To Love Again

Darkness Fell

I am sorry. Truly very sorry. Please don't hate me after reading this chapter. I have given fair warning in my responses to your comments so I hope that y'all still stay with me through this journey. I leave you with this quote before you start reading.

"In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present first."

Strong and suggestive language used. Hang on to the above quote. Thank you.

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Maine finally had a moment to sit down at 3:00 in the afternoon after a hectic morning. She was taking a sip of the luke warm green tea she prepared earlier but is only able to sit and drink it now. She leaned her tired head against the kitchen counter as she sat her ass down on one of the bar stools in Richard's kitchen. Bella had been most especially clingy today and didn't want to be put down. In fact, in the last two weeks, she's been very irritable. This is most likely due to the continous increase in her liver enzymes which indicates the enlargement of her liver. No wonder she's irritable. But as much as Maine wanted to please the little girl, she herself, has been feeling really tired and irritable lately. It could be from the lack of sleep she's been having. Too many thoughts running through her head.

The whole family seemed to have pretty much come to terms with the fact that Bella's life is nearing it's end. Teodoro and Maryann got themselves ready by reading the different published articles about Gaucher Disease Type 2. Maryann is still very emotional when they have a family meeting with Dr. Pineda but Maine knows that her parents will be able to handle whatever happens. However, it saddens Maine that her parents have to go through tragedy after tragedy in such a short span of time. 

Richard Sr. haven't left the country ever since he came back. He made sure that he was always there whenever Bella would have her check ups. Maine can tell that the older Richard is barely keeping it together when it comes to his only granchild but he still participated whenever he was needed. He made sure that every Sunday afternoon, he was with his grandchild even if it was just for 2-3 hours. 

Christine is the most openly emotional out of all of them. Everytime she comes near Bella, her tears are free flowing. She would take every oppurtunity to hold, cuddle or simply touch her niece whenever, wherever possible. She also made sure that she spends her days off with Bella, sometimes even cancelling her meetings altogether. 

As for Richard, surprisingly, he had been very stoic. Which in a way is a blessing on one hand, because Maine knows for sure that if she'll see him breaking down then she will follow suit. But then on the other hand, it worries her because she's not sure what will happen to him once Bella finally passes. In a way, she would like for him to cry at least once or twice just to release the tension inside of him. Maine, personally, cries till her eyes dry out whenever she's alone in her apartment.

Both Richard and Maine's intention when they agreed to take their relationship one day at a time was to spend more time with each other but unfortunately, due to Bella's deteriorating condition, even that wasn't possible. Richard was also busy at work trying to close a major business deal that would entail his company to take over most of Southern Asia in the communications department. So, needless to say, there was no time left for personal stuff.

In a way, Maine was relieved. Truthfully, as much as she wanted to spend more time with Richard and get to know him better, she didn't want to give herself the chance to fall deeper into love. She's only being realistic in accepting the fact that she and Richard will never have a future together and that they are running on borrowed time. If she lets herself dwell on that, she would surely lose her sanity. Instead she decided to focus on her niece. If God will allow time for her and Richard, then she will take it but she remains sceptical, perhaps to guard her heart as well.