On the way to Michelle's house, Charissa was staring at the car window with a pensive look on her face. Her thoughts were on Karina, a childhood friend whom she last saw in sixth grade.
All this time, Charissa was in tears, her expression telling how much she misses Karina. At this point, I held her hand and consoled her in a way Charissa never felt before.
"Mom, tell me how much you miss Karina," I began to ask a weeping Charissa.
She tearfully replied, "Christine, 100% of the time, I really miss Karina a lot."
"34 years, that was a long time coming. My last conversation with Karina took place when we were 12 and 13 respectively. Now we're 46 and 47 years old. We have grown up and moved on, but when Michelle mentioned Karina, it was like traveling on a time machine. I eagerly want to relive those lovely days."
Charissa turned towards me, wipes the tears from her face, and shared a heartfelt embrace befitting of a mother.
"You'll get your chance eventually," I assured Charissa as she finally calmed down.
Then all of a sudden, we were at Michelle's house. But before we get inside, I blindfolded Charissa in hopes of surprising her.
"Christine, why do you need to blindfold me?" She remarked at my elaborate prank.
I responded back, "You'll see."
While Michelle went inside to call Karina, Carson and I helped a blindfolded Charissa walk through the gate and into Michelle's house. We stopped at the door and waited for her.
Minutes later, Michelle came out with her mother Karina.
"Mom, we have a special visitor for you," Michelle announced as Carson and I slowly opened Charissa's blindfold.
Charissa opened her eyes and could not believe what she really saw.
"Karina?" Charissa wondered. "Is that you?"
"Charissa?" Karina answered.
The two childhood friends embraced in front of me, Michelle and Carson, tears of joy falling from their eyes. Both Karina and Charissa were reunited after three decades away, much to our astonishment and glee.
"It's been awhile, friend. 30 or so years is long overdue. I missed you so much," Charissa greeted Karina with a smile on her face.
"I dearly missed you too," Karina replied back. "Now let's go inside and talk like old times' sake."
We finally made our way to Michelle's house, but for Charissa, this was uncharted territory. So Karina gave Charissa a tour of her humble abode.
On the way to Karina's bedroom, however, Charissa saw a picture frame hanging beside the door.
"Karina, who was the guy in the frame?" Charissa asked her.
"That was my husband Mychal," Karina pointed out. "Unfortunately, he died of a car accident when Michelle was 10."
Upon remembering her husband, Karina began to cry.
"Charissa, that was the lowest point of my life," Karina tearfully said to Charissa. "To lose a husband at such a youthful age terribly hurts. It pierced my heart so much that I did not marry again."
"I know how you feel," Charissa responded. "I almost lost my daughter twice, both times triggering some near-death experiences from her childhood. Even when she recovered, there was always a sense of disconsolation whenever I saw her struggle."
After Charissa and Karina hugged, the two made their way downstairs for lunch. While they were busy touring, Michelle, Carson and I finished up some fried squid rings, roast lemon chicken and yang chow fried rice and placed them on the table.
As lunch got underway, we formally introduced Carson to Karina the same way we did to Charissa last night. Then as we chewed along, she and Charissa resumed their conversation.
Throughout their discussion, I learned that Karina works as a real-estate agent based in Makati specializing in medium and high-rise condominiums. Karina was also an athlete in her younger days; she played softball in high school and college.
But then I was stunned to hear that Karina was a widowed mother and that her beloved husband was tragically killed in a horrific car accident. That flashback inadvertently triggered Michelle so much that she briefly left the table and sobbed outside.
"What's the matter Michelle?" I tried to console her.
"Christine, my dad. My mother and I remembered it like it was yesterday," a grieving Michelle told me.
"I was very young then. We were in fifth grade. When the news of my father's death reached the household, I was shocked. My dad and I were closely knit. He was a basketball player and taught me everything there is to know about the sport. And then he was gone, and at the funeral, I couldn't stop crying because he meant a lot to me."
Michelle added, "Every time Karina mentions my dad, we always wept. The whole family dearly misses our father, even today."
Upon approaching Michelle, I started hugging her and whispered, "Don't worry friend. You always have my back. Death is hard to predict; we never know when it would strike. Somewhere above, your dad is watching you. He must be proud of you now."
After all the grief, Michelle and I returned inside only to find out that Karina and Charissa had finished their conversation. It was a shame that we missed out on most of the talk, but for what it is worth, Karina and Charissa did enjoy a day's worth of reminiscing the good times.
For the rest of the day, Karina and Charissa played a few board games outside while Michelle, Carson and I took a dip on the swimming pool. Afterwards, me and Charissa began to bid our farewells.
"Karina and Michelle, I would like to say from the bottom of my heart, thank you for this unexpected reunion," Charissa heartily thanked them. "We'll never know when we bump into each other again but rest assured, we'll stay in touch wherever we go."
"No problem Charissa," Karina happily replied back. "You're always welcome to talk to me anytime anywhere. Just not at work. Anyway, I'll see you real soon."
After Karina and Charissa had gently waved their hands goodbye, Michelle fetched me and my mother home to complete the day. The following morning, I promptly left the room alone, my destination still undisclosed.