A & M Imagines

Tisoy

They are done for the day. They celebrated his 25th birthday, the Dabarkads way. His friends and loved ones sent in their greetings, fans flocked the studio to greet him personally, his Dabarkads gave their messages and of course, Maine made it special once again. He was happy. Not even happy. There's no word that could perfectly describe how he's currently feeling.

Now he's left alone inside the studio. Everyone is on their way to their families. Lights are out except for one. He sits there at the middle of the stage trying to make sense of everything that has happened. He closes his eyes and a memory came flashing back.

"Tisoy, anak. Happy birthday! Naghanda ang Mama ng favorite mo oh!"

"Wow! Mama! Thank you po!" He hugged his mom as tightly as he could. He knows they don't have much, but he appreciates his mom & dad's efforts to celebrate their birthdays. As he was hugging his mom, tears rolled down his cheeks. When his mom felt it, she pulled away and cupped his face.

"Oh, bakit umiiyak ang Tisoy ko? Dapat happy. Kaya nga 'happy birthday' di ba? Tahan na anak."

"Happy lang po Ma. 'Di naman na po kailangan maghanda pero thank you po Mama. I love you."

"I love you too, anak. Syempre kailangan nating i-celebrate ang birthday niyo. Once a year lang naman dumarating yan eh."  He hugged his mom once again.

He opened his eyes and imagined what it would be like if his mom was there. He smiled at that thought.

"Ma, nakikita mo ba 'to lahat? Para sa'yo 'to. Para sainyong lahat. Twenty-five na ako Ma. Ang bilis 'no? Parang kelan lang payb pa lang si Tisoy mo, ngayon twenty-five na." He chuckles at what he said.

"Sayang Ma, wala kayo dito physically to see how your Tisoy is doing. Naiimagine ko Ma kung nandito ka maya't maya lang siguro ang kakatawag mo ng 'Tisoy!'. Hahahahaha! Nagger ka Ma eh. Bawat kibot ko may sasabihin ka, sure ako." He laughs and wipes away a tear.

"Marami nang birthday na nagdaan na wala ka Ma, and every time there's this emptiness in my chest. I don't want to sound ungrateful, pero nung mga nakaraang taon parang nasa akin ang lahat pero parang wala din? But don't worry Ma. Now I don't feel that emptiness anymore. I still feel sad. I still wish you were here with us, but my heart is content Ma, finally. Thank you Ma.  Ngayon may nag-aalaga na sa Tisoy mo. Parang ikaw nga siya eh. Masaya ako Ma, sobra." He looks up and smiles.

"Uy, anong ginagawa mo diyan? Kanina ka pa hinihintay nina Tito." Maine tapped him on his shoulder.

"Ha? Wala lang. Nagmumuni-muni lang."

"Birthday mo, huwag kang mag-drama. Halika na at naghihintay na silang lahat." She grabs him by his arm and helps him up. He pretends to trip and hugs her tight.

"Hay nako, pumaparaan ka na naman Tisoy." He smiles his be-dimpled smile, looks at her lovingly and he wraps his arm around her shoulder as they made their way out.

She's like his mom, indeed. ❤️

---------------------------------

Since it's Alden's birthday today, I just thought of writing something short to celebrate the occasion. I hope you liked it! 😊

Happy Birthday, RFJ! ❤️

(Photo credit: April Peñaranda | Twitter)