“A Box of Apology”
Marianne Nunag, IV- St. Aloysius Gonzaga
Characters:
Reilly – the male protagonist of the story. Being really smart, he doesn’t want to hurt his pride, so he never admits his faults every time he and Rachel argue.
Rachel – the female protagonist and Reilly’s best friend. She was always the first to apologize every time she and Reilly had an argument, even though it wasn’t really her fault.
Jasper – among all of Reilly’s cousins, he is the closest to him. A happy-go-lucky guy who loves watching TV, he’s ready to help his friends anytime, too.
Vincent – Jasper’s elder twin brother, though Jasper looks older than him because of the difference between their height and build. Unlike his brother, he takes his studies seriously, sometimes he even enjoys them.
Glenn – the only girl among Reilly’s cousins. She’s a bit boyish, yet very creative when it comes to arts.
Gary – Reilly’s soft-spoken cousin and Glenn’s younger twin. A true gentleman, he’s ready to help anyone who needs him.
Chapter 1: A Plan
I won’t apologize to her
That’s what Reilly had in his mind as he walked home from school. It’s not my fault that she’s not good in making handicrafts, he thought. So why should I say sorry?
He finally arrived home and found his four cousins in the living room. Jasper was watching TV, Gary was busy doing his homework, Vincent who was sitting on the floor was folding some torn magazine pages, and Glenn, the only girl, was making a necklace. He closed the door angrily behind him, making the four look at him in surprise.
“Rei, you don’t look good,” Jasper said as Reilly slumped on the couch beside him. “What happened?” “You don’t want to know,” Reilly answered, staring blankly at the television.
“Of course we want to know,” Gary said. “Maybe we can help you out.”
The other three nodded in agreement. Reilly looked at each of them, thinking if he should tell them about what happened that morning at school. In the end, he decided not to do so, for he knew everything will be alright the following day, so he shifted his eyes back to the TV.
“Let me guess,” Glenn finally spoke up, tying the ends of a now-finished necklace. “It’s your best friend, isn’t it? Her name’s … Rachel, right?”
Jasper, Gary, and Vincent looked at Reilly expectantly, waiting for him to answer. He sighed in defeat and nodded. Glenn smiled in victory as she cut some nylon thread for her next necklace.
“Tell us about it,” Vincent insisted, said a page from a magazine.
Reilly sighed again before starting. “Rachel let me borrow something she made,” he began. “A flower pendant made of shells. I played with it for a while before I gave it back to her. Suddenly, she was marching angrily to me, saying that I broke her pendant. She showed it to me as a proof.”
“And then?” Vincent asked.
“We began arguing,” Reilly explained. “We didn’t even talk for the rest of the day. It’s not my fault that her pendant broke. Maybe she’s not that good at making at all.”
He saw the scowl on his cousins; faces. “What?”
“Actually, I really think it’s your fault,” Glenn said.
“Yeah” Gary agreed. “You should apologize to her.”
“I’m going to apologize?” Reilly asked in disbelief. “Why would I do that?”
“Because it is your fault,” Vincent said. “You said you played with it for a while, right? That must be the reason why it broke.”
“There’s no way I’m going to…” Reilly started saying.
“Don’t be too proud of yourself!” Jasper suddenly said, slowly beginning to get annoyed.
“And saying that someone is not good really hurts a lot,” Glenn added. “Gee, men really do have high pride.”
Silence fell between the five. The only thing that could be heard was the show from the TV. Reilly pondered on what his cousins said and slowly realized they were right; it was his fault why his best friend’s pendant broke. She had always been the one who apologizes when they argue, even though it really was his fault. This time, I’m going to make sure I’ll be the one to say sorry, he told himself.
Something caught his eye as he looked down to Vincent, who was still busy folding some magazine pages. “What’s that, Vince?” he asked.
“Um…” Vincent said, looking at the folded paper on his hands. “A page from a magazine?”
“No, I mean that.” Reilly said, pointing at a small pile of boxes just beside Vincent.
“Oh, these,” his cousin replied, taking a couple of small boxes from the pile. “They’re origami boxes. It’s actually our project for Art class.” He laughed. “I kinda got addicted in making it, so I made a lot. Plus, Glenn said she’ll put a necklace in each of it, and then she’ll give it to her friends.”
Reilly stared at the box for a long time, thinking hard. Then he shifted his eyes to the necklace Glenn made. An idea suddenly occurred to him. “I got it!” he exclaimed, jumping to his feet.
His cousins looked up to him, surprised. From his pocket, he took out the shells from Rachel’s pendant. “Rachel said I should have these since I was the one who broke it,” he explained. “It’s a good thing I didn’t throw it away while I was walking home.” He turned to his cousins. “I have a plan, guys. And I need your help to do it.”
Will Reilly’s plan succeed? Find out in the next issue.
