Aiah scrolled through the list of music schools on her laptop, sighing at the overwhelming number of options in front of her. Who knew choosing a hobby for a five-year-old would be this hard?
She leaned back on her couch, rubbing her temples as her long brunette hair fell in waves around her face. Multitasking her way through her morning was second nature by now. Having dropped off Enzo at pre-school earlier, she finally had a few hours to herself. Not that "herself" really meant anything relaxing — her to-do list was a mile long: bills to pay, work emails piling up, her master's thesis waiting to be chipped away at, groceries that wouldn't shop for themselves, and now, finding guitar lessons for her five-year-old rockstar-in-training.
Life as a single mom had taught her to operate like this — always spinning plates, always thinking three steps ahead. She'd been thrust into this role at just twenty, back when she was barely learning to stand on her own two feet. Enzo wasn't planned, but when he arrived, everything in her life shifted. His dad, Paolo, had bolted the moment things got tough. Aiah could still remember that day, as if it were a scar she kept brushing by accident. Paolo had been a smooth talker, the type of guy who could make the wildest dreams sound reasonable, and Aiah had fallen for it all. But when she told him she was pregnant, his charm melted into excuses.
"Hindi pa ako ready, Aiah. Bata pa tayo," Paolo had said, eyes darting away, voice unsteady.
"And you think I am?" Aiah had replied, her voice cracking but firm. That was the last real conversation they'd had. Paolo had disappeared shortly after, leaving her to figure out everything on her own.
Or at least, almost on her own. Aiah wasn't blind to how lucky she was compared to others in her position. Her parents had been furious at first, their disappointment thick in the air, but when Enzo came, they'd softened. They helped her stay in school and provided a stable roof over her and Enzo's heads. She still lived close to them now, which gave her enough breathing room to juggle grad school, part-time work, and being a mom. And then there were her best friends — Maloi, Jho, and Sheena — who had practically been her co-parents during those long, sleepless nights in Enzo's early years. Without them, Aiah wasn't sure she'd have survived it all.
But now, at 25, things were... manageable. Mostly. Enzo was the bright, beating heart of her life, his endless energy and curious mind fueling her even on her most exhausted days. Which brought her back to the task at hand: finding him a guitar teacher.
Ever since he started watching Kids Rockers, Enzo had been glued to the idea of becoming a rockstar. He'd even begged her to buy him a toy guitar, which he carried everywhere like a security blanket. Aiah didn't mind — in fact, she loved seeing him so passionate about something. She just wanted to make sure whoever taught him shared that same passion.
Aiah sighed, snapping her laptop shut. None of the reviews online felt personal enough. The schools sounded expensive, rigid, and a little too corporate for what she had in mind. She needed someone who could connect with Enzo on a deeper level. Frustrated, she grabbed her phone and dialed her best friend Maloi, her go-to for advice and emotional support.
"Hello?" Maloi's voice came through the line, bright and teasing. "Sino 'to? Parang ngayon lang kita narinig ulit ah?"
"Maloi, huwag mo akong i-guilt trip ngayon," Aiah groaned, though she was smiling. "May problema ako."
"May problema ka lagi," Maloi quipped. "Ano na naman ang latest?"
"I need help finding a guitar teacher for Enzo. He's obsessed with this whole rockstar thing, pero wala akong mahanap online na mukhang swak."
"Ahhh..." Maloi's tone shifted to something more thoughtful. "Teka lang. I think may kilala ako."
"Talaga? Sino?" Aiah perked up.
