Could I request a Filipino!reader x Michael Jackson where she introduces some filipino food and some words in tagalog to him!
Síkat (ᜐᜒᜃᜆ᜔)
Where Filipino!Reader gives Michael a taste of Philippines
Taste: Sweet 🍯
Warnings: Just fluff, Kisses, Reader is implied to be younger, Michael’s down bad, Idk what y’all feel about Y/N so no Y/N was used but she is referred to as “Sunshine”, Kikay!Reader, Jolina Magdangal as an aesthetic claim BUT feel free to picture reader however you’d like!
Word Count: 2.4K
Pairing: HIStory era!Michael Jackson x Sunshine Filipino!Reader
Reciept: She’s finally here. I am SO SORRY it took so long. I was so busy with univ 😭 also, yall gotta forgive me for this. It has been 5-6 years since I last shared my fanfic work 😭 I hope this is okay. I can make a part 2 of Michael and Filipino!Reader’s time in the Philippines if you guys want? Let me know!!
Also, if there are grammar mistakes and punctuation mistakes, pls don’t mind that. English isn’t my first language and is the bane of my existence
wowow Filipino Sunshine trope how original
⠀ ︎ ︎⠀ ︎ ︎⠀ ⠀ ︎ ⠀ 1995, Neverland
Michael had left his girl in bed early this morning to work on some songs that have been bugging him all night, promising that it’ll only take an hour, maybe two tops. It has been 6 hours without a sign of him and his girlfriend was starting to get bored. They were supposed to take a walk around Neverland this morning but duty calls and she can’t really hate him for that.
That’s when she realized that her boy hadn't eaten anything. Sometimes it happens. Getting lost in the art, forgetting that you’re just a human who needs to take it slow once in a while.
So she decided to take matters into her own hands.
He has always felt her before he sees or hears her. There was something about her aura that was just as bright as the sun. The moment she moved in with him a year ago, Neverland changed. It seemed livelier. More bright and happy just like her. That’s why he called her ‘sunshine’. Her energy is like a beam of light that shines and warms his world.
By the time the clock strikes noon, he can’t ignore the happy energy seeping through the door, threatening to embrace him with happiness.
He calls for her, soft voice acknowledging her presence, “Sunshi—“
“Mahaaaaal!” The sound of her sing-song voice calling for him cuts his, making him smile. He hates being interrupted but if he was going to get cut off by something that sounded so lovely, he doesn’t mind it one bit. He always thought she sounded heavenly. “Can I come in?”
“You can come in, you know? You don’t have to ask.”
He watched the gold handle push down, unlocking the heavy oak door. Her head peaks in first, making sure she wasn’t interrupting something really important. This made Michael laugh, “Sunshine, come in! Nothing is more important than you.”
“You never know!”
She pushes the door open wider with her hip, finally entering the room.
Dressed in one of his giant red corduroy shirts, floral shorts, mismatched character socks, and a bunch of colourful clips in her hair, Michael thinks she’s the absolute cutest thing to ever walk the planet.
In her hands, she held a beautifully decorated tray of food, complete with freshly picked flowers from the garden of Neverland, and a glass of bright yellow juice in her hands
It caught his attention, the song lyrics in front of him completely forgotten now, “Ooh! What’s the occasion?”
“Since you’re going back to the Philippines after 2 decades and you’re meeting my entire family for the first time. I figured you’re going to need a few lessons.” She said placing the tray on a free space on his desk, making sure that none of his papers got in the way.
Michael had made sure to include the Philippines in his HIStory tour. Knowing how important tradition is in her culture, he fought to add a few more free days just for her and getting to know her family and culture.
He did want her family to like him afterall. he had to be on their good side if he wants to ask for her hand.
“I asked Mrs. Woods to help me make them.” She said proudly, “I made Lumpia—“
“That’s your favourite right?” Michael remembers her talking about it a few times in the past. He can distinctly remember her telling him how much she loves the lumpia her mother makes and how it's the only lumpia she tolerates.
She smiles at him, happy that he remembers that, “Yes! She wrote her recipe down for me.”
Turning to the bowl of chicken in the dark soy sauce soup, “Since you like chicken, I also made chicken adobo… Of course with rice. We can’t forget about that.”
Filipinos and their rice… She refuses to eat anything without it. She said it felt incomplete not to eat anything without rice. Wherever she goes, she will always look for rice. Michael found it endearing. After a while her preference began to rub off on him. He found himself looking for a bowl of rice next to his usual fried chicken and glass of orange juice.
She points to a bowl with what looks like chocolate topped with a splash of milk, “This is champorado. It’s sweet chocolate rice porridge. It sounds disgusting but you have to try it. I feel like you’d like it since you like sweets.”
Again, Filipinos and their rice. It’s impressive how many variations they could do with it.
“Of course you can’t forget about vegetables so I made Pinakbet. It has squash, string beans, okra, eggplant, and bitter gourd but don’t worry it’s not as bitter anymore.” She waves off.
“This is calamansi juice. It’s this tiny citrus used for many different things like condiments, beverages, marinades, and more. It’s not a lime or a lemon.” She said pushing the glass of ice cold juice, “I know you love your orange juice but just try this. It’s a good source of vitamin C and antioxidants but if you don’t like it, I have a backup orange juice downstairs. No worries at all.”
Michael immediately reaches for the glass, taking a sip of the freshly squeezed drink. He hums at the sourness, finding it satisfying.
“I might say, this might be in my top 5 favourite drinks.”
Her eyes widened, “Really?”
“No seriously? My feelings won’t get hurt if you don’t like it.”
He laughs, “no seriously! I really like it. It’s different but nice! I think it would be great if it’s served hot.”
“It’s like a lemon in the way that it soothes your throat.”
“It’s great that you like it… Cause I don’t like it but—“
“Wait, what?” He lets out a laugh.
“Anyways!” Quickly changing the subject and turning to the bright orange yellow mango cut evenly into squares, completely ignoring her boyfriend who continued to laugh.
“Okay, okay!” Michael exhales, directing his attention to the fruit. Its colour was something he had never seen before on a mango. It looked so perfect that it looked fake.
“That is the most perfect mango I have ever seen.” He commented.
She grins proudly, “I managed to get a Philippine Mango. It’s nothing like any other mangoes you’ve ever tried before. I personally think it’s better but I’m biased so… I’ll let you judge it.”
His sunshine looks up at him with a proud smile on her face that he couldn’t help but return a smile at her.
She’s so passionate about sharing her beautiful culture with him, so eager for him to see the beauty of it. Her buzzing energy was so infectious he couldn’t help but share the same excitement as her.
“You’re the sweetest, sunshine. Thank you. I appreciate the effort you made.” Michael said, resting a hand on her cheek while staring up at her with nothing but love and fondness in his eyes. She’s so perfect.
“You’re welcome, mahal ko.” His sunshine responded.
‘Mahal ko’ or ‘My love’ in Filipino.
Michael loves when she calls him that. A nickname just for him. It was generic but there’s something about it that touches his soul. Most importantly, he loves the smile she has on her face whenever she says it. It makes the butterflies in his tummy flutter like he’s a teenager all over again.
His brothers would constantly tease him for it, joking that he swoons every time he hears the harmonious sound of her voice but he doesn’t care.
At the end of the day, he gets a special nickname in another language, they don’t.
Michael looks down at the spread of food, “Wow…”
“I forgot your love language is food.” He laughs nervously, this was a lot of food. It looked a little overwhelming but everything smelled so good that he couldn't help his mouth watering by the second.
She gives him the spoon and fork, “I promised Mama Kat that I’m going to take care of you, make sure that you’re not overworking yourself, and you’re eating properly.” she boops him on the nose, earning a giggle from him.
“Well come here and eat with me!”
He pushes off the table, an invite for her to sit on his lap. She happily goes around the table and makes her home in his warm and inviting embrace.
“I missed you today.” He murmurs, taking deep breaths, trying to take her in after a long day of working on songs. She smells like home and comfort.
“I’ve been here all day.”
“It’s not the same!” He pouts, his arms squeezing her just enough to make her squeak.
“Okay! Okay! Eat!”
Michael alternated feeding himself and then spoon feeding his girlfriend despite her insistence that it was all his.
“No way! This is a lot of food. You made all of this, You have to eat it too!” He said to her while delivering a spoonful of adobo and rice in her mouth.
In the blink of an eye, the whole tray was empty and their bellies were full.
Michael reclined in his chair, the food coma looming around the corner, it didn’t help that the girl on his lap was just too cuddly. He closed his eyes for a second as he let the food settle.
“That chocolate porridge is my new favourite thing in the world.” He said with a sigh.
“It’s my grandmother’s recipe. They don’t make them like this usually.”
“What’s it called again?”
She looks back at him, a soft smile on her face, “Champorado.”
That gave him an idea.
“Teach me some words!” Michael excitedly suggested, eager to learn more of her beautiful language. He has been reading books and taking Filipino lessons from a private tutor for the past 6 months behind her back, wanting to surprise his girl when they go to her homeland.
He knows a handful of words and sentences (including all the curse words of course!) now but whenever given the chance to listen to her talk, he’s down for it.
“What do you want to learn?” She asked, turning to straddle his lap. His hands stayed around her hips, making sure she doesn’t fall off as she maneuvered herself in his lap. With his legs in between her thighs, she rests her hand on his shoulder, gently playing with the strands of hair that now reached his neck.
As much as she would miss the short hair, she really likes this mullet look. Not a lot of people can pull it off but it’s Michael Jackson. He can pull even the most ridiculous thing and make it look acceptable.
Michael pretends to think for a second but he was too predictable. She already knew what he wanted to know.
“How about, ‘I love you?’”
“Mahal kita.” She answered quickly, almost instinctively.
He smiles, taking the opportunity.
“That’s so sweet of you! Well I love you too, sweetheart,” playfully tipping her head up.
“Michael!” She rolled her eyes, trying to act unfazed but was unable to hide the warmth that spread all over her body. Shaking her head as she cupped his face in her hands, “Say it. Mahal kita.” Her voice slow, letting each syllable curl on her tongue that Michael can’t help but unashamedly stare at her mouth like it hypnotised him.
“Mahal kita.” He says slowly. His diction, not quite perfect but he sounds too cute so he gets a pass. A wide grin forms on her face.
“How about ‘I love you more’?”
She thinks for a second. Her lips coming to a pout and her eyes looking up in thought, a little cartoonish habit that Michael adores. Whenever she gets like this, he couldn’t help but just lean in and steal a peck from her lips.
“Michael!” She scolds but the smile gave her away, “‘Mas mahal kita’”
“It’s not that creative.” She says sheepishly, scratching her head, “It’s all about emphasis. You have to really emphasise ‘mas’ if you want them to understand how much more you love them. It’s like a competition on how loud you can say it and what kind of ridiculous ways you can come up with just to tell someone you loved them more.”
“Mas mahal kita kaysa sa lumpia. I love you more than I love lumpia, for example.”
“You can also say ‘Mahal ko kayo’ or ‘Mahal ko kayong lahat’ If you want to say ‘I love you all’ or ‘I love all of you.” Just the way the words smoothly come out of her mouth, how she can easily go from English to Filipino sends him into a trance.
“You’re pretty.” He blurts, “I can watch you speak Filipino for the rest of my life.
The language moved him like a chess piece on a checkered board. It sounded beautiful and absolutely captivating. Even when she spoke English, her words were weaved with music. The cadence of her words were melodic in his musically trained ear. Ever since he heard her talk, he thinks her voice is his favourite composition.
She could be cursing him out in Filipino but he’d still swoon.
He feels her little taps on his shoulder, pulling him out of his daydreaming, “Oh before I forget, I do have to warn you, my family’s a little insane. They love you already, don't worry but that won’t stop them from playing with you.”
Michael couldn’t help but laugh, “Then that would explain you.”
There was a moment of silence of her taking in his joke. The moment it sank, she gasped, earning him a playful slap on the arm, making him laugh louder.
She shrugs, “Eh, it’s true.”
Leaning back, she takes a moment to really take him in, just a moment to appreciate every single beautiful feature on his pretty face. Michael’s going to fit right in. She knows it.
Her family were huge fans of his music, they’ve been a follower of his since the Jackson 5 days. They were the reason why she even knew of his existence at such a young age.
Hopefully they don’t mention the embarrassing things she did as a child with a huge crush on the young boy from Gary who had the voice of an angel.
“What?” He asked, his cheeks tinged with pink at her attention. She gives him a smile, pulling him in for a quick enough peck that got him chasing after her lips with a whine. Chuckling at his neediness, she lifts a gentle hand on his cheek, pulling him in for a slower one. Taking a moment to let the kiss linger. She pulls off just enough to mumble her words against his lips.
“I think you’re ready for the Philippines.”
✧‧₊˚✸.*☆
Síkat/ᜐᜒᜃᜆ᜔ (noun)
- Rising (like the sun)
- Ray of Light
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