China Doll [DaraGon/NyongDal]

{ 01 }

A/N: This is going to be really cliched and fluffy, just as how I want it haha. Warning na po 'yun dahil hindi ako mahilig sa drama ;P Updates will more likely be sporadic, since I still have school >_< Pero thank you sa lahat ng bumabasa! <3 -X

P.S. 2NE1 girls are of the same age in this story so wala ng 'unnie' :)) Look at the multimedia for Dee's look!

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{ 01 }

"Dee?" Bom, one of my best friends and one of my roommates, called out. "You good?"

Pagod akong tumango. "I'm okay, Bommie." Sagot ko sa kanya habang hinuhubad ang heels ko. "Ang dami lang kasing tao."

Chaerin and Minji came out from their respective rooms when they heard me arrive. Apat kaming nagshe-share sa apartment na ito. It's not that big but it's enough to be called home. "Oh, Dara!" Chaerin smiled. "Kumusta 'yung audition?"

Minji sat to my left while Chaerin's on the floor, munching popcorn. "I don't think I'll get the role, guys." Malungkot kong sagot.

Isa-isa naman agad na nag-protesta ang mga kaibigan ko. I'm glad that they're defending me, really, but I'm just not in the mood right now. "Jiyong was there." Singit ko sa pag-uusap nila. It effectively shut them up. They all know who Jiyong was in my life. They know what he did to me. They know how he wrecked me.

Minji blinked thrice before she managed to speak. "Are you okay, Dee?" Nag-aalalang tanong niya. "If we only knew–"

Tipid akong ngumiti bago siya inilingan. "It's okay, Minkki. Alam ko namang hindi ninyo ako palalapitin do'n sa audition kung alam ninyong ando'n pala si Jiyong."

"Ah, tama na nga!" Singit ni Bom. "I'm sure there'd be plenty of other roles, Dara. Hindi mo naman kailangang manghinayang sa role na 'yun, lalo na't kung si Kwon Jerk lang naman ang makakasama mo."

Mabilis na sumang-ayon sina Chaerin. "Bom's right, Dee. 'Wag kang mag-alala, I'll let you know kapag may bagong audition." Pangako niya sa akin. Chaerin has a degree in Communication Arts and is now one of KBS1's junior producers. Minji, on the other hand, is running her own dance studio. Bom's on the corporate world.

And me? I sighed. I've wanted to be an actress. I still do. Pero minsan iniisip ko kung mali ba 'yung napili kong desisyon. Mahirap maghanap ng opportunities para sa baguhang tulad ko, at sa totoo lang, ilang beses ko nang naisip kung nagkamali ba talaga ako ng pinilling propesyon sa buhay.

But I decided to ignore all those. After all, andito na ako. Bakit pa ako magda-dalawang isip? This is what I wanted, so I'll pursue this.

"Let's dine out today!" Palakpak ni Minji. "We haven't eaten out in weeks, you know."

Ngumisi naman si Bom. "Great idea, Minji! C'mon, get dressed girls!" Nagmamadali niyang sinabi. Nakatawang hinila naman ako patayo ni Chaerin bago kami nagpunta sa kanya-kanyang kwarto namin para magpalit ng damit.

This is a good distraction for me. Ayoko nang maisip pa si Jiyong. Every time I see his face, I get reminded of all the things he did to me back in the day. Back when I was still young, foolish, and naïve. I know I don't want to go through that again. I'd been his china doll in the past, his trophy porcelain doll which he played whenever he wanted to. He cheated on me a couple of times pero dahil tanga ako at mahal ko siya, I let him be. Parati ko pa rin siyang tinatanggap kahit na sinasampal na ako ng katotohanan na niloloko niya ako. I felt like trash but I held on because I wanted to believe that he cared for me.

"What makes you think na sa dinami-rami ng babaeng dumaan sa'kin, ikaw ang seseryosohin ko?"

Napailing na lang ako. Of course, it's useless to think about it now. High school pa kami nang mangyari 'yun at hindi na kami bata ngayon. It's just that... that incident left a trauma on me. Sometimes I even think that that is the reason why I haven't been in a committed relationship for a long time now. Since he was my first boyfriend, I gave everything I could to him. Wala akong ipinagdamot sa kanya and look where it got me? Dumped in a ditch because it was all a game for him. Natatakot lang akong mangyari ulit iyon sa'kin.