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Lanna's Story
Immediately after Lanna's Manager leaves her house, she jumps right on her desk, and begins to work. However, the panic that she is going through only disrupts her concentration. Coming up with at least a dozen songs in only seven days is practically impossible for any normal person, but for the sake of her job, she will try.
It was already late when Lanna came home, but she does not stop to sleep. She plans to work around the clock until the work is done. However, even though she tries her best to get something done, the same results come out. She writes a few lines, then she throws it away. One moment, she tells herself that she should not worry about creativity, and just turn in any nonsense. But then again, she tells herself that she cannot turn in any slop to her Manager.
Morning arrives, and Lanna continues to work recklessly. She starts to feel sleepy, but she needs to continue working or else she will not be done in time. But after so many hours, the amount of crumpled paper only increases, and not even a single song has yet to be made. She drinks coffee to stay awake, she hates the taste of it, but she doesn't have a choice.
Hours continue to pass, and Lanna continues to work. Her handwriting is getting sloppier by the minute, and her vision is getting blurry. Stress and worry is taking it's toll, as well as the fact that Lanna has yet to sleep. She looks over at the clock, and sees that it's 10:00 am. She feels dizzy, but she needs to keep working. She only has six and a half more days to go.
At around 1:00 pm, Lanna finally collapses on her desk and falls asleep. She has horrible nightmares of millions of people laughing at her because she could not complete her work in the two years she had been living on the island. She begs to her millions of fans that it was not her fault. She tried her best, but it wasn't enough.
In the dream, she sees Mark and Chelsea together. They both laugh at her failure and walk away holding hands. They both call her horrible names like “Failure” and “Loser”. She collapses on her knees, and cries. She cannot stop the laughter echoing in the dark abyss of her nightmare.
She suddenly wakes up upon hearing some knocking at her front door. She looks at the time, and it's 2:30 pm. She didn't get much rest, and the sudden awakening makes her feel ill. She gets up to answer the door, but she stumbles a few times on the way. She's weak and dizzy, walking is difficult for her, but she at least manages to get to the door.
She finds Mark in the other side of the door. As soon as she answers it, Mark begins to say, “Hey Lanna, I tried to find you in your usual spot, but- OH MY GOD!!! ARE YOU OKAY!?!?!?”
Mark panics as soon as he sees Lanna's condition. She has the most hoarse face anyone could ever see. Her skin is as pale as a ghost, her hair is messed up, clothes dirty from sweat and coffee stains, she's leaning on the door so she could stand, eyes half closed struggling to stay awake. Never in the two years that Mark has known her has he seen her in such a condition.
“Lanna. . . What happened?” asked Mark.
Lanna yawns and replies, “Nothing . . . I'm perfectly fine. . . Now will you excuse me, I have to get back tooooo. . .” Before she finishes her sentence, Lanna collapses. Mark is able to catch her before she hits the ground. He yells her name several times, but she does not wake up.
Later that night, Lanna wakes up with a Jerk. She is on her bed in her bedroom. She looks at the time, and sees that it's 9:00 pm, about six hours after she collapsed. She does feel refreshed after waking up, but she is starving. She then remembers that she has so much work to do, but she wasted so much time resting that she does not think she could make it in time. There are only six days left until the deadline, and Lanna still has not even a single song done.
She panics as soon as she hears that she is not alone in the house. But she calms herself when she smells the familiar scent of Mark's cooking. She climbs out of bed, and walks over to her kitchen to find Mark cooking. Like always, he is cooking a dish that involves fish. She has never seen him actually cook before, so this is something new and interesting to watch.
It doesn't take Mark too long before he notices that Lanna is awake, and watching him from behind. He then turns around and says, “Are you feeling okay Lanna?” She nods, but says nothing. Mark then continues, “You still look a little pale. Why don't you lie down, and I'll bring you something to eat. Dinner is almost ready.”
Lanna nods, and goes back to her room. In about 5 minutes, Mark brings her a bowl of rice, and some sushi on the side. After thanking Mark, she begins to eat. She never had Mark's sushi before, but it tastes incredibly good. She wasn't sure if it was because she was incredibly hungry, or it was just plain delicious.
Mark takes a good look at her bedroom while she eats. He is surprised to find so many different interesting objects, such as posters of her first album debut, awards she won, CD's of her favorite singers and groups, photos hanging on the wall of some of her friends she made while on tour. There are also other things she has like stuffed bears, pictures of family, a diary, and the other things a girl would normally have in her room.
Outside her bedroom, she also have a room dedicated to a collection of fishing gear. He always knew that she loved fish, but not this much. She has many rods on display, photos that she took while visiting aquarium around the world, a fish tank with some tropical colorful fish she keep as pets, and much more. He has learned so much being in her house for the first time.
“You have a lot of neat stuff here.” commented Mark.
Lanna stops eating for a moment to say, “Don't stare at my stuff so much. It's embarrassing.”
Mark nods, and Lanna continues to eat. After she's done, Mark takes the empty dishes, and says, “Care to tell me what happened?” She looks forward, but stays quiet. Mark can easily see a look of sadness in her face. He knows that something happened, but he's not going to pressure it out of her. So he smiles and says, “If you don't want to talk about it, I understand. I'll just out this in the kitchen, and go home. I hope you'll feel better tomorrow.”
As soon as Mark turns around, Lanna says, “Wait.” Mark faces Lanna once again, and waits for her to say something. It takes her a couple of minutes before she says, “You think we could meet up at the beach tomorrow?”
“Sure, I guess. But why?”
Lanna shakes her head no, and says, “Meet me there at noon. On the rock that we sat on when we watch the fireworks. Please be there.”
Mark nods, then goes to the kitchen to leave the dishes on the sink. He then says his goodbyes, and goes back to the farm. Lanna stays awake for a bit longer, but goes back to sleep in a few hours. At this point, she feels like giving up. There is no way that she could finish at this point.
The next day, Mark heads to the beach at Noon like Lanna asked. Just as she said she would, She's sitting on the great big boulder that is halfway in the sand. Nobody knows how that giant piece of rock got there, but nobody cared to find out either. He nods, and walks up to her. Even though Lanna hears him coming, her mind is too preoccupied to look in his direction. Her cheeks are resting on her hands as she thinks about the inevitable doom of her career.
“Hey there. I'm here.” said Mark. Even though he announced that he has arrived, Lanna does not move even a single muscle. She just continues to look at the crashing waves of the beach.
Mark then climbs the rock, and sits beside her. There is a long pause, Mark wants to say something, but he just remains quiet. There has to be a reason why Lanna asked him to meet her at the beach, so he waits patiently until she says something, anything.
“Talk to me Mark.” said Lanna breaking the silence.
Mark scratches his head, and says, “Well, what do you want me to talk about?”
“I don't care. Just say anything. I just want you to keep mind busy, that's all.”
Mark does not understand why Lanna wants him to just talk. He just sits there, and tries his hardest to come up with something interesting to talk about. It's not easy for him to just come up with something on the spot. He keeps asking himself, “What do Pop Idols like to talk about?” It's not like he knows a collection of people like her to know what to say. But he does know that Lanna likes fishes.
Finally, he nods and begins his pointless speech, “Well, this morning I caught the biggest fish I have ever seen. Wow, was it a big one. At first, I thought I would catch the usual small fish. Nothing would prepare me for the fight of my life. I casted the line like I usually do, then after a half hour of waiting, I get a bite. Wow, the fish was powerful!
I tugged, and let the line go over and over. I just wanted to tire out that bad boy so I can reel it in. I thought I was going to lose it time after time, but I had it under control. After fighting with it for about ten minutes, I could feel it getting weaker. So I reeled it in. I had to be careful in case it had some extra energy to bite through the hook. So I reeled it in carefully, and it landed! Wow, it was bigger than I thought! A great big Bonito, about 70 cm long! Now, I know that's not that big, but it was a personal record. And-”
Mark stops talking as soon as he hears Lanna sniffling. He looks over to her, and finds her crying, trying her best to wipe the tears as they come. Mark starts to feel bad, he was so preoccupied by his one person conversation, that he didn't notice Lanna cry until now.
So he takes a deep breath and says, “Lanna, what's the matter? You're not usually this way. If there is anything I could do to help you, just tell me.”
Lanna moves her hands away from her face and finally admits, “Mark. . . I'm going to lose my job.”
The news shocks him. “But why? What happened?” asked Mark.
Lanna lets out a last sniffle before saying, “You see, my boss came to the island. He came for my lyrics, but I was not done yet. To be honest, I haven't gotten a thing done since I came here.”
“You haven't? But you've been so busy all the time. What happened to all that work you put this whole time?”
Lanna shakes her head no and continues, “I tried. But no matter how much time I spend here, I came up with nothing. Just failed ideas over and over. I have five more days left, and I need to write a whole album. There is no way that I can do that much work in so little time. I'm a failure.”
After telling Mark what happened, she looks down at her boots sadly. Mark wants to say something like, “You can do it!” or “I believe in you!” or something encouraging. But he knows that encouragement is not what she needs. Even if he makes her feel better, it will only hurt her more once her time is up. What she needs is help, but Mark has no idea how. Mark is not a writer, or a poet, or a music producer. He is just a simple farmer with no other talents.
But just sitting there is not going to help her either. He needs something that could help her. So he thinks for a moment, and asks, “Lanna, what inspired you to write the first album?”
Lanna picks her head up, and looks at Mark. She found what he said quite interesting. Mark then looks up at the sky and continues, “Songs are like poems in a way, but a bit more fun to listen to. In order for you to write a poem, you need some inspiration, am I right? I'm sure that you had something that you wanted to sing about. Do you remember what it was?”
Lanna then decides to look up in the sky. She does remember what was her inspiration the first time around. But at the same time, it's not something she wants to remember. She came to the island to forget about what happened in her past. But it seems to her that her past may be her only clue as to how to get back the inspiration that she needs.
“You see. . . When I wrote the first album, I was in love.”
“Oh, I see. I didn't know you had a boyfriend. Figures, the album was mostly love songs anyway.”
Even though Mark was disappointed for a moment, Lanna shakes her head no and says, “Don't misunderstand me. We're not together anymore.”
“Go on.” said Mark full of interest.
Lanna sighs and closes her eyes trying to remember those days when she was blissfully in love. “IT all started back in high school. I was dating this guy who was pretty popular in school. We were inseparable for a while. He was tall, dark, handsome. I was just any ordinary girl in school, but he loved my singing voice. One day, I wanted to show how much I loved him by singing in the drama club.
We put on a musical play on my senior year. I wrote the song that I would sing telling everyone how I felt. The play was a big success. That day, I met my manager. He discovered my talent, then offered me a contract as a Pop Idol singer. It was a hard choice to make, going on tour, visiting so many different places, meeting so many different people. At first, I didn't want to take the job, but my boyfriend told me that I should take the offer.
And so, I became a Pop Idol. I wrote my lyrics so that I could show the whole world how much I loved the guy back in my hometown. I took a bunch of dancing and acting lessons, wrote the first set of lyrics, and even wrote the music to go along with it. In a short time, I was a big success.
My CD's were selling like hot cakes. I got so many offers to do concerts and promotions. I was offered to play in a movie, but I turned that down. I did a few interviews, visited many places, signed autographs for fans. It just never stopped for a while. One task after another, but I did it for the one I loved.
After a year and a half, I was finally given some time off. I went back to my hometown to see my boyfriend. But I only came to find out that he had already gotten married to someone else. They even had a kid together. When I asked him why, he told me that I didn't have any time for him anymore. So he moved on, and found someone else.
I was crushed. Becoming a Pop Idol was his idea, but he didn't wait for me. Since then, I couldn't write anymore. My manager started asking me for a second album, but I couldn't do it. I was too hurt to even think about anything. So my manager arranged for me to write my lyrics somewhere where I can get over my broken heart. So I came to this island so I can have a chance to get away from everything, and write my second album. But even after I got over my boyfriend, I still couldn't write anything. Two years I spent trying, but I still can't do it.”
Mark sighs and says, “I didn't know you were going through all that. It must have been rough on you. I'm sorry. . .”
Lanna then looks away and says, “What are you apologizing for? After all, it was me who was being stupid. I mean, who would wait for me anyway. I'm sure any guy would do the same thing.”
“That's not true.” answered Mark. Lanna then turns to Mark shocked by what he said. “I think that guy was just being stupid, not you. I mean, you are a very gifted and talented girl. Your very cute too. Only an idiot would not wait for you. You may have your moments, but your sweet, spirited, and dedicated to what you love the most.” He then looks at Lanna deep in her eyes and says, “If I was your boyfriend, I'd wait for you, even if I spend the rest of my life waiting.”
Lanna's face turns as red as a tomato. She then turns away trying to hide her embarrassed face saying, “Mark. . . You shouldn't say things like that. . . I mean. . . It almost sounds like you are making a promise to me. . . I'm sure that you never waited for a girl before. . . So you don't know if you can do that. . .”
Mark scratches his head, and giggles while saying, “I guess you're right, I have never waited for anyone before. But even so, I still think that I would wait for someone that I loved. I just can't see myself finding someone new, knowing that someone I love is going to come back to me.”
Finally, Lanna looks out to the ocean one more time. Remembering the times she had spent with Mark the last 2 years makes her blush. The entire two years she had known him, she didn't want to tell herself that she was starting to like him. But after Chelsea came into their lives, her emotions just blew over. Mark is important to her, she just needs to admit that to herself.
“Mark, thank you. I feel so much better now that I got to talk to you. You really are a good friend.”
“It's okay. I'm just glad that you're feeling better. I just hope that everything works out in the end. Maybe if you talk to your manager one more time, I'm sure he'll reason with you.”
Lanna nods, and says, “You know Mark. I think you deserve a reward.”
Mark shakes his head no and answers, “No, I couldn't possibly accept any money.”
Lanna frowns and crosses her arms yelling, “No, that's not what I meant! Honestly, are you an idiot or something?”
Mark then sighs and says, “Sorry, I guess I didn't understand what you meant by 'reward'.”
Lanna then blushes a deep shade of pink in her cheeks and begins to fidget with her fingers. In a nervous tone, she says, “When I said reward, I mean that you could. . . . Kiss me.”
Mark nearly falls off the rock as soon as he hears that. It was something he was never expected her to say. He trembles nervously as he asks, “Did you say kiss? Are you feeling okay? I mean, I never expected that so suddenly.”
Lanna then looks away again and says, “Well, you don't have to if you don't want to. I thought it would make you happy, but I guess I'm wrong!”
As she is looking away, Lanna suddenly feels Mark's hand touch hers. She looks back and sees that Mark has moved in closer to her. She can feel her heart pound, like if he's striking it with a hammer. It's a pleasant feeling, proof that she has indeed fallen for him. She closes her eyes, and waits for his lips to meet hers.
She has felt this feeling once before. After she had lost her first love, she thought that she would never be able to love again. She tried her best to close it off, and see everyone as just a simple fan. Even though she won't say it just yet, she does love him. She is tired of hiding it. So from now on, she will listen to the song her heart is trying to sing to her all this time.