Roses and Champagne : Blue and Grey

17

"His lost"

Justice

"Happy Birthday, Justice!" I heard mom's voice. I looked up at her and smiled with my missing front tooth. She smiles back at me.

"Blow your candle, baby," she said. I look at my birthday cake, and my favorite flavor vanilla caramel cupcakes.

"But before that, make a wish first." It was my dad beside me. I look at him for a moment before bringing my eyes to my cake again. I close my eyes to make a wish.

When I opened my eyes, I blew out my candle, and everyone clapped. I look at my guests with their parents clapping for me. I'm so happy to celebrate my birthday with those people.

"Let's eat, kids. I cooked a lot of food for everyone," Mom said, urging those kids parents to take the foods she prepared.

And this is because my dad told me to enjoy it. Play with the kids who're the same age as me. They are wearing party hats too.

"Justice wanna play?" One boy with doe eyes looked up at me. I was a head taller than him.

"What play?" I asked. The boy gave me his sunshine smile before pulling me outside the room where everyone celebrating my birthday. He took me to the garden, and there were flowers scattered on the ground.

"What's that?" I ask him. He looks at me when we get there.

"Gawa tayo flower crowns?" he said. I look at him with a frown. I don't understand what he said.

"What did you say?" I asked. He looks at me again in confusion. I am probably confused as to why he is looking confused.

"You don't understand Tagalog?" I shake my head, but then he giggles.

"Ay paano tayo magkakaintindihan niyan if you didn't understand Tagalog? I can't speak English a lot, but I understand some," he said.

He's cute. Even though he speaks Tagalog, sometimes I still understand him because of his actions. We make flower crowns there while sitting on the mat his mother prepared for us. There are other kids who joined us in making flowers.

The kid with a doe eye turns to look at me, he's holding a flower crown that he gave me.

"Here, wear this," he said. I tilted my head so he could put it in my head. When he's done, I look at him and see him smiling so wide in front of me. I saw one of his teeth missing too.

"Woah, you look pretty, Blake. Look, he's pretty!" He called his brother, who looked up at us with a bored face before nodding. He smiles again and giggles.

"You know, gusto ko talaga eyes mo cold and calm but still beautiful, it twinkles," he said.

I shyly smile at him. After we play in the garden, we go back inside the room since mom has been calling me. The party is over, so we're going back home.

I feel sad because I don't want to end the day, but my dad told me we were going to open those gifts I received from them.

When the boy with those eyes bid goodbye to me, he said we'd meet again. He wanted to play with me again, and he and his mom agreed to a playdate the next day.

Me and my yaya went to the back seat of our car, with my mom and dad in front of us.

"Did you enjoy your day, baby?" Mommy asked me, and that's why I nodded.

"I got a friend, mommy," I said, smiling. She smiles, too.

"That's good. Wanna see him again tomorrow?" I nodded again excitedly.