half-annoying.
Tom Ramos raised a brow. "You're still auditing water?"
"I'm preventing dehydration."
He nodded. "Sexy."
She ignored him completely.
Scene 1 — The Drive Up
Morning hit like a switch.
Rice fields blurred into mountain curves.
Coach Yssa was already watching her K-drama; every few minutes she'd laugh or gasp at subtitles only she could see.
Mika sat rigid, crossing off checkpoints.
When she looked down again, Tom had stolen her pen.
"Borrowing," he said.
She held out her hand. "Return policy: instant."
He clicked it twice, scribbled something on the window fog: Relax.
Then he gave it back.
Scene 2 — Arrival at San Juan
The heat hit first, then the salt.
The guesthouse looked halfway between a PE camp and a family reunion venue—posters of local bands, one ceiling fan deciding if it still worked.
Mika set her bags down. "Room keys are missing."
Coach Yssa pointed at the horizon. "So am I," she said, and walked toward the beach.
Within minutes, half the team had joined her.
Luis cannonballed into the water wearing sneakers.
Tom ran after him shouting something about hydrodynamics.
Mika stayed onshore clutching a clipboard like it was a lifeline.
Scene 3 — Game One
The beachside court was a cracked rectangle, paint fading into sand.
Kids clung to the fence. Vendors shouted over the waves.
When the whistle blew, Mika realized she'd left the score sheets in the van.
She sprinted back, came running with them, tripped, and slid on her knees in front of the bench.
Laughter broke out; one local kid clapped.
Tom offered a hand.
She waved him off, jaw tight.
Coach Yssa called, "Manager! Towels!"
Mika tossed them—one landed in a puddle.
They lost by twelve.
Not disastrous, but enough for silence on the walk back.
Scene 4 — The Mix-Up
The inn owner met her at the door.
"Miss, your reservation's for next weekend."
Every head turned.
Coach Yssa blinked. "Oh. Plot twist."
They ended up borrowing space from a surfing hostel—eight beds for twelve people.
Chaos.
Tom volunteered to sleep outside on the porch.
"Chivalry's not dead," he said.
"Stupidity isn't either," Mika muttered, trying to hide her panic as she re-sorted room keys that didn't exist.
Later, Coach Yssa found her pacing the hallway with a towel around her shoulders.
"Stop hyperventilating," she said. "You fixed it."
"It's still wrong."
"That's management. It's always still wrong."
Scene 5 — Sunset Scrimmage
Someone organized a rematch before dark.
Locals versus State U, barefoot this time, the ball slick with salt.
The tide lapped at the corners of the cement.
Mika stood near the baseline, shouting substitutions.
"Luis, out! Noel, in! Tom, stop flirting with the ocean!"
He turned mid-dribble, grinning. "Ocean's more supportive than you!"
Then he tripped in the sand.
Laughter rippled through the crowd—including her own.
They won by one point.
Small, improbable, perfect.
Scene 6 — Aftermath
Dusk melted the horizon.
The team ate barbecue on skewers, feet buried in the sand.
Coach Yssa sat on a cooler, eyes half-closed.
"Not bad, Titans. You even looked coordinated."
Mika wrote notes on her phone.
Tom sat beside her, quiet for once.
"You still working?"
"I'm pretending to."
"Convincing."
She glanced up. "You're not teasing?"
He shrugged. "I'm tired."
For the first time, she saw it—the exhaustion behind his grin.
He added softly, "You did good today, Mika."
Not Manager. Just her name.
The air thinned around the syllables.
Scene 7 — Coach Yssa's Advice
Later that night, Yssa found her sitting by the tide.
"You remind me of me," she said.
Mika looked confused. "I don't drink that much coffee."
"Yet." Yssa sat down beside her. "You're chasing control like it's a bus you'll miss. Stop running. Let it circle back."
Then she stood, brushed sand off her knees, and added, "You'll figure it out. That's the job."
Scene 8 — Bonfire
The team sang old OPM songs off-key.
Tom played percussion with two spoons.
Noel tried to teach Mika the chords; she pretended to follow.
When most of them drifted away, Tom stayed.
The firelight painted both of them amber.
"You know," he said, "you panic like it's a sport."
"I'm improving."
He smiled, but didn't laugh.
"Good. Because I'm running out of jokes to hide behind."
The honesty startled her more than the heat.
He looked down, flicking sand at the fire.
"Don't worry. I'll reload by morning."
She wanted to answer, couldn't.
Instead, she handed him her clipboard. "Hold this."
He raised an eyebrow. "Trust?"
"Temporary delegation."
Scene 9 — The Ride Home
The bus rattled through dawn again.
Everyone slept but Mika.
She typed quietly in her notes:
Manager Rule #4:
Control is overrated.
Sometimes you just schedule the chaos.
Her phone buzzed.
Tom: [still tired. next trip, you're playing.]
Mika: [statistically unlikely.]
Tom: [then let's break the stats.]
She leaned her head against the glass.
The sea rolled beside the highway, gray and infinite.
For the first time, she didn't check her clipboard.
She just watched the light return.
End of Episode 3 — "Beach Side Equation