I Can Manage

Chapter Eighteen

     Philippines sat at his desk. He had a notebook filled with scribbles and drawings. Most of the book was chaos, except for one page. This page was neatly divided into columns. Each column had notes and clues.

     Phil flipped through the mysterious phone. He knew it was connected to Mica's strange behavior.

     Out of everything on the phone, the gallery was the most puzzling. It was filled with pictures of a family. They were always playing a game or messing with each other. Mica was in a few of the pictures, and Philip wondered how they were connected.

     The family was mostly made up of younger children, the oldest looking to be 15 or 16.

     Philip kept scrolling until he landed on a familiar photo. To anyone else, it would just look like a normal picture. But the girl in the photo was familiar. She had wavy, dark brown hair that hung down long. Her brown

     eyes were kind and happy. Philip was sure he knew her.

     Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his temple. He stood up out of his chair. A dizzy wave hit him as he stumbled to the door and pushed it open.

     "Phil?" A voice said. But he didn't see who it was before the ground rushed at him.

     Philip was under a magnolia tree. The white blossoms shining bright in the sunlight. It was a perfect summer day. The breeze was warm and cooling at the same time and the clouds floated gently in the sky. Everything was perfect.

     He heard shouts in the distance, but he ignored them. The voices got closer, and Phil closed his eyes trying to act asleep. Then the voice were right above him. "Is he asleep?" One asked. "I think so." another commented. "Nah, he's faking'." another said before someone pounced on him.

     He opened his eyes and was met with a small boy. He had a seagull on his face and was only around 4 years old. "Midway..." Philip complained. "I got you!" The boy laughed. Phil pushed the boy off him and saw six other kids standing there. One was extremely taller than the rest, dressed in winter clothing with a fur-lined coat. The next tallest was a plain looking girl with a herringbone coat and . The others were around the same height and dressed in summer clothing, shorts and dresses.

     The tall girl reached out to help Phil . "Thanks Montana," he said. Other than Montana (which I added because they're underrated) all the other kids were territories. Midway, Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska and... Hawaii. Philippines smiled at the girl as the two broke away from the group. "We've been looking for you for awhile." Hawaii said. "Sorry, I fell asleep under the Magnolia tree." Philip said. Hawaii chuckled, "I know!... so... how have you been doing?" Hawaii asked. "I...I'm okay. Japan has invaded my land and keeps advancing. I'm afraid she'll take me away. It will be Spain all over again." Hawaii grabbed his hand. "Don't worry! You'll come out the other side just fine! I did!" She smiled as she pointed to her bandaged arm. Philippines knew under those bandages was a nasty burn. "Thanks Hawaii... how are you so strong?" He asked her. "Easy!" She said. "I just imagine socking that bully in the face next time I see her!" He chuckled. "We can take her down together." Phil suggest. "Yeah!"

     And that was the last time Philippines ever talked to Hawaii

     Next thing he knew, he was fiercely fighting the Japanese empire, and she was winning. He was covered with cuts and bruises, but he kept fighting. It didn't save him. Japan had him cornered, so he surrendered. Japanese Empire abused him from then on, starved him and his people. And slowly, over time, he forgot happiness. He forgot the Magnolia tree and the long walks with Hawaii. He forgot the states and that time he had spent with America. All that was left was suffering.