Chapter 4: An Unexpected Visit

I wonder who this could be, Jasmine wondered.  She opened the door. 

“Oh my gosh, Edgar!!” she screamed. Edgar was her favorite cousin from the Philippines whom she hadn’t seen since she was a kid.

“Hi cuz!” he said, grabbing her in a bear hug and spinning her around. They laughed and he finally put her down. Jasmine couldn’t believe her eyes.

“It’s been forever! What are you doing here?"

“I’m here for school at your old alma mater, UCLA! I’ll be attending in the Fall so your Dad said that I could crash with him for a bit until I can get a place of my own."

Having heard all the commotion Jasmine’s father walked into the living room. He had a big, sneaky grin on his face.

“Dad, why didn’t you tell me Edgar was coming?” asked Jasmine.

“I couldn’t. He made me promise!” he exclaimed.

Edgar chimed in saying, “Yeah. I wanted to surprise you Jas! Did it work?”

“Edgar! Dad! You two are sooo sneaky!” Jasmine said, shaking her finger at both of them. “Oh Edgar, I’m so happy to see you. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do!”

The three of them spent the rest of the afternoon reminiscing about old times and sharing about the present. It was great to be able to relieve the stress and sadness that Jasmine had been feeling these last couple of months, and it was even sweeter knowing that soon she would see her David again.

After dinner Jasmine and Edgar decided to take a stroll on the beach, which was only a block away from her father’s house. As they walked down the boardwalk and onto the beach, the sun started to set, making it a beautiful picturesque evening, the kind you find on postcards.

“So?” Edgar said.

“So…what?” Jasmine asked, bewildered.

“So, what happened between you and David?” he asked quizzically. “Word gets around, you know.”

“Yeah, I can see that,” said Jasmine, smiling. “The short of it is that I walked away because I was afraid to take the next step. I was scared and impulsive and made a horrible mistake. But, thankfully Dad helped me to see that today. I was actually on my way to see David when you showed up,” she said, playfully poking him in his side and making him laugh. She remembered that he was always pretty ticklish when they were kids. Some things never change, she thought to herself.

“I threw a wrench in your plans, huh?” he said lightly.

"That's okay. I'm excited to hang out. It's good to catch up."

Edgar smiled. “It is. But, I’m really happy for you Jas. You seem to have found the one. He’s a lucky guy."

"I just hope he can forgive me," she said, suddenly serious.

"If he's really the one then I know that things will work out.”

“Thanks Edgar,” she replied. “I’m so glad you’re here!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around him in a huge hug. “I can’t wait for you to meet him!”