Connection

I remembered we were lounging at this ostentatiously-shaped sofa in the lobby of a school building. We had escaped from a boring arts camp event. You were strumming a few simple melodies, never mind who the guitar belonged to. When you played Spice Girl's Viva Forever, I sang along to the parts I could remember the lyrics, and you sang the ones I had forgotten. I even forgot that it was not cool to like the Spice Girls or anything pop.

I remembered laughing so hard with you on the bus when we attempted to translate Suede's Beautiful Ones into Hokkien. Shaking the Meat became Yo-ah-yo Bak!. We must have irritated a lot of people.

I remembered we wanted to go to art school, and when we found out how expensive the fees were, we cracked that joke about offering people blowjobs at Holland Village to get that money to pay off the fees. Eventually, you went on to art school, and I went back to work instead.

I remembered singing Green Day songs with you when we strolled back to your house from our secondary school. You were my only friend then who knew the lyrics; never mind that I only knew what "can't get it up" means much later, in that song "The Grouch".

I remembered you broke the only Kit-Kat bar in the fridge into half. It wasn't broken evenly, but you automatically offered me the bigger piece.

I remembered you telling me "You're more than a Poly Grad, and you're more than an intern."

I remembered a bunch of Makciks rushing for the taxi, saying chepat chepat! and you were like aiyoh these makciks ah! under your breath. We had a good laugh about it later.

I remembered you dropped by my workplace with the richest chocolate cake and greeted me "Happy Birthday" 6 months after my birthday. My then colleagues had left the office, so you ate some of the cake with me.

I remembered the both of us laughed so hard at McDonalds for close to 5 minutes about Iron Cocks when we saw this indian kid who kiaped his toy rifle between his legs. The rest who were with us couldn't figure out what was the joke.

I remembered a few days before you left the company, you had dinner with me and told me to be fair to myself and find better opportunities out there.

I constantly search for similar, meaningful connections, the ones that seemed effortless, like the ones above.

Some of your moves had touch me deeply till this day, the others, a connection which had enhanced our friendship. Never mind that some of you aren't in my life anymore. But thank you for being there at that point of time. I love you all :)