It All Began With A Smile

😃😄😅

It all began with a smile. A dashing, debonair smile. There is nothing special about our first meeting. We were youngsters then, juniors. Confused with a lot of things, we arrived at this complex world of synergy and unity or whatever hell may call it. But way back then, a spark began in my innermost being, a feeling of desire to get something you really cannot get.

Hello, my name is Marlon Espiritu. I am the firstborn among my brothers. And because I am the eldest, my parents have high hopes for me. They thought that I will be the successor of our family business. It is a restaurant chain and our name was said to be the next Ayala's and Zobel's. But the problem is, I really don't know how to cook. I remember the last time when we had visitors from the Palace, my chicken and spaghetti did not look like the conventional ones and if you can see the redness on my father's face for he had been really mad at me! Hahahaha.

But there is something that I really, really like to do. I want to be a thespian. I don't know, but whenever I watch TV series, I would like to be like them, as if, I am playing the lead roles. I also remember practicing and memorizing the lines of my favorite actors and actresses. As I grow up, Hallyu wave was on the brink of becoming a complete hit! Because of that, I had a list of my favorite k-dramas and Korean stars on my laptop.

So, back on our topic, I saw her. We bumped at that lousy corner and we hit each others head. "What are you looking at, you moron!", she said as she cupped her aching forehead. I just gave her a big smile, but she snarled as me as if she was a hungry lion. So I just shrugged it off.

Days after, our English teacher announced the opening of the Drama club and guess how excited I am! She said that the audition for this year's play will be held the next day in the school ground at exactly 12:20 pm. What a fulfillment to my greatest dream! I really cannot wait for tomorrow!

The next day, I went to that audition and I nailed it! "I will play Romeo on this play! How lucky am I!", I said to myself. Then the casting director told me that we will have the first script reading, 3 o'clock at Room 21.

"What are you doing here?" Oh, that was the girl who bumped me at that corner!

"What are you doing here?", I replied in a sarcastic Victorian tone.

"Do you know Ms. Andrea Marasigan?", the director asked. "She will be playing Juliet, your partner for this play." he added.

Oh! It will be time for revenge as I have thought at that time. But as we go on with our play as couples, I discovered her sweet spot. She has a good speaking voice, perfect for any feminine character. She loves to sing as well. No Regine Velasquez or Andrea Quinto could match her heavenly voice. In other words, I fell head over heels for her. It is as if, I want every lines to be true. This is wrong! I have to stop this madness or else... or else...

The day of the presentation came. Silent sighs we heard as we throw lines at each other. In the end, we received a standing ovation from our audience and a commendation from our dear teachers and principal. My parents are there also and congratulated me for a job well done. At that time, everything seems to be perfect. But wait! I have to do something.

To cut the long story short, I confessed my feelings for her. It happened under the tall acacia tree in front of the school. But she just thanked me saying she cannot accept my love for her. I was shocked! This was the first time I ever confessed and she broke my heart.

But lately, I realized the reason why she did not accept me. She had leukemia, Stage 4 Terminal Stage. "Romeo and Juliet" was her last act. She was born for it so she auditioned for the lead role. But after the play, her health started to fail. And until one day, she became unconscious, and physicians tried to revive her back, but, they cannot do anything anymore. She went to see the Lord at the 6th day of September, 2012.

I inherited my family business but it doesn't mean that I had given up my greatest dream. I am a freelance director of a theater company. And on the top of that, she really never departed my heart. As a matter of fact, this All Saint's Day, I went to her final resting place. I placed flowers at the feet of her sepulcher. That is the least I can do to the girl who ever captured my heart.