Bromance even before bromance was coined...

There is a way to be good again.

That's one of the lines I remember from The Kite Runner, one of the best books I've read.

Somehow, that line came to mind lately because of the recent things that have happened.

As I've written in a previous post, one of the nice things that happened during the holidays was reconnecting with people from my high school days.

That included my best friend back then. The last time we saw each other, I was still just starting my career while he was just about to get out of college. That was about seven, eight years ago. Thanks to social networking sites, we sort of found each other again. He is doing well with his career. He got to travel. He is now married for a year.

Wow! Married? It only seems like yesterday when we were still talking about our schedules for Mass, stupid crushes, family stuff, and so on. Back then, we spent so much time together. When I went to a different high school, we would still see each other almost everyday at church (because we were altar boys). We'd have these nice walks going home. Email was just about to be born, so we had letters to each other. Handwritten letters, which I think I still have somewhere.

Simply put, he and I had a bromance even before that word was coined.

Seeing him again a couple of weeks ago just brought back a lot of good memories he and I shared. It was both happy and not so much. Happy because he still is the same person (or so I think). Not so much because after parting ways, I felt something that I don't believe in feeling - regret. For not trying hard enough to stay connected when I went to college, for allowing myself to get lost in the new world that is UP and new friends back then, for not slowing down so the friends I left behind in HS could catch up. And for missing the big life events - college graduation, getting engaged, getting married.

I don't know why, but somewhere at the back of my mind, I felt like I needed to apologize to him. I didn't get to do that during the get-together with the rest of my barkada altar boys. That was the only time everyone saw each other again so what happened was more of a group discussion. We did get to have a little time together though during the drive to the coffee place and when we parted ways, we did we'll hang out. But really Who knows when that will be?

So when I saw him online the other day, I chatted with him. He was on a business trip in some country I wanted to visit. Strike that. Some country I will visit this year. Hehe!

Anyway, I took that opportunity to tell him one of the two things I wanted to tell him. It wasn't the best conversation setup - online! blah! - but I had to take advantage of the situation.

[08:58] UP Boy: hey, can i tell you something?
[08:58] DLSU Boy: what
[09:04] UP Boy: the get-together with the guys was good. and that's when i realized that i didn't try hard enough to stay connected to you as a friend to you right after high school. and i don't usually have any regrets, pero that's one thing i regret. i mean back then you and i were best friends and i sort of regret losing that. the last time i saw you college ka pa and now you're married na and maybe soon will be a dad na. i missed out on so many things like your graduation, you getting married, stuff like that.
[09:05] UP Boy: so what i'm really trying to say is i'm sorry. for not trying better to be your best buddy.
[09:05] DLSU Boy: that's ok. i also missed keeping in touch siguro medyo busy lang and location was also a factor since i moved which is far na rin.
[09:06] UP Boy: sorry, i know this is really lousy that i'm saying all of these online. i wanted to say it face to face, pero i know you're much busy now. and we really didn't have the time to talk the last time we saw each other.
[09:06] DLSU Boy: sus.. that's ok. what matters is that we are now again reconnected.

Yeah, yeah, I know it's too emo. But hello, sinimulan mo na lang din naman mag-emo, eh di itodo mo na ng bonggang bongga, di buzz? LOL!

We chatted a bit more after that, but since it was a toxic work day for both of us, the chat had to be cut short. There is just that agreement to see each other some time soon.

I felt better after that brief chat. The other thing I wanted to tell him is, well, something reserved for our get-together. Sheesh, when we saw each other, he was asking me about girlfriends. Eeeep! So I'm kind of resolved to tell him the next time. I know I don't have to, but I just feel like I have to. I mean, this is a person who became a big part of my teen years and if we do plan to carry on with that friendship we had, then I think he just has to know.

Bring out several bottles of beer please. Wait, maybe we'll need something stronger. Hehe!