She's back.

I peer through the sparse crowd huddling around the pillars, waiting for their loved ones to emerge from the immigration chamber. She was scheduled to arrive at 10 past 11, but it's already a quarter past 11. My eyes are beginning to brim with tears, not borne of expectancy or deep emotion, but caused by the chilling bite of the overadequate air conditioners. A sleepy family is chatting around the waiting area, some standing, some hugging themselves to keep warm, some carelessly sprawled over the rows of empty chairs. The cavernous arrival area of the Penang International Airport, usually bustling with activity and sights and sounds, now threatens to engulf you in its ominous silence.
I blink back the tears and pull my arms around myself, trying to stop my teeth from chattering.
My mind flashes back to the last time I saw her. Would she still be the same? She was fair, with a waist-long sheet of hair that shimmered in the sun. 3 years Down Under had deeply colored her fashion sense. Sleeveless tank tops and low-waist miniskirts had become the vogue in her wardrobe.
I move closer to the glass partition in an attempt to distance myself from the cold blast of the air conditioners.
Finally, I see some weary travelers trickling in through the immigrations. The chairs in the waiting area are now empty, as the sleepy family is now crowding the arrival exit, each member craning their neck in wakeful anticipation of the arrival of their loved one.
Then I see her. It's unmistakeable, that walk of hers. She walks with the same intensity with which she lives her fast-paced life. There is an edge and confidence in her gait, regardless of her speed. The long flight has somewhat abated that edge, though. Her shoulders sag as she pushes her luggage into the immigrations counter.
She has changed. Her once fair skin is now sunkissed. Her sleeveless top proudly displays her exotically tanned arms. Brown as a berry. I lean against the glass, my face fixed in a dreamy grin as I watch her clear immigrations and make her way to the exit. Our eyes meet. She returns the smile.
I can't believe she's finally back. I look back at my mother, and we both rush to meet her at the exit. We fall into each others' arms. The world around me dims. She's back. My sister is finally back.