AMACon 4: Serendipitous (30 DAYS CHALLENGE) [COMPLETED]

The Missing Piece

#A4Day26: She listens with her eyes. He sees with his ears. 

Richard was awakened by the sound of his alarm. The time is 3:15 in the morning. He immediately turns it off and goes back to sleep. A few minutes later, he heard his phone rang. It was Maine, also known as Paraluman; her co-Wattpad writer.

"Hello, Paraluman. What is it this time?", he asked her on the other line.

"Hoy, Kidlat Pamukaw. Gumising ka na diyan. Have you checked today's prompt?"

"Ha? May pinost na ba ang admin ng AMACon Official? I'll check later. I'm still sleepy...", he said pretending to be asleep.

"Ano ba, Richard! Alam mo ba na ang hirap ng prompt today? Gusto mo ba na mag cramming ka ulit?"

"Sinong nag cramming? Bakit? I submitted my Amacon stories naman on the day of the deadline of submission."

"Oo nga. Pero alam mo naman na madalas tayong nilalamon ng realidad, 'di ba? Kaya sige na...check mo na 'yung prompt. Dali na."

"Oo na, Madam. Eto na. Sige, bye."

Richard smiled as he ended the call. He knew about Maine when he accidentally read her stories on Wattpad, a few months ago. She loves to write angst while he loves writing fluff. Despite that, they became friends and finally met in person.

He opens his Twitter account and reads the prompt for today...

"She listens with her eyes. He sees with her ears."

"What is this all about again, AMACon Official? May problema ba tayo?", he quoted the tweet.

Both Richard and Maine were AMACon writers. They are pioneers since they started writing when the first AMACon was launched. He could still remember her story. It has a very sad ending. The characters didn't up together.

"Maine, bakit ganun 'yung ending ng story mo? Ang sakit naman.", he asked after reading her story.

"Wala ka na 'dun. At saka madalas naman ganun ang nangyayari sa totoong buhay eh."

"I know...but you could always dream on. I think there's nothing wrong living in the fantasy, even just for awhile."

"Too much fantasy will kill you, Richard. Palibhasa kasi puro fluff ang sinusulat mo."

"Hala siya! Siyempre, I want to make readers happy. Good vibes lang. Ikaw kasi ang hilig mo manakit ng damdamin."

"...at ako pa talaga ang may kasalanan? Depende na kasi sa mga readers. You know, how they will react to the story."

"Lagyan mo naman ng tamis 'yung mga stories mo. Wag masyadong tragic."

He would sometimes ask Maine the reasons why she always writes angst stories on Wattpad. He would always talk to her over the phone, or even spends time with her in the cafe. As time goes by, she slowly opens up her life to him.

Richard discovered that Maine experienced a heartbreak. She couldn't get over her past lover. The guy was her first love, and she got dumped by him. She wanted to know his reasons. But she was so scared of asking him. Since then, she doesn't want to believe in happy endings; for they only exist in fairy tale books. But not in the reality.

Maine laughed during the first time that she read Richard's story on Wattpad. It was a fluff genre. The characters that he is writing always ends up being together. He would always write stories with good vibes theme, and his readers would always swoon over him. Escapism is his thing. He's never been in love and hurt before. Maybe that's the reason why he is too much fluffy with his stories.

"Richard, may idea ka na ba for today's prompt? Wala akong maisip eh.", she asked him. They agreed to meet at their favorite cafe.

"Oo meron na. Actually, may naisulat na ako. Kaso hindi ko natatapos."

"Hula ko...fluff na naman 'yan noh? Subukan mo kaya manakit ng damdamin?"

"Hala, alam mo naman na hindi ko forte ang angst. Hindi ko kaya. Hindi naman ako gaya mo na magaling manapak ng damdamin."

"Hey! Too much escapism is not good for the heart. Palibhasa hindi mo pa naranasan ang masaktan. Lahat ng stories mo inspired from what you hear from other people. You only see things based on what you hear."

"Eh ikaw? Masyado kang nalulunod sa realidad. To the point na hindi mo na alam ang meaning ng salitang, "fantasy". It's not good to dwell on too much reality. Nakakapagod kaya. Dapat may time na takasan ang realidad. Kahit saglit lang. Para makahinga naman tayo."

"Duh! Whatever you say, Kidlat Pamukaw. Make sure you'll pass your story on or before 11:00 o'clock tonight... or else it will be invalid. Hindi ka na qualified for AMACon 4."

"Yes. Noted with thanks, Paraluman..."

For the past months that he came to know Maine, he always wanted to make her feel special, that he cares for her. He always wanted to make her feel that she is deeply loved, by him.

He is currently writing fluff stories without mentioning the names of the characters. His readers would always ask who inspired him writing such a beautiful love story. He would always tease them. "You will know. Sa tamang panahon.", he would always say.

"Maine, kumusta 'yung story mo?"

"Eto na. Matatapos na. I will publish this in 5 minutes. Ikaw?"

"Tapos na ako. Pero kinakabahan ako. Para akong masusuka na mahihimatay."

"What? Seriously? Ngayon ka pa kakabahan? Eh ang galing galing mo nga eh. Believe in yourself, Richard."

Maine was Richard's source of confidence especially those times when he has a new story to publish. Wattpad became the bridge of their friendship. There were times when he would express his feelings for her in a story. He is bold enough to make his readers go crazy when a new chapter of his story was published. But with Maine, he is a coward.

Maine just submitted his AMACon story for today's prompt. She makes sure that the link was sent. She opens her Wattpad account and noticed that Richard (Kidlat Pamukaw) already published the final chapter of one of his stories.

"I'll check this out, Richard. Sorry. Hindi ako busy ngayon. Marami akong oras para magbasa."

The title was "The Missing Piece"...

"All those years, I've been dreaming of someone that I can hold onto. I prayed and waited. Then, she came as a surprise. She would always tell me that happy endings don't exist; that I should face this life's reality. There is no escape in this cruel world. It's either you win or lose. You will be victorious for some time. But in the end, you are left alone."

"Teka...ano ba 'tong sinulat niya? Parang pamilyar sa akin ang mga linyang 'to ha?"

"We became friends. Yes, friends. But I wish we were more than that. How I wish that I could end the pain that she's feeling now. How I wish that I could love her and that she will let me. How I wish that we could create good memories together.

You are the missing piece of my story. This time...it's not fictional. This is the reality.

God is the author of our story.

I love you, Paraluman.

-Kidlat Pamukaw