#CDFragments V. How she changed

V. How she changed Dawn was smiling more as the day progressed, much to Richard's relief. Over lunch, she called home to check on her daughter, Ayisha, who she said sounded perky once again. It was all that Dawn needed to hear to get her concentration back to her lines. She didn't used to be like that, Richard knew. When they were younger (and still together), he would always be at awe of how she managed to pull off scene after scene --- happy ones, he noted --- even when she was sulking in between takes. He knew, because in the last movie starred in as a love team (Saan Ka Man Naroroon, where they had to be very much in love; she was his wife), she shone through the scenes, showered him with kisses, and even consented to run around the set topless, covered by a mere blanket, which he had to snatch away as he kissed her. Then again, she was at her very best when she had to cry, to scream out of frustration and hate, to shun him, to pretend that she no longer loved him. There are times when those moments would haunt Richard, well after their breakup --- the look on her face, the burning anger in her eyes that seemed to say, I didn't want to feel like this. Perhaps I'm making too much of it, Richard thought as the staff cleared their plates. It was motherhood that changed her. Yet, he couldn't shrug off the fact that he knew --- that he, too, had changed who she was. ~~~ When they were asked to do the media rounds before Walang Hanggan aired in primetime, Dawn had her manager Vivian talk to hosts about being subtle with their questions. You may ask about the breakup, but don't focus on it. They're friends now, friends still, and that's what matters. The interviewers were happy to oblige, she reported to Richard and Dawn on the day of the rounds. Richard was especially wary of their guesting on "Kris TV", where they would talk about ex- matters. Can ex-lovers be friends? the show's promo read. Kris Aquino had joked before the take that she was going to take it easy. The host was a good friend to him and his wife, Lucy, but she has the tendency to talk out of turn. But he forgot how much a chatterbox Dawn can be, too, sometimes.

The day of their guesting happened to be one of those days. When the cameras started rolling, there was no stopping Dawn and Kris, who chatted like good friends. He tried to play along, but was cautious, especially when they were asked how they broke up. "Mutual," he said, to put the matter simply. Dawn playfully countered, "I broke up with you, that's how I remember it." She was serious, though. He remembered that, of course. Definitely a face-palm moment. But somewhere along that interview, he caught two things that he never heard from her (or perhaps he had forgotten): that she said, "Alam ko naman na minahal niya talaga ako." And that, "after you, akala ko kasi lahat ng lalaki, ganu'n." ~~~ "Masyado yatang malalim ang iniisip natin diyan," Vivian said, offering Richard a piece of gum. She followed where his stare was directed and smiled. "Salamat nga pala for calming her down." Richard simply smiled, the memory that flashed in his head still fresh, the words Dawn had uttered then piercing through him. "Viv?" "O?" "When Dawn and I broke up, paano siya at home?" "Hmm." Vivian adjusted her seat to move closer to him. "Tulala. May isang instance na nagwala siya kasi hindi ko naitabi 'yung frame na may photo n'yong dalawa. Sabi niya kasi sa akin nu'ng umaga, itago ko na muna. E nakita niya 'yung box na pinaglagyan ko, binuksan ng bruha." They both smiled. "It took a while for her to... I don't know. Settle her feelings? Siguro nu'ng hindi ka na talaga nagpakita at tumawag, na-gets na niya na that was it. So she started going out. Then she dated Miguel. Pero may sting pa from you so that didn't work out... until she met Anton. I guess Anton was able to assure her na, No, I'm not like that, I won't leave you. And I guess it helped na by that time, Anton was already sure

that si Dawn ang gusto niya. And he made sure that Dawn felt that." It took Richard a few moments before he was able to say: "I didn't know na she wanted me to call." "Gusto niyang tawagan ka na, pero pinigilan namin. Ang lagay siya pa ang maninikluhod to be with you again? I mean, no offense, pero 'di ba? Parang hindi naman tama kasi kung mahal mo talaga siya, I'm sure you would've done something.