KABILANG BUHAY | markhyuck

fourteen

Ang paghingi ni Mark ng pahinga sa trabaho ay naging maugong. Lalo na nang malaman ng lahat ang pagpanaw ng kasintahan nito.

Samu’t sari ang naging reaksyon ng madla. Marami ang umiyak nang malaman nila kung gaanong kabigat ang pinagdaraanan ng kanilang idolo sa mga oras na iyon. Marami ang nagalit nang malaman nilang tuloy at hindi imo-move ang concert ni Mark sa isang linggo.

Ilan sa mga fan ni Mark ay nagpalaganap ng petition form para i-cancel o kahit na i-move ang nasabing concert. Halos lahat ay nagkaisa at nag-sign ng petition. Lingid man sa kaalaman ng kanilang idolo ay handa nila itong tulungan para man lang makasa pa ni Mark ang kasintahan hanggang sa mga huli nitong sandali sa ibabaw.

They were all disappointed when the concert organizers told them they can’t make any changes anymore.

Donghyuck and his parents went back to Philippines the exact same day Mark released a new song entitled Kabilang Buhay. It’s obviously a song for Donghyuck, for his love. Like any of his other songs. It all talks about his muse.

The song trended even internationally. In just a day, there are a lot of covers and versions released by his fans and listeners from all over the world.


When Mark first saw Donghyuck again, he didn’t cry. He straight up fainted and lost consciousness. Parang humiwalay ang sarili niyang kaluluwa. Parang gusto niyang sumunod sa lugar na pinuntahan ni Donghyuck at hindi na umalis, manatili na lang doon kasama siya.

The biggest move Mark made after a few days of dwelling on the idea of Donghyuck being away forever was when he finally able to visit their company and tell that he can still perform for the concert.

He made an announcement in his social media accounts that he’ll get through the news not soon but still will. That Donghyuck taught him how to be strong for this moment and he will not disappoint his love.

This is what Donghyuck wants. This is his last gift to Mark. He will not let this gift go on waste. Si Donghyuck ang napagpasok sa kanya sa industriyang ‘to. Kung ang pananatili sa industriya ang magiging kapalit o pagpapasalamat niya sa kasintahan, handa niya itong ingatan.

Isa pa, sabi ni Donghyuck manonood siya. Ang sabi niya ay makikinig siya. Kaya kahit na mahirap, kakanta si Mark. Kakanta at tutugtog siya para sa pinakamamahal niya. Kahit magmukha siyang tanga sa harapan ng mundo. Kahit magmukha siyang kawawa. Gagawin niya ang lahat para kay Donhyuck. For his boyfriend, his constant, his permanent, his almost husband.


Habang kinakanta ang mga isinulat ay ramdam niya ang malamig na hanging yumakap sa kanya. Napapikit siya at dinama ang bawat haplos ng hangin sa kanyang braso at mukha.

Kinabukasan matapos ang concert ay ang araw ng tuluyan nilang pagpapaalam kay Donghyuck.

“Hahanapin kita sa dagat ng tao, hahanapin kita sa libo-libong mata. Ikaw lang ang kakantahan ko. Ikaw lang ang titingnan ko. Manood ka, mahal. Kakanta ako para lang sa’yo. Makinig ka sana.”


Binitawan ni Mark ang hawak na gitara at kinuha sa lamesa ang isang maliit na kahon. Wala mang luha ay puno ng lungkot ang kanyang mga mata habang tinitingnan ang singsing na balak niya sanang ibigay kay Donghyuck sa oras na sumagot na ito ng oo.

“Sana isinuot mo man lang, mahal.”

Mark is wearing the same on his ring finger. He took the ring out of the box and put it on his pinky. The rings both look beautiful on his fingers, but it would look even beautiful if it’s Hyuck who’s wearing the other one. He feels giddy to see it sit beside each other, but Mark knows he’ll appreciate it more if it connects when they intertwine their fingers while wearing it.

He jolted when his phone goes off with a notification. It was Johnny. He sent him something. A file. A video.


After the video was a message that says “Found this on his phone. He probably didn’t have the courage to send this to you before. I think you’ll need it. We’ll move forward eventually, brother.”

Mark can’t even play the video. Even with it paused, he can already see Donghyuck’s pretty face. It looks like it was taken a few days after they cut all of his hair off. He’s wearing the beanie Mark always wear before. He’s pale and looked really tired but he’s smiling.

With saking finger, Mark clicked the video and watched Donghyuck move. He’s holding his father’s phone and he seems looking for something on it. When he finally found what he’s looking for, he clicked on it and the intrumentals for I Will Be Here started resounding on their quiet house.

Mark is breaking into tears again. He watched as Donghyuck keeps on smiling as he sing. He holds up a paper cut of huge green hearts while singing. He’s doing exactly what Mark fans did on their videos that day they found out about Donghyuck.

He’ll miss that smile. He’ll miss that voice. He’ll miss everything about his boyfriend. Ang mga pang-aasar nito, ang kakulitan, ang masarap niyang luto, ang paglalaro niya sa mga daliri ni Mark, ang pagmamakaawa niyang mag-alaga ng aso, ang pag-iwan niya ng bukas na gripo, ang pagpapaalala niya kay Mark na patayin ang appliances kapag umaalis sa bahay nang walang tao. Lahat ng maliliit at malalaking bagay tungkol kay Donghyuck, mami-miss niya. Ang mga halik nito, ang mga yakap at haplos. He’ll even miss his waist, his thighs, his panting and moans. He’ll miss everything innocent and wild. Basta ang alam niya lang, hindi niya mabibitawan lahat ng ala-ala nilang dalawa.

“You may never see me anymore, but I’m always there. I’ll always be by your side, Minhyung. Hindi kita iiwan. Sasamahan kita sa lahat. Sasamahan kita hanggang sa hindi mo na ‘ko kailangan sa tabi mo. Sorry, mahal. Maybe I am not really the one for you.”

Mark only shook his head and hugged his phone.


“No, ikaw talaga. Ikaw ang para sa’kin. Ikaw lang.”