The multi-purpose room of the clubhouse was rife with noise. The party had already begun and neighbors, friends, relatives and acquaintances were there to enjoy the celebration.
"I don't even know most of these people," grumbled Gabriel crossing his arms while looking at the crowd.
"Now, Gabriel, be nice. It's a party. Go and mingle," said Gabriel's mom cheerfully as she handed out drinks to guests.
Gabriel walked around and found his buddies who were at one corner of the room. They were making gestures and pointing to a group of girls at the other side of the room.
"Hey, guys, what are we up to?" Gabriel asked as he joined with them.
"Gabe! Happy birthday, dude!" greeted one of the boys.
"Look, look! There she is!" pointed another.
Gabriel looked towards the direction that his friend was pointing; specifically to a girl. It was Anne; a girl who Gabriel recalled was from the other side of the neighborhood.
"So?" questioned Gabriel. "It's just Anne."
"It's just Anne? Dude! I think being the daughter of the mayor warrants more than a 'just Anne' don't you think?"
Gabriel shrugged.
Gabriel's friend puts a hand on his shoulder and said, "Gabe, Gabe, Gabe. You have a lot to learn about girls my friend." With that, the boys continued to look on.
Gabriel decided to leave his friends alone. He found his friends' behavior weird. This was because Gabriel did not know what it was like to be fond of someone, to have a crush on someone, or even to like someone of the opposite sex. The most he knew about such topics were learned from television shows or movies. He was a foreigner to matters of the heart.
He recalls seeing a television advertisement for a romantic movie where the male lead gives the girl a gift and says, "This is a symbol of our friendship," a phrase that Gabriel dismissed as cheesy and ridiculous.
Gabriel and his family did not always live in this small suburban neighborhood. They had recently moved from another town.
When they first arrived, Gabriel and his elder brother Gideon decided to make friends with the children in the town. Gideon who was three years older than Gabriel was naturally sociable and could easily strike up a conversation with anyone. He took Gabriel with him to explore the new street that they were going to live in.
As they walked down the street, Gideon saw two girls at a nearby playground. He decided to make friends immediately.
"Hi! My name is Gideon. I just moved here."
Gabriel decided to follow his elder brother's lead though he was usually an introverted type of person.
"I'm Gabriel," he said timidly.
It turned out that the two girls were sisters. The elder, Jasmine and the younger, Erika were two years apart in age. Gideon and Jasmine were both thirteen at the time and Gideon was glad to find someone of his age. Gabriel was a little intimidated by Erika. This had to do with his shy nature and the age gap that to him seemed daunting. Gabriel was more comfortable with children his own age. However, Erika proved to be friendly and it did not take long for Gabriel to be friends with her.
Erika found Gabriel's shy nature cute and she became fond of him. At that age, Gabriel was clueless about boy-girl relationships and naturally so because he was still at the age of fresh adventurism and curiosity, both of which he satisfied by reading books.
Within a few months it became obvious to Gabriel that Erika was fond of him. It was confirmed when one day Erika asked Gabriel if she could give him a gift. He asked her for a reason why he should receive a gift and she replied by saying, "Oh, nothing. It's just a symbol of our friendship." Gabriel reluctantly accepted the gift - a parrot-shaped keychain.
Gabriel knew what the gift meant and if he were any less naive at the time he would have felt flattered. Instead, he felt fear. It is because we are often afraid of that which we cannot understand and love was something that young Gabriel had not understood. Gabriel tried his best to avoid her, but avoiding someone who lived a few blocks away was no easy task. Gabriel decided to pretend that he did not know how Erika felt. Erika never made admitted openly to Gabriel how she felt and Gabriel preferred it to be that way.
The party was almost over. The guests were slowly leaving, leaving behind clutter from disposable eating utensils and other party paraphernalia. Gabriel had to stand at the exit and thank everyone who came. Soon, Gideon joined him.
"Feeling lonely, Gabbo?" said Gideon ruffling Gabriel's hair as he stood beside him.
"Cut that out," said Gabriel pushing Gideon's hand away. Some guests were making their exit and Gabriel and Gideon were instantly angelic.
"Thank you for coming!" they greeted with big smiles and a nod.
The guests greeted with a nod and shook Gabriel's hand as they left. Once they left, Gideon's hand was again on Gabriel's head.
"Stop it!" demanded Gabriel.
"Or you'll what?"
Gabriel was silent until another group of guests who were about to leave gave him an idea.
"Stop it or Jasmine will see how immature you are," said Gabriel triumphantly.
Gideon looked and saw that the group was Jasmine and Erika. Gideon's hands were instantly behind his back and a wide smile appeared on his face.
"Hello, Erika, Jasmine." He greeted sweetly emphasizing the last name. "Heading home?"
"Yes, thanks for inviting us," Jasmine replied. She gives Gabriel a handshake, "Happy Birthday, Gabe."
"Thanks," replied Gabriel.
"Happy Birthday, Gabe," said Erika smiling.
Gabriel's eyes avoided hers as he said thanks.
"Walking home?" asked Gideon.
"Yes. Mom and Dad are away and there's no one to drive us back," answered Jasmine.
"I'll send you home," volunteered Gideon.
"You really don't have to..."
"I want to," he interrupted smiling at her.
Jasmine's cheeks became a little red as she returned the smile.
"Let me go get the keys from my mom," said Gideon enthusiastically.
"I'll go with you," said Jasmine and together they went towards Gideon's mother who was clearing up some tables.
There was awkward silence as Gabriel and Erika were left alone. Erika decided to break the silence.
"Did you like my present for you?"
"Um. I haven’t opened all the presents yet. I'll open them later."
Another awkward silence. Gideon and Jasmine then arrived.
"Let's go you lovebirds," quipped Gideon. Gabriel shot a look at Gideon at which Gideon dismissed with a smirk.
"I have to stay and thank the guests," said Gabriel instantly.
"Suit yourself, see ya, Gabbo."
"Bye, Gabe," said Jasmine.
"Bye," said Erika with a little wave of her hand.
"Bye," replied Gabriel.
When they left Gabriel had a little sigh of relief. More guests began to leave and Gabriel was becoming bored of greeting and shaking hands with them. His mother soon came with a guest.
"Gabriel, darling. I need a favor."
Great. On my birthday. "What is it, mom?" asked Gabriel hiding his annoyance.
"I'm sure you know Anne," said Gabriel's mom, gesturing to the guest beside her.
"Uh, yes. I've seen her around," said Gabriel.
"She doesn't want to trouble their chauffeur with such a short distance and insists on walking home. She stays a few blocks from here. Your father is sending other guests home and your brother will not be back in a while. I'm sure he'll want to take the car out longer than he should. The country might think that 16 year olds are old enough to drive, but I still think they should raise the driving age limit..." she notices that she was starting to ramble. "Oh, my. Well, you two better get going. It's getting late."
Gabriel wanted to protest but aside from the social embarrassment that would bring upon him by protesting in front of a guest, his mom had the look that he did not dare defy.
It was an infamous look that could make a criminal admit to an offence even if he was innocent. Gabriel's mother knew that he might protest and she had a mild version of her look on. Gabriel knew better than to disobey.
He stepped out and expected Anne to follow. The walk was a short distance. The two did not exchange any words.
Gabriel walked ahead to avoid conversation with her. She silently followed behind. The only words that were spoken were the occasional mention by Anne of the direction that they should follow. They soon reached Anne's house. Gabriel did not know what to do and thought that he should wait for a word of thanks or something. She thanked him, giving a half nod. It was the first time in the day that they had talked face-to-face.
"You're welcome," replied Gabriel returning with a half nod.
She walked towards the gate and pressed the bell. The automatic gates soon sounded with a click and Anne went in, turning to wave goodbye at Gabriel.
For that split-second, time seemed to slow down. Gabriel could not explain it but he could not forget Anne's smile as she said goodbye. It was soft and sweet smile, radiant, and heart-warming. He started to walk back to the clubhouse.
