Author: @annamacarena
Prompt: Of Sanctuaries and Prisons
Prompter: @trulee90
Today was just another day at the office. Everybody was busy attending to their respective workload and so was Maine Mendoza, who was trying to get through another day by sipping from her hot cup of coffee as she went through some of the important documents at the office.
Despite trying to get herself together, everything still seemed to be a blur for her. Her mind wasn't here, but was at the Makati Medical Center, where her boyfriend has been admitted for over a month now. She just wanted to be by his side. Not anywhere else. Just by his side.
"Psssssst!"
Maine felt a crumpled piece of paper being thrown at her. The moment it landed on the floor, she took her eyes off her computer to see who the culprit was. It was Jane Chen, one of her closest officemates who had her table across hers.
"Ano ba 'yan. Ang aga aga pa, pero pinapainit mo na yung ulo ko." Maine joked as she picked up the piece of paper to throw it back at her friend.
"Well at least na-distract ka diyan sa ginagawa mo." Jane said. "Kanina ka pa nakatingin sa computer mo, pero obvious na obvious namang wala diyan ang atensyon mo." She added.
Maine let out a deep and heavy sigh. She looked at herself in the small mirror she had placed beside her computer, and realized how big her eyebags had gotten, how she really needed a haircut and how she just looked like a mess. So much had changed in just a span of a month, and it saddened her to see that the Maine she knew was starting to fade into the darkness of life.
"Meng, kamusta na ba si Tisoy?" Jane asked, concern evident in her voice.
Maine sighed again, before turning to look at her friend. She's heard that question so many times from different people, and she still had to give them the best answer she could think of.
"Ayun, nagpapagaling pa rin." Maine said with a faint smile on her face.
Jane felt sad for her friend. She could see Maine's everyday struggle to get through each day without breaking down because of her boyfriend's situation at the hospital. Everyone in the office tried their hardest to cheer her up, but the latter would simply respond with a faint, but genuine smile as a sign of gratitude for her officemates' efforts.
"Meng, alam kong mahirap ang pinagdadaanan mo ngayon." Jane said. "Basta, lagi mong tatandaan na nandito kaming lahat para sa'yo ha. At saka.. naniniwala akong gagaling pa si Alden." She added.
"Sana nga, Jane." Maine responded. "Sana nga."
&&&
After a long day at work, Maine would head to her condo, take a quick shower, change into her most comfortable clothes, then head to the hospital. This had been her daily routine ever since the day they found out that Alden had acute leukemia.
It was bright, summer day, Maine could recall. They were simply strolling at a nearby park, when Alden suddenly felt very ill. They decided to sit down on a bench, with Maine fanning her boyfriend, thinking that the weather must've been too much for him to handle, but when blood started running down Alden's nose and he looked pale enough to be knocked unconscious, Maine cried out for help. Alden was immediately rushed to the nearest hospital, and it was there that the doctor broke the news to her and Alden's father.
