The afternoon sun continued its slow descent toward the horizon, its warm glow all over the Riverbanks park gradually being overtaken by the dark of the early evening.
In this mont, Adela had already explored almost the entirety of the park. Her labored breathing and her cheeks glistening with sweat a clear indication she hadn’t stopped walking until now.
Adela stood in the middle of the grass field, the sa field where Callisto was before, albeit more crowded now compared to earlier.
The lampposts around the park started flickering open, providing light for the evening campers in the park.
Despite Adela’s efforts, she could not find any sign of Callisto whatsoever.
"Where are you, Calli?"
Frustration and desperation were audible in her tone.
Just where could Callisto be? Is she still around in the park just like Raymond said she would and Adela just couldn’t spot her out of dumb luck? The park was wide enough for it to be a possibility.
Or perhaps Callisto was actually in the carnival right now.
Adela could go there right now and check. Or better yet, she could just wait for Callisto back to her apartnt in barangay Silangan if she wasn’t there yet.
The choice was obvious.
Shortly after catching her breath, Adela started walking once more toward the bridge.
"Uh, excuse , Miss?"
Adela’s determined stride was put to a halt as she turned to her left and found a young man looking back at her.
The young man was the sa person who approached Callisto along with his father a while ago. Though of course, Adela had no way of knowing that.
Adela frowned slightly as she gave him a scrutinizing look. "Can I help you?"
"Ah, sorry for coming to you all of a sudden," the young man responsed calmly. "It’s just that my family and I saw you earlier walking around the park as if you’re looking for sothing."
The young man pointed a finger toward his family in their camping spot not far from where he and Adela stood.
Adela peeked over the young man’s shoulder and saw the mother seemingly whispering sothing to her husband while mainting her gaze toward Adela’s direction.
"When Mom saw you again, my father told to co to you and ask if you need help," The young man added. "Can I help you with anything?"
While Adela truly appreciated the young man and his parents for going out of their way to express their concern and offer help, Adela had already asked a lot of people in the park if they saw at least a glimpse of a girl with silver-hair and cat ears before their interaction.
They all answered the sa thing. They haven’t seen Callisto.
Adela thought it would be the sa with the young man. However, the mother figured it would be rude to just brush him off when it was the young man himself offering help.
"I’m looking for soone," Adela started. "A girl. She’s fifteen years old and she has, uh... A wig. Silver hair with cat ears. She’s my daughter."
The young man’s eyes widened at Adela’s description. He imdiately knew who exactly Adela was talking about.
"Is her na Callisto Mandjet?"
His question drew a surprised a gasp out of Adela’s mouth. She definitely did not expect to hear Callisto’s na from him.
"H-Have you seen her," Adela stuttered with her own query as she leaned toward him. "Where did she go?"
Just then, the young man’s parents appeared behind him.
They overheard the conversation between Adela and their son.
"You’re Adela Mandjet, right," questioned the mother, staring into the woman in white as if she already knew the answer to her own query.
Adela straightened her posture as she regarded the three of them with her usual professional deanor. "Yes. My na is Adela Mandjet. Nice to et you three."
"Callisto was here a while ago," Arnold, the husband, inford Adela. "She was playing with my kids and shared our food with her before she left."
Adela looked directly into Arnold’s eyes. "Where did she go? Did Callisto tell you guys by any chance?"
"Sorry," answered Arnold, shaking his head with remorse. "Callisto didn’t tell us exactly where she’s going. She just said she’s heading out."
"I see."
Adela already began thinking about the possibilities.
Callisto most likely ant that she was heading back ho, aning she was on her way back to barangay Silangan or she was already there.
The mother turned her attention back to the family, a grateful expression on her face. "Thank you so much. I’m gonna go follow her."
Before going, Adela pulled out a business card out of her dress’s pocket. "If there’s anything you want to ask , be it business or whatever, just give a call."
Once Adela was out of earshot, Arnold’s wife turned to him with a question. "Think it’s a sign to make our dream business co true?"
"I an, it’s not everyday you get to talk casually with a well-known business woman," Arnold reasoned, following it with a small smile. "Let’s do it!"
* * *
Not a long ti had past since Callisto challenged the target shooting booth. But even then, she managed to try out as much attractions as she could in the carnival.
Currently occupying a wooden bench along with her big and cute stuff toy next to her, the white cat mask hanging on the side of her head after seeing soone else pass her by doing the sa thing, Callisto popped one of the three kariokas from the stick into her mouth.
Her mouth worked diligently on the sticky caralized rice ball before taking it down her throat, a look of bliss on her features as she chowed down the remaining two out of the stick.
"Karioka is just so good," said the young lady to herself. "But I gotta make room for more."
She threw the stick at the nearby trash bin. It was the second karioka stick she threw at the sa bin today.
"Drink..."
Callisto wrapped an arm around the big stuff toy and got herself up to get to the refreshnt stall right in front of her.
"Excuse ," she called to the vendor who was on his phone. "One buko pandan juice, please!"
"10 pesos or the 20 one," the vendor waited.
"Ah, the 20 one, please."
The vendor started pouring Callisto a big plastic cup of buko pandan juice.
In that mont, Callisto’s cat ears overheard a happy family passing by. She glanced at them at the sa ti as the little girl walking in between them looked and pointed a finger at the silver-haired girl’s stuffed toy in her arm.
"Mama, look," the girl said with great interest. "I want a big toy, too!"
Callisto’s gaze t the girl’s parents’ and they exchanged polite smiles. After that, she watched the family walk through the crowd, a man in a red shirt following shortly behind them.
The refreshnt vendor’s call tore Callisto’s gaze away from the family just as they disappeared in the crowd.
Right there in front of the refreshnt stall, Callisto leisurely took sips of her buko pandan juice while looking around and figuring out what street food to buy next.
By the ti there was only half of buko pandan left on her cup, Callisto began heading to a store that sells orange-battered deep-fried quail eggs.
"How much per piece," she looked at one of the three busy vendors managing custors surrounding their stand.
One of the vendors looked back to her and replied; "20 pesos per five kwek kweks. Do you want take out or are you eating them right here?"
"I’m eating them here."
"All right. Please help yourself."
Callisto set her half-emptied cup of buko pandan on the surface next to the trays of freshly cooked kwek kweks.
She grabbed a stick from a small container and took one piece of kwek kwek, dipped it in sauce, and popped it in her mouth.
After that, she just kept on taking one after another.
She looked at the kwek kwek on her stick and thought to herself; "This should be my 8th piece. That ans I still have two more."
And then, out of nowhere...
"Nooo! My wallet!"
An unbridled scream of a woman brought a mont of silence and wonder in the supposed lively carnival.
Facing the crowd that were also looking at the direction of the scream, a man in a red shirt slipped out of the people as he headed straight toward Callisto, holding what seed like a wallet with one hand.
Gleam!
For a just a fraction of a second, Callisto instinctively activated her golden eyes to avoid the dashing man with a smooth turn to the side.
Though she managed to get out of the man in the red shirt, Callisto did not see a couple of police officers coming from behind her.
One of them accidentally hitting her with their shoulder, causing Callisto to stumble forward.
"Wah!"
There was a young lady on a wheelchair right at the trajectory of Callisto’s stumble.
Callisto was inching closer and closer into planting her face onto the young lady until...
Gleam!
The silver-haired girl’s descent stopped just before the collision, balancing herself with a single foot on the ground. Callisto opened her golden eyes and t the young lady’s blue marbles, the shade deeper than her light-blue hair.
Remaining fixated on the lady’s eyes, only a single thought ca to Callisto’s mind.
"How pretty."
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