Love on Trial

Chapter 21: Disappointment

A'ishah's POV

Last night was insane! Like how we predicted, it is indeed the talk of the country.

Everyone knows about their real estate now, and everyone knows about me na din. I saw on X na nakalkal na ng iba yung mga pictures ko from my previous modeling gigs sa London.

Honestly, it feels nice to be recognized by your hard work. But I actually wanted to focus on my studies for now. I don't like the spotlight anymore like I used to when I was modeling in London.

Pumayag lang naman akong rumampa ngayon because of Maxi. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't do it.

Last night, we had an intimate after party. Very chill lang yung vibe and wala masyadong alak na involved. All we did was talk about the successful grand opening, and my runway.

Maxine didn't allow me to drive my car pauwi kagabi kaya sa bahay nila kami natulog. Hindi lang naman ako kasi pati ang girls dito na rin pinatuloy nila Tito and Tita.

They didn't allow anyone to leave, or stay sa hotel kasi it's better to stick together and make sure that everyone is safety daw. Besides, kargo pa nila kami kung may mangyari man sa amin kaya sumunod na kami for everyone's peace of mind na din.

The girls decided to sleep in the living room. Naglabas sila ng mga higaan para sama-sama nalang daw kami doon.

But Maxi has a different plan. She wanted to be alone with me daw because her social battery is drained na kaya pumayag akong matulog nalang with her sa room niya.

Kaya pagbaba namin ni Maxi para magbreakfast, the girls are teasing us. Wala parin silang alam kung anong namamagitan sa amin ni Maxine.

I mean, siguro naman kahit papano may alam sila diba? Pero they never tried to ask us. Palagi lang silang nang-aasar.

“Oh my gosh, A’ishah! Look at this!” Mara excitedly showed me an article from a known mainstream media.

Nagkagulo ang social media sa mga pictures and videos ko kagabi and now, pati mainstream media? What the hell?

“Grabe ka na talaga, A’ishah!” Sasha exclaimed, reading the same article.

“May nabasa pa ako kagabi. Gusto ka daw kunin ng isang clothing brand.” Gwyneth showed me her phone, a comment of a known clothing brand sa ig post ng isa sa mga dumalo kagabi ay mababasa doon.

They are asking who I am and how they can contact me because they want to do a project with me.

Honestly, this is a bit overwhelming. Medyo nalulula ako sa mga nangyayari ngayon. Hindi naman sa hindi ako sanay sa atensyon. I have hundreds of thousands of followers on my different social media accounts, and my name is somehow known in London kaya masasabi ko naman na sanay ako sa atensyon.

It's just that, sobra-sobra yung attention na nakukuha ko ngayon sa Philippines. One moment I was just a simple college student, and then the next second everyone was suddenly curious about me.

Everyone wanted to meet me, and they wanted to work with me. Sobrang bilis ng mga pangyayari laluna kagabi lang lahat nangyari ‘yon kaya hindi ko alam paano ihahandle lahat ng ito ngayon.

I can’t help but feel a little out of place with all this attention. Yes, I’m used to the modeling world back in London, but this is different. It’s overwhelming because I came here to study and have a fresh start. I left all that behind.

Maxine’s voice snaps me out of my thoughts as she nudges my shoulder. “Babi, you okay?” She whispered, enough for only me to hear.

I glance at her and give a small smile, appreciating the concern in her eyes. She’s been the calm in this storm since last night. I lean my head against her shoulder briefly before straightening up again. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just… processing everything.”