Chapter 16 Science Is Not All There Is

“You won’t believe what just happened to me just hours ago.” I sat next to Mateo on his bed, just chilling with him while watching the blond bob-haircut woman on the news. We were waiting for any signs of side effects after the administration of the daily dosage. I was supposed to observe him for only ten minutes, repeat the process to other clinical patients, and submit the report to Marc. As soon as I finished my round, I went back to Mateo’s room because I wanted to say goodbye to him before I went to my afternoon class.

But when Mrs. Russo saw me, her smile immediately bloomed and she told us, “I’ll take a walk for a moment. You two enjoy yourselves.” She ended up ‘taking a walk’ for a couple of hours. And since Mateo could not be left alone without a guardian, I stayed for a few hours.

I did not complain. Plus it gave me a strong reason to skip my afternoon class. The classes that day were not obligatory anyway. I could always email the professors my reason; accompanying a sick child in a hospital because his mom was taking a break from the harshness of life. That sounds like a pretty solid reason, right?

“What? You found a boyfriend?” he said mockingly.

I rolled my eyes. He was twelve. What did he know about relationships?

“No. But close.”

“What do you mean, close? Did a meet a handsome guy and you fell in love at first sight?”

“No.” I turned my body slightly to look at him. The boy had his eyebrows raised.

I quickly told him about the psycho guy I met in the lab. Of course, I skipped the part where I wondered how great kissing the guy would be. That part was unnecessary. Especially, Mateo was 12. I had to keep it PG-13 –Mateo would turn thirteen by the next few months.

“So he was wheeled to the psychiatric ward,’ I finally finished my story. Mateo had his eyes wide all the time I told the story.

I thought he was amazed that I met a crazy guy that day, or by how I was able to diagnose schizophrenia based on a couple of words. Or how I took advantage of the poor man’s frail mind. But instead, he asked, “Did you kiss him?”

“What?” How did this kid find out that I was thinking about it?

Mateo looked at me like I had the slowest working brain in the universe. Ouch. That hurt my pride a little bit. “You said he’s really hot. Why didn’t you kiss him or do … something with him first before sending him to the psychiatric ward?”

I cocked one eyebrow up. “Something? What something?”

“You know…”

“No, I don’t,” I smirked at him. This boy was not abiding by the PG-13 rule himself. “Enlighten me, Mateo Russo.”

His face suddenly turned red and he broke our eye contact. He fidgeted in his seat, trying to find the proper response without giving himself too much.

Well, too late, Mateo. Naughty boy. I chuckled at seeing his expression. It was so much fun to tease this boy.

“And what do you mean by I should take action on him, first?” I asked, “The dude’s crazy. Who wants to do anything with a dangerous crazy guy?”

“Where else will you find a man who is hot and would say to you, ‘I’m here to visit you’, or ‘Become my bride, Arianna’.” He deepened his voice when he tried to imitate the crazy man. It made him look ridiculous and I just had to laugh.

Finally, the boy looked at me. “Because life is short, Arianna,” he said with seriousness, “Don’t you want to taste everything the world can offer you before you go?”

I stopped laughing then.

“I want to kiss a girl too. Or get married in the future. But I’m twelve. And I’m stuck in a hospital bedroom while my life might only be a few months left.” His dark orbs stared at me. They were glazed with moist and it made my chest felt like being crushed.

I put my forehead on his. My throat was a little bit clogged but I forced the words out of my mouth, “You will be able to do that.” It tasted bitter and it left a lingering pain in my throat.

“You said you would not sugarcoat anything.”

“I’m not.” I looked at him tenderly. “If you want to do all that then fight for your life, Mateo. Have faith in the procedure. Tomorrow is the reading for the first trial. If things go well, you are on the right track to be the first person ever to be cured of cancer.”

I could see he was holding back his tears. His lips trembled and he sniffed a couple of times with his nose. But eventually, he nodded at me. His eyes were firm and set. He had set his heart to fight for his own life. And I could not have been more proud.

“You’ll be fine.” I kissed him lightly on the forehead.

A few minutes later, his mother finally went back to the room. I said goodbye to both of them and strode off to my apartment. Because the last time I walked through the alley… something unreal –still trying to find a logical explanation for everything –happened, I decided to take the longer route.

Unfortunately, I stayed too long in Mateo’s room that I ended up going home at 9 pm. An hour later than the day before. Obviously, the daylight had gone with the wind, leaving me to walk in the dark night again. Hopefully, nothing supernatural would happen.

I mean, I was nobody. There were no reasons why… illogical beings should come chasing me. Unless they were all just my hallucinations. That reminded me that I forgot to make an appointment with a psychiatrist. I should have gone to the ward with that man.

Unconsciously, I touched the red scarf on my neck. As if responding to my touch, I sensed a little prick of pain from the wound. So I untied the scarf, hoping the pain would go away.

But it did not. It actually got worse the more I walk.

The street was wide, unlike the alleyway. A few cars were parked here and there, and there were buildings on each side of the street. Mostly, the buildings had been closed and they were dark. But there were street lights and a couple of houses in between the buildings.

So… it was supposed to be safer.

Unless a group of people wearing all black suddenly appeared on one end of the street. They walked in the opposite direction of me.

I was scared that they were a gang or a mafia or something. And I was about ready to dart to the few meters left until I reach my apartment when something illogical and paranormal happened. The people in black suddenly showed up in front of me. Like literally in front of me, only a few inches away. I gasped because it was too sudden.

Most wore a black leather jacket, with black boots. And their eyes were red. Dark red. With some heavy eye bags making them look like they haven’t slept in a million years. Also, their skin was so pale.

They were all so dazzlingly beautiful. Just like Renald Davis. Just like that crazy man.

Is this a hallucination again? If so, why do I keep on hallucinating handsome people? It’s disheartening you know… Why am I making beauty standards too high for my own self?

“Come with us quietly,” one man said. A gorgeous man with a chiseled and clean-shaven chin. He looked like a goddamn model.

Before I could answer –not like I had something to answer, because my mind was blank at that point, I heard a howl from behind me. The gorgeous emo models in front of me started hissing and showing their fangs to something behind me.

Yes, fangs.

I heard another howl from behind me. Then I heard the growls. There were many and each was distinct. I did not dare to count how many distinct growls I could hear.

I did not even dare to turn my body around. Or to move at all. My feet were glued to the concrete below.

As the pain in my neck grew, I finally acknowledged, Science is not all there is.

What the fuck is going on???