The Box

1. ballpen

Chuck stared at his Facebook page for a while. If he remembers correctly, he also received a friend request from this "Athena Mendoza" before. He declined it then because her name wasn't familiar. When another request popped up again on his screen, Chuck decided to check her page. Just like his, it was set to private mode and only had very few photos of her. He wasn't actually sure which girl she was in the group photos posted because her profile picture was of what looked like stacks of boxes. They also didn't have any mutual friends. But instead of hitting the decline button, he ignored the request and closed the app. 

---

Maia visited her page and anxiously checked if her friend request was approved. "...sya nga kaya talaga yun?" she pondered. "Ni-reject ka na dati, nagpupumilit ka pa rin? Anong makukuha mo dyan?" When she noticed that the request was neither declined nor approved, she was somehow relieved. "At least may chance..." Maia closed her laptop and took out something from her bedside table. She unfolded the paper and picked up the photo that slipped out. She looked at the photo and reread the letter, again.

---

Chuck tried to ignore the friend request for as long as he could, but he couldn't get the thought out of his mind. He even dreamt of receiving a friend request and meeting the person. He could not remember details of his dream except for the friend request and subsequent meeting. "Ano ba ang ibig sabihin nun? Sino ba talaga sya?"

---

Chuck's bestfriend, Sam, noticed that Chuck spaced out more often over the past few months.

"Okay ka lang?" Sam asked when he caught Chuck staring out the window behind his desk. "Wala ka na bang maisip na idea sa pinapagawa ni boss sa atin?"

"Ano?" Chuck replied after a few seconds, confused.

"Ang sabi ko, nauubusan ka na ba ng bagong ideas? Or may na-mi-miss ka sa Canada?"

"Ah, hindi. Eto o, kung i-combine natin yung ginawa nina Rob..." Chuck said as he turned back to his table where several papers were laid out.

After years of living in Canada, Chuck came back home and settled in Manila. He and Sam went to college together. They also worked in the same office.

---

"...wala pa rin?" Maia's bestfriend, Paola, asked when Maia arrived at her desk.

Maia just shook her head and went over the papers that were on her table. Soon, she was busy with work that she forgot about making the request.

---

One afternoon, Maia found a pen on the ground by the park bench she sat at in the park next to her office. She waited for Paola who stayed on in the office for some last minute tasks. To while the time, Maia inspected the pen. It looked rather ordinary. But instead of leaving it where she found it or throwing it in the trash can, Maia decided to keep it in her bag.

At the coffee shop nearby, Sam asked Chuck, "...may ballpen ka?"

Chuck searched his pockets. He normally had one hooked on his shirt breast pocket or pants pocket. "W...wala..." Chuck replied when he couldn't find his pen. He thought that, perhaps, he left it at his desk in the office.

---

When Maia entered the coffee shop later on, she saw Chuck in a corner table with 2 other people. She and Paola ordered their food and chose to sit outside so Paola could smoke.

"Sya yata yun..." Maia said as she gazed into the coffee shop's interior.

Paola turned back and asked, "Sino? Saan?" Most of the tables inside the coffee shop were occupied so it took a while for Paolo to realize who Maia was referring to.

"Rj...ah, Chuck...si Chuck"

"Susmaryosep! Akala ko naman kung sino. Diba sabi mo nasa Canada sya?"

Maia shrugged her shoulders. "Ewan..."

"At malay mo kung sya nga yan. Eh sabi mo, naka-shades sya at medyo mataba sya sa profile pic nya. Malay natin kung sya nga yan. Teka, sino si Chuck? Diba sabi mo, Rj yung pangalan nya?"

Maia shrugged her shoulders and sipped her drink. Although she mentioned about trying to find a certain "Rj" to Paola, Maia didn't give any more details.

---

Chuck briefly looked up from the papers on the coffee table and caught a glimpse of the girl outside the coffee shop. She looked familiar but Chuck could not recall who she was or if they had already met. She looked rather pretty even if she was a little far from where Chuck was, and people were moving around inside and outside the coffee shop. Chuck turned his attention back to their meeting and did not notice the girl leave after a few minutes.