Ah siblings, can’t live with ’em, can’t live without ’em.
Facebook user Sam Reyes posted a now-viral post on Monday showing photos of his younger brother Chino Reyes who had just passed the driver’s licensure exam posing next to a congratulatory banner announcing his accomplishment.
“[Your] older brother is so proud of you!” Sam wrote in his post.
It says on the banner (aka a “tarpaulin” or “tarp” in Filipino English): “Congratulations Chino Reyes for passing the 2019 driver’s licensure exam.”
Siblings and their pranks, you know?
But Sam told Coconuts Manila he wasn’t the only one in on it.
No sir, he and his father have been planning the prank for a month, and they had some accomplices, like the people who owned the house where they placed the banner.
“I handled printing and layout and my dad asked the owners of the house for permission [to place the banner on their fence] and they obliged, thinking it was hilarious,” Sam said.
He said the photos were taken on Monday at their subdivision in Angeles City, Pampanga after he took Chino to the Land Transportation Office (LTO) for the driver’s license exam.
“He recently had his birthday on Sunday, the 13th of January and wasted no time getting his license the following day. He’s been really eager to drive on his own since we’re a family of car enthusiasts.”
Sam added: “The day of the 14th [of January] was testing day. I drove him to the LTO at 7am and was there until 5pm. Little did he know that was when my dad hung the tarp by the exit of our [subdivision’s] main gate.”
“So the whole day at the LTO, I was just waiting for him and he had absolutely no idea what was going on,” Sam said.
He said his brother completed the process after an entire day because he and their father were adamant that Chino should take all tests without a fixer, a person who works illegally to make government transactions easier for the public.
“[W]e want him to be an educated [and] responsible driver. [It’s] [b]ecause he should understand [that] driving is a privilege and not a right so we wanted to instill a bit of humility in him.”
Wow, snaps for them.
When the clock struck 5pm, Chino got his license.
“[He] had a smile in (sic) his face that stretched on forever, ’til suddenly he checked his phone [when he started] receiving pictures from friends who saw the tarp [inside the subdivision] and he just freaked out. Priceless, man.”
“He was a real sport about [it], though. Cause he knew people were laughing WITH HIM and not AT HIM. He was so full of mixed emotions he didn’t know what to do,” Sam told Coconuts.
“So when we got back, I asked him to pose next to the tarp and the guards were shouting and congratulating him and the passersby as well were honking their horns. Absolutely hilarious.”
He said he uploaded the photos and put it on public so Chino’s friends can share it. A couple of hours later, it just blew up.
“All in all it’s just usual family and brotherly love. We’re super close and pranks like these are normal among my dad and him. All good vibes. We’re proud to have another non-professional [driver] in the family.”
That might’ve been the sweetest thing we’ve heard from an older sibling.
“I taught him how to drive a stick (a manual transmission car) at 12 years old in our private compound. So sometimes he drives around there or in our farm so he’s been really looking forward to this day,” he added.
The post had over 1,700 likes and 670 shares as of this article’s posting. Netizens had a good laugh thanks to the banner.
Rea JayAnne Buzarang Regañon said in Filipino: “He’s so lucky he passed [the exam].”
Carlo Maceren Benipayo wrote, addressing Sam and said: “Fuck, you really had one (banner) made.”
Sam replied, “My dad asked the homeowners bro. We told them [the banner is just for] 1 day, they wanted to [have it up for] 1 month.”
Carol Escabal Abrao said: “I didn’t have this when I learned how to ride a bike.”
Other netizens tagged their friends and said they’d have banners made for them too.
“I’ll have one made for you guys once you get your [driver’s] license,” Abby Agbayani told her friends.
Roxanne Paule tagged a friend and said: “I’ll make you a tarp, you wanted one too right hahaha”
Ever been pranked by your family? Leave a comment below or tweet us @CoconutsManila.
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