Unscripted Adventures

The airport was buzzing with people everywhere – either eating something, talking to somebody, booking tickets, carrying luggage, and saying goodbye to friends and family. I didn’t care about the stores that flashed everywhere or the people there – I only had eyes for one person – my best friend. She was with her family, which we made a very close bond with over the years. She was standing next to security area, and her eyes told a story of sadness, just like mine. 

It was hard to follow everything that happened next, mainly because my heart was pumping with fright and excitement – but my mind felt something different – sadness. My hands trembled as I passed security and waited for my parents. I could see my friend looking at me with a forlorn expression, and I was going to start crying. But I held it in – I would see her again, right? But I wasn’t so sure.

I didn’t want to lose her – but we promised to keep in touch. What if she made new friends and forgot about me completely? What if I never got to taste her mom’s cookies ever again? What if we needed help with something – like a leaking pipe – and we didn’t have her dad to help us? Who would we rely on? These thoughts swam through my mind, taking over everything else in my mind. My mom came and stood next to me and I asked her, “Amma, will I ever see them again?”

She looked at me sadly and said, “I don’t know.”

I looked away, tears stinging my eyes. I waled over to the glass door, where I could see my friend’s family waving at us, with smiles on their faces. I tried to put on a brave face too, but it immediately crumpled when I kept thing of my mom’s answer. I waved back at them, hoping maybe one day, they would move to India too – but that would never happen. So, with a heavy heart and tears coming to my eyes, I followed my parents to our gate – never to see my friends ever again.