Back to Our Paradise

It was a beautiful sunny day in Dakila Island when Ersel, a five-year-old boy, went out to visit his favorite place on the island - an isolated white sand beach with some coconut trees.

He found this place a week ago. Since he found it to be a beautiful and peaceful spot where he could spend some alone time, he decided to visit it every time he wants.

A few minutes after leaving his house, Ersel finally reached his destination. He enjoyed the blowing of the wind coming from the sea, the relaxing sound of the waves, and the fascinating sight of the sea. He looked far into the horizon, thinking of what he could possibly find beyond the sea.

A few moments later, Ersel heard some footsteps approaching from his left. He turned his head to the left and saw a boy who sat on one of the rocks near one of the coconut trees. The boy looked to be the same age as Ersel. Ersel looked more closely and thought that the boy looked sad as the latter's eyes looked at the sea.

Feeling curious about the boy, Ersel approached him.

"Hi! Who are you?" Ersel said with a smile, waving his right hand at the boy.

The boy just looked at him with sad eyes, making Ersel feel pity for him.

Ersel sat on one of the rocks beside the boy and began to talk to the latter.

"My name is Ersel," Ersel said while grinning. "What is your name?"

The other boy looked at him again with sad eyes.

"Lino," the other boy said in a sad voice.

"So, Lino, why are you sad?" Ersel asked curiously.

Lino began to cry, making Ersel feel sad for the former.

"Papa and Mama...they..." Lino said while gasping for air and crying.

"What?" Ersel asked curiously.

"They fought again in front of me. I do not want to see them fighting like that," Lino said while his tears continued rolling down his cheeks.

Ersel felt even sadder for Lino. While he has never seen his parents fighting before, he thought that it would feel just as painful to see his own parents fighting too.

"I see. Is that why you're here?" Ersel asked.

"Yes," Lino responded, his tears still running down his cheeks.

"Then stay here for now," Ersel remarked cheerfully after sighing. "Want to play with me?"

"Are you sure?" Lino asked, and his tears stopped from flowing out of his eyes.

"Yes!" Ersel replied in a jolly tone.

"Okay, Ersel," Lino remarked, and he smiled.

So the two boys played all morning, getting themselves sweaty, wet, and dirty in the process. Both of them felt blissful to have found a playmate in each other.

"I have to go home now," Ersel said after seeing that the sun was already high, meaning that it was time to have lunch.

"Now? But I still want to play with you, Ersel," Lino remarked sadly.

"It is okay, Lino. Let us play again later.," Ersel remarked with a smile.

"Okay," Lino replied with a smile.

"Let's meet again here later," Ersel said while waving and smiling at Lino.

That afternoon, as the two boys agreed upon, Ersel went to the same place where he met Lino that morning.

"Ersel!" a familiar voice shouted from Ersel's left-hand direction.

Ersel turned his head to the left after hearing that familiar voice call out to him. It was Lino.

"Lino!" Ersel shouted back with joy.

Lino stopped in front of Ersel, gasping for air. By the looks of it, he was so excited to play with his friend again that he ran as fast as he could.

"You ran really fast to get here," Ersel remarked while laughing.

Lino burst out laughing himself and said joyfully, "Of course! It is because I wanted to play with you again!"

"Then let's play now!" Ersel burst out eagerly.

At the end of the day, with both of the boys feeling tired after playing, Lino and Ersel sat down to watch the beautiful sunset. The sky also already had an orange hue, making the view of the sunset much more beautiful.

"Lino," Ersel said while looking at Lino.

"Yes?" Lino asked after turning his head towards Ersel.

"So, how are your Papa and Mama?" Ersel asked with a worried look on his face.

Lino smiled and answered with his eyes shining brightly, "They are fine now. They weren't fighting before I went here."

"That's good," Ersel remarked with a gentle smile after letting out a sigh of relief.

"Let's play here everyday from now on," Lino said joyfully.

"We definitely will!" Ersel eagerly responded with a wide smile before turning his eyes to the wonderful sunset.

As the days went by, the two boys grew much closer and their friendship deepened. They grew as close as brothers.

Ersel and Lino became the best of friends. They would play together, go to school together, swim in the sea together, and eat together. Sometimes, one of them would visit the other in the latter's house. Lino would also play both with Ersel and the latter's younger sister, Mina. It was as if the two of them were inseparable no matter what.

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Three years have passed since Ersel and Lino have met each other.

One day, after playing and collecting shells at the beach where they first met, Lino spoke to Ersel about the former and his parents going to visit his grandparents for several days.

"Ersel," Lino called out to his best friend, who was checking the shells they collected.

"Yes? What is it, Lino?" Ersel asked eagerly.

"My parents and I will be visiting my grandparents, so we will be gone for two weeks or so," Lino declared eagerly.

"Is that so? You look so excited," Ersel said while grinning.

"Yes, of course!" Lino said eagerly. "I have not seen them in a while."

"But that also means we will not be able to meet and play for a while," Ersel declared rather gloomily.

"Oh… you are right," Lino said with a frown, then put his right arm around Ersel's shoulder. "But that is okay, Ersel. We will meet again after that."

"Yeah," Ersel mumbled and wore a smile on his face again. "Then bring me some souvenirs if you can."

"Sure, I will do," Lino declared eagerly before taking his arm off Ersel's shoulder. "Okay, I have to go home now. We will be leaving early tomorrow morning. Bye, Ersel!"

"Okay. Bye, Lino!" Ersel said while both boys were waving and smiling at each other before Lino proceeded to go back home.

Two days have passed since Lino and his parents left. Ersel felt rather lonely, knowing that he would not be playing with Lino for a while. Instead, he would spend his free time playing with his younger sister, Mina, when he is not busy with his schoolwork.

That night, Ersel heard an unexpected news from his father.

"Ersel, we will be moving to Manila in three days," his father declared seriously, astonishing Ersel.

"To Manila?!" Ersel exclaimed loudly, obviously surprised by the sudden news. "B-But why?!"

"Your father got a job there," his mother explained.

"B-But how about our house here? And Lino?" Ersel asked anxiously.

"We will sell it," his father declared.

"Okay," Ersel mumbled, with his sad eyes looking down at the floor. After that, he turned around to get out of the house.

"Where are you going?!" his father asked as Ersel walked towards the door.

"I'll be going to the beach for now," Ersel said while his tears were beginning to fall before proceeding to get out of the house.

"Hey, don't-," Ersel's father said before his mother stopped the former.

"Dear, please let him be for now," Ersel's mother said while trying to stop her husband from following Ersel. "I'm sure that he's having a hard time accepting it."

Ersel's father was convinced and said, "You're right, dear. Someday, he'll understand. He's still just a kid, after all."

Ersel went to the beach where he first met Lino three years ago. He was crying because he would miss his favorite place on the island and his best friend.

"Lino," Ersel said softly while gazing at the stars in the sky, as if he was trying to convey his message to his best friend in the air. "I am sorry, but I will have to leave without meeting you here again. I hope… that I would meet you again someday."

Afterwards, Ersel inhaled as deeply as he could in preparation for the words he would say out loud.

"Lino!" Ersel shouted at the top of his lungs. "I will definitely meet you again someday!"

Afterwards, Ersel proceeded to go back home with a heavy heart while his mind were full of memories with Lino.

[Goodbye, Lino.] Ersel thought while his tears were falling down on the sand. [It was really fun being friends with you.]