Hmm...you may be wondering why this story is called "The Sky is Blue". The name of our hero, Tin, in Chinese means SKY. So now you know!
Chapter 4: Never had a Chance to Say Goodbye ============================================
"Tin!" Amy yelled.
"Sorry, Amy." I removed the underwear from her face and put it inside my pocket. Then I heard Andrew calling me from upstairs.
"I better go and check if he's ok." I walked up the stairs and knocked on Andrew's door. "Are you ok, Andrew?" I enquired.
He opened the door a small crack and whispered, "Tin, that is my last clean underwear, so can you get it back for me?"
"Hmm...ok, I have it right here." I pulled out his underwear from my pocket and noticed that it was a very sexy C.K. brief before handing it over to him through the little crack. I was about to go downstairs when I heard Andrew asking me to wait for him, so I stayed outside his room while he changed.
After about 5 minutes, he opened the door again.
"Hmm...Tin, I have something to ask you. Can you come in?" he asked.
"Sure." I walked into his room and sat down on the chair beside his desk. Andrew was already sitting on his bed.
"Hmm...Tin, did you...did you you see anything that..hmm...hmm..."
"Well, I can tell you that I saw everything...front and back."
At that, Andrew's face turned a deep red. I realised that he had changed a lot since childhood. He wasn't as rough and intimidating now. In fact, he was quite shy and reserved.
"Don't worry, you have nothing to be ashamed of," I consoled him.
He laughed nervously to cover up his embarrassment. After that, we fell silent. The situation was becoming awkward and we didn't know what to make of it, so we took turns just looking at each other, trying to think of something to say. Soon, our eyes locked and we were openly staring at each other. Before I realised it, we were slowly moving towards each other.
Suddenly the door opened and both of us turned around to see Amy standing at the door with someone behind her. My eyes almost popped out at that moment. The man behind Amy rushed towards me and hugged me tight.
"Tin! Long time no see!" he said happily.
"Edward! I missed you a lot!" I hugged him back too. I was so surprised that I wondered if this was real or if it was all a dream. Although Andrew had told me that Edward would be coming the next week, I never really believed that I'd get the chance to see him again. In any case, even if we did meet, I told myself that he'd probably be too busy to find time for me. So I was pleasantly surprised at his warm welcome and hugged him back tighter just to make sure he was really here and not some figment of my imagination.
"I thought Andrew said you and your parents will only be here next week," I said.
"Well, I talked to Andy on the phone last night, and he told me about meeting you again after all these years. I was so excited and couldn't wait to see you again, so since I had nothing to do after my graduation, I decided to fly here from Vancouver and give you a surprise today," he gushed.
"I am very surprised. Hey, Andrew! You promised me that you wouldn't let on that I am here!"
Andrew just smiled at me and said nothing. Instead, he stood up from his bed and gave Edward a hug. Despite the years, they still looked very much alike each other although Andrew had longer hair. That difference alone made it easier to tell them apart now. It was much harder even for me to tell them apart when they were small as they looked very much like peas in a pod then.
"Hmm...ok, I think you two have lots of things to talk about, so I better go down. I think it's also payback time for Jared," Andrew said as he walked out of the room. Amy gave me a knowing wink and a smirk before following Andrew out.
"What payback?" Edward asked me.
So I told him about Jared stealing Andrew's underwear and that Andrew had to chase Jared all over the house to get it back. Edward found that extremely amusing and was soon laughing like crazy.
I took this opportunity to study Edward. Since he was 3 years older than me, he should be 21 years old. Wow! He was as handsome as ever, maybe even more so than I remembered. He'd cut his hair short and looked like a scholar. The pair of blue glasses he was wearing made him looked all grown up and dignified. Strange, I didn't notice Andrew wearing glasses so he could have been wearing contacts or maybe he didn't need them. My gaze turned to Edward's clothes and I had to admit that he has great taste! His choice of clothes made him look just like one of those fashion magazine models. Yummy!
"Hmm...Tin?" Edward asked.
"What?"
"Why you are staring at me?"
"Hmm...I was comparing the both of you and how much you've all grown. Although the both of you still basically look the same, you two have also changed a lot since we last saw each other in Hong Kong. I still sense an edge of roughness in Andrew, though he'd mellowed out a lot growing up, but you turned out the opposite. You remind me of smoothness and elegance."
Edward didn't seem to understand what I said.
"Never mind, it's just the feelings of an artist," I told him.
He look puzzled but gave me a warm, heart-melting smile in return. I smiled back and soon we were chatting like old friends again. He told me of his life after leaving Hong Kong while I filled him about me until we both caught up with the present. I really enjoyed our conversation. It's as if our friendship has taken off just as if he'd never left at all.
Unfortunately, I had to leave soon after dinner as I had to hand in my painting assignment tomorrow, so I reluctantly bid everyone goodbye and promised to catch up with them later. As Andrew was walking me to the door, I told him, "You broke your promise, Andrew."
"What promise?" He tried to act stupid.
"You told your brother that I am here and I couldn't surprise him. So you owe me one. Hmm...how about this? I have a VCD assignment coming and I need a model for that. Would you model for me?"
"Ok ok," he replied.
We said our goodbyes then I drove back home. As soon as I arrived, I quickly started on my assignment. I was intent on giving it my best and not just merely finishing it. Still, my mind was distracted and I couldn't stop my thoughts from wandering as I painted.
I never thought I would meet Edward again. Did we have a chance of a life together? I wanted to ask him why he'd never returned my letters but didn't have the courage to ask him. I sighed heavily and tried to concentrate on my painting again.
The setting was a river scene at sunset. That was the last moment of the mayfly's life. I didn't know why but suddenly, tears were flowing out from my eyes. I thought, "What a pitiful mayfly, and what a pitiful me. Mom, how are you now? I never had a chance to say goodbye to you all these years, so I dedicate this painting to you in remembrance as well as goodbye."
tbc