Dylin picks up his phone. It’s Andrew, his bandmate, who is calling.
"Dyl?"
"Yes bro, ‘sup?"
"Are you not coming?"
"Coming where?"
"Bro, we have a practice today. Have you forgotten it again?" Andrew asked with a force. They are practicing continuously for the upcoming show band for the summer. Dylin rushes to see the date. April 22. It’s their 5th rehearsal. And he forgot it for the 5th time.
"Is everyone there?" He asked as he gets inside his car. He peeks at his watch. It’s 3:15PM. Their rehearsal should have started at 3:00PM.
"Nope." Andrew answered.
"Who’s not yet there?"
"YOU." Andrew and the rest answered in unison.
"I’m on my way; 10 minutes." Dylin answered, and then he hung up. It’ll be 15 minutes when it’s traffic. He whispers to himself.
He arrives at the studio around 3:30PM. But Andrew and the rest aren’t there. He picks up his phone and dialed Andrew.
"Drew, where are you guys?" He asked, panting.
"Here at Lola Inda’s, eating." He answered then hung up. Dylin tucks his phone inside his pocket and jogs towards Lola Inda’s restaurant. He found Andrew, Thads, Christian, and Mark sitting in a row. They are so busy eating that no one noticed him enter the room.
"What do we have here, Lola Inda? A feeding Program?" He asked Lola Inda who’s seated at the counter. Lola Inda smiles. "I think that’s how I shall call it, boy. And I’m surprised that you’re still the sponsor, huh?." She answered. Dylin sits between Andrew and Thads as he pulls out his wallet.
"How much?" He asked while pulling out some 500 bills.
"P327.00." Lola Inda answered as she hands Dylin the receipt. Dylin hands a 500 bill in return. "I’ll leave my change there, Lola. Perhaps, this feeding program will be repeated." He smiles as he walks out of the restaurant. The 4 boys then stand in unison and thank Lola Inda as they follow Dylin.
"Come on, Dylin! We’re getting fat because of all the food at Lola Inda’s." Thads said as he pulls out his drumsticks.
"He’s right Dyl! Lola Inda is getting rich because of you." Christian said and they all laugh.
"Are you not yet done with Lauren’s request? Move on bro, you don’t stand a chance." Andrew frankly confessed. Dylin was silenced. He even thought of buying the painting for Lauren in exchange of her sweet ‘YES’. He never thought of being rejected by her. The studio was enveloped by a sudden quietness.
"But Dyl! We’ll never know if you’ll never try, right?" Mark speaks up to break the silence. Dylin then gives an awkward smile.
"Haha. Yeah right, let’s have our practice first, guys." Dylin suggested. It’s already 4:00PM when they started the rehearsal.
