"Congratulations!" people that they passed by from the stage to the green rooms were happy with Maine's performance in this week's Celebrity Challenge Accepted competition. Rj was nervous as he watched Maine perform. He had a bad habit of biting his nails when he was stressed and his nervousness watching Maine perform was one of the triggers of his stress.
"How are you feeling?" Rj asked Maine as she plopped down on the sofa, still in her panda costume.
"Huh?" Maine was dazed and unfocused. Rj sat beside her and slowly unzipped the costume from behind. He helped her out of the costume and back into her regular clothes. She sat down again and drank all the water from the litre bottle she was given after her number.
"Uy, Love...okay ka lang?" Rj asked again with concern as he noticed that Maine was flushed in the cheeks and breathing heavily. He got a towel from his things and started wiping the sweat on her forehead and neck.
Suddenly, Maine slumped on the sofa; She had passed out.
Rj feared this would happen. Maine had lacked sleep and rest from the full load of work she had the previous day. She only rehearsed for her number that morning and the panda costume was thick, heavy and hot. Because she was nervous, she also ate very little for breakfast and lunch.
"Ma....Maine.....Maine...." he called to her as he cradled her head on his lap. She was limp and cold to touch. Rj continued to wipe the sweat from her body while the in-house medics worked to revive her. Within a few minutes, although still a bit pale, Maine gained consciousness and sat on Rj's lap as he cradled her, her head resting on his shoulder.
"Wag ka nalang kaya sumama sa closing prod" Rj suggested as Direk Pat called out instructions for the next portions of the show.
"Kaya mo ba?" One of the production staff inquired.
Maine nodded a little.
"Wag mo na pilitin kung di mo kaya...." Direk Pat told her.
"Di...kaya....di ko naman kailangan suotin yung ulo nung panda, diba?"
"Wag mo na suot...bitbitin mo nalang..." Direk Pat said.
Maine nodded again and settled her head back on Rj's shoulder. She closed her eyes.
The show progressed without any more problems back stage. Maine chose to join the gang when they handed gifts to the lucky audience members. Although still feeling a bit woozy, she just smiled through the entire segment. Rj, who was as excited as a kid on Christmas day, gamely and excitedly helped the youngest winner, Precious, open the gifts she asked for. Maine watched how happy her "payb yir old" boyfriend was with the toys the little girl received. If these were boy toys (trucks, planes, guns, building sets, etc), he would surely be playing with them already! After the gift-giving segment, Rj offered Maine some soda to boost her sugar levels as she was still a bit pale and lethargic as they went into a commercial gap.
Rj once again helped Maine back into her panda costume but held off putting the head gear her. He looked at her in the eye as if to remind her of their agreement that she would just carry the panda's head and not wear it anymore. She nodded and joined Paolo and Aicelle on stage as the winner was announced. Maine won the contest, much to Rj's delight. He hugged her tightly and congratulated her. Once away from the audience and the backstage crowd and back to her "normal" clothes, he embraced her tightly and kissed her on the lips.
