HYMN OF THE RAIN

Tricky Holds

The first national day since we all moved out of the town finally comes around. Rosa called me up two nights before that day and insisted I should go visit her. 

"It's on Friday, so you can stay here for one night then get back on Sunday!"

"Then I'll only have one day to pamper myself before I have classes again." 

I hear her groan from the other side of the phone.

"Alright. You don't have to stay here if you don't want to. Get here early morning, then go home later the evening. Sounds good?"

I weigh the possible choices in my head, before agreeing to go there on Friday morning.

The ticket is booked, I've told Becca and I've completed my tasks for the upcoming classes. Then when the clock points at 6 a.m. on Friday, I bid Becca a goodbye then head out for the train station.

Mornings in New York so far haven't failed to amaze me.

The buzzing city is still slowly waking up from slumber and along the way, you can see people get ready to start their day. Cars haven't piled up in the streets and you can still taste the crisp and cold air.

It's not exactly a peaceful place to enjoy quiet mornings, but I love the busy city ever since I was in middle school. Quite cliche, I know, but ever since I saw Times Square on TV, I've always wanted to go here.

I plop myself into the seat by the window, checking the clock to make sure I've calculated the time right. I'm eager to spend the day with Rosa. Maybe it's because a familiar face is nowhere to be seen at my new setting, but all I know is I've missed being with someone I've known for so long.

The train ride feels quite long. 

I sigh, scrolling through the e-book I've got for my upcoming class on next Friday. Maybe it's because I'm not enjoying the view. Drowning myself in a seemingly endless rows of foreign terms and theories isn't exactly the best way to enjoy the ride.

But as soon as I meet Rosa, I know I won't be able to even get a glimpse of the material. She'll be dragging me around all day long.

I look around, noticing the people who are sharing the brief trip with me. I can't believe I'd travel to other cities all by myself. Now that I think of it, I realize I've never even gone to visit my grandma - who lives in a neighboring city- alone.

Going out of town always means going out with the whole family. It's never lonely when you live in the house, except when you go into your room. But downstairs is always full of chatters, or at least, you still have company. 

As soon as the train slowly comes into a halt, I swiftly remove myself out of the place before I have to deal with the growing homesickness. I've felt it ever since it dawned on me that I'm completely on my own out here. I've felt it ever since the video call I had with the family back home when I just arrived at my room.

But nonetheless, I need to get it together and start enjoying the life I've always yearned for.

Rosa is standing on her tiptoes, trying to find me coming out of the arrival gate. A huge grin breaks into her features when our eyes meet and soon I'm enveloped in a tight hug.

"You're here!" she squeals, her arm is still tightly holding me, "I can't wait to show you around!"

"Do you like it here?"

At the question, she shrugs, "I like it. It's not too bad."

"You don't sound too happy about it."

She ushers me to the exit, "You know I'm only here for the uni," Rosa then elbows me playfully, "Unlike you."

I breath out a laugh, "Yeah. Well, it gets kinda lonely there sometimes."

"Same. I wish we can all attend the same uni."

"That'll be too perfect to be true, you know that."

We're finally at the bus stop near the station and only then she looks at me with her enthusiastic grin, "Breakfast?"

"Sure," I laugh upon realizing she's scrolling through her phone, "What? You've prepared a list or something?"

The girl shoves her phone's screen in front of me, "You bet!"

And as it turns out, she's determined to make me try at least half of the food on her list. I don't have the heart to tell her there'll probably not be enough time to try all of them out since it's already 8 when I arrived here.

My train-ride home will be on 7 p.m. and when she's told, she drags me along and picks up her pace.

"You can't get home before you try this pretzel," she checks her list again, "or the cake. And the sushi!"

"There'll be a second visit, you know? This won't be the last."

She squints her eyes looking at me, "You'll probably be too busy to come here later on."

"You're probably right."

Then she hops off the bus, with me trailing behind her every steps. She's as excited as a child with sugar rush this morning. Glad I've had my morning coffee to keep up with her.

The morning slowly shifts into a breezy afternoon and so far, we've tried only 3 meals. It's like being in an eating show without the cameras and the crews. But the pressure to check most of the items in that list feels oddly real.

By 2 p.m., Rosa gives up, saying that it's no fun at all when she feels like she needs to rush every meal we have. 

"It doesn't feel like a fun visit, huh?"

"It feels like you're in some-kind of a tv show." I laugh.

We're both sitting in the sushi place. The fifth on her list. I don't dare to ask how many there are left for us to try, scared that it'll make Rosa stressed out even more.

The sushi tastes great - my favorite so far if I'm being honest. But maybe it's because this is the first meal we can finally enjoy without feeling as if the time is after us.

When she's done, Rosa looks up from her plate with a somewhat guilty look.

"I need to ask something."

"What?"

"You promise you won't hate me no matter what?"