Rhythm to My Chaos

Chapter 25

#NewClassicRTMC

Chapter 25
Competition

Everything escalated quickly.

Matapos akong pangakuan ni Ike ay agad siyang umalis upang tumungo sa Top Star. Hours had passed but I hadn't heard anything from him yet.

Mr. Joel tried to call me but I ignored him. He just sent me a text message afterwards to check on me and told me not to go online—but I did. I didn't listen to his warning. I wasn't really into surfing the internet but curiosity killed the cat.

The top article was about me.

"Road to Record's finalist - Aleena Caringal's attitude problem"

Biting my lower lip, I gripped on my phone tighter until my knuckles turned white. The headline of the article would surely gather attention from the public who wants to seek pleasure from my downfall. It was a strong clickbait.

Earlier this morning, the soundcheck rehearsal for the final live broadcast of Road to Record took place. An insider reported that Aleena Caringal was supposed to perform second. However, last minute changes were made by the production team.

The rising star, who is currently holding the top position, showed a distasteful attitude and walked out of the arena without explanation. The rehearsal was disrupted because of her absence which put a lot of pressure and inconvenience on the other finalists, mentors, and the whole production team.

In addition, Willow Abella, one of the finalists and a member of Team Ike, is experiencing an emotional distress. The sweet gem of Top Star Records blames herself for the disturbance that happened during the rehearsal. A staff of Road to Record said that Willow is supposed to perform last, but due to the production of her performance, she is pushed to exchange order with Aleena.

Willow Abella already expressed her concern to Aleena and posted a public apology on social media. Meanwhile, Aleena Caringal is still silent about the issue.

I gritted my teeth as I finished reading the whole article. I even came across some mean comments which were directed to me, along with words of encouragement for Willow.

I underestimated her. I didn't expect that she prepared a large scale plan to bring me down.

With her sweet and innocent looks, you wouldn't expect that she was capable of doing something so evil. She stole my song and took advantage of the situation to make the public stand behind her. Pinapabango pa ng media ang kanyang pangalan. Sigurado akong nakangiti siya habang pinapanood ang aking pagbagsak. Everything was going according to her plan perfectly.

To be honest, I was trying my best not to be affected by the hate and mean comments that I read. I knew it wouldn't do good to my mental health. I was also aware that I was emotionally vulnerable. Although I know myself well, their words were eating me up inside. It felt real and honest. It felt like they were speaking the truth even if they didn't know the whole story.

They don't know anything, yet they are so quick to judge. Instead of knowing both sides, they will choose to side with people who paint you to be bad.

It sucks because the people who say the worst things about you are those who don't even know you at all. Most of the time, they are even the same people who are close-minded. They won't care if their words give you wound and make you bleed. You are nothing to them. Even when they go overboard and below the belt, they won't feel guilty.

After all, at the end of the day, they are not the ones who are scarred—it's the people they chose to hurt. That's what makes them scary. They can stab people with words sharper than knives and feel nothing but satisfaction for their evil pleasures.