Pups

Chapter 5

RAQUEL’S POY

SEVEN YEARS LATER

I walked hurriedly out of the organization, hailed a cab and headed for the hospital. I had just been informed that my mom was rushed there

On getting to the hospital, I met Andrew, our family doctor. There was a day my mom had a heart attack, the day we found out that she had developed a heart condition. When we brought her in, I was acting all crazy and stuff, he calmed me down and assured me that she would be fine. Since that day we became very close friends and He had been the one taking care of her from then onwards. Studying the expression on his face. mine turned pale. He seemed bereaved, the pace of my heart sped up really high, pounding heavily in my chest

“Where is she?” I asked

“Raquel..”

“Where is she?” I asked again, this time my pitch sounded higher

“She’s fine, she’s okay, there’s no cause for alarm he answered and a sigh of relief escaped my lungs.

“For now” he continued. What Was he messing with me or what?

“What do you mean for now? is she not going to be okay!” my voice was tense, Andrew didn’t respond and was

refusing to make eye contact

“She’ll be okay right”

“Raquel, we did everything we could, I personally did all I could, till there was nothing more to do, but we were only able to revive her semporarily. I’m afraid she only has a few minutes left. I’m sorry” He informed. I stared wide eyed for a few seconds, then tears began to roll down my checks. My mom, she’s going to die.

She’s going to join my father and leave me all alone in this world with two kids. How on earth was i supposed to

cope?

“I want to see her I requested

“Sure, go ahead” he gestured at the ward and I ran in

mare tears poured out of my eyes

My mom was lying helpless on the bed, at the sight of her ligure, more tears

She smiled at me, silently saying that everything was going to be okay, but I had to disagree with her on this one. She was the only who kept me going, throughout the past seven years since I lost my dad and gave birth to my kids. She was my anchor, my strength, my everything, she shielded and prosected me from harm all these years it pained me a lot that she was dying and i could not do a thing about it

“Mom! I called softly in a whisper, kneeling beside her, then lifting her hand and wrapping it in mine

“Oh dear! Please stop crying, everything will be fine” she assured with a smile. I shook my head negatively and cried more

“It’s going to be okay” she repeated, wiping off the tears from my eyes and patting me at the back

“Here, take this..keep it safe and with you at all times” She said, taking off the pendant she was putting on, and handed it over to me

I took it, opened it, and my heart almost melted at the sight of our picture, Me, mom and dad. I immediately grabbed her hand and placed a kiss on her fingers.

“Mom!” I called out again in a whisper while crying profusely

Right before my eyes. She passed on

I cried like never before. I was alone now. I wasn’t strong enough to stand on my own, or so I thought

I knelt there, shedding tears till there was no more to shed. Andrew pulled me up, and into a tight comforting embrace

“It’s okay” he whispered, a lone tear falling out of his eyes

It was now two weeks after mum’s funeral, though the pain was still as fresh as it was on her death day, the weeks felt like forever. It was difficult for me and everyone around me. I had refused to cat or talk to anyone, Not even my boys

2/2

Chapter 5

Andrew had been the one helping me around the house, preparing the boys for school and so on

“When are you going to stop all these?” I asked while he was picking up the pillow that I threw, from the ground and he paused

“Whenever you feel okay to come back to the land of the living” he answered, resuming his actions.

“You don’t have to do this, you know?” I said after a long silence

“I know, but I want to came his swift response

“You have work”

“I am fully aware of that”

“Then why are you here?”

Because I want to be answered and a long silence ensued.

“All done, Til he headed for work now, breakfast is on the table, please take a bite or two from it” he said and I nodded

“Tim serious, you need food to stay alive, plus, I spent a lot of time making that he continued and I chuckled

“I miss her alot, I missed how she smiled at me whenever I got back from the office, how she makes jokes that were only funny to just her and the kids” he was halfway to the day when I spoke again and he turned back to me and sighed sadly

“We all do Raquel, we all do He pulled me into an embrace before finally leaving

Ilayed on the bed for nearly over two hours, before my cell phone pinged

It was an email from my work place, sympathizing with me on my loss and also reminding me never to step foot in the organization ever again

“Fucking assholes” 1 muttered. On the day my mom died, I left the office before closing hours without informing anyone. No one heard from me for two days and they believed I was being unprofessional

ing me sulk all day and

With a deep and heavy sigh, I left my bedroom for the kitchen. Andrew was right when he said Mom

id Mom wouldn’t be Happy seeing me neglecting my kids, plus, I felt bad that Andrew had to carry all my responsibilities as a mother.

She was gone now, and there was nothing I could do about it, other than cherish all the memories we once had and shared together

It was time to live again, time to be there for my kids, to be strong for them, if anything ever happened to me, they would have to suffer, and that was the last thing I wanted

On getting to the kitchen. I saw a covered plate on the table and a small smile appeared on my face.

“He’s so sweet” My subconscious mind said

1 reached out for the plate, but knocked off the vase

“Shirt I cursed. Be bending over to pick the broken vase, I slipped and fell right on the glasses

“Owl” I winced in pain, and jumped to my feet with blood stains on my shirt and on the floor.

“Oh no! Come on! This is going to be a bad day” I said to myself, staring at the locker lying on the floor

It was no longer around my neck, as a piece of glass had cut the string holding it

I picked it up, but dropped in immediately when another piece of glass pierced my finger, I held my hand trying to stop it from bringing out more blood, while staring at the flash drive that had fallen out of the locket as soon as it hits the ground hard, and fell open

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