Chapter Text
I know it’s not often that you find an Author’s note as a full chapter of its own, but since these chapters are inspired by Filipino songs, I wrote this in as a courtesy/crash course for non-Filipino readers.
Mira’s Chapter (1) is inspired by “Kahel na Langit by Maki”. The translation of the title is “An Orange Sky”, the sight that leaves people breathless and reminiscing about memories from so long ago that it seems like a lifetime away. It is a song that has a rhythm which evokes nostalgia, a song that brings a smile to your face as you think of gentle times or moments of life that remain unforgettable despite the passage of time.
It reminds me of Mira because she seems like the type to be detail-oriented, and I headcanon her as the Queen of Yearning in the Polytrix trio. Her past is something that has left marks on her bones and it shows every day even if she tries her best to outrun it, the cold of her childhood will always unforgettable even if the warmth of Polytrix now encases her soul.
If you want specifics, the lyrics that reminded me most of Mira is the outro of the song:
Original Lyrics:
At sa darating na panahong nasa ilalim na’ko ng lupa,
At pag inuod na ang puso at utak;
Ang makikita nila’y: Ikaw.
Translation:
And when the time comes that I am buried beneath soil,
When the worms make homes of my mind and heart;
What they’ll find there is: You.
Zoey’s Chapter (2) is inspired by “Pahina by Cup of Joe”. The translation of the title is ”Page”, the thing inside of a book where the words are written. It’s a song with a rattling melody of percussions that tug on aching heartstrings, an angsty song that speaks of haunting remembrance, of how relationships once thought to be for life has instead become a footnote in someone’s story- A closed chapter which will follow you in the dark of night and keep your soul from resting when silence overtakes the space of your environment.
This is the song which reminds me of Zoey because of her people pleasing tendencies, the song speaks of the weight of fate and I find that it is the kind of weight that is most familiar to children of immigrants who burn brightly with the spirit of love and gratitude- Of those who grew up in a house with just enough things but with an abundance of love, whose marrows overflow with the kind of gentleness that makes you believe that perhaps there is hope for the world after all.
If you want specifics, there are two parts of the song which reminded me most of Zoey: The pre-chorus and the bridge
Original Lyrics: PRE-CHORUS
Sa lahat ng pahinang sinulat ng tadhana’y,
Ikaw at ikaw, at ikaw pa rin.
Ang yugtong paulit-ulit kong babalik-balikan:
Sigaw, sigaw ay ikaw pa rin.
Translation: PRE-CHORUS
Of all the pages that fate wrote,
It is you, and it will always be you.
The stage (Of life) I always keep coming back to:
It is you, it is still you.
Original Lyrics: BRIDGE
Simula sa wakas na ‘di matuklasan:
Pagbalik kung saan ‘di na natagpuan.
Ang mga matang nakatanaw sa umpisa:
Ng yugtong ‘di na sana naisulat pa.
Translation: BRIDGE
At the start of the ending I cannot overcome;
I come back to what I could not reach.
My eyes are trained on the start:
Of the chapter I wish did not come to be.
Rumi’s Chapter (3) is inspired by ”Kisame by Rhodessa”. The translation of the song is ”Ceiling”, the sight you are greeted by when you first open your eyes after waking up and the sight you last see when you finally fall asleep. It is a song that lacks memorable percussion, its instrumentals are composed fully of strings that sing of wishes and unspoken confessions. Kisame is a song that speaks of the thoughts about unrequited love that keeps you up at night when you think of confessing.
This song reminds me so much of Rumi because she has always been burdened with keeping an integral part of herself secret. Her story has been relatable to so many queer audiences and the cherry on top is that Kisame was written by a queer woman who made this song about unrequited love (Due to the lack of confession, borne from hesitation) for her crush who is the same gender as her. While we get no verbal confirmation in the movie, it is made clear through context clues that she has considered laying her secret bare to the girls a handful of times- It is hesitation which forces her to shoulder the heaviness of keeping who she is as a whole as a closely guarded secret in fear of pre-instilled mindsets shunning her; VERY QUEER CODED!
If you want specifics, the part of the song which reminds me most of Rumi is the pre-chorus:
Original Lyrics:
Pero bakit ba ang layo mo?
Laging magkabilang mundo.
Pero bakit ba ang layo mo?
Pwede bang sa ‘yo na lang ako?
Translation:
But why are you so far away?
Always on opposite ends on the world.
But why are you so far away?
May I just be someone who is yours?