Moonville Series 1: Secret Lovers

Pageant night. Bryan is in the backstage again with his co-contestants. But unlike the last time, the place is very chaotic because tonight is the real deal. Stylists and makeup artists are busy retouching the makeup of the female contestants, as well as their male counterparts.

Bryan looked at himself in the mirror. The theme for the opening number is casual wear. He's wearing a red T-shirt with black denim pants and coat, just like the other male contestants but with a different shirt color. The female candidates are wearing the same style of dress as well, but with different colors corresponding to their team.

"Bryan!"

He looked and saw Angel's smiling face. It made him smile as well.

"Good luck," she told him.

"Thank you. Thanks for all your help, Angel."

"That's nothing. I'm the one who should thank you, because you're the one who's helping me."

"We'll get through this. We'll fix this mess."

"I hope so." Angel looked down, feeling sad.

"Hey..." He raised her face. "Don't be sad. Everything will be fine."

"Mom and Dad are on the judges' seat."

"My parents are also settled in the audience." Bryan held her hand. "I have a plan. Just go with it, okay?"

Angel nodded. Her eyes show the hope she has on the words he told her. Bryan felt more eager to fulfill his plan later at the contest.

After talking to Bryan, Angel returned to her seat in the auditorium. Her sister Alex is sitting beside her while their parents were in the judges' seat which was also close to where they are seated. The show started shortly after. The hosts called the contestants as the fourteen participants went out one by one.

Contestants must walk on stage making sure they stand out from others who are wearing almost the same outfit. They then introduced themselves again. People shout after hearing their representatives speak. "Bryan de Vera, 18, BS Accountancy."

The students cheered gleefully.

'I didn't know Bryan has a lot of fans," Alex said.

'That's how it is. Each department should be louder than the others. Just like in basketball," Angel explained.

'Or maybe, Bryan just has a lot of fans."

'Maybe."

After the presentation of the contestants, the special awards were given. Bryan won Most Photogenic as well as Best in Casual Wear for the male category. Kim won the Most Photogenic female candidate.

"And now, we will be trimming down our contestants into our top five - top five male and top five female. The top five will be the ones who will move on to the next part of our competition, which is the Sports Wear, Talent Portion, Evening Wear, and of course, the final Q&A Portion," explained the female host.

The male host then explained, "Earlier this week, the contestants had their photo shoot and casual interview with our beloved Dean. Their scores from those pre-pageant events were added to their scores this evening to come up with our top five. So, let's begin. In no particular order."

They first announced the male finalists. Angel felt even more nervous as the host called the names of the contestants who will continue to the next level of the competition. Even Alex nervously held her hand. Students shout when their representative is called.

Angel felt more nervous when there is only one more slot and Bryan is still not included in the finalists.

'Ate..." Alex is already feeling worried.

"And, the last male contestant who will move on to the next level of the competition is..." The host paused a little, making the students shout the name of their representative. "Mister... Mr. Bryan de Vera from JPIA!"

The accountancy students all shouted. Even Alex was not able to contain her joy as she shouted with them. As for Angel, she finally was able to breathe easily. That moment, Bryan looked at her and their eyes met. He smiled at her, and she smiled back. Angel feels like he also felt relieved as he waited for the female finalists to be announced.

And so, the female finalists were called next. The first candidate to be called was Gina, to the dismay of Angel and Alex. Kim was also included in the top 5. Angel found Hannah happily cheering with the other JPIAns. She smiled as she saw the happy chanting of her teammates.

The next part of the competition was the sportswear, which serves as the swimwear competition since the students are not allowed to wear swimsuits and trunks. But even so, Gina still wore a swimsuit.

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"Whoa!" Alex can't stop giggling. 'That's not a swimmer's swimsuit. She looks like someone going to Boracay."

Angel just laughed at what she said, especially after Gina confidently modeled her two-piece bikini. The students shouted, and some also laughed at the candidate's mistake. 'Did she forget her brain at their house?" Alex asked.

'Just ignore her," Angel said to her sister.

Kim wore a simple tennis outfit, giving out a sweet and innocent vibe. Bryan is wearing a basketball jersey.

'Bryan can wear rags and he'll still look good," Alex commented.

Angel agrees with what Alex said. Even if Bryan's clothes are torn, he would still look presentable because of his ability to carry out whatever he's wearing.

An intermission number followed for everyone to relax a bit. It's a song number from a student from Business School who won the singing competition last year. And after that, the talent portion followed.

The performances were arranged per department. There are contestants from the same department who made it to top 5, just like Bryan and Kim, and some are partners on their dance presentation. Most of the candidates danced, complete with back up dancers. Others even did folk Filipino dances like Singkil. There was one who recited a poem, and his partner did a monologue.

And then, it was Bryan's turn. Angel felt nervous and excited at the same time. This is the first time she will see what Bryan will do tonight.

"What will Bryan do?" Alex asked her.

"Anything but dance," was what Angel managed to answer.

Bryan immediately went on the stage after his name was called. He's wearing a black coat and denim pants, and his T-shirt is red, just like what he wore for casual wear earlier. He just looks more rugged this time with his tattered pants and graphic designs on his shirt. He's holding a guitar.

A man in his fifties followed him on the stage. He's wearing a dark red polo and denim pants. He's also holding a guitar.

The audience cheered for the two men who immediately set up their instruments.

"Is that his Dad?" Alex asked.

Angel wasn't able to answer as she also is not familiar with Bryan's father. But based on the resemblance of the older man, he might really be Bryan's father.

"Good evening everyone," said Bryan into the microphone. "This is my dad." The older guy waved at the audience, who clapped their hands for him. "He's also an alumnus of this school, batch..." He looked at his father. "Never mind."

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Raul nodded as he gave him a thumbs up.

"He's here to support me. Actually, he's incredibly supportive in everything that I do." Bryan then looked at the judges, particularly at Angel's parents.

And Angel finally got what Bryan meant. He wants to show her parents that his father supports their relationship. That was his plan all along.

The father and son prepared for the start of their presentation. Raul sat down on a stool, and Bryan stood behind the mic stand.

"This is for my Angel."

"O-M-G Ate!" Alex cried.

Angel was too overwhelmed to what Bryan said. People gushed and cheered for him as he started playing the intro of his song. Then after, he started singing while still playing the guitar. "Everything has a reason; everything has a start. Everything that ever burned had a spark. Ooh..."

"Oh my God, Ate!" Alex can't help but swoon.

Angel is just looking at Bryan who seems to be saying those words directly to her. It's like the lyrics he's singing are meant for her to hear.

"Anything I ever wanted, anyone I ever needed, always seemed to leave me standing in the dark."

People screamed as they felt thrilled with Bryan's simple but passionate singing. As for Angel, she just kept staring at him, savoring each word that he is singing. And at that moment, Angel realized something. She realized that this guy has become a special person to her.

"Suddenly I am caught in your light. Opened the door and you stepped inside. And I'm watching the hours, looking for reasons. Find that I'm missing every beat of your heart 'till you're back in my arms. I'll be waiting up counting the stars." Every girl in the audience gushed and swooned at Bryan, who continued serenading the crowd.

"Nothing could ever touch us. Nothing gonna shake my faith. Nothing in this big bad world ever take you away. Like a rolling hurricane, nothing's standing in our way. Full of life, full of grace, in a perfect place."

Angel can't help but feel overwhelmed while listening to Bryan. It's like the song was really made for the two of them. And she thought, is this really still part of his strategy? She wants to think it's not, that Bryan is singing that song because that's what he really feels for her. If only their relationship is for real.

Until the song ended, the audience continued screaming and cheering. After his song, Bryan waved at the audience before he went backstage with his father.

"Ate!" Alex is still swooning. "Bryan is so romantic!"

Angel took a deep breath to stop the tears from forming in her eyes. If people were thrilled with Bryan's singing, she on the other hand felt overwhelmed. His song went deep into her heart, and for once, she wished their relationship is for real.