LOST IN JAPAN, Lindtsey Stacey Aubrey Sevilleja

12. Allergic

     In a dimly lit room that same day, Stacey sat with her friends, casually snacking on the chips Mikha had bought a few minutes ago. Nakataas ang paa nito habang ang mga mata niya ay nananatili sa cellphone niya.

It was a normal, boring training day for her.

Until her phone rang.

Razon is calling you...

"Sino 'yan? Razon?" Nagtatakang tanong ni Sheena na nasa likuran niya dahil nakikinood ito sa kaniyang cellphone.

"Wala. Umalis ka nga don," Stacey said, pushing Sheena away as she swiftly answered the call. She continued in a low voice, "Hi! Miss mo na 'ko agad, Razon?"

There wasn't an immediate response. However, Stacey heard someone snicker from the other line, and it was definitely not Ace's. Her brows knitted together as she took a quick peek at the screen, trying to confirm if it was really Ace who had called her.

Baka namalikmata siya.

"Ace?"

"Hey, uhm... Aubrey, right?" Someone finally answered. Stacey became even more confused. It was a man's voice. "I hope I got that correctly—uhm, you are one of the few people in Solstice's emergency contacts here on her phone. One of the three, so I called you kasi the other two people on her emergency contacts are her family, and she told me they are out of the country. I figured you two are close enough for you to even pass her contact list, so..."

"Wait lang, sino ba 'to?"

"It's Dr. Gavin Ramirez," the guy answered. "I'm a friend of Sol's and a doctor here at St. Claire's in Makati. I'm just calling to inform you that Sol's been confined about half an hour ago... she was seen passed out in her car earlier."

Ang mukha ni Stacey ay parang naubusan ng dugo sa sinabi ng lalaki sa kabilang linya. Her eyes widened, and she shot Jhoanna a panicked look, causing the other girl to panic inside as well.

"Anong nangyari?"

"Mahabang kuwento. Pero that's why I called. I can discuss it with you if you're available now to visit her kasi wala siyang kasama rito, and I still have more patients to take care of. She still hasn't woken up yet kaya hindi ko siya maiwan," he added.

Stacey didn't notice that she had begun tapping her foot anxiously on the floor, the echoing sound filling the room. It sent a feeling of looming worry and confusion to the other girls, causing them to exchange weird looks.

They exchanged even more strange glances when Jhoanna ushered Stacey out of the room, whispering something incoherent, but they knew it was something important based on the urgency in Jhoanna's tone.

"Anong nangyari?" Tanong ni Jhoanna sa kaibigan niya.

The two girls clasped each other's hands. Jhoanna was trying to calm Stacey down, especially as Stacey’s hands were shaking uncontrollably.

"Nasa hospital daw si Ace," Stacey said in horror. "Jho, kailangan ko siyang puntahan. Wala raw siyang kasama."

The look on her face and the emotion that laced Stacey's voice left Jhoanna bewildered. She had never seen her so panicked and worried before. It was a new sight. Para na ngang iiyak ito.

"Samahan kita," Jhoanna said. When she noticed Stacey was about to interrupt and oppose, she raised her index finger. "Delikado sa labas. Baka may makakita sa'yo. Ako na ang bahala."

Stacey wasn't given a chance to argue as Jhoanna dragged her towards the elevator. Timing was on their side, and they got on when someone else exited. They remained silent the entire ride to the basement parking lot, but Jhoanna made sure her best friend was okay by holding her close, like she was the most valuable treasure in the world.