Chapter 2: Passed Away

 Friday, January 12th 1996 – An exact one month before Cecilia’s death.

 A middle-aged vigorous looking man hurriedly, looked more like in panic, grabbed his black briefcase from on the table in his room where he always put it every single day at the bakery shop he owned. Victor Hillston. It was only 10 in the morning. His bakery shop had not even swarmed by hungry New Yorkers nearby – or not nearby – at lunch time as how it always is since its grand opening last year three weeks before Christmas. He put on his brown coat with no care letting some of its tip folded and showed some wrinkle on its back. He quickly left the shop without even minding to tell his two workers there who were left in confuse not knowing what was happening. With his broad shoulder he pushed the door open and left it opened while he ran to the west where he came from every morning, to his house, and took a few seconds while on his run taking out his phone which was pretty rare for someone to have a phone at that time. It definitely showed how his bakery shop brought him a lot bucks, more than enough to just get him away from poverty. He didn’t even seem to pay any attention to anyone – including both workers that were peeking from the door looking at him running – on his run. He just harshly shouldered anyone who got in his way even some yelled at him, since people didn’t really care, nor know, what was happening to him so it was pretty much annoying the society. But some, was left speechless as how the workers in his bakery shops are, since they knew Victor was always calm and can be considered timid. They had never seen him like this before so trying to understand was the least they can do.

 Victor kept on trying to put himself on line with someone on his phone but the effort chose to betray him. It was a waste. The person he was trying to call, his father, Tommy Hillston, seemed to not wanting to pick any call currently. Or perhaps can’t pick up any calls. His father was the one who got through his mind when he looked at the message from eight minutes ago that makes him running this way with no explanation left for anyone. It was already just two hundred meters away from his small house yet his father just wouldn’t pick up the phone. “FUCK TOMMY! PICK UP!” Victor yelled while still running. If he wasn’t attacked by a panic he would have passed away for running this fast without taking a break while yelling all along his run.

 Tommy Hillston lived in a separate house, still in the same city as Victor, as well in New York obviously, but pretty distanced in this kind of situation. Victor felt that his ford that he granted from his father, which was previously his father’s car, went so slow compared to usual. He could not help himself from beeping the horn to every car, motorcycle, or even a bicycle in front of him since he drove his car immediately when he got to his house. Tommy ended up didn’t answer the call after more than thirty missed calls were made by Victor. Victor now called the person who messaged him this morning, his neighbor, Billy Hunter. If this was found out to be some kind of joke or prank that Billy and his father made to prank him on this morning, Victor has sworn to God he would kill both of them right away all along through his way up until now. “WHERE’S TOMMY!?” Victor screamed right after the tone ended, meaning that Billy picked up his call. Gladly he was still in car, approximately 10 minutes away from where his father resides at, so that no one could hear him screaming loudly. “Calm down, won’t you? I can’t seem to contact him eith-“ right before Billy managed to finish his sentence Victor has screamed again, another question was thrown by him, made Billy put his phone a little bit further from his ear. “THEN HOW IN THE WORLD COULD YOU KNOW THAT MY MOTHER HAS DIED!?” “The maid in your house went out crying and told me who was there by the time.” the call was ended by Victor right after he heard the explanation. He no longer had the intentions to ask Billy further but to drove faster than before so he would arrive there faster. Even a minute could change things, he hoped.

 A brown colored house was circled by people, who were Victor’s parents’ neighbors, when Victor arrived there and straightly forced his way through the crowd. It was not a surprise that the neighbors were coming to the house knowing that Tommy and his wife were considered old citizens moreover they have lived in the area for pretty much a long time. Recognizing it was Victor who forced his way through them, the crowd kindly gave him the way, while some of course just stayed still since they perhaps just came there to simply want to know what was happening. “CALL AN AMBULANCE!” Victor yelled to Billy who was there inside with the maid, reaching Billy’s collar furiously. It looked impolite and arrogant but Billy knew him since he was a newborn and so he knew that Victor are not usually always act like this. Again, letting him be rather than making the fire went bigger was the least Billy can do there. “I did. They’ll come in a few minutes.”

 Victor flung one’s collar and straightly walked, quickly, to his mother’s room. But still he yelled, “WHERE’S TOMMY?” he kept on looking for his father. Didn’t mean to be rude nor careless about his beloved mother’s death, but right now the one who would collapse due to this news was Tommy. He has the history of asthma and heart attack. Victor of course didn’t want to let himself lost the only two relatives he had at the same day. Wonder how hurt would it be. “He hasn’t came home, Victor. Collect yourself up, drink some water.” A voice was heard from his behind made Victor turned around and found Billy standing there with a glass of water being handed out to him. Didn’t want to be any more violent to his neighbor that has always been kind to him, Victor just turned his direction of looking back to before, at his mother, without taking the water. He fell down on his knees beside his mother’s body, a single tear dropped from his eyes. The house was filled with sorrow. No one dared to make any noise that perhaps could again bring up his rage, until Billy’s voice once again was heard now from his left, to be exact by the window, “There is Tommy, I suppose.”

 The sentence woke him up from his sorrow, made him instantly got up from his knees and ran outside. Swept his tears and tried to put a smile on. He walked to the direction of his father who had already put some suspect on what was happening. His house has never been so crowded since years ago. “Dad. Where are you from?” Tommy changed his sight, now directing to Victor in confusion, “Victor? Why are you here? I was buying some groceries.” Tommy said, showing his groceries he brought with his wrinkled hand to Victor and again took a look at his house. Victor approached him and took the groceries. He didn’t want to let his father know the bad news that must be so hard for him but his father seemed to be very curious he know walked faster than before he realized the crowd was at his house, and so Victor stated, “Mom died. Billy called me so I got here.”

 Victor’s saying got Tommy shock. Real shock he didn’t reply even a hum and straight away tried his best to reach the house as fast as he could, with Victor following him from behind already with his tears dropping again. The neighbors made a way for Tommy to pass and some even kind enough to simply gave Tommy some spirit through their words. Tommy walked to the room where his wife laid, in peace, and knelt there. Looking at his wife’s beauty perhaps for the last time. Suppose it was extremely hard for him that he didn’t even let a single tear dropped. He grabbed the dead lady’s hand and whispered with smile, “Wake up Rose. You are just sleeping right?” And there with him whispering his wife’s name, an ambulance’s siren was heard in front of the house. The officers quickly went in with a gurney after being showed the way in by Billy who was kind enough not to let Victor who was mourning do that. The officers check Rose’s condition. No breath nor pulse can they found and so they announced, mainly to Victor and Tommy as Rose’s relatives that Rose, has passed away. With the sentence not yet being completely said. Tommy started to gasp for air and few seconds later, he collapsed. “TOMMY! HIS HEART ATTACK!” Victor desperately screamed seeing his father collapsed while grabbing his father’s back. “Lay him on a flat surface, sir.” One of the officers say and the next sentences can no longer be heard by Victor since he felt dizzy and else. The officers quickly took an Automated External Defibrillator and did the things needed while carrying Tommy up to the gurney that was supposed to be used by Rose’s body, but now Tommy’s condition seemed to be more in danger, the officers decided to take care of Tommy first by bringing him to the emergency room, followed by Victor there accompanying his father in the ambulance, after they called another ambulance to come to bring Rose who was now accompanied by Billy and the maid as how it was before Victor came to the place.