It all still seemed so surreal. Yesterday they were ordinary boys no one would notice among the sea of people in the busy streets of Manila. But today, B.P.H. can't even visit the carnival without disguising themselves well enough to be totally unrecognizable. The last time they went out in public as the gorgeous boys they were was to join Anthon satisfy his sinigang cravings, and the crowd went wild and mobbed them. Everyone didn't want that to happen again-Kael even ended up with a deep scratch on his arm.
Tonight, City of Stars was filled with people-a usual scenario on a starry Saturday evening. Children screamed for more cotton candy, couples snuggled in the ferris wheel, and singles fought hard to win in the arcade games, hoping to get a teddy bear of their own.
"O tignan nyo, full-packed! Kung sinabi nyo lang sana saken in advance, I would have rented this place for the whole night, exclusive lang for the five of us," Kael remarked, as he looked around lazily at the boisterous atmosphere through his dark sunglasses.
"Paanong sasabihin sa'yo? Eh surprise nga diba? Charaaaan!" Daeniel said.
The days after they were launched as High Hopes Academy's final five actually went by like a blur that they didn't get a chance to properly celebrate Kael's birthday. So, his ever thoughtful co-members decided to take him to the carnival. Kael once mentioned in passing that he never went to one when he was a kid because he was afraid of something. He told everyone it was heights that he was afraid of. But then one lazy evening when they had nothing to do, Anthon decided to stalk the boys' profile and accidentally came across a video of Kael skydiving in Macau. He found it contradicting: Kael was supposed to fear heights. With a little probing, he finally made Kael spill the beans-he had a peculiar fear of clowns.
"Wow guys, I'm really touched. Sobrang gusto ko naman talagang ma-experience toh. Besides, nakaget over naman na ako sa aking acrophobia eh. Tara, let's buy tickets na. Treat mo, Fourth, diba?" Kael was starting to feel ecstatic. Besides, he hadn't seen a single clown in the vicinity, so he's safe to enjoy the night anyway.
"O sige na nga, pambili ko sana toh ng mga bagong caps eh. Pero dahil mahal kita...Miss, limang ride all-you-can tickets for us!" Fourth obliged to his kuya.
The lady at the ticket booth looked up from her phone and squinted at the boys in front of her. Looks familiar, she thought.
"Uy may chix o!" Daeniel couldn't help but exclaim. He looked at the girl's nameplate. "Anong name mo sa Facebook Lizzie? Papa-add kita kay And-!"
Kael hit Daeniel on his arm to cut him off. Lizzie rolled her eyes, and gave Fourth their tickets.
"Enjoy." She said dryly.
"Speaking of Andy, where the hell is he?" Anthon asked.
"Hay naku, wag nyo na hintayin. Baka nandito lang yun, may ka-date na naman sigurong iba," Daeniel covered up for his best friend.
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"Kael okay ka lang?" Fourth asked all of a sudden. They all turned to look at Kael.
He was staring straight ahead, eyes fixed on a towering figure walking towards them. The clown approached them, his overly colorful outfit contrasting with his dark, menacing paint-covered face. When he reached the boys, however, he smiled widely, showing two perfect rows of white teeth.
"Hey there, boys! Did you know that if you buy five ride-all-you-can tickets, you'd get a chance to have a free tour guide to show you around this amusement park! And that's meeee!" the clown said in a high-pitched voice.
"Uh, I don't think so. We'll be fine on our own," a pale Kael managed to croak.
"Hahahaha ano ba Kael, chance mo na yan o. Diba first time mo dito? At kami naman eh matagal na ring di nakapunta. So baka may mga di na rin kami alam. Gorabels na!" Daeniel urged, agreeing with the mysterious clown. The clown then gave Daeniel a high-five.
Kael looked helplessly at Anthon who only said, "Go bro, it's time to face your fears."
"Fears? I love fears. First stop is the Horror Chamber?" the clown asked, excitement evident in his voice.
Kael swallowed. He couldn't be a coward in front of the boys.
"Okay fine. Game," he replied half-heartedly.
"Pero bro, bili muna kami popcorn. Nakakagutom din pala. Susunod kami agad swear," Daeniel said.
The clown half-dragged Kael towards the direction of the Horror Chamber, skipping happily in a childish way. When they were out of sight, Anthon and Daeniel burst out laughing.
"Hahahahah have you seen Kael's face?!! Sarap ipang IG story!"
"Huy basta ako di ako kasali dito ha. Nakakaawa kaya si Kael," Fourth said guiltily.
"Tama lang yun noh! He's old already. Dapat di na siya matakot sa clown. By the way, Andy's really good huh! In character talaga! Diba Dae?"
"Guys..."
"Whut?"
"Guys nag text pala si Andy."
'La aq load nakitxt lng aq. D aq makakapunta nagpasama kapatid ko la aq choice. Yung clown costume iniwan ko sa likod ng car, baka kaw nlng pwde magsuot Dae.'
"What the f-"
"Hala uy! Kinsa man tung kauban ni Kael?!"
"Kaya pala may k-kutsilyo. Wala yun sa plano. Nakita ko...may k-k-k-kutsilyo. Pero akala ko si Andy kaya..." Daeniel stammered.
"Jusko po! Sundan natin sila, tara!"
Fourth made a sharp turn and started to run, his black cap falling off in the process.
One girl standing near him dropped her ice cream and screamed.
"FOURTH? FOURTH OF B.P.H.???!"
Nearby people craned their necks to look.
"Uy siya nga! Papicture!"
"Omg si Daeniel at Anthon ba yang kasama nya? Waaaah!"
"Ang gwapoooo nilaaaa!!!"
"WAAAAAH!"
"We're doomed guys," Anthon said, before the three of them were swallowed by the swarming crowd of screaming fangirls.
