Michelle Receives a Morale Boost

It was Wednesday morning and the glorious sun shone radiantly on a visible sky. The brilliant glare of the sun's rays roused Michelle and Karina, their lovely faces filled with hope.

Slowly, Michelle and Karina stood up, cautiously taking a few baby steps along the wall. By the time they reached the dining table, bowls of cooked arroz caldo and a pitcher of freshly boiled green tea greeted them.

As they sat down, Michelle and Karina were eager to take a generous spoonful. Simultaneously, we eagerly joined them on the table, having finished breakfast an hour before.

"They smell delicious," Michelle commented favorably on the dishes. "Can we go eat now?"

"Sure thing," Charissa nodded approvingly. "You can sample these delicious dishes immediately."

Michelle and Karina each took a spoonful of arroz caldo and nodded politely at us. They appeared to be in good spirits, the worrisome demeanor that etched their faces a few days ago now a distant memory.

"They taste so good," Karina delightedly said of the arroz caldo. "Charissa, you sure have terrific food sense."

"Well, the arroz caldo came from my mother," Charissa answered earnestly. "She taught me that delicious recipe when I was young."

"No wonder," Karina said heartily. "How about Christine? Does she know by heart about this dish too?"

"I did pass it on to her as well," Charissa joyfully remarked. "Christine knew precisely a few of my mother's dishes herself."

After finishing the bowls of arroz caldo, Charissa and I carefully checked Michelle and Karina's temperatures.

"You're down to 38.1 degrees," Charissa informed Karina. "How about Michelle?"

"38.2," I smilingly replied. "Both of you look to be improving tremendously."

"Did you hear them, dear mother?" Michelle smilingly remarked towards Karina. "We''ll be all right."

Just then, a ring was heard from Michelle's smartphone. It was Carson who dialed in.

Carson: "Michelle? Are you there?"

Michelle: "Yes Carson. Why did you contact me?"

Carson: "I was worried sick. I've been trying to call you since yesterday, but your phone is unreachable."

Michelle: "Carson, I was under the weather all week. The typhoon inundated my home and Karina and I were forced to relocate to Christine's residence."

Carson: "I see. Well, I'll be going to your friend's home later today so stay put."

Michelle: "Okay then. I'll wait for you here."

"Girls, I've been informed that Carson will pay a visit this afternoon," Michelle notified us.

"Carson?" Karina naturally wondered. "I haven't heard from him in a long while."

"Well, sounds like he has something to share," I commented.

Later that afternoon, the door bell rang outside. Michelle and Karina had just taken their medicine as I carefully approached the door.

Upon looking at the peep hole, it was indeed Carson who made his way through. Michelle hurriedly came out to hug him.

"Oh Carson," Michelle tearfully said. "I sorely missed you. I've endured a terrible week."

"Chill," Carson replied back. "You can relate to me everything. Don't stress yourself."

While Carson and Michelle willingly shared an intimate conversation, I promptly opened my laptop and logged in to Skype. Seconds later, Ella showed up on the video.

"Welcome back," I cordially greeted her.

"Christine, you're okay," Ella nodded back. "That weather must have been terrible."

"I know right," I answered thoughtfully. "By the way, Michelle and her mother are living peacefully with me right now. Their house received some considerable damage because of the flood."

"Where's Michelle?" Ella humbly asked.

"She is experiencing an emotional moment with Carson right now," I replied promptly. "Michelle has not had a pleasant week so far. We must cheer her and Karina up."

I called out both Carson and Michelle who immediately made their way to the table. But as she encountered Ella, Michelle became extremely emotional.

"Ella, it's been a while," she tearfully acknowledged her.

"Michelle, what's the matter?" Ella asked her. "Why are you crying?"

Michelle gently wiped her tears and continued speaking.

"It was nothing," Michelle begrudgingly admitted, her tears falling anew.

"No seriously," Ella countered. "You seem to endure a very tough week, am I right?"

"Okay I'll tell you something," Michelle tearfully uttered. "My house got flooded a few days ago. I couldn't sleep, and worse, me and Karina got sick. I looked awful all week."

Michelle lowered her head down and sobbed silently. I promptly sat down and gently caressed her.

"It's okay Michelle," I silently advised her. "Just let it all out and then look towards Ella."

After drowning out all the overwhelming sorrows, Michelle wiped her tears and faced Ella once more.

"Michelle, some weeks aren't meant to be perfect," Ella remarked thoughtfully. "You should live and learn through it. Always look on the bright side."

Michelle's slight frown gradually turned into a smile. Wiping her tears, she promptly resumed speaking to Ella.

"You were right," Michelle said humbly. "If we can do this to Christine every time she got bullied, you and I may as well do the same to ourselves."

"That's the spirit Michelle," Ella mutually agreed. "By the way, where's Carson?"

"Carson," Michelle shouted gleefully. "Ella is looking for you,"

Carson naturally made his way to the table and looked keenly at her from my laptop.

"Good day to you Ella," Carson cordially greeted her. "Long time no see."

"So how's school for you right now?" Ella raised a question.

"It wasn't terrible," Carson commented positively. "In fact I'm already working on my academic thesis for literature."

"No wonder Christine, Michelle and I haven't recognized you in campus," Ella responded. "You're extremely active with your thesis. Oh well."

Just then, Charissa and Karina showed up in front of the screen.

"Hello there Charissa and Karina," Ella gestured her hand at them. "Long time no see."

"How are you doing out there?" Karina humbly asked Ella.

"Just working on some errands," Ella replied politely. "How about you?"

"As Michelle already briefed you, we've relocated to Christine's humble home for now," Karina answered earnestly. "You already knew what happened to us right?"

"Yes I do," Ella said soothingly.

It was already 5:30 p.m. and Ella and I prepared to go our separate ways, at least for the day.

"Well, I got to go now and complete some of my remaining errands," Ella promptly announced to me. "Don't worry, I'll be back."

"Okay then Ella," I gently waved my hand to her goodbye. "We'll see you soon."

For the rest of the night, Carson willingly joined us for a delicious dinner. Following another temperature check, Michelle and Karina received some fantastic news.

"Michelle and Karina, you are now fine," Charissa announced triumphantly. "The thermometers measure 37 degrees which means the fever has disappeared."

Michelle and Karina both flashed a pleasant smile upon hearing the announcement. However, there was still one more need left to be addressed: their humble abode.