7. Familiarity

Esquibel's private plane arrives in the US in no time. They were met by an ambulance owned by the hospital Dr. Travis is working. And Dr. Travis goes out of his way and meets them himself. It’s been a while since anyone has seen him. He looks a bit different than when they last saw each other. His hair is shorter. More mature. He wears eyeglasses, but it’s hard for anyone to tell if he really is older or younger looking at his age, as he is an Esquibel.

" It's been a while, Don Augustus. "

He greeted him politely.

" Ah, yeah. You're always so busy saving lives that you don't have time to meet your grandpa, Dr. Travis. "

Dr. Travis flashed a thrift smile and gave his grandfather a warm hug.

" I miss you, Gramps. I'm sorry I can't visit you at all. "

" I understand, son. I understand. "

They break the hug and Cris Adams walks towards them.

" Excuse me, gentlemen. Dr. Travis, good to see you again. The patients are already in the ambulance, we're ready to go. "

" Looking good, Adams. Seems your Sir Nick didn't give you much trouble nowadays, huh? "

" If you only knew, doctor. After your operation, please do some thorough check up on me. I'm begging you. "

Dr. Travis chuckles while he shakes his head.

" So many things to catch up with, let's do that later when everything works out fine. "

Then they head towards the vehicles.

" We'll follow you to the hospital, Dr. Travis. "

" Take care of my grandpa for us. Keep everyone safe. "

Dr. Travis got in the ambulance and there he found Nicolo with his patient undergoing blood transfusion. The baby who's still sleeping was carried by a nurse. She seems at peace. Maybe because she can feel her mother's presence even though she's going through a lot right now.

" You can stop that already, Nick. I've brought some with me. "

" What about the surgery? Will there be enough blood you can use? "

" Don't worry about it. We're stocked. I donated my blood regularly, you know. We've saved that much. "

" Good to know. "

Dr. Travis removes the needle on Nicolo and connects it to the blood bag. Nicolo shifted comfortably on his seat and rested his head while his eyes were closed.

" You looked drained. "

Nicolo gives him a smirk. He doesn't just look like he's drained, he really feels that he's drained. They started the transfusion even before they left the hospital in the Philippines. So he's probably at his limit of what he can give.

" Well, I kind of understand why you're doing these things to this extent. There's something about her that, how will I put it? That seems familiar. It's not her face but the feeling that you feel when you look at her. "

" Yeah. "

Nicolo replied curtly. He, himself, doesn't know why he's doing these things. He doesn't have time to play heroes so why can't he leave this woman alone? For all he cares, he can just throw it all to Adams to take care of everything.

But yeah, there's really this familiar feeling that keeps him on his edge. He can't even point his finger or even think of what it would really be or what name you call it. And the more puzzling is…

He's not the only one who's feeling this way.

Dr. Travis Esquibel Williams, his cousin and Don Augustus Esquibel, their grandfather, were also drawn into her.

They arrived at the hospital. The hospital's entrance hall is decorated with various paintings and pictures from famous artists from all around the world. But they don't have time to appreciate anything this time.

From the first floor they get access to a waiting room and all of them sit down together and wait.

" I've asked the staff not to disclose any information about you. So far, everyone's saying they haven't seen you. I hope you don't mind. If there's anything you need you can just let me know. We're going to move her now. "

Dr. Travis said when he came back after he immediately changed into his scrub suit as soon as they arrived. They quickly moved Mirage to the OR. Then, Dr. Travis meets Nicolo and Don Augustus outside the operating room.

" I'll take it from here. Don't worry, I'll do everything I can to save her no matter what. "

Travis pat Nicolo's shoulder and Nicolo just nods.

" Please, my grandson. Save her. "

Nicolo and Travis looked at each other astonished. They were a bit taken aback by their grandfather's remark. It was unexpected of him. And he sounded so desperate.

Nicolo knows their grandfather well enough to know how he acts, but hearing him say those words is quite the surprise. He couldn't help but feel touched and weird to hear it.

It makes him wonder. Why does he sound that desperate? Is he worried about something else? Or did he finally find someone new and important in his life? Something that made him forget about his pride? What's with that girl? Who is she? Why is he acting like this?

" Don't worry. Everything will work out perfectly. I promise. "

With a nod he walks towards the hallway leading to the OR.

" Dr. Travis... "

The voice came from behind and Travis stopped mid-step.

The Don gives them a sad smile when he notices the exchange of glances as Dr. Travis looked back puzzled. The old man gaze falls onto his hands and he begins to play with his thumbs, almost nervous.

" She looks just like my wife Wilhelmina, when I first met her, your loving Grandma. "

The Don said sadly after remembering the past.

" She also looks like my son, your Uncle Alfonse, in a way. " the old man continued then paused for a while.

" I think...

She's my long lost granddaughter, Mirage Arielle Esquibel. "

And then it clicked.

Nicolo and Dr. Travis exchanged another glance, both feeling confused at the same time.

Nicolo's demeanor suddenly changed after he heard that. He becomes as rigid, stiff as possible. And his eyes start to become glassy. It took several minutes to process what he just learned. And the longer he stays quiet, the heavier the weight on his heart gets.