Someone once said that the day your feelings are reciprocated by someone, the sky would seem unusually beautiful. In reality, the sky had never changed; it was that you viewed it through eyes filled with love. Even if the sky was covered with dark clouds, or it was pouring rain, you would still think the weather was perfect for a walk in the rain.
Because of love, you created countless reasons to rationalize everything. If you weren't in love, you would feel that the sun was too bright, or the rain was too heavy, making it unsuitable to go outside.
We just needed a reason.
...
One night, around the third or fourth radiation therapy session, Quach Phuong leaned against the headboard of her bed. Beside her was Cao Vien Thanh, who was adjusting her IV drip. At that moment, Quach Phuong gently tilted her head, and softly said to him: "Vien Thanh, can we stop the cancer treatment? It hurts too much."
Looking at her sallow, sunken face, Cao Vien Thanh felt as if he had swallowed his own blood, a mix of bitterness and pain. He remained silent for a long time before finally replying: "Alright then, we won't do radiation therapy anymore. I'll take you to bask in the sun every day; it might even work better."
Quach Phuong smiled contentedly: "Thank you, Vien Thanh. You've been through so much for me."
Quach Phuong's voice was so faint that Cao Vien Thanh almost didn't hear her. He gently touched her forehead: "Little kid, why are you saying such formal things? As long as you live a little longer, I'll be thanking God."
Her eyes half-closed, she murmured: "Don't doctors only believe in science?"
"Doctors are humans too. When we're really scared, we pray just like anyone else." Cao Vien Thanh replied casually.
"Vien Thanh, from childhood to adulthood, I've never seen you scared of anything."
"That's because you haven't seen it yet. Everyone is afraid of something!"
Quach Phuong nodded drowsily, her eyes slowly closing before she fell asleep. Cao Vien Thanh slowly took a deep breath, before raising his hand to her nose to check. When he felt the faint breaths of life, only then did his body relax a little. He carefully tucked her under the blanket, his eyes filled with sadness: "What I'm most afraid of is not being able to see you in this world again."
***
On another day, Quach Phuong had asked Lam My to buy her some yarn. She wanted to knit a scarf for each person. Lam My scolded her for always looking for trouble, but the next day, Quach Phuong saw a basket full of yarn in all sorts of colors on top of the cabinet.
Lam My hadn't changed at all, still as tough on the outside, but soft on the inside.
She really wanted to see Lam My get married and have children. She wanted to be the godmother of Lam My's baby. But Quach Phuong didn't know how long she had left to live, whether it was a year, a month, or just a day.
Quach Phuong had thought that death wasn't something to be afraid of. But when faced with the scythe of death looming near, she was truly afraid. She was afraid that she would die in the night, without having the chance to say goodbye to Lam My and Cao Vien Thanh.
She was afraid that when Lam My came to visit in the morning, she would find her body cold and lifeless, and cry again. But Quach Phuong wouldn't be there to wipe away her tears.
No matter how one died, it was equally painful and frightening.
One day, while Lam My was peeling fruit for her, she suddenly asked: "Quach Phuong, do you have any unfulfilled wishes?"
YOU ARE READING
Waking Up From A Dream, The Person Beside My Pillow Was No Longer There|✔️
Romansa**NOT MINE ** !FOR OFFLINE READING PURPOSES! "You're such an old-fashioned person. You still wear the same shirt you bought in the first year of college even after graduation. You liked someone from when you were sixteen, and you still like them ten...
