It is not the end.

NOTE: Although meant to be published on the second month since OTRAT Manila, I wrote this post weeks before Zayn tweeted that...thing. So, let us not talk about him *really* leaving the group, okay? This is a recollection of the best night ever after all. Besides, according to Liam, they're in good terms :)

We were so excited for the concert. I didn’t know how I managed to get some sleep the night before but one thing’s for sure—3 hours of sleep weren’t enough; my insides, which were twisting and turning like a crazy roller coaster didn’t help at all. In a few hours, I was going to see them. Four years of waiting and I’d finally see them in flesh. I was disappointed when they announced that Zayn won’t be with 4/5 for this show, though. Well, maybe he really needed rest.

We arrived at MOA four hours before the concert so we decided to grab something to eat and buy movie tickets (for mom and dad). By 6PM, we proceeded to concert grounds and they let us in.

Freaking hell. The stage was huge. I started counting the rows, searching for Row M. I was overwhelmed; I didn’t expect it to be that close to the stage. We claimed our VIP/HOT ticket package and immediately wore the laminated IDs. We also went to the Spinnr booth and had our photo taken. Eep!

It started drizzling so we searched for our seats and went to the booth where they sold raincoats. My clothes were already soaked but we were still in line. An hour after, I got two raincoats (I didn’t even ask for the right size) but I couldn’t go out of the tent since it was crammed with people still waiting for their turn.

The paper bag I was holding got ripped and the contents—the (beloved) tour shirt I bought at the official merch booth, the rest of the VIP/Hot ticket package and our tickets!—fell. I panicked and grabbed all the items I could, hoping that the tickets were included, and tried pushing through the people in line.

The front act, DJ KC from Malaysia, was already on the stage so I went back to my seat. (Honestly, I was thinking of another front act *coughs* 5SOS *coughs* but that's gonna need a miracle before it happens, yeah? Haha.) I never appreciated EDM until that night. It felt incredible dancing while the rain was pouring, especially because it really hyped up the concert feel. We were jumping and dancing the whole time, we even forgot it was raining.

An hour and a half later, I saw Harry’s hair (yes, pls don't judge) from the back of the stage and I started screaming. Here we go again, another go round for all of my friends... I could not remember anything more except when those words surrounded the venue, my ears were filled with screams and my heart was beating so fast. They were there; right in front of me. I wanted to cry but I also wanted to see and capture every moment. I joined the screams surrounding me... and that, my friends, was how the best night ever started.

During the first few songs, I tried to take photos and videos but then realized I couldn’t really enjoy the concert if I was having a hard time holding my camera while singing and dancing so I decided to just record anything, whatever quality they may be. Blurry videos + crappy sounds? Who cares?

I held the camera as high as I could because I didn’t want to record my voice while singing. (It's out of tune—er, in case you need an explanation or you just want me to humiliate myself. Heh.) I needed something to listen to after the concert.

Songs went by and we didn’t even realize we were already halfway through the concert. I sang every song, including I Will Survive (I consider this as one of the most unforgettable parts of the show. It was spontaneous and it seemed Liam had a great time. Hahaha). I danced the inbetweeners dance during One Thing (ah yes, the good ol' days), waved the Philippine flag during Don’t Forget Where You Belong, held up Zayn’s picture during some songs, took part on the 1DPH fan project, supported Louis because #TeamNuggets forever, and stared at Niall every time he stops on the runway. I also tried catching the water bottles Harry threw, greeted Toby a happy birthday, sang Torn before the encore, watched Louis eat a cheeseburger that was randomly thrown to the stage, and screamed at the top of my lungs.

I gave myself a break from singing every now and then (I didn’t want to!) because I was having a hard time breathing—I didn’t know if I was just overwhelmed by the thought and sight of One Direction or my lungs sucked at being lungs again. My fingers started to feel numb too, maybe because we were soaked and it was pretty cold or maybe all oxygen inside my body were swallowed by feels and decided not to circulate properly. However, NOTHING stopped me from having fun. We ditched our raincoats (It was no use, sayang 400 pesos haha) and even tried to stand on our seats but the bouncer asked us to get down (Boo! Jk.)

After a few more songs, the lights went off and people started yelling, “We want more.” Although I knew it was not the end yet (may encore pa kaya) I chanted along the people asking for more and cherished the remaining moments.

Three more songs... then fireworks lit up the sky.

Winning tickets from Spinnr was a really huge blessing for me, especially after I accidentally dropped their call when they were about to notify me about it. I thought I had let my only chance to see the boys slip away. Fortunately, they answered when I called them back so I still got my tickets. With that, I promised I would randomly call my directioner friends + someone from twitter who trusted me enough with her phone number after I tweeted, “RT this so I could follow you + DM me your number. I have a surprise.” See how insane that was?

So yeah, it was simple: whoever answers the phone gets the chance to hear the boys sing live. I had no idea what their reactions were because I was like, “Hi this is Jarred and I should stop talking now or you won’t hear them sing. Enjoy!” then I'd put my phone down. Honestly, I didn’t think it was a huge gesture—hence what I felt when I checked my social media accounts after the concert was really unexpected. There were a lot of thank yous on my feed. I mean, I just wanted to make them happy. You know what they say—share your blessings, people. It’s one of the best feelings in the world.

Truth be told, I couldn’t really describe how I felt that night. It was surreal, and… I don’t know how else to sum it up, cause words ain’t good enough… better than woooords oohh! *ba dum tss!* HAHAHA.

Seriously now, I know I could have enjoyed the concert even if I was in Gold (um, previous ticket) but let's be honest here, I've always wanted a better seat. Therefore, I really, really want to thank Spinnr for giving us (not just the better but) the best seats.

So you guys, don’t you dare miss Spinnr promos because they’re the best.

All the love. J.

PS: I apologize for mediocre words, lame jokes, grammatical errors and excessive use of parentheses. I am not used to writing blog posts.