Chords of Tadhana

Chapter 10: The Sound of Goodbye

The bar was dimly lit, casting soft shadows across the worn wooden floor. Aaron sat on the edge of the stage, guitar in hand, fingers brushing lightly over the strings. The crowd tonight was small, their conversations a distant hum, but Aaron's mind was elsewhere—on someone who had been missing from the crowd for far too long.

Emily.

He hadn't seen her in months, but her presence lingered in his music. She had always been there, silently sitting at the back, watching him play. Her quiet support had become a constant in his life, even if they had barely spoken. And now that she was gone, the music felt empty.

Aaron closed his eyes and began to strum. The melody was familiar, one he had played countless times, but tonight it carried more weight. It was "Tadhana" , a song that had somehow become their unspoken connection, weaving through their fleeting moments together.

"Sa hindi inaasahang
Pagtatagpo ng mga mundo..."

The opening lines flowed through the air, soft but powerful, carrying the weight of their story. He remembered how they had met, how their worlds had collided in that quiet, unassuming way. She had been a fan, nothing more, but over time, she had become so much more than that. A muse, a memory, a melody that lingered long after the song had ended.

"May minsan lang na nagdugton..."

The guitar echoed the ache in his heart, the longing for something that had slipped away too soon. As the lyrics flowed, Aaron felt as though he was speaking directly to her, to the memory of Emily that still haunted him. He could feel her presence, even now, as if she was still sitting in that quiet corner of the bar, listening intently.

"'Di pa ba sapat ang sakit at lahat..."

The crowd sat in silence, the song wrapping around them like a gentle embrace. Aaron's fingers moved effortlessly across the strings, each note resonating with the emotions he had kept buried for so long. It wasn't just music—it was a farewell, a final conversation with someone who had left him far too soon.

"Ba't di papatulan ang pagsuyong nagkulang..."

Aaron's voice cracked slightly as he sang, the raw emotion of the lyrics hitting him harder than ever before. It was as though the song had been written for them, for this moment. The love that had been left unspoken, the feelings that had never been shared—it all poured out through the music.

"Saan nga ba patungo?
Nakayapak at nahihiwagaan..."

The song swelled, the melody rising like the tide of emotions inside him. Aaron thought of all the questions he had never asked, all the things he had never said. Where had she gone? What had she been thinking in those final days? The mystery of Emily's absence weighed heavily on him, but the music was his way of processing it all, of finding some semblance of closure.

As the song reached its final chorus, Aaron let the last lines fall gently into the silence.

"'Wag mong ikatakot ang bulong ng damdamin mo
Naririto ako't nakikinig sa'yo..."

He strummed the final chord, letting it hang in the air, the last note of their story. The room remained still, as if the world was holding its breath. Aaron set his guitar down, his heart heavy with the weight of everything that had been left unsaid.

He looked to the back of the room, to the seat where Emily used to sit, and for a moment, it was as if she were there again. Silent, watching, listening. But this time, it felt like a goodbye.

Aaron put his guitar back in its case slowly, feeling the weight of the song in his chest. Emily was gone, but her memory was alive in every chord, every lyric of the song that had once been theirs. She had been his muse, his inspiration, and even in her absence, she was still the one who had taught him what it meant to truly play from the heart.

The crowd began to disperse, their quiet conversations filling the space around him. Aaron stood up slowly, his gaze lingering on the empty space where Emily used to sit. For a moment, it felt like she was still there, watching him, listening to the music.

He walked toward the exit, his heart heavy but full at the same time. Outside, the night was quiet, but somewhere in the distance, there was a melody that only he could hear.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and stepped into the night.

The music was still there, and so was she.