Now You See Me (But I Don’t)

(001) Party

I hate parties:

1. As early as seven years old, my parents made sure I attend all the parties hosted by them or their friends.

2. They’re boring and always the same: extravagant decors, shiny dresses, sleek suits, and food that taste too strange.

3. The downward spiral of my life began at a party.

The first two points speak for themselves already, so I’ll skip to the third. But to understand it, first I have to explain that while I do hate parties, there is one in particular that I love.

It was a party held by the Saavedra family in their private island resort when I was nine years old. Considered to be too young to understand business talks, I was placed in a table along with the other kids my age. That’s how I met my second family: Krys, Lena, Zy, Hoon, and Gael.

Ever since that day, we helped each other survive whatever parties our parents whisk us to. They became my confidantes, my best friends. Although I love all five of them, I cannot deny that there’s a certain awkwardness between Gael and I, and maybe it’s the fact that I initially had a crush on him.

To make things worse (for me), it can’t be helped that a friend group of six will have ‘sub-units’. Krys and Zy are cousins who grew up together; their love for music created a bond for Lena and Hoon. So that leaves me with Gael.

We’re different, Gael and I. He’s outgoing whereas I prefer to keep to myself. He actually wants to inherit their family’s business, while I’m still unsure about my future. I’m automatically shy towards men I meet for the first time, whereas Gael beds women he meets and never calls them again. The only thing that had made our friendship survive was our mutual love for art.

We do not paint or draw, but we do enjoy appreciating other people’s works. That’s why on the days when the our four other friends ditch us, we go to museums and art galleries.

I love Krys and Zy and Lena and Hoon. And I’m thankful for that one party for bringing us together.

But how I wish I didn’t meet Gael. Maybe we would have remained strangers. Maybe I wouldn’t have talked to him that night at Hoon’s family’s party. Maybe I wouldn’t have ruined my life, and his.

And then, maybe I wouldn’t be pregnant at the age of twenty-two, married to a husband who hates me.