the Reunion

I arrived in Manila at 4pm from the bus terminal, heat greeted me in a warm way. It had been a year since I last saw this place that I used to call home. I was scheduled to meet with Sher for cocktails after doing occular inspection at Astoria that night because of the reunion that will happen the night after. I was nervous and excited at the same time.
I sleepily dragged myself out of bed, my travel pill still kicked in almost strongly and then heavy rain started to pour. I begged Sher to move our appointment to a later hour because she was early but she wouldn't hear me out.
So half an hour later, I found myself with Sher and Cris (one of the super friends I consider) in a cab laughing about anything we could think of. Too bad Cris wasn't coming with us because she had work. We finally arrived at the Astoria, I fully paid for the suite and did an occular inspection. It was posh! I couldn't wait for tomorrow for everybody to get together. My heart was beating fast with excitement.
After the occular, me and Sher decided to hit Sbarro for my favorite pizza -- Chicago White ( a deep dish pizza with white cheese and white sauce on top), it was the bomb! So far, I am loving where I was at the moment. We decided to go for after-dinner drinks at Allan's grill at Marikina Shoe Expo, me and Sher frequented the place before. And we missed the place. My bestfriend J was calling non-stop and I feel bad, because he only had an hour of lunch and we were just nearby his office at that time but we opted to move to a different watering hole.
J was one of the reasons I went to Manila, I missed him so much. he's the male bestfriend that I could comfortably say "i love you" to, I guess because he is such an amazing person to begin with and we click in so many ways. He's a driving force in my life and I'd definitely want him to stay there.
Allan's Grill was filled that night but we managed to find a table. Sher ordered a few beers, and because of my medication, I had opt for a delish Sago Gulaman, we food-tripped on Tokwa't Baboy and Turon because it was their house specialties, and as expected, it did not disappoint.I had wish Cris and J were there at that very moment. At least I wouldn't have to hear Sher talk about her points of vew on politics and the on-going campaign brouhaha. We called it a night at around midnight. I was sleepy that I wanted to crawl on my way home.

Saturday morning. D- Day I woke up at 10am getting lots of messages and phone calls from friends regarding the reunion, I was just too lazy to even reply. WTH! That pill (name withheld) should have worn off by now! J had been calling to meet up for breakfast but I had so much to do that morning, preparing and packing my second luggage for the hotel. I secured my receipts, cash, my miniature video cam, makeup and clothes and stuffed it in a few minutes. I just hate to pack but you would be amazed on how organized I can be after getting through that phase.
Tina and I met at the lobby, the receptionist, was a little slow on finding my account, she didn't even know I paid for it, that we had to wait for half an hour to have housekeeping check the suite and get my reservation in place. She was embarrassed that she sent two complimentary iced teas to our table while she finished some last minute details on the account. While I was busy catching up with Tina. Ben called to check if the event was going to push through. My heart fluttered a little. I was the most excited person to see him. I guess I never really wanted to let other people know mainly because, I didn't want it to be a cocktail anecdote that night. heck, I couldn't even say it out loud. I just wanted to savor the moment and it was only for myself.
As we opened our suite, My mouth opened dropped open. The room was everything the website says! Polished brown walls, marbled floors. coffee tables, a circular glass dining table were arranged beautifully at the center of the living room. There was a kitchen near the doorway that was as big as the two bedrooms. Tina and two of our other friends Mitch, and Fatima, immediately helped me arranged the tables, pumped balloons and placed tea candles on some dark corners of the place. I sighed nervously. The party was going to be beautiful. At the last minute, there were two guests who had texted that they will not be able to make it. So I made a few phone calls to have a party-sized pancit delivered to the room. We finished in 30 minutes and by five o'clock, we were all lazing around the living room watching Kimora on TV. My right thumb hurt from texting a lot of people in just a minute. I've never had this kind of affair with my phone before. I just wanted to get it over with and have a long bubble bath before the party.
Because the place was hard to find for some and that they were on their way, I had a few minutes to enjoy a quick shower so I could get back on the phone. Whew! Anticipation is killing me!

8:05 pm Friends started to arrive with food. And for every person who would ring the doorbell, everybody shrieked excitedly. It was so fun. We played games but mostly we sat there, eating, laughing, taking pictures and talking about the past five years that had happened to us. I forgot to eat because every minute had been just so precious connecting with everyone. I guess I didn't wanna miss anything. And holding a videocam takes me away from the conversation but I know it would be worth it. Later, i gave the videocam to my friends so that they could take turns in taking some good clips and it served as a perfect excuse to go and mingle. i looked at the time, Ben wasn't there yet. And every minute that passed, a pound of nervousness replaced my excitement.
Finally, there he was, a long pregnant pause overwhelmed us both. I didn't wanna go so much into details but then it was a wonderful moment to be just there at that very second. Everybody cheered that we were united and I was really happy he was there. It felt..wonderful to be in his arms again. It was a defining moment, ha-ha! Anyway, the event was very successful, I may say. I gave myself a mental pat on the back. The party lasted until 7 am the following day and until now, they are still asking if there would be a repeat of the event..hmm.. can I think about it? :)