#CDFragments XXIII. Taking over

XXXII. Taking over At last, they were filming Daniel and Katerina's wedding. It would be a break from the dramatic scenes they have been doing for the past few days. For Dawn, a self-confessed fan of the team-up, the day was extra special because her daughter would be one of the three flower girls. Dawn arrived at the Montenegro mansion with Ayisha 10 minutes before call time, and to her surprise, Richard was already there, waiting for them by the gate. He opened the sliding door of their van and reached for Ayisha. To Dawn's surprise, the shy little girl clung to his neck as he carried her with one arm, his free hand reaching for Dawn's so he could help her get down from the car. With Dawn settled on her feet, Richard let her hand go then lifted Ayisha for a little spin, eliciting giggles from the child, who was unusually upbeat even when she just woke up from a nap. "Richard, 'wag mong sanayin," Dawn said as they walked to the tents. "Mamaya hanap-hanapin sa amin ng Papa niya." "Pagbigyan mo na ako," Richard answered, smiling, taking the bags from her. "Nami-miss ko na, matagal na akong walang baby girl." "You don't have a baby?" Ayisha interrupted.Dawn was about to tell the kid that it wasn't nice to interrupt two adults talking when Richard answered, "She's a big girl na, sweetheart. But she's still my baby." "A big baby?" The little girl cocked her head to a side, wrinkling her nose the same way that Dawn does when she's asking simple, weird questions.

"Just like you," Dawn said as they made it inside the tent. "Haay naku, Richard, ibaba mo na 'yan." He put Ayisha down on one of the chairs and faced his onscreen partner. "She's not going to be a toddler forever, Dawn. Sulitin mo din. You'd be surprised at how fast they grow up." As she sat on the make-up chair, she watched Richard and Ayisha from the corner of her eye. His fondness was obvious, and when the little girl

motioned for Richard to lean closer so she could whisper to him (most probably the same "secret" she shared with her Mama, about her new friend she met at the playground), Dawn knew that Ayisha felt the same way. ~~~ "You don't want to walk? Anak naman..." "Ms. Dawn, kung puwede daw po kayong sumama sa shoot sa labas..." "One second." She turned to Ayisha, who was playing with her fingers. "I thought you wanted to join the shoot, baby?" Richard approached. "O, bakit?" "Biglang ayaw maglakad, eh." He could see how she was close to losing her patience, knowing how Dawn doesn't like causing hassle on the set. He laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, bare because of the design of her terno. "Ako na," he said. "Sumama ka na doon." Unmindful that he might get his slacks dirty, he knelt in front of Ayisha so they were eye-to-eye. "You don't want to be a flower girl anymore?" The little girl shook her head. "You know, you're just like Juliana." "Juliana?" My big baby girl." He smiled. "The first time she was chosen as flower girl, she was crying in the church, 'Ayaw, Daddy! Ayaw!'" Ayisha began to smile at that reenactment (and Dawn, too, who didn't leave their side). "You know what I did? I carried her down the aisle while she scattered the flowers... "We can do that, but I have to walk beside your Mama. And you're going to look like such a baby!" "I'm not a baby na!" the little girl said back. "So you'll walk?" He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "You know, that will make your Mama very happy." Ayisha turned to Dawn and smiled. "Okay." "That's my girl," he said, planting a soft kiss on Ayisha's forehead as he stood up. He took her hand and led her to where the other flower girls were, introducing Dawn's daughter to them and waiting until she was

comfortable with the company. ~~~ Richard walked Dawn to her van, carrying Ayisha. The child fell asleep while they were filming the wedding ceremony, which had to be shot a few times, and on different angles, because of certain symbolisms that the writers put into the story. Careful not to wake her daughter up, Dawn pulled her away slowly from Richard's embrace. But in the same way that she would to whoever was carrying her, Ayisha squirmed and clung tighter to her Tito Richard. Dawn sighed. "Paano ba 'to?" Richard whispered, smiling. "Parang ikaw pala... mantika matulog." "Sa amin ka na kaya sumabay?" she offered. "Kapag kasi nagising—" "Parang ikaw din, susumpungin?" She smiled back at his teasing. "Eh 'yun na nga." "Okay, sige, let me just—" "Ako na. And maybe sina Viv puwede na sa kaniya sumabay para 'di naman sayang 'yung ibabiyahe niya." And so it was agreed upon that the driver would just follow the van to Plaza Ibarra at Timog Avenue, where they were going to shoot Daniel and Katerina's wedding reception. By the time Dawn made it inside the van, Richard and Ayisha were in the farthest row. His eyes were closed, and her daughter had occupied half of the seat, her head rested on Richard's lap. Even with the free rows in front of them, Dawn settled beside Richard and told the driver to go ahead. It was a bit of a long ride, coupled with traffic build-up that was usual in Manila in late afternoons. At first, Dawn just watched the passing view outside as they trudged through traffic. But that bored her eventually and she turned to Richard.

He was looking at her, his head rested on back of the seat, an arm around Ayisha to keep her from falling. "What are you thinking about?" he asked. "Traffic," she replied, smiling. "Tulog ka lang." "Baka nabo-bore ka, kailangan mo ng kakuwentuhan." "Actually, may tanong ako." "Shoot." "Mahirap ba?" "Ang alin?" "Watching your daughter grow up?" He smiled, wanting to move, but then remembering that he had a little girl sleeping on his lap. "Well, the raising-her-up part is getting more difficult as years go by..." he said, his eyes on Ayisha. "Kasi noon, your worries are just about... anong sakit ang puwede niyang makuha, ilang beses siyang magkakagalos sa binti... Ngayon it's about who she's with, where she goes, and the many instances that will hurt her—that we will have to explain to her. Alam mo 'yung takot na magsisimula na siyang hindi magkuwento? In time, she will find the need to lie... Na 'di magtatagal 'yang mga crush niyang Jonas Brothers, mapapalitan na ng totoong lalaki na magpapagulo sa isip niya, magpapatibok ng puso niya, at posibleng saktan siya." In the long time she has known Richard, he rarely articulated himself that well, except for people and things that were close to his heart. Clearly that heart belongs to his "big baby girl". At a loss for anything else to say, she reached for his hand, tracing the lines on his palm, the way she used to do to help him relax. "Thank you nga pala du'n sa kanina..." "Alam mo, parehong pareho kayo nitong anak mo..." He turned to her and

scrunched his eyebrows. "Bakit ganiyan ka makatingin? May dumi ba ako sa mukha?" "Wala." "Naku, guwapong guwapo ka na naman sa akin." She giggled as he winked. "Walang hiya ka rin talaga!" "Bakit, 'di ba totoo?" "Sige na nga, guwapo ka na." He chuckled softly, mindful not to wake Ayisha up. "Okay na 'yung 'Thanks', 'di mo na kailangang mambola... Pero siyempre, I really need to look good..." He leaned closer. "... kasi ang ganda ganda ng partner ko." He lowered himself on the seat, gathering Ayisha in a tighter embrace, and leaned his head on Dawn's shoulder, closing his eyes once more and napping through the rest of the ride