"Ally"

A soft voice hummed my name with a gentle knock on the door.

"Ally, wake up!" My mother demanded through the wooden door.

I heard the screeching noise from the door hinges as my mother peeked her head in. I fought the heaviness of my eyelids and took a quick glance of the blurry figure of her body approaching me.

Suddenly, anger and betrayal filled my insides as soon as she pulled the curtain back and let the force of the blazing rays of the sunlight through the window. I shielded my face with the blanket and moaned in agony.

"Ahh!"

"Come on. Get up."

"Five more minutes. Please!" I begged as I turned my back on her.

By this time, I was already awake. But, staying in bed with a warm blanket wrapped around me was a better option than waking up early on a Saturday.

"It's almost nine o'clock. We need to be at the airport by nine-thirty," my mother said, reminding me of our plan for today.

"Shit!" I jumped up from under the blanket like the clown in a jack-in-the-box. My mother was startled by the jump that she slapped my arm in response with her ice-cold hand.

"Ow! What was that for?" I complained from the tingling sting she left on my warm skin.

"Watch your mouth!" She scolded. It was a front. She didn't want to admit I scared her. My mouth had always been filthy and she was used to hearing me curse here and there.

I scrambled on my bed as I searched for my phone. Where did I put my phone? What did I do with it last night? I gasped from the thought of last night.

Was it a dream?

Panic and excitement consumed me as I slid my arms under the pillow hoping to feel the touch of metal on my skin. Nothing.

I had forgotten that my mother was still in the room, intently watching my foolishness. She bent down beside my bed and gifted me with my phone.

"Looking for this?" She asked as she handed it to me.

"Yes! Ah, what would I do without you?" I thanked her with a kiss on her cheek.

"You wouldn't be in this world without me," she said with a smirk on her face as she walked away.

"Hurry up!" She demanded before leaving my room.

I pressed the home button on my phone to check the time, but more importantly, for any new notifications. I felt my mouth stretched into a broad smile from the unread message on the screen.

Harvey (06:18 am): Good morning, Beautiful. (:

That was not a dream. He was real.

I stared blankly at the screen. What time was this?

6:18 am

What was he doing up so early? Maybe he was getting ready for something. Work out probably. He seemed built enough to work out on a schedule. Or maybe he had to be up for work. All these thoughts concluded that I had no idea who this guy was. All I knew was his full name. Harvey E. Hughes. And that he wanted to get to know me.

Beautiful. He addressed me as beautiful. I shouldn't fall for that. He probably addressed the other girls beautiful too. But I should at least play along.

Me (08:44 am): Good morning handsome =)

I made my way to the bathroom for a quick shower. I had about fifteen minutes to get ready and head to the airport. My mother occupied the passenger seat while I sat behind the wheel. My phone vibrated on the dashboard, lighting up the screen with an unread message. My eyes darted on it, and so did my mothers.

Harvey (09:05 am): Did you get enough beauty—

I panicked and quickly covered the home screen with my thumb and opened the Pandora app. Coldplay station began playing through the car stereo. I subtly glanced at my mother, who had a suspicious look on her face.

"How's Nick?" She randomly asked. Or was it on purpose?

"He's good," I bluntly replied. "I'm so glad Ate Alana had some time off to visit us," I said, instantly changing the subject.

"Only for a few days. I wish she would get matched in one of the hospitals here in Chicago," my mother replied.

Ate. A term used in Filipino to address an older sister. Alana was accepted to NYU School of Medicine with a scholarship. Even with the four years gap, we were attached to the hip. Until she went off to college to pursue our dream job of becoming a doctor. The skype calls became infrequent to non-existing. It was inevitable. I knew how hard she worked for it. She never went out in college. She was always studying, volunteering at hospitals or going on weeks to months-long of service trips to enhance her portfolio. She never had to get a job. My parents wanted her to focus on her studies. It paid off in the end when she got in NYU.

"Ally!" Alana screamed, flailing her long arms to get my attention to pull over. She was standing under the Vestibule 2D arrival section of O'hare airport. I pulled the car over and quickly jumped out to rush towards her.

Her arms wrapped around my neck and I hugged her back as tight as possible.

"I've missed you!" We both simultaneously squealed.

Alana occupied the passenger seat as my mother moved in the back of the car. My mother's eyes had leftover twinkles of tears that she tried to conceal through her oversized sunglasses. She subtly wiped them off with the damped napkin in her hand.

"Ma, I've missed you too!" Alana said as she squeezed my mothers' hand, which rested on her shoulder.

"Ah. Don't mind me. I'm just being a drama queen," my mother said, waving her hand in her attempt to dismiss her emotions.

"I think we all need some good and strong coffee right now," I suggested, breaking the emotional roller coaster we were on.

"Yes, please!" Alana agreed. "So, what's new with you?"

"Nothing much. Just work and school. Boring life," I said.

Alana had my phone in her hands and switched the station from Coldplay to Muse.

"They will not force us
They will stop degrading us
They will not control us
We will be victorious"

We both sang each word of Muse's Uprising at the top of our lungs and giggled at the end of the chorus. It was a nice feeling. The connection that we've always had felt fresh as if we were never separated. Alana was a big sister when she needed to be, but she was also my best friend.

"Who's Harvey? He just texted you," Alana unexpectedly asked out loud, handing the phone back to me. She stared at me, intently waiting for an answer.

The screen displayed the window of our chat with two unread messages from him.

Harvey (09:05 am): Did you get enough beauty sleep? Not that you need it. (;

Harvey (09:51 am): Any plans today?

"Oh, he's just a friend," I lied. He wasn't a friend. He was more of an acquaintance. I shot her with the most intensified glare I could possibly conjure. I felt my eyeballs were about to pop out of my eye socket.

"Okay. So, where's dad?" Thankfully, Alana got the message before I lost my eyes from the pressure of my glare and changed the subject as I blindly sent my reply while keeping my eyes mainly on the road.

Me (09:53 am): sorry for the late reply. A bit busy this morning. Yes, I slept well, but not enough. Definitely not enough. Why we're you up so early?

I kept my phone on my left side, out of reach from my sister and my mother's vision.

"He's at the casino," my mother replied, disappointment filled her voice. After all these years, I still didn't understand why she was surprised every time he relapsed. It was inevitable. At least I knew that.

"He's at it again? Is it just the casino this time?" Alana asked. The glowing smile on her face had faded away.

"I hope so," my mother replied.

"Why don't we get out of this car and have something to eat. It's too early to talk about something depressing," I interrupted as I parked my car next to Bryn Mawr Breakfast Club, the diner that Alana and I always hung out before she went away for college.

A vibration in my pocket welcomed a new text message from him.

Harvey (10:13 am): I'm always up early. I don't sleep much. Not a fan of it and I've been trying to wake Eric up for the last hour. He's not budging. I'm tempted to just pour a bucket of ice on him.

I chuckled out loud as I read his text. The two conspicuously looked in my direction, but I waved at them to disregard my reaction.

Me (10:14 am): Oh my God. Sleep is my best friend. You're definitely missing out and you wouldn't dare! Your boyfriend might get mad at you if you do that.

Harvey (10:14 am): WAIT, WHAT!
Harvey (10:14 am): Tell me you did NOT think that this idiot was my boyfriend.

A sudden burst of laughter escaped me, attracting the attention of my sister and mother. They both stared at me like I was a crazy person they did not want to be associated with.

"Sorry!" I exclaimed. They both shook their head then continued with their chat about my father. It was an issue I excused myself from, knowing that I would be filled with anger if I bothered to join in their conversation.

Me (10:15 am): I was kidding! Haha so sensitive

Harvey (10:15 am): It is a sensitive matter...

Oh.

Me (10:15 am): Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it...

Maybe that was a bad joke. Maybe it was too soon to say things like that to a person I barely knew. What if he thought I was being immature or rude. There were three dots next to his name indicating he was typing his reply. Then, it stopped. A minute or two had passed by but it felt like a lifetime waiting for his response.

Harvey (10:17 am): ... cause I know I can do so much better than him. (; haha

A breath of relief escaped me and I grunted at my phone.

Me (10:17 am): not cool.

Harvey (10:18 am): haha. Did you really think we were a couple?

Me (10:18 am): for a second...at the beginning of the night...until I noticed you kept staring at me. =X

Harvey (10:20 am): You were the first and only thing that caught my attention last night.

A smile parted my lips and I felt as if my cheeks were on fire. I was in my own little happy world. I must have been blushing and smiling like an idiot that I didn't notice anyone else around me until someone shook me back to reality.

"What's wrong with you?" Alana asked suspiciously as she stared at my phone and back to me.

"Nothing," I said. I straightened myself and wiped the smile off my face.

Nothing was wrong. On the contrary, everything actually felt right this time.

***Don't forget to VOTE (hit that star button!!!) and COMMENT on your thoughts/feelings/feedback. Thank you! Gracias! Maraming Salamat! Merci! Grazie! Xièxiè! Arigatō!***