The crowd went quiet as Hiko regained himself in the middle. Sa gilid niya ay si Yuri na pasulyap-sulyap. Nauna siyang magpatong ng violin sa katawan para sundan ni Hiko.
"You got this, little man."
Hiko beamed. They gave each other their last glances before starting the piece. They moved their bows in synch. Yuri would sometimes glance at Hiko to check on him. May bakas pa rin ng kaba sa mukha ng bata ngunit hindi na kasinlala ng kanina.
The music filled the whole studio, everyone was silent. It felt like a refuge that lasted for a couple of minutes. And when it's done, there's the only thing I can say. I want more.
"Wow!" Tita Carmen exclaimed. "Ang galing-galing naman pala ng Hiko namin na 'yan."
Clo took the phone from his mother and to rewatch the ending. "You played it well, Hiko. I like the ending part the most." Ginulo niya nang bahagya ang buhok ng nakasimangot na Hiko.
"It must've sounded better in person. Too bad, we didn't make it." Umupo si Dad sa harapan ng apo. "I'm sorry, Hiko. We'll be there next time."
Long story short, they weren't able to watch him live. I already knew something went wrong when not even one of them showed up. Nasiraan sila ng sasakyan at traffic pa. So I took a video for them to watch. Hiko looks down and they're thinking it's because they didn't make it.
"Are you sad because we failed our promise?" si Clo. "Sorry na. Next time, we'll be the first to arrive at the venue."
"Naku, totoo 'yan, apo. Kahit doon pa kami matulog mapanood ka lang."
"Do you want to play the piece to us right now?"
Nagsalisihan silang tatlo sa pagtatanong kay Hiko, samantalang hindi na ako nakigulo. I know why he's feeling down. And though I've told him it was still a good performance despite the mistake he made, he can't believe my words alone. Their words might help.
"I'm not sad because you weren't there," said the kid. "Honestly, Nonna, Kuya Clo, Pappa, I am thankful you weren't there."
"Why naman?"
Nagingiti ako sa reaksiyon ni Tita Carmen. She's trying her best to communicate with my son.
"Because I made an embarrassing mistake."
"What mistake could be embarrassing?" says Dad.
"I missed the rhythm at the first try, Pappa. So I stopped. The whole crowd was watching me. I did horribly on my first try."
He's reacting this way because he had high expectations. He prepared for this and was excited to show what he got.
"And so? I got wounds when I tried bike for the first time," Dad said.
"I broke the strings on my first attempt to play a guitar," si Clo naman.
"I cooked ah . . . Paano ba 'to? Clo sabihin mo, nasunog ko 'yung kanin noong unang beses akong nagsaing."
"Nonna burned the rice when she cooked for the first time." Sinunod ng lalaki ang pabor ng ina.
"You see, Hiko? There's nothing wrong with messing your firsts."
I smiled at the view of them. Nasa mahabang upuan sila at pinaliligiran nila si Hiko.
"The good thing is you learned something from it that you can apply on your next try."
"But is there a next time, Pappa?" He pouted.
"Of course. There will be next time. And by that time, we'll make it on time." He chuckled.
BINABASA MO ANG
The Heaven's Wildcard
Romance[SLOW EDIT] For most people, hell is just a concept or a place where the evils fall into after death. But for the registered nurse, Maurice Severina de Morga, it is her reality, her life. Her first cry was on her mother's death, died on a hospital b...
