Sleepless
1103 Words
Austin was at the verge of losing his scholarship. It was a good thing that Jerome found out about him and stopped him from dropping out completely. As for his school, he already had a talk with the dean, and he made sure that his brother would continue to get his education after they returned from France.
"You got a pretty big brain inside that head of yours too," Jerome continued, and once again, he was rewarded with a small smile. Thank God.
A few minutes after, the red light above the door announcing the ongoing operation inside switched off.
"What's going on?" Jerome asked when Austin suddenly stood up, his expression turning anxious.
"They're done," the younger boy stated as he nervously looked at the door which opened as if on cue.
"How was it?" the younger man asked the doctor as soon as he came out.
He was really anxious about the operation, although, in theory, he knew his mother's case wasn't as bad as they had thought it was. Thanks to his brother's money and influence, they were able to bring his mother to the best hospital in the country and they found out that she had been diagnosed wrongly at the small clinic they used to go to. Jerome had wanted to press charges, but Austin didn't want to.
The doctor removed his mask and smiled at them reassuringly.
"It was successful," he announced and the brothers finally felt relieved. "All we need to do now is to let her rest, and when she gains enough strength we'll have her undergo chemotherapy for a bit just to make sure all cancer cells are gone."
"Thanks, doctor," Jerome said as he bowed to the surgeon and his younger brother did the same.
Jerome placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. Austin seemed to be surprised by the spontaneous action but did not remove his brother's hand. The younger boy turned to him shyly and smiled.
"Thanks…uhm...Jerome..."
Jerome smiled back, happy again that he made another progress with his sibling. He was able to make him call him by his name. He knew they still had a long way to go, but he hoped that someday, Austin would be able to call him brother.
==========
"You haven't been sleeping again," a young man with red, curly hair wearing a suit commented as he noted the dark circles under Jessica’s eyes.
"Look who's talking," Jessica turned to her professor friend and yawned. They were at their favorite restaurant having snacks. "You haven't been sleeping either."
Sam smirked at her. "Jessie, baby, I haven't been sleeping for a different reason," he said with a lecherous smile on his face, indicating that his sleepless nights were spent romping around with Caroline, her other best friend, who was Sam’s lover. "You, on the other hand, are a different case. Have you looked in a mirror lately? You look totally harassed."
Jessica sighed heavily. It was stressful, but she really couldn't do anything about it. These days, both she and her sister dreaded the nights more and more; both of them were too scared to sleep for fear of having those dreams again.
"What the hell's wrong with you, anyway? Do you have a problem? Maybe Car and I can help," Sam offered, his voice laced with concern as he continued to look at her.
Jessica hadn't told anyone else about what was bothering her. After all, her problem was so out of this world that she might not be understood. Worse, she might get laughed at or even locked up into the loony bin. Then again, all the sleepless nights were finally taking their toll on her body. Her sister, whose dreams were worse, was the same.
"Jessie?" Sam called her name twice before she was able to snap out of her thoughts. "You're really out of it. It's a wonder you're still able to stand up, much more work, in your state."
She frowned as she considered opening up to her friend. Whether she liked it or not, Jessica knew that she needed help. God knew she was already at her wit's end trying to think of ways to stop the nightmares.
"Sam," she began, ready to confess to her friend, but then Sam’s phone suddenly rang.
A deep eleven formed in between his brows. He signaled for her to stop as he took out his mobile phone.
"It's Car," he said upon seeing the caller ID and immediately answered the call. "Yes?" he said and Jessica watched as her friend's expression grew darker by the second. "Okay. She's with me now," Sam said and then ended the call.
"What's up with Caroline?" she asked.
Caroline also worked as a lecturer at the university where Sam worked and where her sister, Hannah attended.
"Jessie, your sister collapsed a few minutes ago," Sam told her gravely, and Jessica felt ice in her veins as fear enveloped her heart. "Car’s with her now at the clinic. Let's go," he urged as he helped her stand up when she seemed not able to move.
"Oh my God," Jessie whispered as they got into the car. "Sam, what am I going to do?" she asked her confused friend as they drove towards the university.
She was panicking.
"What do you mean? Jessie, I can't understand. What's going on?" Sam demanded his friend. He was really worried because she looked as pale as death. But she didn't answer him until they reached their destination.
Jessica and Sam ran down the hallway towards the clinic. They found a very worried Caroline sitting next to the bed holding Hannah’s hand.
"Sam, Jessie," she called as soon as she saw them. "It's good that you came at once," she said, her voice cracking up like she'd been crying.
"What happened?" Sam asked as he placed an arm around his lover.
Jessica took over Caroline’s spot near the bed and held her sister’s cold and pale hand.
"Hannah had just calmed down," Caroline informed them. "Earlier, after I called, she started crying and screaming and screaming as if she was in great pain. It was so scary. She had been pleading, asking—"
"—asking people to stop," Jessica finished Caroline’s sentence, which surprised the couple. "She was begging people to stop touching her because it hurts…"
"How…" Caroline stated, dumbfounded as she searched Jessica’s face for an answer.
But she saw nothing except panic and fear brewing behind her friend's dark brown eyes. Jessica turned away and reached out to shake her sister’s shoulder.
- Writer
