We Belong Together

Chapter 17

- Come on, drink it - Hung raised the cup - Forget about earlier.

- Didn't you come to arrest me? Why did you ask me out for breakfast? - Phan sat still on the chair, his hearty porridge bowl was still intact.

- Don't be so silly. When he got home last night, we went to the hospital as soon as we received the news of the accident. In the past, when we were in the same class, I used to argue with Vu, but I still like him very much. Who would have thought ... - Hung sobbed - At dawn this morning, when I just got home, before I could sleep, there was a phone call from his neighbor. I quickly ran to him. Fortunately, there's still time... - Just a few teenage boys, nothing to worry about?

- It's the teenagers to worry about, sir. Those guys are reckless and rude. But why do they say he killed Vu? Every witness we had said it was just an accident, and the evidence on the road shows that too.

- Maybe they think I caused an accident for Vu - Phan pondered, then mumbled to himself - But it was because of me that Vu was like this, because of me.

- What are you babbling about? I should have invited you to the station, don't get me wrong, I just invited you to cooperate with the investigation. Do you... do you remember anything about the car that caused the accident? We need more information to investigate.

The young man didn't have the strength to groan anymore, he was slowly fading away. Phan panicked, leaving his car crashing down the road, he rushed over when he realized it was Vu. Vu's face was covered with blood, his eyes had gone wild, he was barely alive. Panicked, Phan looked around, the road was deserted, and there was no hope of anyone driving on the road in the cold late night in this sparsely populated mountain town. The district hospital is just over a kilometer away, still knowing that it would be dangerous for Vu to carry him on the street because it might make his fractures worse. But can't wait until someone helps, Vu's condition is already too critical. Phan picked up Vu with a force that even he himself could not have imagined. While frantically running in the night, Phan cried out miserably, praying that Vu would not give up, he vowed to do everything he could to save Vu, and God would also be on his side, you know that. "Come on, you're not allowed to give up, do you hear what I say? You have to hold on, and you'll be okay" - Phan cried out in the sound of rain, frogs, chirping, and the sounds of insects. call the soul of the bird Pig - Fighting, Vu"!

The rainy night swallowed Phan's screams. The sound of the bird Pig squealed triumphantly.

Phan kicked open the closed door of the hospital, hugged Vu and ran towards the emergency room while the old guard dialed the number to call the doctor on duty. There was something very familiar about the unconscious young man who had just been brought in, as if he had seen him many times before, right? The person who carried him in ran so fast, he didn't get out who he was? But he looks familiar, who is that? Very quickly, the doctor on duty was present in the emergency room, he panicked when he realized it was Vu, the son of the hospital's director. Vu's condition is very critical, the strange young man who brought Vu in is squeezing the Ambu ball to help breathe with a very mature look. He was shouting words of encouragement to Vu, looking very distressed and worried. But he still had to ask him to come out, because the nurse had just arrived and the emergency room rules did not allow the presence of strangers. Phan retorted, he called the doctor's name so that he could recognize that he was Vu's cousin, and he was also a doctor. While the water is boiling hot like this, maybe he will help something? With no time to argue, the old doctor left Phan there with his stubbornness, preoccupied with the young man lying unconscious in front of him. Meanwhile, the nurse completed the intubation and attached the electrodes of the Patient Monitor to Vu. Maybe she forgot, hasn't turned on the switch to operate the machine, because the indicators of the machine are still at the "dead spots", and the electrocardiogram is just like a thread someone crossed on the screen.

Twenty minutes passed in silence, the doctor hurriedly used all means to hold Vu back to life. Occasionally, only the sound of his command to the nurse rang out, breaking the silence and terrible pressure in the room. But then, he sobbed, the stethoscope coldly falling to his chest, his arms hanging limp, his eyes of despair, pain and helplessness more deadly than any other death sentence. of the court. Unable to believe what he had just read in his eyes, Phan took the headset and examined Vu himself. There must be some mistake, this damn charlatan has to be fired from early retirement right? He must have made a mistake.

- I'm sorry, but there's nothing more we can do. - The doctor's voice dropped, sad and helpless. - He's gone.

- Impossible - Phan shouted, grabbing his blouse by the collar and shaking it hard - what did you do? What do you have to do? Operate him, put on a defibrillator, do whatever you can, I beg you. He's not dead, or just dead dead. Sometimes machines make mistakes, you have to do something. You do it!!!

- Listen to me, his heart has stopped, his pupils are dilated, and there's no pulse. He had lost so much blood, he might have had a traumatic brain injury, and his brain was dead. IAM sorry.

- What can you do if you're sorry? No! Did you just say it's possible? So there is hope. You're not at your best, you have to have surgery, you have to suck blood from your brain, you can do whatever the hell you want, you do it. Please, if you don't do it, I will.

- You have to listen to me, he's gone, and we can't dissect a corpse, we can't, leave him alone. The last thing we can do is call his parents. They need to know this right away.

- Throw his mother your rule in the trash - Phan shout at the doctor - or if you are afraid, just write the paper, I will sign, I will take full responsibility.

- It's late, I'm sorry. I understand he's heartbroken, and so are we, but there's nothing we can do about it, please leave him alone.

- You don't mind my mother, I'll wake him up, I'll do it. Defibrillator, give me a defibrillator. - But there is no sign of ventricular fibrillation at all? - The nurse timidly commented - We don't even have a clue to give an optimistic prognosis for his condition.

"Do as he says." The doctor hesitated for a moment, then ordered the nurse with a sigh - everything.

The current caused 350mA to lift Vu's body into the air and then drop the bag onto the bed, the Monitor stubbornly did not give any indication that their electrodes were attached to a living body. Undeterred, Phan shouted almost out of voice to order the nurse to quickly recharge. "360, loaded". One jerk, no win. "No, damn it, 380, wait, give me 400". Another jerk, but still nothing new. Phan shouted again, the nurse quietly followed orders, not to grumble, "You're crazy". Phan massage rubbed the two electrodes together, pressed against Vu's chest, another strong jerk made him bounce up and continue to fall. The Monitor screen still stubbornly defended its opinion, the heart rate wave display was just a cold horizontal line. Phan collapsed, his hands pounding on Vu's body, making it difficult for the doctor and nurse to stop him. After a while, the doctor left to call Mr. Hieu. Later, he waved to the nurse, who was still comforting Phan in the room, and asked her if she knew the number of Mr. Hieu's desk, because he had turned off his cell phone.

Left alone with Vu, Phan sobbed, he wanted to cry but the tears refused to come out, but kept flowing back inside. Phan shouted out Vu's name, but he couldn't say it out loud, even if it was just two words "Vu Oi".

Silence, only the reply from the birds Pigs...

Quietly standing by the kitchen door, Mrs. Hoa sadly looked at the figure of her daughter who was diligently washing the dishes, confused, bewildered and quiet. How many times have the dishes been washed? They are clean and shiny. But perhaps Thao thought that was still not enough, she continued to put them in the sink and flush. Mrs. Hoa quietly sobbed, the story of Phan and Vu was too strong a blow to Thao's fragile, weak and sensitive soul. A shock that she can never forget? She approached behind her, gently stroked her hair, lovingly:

- Leave the dishes and chopsticks, I will put them in the kitchen cupboard. Can't you see that they're about to peel off the enamel on the outside? I've washed them seven, eight times already.

- Mommy!

- If you want to cry, don't try to hold back, just cry for comfort.

- He didn't do that, Mr. Phan never did.

- I never doubted that. The person who is loved by her mother's daughter, is of course a good person, never someone who willingly harms others. Especially his brother.

- But... - Thao hesitated and then burst into tears. - But, they said... - Ignore them, daughter. Should I have faith in the person I love? You'd better meet Phan. It needs you now.

- I know, but... - Come on - She gently wiped the tears from Thao's face - Stop crying and go to the isle, before he dyes it red with his ropes. Did you turn off your cell phone?

- Is he on the isle? - Thao exclaimed happily, but mixed with a bit of confusion and surprise. - But, how did you know about the ropes?

- Did you "grow up" with me? If you don't know even these little things, can I be your mother?

- Thank you mom - Thao hugs Mrs. Hoa, enjoy the incomplete happiness in the endless pain when she also hugs her and gently stroked her hair. Then she pushed her away - go baby, don't keep him waiting, he needs you.

Thao rushed to the door, then stopped when Mrs. Hoa called and told her to go to the back door, because if her father caught her, she didn't know what would happen? Thao thanked her again and hurriedly ran to the riverbank. In the distance, on an old guava branch, a red string is fluttering, Phan's chain. Thao stopped by the boat to the isle, she frozen, not even remembering to tie the boat to the pier. She looked sadly at the young man sitting with his head leaning against the old guava tree. His hair was disheveled as if he had just woken up, his depressed, moody, depressed face showed something like choking and suffering. Silent tears streamed down her eyelids as she saw Phan so miserable and in pain. Thao walked closer to him, quietly without saying a word, she hugged him in her arms, hoping her love and sympathy could help him calm down a bit.

Not wanting to disturb the two people who were suffering, the boy gathered firewood on the isle quietly walking to the other side of the rock, disappearing behind the trees of the Whip tree, which was rustling in the cold wind.

Phan buried his head in Thao's lap, like a resentful child who had not had the opportunity to break out for a long time, he sobbed and sobbed.

Unable to contain her heart, she also cried!

"Loving someone means when we are always ready to be there, to protect, to sympathize, and to share with that person even if it is against the whole world."

The night dew fell on Hanh's hair as she sat outside in the yard with the wind howling overhead. Hanh has been sitting there for a long time, quietly like a ghost, not knowing that behind the window, her adoptive mother is looking at her with pitying and pitiful eyes. She shocked her head and sobbed, not understanding why God would treat such a gentle, pitiful girl like Hanh? Happiness should always smile at people like you, right? Who else deserves it more than her adopted daughter? She shocked her head and sobbed again, isn't God always unfair to good people?

Tiny pictures in the phone still run back and forth with each beat of Hanh, along with it, short happy memories reappear. With Christmas coming up, the promise of all four to go to the sea in winter can't come true. Now, only Hanh is at the sea, the winter sea is beautiful but dreamy and somber. Hanh is still immersed in the photos Vietnam took when they had a picnic at the Red River beach. This is the scene where Thao and Phan are pushing the car to the embankment, even though the car is very heavy, but Thao still manages to let go, making a V-sign of victory with a very bright smile, causing the car to almost fall, causing Phan to scream. wow. This is the scene Viet captured while she was looking at the sand ships on the river, her dreamy eyes far away and the strong wind blowing her hair loose. This is a scene of all four people raising glasses taken with the camera's automatic shooting function. And here too, a picture of Viet showing her white teeth with her eyes closed like a child when taking a photo with her. Don't know why? But she really liked that gesture of Viet, it made him look like an innocent child. Then here, and here too, each picture was like a knife cutting into her heart. Everything is out of her hands, Hanh sobbed, it was the really happy time of her life, but it was also a very short time. Perhaps she would never be able to see those dear people again.

When people know that they are about to lose something very precious, the regret is multiplied.

***

Forever immersed in the regret of her happiness that was too far away, Hanh did not know that her adoptive mother had come to sit next to her since when? She put on her thick coat, shocked her head and sobbed again, and sat silently looking out at the garden in front of her. The hoarfrost has withered the leaves of the ancient Mango tree, which in the past, her husband had to work very hard to grow. Mango is a very strong plant, but the cold of the frost and the sea breeze that blows day and night still makes their leaves wither. The weather in this central sea has always been known to be extremely harsh. Even so, the two lonely women sitting under the mango tree are still feeling warm, warmed by empathy and sharing:

- Go to sleep, it's late. The ink that I bought for my friend, how do I send it to him? Aren't you trying to avoid him?

- He likes grilled squid, Mom.

Hanh mutters, the dew has sustained become, the mango leaves are wet with water, and begin to large dew drops onto the yard.