1. You’re always the designated driver during nights out. It’s not that you hate alcohol and getting drunk. It’s just that you want to make sure that everyone gets home safe after a long-ass night of walwal in Valk.
2. During out-of-town/out-of-the-country trips with the barkada, you’re basically the tour guide. Even if you haven’t been to the place. You do your research about the place months in advance and make sure that your hotel is in a good location. You print out maps, copies of the itinerary, your proposed daily schedules, and places you have to see. Oh, and you also keep a copy of everyone’s passport details, just in case!
3. You’re the official representative of the group in everything. Like, when you check-in at your hotel, everyone just lets you do the talking. Or when you have your barkada dinner, the reservation is always under your name (even if it's not your birthday).
4. Your girlfriends actually call you mom/mommy/ma/mama. And you hate it. And some of them even call your boyfriend dad/daddy/pa/papa. Can you not?!
5. When someone gets into major trouble, they almost always come running to you. Because you always have wisdom to share with them. Your friends enjoy how nurturing and non-judgmental you are even if most of the time, you just want to slap them hard on the face and say “Ang tanga tanga mo rin eh.”
6. You’re popular for having a “magical bag.” You have meds, earbuds, earphones, hair ties, tampons, napkins, hair iron, curling iron, jacket, snacks, gum—EVERYTHING. Seriously, what would your friends do without you?
7. You’re the default excuse that your barkada uses. “Ma, sige na, kasama naman si Cindy eh!” And their moms won’t mind. Because they know that you are a good and responsible human and you won’t let their daughter do stupid shit. (But you do. Sometimes.)
8. You probably created your barkada's Viber/Whatsapp group. To stay updated on the latest chika! Plus, it super comes in handy when you tell them to message the group if they got home safely after a long night/day!
9. You always have to remind people about Real World Things. Because they somehow always ask YOU about them! “How do I deposit a check?” and “Can you go with me to renew my driver’s license?” and “We forgot to use protection last night. Help?” are actual messages you’ve gotten from your friends.
10. You’re super protective of your girlfriends. When someone starts dating someone new and you don’t like his vibe, you immediately tell your friend. They might get mad at you first, but they actually take your opinion seriously. (Because you were right about James, Brian, Miguel, Kurt, and Chris.)
11. The barkada loves coming over to your place because you always make everyone feel so loved. And you make good-ass sinigang!
12. When you eat out at a restaurant, the waiters always hand you the bill. Because you do the ordering for the entire group. And you save everyone’s lives by dividing the cost of the bill among yourselves. You save lives.
13. Even if your friends make fun of you for being so ~*responsible*~ and acting like a tita all the time, you never take offense. Because you know that they truly love and appreciate you. You’ve saved everyone’s asses so many times without asking for anything in return because you just love your friends so much. Long live mom-friends!
Follow Retty on Twitter.