All This Time [COMPLETED]

5 - Triumps

QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES

APRIL 2015

"Okay. Thanks a lot, Miss Candice" Claire calmly placed her phone on the bedside table and proceeded to jump up and down her bed squealing. 

Her mom showed up, alarmed. "Claire! What's happening?" Susana asked.

"I got in! I got in!" she squealed and hugged her Mama. 

"You got in The Golden Eye Gallery?" her mom asked her.

"Yes, Mama! I got in!" she answered. They both squealed and jumped up and down causing her dad to check on them.

"Good news?" Oscar asked. 

"Your daughter just got hired!" her mother announced. 

"That's amazing! Let me get some drinks!" his Papa ran downstairs. Susana and Claire laughed at Oscar's enthusiasm.

Claire was so happy not only for herself but for her parents. It has been a tough 2015 for them so far. After three years of battling her cancer, Grandma Amelia passed away last month. This is  the first time she saw her Papa and Mama really happy again. She smiled as they toast to her new job.

-----

Ziggy paced back and forth in his dressing room. It's the finals day of Star Factor Philippines 2015. It has been a wild ride for three months and now it's is the moment of truth. 

"Ziggy, it's your turn to rehearse" a marshal peeked to his room. 

"Okay. Thank you" he said with a smile.

He rehearsed with the band. It went well. He decided to sing one of his favorite songs. It's one he thinks is very applicable to this moment. Win or lose, this is his big break. In a short amount of time, he garnered a huge amount of following which is enough for him to start really making a name for himself in the music industry.

His mom, Emily was a little bit worried for his song choice. She knows it's not a contest piece but Ziggy really wants to perform it. The judges were too when he went to consult with them. But in the end, Ziggy decided it's the perfect song. He just feel it in his bones. He retired to his dressing room counting down the hours until showtime.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the soulful voice from San Diego, California, Ziggy Zamora!" the applause was deafening. Ziggy walked on stage and waved at the audience. He stepped on the marker and waited for the band to start playing. He poured his heart out singing "All This Time" to the audience. He can see their confused faces because they aren't familiar to the song but it shifted to something emotional. With that he was confident he communicated the emotion to them and it was enough for him.

"And the second runner-up is..." the host announced. "Daniel Yu! Congratulation!" Ziggy took a deep breath and moved in the middle. The title will either go to him or Leslie Santos, a contestant with a more solid fanbase than him. She took his hand and squeezed it. He squeezed it back.

"The name I will be calling is the winner of Star Factor Philippines 2015. Here is the envelope that contains the name of our winner" the host carefully opened the envelope. "The Star Factor Philippines 2015 grand champion is..." the audience screamed both their names. Ziggy put his head down. 

"The sweet voice of Nueva Ecija, Leslie Santos! Ziggy Zamora, you are the first runner up! Congratulations!" Ziggy was a bit disappointed but he felt immediately better when his parents went up the stage to hug him. 

"I'm so proud of you" his dad whispered. 

"I love you so much" his mom hugged him tightly. 

That's all that matters at the end of the day, right?

-----

"Let's go out tonight!" Claire texted her best friend, Maddy

"I don't think I can! Ziggy was only first runner up!" Maddy replied.

"Who?" Claire asked, confused.

"You won't know! You don't watch television!" Claire could only imagine Maddy clutching her favorite pillow and just wailing.

"Alright, I'll let you mourn in peace for tonight but tomorrow, we're going out. I need to celebrate and you need to drink that disappointment away" she texted Maddy.

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*Header Art: "The King Drinks" by Jacob Jordaens