Metanoia: A Change of Heart

Chapter XXXXVI ~ Joshua

After the phone call, I drove to the hospital, almost hitting the speed limit. Thonia was just staring on the road with composed self but I knew she was concerned or nervous. Once I parked the car, she immediately ran into the building that I could not even keep up. I wanted to ask why or who was there but I guessed it might be her mother or brother, I prayed for their safety. She paused infront of the elevator, tapping the up button several times. "Thones," I held her shoulder to calm her down. She sighed and shook her head. I hugged her as we waited for the elevator. Thonia and I found the room she logged in to the hospital clerk. I opened the door. We found nothing inside except Jack who was leaning on the window sill, thinking. When Jack saw us, he walked to hug Thonia. "What happened?" she asked more calm than I expected.

Jack nodded towards me and beckoned us to sit on the edge of the bed as he narrated. "We were just at home watching television when he suddenly screamed. I did not know what happened because he seemed well, he was just crouching and squeezing his leg." Jack wiped his face and closed his eyes. He might have remembered how Jude felt.

"Where is he now? Mom?"

"He needs to have immediate surgery." Jack shook his head and glanced at Thonia then at me. "He'll need bags of blood."

"What's his blood type?" I asked. Never experienced donating blood although I've been part of blood donation projects of PharmaSilva, but for my girlfriend's brother, a bag of blood would be nothing. I still got liters inside of me.

"O," he said.

Thonia stood up. "We're all O's! I can donate how many does he need?"

"Two bags. Mom is one and..." he paused.

"You can't?"

He shook his head again. "I... I just got tattooed last week."

"What?!" She sneered at Jack who was sitting beside me. "Why didn't you tell me? Where? What?"

Jack rolled his left pants and showed he was inked. A colon mark and closing parenthesis; a winking smiley. "I asked the nurses if I can still donate since it's not that big and days already passed, but..."

"I can donate." Thonia offered.

"Are you sure?"

I stood beside Thonia. "Can't we request from Red Cross?"

"Already did but it would come tomorrow or the other day. Jude needed the surgery tonight."

"Thones, I am type O too, I'll be the one to donate for your brother."

"But Josh, I can do it. He's my brother." She walked towards the door. "Come on, let's go to Mom."

Jack led us to the lobby of the hospital. Thonia's mother was pale and speaking with a doctor. When she saw us coming, color came back her face. "Thank God you're already here."

"Mom, I can donate a bag of blood for brother."

Tory looked at the doctor. "Doc, can she donate?"

The doctor studied Thonia. "Mrs. Buenviaje, your late husband has history of cardiovascular disease, it's hard to get blood from them, but if your daughter doesn't have an own history, she can, we just have to do some check-ups and tests to be sure."

I followed Thonia, the doctor and few other nurses in another room, but I was left outside with her mother as they ran tests with her.

"Josh," Tory led me to a row of chairs in the corridor just beside the door where Thonia was. "Thonia's gonna be fine with us, you can go home now."

I did not know what to reply because I did not want to leave her just yet. I donated bags of blood before, I knew the after effect or consequence of it, and I wanted to be with Thonia when she weakened.