LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT - SEASON 2 CHAPTER 74
“Yes! They got them! Thank God!” Field Marshal Chan rejoiced. He could hardly contain his happiness that he started to hug everyone in the control room. It was almost too much happiness to bear, as soon as he got the confirmation from his men, ‘We got them, Chief. General Lim and Mrs. Lim are with us now. Clear. Over. Out.’
His eyes swam with tears, and his hands were shaking as he dialed his wife’s number to relay the fantastic news.
“Yes, yes, they will be brought directly to Yang Hospital. I will be going there as soon as things are settled here,” Field Marshal Chan informed his wife in a shivering voice, still crying.
He then contacted Zach’s family.
After several hours, one of the wards at Yang Hospital was filled with one big united family of the Lims and the Chans. They were waiting for the couple’s arrival. It looked like a reunion of a big family.
Sheila and Mrs. Chan hugged as soon as they saw each other. Both were drowning in a river of tears. But this time, they were tears of joy and not of pain.
Torin was also present with Lyra by his side.
“I knew Bro is alive. Oh, I’m shaking,” murmured Torin as excitement rippled through him. Lyra gently tapped Torin’s shoulder and whispered, “Relax. You look so restless…”
Rizie noticed how gently her big sister had been treating Torin. She asked with an arched eyebrow, “Since when have you been acting so mild to bro Torin?” She was a bit confused because her big sister would usually hit Torin instead of patting him. And instead of telling him to relax, her big sister would typically say, “Don’t act so dramatic! Even more than Josh!”
Torin plastered a big smile on his face, and whispered to Rizie with a wink, “It’s because your big sis has finally realized how much she likes me.”
“What?!” Rizie exclaimed and gaped as she shifted her gaze to her sister, who immediately looked away and left to tend to their Grandma Terry, who was also crying.
Rizie looked back at Torin with raised eyebrows and said, “Is this a joke or what, big bro Torin?”
Torin grinned but suddenly turned serious as he said, “What joke? I’m going to be your brother-in-law soon. From now on, you should practice calling me that. Brother-in-law.”
Rizie roared with laughter as she was holding her stomach, “You almost got me there, bro… But it was funny! No, it was hilarious! Hahaha! You? My brother-in-law? Haha! I would chop my own hands if that ever happens. Gosh, bro Torin, do you want to be a part of our family that badly? You know what, I’ll just tell mom to adopt you if you really want it. Don’t worry!”
Rizie was still laughing loudly as she shook her head and walked past Torin to check on her mother.
“Hey, you little brat… I’m not joking!” Torin said as he was trying to catch Rizie, but stopped when Xander, Keira’s cousin, suddenly spoke.
“The helicopter has landed on the hospital’s rooftop. I will go up and check, uncle. We need to check their conditions thoroughly first. Please wait for me here.” Said Xander as he ran outside the ward, toward the elevator that would bring him up to the rooftop.
“What happened?” Xander shouted as soon as he saw Keira being brought out of the helicopter on a stretcher. And she was unconscious.
“She passed out in the helicopter. I suspect from dehydration, but there’s maybe more because she has a fever. Please check her immediately,” one of the doctors from the military medical team informed Xander.
Xander nodded and signaled his team of doctors to quickly fetch Keira, while he assigned a few other doctors to tend to Zach and Mara.
“No, I’m going with her,” Zach told Xander when he saw them bring Keira into a different room from the one they were leading him into.
“No, General. You still need to be checked as well. Besides, there’s nothing you can do there, so let those doctors do their job. And don’t worry, they are my best ones,” Xander comforted Zach before he left with the other doctors to check on Keira.
After going through several blood tests and physical check-ups, Zach was done and about to be brought to his ward. But he refused and instead asked, “Where’s Keira? How is she? I want to see her. Bring me to her.”
“She needs some more checking, Zach. Don’t worry, she’ll be fine. And we’ll have her transferred to your room soon,” Xander explained. He noticed Zach was still worried and hesitant, so he added, “Geez, General! It will only take about an hour! Is it really that difficult to be separated from her for just an hour?”
Zach did not respond. His wife had passed out before his eyes, and he wanted to make sure she was alright.
Xander wanted to relieve Zach’s distress, so he further explained, “The doctor in charge of her said that she is fine. Her condition is good, and she will wake up soon. They just need to check her more thoroughly because she passed out. It’s because her body is more fragile than yours.”
Zach’s expression relaxed. But he still queried, “She’s really doing fine, isn’t she? I’ll see her in one hour?”
Xander reassured him, “Yes, General. One hour, max!”
Zach finally agreed to be transferred to his ward after Xander’s confirmation. They put an IV fluids in him for dehydration.
As soon as he entered his private ward, Torin was the first to run to him and embraced him.
“You’re back, Bro! But oh my God, you lost a lot of weight!” Torin burst out crying.
“Why are you the first one to get a hug!? Shoo!” Rizie complained as she quickly hugged her brother, followed by Josh and Lyra.
The room reverberated with cries of joy, especially when Sheila hugged Zach.
Meanwhile, Xander quietly went out of the room to check on Keira’s condition. “Is it confirmed?” Xander inquired. The doctor in charge smiled and jested, “Doctor Xander, if you are questioning the result, then you can check her yourself.”
Xander’s mouth twitched as he gave the doctor in charge a glaring look and said, “You know I prefer sitting in my office, Jean…”
Doctor Jean Wang laughed and added, “She’s fine. Her wound is not severe and has been treated. She passed out due to fatigue, mild fever, and dehydration. We will have her transferred to her room soon. The same one as her husband’s, right?”
Xander nodded as he excitedly rushed back to the couple’s VIP ward.
There was an unexpected good news that he was itching to tell everyone.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“Oh, please…” John complained when Mara hid behind his back. She was so afraid of the doctors and nurses, and every time they would try to come near her, she would always rush to John’s side.
He turned around to face Mara and talked to her while gesturing, “They are nice people. They will help you by checking your body condition.”
He ended up scratching his head helplessly because he did not know how to explain the situation to the indigenous woman adequately.
The team of doctors at the Yang hospital had already explained that there was a risk of exposure because Mara might not have the same immune system with the people from the modern world. So she needed to be isolated and be tested more thoroughly.
Because the hospital was a place with a lot of viruses and diseases, the doctors had also advised that she stayed at a different location, which was surrounded by nature, while she received proper vaccinations and medications to boost her immune system.
John did not really know what to do. Field Marshal Chan had instructed him to stay with the woman whom Madam Keira had brought along. The woman had fairer skin than most tribespeople that he had seen on television. If one saw the woman now, who was all dressed up in regular hospital clothes, one would not have thought she was a member of an indigenous tribe. But the way she acted was precisely like someone who had been totally uncontacted by modern civilization.
She was bare naked when he first saw her, which had astounded him a great deal. It was his first time to see a woman naked in front of him. Well, of course, he had seen some on movies, but that could not be counted.
John held her in his embrace to let the team of doctors inject anesthetic in her, so they could examine her properly. She seemed to trust him a lot and would allow the doctors to approach her as long as John held her. She had fallen asleep immediately. John sighed as he left the room so the doctors could do their job.
He saw May in the hallway. He presumed she must be visiting Keira. May saw him too and greeted him, “Hey, you’re here. Are you busy? Join me for lunch and coffee while I wait for Keira to be transferred to her room. I’m starving…”
“General Lim is already inside…” John murmured. The last time he saw May was when she brought food to Riley and Cobra. He was about to confess his feelings to her, but was not able to, because May was in a hurry to go home and had refused his offer to bring her home.
“Yeah, I know, but the room is already full with the big family. It can be overwhelming for him, so I’ll just go inside a bit later after I recharge myself,” May replied and immediately pulled John by his arm toward the cafe inside the hospital.
May ordered a roast beef sandwich, and so did John. As usual, he would steal glances at May as she ate her lunch heartily. She was really a foodie, and he enjoyed watching May down her food as always.
Jim would often tease him about him liking a gourmand like May. His answer was simple. Because May was not the prim and proper type. She had never cared about etiquette, nor had she bothered about always behaving correctly. She didn’t mind people calling her a glutton. She was so carefree. And that was what attracted him to her.
“Stop looking at me, John, and eat your food. By the way, the last time we met, you said you have something important to tell me? What is it? Tell me now because I will be super busy later and won’t have time to talk to you,” May said nonchalantly.
John drew out a long breath and cleared his throat. Maybe it was time that he got brave and told May how he felt about her. As the saying goes, it was now or never, so he confidently declared, “I like you.”
“Huh?” May looked at him blankly as if his words had not dawned on her.
John met her stare as he repeated, “May, I like you. I mean, I’ve always liked you from the start. And I would like to ask you to be my girlfriend, but I know it’s too soon. I will properly court you and..”
“Stop right there!” May burst out in shock. Her face paled as she murmured, “Oh crap, John… I’m honestly really flattered. I mean, for someone like you to like me. Gosh… I’m really shocked, but let me make things clear as early as now.”
John held his breath as May stared at him. He felt his perspiration forming all over his body. ‘Why do I sense something bad will happen?’ John thought, nervously. He suddenly regretted his directness.
She had a conflicted look all over her face as she continued, “Sorry, John, but I don’t see you like that. I mean, I like you, but only as friends. Not romantically. Definitely not… I’m sorry, John, as I said, I’m flattered, you’re hot, handsome and rich… Honestly, I don’t even know why you stay as Keira’s bodyguard when your family is clearly well off, and you have, you know… Your family owns the security agency where you work…”
John flinched as he defended, “I’m enjoying it. Besides, it’s also because I want to be near you…”
“Oh crap,” May gasped, as she suddenly felt bad for rejecting John straightforwardly. But she did not want to give him false hope. She really did not see John as more than a friend.
“Oh God, John… I’m really sorry, but we are really not meant to be. Trust me. I’m sure you will find a better woman than me… It’s just that ..” May explained as she ran out of words to comfort John, who looked so down at that moment.
“It’s okay, May… I understand. Some things are not meant to be… Can I just excuse myself now? I need to go back soon because Field Marshal Chan had asked me to take care of someone while Madam Keira is still unconscious.” John said, forcing a smile so May would not feel burdened.
John felt like his heart was torn into pieces as he stood up and walked away from May. He went back to Mara’s ward, where she was still unconscious. A doctor was still inside, and after completing his examination, he bid farewell to John, telling him they would be back in around an hour for the test results.
As soon as the doctor left, John sat down in a chair by the bed, laid down his head on the bed, and cried…