The Different Types of Pa-Hopefuls

Pa-hopeful
n.

1. A person who makes people hope that they can give them something good.
2. A person who gives false hopes.

Pa-hopeful is a term we just coined last night. It was our translation of the Filipino word nagpapaasa. Nagpapaasa has asa as root word which means hope. Pa is a Filipino prefix that could mean a lot of things depending on the word it is attached too. In pa-hopeful's case, pa means to make someone. If you'll translate it directly, pa-hopeful means 'to make someone hopeful' or to give someone hope. Maybe you'll ask why in definition number 2 there the word 'false'. I say false hopes because the Filipino term nagpapaasa has negative connotation.

There are different types of people who are pa-hopeful. To make these types easier to understand, let us use some characters. Let us use Gregory as the pa-hopeful and Joana as his victim.

1. The CONFUSED Pa-hopeful
Gregory knows that Joana likes him. He does things that make Joana think that he also likes her. But Gregory is actually not sure if he really likes her. He is confused about his feelings for her. He is not sure if he wants her as a partner or just as a friend. He makes Joana think that he somehow likes her so that if and when he discovers that he does like her, he will not have a hard time courting her.
2. The TORPE Pa-hopeful
Gregory knows that Joana likes him. He also knows that he likes her. He keeps dropping hints but he is not man enough to actually make a move. He is waiting for her to provide the opening. Worse, there are torpe pa-hopefuls who are actually waiting for Joanas to make the move.
3. The BRAGGART Pa-hopeful
Gregory knows Joana likes him. He doesn't like her but he doesn't make any efforts for her to stop liking him. This is simply because he likes the idea that someone likes him and he likes people to know about this.
4. The Closet GAY Pa-hopeful (or Pa-minta Pa-hopeful)
Gregory is gay and a closet one at that. He knows that Joana likes her but he doesn't like her at all for obvious reasons. He doesn't mind tthis though because he uses this to hide his true identity. If you think this is unfair for Joana then think about this. Gregory might actually stop from being pa-hopeful and actually court Joana and make her his girlfriend to strengthen his manly status.   
5. The No-balls Pa-hopeful
This title sounds very much like the torpe pa-hopeful but they are definitely different. Mr. Gregory No-balls is like Mr. Gregory Torpe in the sense that they both know that they like Joana. But Mr. No-balls knows how to court a girl like Joana. So what's keeping him from courting her? Why does he remain pa-hopeful? The plot is like the plot in many romance movies. Gregory No-balls is the campus heartthrob. Joana is the geeky ugly duckling. Naturally, Gregory doesn't want to have anything to do with her because he doesn't want to ruin his image and he doesn't want to be laughed at. He probably makes her hopeful as part of a bet with his friends although deep in his  heart he feels guilty. This could end in 4 ways. (1) He will forget his feelings for Joana to protect his image. (2) He will pursue Joana and drop his friends. It will be like an 'against all odds' love affair. (3) The ugly duckling will turn into a swan and they will be happy together. He will  be able to keep his image and his friends as well. (4) The swan will drop him like a hot potato. He will be the biggest joke ever.
6. The USER Pa-hopeful
Gregory knows Joana likes him. He doesn't like her but he likes receiving gifts (and money?) from her. He thinks of her as an ATM machine. She is his sugar mommy. He is the male version of the bilmoko girl.
7. The LOSER Pa-hopeful
Gregory thinks Joana likes him. He does things to make her like him more. Then he brags about it. What he doesn't know is that she actually does not like him. She is also being pa-hopeful. She is playing with him. He has no idea that people are laughing about him. 
Now, don't think that only these Gregory-s are the pa-hopefuls and the Joanas are the victims. The boat could actually be turned. Joanas can be pa-hopefuls too. But how they will be called will be different though. I mean you cant have a Ms. Joana No-balls, right?
             

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