Missing Piece

The Past Has the Answers

"Yo." Clarence greeted Anne and Kaiho before his hand landed on the girl next to her. "This is Catherine, she transferred today. Sir Teach told me to show her around."

"Pleased to meet you." Catherine smiled, while her eyes arched like two sleeping crescent moons. The genuine smile even moved both Anne and Kaiho.

"Ummm." Kaiho then heard Catherine, only then did she notice Catherine's hand shake patiently waiting mid air.

After Catherine shook hands with Kaiho, she then greeted Anne. But this time, it ended with a swift swing of Anne's hand.

"Pleased to meet you." Anne said.

"Alright! Now, join me you two, let's show Catherine around the school." Clarence made a circling motion with his finger, emphasizing he intends for them three to show every corner of the school to Catherine.

"I am sure Anne would love showing her around. But you know her, the little Tinkerbell's like magic when she draws. She's busy with her competition." Kaiho said.

"Too bad, but goodluck Anne. Looking forward to seeing you win, as always." Clarence waved at them before leaving.

"Did you really have to use Tinkerbell as a comparison." Anne said after making sure Clarence was far enough.

"Sorry, are you mad because it means you're good at what you do but short?"

In response, Anne's arm slowly crawled from Kaiho shoulders down to her neck. Kaiho knew all too well that wrapping grip, the look on Anne's face confirmed the bubbling worries in her heart.

"Let's. Go. To. Gateway. Mall. Mama." Anne wore a smile that would even make debt sharks feel scammed.

"Bye bye, my allowance." Kaiho said in her mind as she cursed strangling Anne before being dragged like a dog by Anne.

The cold touch of the chilled railings welcomed Anne and Kaiho's hands as they boarded the LRT train. A message from the conductor buzzed inside like a prelude to the train's rumbling as it prepared to leave.

"Feels good." Anne said as she felt the chilly breath of the air conditioner crystallize her sweat while she looked outside the window.

"Wouldn't it make for a beautiful drawing? You know, like the ones you made when we were kids." Kaiho smiled. A strip of memory deep inside her heart was replayed as she looked at Anne.

"You look back on the past way too much. Focus on what's in the present."

"True, but sometimes the past holds the answer to move forward to the future." Kaiho defended herself.

Anne sighed, thinking to herself when her friend became so wise. Until her eyes found themselves looking outside through the dotted screen of the window.

She remembered a time when a fluffy sea of orange clouds sunk on the horizon alongside the setting sun. Inching its way to cover the city was inky-black blanket of the sky splashed with hues of blue and purple, while being dotted with winking white stars.

But as she grew up, buildings started to wall the horizon while the inky-black blanket was bleached by the fluorescent lights below.

"I see my words got through you." Kaiho's smile almost reached her ears.

"Nah, I was just remembering the time mother said I had a frail neck."

The chilly breath of the train was soon ended by a clash of sweaty elbows as the raging Anne dragged Kaiho through the crowd.

"We're finally here!" the rusting-exhaustion of running through the station then sprinting to the mall's top floor, was lifted from Anne's crying limbs as she saw those neon lights. For Kaiho, however, the sign bathed in neon lights, the clanking of metal, and the shouts of children dug a hole deep on her heart and wallet.

"Why would you, a highschool student, want to go to a children's arcade?!" Unlike Anne's scream of happiness, Kaiho's question came straight from her aching wallet.

"I just felt like searching for the answer the past holds." Anne said. She then went to Kaiho with tokens brimming on her uniform. "You look like you'd jump off the building, here have some tokens."

Hearing this, Kaiho felt like a pile of skeletons breathed to life as she came running to the arcade. The duo soon won lumps of tickets, the children looked at them like a pair of battle goddesses while the adults saw two highschoolers wasting their time.

Walking home, Anne looked at the night sky. The moon soon hung itself high in the sky, with the stars flooded out by the sea of lights of Manila Metropolitan.

"Shouldn't you be practicing for the competition?" Kaiho stretched her arms as while the breeze lost in the night ruffled her hair.

"Don't stress it. It'll be alright." Anne said before saying goodbye.

The next day, before the sun even started to yawn, the highschool was already being flooded by students early in the morning.

"Did you even sleep? Class starts at 6 am, not 6 pm. " Kaiho greeted Anne, whose eye looked like it carried her nightmares with it.

"Don't even mention it." Anne wasn't in the mood to talk as she looked at Catherine. She already vented her rage yesterday with Kaiho in the mall, while her thoughts sprouted hands just to force her to stay awake. But it still wasn't enough.

"Hey, Anne." Kaiho's hand patted her shoulder, "Joshua from class 10-3 asked to meet you."

"Ayiieeeeee. Never knew someone would actually fall in love with this face." hearing what Kaiho said, Clarence jolted towards Anne. Pinching her cheeks while teasing her.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll go." Anne shot a glare at Catherine one last time before leaving.

A small path squeezed by two buildings was where Anne saw Joshua leaning on the wall.

"Anne." Joshua suddenly sprang to life, surprising Anne. His eyes then scrambled, trying hard to avoid making eye contact.

"Anne, I..."