Chapter 2
It’s been three days since the breakup.
The BINI girls had separate commitments over the past few days. Colet and Maloi attended a voice workshop as representatives of the group.
Mikha, Stacey, Gwen, and Sheena went to Belo for a social media shoot, something the other four had done the previous week. Aiah had been a guest hurado on Showtime for the past three days.
Meanwhile, Jhoanna was preparing to be a Guest Patroller for TV Patrol, writing scripts for several articles, including her own segment.
Jhoanna did her best to keep herself busy, hoping to drown out the thoughts of what had happened.
But no matter how hard she tried, the memories kept creeping in. From time to time, she found herself lost in thought, biting back tears in front of others.
The past three days had been unbearable.
Fortunately, there were no group rehearsals yet, but she knew she had to prepare.
-
Days passed, and the girls were back in rehearsals and guest appearances. Jhoanna and Colet kept things strictly professional, never interacting as friends.
During breaks, Jhoanna intentionally distanced herself, using her leader's responsibilities as an excuse. She often sat in a corner with her laptop open, though sometimes she simply stared at the screen, lost in thought.
The girls had noticed the distance between Colet and Jhoanna. But after living together for two years, they assumed it was just another tampuhan that would eventually pass.
"Alright, girls, you have the next 12 days to yourselves. Recharge, relax, and spend time with your family and friends. But not too much fun, okay? See you all on the 15th. Pahinga ha, wag masyadong magpapagod kakagala," their manager, Miss MQ, announced excitedly.
"Yes! Sa wakas, makakauwi na rin!" Maloi beamed, practically bouncing on her feet.
The girls had been looking forward to this break for weeks—they deserved it.
"Thank you, Lord! Thanks, Miss MQ, yudabest! Mwa!" Stacey blew an exaggerated flying kiss toward their manager, making everyone laugh.
As they started gathering their things, Aiah asked, "Oh guys, ano plano niyo sa break?"
"Travel kami ni Mommy, ‘te Aiah. Punta kami ng Taiwan with some relatives," Stacey shared, earning a chorus of "Wow," "Sana all," and "Pasalubong ah!" from the girls.
"Uwi lang ng Bicol," Gwen said. "Magkakasunod din kasi birthday ng dalawa kong kapatid, kaya uuwi din yung iba naming pinsan."
"Out of town din kami, pero nakalimutan ko saan. Blooms na lang mag-update sa inyo!" Sheena joked, laughing at herself.
"We’re flying to the UK to visit Dad. He has some business to do there, so susunod kami nila Mom. Actually, tonight na flight ko," Mikha shared.
"Wow naman, Mikhs. Iba talaga ang mga Lims," Maloi teased, earning a "LOL" from Mikha.
"Punta ako sa Lola ko sa Ilocos. I’m so excoiteeeeed!" Maloi exaggerated, making the girls chuckle.
"Uwi din akong Bohol, guys," Colet said quietly.
"Cebu din me eh. Ikaw, Jho?" Aiah asked Jhoanna, who had been busy arranging her things.
"Uwi sa Laguna. Di ko pa alam anong ganap dun, pero pupunta sila Mama ng Hong Kong sa 13. Kaso baka di na ako sumama, ang hassle umuwi ng 14 tapos rush pa. Nakakapagod lang," Jhoanna replied.
"Uyy, pampalubag-loob niya lang ‘yan sa sarili niya kahit kating-kati pumunta ng Disneyland!" Stacey teased.
"Baka umiyak ka nyan, ‘te Jho," Sheena added, grinning mischievously.
"Hoy, excuse me, di ako naiinggit, no! Malungkot nga sila kasi wala ako—wala silang magandang kasama," Jhoanna huffed.
"Sure ka ba?" Stacey smirked.
"Na maganda ka?" Sheena quipped, making the girls burst into laughter—except for Colet, who kept her back turned, focused on arranging her things.
"Maganda naman talaga yan si Jho. Si master natin ‘yan eh," Aiah said sweetly, defending their young leader.
"Nakakakilig talaga pag maganda yung nag-co-compliment sa’yo, no? Feel na feel mo yung sincerity. Di ko yun ma-feel kay Shee at Staks eh," Jhoanna joked, side-hugging Aiah while sticking her tongue out at the two.
"Tama na yan. Wag na kayo magbangayan, pauwi na nga kayo tapos mami-miss niyo rin naman ang isa’t-isa," Maloi interjected.
"Di ko mami-miss yan si Mangga. She’s gonna be all over the internet naman," Stacey teased.
"Oo nga, tapos mag-u-upload pa yan ng thirst traps. Ganyan ‘yan eh, papansin!" Sheena laughed.
"Pag inggit, pikit," Jhoanna flipped her hair smugly.
-
But contrary to Sheena and Stacey’s teasing, Jhoanna was completely absent from social media during the break. Not a single bloom spotted her, nor was there any stolen photo of her circulating online.
She had taken the break a little too seriously.
A week into their break, fans were thirsty for updates, making #MasterGalawinAngBaso trend on X. But still—nothing from Jhoanna.
Three days before the break ended, she returned to Manila to accompany her parents and relatives to the airport for their Hong Kong trip—a trip she wasn’t joining.
The next day, she just sat in her condo bedroom, staring at the ceiling, crying her heart out. As if she hadn’t spent her entire break doing the same thing.
Finally, she decided to check their group chat.
BINI GC
Aiah: *What’s up, girls? I’m two days early sa Manila :(( *
Sheena: Ay, excited mag-back to work, Ate Aiah?
Aiah: Had to attend a relative’s birthday kahapon eh.
Mikha: Too bad, Ate Aiah. Ako nga will extend pa! :P
Stacey: Huy, ako rin huhu. Parang wala nang balak umuwi si Mommy ko, guys.
Sheena: Extend to 8888. Please, Lord, bigay mo na sakin toooo. Ayoko pa umalis sa paraiso ng Puerto Princesa!
Aiah: Naks naman, lowkey paibog bai! Naols.
Colet: Sanaol.
The moment Jhoanna saw Colet’s name, the pain returned.
Ganito na lang ba palagi kong mararamdaman sa tuwing makikita ko pangalan niya? Pano ba ‘to matatapos? Pano ba ‘to matatakasan?
A few moments later, Jhoanna received an email from their manager, announcing that their brand shoot and commercial had been rescheduled—extending their break by another week.
She forwarded the email to each of the girls and took a screenshot for the GC, just in case they didn’t check their inboxes.
BINI (Walo Hanggang End)
Jhoanna sent a photo.
Jhoanna: Oh ayan na ah. Dininig na ang mga bulong niyo.
Sheena: OMGGGGGGGGG!!! Totoo ang himala. May himalaaaaa!
Stacey: Perfect! Di muna ako uuwi. Kayo na bahala sa ating Perlas ng Silanganan.
Jhoanna: Kahit wag ka nang umuwi, Staks. Wag ka dumagdag sa overpopulation ng Pilipinas.
Stacey: Shut up, Miss Walang Paramdam sa Social Media. Ikaw na ba ang bagong ako? O tatapatan mo si Gwen?
Mikha: Yey, this is serious right? I will be rescheduling my flight din. Thanks Jho!
Mikha: Oo nga, you were so tahumik! Kaya mo pala yun?
Sheena: Nagpapababy lang yan, guys.
Jhoanna: May dinadamdam lang, guys.
Aiah: Are you sick, Jho?
Aiah: Oh and thanks for sending it here Jho, guys you can check din your emails. Jho forwarded Miss MQ's email regarding the break extention :))
Gwen: Yup, got it. Thanks Jho!
Jhoanna: You're welcome guys. And no, Ate Aiah, I'm not sick. Joke lang po yun. Enjoy the extension, guys. See you on the 22nd!
But deep inside, she knew—this extension wouldn’t change the pain she was running from.