Just Live

Chapter 29

Note: You made it here! 😁 One last chapter after this and an epilogue to follow. Thank you for not letting this story go kahit, tulad nga ng sabi ng iba sa inyo, ang sakit sakit na. Haha! 😅 Kapit lang, malapit na tayo sa dulo. Maraming salamat ulit!

You've made it this far, konting konti na lang. Maraming salamat!

Kapit lang. Laban lang. Hinga muna kayo bago magbasa. 😅

- 150rewind ❤️

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Rio opened the door to her son's room and just stood at the door, her hand tightly holding on to the door knob. She took a deep breath before making her way to the chair beside his bed and sat down while carefully placing her hand on his arm.

"Anak, Maine opened her eyes today," she said quietly. "She looked at us and I know she was hoping to see you too."

RJ's father followed closely behind his wife and put a hand on her shoulder before sitting down by their son's thigh.

"Ikaw lang ang wala dun, anak, kaya bumawi ka na para mapuntahan mo si Maine."

His mother took a deep breath again and gently ran her fingers across his forehead.

"RJ, anak, the doctors are very hopeful for Maine. Sabi nila, her lungs are really improving kaya they already started weaning her off of the ventilator. Ikaw din, anak, ha? Laban ka lang din tulad ni Meng. Lumaban lang kayong dalawa, mga anak."

Rio swallowed the lump in her throat and stood up to leave a kiss on RJ's forehead.

It has been days since RJ last sat beside Maine but he never left the hospital. He has always been under the same roof as Maine, just in a different room, where he lay sleeping; she was in the ICU while he was in the medicine department.

Days before Maine caught a respiratory infection, RJ found out that his previously treated ruptured aneurysm has had a recurrence which requires treatment to prevent it from rupturing again.

Both families knew about it except for Maine because he couldn't find the right timing to tell her in the midst of her chemotherapy. Maine needed a reason to fight, not a reason to doubt fighting if both their health were compromised. At least, that's how RJ saw the situation and he feared telling her of the findings.

The truth was, there was no right timing. He knew he just had to tell her but the day never came. With the recent changes in Maine's health condition, he hasn't had a chance to tell her yet.

Getting him to proceed with the treatment while Maine lay unconscious in the ICU was a challenge that both the Mendoza and Faulkerson couples played a part in convincing him.

"Ma, I'm still going to have the treatment done but can't I just wait for Maine to wake up? Ma, Dad, I want to be there when she finally wakes up."

RJ reasoned out with his parents but were countered with health concerns.

"Anak, wag naman sana, pero kapag may nangyari sayo dahil pinostpone mo yung procedure, mas hindi matutuwa si Menggay. Two days lang, RJ. Two days tapos balikan mo si Maine."

It was Teddy who was able to talk RJ into getting the procedure done on the scheduled day. What should have been two days of not staying beside Maine's side turned into four, and still counting.

Being in a state of hemodynamic instability from a bleeding complication post the procedure has left RJ in a vulnerable state, and left everyone else in an even more heart broken state.