The Wicked Doctor

48: Object Permanence (Revised)

Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen, heard, touched, smelled or sensed in any way. This is a fundamental concept studied in the field of , the subfield of that addresses the development of young children's social and mental capacities.

Jean Piaget, the Swiss psychologist who first studied object permanence in infants, argued that it is one of an infant's most important accomplishments, as, without this concept, objects would have no separate, permanent existence. In Piaget's theory of cognitive development, infants develop this understanding by the end of the "sensorimotor stage", which lasts from birth to about two years of age. Piaget thought that an infant's perception and understanding of the world depended on their motor development, which was required for the infant to link visual, tactile and motor representations of objects. According to this view, it is through touching and handling objects that infants develop object permanence.

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"Woah... Err... Sorry." Nagmamadali siyang pumasok sa stock room at kumuha ng mga sterile gauze at nagtatakbo palabas.

We were caught red handed. Inalis ko ang kamay ni Terrence na nakahawak sa mga pisngi ko.

"Have some decency, Terrence. Kilala tayo ng mga staff dito sa ward at ayoko na pagchismisan ako at husgahan ng mga tao sa paligid natin. They don't know the whole story. They don't know what happened to us in the past and what is still happening to us. Sa mata ng lahat ng tao dito, si Stacy ang asawa mo tapos ngayon magkakaanak na kayo. Do you want people to judge me and mock me for being your mistress? Na isa akong home wrecker? Sana naman kahit dito lang sa ospital wag kang masyadong naglalalapit sa akin. The closer you are, the more difficult it is for me. Pinag-iinitan na ako ni Stacy and she's staking her claim on you. Ayoko nang nagkikipag-agawan Terrence. If you are mine, you are just mine. But things are complicated and you are legally hers."

"An, I'm yours. All of me belongs to you."

"That's not what your marriage registration says."

"Mamili ka Terrence. Hindi pwedeng dalawa kami. Choose me, or lose me." I turned my back on him and left the stock room. Lumabas naman siya matapos ang ilang minuto at hindi na siya dumaan sa station. Pakiramdam ko pagod na pagod ako kaya padaskol akong umupo sa swivel chair na nasa station at pumikit. Narinig ko ang mga gulong ng isa pang swivel chair na hinihila papunta sa harapan ko pati na ang presensya ng isang tao. I blew a loud breath and opened my eyes.

Jen.

Jennifer was in front of me with an eyebrow raised and arms folded across her chest. Alam ko na ang ibig sabihin neto. She is asking for an explanation, more like an interrogation. Inginuso ko ang mga tao na nasa station na makakarinig kung sakali mang mag-usap kami kaya sinenyasan ko siyang pumunta kami sa treatment room para kami naman ang makapag-usap nang maayos. She tapped her foot impatiently while waiting for me to spill the beans.

"It's him, right? He's the father." Hindi ko na pala kailangang sabihin eh nagegets naman niya agad kaya tumango na lang ako habang siya naman ang dakdak nang dakdak.

"Oh my God! He's married! What the hell do you think you're doing having an affair with a married man and his wife is our boss! And Dr. Stacy is pregnant! An!" She started pacing back and forth in front of me as if she is a mother whose daughter did something really nasty.

"Jen... just stop pacing. I'm getting dizzy just watching you walk in front of me. Just sit down and I will tell you what you need to know. Just promise you would keep your mouth shut or else, I would suture your lips and tongue. "

"Deal. Now spill the beans."

I took the phone out of my pocket and unlocked the screen. Binuksan ko folder ng photos ng cellphone ko at ipinahawak ito kay Jen. I urged her to scroll through the photo timeline so she would immediately get what I was trying to tell her.