DON'T FALL | SB19 Fanfiction

Casting Call

Paige prepares Milo's bowl before they eat their dinner together.

But with everything going on in her mind, Paige doesn't really feel like eating. So she just watches Milo grub on his bowl.

The song "MAPA" continues to play on the background. And Paige suddenly gets an idea.

To distract herself from sad thoughts, Paige sits on her electric piano and studies the song.

It didn't take long for Paige to learn the piano composition for "MAPA". 

Paige decides to send the message across to her mom by uploading a song cover on her Twitter account.

After tagging her mom on her post, it's when Paige decides to close her eyes and hopes

And prays

And wishes

That she finds more strategies tomorrow.

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The next day, Paige wakes up to the sound of piano keys shouting in her ears.

She fell asleep on her piano.

Milo barks in surprise.

The sunlight on the window reminds Paige that she's late for work

"HA?!! 7:00 NA?!!! BAKIT DI MO KO GINISING!!!" (What?!! It's already 7:00?!!! Why didn't you wake me up!!!) Paige scrambles her closet for her uniform "MILO NAMAN KASI BAKIT KASI NAGING ASO KA PA EH EDI SANA NAPAGSASABIHAN MO MAN LANG AKO" (Why do you have to be a dog, Milo. I wish you could talk me out of sleep)

Paige doesn't even have the time to look in the mirror because she still had to refill Milo's breakfast and water bowl.

And after that, Paige quickly slips on her sneakers, grabs her bag and just rushes out of the apartment.

She runs as fast as she could to call a taxi.

When Paige finally makes it inside a cab, she rests her head on the back of the seat, cursing under her breath.

The taxi driver is watching something from a mini television on his dashboard.

The taxi driver tries to initiate a conversation with her "Ma'am, artista ka po ba?" (Ma'am, are you a celebrity?)

"Po?" was all Paige could say to such a weird question so early in the morning.

"Ma'am, ikaw nga! Ikaw to oh! Ma'am, nasa balita ka oh!" (Ma'am, it's really you! It's you! Ma'am, you're on the news)

 The taxi driver vigorously points on his tv's screen.

Paige yawns at such an absurd compliment but as soon as she glimpses at the driver's screen, her sleepy eyes enlarges.

Her piano cover is on TV!!!

Paige is dumbfounded. She can't find the words to say to the driver who is now looking at her with a happy smile.

Paige finds herself staring in space, wondering if she's hallucinating and couldn't even pay attention to the taxi man saying "Ma'am, pa-autograph naman, ma'am. Ma'am? Okay ka lang, ma'am? Ma'am?"

Finally, the car pulls up in front of Paige's work place.

She pays the taxi driver and tries to snap back to her senses "Kuya, wala lang po 'yan. Wag na po autograph, ha? Wala lang po 'yan. Thank you po!" (Kuya, that's just nothing. So... no autographs. Because that's nothing. Okay? Thank you!)

Before the taxi driver could speak, she's already bolting towards the medical building, preparing to get scolded by her boss.

"David!!!" Her boss's voice echoed in a strong and loud tone, walking briskly towards her.

Paige braces herself for her early morning sermon. And turns around to face the boss, "Sir, sorr--"

"-- Uuuuy... congratulations ha? Di mo naman sinabi mag-aartista ka na pala!" The boss gives her a pat on the shoulder instead.

Paige's mind is full of questions now. And she needs answers. Immediately.

"S-sir" Paige laughs weakly, hiding her confusion "Sino po... sino po nagsabi? Sorry po. Ano po ba.. ano pong nangyayari?" (Who... who said.. Sorry, sir. What.. what's going on?)

"Loka ka. Okay lang kung ipu-pursue mo na yan. Talaga namang artistahin kang bata eh. Basta goodluck sa journey mo ah. Anytime naman matatanggap ka dito. Basta wag ka makakalimot ah?" (Silly girl. It's okay to pursue it! We knew you've always been a celebrity type! Anyway, good luck on your journey. You're always welcome to come back here. Don't forget your roots, though!) Is the boss from hell really speaking to her this way?

Just when Paige could get more confused, a phone call buzzing from her pocket catches her attention.

An unknown number is displayed on her phone screen. She answers it cautiously "Thank you for calling emergency rescue, good morning"

"Hi. Good morning. Is this Ms. Paige David?" A woman on the other line greets her energetically.

"Uh. Yes po. Speaking" Paige tries to hide the anxiety in her voice.

"Hi, Ms. Paige! This is Carmen Dino from the management of SB19. Can you spare us a few minutes of your time?" The voice paused and there's suddenly an awkward silence between us.

SB19? Like, THE SB19? Like, yung boyband? Could everything get any weirder?

"SB19 po? I'm sorry... tama po ba narinig ko, ma'am?" (SB19? I'm sorry... did I hear that correctly?) Paige clears her throat, not sure how to react to the situation.

"Yes, Ms. Paige. We just want to congratulate you for being one of the chosen contestants on our reality game show. We will be sending you an e-mail with all the information shortly. Congratulations!" The woman named Carmen Dino pauses to hear a reaction from Paige.

"Sorry, ma'am. You must be mistaken? I don't re--"

"Ms. Dakota Paige David, correct? Yes. We have viewed your SB19 cover as an entry. And indeed, you are one of the 19 lucky girls to be joining us in New York for the next three weeks and will be aspiring to compete for 1 million pesos! Please expect an email soon. It will have all the information on your flight and other expenditures shouldered by our team. Have a great day!" The woman who seems to be in a hurry, hangs up.

Paige is frozen in place. Only remembering two words from the woman's statement: New York and 1 million pesos.

Those two words was all it took for Paige to think straight, ignoring everything else and ignoring all the follow up questions in her head.

She's signing up.