Sacrifices II

Sacrifices I (this header is a link)

I was in the waiting area, not being part of her family or a known 'friend'. It was awkward when the young man and a lady, apparently her daughter, rushed into the hospital after being called. Despite being told that I was the one who rushed her there, their accusatory glances were enough to tell me what was going through their minds.

A confrontation was imminent.

"And who are you?" the guy said, leaving the emergency room and turning to face me.

His sister put a hand lightly on his shoulder as though to calm him down, but her face shared the same sentiment; they both had one burning question in their hearts.

"Not the one who did that to your mother. That's who I'm not."

He was fuming. "That wasn't the question I asked."

"Wasn't it? It wasn't the one you asked with your mouth, yes, but the look on your face and that of your sister shows that it was the one you both had in your mind. Again, I'm a helper here, not an enemy."

"Then what were you doing at the house? You're not a friend of ours..."

"Of yours actually. I and your mother are... well, you could call us friends."

"Then how come neither of us has seen you at the house?" the lady asked, folding her shoulders.

"That's because we just met today. After you left for work, she was about walking all the way home, since she did give you what she was supposed to use to pay her bus fare. She almost got hit by a car, and I saved her life so she invited me over for some pie."

The daughter smiled, while the guy loosened up.

"That's my mother alright...sorry about that. She's always so happy, so..."

"She's not."

They both turned to look at me before the guy rushed forward and grabbed me by the collar."What the hell did you say about my mom, punk?"

I slapped his hands off my collar. "I'll suggest you don't use such words against me, and it'll be in your very best interest not to touch me again. The difference between my strength and yours is great, that it is."

"I'm sorry about my brother's..."

"Your mother wore a smile on her face. Good and fine. Does that make her 'happy'? Does that signify happiness? Is happiness a facial expression or a state of being? Even if she was happy - considering her children seem to be doing well in life, she was completely devoid of any joy. Could you be so blind as to not see that?"

He stood, looking at me, his face a mix of emotions.

"She paid for the food this morning didn't she?"

"What do you care?"

"Didn't she?"

"Yes."

"And the bus fare to get to the restaurant, and then your subway ticket to work?"

As expected, he was speechless.

"You know, a kiss on the cheek would have been a nice way to show appreciation back there. Or at least a hug. Or even a thank you. But no, you got what you wanted and you just dashed off. Do you realize that you... maybe even the both of you," I said, casting a glance at his sister, who looked down at the ground, "have bee taking a lot from her without giving anything?"

"And how's that your concern?"

"It really isn't, but this sort of insensitive question makes me really angry. How's it my concern? You aren't bothered that you've been neglecting your mother all this while, but you're bothered because someone is pointing it out to you? Since your father died, she has been neglected all this while, and all she does is to hold on to the memories of him, to remember what it was like to be loved, instead of experiencing it..."

He was quiet again.

"...So the next time you ask me that question again, there'll be two members of this family in that emergency room. Clear?"

"Crystal."

"Good. Now I don't have so much time to spend..."

The doctor burst out. "Mr. Garcia?"

The guy ran forward. "Doctor, how is she?"

"She's fine for the most part, it's mostly just overexertion. She's awake now, and we'll probably discharge her by tomorrow."

In the midst of all the joy, smiling and laughing, I slipped out of the hospital. I couldn't really say my work there was done, but I had a feeling they'd gotten the hint.

******

Two years later, I was sitting in that same bar, eating a croissant when an voice said behind me, "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all."

It was her. Looking graceful, but with quite a few more wrinkles than when we'd last met. Hey eyes shone like the sun, and this time, her smile was genuine.

"There seems to have been a change."

It wasn't a question, just a statement that was already confirmed by her looks.

"I wanted to leave this up to you, but I had to ask. Are you an angel? Hiw did you fix everything up so fast?"

"An angel? I really doubt it. And I really didn't fix anything - it was your children's will to fix the issues, I just put them in the right direction."

She was still looking at me expectantly.

"But yeah, I have... let's call it a privilege, to see the amount of joy people have. That's all, nothing special about me."

"But you chose to act when you could have ignored, That, in itself, is divine. There are angels around us, Marcos."

I sipped my drink, unsure of what to make of the statement, and not wanting to probe the depths of my mind for a response. Maybe she was right, time will tell.

"I've decided to stick around here for a while, delay some things. There's still some good in this world, at least you've proved that."

She paid for an extra croissant, something I very much needed even though I didn't have the money to pay for it, and left.

It was after a while I remembered that I never told her my name.

******

@Leo_kitti, @Hanzell 😌😌