WORRIED FOR A FRIEND

I wake up to a beautiful pair of eyes looking at me, one wrapped around my shoulder and the other patting my cheek, urging me to wake up. I don't know for how long I have been crying, but I don't try to hold the tears back. I have a throbbing headache, and this incidence reminds me of the same incidence four months ago when I woke up unaware of myself in a hospital.

However, there are a lot of differences. This is not the same hospital I woke up in back then. These are not the same pair of eyes I found staring at me back then. It wasn't him with me that time. This pain is more or less what I felt at that time, but the difference is that there is some joy in this pain I am experiencing now. I am no longer a shadow of myself.

The original Gia is back. My old self is back. I am well aware of everything that transpired, causing all these deep mysteries. My mother's death My father's shooting Did he survive? I doubt. So he killed both my parents. And my older sister. Where are you, Grace?

"Are you okay?" Deep asks as I close my eyes.

I have a lot of things going through my head which are hurting so much. "Ejay."I struggle to say in between the pain, putting my hands to my head. The pain is killing me. "He shouldn't find me."

"Okay. Just rest. I will call the doctor." Deep says, resting me back on the bed. I hold his hand. I don't want him to leave. "Don't leave me." I say this as the pain starts to fade away slowly and sleep takes over. I feel him caressing my cheeks, drying away the tears, and I rest, knowing that I am safe with him around.

Hours later,

I wake up to the same beautiful pair of eyes of Deep staring down at me. I pull my lazy body up and sit up on the bed. Deep is helping me—my savior.

Tears are threatening to escape my eyes, and I am too weak to prevent them. The screams of my father hitting the ground that day are so fresh, like it happened just this morning. Everything is so fresh: the events of that fateful day—our cries as we laid our mother to rest, the sadness and loneliness that filled the compound after everyone left, the screams of my sister calling for my help as those cursed, heartless monsters dragged her away, the death-screaming sound of the gun, and the painful screams of my father as he hit the ground covered with blood. This pain I am feeling in my heart right now is so fresh too. Maybe because I didn't grieve at that time.

"Shh.." Deep tries to soothe me. He has a very hard task of drying tears from my eyes, which are flowing nonstop. My sobs are the only sound in this hospital room. "Gia, that's enough, please. Talk to me." He cups my face, tired of drying the tears because they are not stopping, and they won't anytime soon.

Gawking at him, I feel like I have a thousand things I want to tell him. I want to get this burden out of my chest because it's weighing me down, but is it time to be weak? Is it time to start narrating stories? No. It's time to act. I need to move, and that too, very fast. I need to find my sister. The problem is, where do I start?

I need to move either way. A life is at stake here, and knowing that cunning, ruthless monster, Ejay, this is not going to be easy at all. But I will lick even the ground he walks on just to get my sister. A lot of lives are at stake, and I am afraid of who he will get to first. What happened yesterday was the height of everything. I can't afford another death.

"Please, talk to me." Deep's plea comes once again.

The look in his eyes denotes how truly concerned he is. But he will have to forgive me. There will be time for this story, just not now. "Get me out of here." I whisper between sobs, wiping away the tears and pulling away from his arms. "We need to get moving." I said, getting out of bed and disconnecting whatever small pipe was connected to my hand.

I grab my phone, noticing it's blinking green. Maybe it is the detective. The only thing I need him to focus on from now on is finding out what happened to my father. Even if it's just his body or grave, That hurts! I unlock my phone.

Six missed calls. Not from the detective, like I thought, and not from that monster. It's Mayleen. How careless of me! "Mayleen." I murmur as I press the dial button to call back.

At the count of five rings, there is still no answer, and I grow weary. I start pacing back and forth, holding on to the slight hope that Ejay hasn't discovered she was helping me, praying to the heavens to keep her alive for me. "Pick up, please, Mayleen!"

"Who are you calling?" Deep asks, standing before me, preventing me from pacing.

"A friend. She isn't picking up." I respond, redialling again, breathing heavily. All sorts of things are running through my mind. Negative thoughts as to why she isn't picking Heavenly Father, don't remain silent on me this time, please. She has to be alive. "She has to be alive! Pick up your phone, Mayleen!"

"Calm down, Gia. She probably isn't near the phone.

"That's the problem, Deep! If she isn't near, then something bad must have happened." I cry out.

"Don't be negative. I'm sure she will call back." He tries to assure me, but I don't think anything can calm me at this point until I talk to Mayleen. Until I make sure she is fine, I will not be at peace. I press the call button again and wait, holding my breath and looking up to the sky with my eyes closed. Please, please.

“Gia?”

"Mayleen?" I shouted the moment her voice came on the receiver. "Mayleen, are you okay?" I enthusiastically ask, a little hope creeping in my downcast heart.

"Gia. I am okay. How are you? Where are you?" She speaks, her voice hefty, as if she is on the run.

Forget about me for now. I am in Deep's safest hands. But her? I am having a very uneasy feeling about her safety. I would die if she got hurt.

"Mayleen? Where are you?" I ask.

"I don't know Gia. I'm in the middle of nowhere. I got scared after watching the news and escaped from the house. Ejay is uncontrollably enraged. He is coming after you, Gia!" She says.

Damn! But, thank God, she was able to slip away from those monsters.

"I know. I can't go back to the house. I need to get you. Aah, let's.. aah.

"I will send someone to pick her up." Deep's voice came behind me, and I turned. He nods his head to assure me, and I don't need to ask anything more. My friend's life is at risk, and I trust Deep. With my life.

"Send me the location asap, Mayleen. Someone will pick you up. Keep your phone close, okay?" I say.

"Okay, Gia. Thanks. Be extra careful, okay?" She says.

"I will. Be safe, please." I cut the call.

"Let's go?" Deep says, and we start walking to the door, his hand around my waist.

"Mr. Moore!" We almost collide with the doctor when we open the door. "Are you leaving?" She asks with dismay.

Deep motions for her to get in, and he shuts the door as soon as she walks in, the three of us standing just behind it. "Doc. We have to leave at this minute. Nobody should know we came here. No one at all, okay?"

"Okay, sir. How are you feeling now, Gia?" The doctor asks.

"Good. I'm good. The headache is gone." I say.

"You will probably not experience those intense pains anymore because your memory is back, but you can still have mild ones once in a while. I will prescribe a painkiller, but only take it if and only when the pain is unbearable."

"Alright doc. Got it." After she writes down the prescription for me, Deep shoves the piece of paper in his pocket and guides me out, after reminding the doctor not to tell anyone that we were here. He settles the bill at the cashier center, and he guides me to his black Bugatti.

I don't know where he is taking me, but I have no worries at all. I trust him. We get in, and he starts the engine, while I rest my head at the back of the seat and close my eyes, my mind playing a replay of all the events of the last four months.

What a rollercoaster!