Gotta Be You {Chandara} - COMPLETED

6. FIRST LOVE

"Daraaaaa!!!" Nagulat ako sa biglang pagsigaw sa akin ni CL. Agad itong tumakbo palapit at niyakap n'ya ko nang mahigpit.

Nandito kami ngayon sa cafe ng YG Entertainment building. Ang tagal din naming hindi nagkita kasi naging sobrang busy s'ya sa kanyang US debut. Nakaka-proud ang narating n'yang success outside of Korea.

"I've missed you." She said to me sweetly.

"Lalo na ko. Super na-miss din kita. Did you get to see Bommie there? Kumusta na s'ya?" Tanong ko kay CL.

Nasangkot kasi sa isang controversy si Bommie, isa pang member ng grupo namin, so the management decided to approve her indefinite leave para makapagpahinga at makaiwas sa pressure ng intriga. She's staying with her family in the US now for her much-needed break.

"Oh, Bommie is perfectly fine. She's playing football again kaya very fit s'ya ngayon. She said she misses you and Minzy as well. Don't worry about her. She said she's happy." CL assured me.

I was glad to hear that Bommie is finally okay; especially that CL heard it directly from Bommie herself. I'm in regular contact with Bommie on Facebook but iba pa rin talaga kapag personal.

Korean entertainment industry can be so ruthless sometimes. Aside from the extreme pressure for us to look our best and do our best with our work, the level of harrassment we receive from the media and netizens in general on a daily basis is insane.

One wrong move and they can totally slay you. They tend to exaggerate every little personal thing they dig about you. Mapa-positive man o negative, they will dissect it and make up something out of it. The concept of privacy is unheard of for them. They know no bounds since you are essentially 'public property'.

And after going through grueling years of training and workshops, madalas nagiging iba ang impact ng negative intrigues sa artists. Yung iba nga sa sobrang pressure nagsu-suicide na, which is very unfortunate.

That's why I'm proud na iba ang bond namin ng 2ne1. We treat each other as real sisters and supportive kaming apat sa isa't isa. We're very open and we try our best to be there for each other all the time. It helps also that we have loving families who keep us grounded. They say that it's very easy to get trapped in the showbiz bubble and that's so true. Kailangan talaga may reality check parati or you'll get suck into it so bad if you're not careful. Mahirap makawala.

"So how's our best actress doing lately? I'm so proud of your first web drama, Dara! I watched it online and sobrang kilig na kilig ako. You are so amazing! Saka balita ko madami ka na naman daw new fanboys. Iba ka talaga, Gandara! Share mo naman 'yung iba sa 'kin." Biro ni CL.

"Sira ka talaga. The CEO will kill me if I introduce you to guys. Baka nakakalimutan mong you're still on a dating ban. Bawal ka pa sa boys." Pagpapaalala ko. CL is our band's leader but I'm still older than her kaya tama lang na paalalahanan ko s'ya. "And yes, I'm happy with acting. Medyo nakakapanibago lang nung una, but I'm enjoying it. Walang time for boys at all." Dagdag ko.

"Oh my! Dara noona of a million fanboys. Magiging old maid ka talaga kapag ganyan ka. When will you start dating? Naiinip na ko." Naka-pout na hirit ni CL.

"I'm so busy these days and there aren't any guys to begin with." Malungkot na sagot ko.

"So none of those fanboys are actually coming forward? Gosh, sa social media at intervews lang pala malalakas ang loob nila. Boys!" CL rolled her eyes in digust. "Basta Dara you should date a man ha? Boys are gross. You deserve a good-looking and tough man." She added with so much conviction.

"I know." Pagsang-ayon ko. Nami-miss ko talaga si CL at ang pagiging empowered n'ya.

"By the way, whatever happened to that childhood crush of yours? Yung first love mo?" CL asked me out of the blue while sipping her latte.

"Wala na 'yun matagal na. He likes someone else. Saka grabe ka naman maka-label na first love. Crush ko lang." Kibit-balikat kong sagot.

"Sayang naman. Iba pa naman ang glow mo kapag kinukwento mo s'ya sa amin before. Saka it would be nice to date someone you know so well." CL sighed. "Come to think of it. You never mentioned to us his name. Sino ba s'ya?" Biglang naisip n'yang itanong.

"Hay naku. His name's not important anymore. You're asking too much questions talaga. Bakit ba lovelife ko lagi ang topic pag nag-uusap tayo?" I tried to change the subject. Medyo pinagpapawisan na kasi ang kili-kili ko sa mga tanong ni CL. Nakaka-nerbiyos.

"Syempre lovelife mo ang pag-uusapan natin kasi hindi pa naman ako pwede makipag-date, remember? Hmmm... Don't tell me he's someone already famous now? Kasi I remember you told us he's training for a competing agency that time. Let me see... Sino kaya sa mga sikat na boy band members ang first love mo, Dara?" CL still won't cut it out. "Pwedeng from Shinee, Super Junior or maybe from EXO?"

Boom.

"Just stop, CL. Wag mo nang isipin kung sino s'ya. You won't be able to squeeze any information from me. And like what I said nothing came out naman of that crush. Wala na 'yun. Matagal na matagal na. Just forget it. Ako nga nakalimutan ko na." Depensa ko.

"But you've worked with Shinee di ba? Isa ba sa kanila? Kasi kung sa EXO naman... wait, sino ba ang pumasok sa school mo before na EXO member?" Muling hirit ni CL, obviously still thinking about possible boy band members, at konting-konti na lang talaga matutumbok na n'ya kung sino.

Baka mamula ang mga pisngi ko kapag nabanggit pa n'ya ang pangalan ng kapre. And knowing CL, she is such a bad ass when it comes to reading people. She's incredibly good at it that for sure she'd instantly see right through me. Hindi ko keri! Mabubuking ako. No no no no no.

"Let's go!" Hinila ko na lang s'ya paakyat ng building so she can meet other artists na for sure na-miss din s'ya. Hindi ko na kinakaya ang mga tanong n'ya.

"But I'm still..." Protesta ni CL.

"No but's." I zipped her immediately.

Parang kasing nilalagyan ng kimchi ang pwet ko sa sobrang kaba.