The Beauty Queen And The Geek (COMPLETED)

Part Four: Grandmaster Wyldon

WYLDON Rodriguez's life had always been entwined with chess. Seven years old pa lamang siya ng makitaan siya ng Mama niya ng galing sa nasabing laro. Middle class lamang ang pamilya nila at parehong government employees ang mga magulang nila. Lima silang magkakapatid, at siya ang nag-iisang lalaki na nakapagitna sa dalawang ate niya at dalawang kapatid na babae na mas bata sa kanya.

Kaya naman malaking tulong sa pamilya niya ang mga premyong nakukuha niya noon kapag nanalo siya sa mga chess tournaments. Nakakuha rin siya ng scholarship dahil sa talento niyang iyon. He was in full scholarship from his elementary years up to getting his college degree in Ateneo.

He became a FIDE Master at the age of 16, an International Master at age 19, and a Grandmaster at twenty-two. He was the first Southeast Asian to win the World Chess Championship in Germany that had Malacañang awarding him the Order of Lakandula, one of the highest honors given by the Republic of the Philippines, for the pride he had given his country.

But the last three tournaments he had attended got him to think if he still got the right moves.

Nasita kasi siya ng chairman ng Philippine Chess Federation matapos ang tournament na ginanap sa Moscow, Russia. Bland daw ang naging performance niya, at may mga galaw at atake raw siyang mediocre at halos amateurish. Iyon daw ang dahilan kaya mababa ang naging final ranking niya sa naganap na tournament. He had one win, three draws and four losses at the end of the event. Siya ang pinakamababa sa apat na chess Grandmasters na bumubuo sa Philippine contingent. Ganoon din halos ang resulta ng nakaraang laban na dinaluhan niya sa Australia at China.

But what got him thinking was what Louie De Mesa, the federation's secretary-general, pointed out to him.

"Tell me, GM Wyldon, how many hours in a day do you give into chess practice and techniques?"

Nasa lobby sila noon ng The Ritz-Carlton Moscow Hotel, ang hotel kung saan sila naka-checked in. May ilang segundo rin ang dumaan bago siya sumagot. "Four to five hours."

"And what else do you do?"

Nagkibit-balikat siya. "I serve as a tutor on chess to some kids, I work on the chess books that Anvil commissions me to write, and I sometimes accept invitations to schools and universities as a speaker. Paminsan-minsan, may mga kumpanyang kumukuha sa 'kin bilang product endorser, o kaya naman iyong mga taga-media o kaya college students na gusto akong interview-hin."

"And your concept of social life?"

"The usual drinking sessions with friends, pag-attend sa mga kasal, binyagan, at birthday parties,pagpunta sa gym... May I ask where this inquiry is going, Sir?"

"Here's the thing, GM Wyldon. Chess has been your life and comfort zone. So here's my unsolicited advice: Try to find new things to do. Learn a new sport, do bungee jumping, take cooking lessons, I don't care what, just do something different than what you're doing now and stay away from chess for a couple of weeks, or even months. You're forgetting the standpoint that chess is not only a science, it's also an art. You badly need restoration of your creative side. You're burned-out."

Kumunot ang noo niya. "How can I be burned-out if I'm doing something that I like doing? I live and breathe chess, at wala naman akong problema doon."

It was Sir Louie's turn to shrug. "Consult a neurologist to fully discuss with you the human brain's complexity."

Tiningnan niya ito ng mataman. Maya-maya ay napabuntung-hininga na lamang siya. "Pag-iisipan ko ang mga sinabi n'yo, Sir."

At ngayon nga na nakauwi na siya sa sarili niyang bahay sa may San Juan, Manila mula sa NAIA ay hindi pa niya magawang ayusin ang mga gamit niya. Buong biyahe kasi nila magmula Russia ay laman na ng isip niya ang naging diskusyon nila ni Sir Louie.

Binuksan niya ang tv set para may mapagbalingan siya ng atensiyon. Inilipat niya iyon sa Solar Sports. Napakunot ang noo niya ng mag-commercial break ang football game na pinapanood niya ay ipinalabas ang isang TV commercial ng Iceberg Vodka. At ang magkaibigang Empress Trinidad at Aimee Domingo ang bida sa commercial. The two women were shown at the club, partying, dancing and laughing while drinking vodka. After their ten-second commercial, it was Manny Pacquiao's turn to convince the viewers to buy a certain karaoke-microphone brand.

He then remembered his promise to Aimee na i-treat ito sa dinner pagkagaling niya ng Russia. He got his cellphone and called Cedric de Rossi.

"Wyldon, pare."

Narinig niya ang naging pagsagot ng kaibigang si Cedric sa cellphone nito. "Pare, table for two tomorrow, eight PM." aniya rito.

"Sino'ng ka-date mo?"

"Si Aimee."

"Ah, okay. Akala ko nagkabalikan na kayo ni Rowena."

He sighed. "That will never happen." Rowena was his latest ex-girlfriend. Five months lang ang itinagal ng relasyon nila, and it was actually him who initiated the break-up. His reason? Rowena was obviously trying to change herself for him. Ang mga bagay na gusto niya ay pilit din nitong ginugusto. Para daw sa tuwing nagkikita sila ay hindi sila mawawalan ng mapapag-usapan. Ang mga bagay na dati ay hindi nito ginagawa, kagaya ng madalas na pag-text at pagtawag sa kanya, maski ang paga-undertime nito sa pinapasukang school para lamang manood ng game niya, ay ginawa nito noong panahong sila pa. Nang minsan namang tinangka niyang pigilan ito sa ginagawa nito, ang sabi nito sa kanya ay gusto daw nitong maging 'perfect girlfriend' para sa kanya. And he didn't want for Rowena to turn into another peson just because of her love for him.

Kung hinayaan pa niyang magtagal ang relasyon nila, he was afraid that Rowie might just lose her own identity. At hindi niya gustong mangyari iyon, kaya habang maaga pa ay tinapos na niya ang relasyon nila.

"That's good." He heard Cedric clear his throat na nagpabalik sa kanya sa kasalukuyan. "I mean, your reservation's good for tomorrow. At pare, may I remind you, business is business, ha. Hindi na uso ang 'on the house.'"

"Of course." Ilang saglit pa silang nag-usap bago sila nagpaalamanan na magkaibigan. Cedric's family owned Miranda's Garden, ang restaurant kung saan niya iti-treat bukas si Aimee.

He rarely broke his promises, so he decided he wanted to make it up to Aimee. Added to that was the disappointment he heard in her voice when he told her he couldn't make it to her birthday party.

He sighed as he remembered the day that he and Aimee met. Ang kaibigan nitong si Empress ang gusto niya talagang yayain para lumabas noon, ngunit nataon naman na may date pala si Empress ng araw din na iyon. And surprises of all surprises, Empress turned out to be his friend Grey's current girlfriend then.

He was not enthrallled by Aimee even if she was as attractive as Empress. He was just not interested in her. While Empress was kind of aloof and composed, Aimee was too friendly, playful, and animated for his taste. Kaya kahit binubuyo siya noon ni Cedric na ligawan si Aimee, hindi niya iyon ginawa. At wala pa rin siyang balak gawin iyon magpahanggang ngayon.