FOUR

Adrianna’s POV

5 o’clock in the evening and I was already on my way to the hospital. I had done a whole day’s worth of work and I felt like I needed a shower, but I don’t really trust my body in that aspect. If I go home to take a shower, given the fatigue I was feeling, I will end up crashing and falling asleep. That’s the last thing I want to happen.

I walked by the street while my mind was running through a thousand things at once. Most of which were calculations. I needed to make about ten thousand dollars in order to pay for my mother’s surgery. I currently have two thousand five hundred, a far cry from my goal. In terms of spending, I only take enough to make me survive, and there are no other kinds of unnecessary spending. I cut all my expenses as much as possible and I was even still in debt. But I don’t really care about that.

Even if I am going to be in debt for the rest of my life, as long as my mother is going to live healthily, I don’t care.

It was quite hot today as we were in the middle of summer, but as dusk began to set in, the temperature also cooled down considerably. The road to the hospital wasn’t all that crowded, but I was in my own world. Lost in thoughts and I barely noticed those around me, as I barely even paid any attention to them.

Suddenly, I felt my heart palpitate and I gasped. I had no idea why I had that sudden feeling of panic and unease, but it disappeared immediately.

‘What was that?’ I said as I stopped and clutched my chest. I decided to take a look behind me but other than a lot of other people going about their own daily lives, I didn’t see or notice anything or anyone suspicious.

‘Why’d I suddenly feel like someone was watching me? And with bad intent...’ I thought to myself but didn’t let that delay me. I continued on the way to the hospital, but that sense of unease failed to disappear.

I entered the hospital and after meeting with the receptionist, I went straight to my mother’s ward. This was already a regular thing for me, seeing my mother lying almost lifelessly on the hospital bed, but the devastating feeling that come with it never gets old.

Anytime I saw my mother like this, I would always feel two things. One is sorrow, another is the drive to earn some more money so that I can pay for her medical bills.

I sat by her again and clutched her hands as usual while monologuing. “Here I am again, Mother. I didn’t even take a shower while coming here, and I know that you would definitely scold me for it if you were awake.”

“Sorry Mother. I just had to make sure I see you and keep you company today. My day has always been stressful as usual and I’m so tired that I feel like my hands will fall off. I think I need ten days of sleeping without any kind of interruption.” I cried to her as I gave a pitiful face. However, I didn’t receive any response. The room suddenly got silent, and I dropped my head before quivering.

“But I can’t rest. I cannot rest at all, not until you wake up. So, you’d better wake up when I get the money, Mom. I want to see your smile again Mum. That smile that always cheered me up when I was little. That smile showed how much you loved and cared for me. I’ll make sure to take care of you, mother. I won’t let you suffer here anymore. I’ll find a way to get you kicking again, and I will do it honestly, just like you would always want.” I blurted with resolve and tears all over my face. I didn’t know what to feel other than resolve. I just wanted her back. I wanted my mother. Nothing else mattered to me.

I didn’t realize it when I fell asleep. I must’ve cried myself to sleep, as there were still signs of tears in my eyes when I woke up. Due to the fatigue, I was feeling, I overslept beside my mother, and it was already 8 o’clock the following day.

“Shit!” I cursed under my breath as I sprang up from my chair. I rushed to the door but suddenly calmed myself down. I looked back at my mother and a wry smile appeared on my face. I walked back to her and placed a kiss on her face.

“Goodbye, for now, mom. I’ll be back by evening.” I claimed before rushing out of the hospital. First things first, I rushed home and while I was in a hurry, the taxi driver seemed to be a bit of a madman.

I got home fast, but almost at the cost of my life. “Are you out of your mind?!” I yelled at the driver after I alighted at my destination, but he only smirked flirtatiously at me.

“You were in a hurry, so I decided to get you to your destination as fast as possible. At least it shows my professionalism.” He returned and I could almost feel myself snapping. I really wanted to strangle him, but I didn’t have the luxury of time.

“Urghh.” I grunted before leaving him and going into my house. I quickly had my bath and dressed up as fast as possible. I worked on various shifts, so my first shift would be at a high school downtown. Luckily, the students there aren’t all too spoilt, so I wouldn’t have to deal with a lot of cleaning... or so I thought.

When I got to the school, I was shocked. Although there was already a janitor there, there was only little he could do. That was why I was employed to assist him in the first place. I was scolded for being late, but I wasn’t lectured too much, as my assistance was highly needed at this time, as those students just played a nasty prank in the school and designed the walls and floor with some sort of colourful and sticky substance. I spent more time than it took for my shift to do it, even with the assistance of the perpetrators.

After a quick break, I went on to another restaurant where I worked for my next shift. I kept working and my day went on normally. It was a regular busy day for me. However, my uneventful day soon turned into one that was full of surprises as my workmate called me.

“Adrianna... you’ve got a visitor.” A young man in his early twenties relayed.

“Uh? Who?” I asked as I was taken aback for a while as this was my first time having a visitor. I don’t have many friends and my best friend doesn’t come to visit me at work. As for family members, I didn’t have anyone else other than my mother. That was why I was doing my very best to keep her alive in the first place.

“How should I know? He’s a tall man about your age, I guess...” he described but my mind still couldn’t process the fact that I had a visitor at a time like this. Not just that, Gary wasn’t describing him well enough, so I didn’t waste any time and I just took off my apron and walked outside to see who the person she was talking about was.

I strode outside the restaurant and looked towards my left and the first thing I saw that caught my eye was a man in a black suit, putting on sunglasses and leaning against a black Audi A4 sedan. His brown hair and figure weren’t something I could forget. Another man was wearing a brown trench coat beside him, and he looked sort of dissatisfied. Even though they weren’t the only men in front of the restaurant, and there were a lot of passersby, they were the ones who seemed to have the most presence. It was almost impossible to not notice them.

‘Wait... him?’ I asked myself as my face contorted and shifted from one of curiosity to one of shock and confusion. He noticed me and he smirked. For a second, my heart skipped a beat. That smirk was completely different from the cold and exhausted look I knew him for.

“Hello, Adrianna!”

​​ ​