Research On You

Chapter 15 : The Name On The File

Tuesday was off from the start.

Theo was late to Rel’s. 8:23. His tea was already cold and his hands were shaking a little when he set down his bag.

"Sorry," he said. "Hospital."

"Is Lolo okay?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said too fast. "Just tests. They’re running a lot of tests."

I nodded. I didn’t know what else to say.

After class he left immediately. "I’ll text you," he said.

He didn’t.

That same afternoon Sera was also gone. No class. No replies.

"She’s probably at her dad’s hospital," Cass said. "She helps Dr. Reyes with filing sometimes."

Dr. Reyes. Her dad. Oncologist at St Luke’s.

I forgot about it until 6 PM when I got her text.

can we talk tomorrow

important

yeah, I replied. what’s up

Seen.

No reply.

---

Wednesday night.

Sera’s dad called her. "Can you come to the office? I need help filing patient records before tomorrow’s rounds."

"Now?" Sera asked, looking at her messy room.

"Please," he said. "It’ll just take an hour."

So she went.

St Luke’s was quiet at night. The hallways smelled like disinfectant and coffee. She took the elevator to the 7th floor. Oncology.

Her dad’s office was at the end of the hall. The door was open. He was on the phone.

"Hey, anak," he said, covering the receiver. "Files are on my desk. The blue cabinet. Just alphabetize them and put them in the folders. Thanks."

He went back to his call.

Sera nodded and went to the desk.

There were stacks of files. Patient names. Dates. She started sorting. A. B. C.

Then she saw it.

A manila folder. Plain. On top of the stack.

THEODORE ALISTAIR

DOB: 03/12/2004

MRN: 8847291

Her hands stopped moving.

That was Theo’s full name.

She glanced at her dad. He was still on the phone, turned away.

She shouldn’t have. She knew she shouldn’t have.

But her fingers were already opening it.

First page.

Diagnosis: Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Relapsed.

Date of Diagnosis: 6 months ago.

Previous Treatment: 2018-2019. Remission for 5 years.

Her breath caught.

Second page.

Current Treatment Plan: Chemotherapy. Weekly.

Side Effects: Fatigue, nausea, bruising, weight loss.

Notes: Patient requested that diagnosis be kept confidential from peers. Only emergency contacts to be notified.

Emergency contact: Mr. Alistair Sr.

Not Ana.

Her eyes blurred.

Third page.

Last Visit: Friday. Patient presented with fever and severe fatigue. Advised admission. Patient declined.

Next Appointment: This Friday.

Friday. That was the day Theo kept saying he had "hospital for Lolo."

Her hands were shaking.

"Find anything weird?" her dad asked, hanging up.

Sera snapped the folder shut. "No. Just filing."

"Good girl," he said. "You can go home after this."

She nodded. She didn’t say anything else.

On the jeep ride home she kept seeing it.

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Relapsed.

Chemotherapy.

Theo was sick.

Not his Lolo.

Him.

She called him as soon as she got to her room.

"Hey," he answered. He sounded tired.

"Are you at the hospital?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said. "With Lolo."

Sera closed her eyes. "Theo."

"What?"

"Don’t lie to me," she whispered.

There was silence.

"Did you see something?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," she said. "At my dad’s office."

Another long silence.

"Please don’t tell Ana," he said finally. His voice broke. "Please, Sera. Not yet."

"Theo—"

"I’m scared," he said. "If she knows she’ll look at me differently. Or she’ll leave. Or she’ll stay out of pity. I can’t— I can’t do that right now."

"But she deserves to know," Sera said, crying.

"I know," he said. "I’ll tell her. I promise. Just... not yet. Let me tell her. Okay?"

Sera wiped her eyes. "Okay."

"Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you."

She hung up and cried for an hour.

---

Thursday.

I noticed immediately.

Sera was back in class but she wouldn’t look at me. Or at Theo. She sat in the back and took no notes.

At Rel’s she got coffee and sat at the bar with Rel.

"Is she okay?" I asked Theo.

"I don’t know," he said. "She’s been weird."

That afternoon I saw them outside.

Whispering. Arguing.

Theo looked desperate. Sera looked like she was going to cry.

When I walked up they stopped.

"Hey," I said. "What’s up?"

"Nothing," Theo said. "Paper stuff."

"Right," I said. "The paper."

Sera walked away without a word.

That night I texted her. can we talk

not now ana. please, she replied.

My chest hurt.

---

The next week was worse.

Theo kept getting thinner. More bruises. More tea.

Sera kept watching us like she was waiting for something to break.

One night at Rel’s, Eli asked, "Since when did you hate coffee, Theo?"

"Stomach," Theo said. "Doctor’s orders."

"Which doctor?" Sera asked, too fast.

"The hospital doctor," Theo said. "For Lolo."

Sera took a long sip of coffee. Her hand was shaking.

I looked at her. She looked at me. Then she looked down.

Later that night my phone buzzed. Unknown number.

i know you know

please don’t say anything

not yet

I looked up. Sera was staring at me from across the room.

She shook her head. Once.

Don’t.

I deleted the text.

---

Two weeks passed.

Theo: "Hospital. Lolo."

Sera: silent.

Me: pretending.

One night at 2 AM Sera called.

"Are you awake?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said.

"Just checking," she said. "If you’re okay."

"I’m fine," I said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said. "Goodnight, Ana."

She hung up.

I stared at the ceiling.

I didn’t know what was in that folder.

But I knew Sera had seen it.

And I knew she wasn’t going to tell me.

Not yet.

Because Theo asked her not to.