Ready For Love

Chapter 22

Nieeh | Safe Haven

"Mommy!"

"Mommy! Wake up! Wake up! What's wrong?" the little one pushes with all force, nudging the unconscious body lying on the floor.

The sound of air-raid grew louder and louder as it approach the scene.

"Mommy!"

"What's happening? Wake up please!" the little one was almost out of strength, worn out.

"What's that sound mommy? Make it stop!" the little one lets go and covered its ears.

"Mommy make it stop! It's too loud" the little one's voice breaks.

Eyes clouded with tears forming that are now insisting to fall down. Beams of red and blue lights blinded the little one as the sound was loudly audible enough to hear. Completely deafening.

"Move!"

"There! Over there!"

"Hey, hey, mommy's fine, mommy's fine, sshh" one man approached the little one crying next to the lifeless body and carried the child, comforting while his arms wrapped around.

"Stretcher!" pack of men in white uniform hurriedly approached the unconscious body.

"You! Over here!"

"Mommy!" but it only made the child's weeping grew louder. Eyelids swollen and thick, blood shot eyes from crying endlessly. Cheeks flared red and wet stained by tears.

"Check for pulse!"

"Sshh, it's okay, it's okay, mommy's gonna be okay, hmm?" even so, the man never gave up and continued to ease the child's sobs.

"Anything?"

After 3 seconds of silence—

"We have a pulse!"

"Okay! Move!" together they carried the helpless body.

"It's okay, it's okay. Look! Look at mommy, she's fine, stop crying"

After few attempts, the child's cries started to subside.

"Good girl, what's your name baby?" the man flashed a comforting smile on the child's weary face.

"Cl- claire" the child responds in between her sobbing.

"Oh okay, and how old is Claire?" the man tucked away the hairs on the child's face that insists on falling down.

"Eh— ugh— 8" the child was breathless and continues to wipe its own tears with the back of her hand.

"Okay Claire, mommy's not okay for now, so we will help her so she will be okay, m'kay?" the man diverts the child's attention.

But failed as the child starts to sob again when the ambulance siren became audible again but is beginning to fade as it leaves.

"Hey buddy, it's okay, mommy's fine. Everything's gonna be fine."

Fuck! This isn't happening!

My hand reached for my chest as I struggle from filling my lungs with air. I felt like I was held inside a jar, like a rat that is used for laboratory trials, ready to be tested for cosmetics but the stupid scientist forgot to puncture a hole of its lid. No access to air, I was suffocating. My chest tightens every second, as if someone pushes it with all force to squeeze it. I perform pumps on my chest hopefully thinking it would help.