Isabel retouched her make-up several times. She wanted to look beautiful in front of Ken. She didn’t know that in his eyes, she was the most beautiful woman in the world.
Ken knocked on Isabel’s door. She put all her make-up inside her bag.
“Good afternoon, teacher.”
“Good afternoon, Ken.”
“How’s your weekend?”
“Never been good.”
“Nice.”
“How’s your weekend?”
“Good.”
“It seemed like your weekend is not good based on the expression of your face. Is there something wrong?”
Isabel noticed the sadness on Ken’s face.
“My weekend was awesome. I am anxious because I’ll be coming back in Thailand in the next two weeks.”
Isabel’s world started to crumble. She almost forgot that Ken had already mentioned it to her last week. She looked straight at Ken’s eyes. She wanted reassurance that he would come back for her.
Ken heaved a heavy sigh. Isabel was waiting anxiously for his next word.
“I love you, Isabel.”
Isabel did not respond. Her mood still did not lighten up. She needed more reassurance.
“I promise I will come back for you.”
Isabel was somewhat relieved but not to the full extent. She knew that Emile had never failed to fulfill his promise. She hoped that Ken would also do the same.
“We will have a farewell party together with my batch mates this Friday. You are cordially invited. I hope to see you there.”
“Okay.”
“Promise me that you will wait for me and that you will never have another lover aside from me.”
“I promise.”
Ken touched Isabel’s hand. She cried the moment he went out of the door. She was devastated. She asked heaven why there’s always a limitation whenever she was on the peak of her happiness.
Isabel went back to her apartment with a heavy heart. She was surprised to see Pretty lying on her bed when she opened the door.
“How are you Madam Isabel?”
“Not good.”
“Why?”
“This is one of the thousand reasons why I love you so much Pretty, baby. You always arrive at the right moment whenever I need you. You are my guardian angel.”
“I don’t know if it’s instinct or just coincidence, but I always felt the urgency to rescue you.”
“Thank you for coming to my aid once again, Pretty baby.”
“What happened?”
“Ken is going back in Thailand in the next two weeks.”
“Oh, Grannie. What are you going to do now?”
“I’ll just move on with my life.”
“Is that the only thing you can do?”
“What else do you think I’ll do?”
“My God, Grannie!”
“It’s better to move on than expect for something that will never come to you.”
“Are you going to give Ken up just like that?”
“I guess so. Do I have a choice? He’s young and on his prime. It will be better if he can find a woman who has the same age with him.”
“Are you just going to let him go after all you’ve been through?”
“There is nothing else I can do. He has no future with me.”
“If you will not do anything now to keep him with you, are you just going to wait for the stars to fall?”
“There’s no point waiting for the stars to fall because they will never fall for us.”
“That’s my point!”
Isabel stared at Pretty and blinked several times. She couldn’t comprehend what she’s talking about.
“You got it Isabel. The stars will never fall for you. So what are you going to do now?”
“I’ll find a way to reach for the stars.”
“That’s the spirit!”
“But how can I reach for the stars?”
“My God! Use your head Isabel.”
“I’ve been cracking my head for the last few minutes but I still don’t get your point.”
“My God, Grannie! I don’t know what I’m going to do with you. You have a beautiful head on your shoulder but you don’t have any brain.”
“Stop beating around the bush! Just tell me what I need to do.”
“Do I really have to spoon-feed the answers to you? You should be the one who is more knowledgeable than me because your decades older than me.”
“Fine! You’re wiser and more mature than me despite of the big difference in our age. Tell me what to do then or else I’ll kick your ass out of my room.”
“Simple. You don’t need to be a genius to know the answer. If you cannot reach for the stars, then build a ladder to reach the stars.”
“I still don’t get it.”
Pretty heaved a heavy sigh.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for you Isabel. Instead of crying and be bitter for the love that you almost had but lost, why don’t you find a way to keep him with you.”
“It’s easy for you to say but very difficult for me to do.”