Prologue - The Brat named LD

note from the author: Hello, everyone. I haven't shared a lot of my works (more like I haven't shared anything at all for a long time), but here's one of my first fics. Let me know what you think.

Hi... My name is LD. I prefer not to say my whole name, but LD comes from my first and last name's starting letters. I'm 17 years old at the moment, representing the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, studying Fine Arts for a Degree in Advertising Arts.

Why did I choose Fine Arts if there's no job for it? Well, news flash, you fucking idiots, I'm studying Advertising Arts which has a broad range from graphic design, animation, comic illustration to photography. We don't just paint nudes and upload them on the Internet. Plus, I love drawing, but my professors' skills weren't rubbing off on me so I had to practice on my own with my own references like Persona 4.

So, uhh... I'm in Hell right now. Not exactly Hell-Hell, but I kind of got myself in a very stupid situation. Here's how it started:



It was a usual day at the university. I bought some sketch pads where I could practice my stuff and I stayed by the pavilions alone. I just drew like a mad kid and everyone around me went like, 'the hell is this guy up to? Is he doing a thesis?'.

Haha, nope. I'm just about to end my freshman year in college, so I ain't ready with thesis.

And then after an hour or so...

"Orale, mi vato loco~. I've been watching you for half an hour now. Those are some nice drawings, and I see you have a big world inside that head.... What do you say about coming to a studio where you can bring that imagination to life?"

That old man is boss Eddie Guillermo, a man who would eventually change the lives of many youngsters like me.

So there he was, smiling at me like Eddie Guerrero. Hell, I even thought it was Eddie Guerrero even though the legend's been dead for more than 5 years now. I was a bit surprised and looked around, and a few seconds later I realized I was the one he was talking to.

"So, what do you say, holmes? You in?", boss Eddie asked me. I scratched my head in response - how the hell am I gonna tell my parents about this?

"Uhh... what is this competition about, sir...?"

"Eddie! Eddie Guillermo!"

Eddie handed over a small card - probably his calling card or so.

"This competition is about the most diverse talent there is. From singing, dancing, and drawing! You fit the mold, ese!"

Huh. Singing, dancing, drawing. Must be Pilipinas Got Talent which is honestly garbage television.

"This ain't Pilipinas Got Talent, right?", I asked. This made Eddie laugh.

"No, holmes! A kid like you? You're better than that crap."



"Interesting....", I thought. "Alright. Well, I have a question though, boss Eddie."

"Sure, mi vato. What bothers you?"

"Well... my family's not that well off. We just sold our house and we haven't been paid yet. I don't know how they would feel about me moving out for a while."

The catch was I had to move out for a few months for this competition. I haven't been away from my family like ever.

"Well, mi vato, don't worry about your family. I will have someone go to your house to notify them and pick you up.", Eddie offered. "All you need to do is fill this up."

He handed over a sign-up sheet - to my surprise, I am the first on that sheet. Shit. I feel like making a deal with the devil.

"Okay...."

I wrote all my information on that sheet, including our current home address. Eddie smiled as I finished, and he snapped his fingers as a Chinese-looking dude suddenly approached us and took the sheet away.

"By the way, mi vato... Lawrens. No need to pay for anything. Entrance is absolutely free. Hell, don't even bother bringing your stuff - we'll have the best prepared for you soon."



Hearing those words from boss Eddie... now I am fucking terrified. What did I just get myself into?

Not long after that strange meeting, I learned that our professor was not around, so we were able to go home earlier than we're supposed to. Yay me though, because España Boulevard is not the friendliest street at night. The traffic was murder as well in terms of commuting - it'll be a miracle to get a seat at a vacant bus. Most of the buses here in the Philippines have the stupidest conductors and they pack people to the brim more than a can of sardines. Who the hell employs conductors inside buses, anyway? Yeah, I heard of train conductors, but bus conductors?!

Only in the Philippines, everyone. Bravooo.

Anyway, back to reality. I packed up my stuff and prepared to head out, then as soon as I left the pavilions, this happened.

*Bang!*

"Oww...! Watch where you're going!"



Uhh... I bumped into this girl. My sketch pads almost flew, but I didn't mind. I felt like a jackass bumping into her. Judging from her uniform, she must be from the HRM Department.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bump you.", I said. I tried not to look down, because... I knocked her down by accident and I... could see down her skirt. I... could see her legs. Shit.



"Are you looking at my legs?"



"Uhh... no?"

"Well, I won't blame you, oppa. There are a lot of prettier legs out there and you looked at mine. Funny."



She then smiled at me. I don't know her, but wow... She's quite cute....

"I better get going. I'm pretty sure you know how bad the traffic is here."

"Y-Yeah, it's really bad. Takes me an hour to get home.", I said. The girl laughed and left quickly before I knew it, so I started my own trek home.

By some miracle, a vacant bus en route to Fairview made a U-turn to give commuters an easy ride home. Jesus Christ, did we all run after the bus like hell and I made sure I sat at the very front for an easy drop-off once I reached my stop. To my surprise though....



"Ah! It's you!"

HOLY SHIT, IT'S THE CUTE GIRL.

"Uhh... Hello again!", I greeted her as she sat beside me.

I called dibs at the window, so she was at the outer area. It was a two-seater as well by the way, so that no one else would spoil the mood.

"Annyeong~!", she greeted back. It seems she's Korean.

"A-Are you okay? I didn't hurt you, right?", I asked. She giggled when I asked her how she felt.

"I'm okay! No scabs or anything. My butt just hurts a bit."

Great, her butt hurts and it's all my fault. Nice going, LD.

"I'm sorry.... I didn't mean to bump into you."

"No harm done, oppa. Things happen.", she assured. I plugged my earphones onto my phone to listen to the radio, but before I could plug them into my ears, she leaned onto me and smiled.



"What's your name, oppa?"

SHIT. A GIRL'S ASKING FOR MY NAME. OH SHIT, OH SHIT, WHAT SHOULD I DO?



"I'm Lawrens... or you can call me LD for short."

"LD... Nah, I like Lawrens more. Or maybe 'oppa'."

Okay....

"I'm Hyun-ae! You can also call me Agnes, my baptismal name."

"Oh. Agnes, huh... sure, I'll think about it."

"Where you headed to, oppa?".

I pointed to the big-ass sign at the bus' windshield saying "SM FAIRVIEW".

"I live in Fairview. You?"

Hyun-ae gasped in shock. "ME, TOO!"

Okay, what?

"I live in East Fairview! Which part of Fairview are you at?"

"Uhh... West Fairview."

"Oooh, I can visit you anytime! Yay!"



She had a really devious smile on her face. Looks like she was plotting something sinister.

"Uhh... Are you really...?"

"Oh, oppa, of course not! We just met!"

"Ah... okay then."

A sigh of relief came out of my mouth, but at the same time, I felt guilt. I doubted a girl's invitation of sorts. Shit....

The traffic was bad as always. More so if you're riding a bus. The supposed 1-hour trip became longer, and because of the wait, Hyun-ae fell asleep on my shoulder. I gotta admit, she smelled nice despite a hint of smoke on her, probably from running around the campus a lot. Then some guy was eyeing her phone which she accidentally left on her hand. I noticed this quickly so I draped my arm over her shoulders and pulled her closer to me to make it look like we're a couple. I also grabbed her phone and hid it from that guy. We both met eye to eye and he was like, 'nah, you ain't worth it'.

I forgot to mention that the buses here are also dens for thieves. You gotta be alert especially if you're all alone, so once again, only in the Philippines, ladies and gents.

The thief dropped off quickly when his plan backfired. Soon after, we reached Fairview and Hyun-ae woke up.

"Oh... We're here.", she yawned. "Where's my phone?" I took her phone out of my pocket and gave it to her, making her wonder why I had it. "Why do you have my phone, oppa?"

"A snatcher tried to take it earlier so I hid it. Good thing I'm here or you would've lost an iPhone.", I told her.



A tear formed on her eye as she heard this. "Ohhh.... Thank you, oppa!"

*Chuu...*

"Uhh... anytime.", I said. I tried to hide the fact that I was blushing like hell. That was the first time someone kissed me even on the cheek. Scheisse. Hyun-ae stood up and left the bus, and then I almost screamed when I remembered something.

HER PHONE NUMBER! I FORGOT TO ASK!

Welp... that ought to do it. My one chance to have a 'girl' friend. Not a literal girlfriend, but... I'm a loner so I don't have a lot of friends.

I dropped off the bus soon after, and I took another ride inside a tricycle to my home. It was already around 8 pm, which was a normal occurrence. Ma and Pa were at the living room eating with my brothers.

My ma and pa looked like Yang Mi Kyung and Jung Woo Sung, or should I say Lady Han and the handsome Jung Woo Sung. Some say I look like some child actor named Park Jihoon, and my twin brother looked similar to me only a bit older.

I know what you're thinking. "Attractive parents, how are we poor?" News flash - not every family's well off. Most of the time it's the ugly fuckers out there who have money, most often they're illegally obtained like the standard kotong or kurakot. In short, they are corrupt and get rich from embezzling money from unwary commuters.

I told them about what happened earlier, and while they seemed doubtful, they were quite happy for me that I got recognized for something.

"When will you move out, anak?", Ma asked. I told her I had no idea, but someone will come get me.

"Then you better prepare your clothes. If this will be for a while, you need to pack up a lot.", Pa suggested. I nodded and sat down so I can eat dinner.

The usual galunggong and Indian mango with rice and shrimp paste.... No complaints. Still food. More families have it worse.

I thought about the competition all night. What was it all about? Do I get to be on television or magazines? Or the internet? Hell, will I have a shout-out at the campus for being in it? Hard to say, but I gotta admit... getting even a bit of fame is exciting, no matter what you're doing in it.

Days turned into weeks. Then turned into months. Ma and Pa were then suspicious of the contest - did I get scammed or something? The end of the semester then came in April, and just when I was about to give up on the whole thing, a truck came to the front of our house. A man then came to our gate, knocking at it. Pa greeted the man, who then introduced himself.



"Magandang umaga! I'm Mike Guillermo, boss Eddie's son. I believe this is where Lawrens is staying at?"

"Sandali lang, ha?", Pa said. He then called me down. "Rens! Someone's looking for you!" I came down in a hurry and Mike greeted me with a big smile.

"You must be Lawrens! The first guy on the list!", Mike said. I raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Well, today's the day, young man! It took a while for us to prepare, but now's the time for you to move out!"

I then looked at Ma and Pa, who hugged me to comfort me. We packed up my stuff shortly and before I left, they gave me words of encouragement.

"Anak, whatever happens, we know you did your best. Win or lose.", Ma told me. "Do your best, anak. We love you."

"Okay, ma. Pa.", I said. I then boarded the truck and waved at them as we left. The truck seemed empty, but I was not exactly alone...

Because SHE was here, too.



"Oppa?! You're joining the idol contest, too?!"

...IDOL WHAT?! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!

"Oh, didn't my father tell you, Lawrens?", Mike interrupted. "This is an idol contest. Your drawings, they'll come in another way. You're doing something different."

Oh shit....

That's how it all happened. I made a deal with the devil, and now I am in an idol contest that will be televised across the nation. I don't even know how to dance or sing, so I'm... honestly doomed.

I stood in the middle of a stage, looking at Eddie, Mike and a whole crew of judges, along with 300+ hopefuls who were auditioning as well. I was the first on the list, so it made sense that I performed first out of everyone. Eddie and Mike didn't look happy however, and everyone was laughing at me....



"Oh man, Lawrens....", Mike murmurred.

I couldn't help crying. It was all embarrassing for me not to know shit about idol music. The only ones not laughing were the judges. Eddie then addressed the laughter around them.

"...I don't understand how this is funny for you all. SHUT... THE FUCK... UP. ALL OF YOU."

Everybody went silent. This wasn't funny at all because I made a fool out of myself.

"Lawrens, mi loco... You have a lot of work to do. For now... you are going to Class F. Go get your gauntlet and grade backstage."

"T...Thank you.", I said before bowing down. I then turned around and left the podium, but in my mind, the laughter resumed.

I've been a loser in school all my life. Now... I'm gonna be a loser in front of the whole world.

"Oppa... don't worry. Fighting! You'll be okay."

I looked up. It was Hyun-ae. She was cheering for me.



She's... like an angel to me. I felt down, but when I saw her, my spirits went back up.

Will I be able to survive with her? I can't tell... but we'll fight together.

End of Origins - The Brat named LD.