Bubble Gum Kisses

**Kapittel 17** ***Vanessa***

**"You have grown into a fine young woman!"** the old woman complimented. She was still jolly as ever with her plump physique, tanned skin that always reminded me of the Earth, her curly hair that was equally divided into grey and twilight color, bright eyes, and her broad smile that I depicted to be contagious. She always carried this infectious jovial energy that'd never fail to flip a bad day into a good one, along with her words of wisdom.

"Thank you, miss ma'am. You still look healthy and could kick butts," I joked, and we both laughed. I remembered the time when there were teenagers who tried to make fun of us since we were still small kids, and she was the one who gave them a taste of their own medicine. She was always protective and had this kind of warm mother bear attitude, though she'd also chide if you were the one in the wrong. "Where's Mr. Harbinger?" I asked. I'd never miss a day seeing them together. They were the true definition of soulmates.

"Oh, you know that old coot," her face soured, and her tone seemed irritated, "He's obsessed with watching over his watermelons," she continued, and I almost cackled. Mr. Harbinger was a retired agriculture professor and biologist and was always fond of growing fruits and vegetables. Especially his watermelons since they were quite challenging to grow. He'd watch over them most of the time when the vines started fruiting, which would irritate Mrs. Harbinger sometimes since he'd hang out outdoors all day long.

"Forget about him!" she waved her hand and came over for a hug. Immediately I responded by walking over to her with arms wide. We enveloped each other in a tight bear hug. "This old woman is so happy to see you again!" she said, gently giggling and patting my back. I said likewise and hugged her tighter, indulging in her warmth. "Where's your mother?" she asked when we pulled away.

"Asleep. Since we just moved back yesterday. So she's pretty tired." I shrugged, looking back at our house. I knew she'd be wondering about that since mom was the person she'd always see first thing in the morning. "I happened to wake up early, so I decided to get out for some morning jog."

"Oh, I see!" she exclaimed, surprised that she jumped on her spot. "Then this momma ain't disturbing you no more. I need to go and buy some teas anyway," she said and began walking away, and I waved her goodbye.

"I'll visit you sometime later, Mrs. Harbinger!" I said with a smile plastered on my lips. I hadn't noticed that I actually miss that sweet nana. Well, I guess it was probably because I grew up without grandparents, mom and dad's parents both died in their prime, and they had been dead for a long time before I was born. Mr. and Mrs. Harbinger had been my grandparental figures since time immemorial.

"I'll look forward to that!" she replied and waved before finally turning her back and walking away. I watched her go farther and farther until I could no longer see her before proceeding to do my stretches and finally starting to jog. "Hey, look at that!"

"What?"

"It's Vanessa!"

"Vanessa who?"

"You dumbass, Vanessa! Don't you remember her?"

"Ow! Don't smack me! And I don't recall knowing any Vanessa, chica loca!"

"Vanessa Hathorne! Our neighbor from years ago, remember? The one who moved in our final year of middle school!"

I kept my head down as I jogged through the streets, overhearing a few people my age talking about me. They looked achingly familiar to me as well, though. Their brunette hair that I could see from my peripheral vision was knocking something in my memory that their names were at the tip of my tongue.

"Oh her? Hello, Vanessa!"

I looked in their direction, and I finally remembered who they were. It was Valeria and Victorino. They were a cheerful bunch and were one of my frequent playmates in the town playground when we were little. Though, unlike typical siblings, they would agree on anything. Especially if one had an idea on making dirty shenanigans on the kids they hated. Which was why it was always favorable to be on their side.

"Vanessa, how's it going?"

"You guys moved back?"

"It's good to see you again!"

"Try stopping by next time! We have things to catch up on!"

"Thanks. It's good to see you guys again too!" I replied, waving as I jogged away from their front year. There was time for a proper conversation, after all. I let out a sigh of euphoria when I thought I actually didn't just miss Mrs. Harbinger but also this town. It was full of amiable people.

It had been three days since we moved back to Scarsendale. We haven't gotten in touch with our former neighbors since we were pretty busy tending everything in the house, starting from general cleaning down to organizing the furniture. Clouds of dust were scattered off the ceiling, molds were brushed off the bathroom, paintings were hanged, sneezes and coughs were shared, the weeds in the garden were sheared, and debates if the bookshelf should be on the left side or right side of the lounge were made. It was exhausting, especially the debate part, but it was fun.

It was one of my most memorable times since I got to spend a lot of time with mom after the accident. Ever since that day, I felt that the sacred thread that connected mom and I had cultivated for years was cut down. I spent the prior months moping and physically recovering. Mom exhausted herself with tending the papers, dad's funeral, and the aftermath of the disaster while she was mourning his death and spent sleepless nights taking care of my younger brother. We did have our usual mother-daughter conversation when I was discharged. We cried together and comforted each other. But even though I couldn't see it, there seemed to be an invisible wall that was separating us both from one another, like something was drifting us apart. Was mom distancing herself from me? Maybe it was just my plain imagination and useless gut feeling. But if it were true, and she was distancing herself from me, I couldn't blame her.

After all, the accident wouldn't have happened if I hadn't stopped dad from driving the motorcycle and followed what he told me, then he would still be alive. It was my fault that the accident happened. It was preventable, but I enabled it to happen. That's right, mom should hate me. I let her husband die. I let her only love begone from this world when I had the chance to stop it. If only I hadn't taken off that helmet-

As the sharp, ice-like air passed through me, I huffed a ragged breath while trotting my feet mindlessly. I could feel my heart thumping loudly beneath my chest as my lingering bleak thoughts were broken off when I noticed I passed by something familiar. I halted my tracks on a nearby tree and marveled at the sight before me.

It was the park where I used to play as a kid.

I looked around and noticed that there were some people in the park as well. Old couples and fur parents taking their fur babies taking themselves out for a morning walk, healthcare workers were resting on the benches, they seemed to have just ended their night shift, and there were other people out for jogging like me as well.

It was still early in the morning, but a handful of people were already around. I hadn't seen the park this crowded before. It looked quite surreal. The place was usually quiet and only got crowded when it was around 8 AM since it was the time that kids started going out and playing, and their moms or babysitters would watch them from afar.

But I couldn't blame the change. The place was a wonder full of lush greenery and was usually the chilliest place to hang out, even on a sunny day, since it was surrounded by a few trees. It was also awe-inspiring with the beautiful flowers and shrubs that invited a few pollinators like butterflies and bees and the likes.

Stepping out of my spot, I began to jog to the park. I did a couple of laps around the whole place before making a pit stop back at the playground. Emptying my mind by looking around and admiring the newness brought into the area while sprinting my feet at a slow pace. A couple of fellow joggers passed by and expressed their salutations. All I could do was reply with a nod as a return to the friendly exchange. It was pretty refreshing to see that the people were quite amiable. Though it seemed slow, it felt like something heavy was gotten off my chest, and I could breathe a lot better than I previously did.

When I got around the playground one more time, I decided to take a short break by sitting on the benches. I took out my aqua flask and drank a mouthful of water before staring at the playing field, my gaze softening as myriad pictures of memories flashed into my mind. It was this park. This was the place I had my fondest childhood memories.

**

Thank you for reading Bubble Gum Kisses! To keep up with my works, future works, and endless frustrations on Twitter: https://twitter.org/RiosMorpheus**