"Chief Virana, are you alright? You said you would be out in the main hall 10 minutes ago."
General Atitāya was at the door of Virana's bedroom.
Virana gasped quietly and quickly dropped the knife on the tile floor.
Shortly after, a loud metal clinking noise accompanied the silence of Virana's room, along with her hushed whimpers.
Virana groaned in anger once she saw what she had done to her arm. Blood dripped onto the white polished tile floor.
"Atitāya, actually, can you come in real quick?"
"Of course, Chief."
As soon as Atitāya walked in, she gasped.
"Don't freak out. I just dropped the knife." Virana lied.
She was cutting herself. Even after so many years of not having Cara around, Virana still hated herself for it.
"Ok, I will go get help." Atitāya sighed sadly.
Virana smiled before she started to feel light headed. She fell onto her side and passed out.
***********************************
"Cara! Cara!" Virana screamed as the doctors immediately took her away.
"Ma'am calm down." A nurse tried to calm Virana down.
"Calm down?? That's my wife!" Virana tried her hardest not to cry.
"I assure you, she will be alright."
Virana felt her soul leave her body ever so slowly as she watched Cara get carried away. "Cara!!"
************************************
Virana woke up gasping for air. She felt as if her throat was holding on to its last breath of oxygen by a thread, and it lost its reach for more. Her body sprang up from the hospital bed. Sweat was dripping from her face onto the blanket that covered her lower body. The sweat was slowly trickling down the sides of her face from her hairline and onto her half bare chest. Virana started panting like a dehydrated dog. She felt my muscles ache from being so tightly clenched together. Her once thick and fluffy hair was now sticky and greasy from the sweat her body created.
After a few more dramatic seconds of getting her thoughts together, she slowly observed my surroundings like any brave yet cautious hearted person would do.
Namaari was next to her, sitting in the chair. Tear stains covered her skin. "Mom??"
"Namaari." Virana coughed.
Namaari started sobbing like a baby once her mother grabbed her hand. "M-Mom- you h-have to tell m-me what's g-going on."
Virana started crying as well. She pulled her daughter closer to her and gave her a delightful warm embrace.
Namaari continued to cry as her mother held her. She had been so stressed about Virana for so long, it was destroying her mental health.
"I'm alright, my love." Virana sniffled.
"No you aren't." Namaari protested. "Mommy, please."
Virana felt her heart stop for a moment. That was the first time Namaari had called her 'mommy'. She felt so warm inside and loved. Virana sobbed on her daughter's shoulder until they heard people coming their way.
"Namaari, there you are!" Raya walked in with doctors.
Namaari got up and kissed Raya and greeted her.
"Mom, how are you?" Raya whispered. Her eyes were a bit watery. She always saw Virana as a mother once her and Namaari started dating.
"I'm fine, dear. Don't worry." Virana smiled.
"Yeah, you will be fine. It was just syncope." The lead doctor spoke.
"We already ran some tests so you are free to leave whenever you want." He smiled and left the room.
Virana looked back at her daughter.
"We aren't leaving until you tell me what's wrong."
Virana sighed and then smiled.
*************************************
"Oh you betcha. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever met. She loved to dance too. For some reason she had a strange obsession with dancing with me. Not that I minded." Virana laughed.
Raya and Namaari kept their hands locked together. Hearing the love story of Cara and Virana could make anyone smile.
Virana smiled and thought of how life would be so much different if Cara was here.
It's been forever since she laughed like that. Telling the story of Cara was something she had never done before, and honestly, it wasn't that bad.
Instead of grieving, Virana was accepting the fact that Cara was gone, but she wasn't forgotten.
"So basically, you fell in love with your friend?" Namaari laughed.
"Pretty much."
"She sounded like a wonderful woman." Raya complimented.
"Oh, she was." Virana chuckled. "The most wonderful woman ever."
"She came into your life for a reason, though. She had to teach you something. She didn't just come and go. She came for a reason." Raya made the mood more serious. "Do you- do you know that reason?"
Virana paused. "Well," she inhaled deeply, "Cara came into my life to show me how to love. She showed me that no matter what happens, someone will always be there for you. And in that case, she was the one who was always there for me."
Raya and Namaari were in awe. The way Virana spoke of Cara was just incredible. If superwoman was real, Cara fitted that title perfectly.
"I just wasn't ready for her to leave, and I never will be. But one day, I'll be with her again." Virana wiped a single tear.
Namaari smiled and hugged her mother. Raya joined in the hug and they all giggled.
"Thank you for not giving up, mom." Namaari said in a soft voice.
Virana smiled and sighed. "You're welcome."
