In the midst of the crowd, all I see is you

CHAPTER 20

MIKHA

It's been a while since we launched our debut single, "Born to Win". As a newbie in the music industry, we have a hard time creating our own identity as a group.

The management did everything they could for us. For instance, they tried to get us into exclusive interviews in different known stations for us to have exposure. We perform on different TV shows and platforms just to promote our songs. We experienced being just a backup dancer for a celebrity mall show.

We came to a point where we did vlog trips to different places, handing every person we met casually on the street a printed paper about our group hoping that they would find in their hearts to support us.

It's just sad because the others we see are just throwing away the paper that we girls worked hard to do personally. What's even sadder is that they didn't even take the time to read it. They just throw it away even though they know we can see them.

It's very debilitating, to say the least. It's tiring in the sense of, does everything we do still have a destination? We are starting to question ourselves if it was still worth it to continue despite so many breakdowns.

Days turn into weeks. Weeks turn into months. And without us knowing, months turn into a year. A year of uneventful happenings to our career. A year full of self-doubt and optimism in between.

Despite everything that has happened to us, we continued to thrive for the better. We released our sophomore full-length album, "Feel Good," with the hopes of making progress. For us, this moment ushered in a new era. Our bubblegum pop sound just started. There are seven tracks on the album overall.

Little by little, there is a change. Somehow, some people have come to appreciate every piece of music we create. Even if there are not many people who support us, it is enough reason for us eight to continue to hold on to the dream that we started.

We have an inside joke that we only have 65 loyal fans. They are present at almost all of our events. And because they were only a few, they became familiar faces to us.

If before they would pass us by and wouldn't even spare us a glance, now there are casual fans who would stop just to jam with us when we are performing.

In the third quarter of the year 2023, we released a new EP entitled, ''Talaarawan''. It has five tracklists. We released this EP without high expectations attached to it. Perhaps, because we don't want to be disappointed if it doesn't turn out to be a hit.

As the year 2024 entered, our careers continued to soar. Our song Pantropiko, which we released in November, went viral and was dubbed the summer anthem of the Philippines.

Our success continued when we released a new song, which is an extended part of our EP, Talaarawan. The song ''Salamin, Salamin'' is our gift to our fans, and it symbolizes our eternal gratitude.

I let out a sigh. I keep reminiscing about everything that happened to us during the past year. I still feel that everything has not sunk into me. It doesn't seem real. It feels surreal.

''Seems like you're in a deep thought, Mikhs. Mind sharing it with me? You might drown yourself from thinking about it too much.'' Maloi said and sat beside me.

By the way, we are now on the rooftop of the condo I'm staying at. Maloi will be a judge in Tawag ng Tanghalan on It's Showtime tomorrow and her call time is early so I offer her to sleep here in my condo since it is close to the studio.

''It was just a random thought of mine. Like, I was happy with the achievements we are getting today. I really am. To be honest, I'm relieved that the rigorous diet and exercise we had before were over. What we do daily varies from each other, which I find thrilling. Simply put, even if you love what you do, sometimes it could still drain the shit out of you. Many endorsements are lined up. Commercial shoot here, mall performance there, and so on. Despite the exhaustion, I'm glad I'm doing all those things with all of you,'' I paused as I was battling for words to say.

''We don't even live in the same house anymore. We have our own condo. Honestly, it's a bittersweet feeling. I'm happy because now we have "me time" when we're drained from everything. We now have privacy for ourselves. Before, we only saw the faces of the eight of us and the coaches 24/7. We know each other's smell very well; that's how familiar we are with each other. Now, I miss the simplicity of the life we had before.'' I added.

''Aww, is this your soft hour moments, Mikhs? But I agree with you, though. Life back then was simple. Now, we have many things to consider before we act.'' She said.

"Things have been hard lately. It's as if I'm becoming foreign to the things I'm used to doing back then. I'm not sure if what I'm saying has any sense but, that's how I feel at the moment."

I sighed for the nth time today. I lay down and looked at the sea of ​​stars.

Gazing up at the stars was therapeutic for me. It always leaves me feeling in awe. It allows my mind to drift away from things that have been stressing me out for a day and it soothes me.

"I couldn't agree more with you, Mikhs. And I think, what you're feeling is valid. You just need to find a good breather in between everything that is happening to you. Don't let things get the best out of you. Careful for it might consume you." She said and gently laid down next to me.

A long silence enveloped us.

"Hey, do you mind if we take a walk near the park?" She said, breaking the silence we had for a while.

"Yes please, I've been dying to do that. You know, we don't have all the kinds of time due to our hectic schedule lately. And even if we have, it's not easy for us to do so." I puckered my lips.

"Alright, Mikhs. To tell you what, I'll even buy you an ice cream if you continue to be this cute." She chuckled

"Why do I feel like you're going to ask for something in return after this?" I eyed her suspiciously.

"Nope, all you need to do is be with me in our group's future endeavors. That's all, as easy as that." She said.

"And why will I do that? What good it will give me?" I asked.

"Trust me, we will both benefit from it. I just want to knock some sense into your best friend's head. In return, who knows? The one you've been silently crushing on for a while might have the same feelings as you have." She knowingly said. She has this mischievous look on her face as if she had planned it for long.

Why do I feel like something bad is going to happen?