“What happened?” I asked in panic habang patakbo akong sinalubong ni Doctor Brown sa hallway papunta sa room ng mama ko.
“She was fine when the nurses checked on her,” he started, his face serious, “but then she began to cough uncontrollably… and she started coughing out blood. The nurses had to stabilise her.”
Parang may sumabog sa dibdib ko.
Para akong nalunod sa sariling hininga. My knees buckled slightly, and my shoulders dropped in defeat. Napakapit ako sa dingding just to steady myself.
Naroon si Ralphael, tahimik lang pero lumapit at marahang ipinatong ang kamay sa likod ko. His touch was warm, grounding. Nang lingunin ko siya, I saw something rare in his eyes—sincerity. Or at least, something that almost looked like it.
Then came the blow.
“Miss Almanza, she doesn’t have a we
