Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Cam
“ O kay, okay!” I slapped the button to shut off my alarm clock and sighed. I’d already delayed getting up for fifteen minutes. The sooner I got this over with, the sooner I could go to the beach.
Dragging myself out of bed, I plopped into my desk chair and woke up my laptop. I went through the responses to my job applications one by one, addressing follow-up questions and portfolio requests and sending my schedule availability for interviews.
I had two interviews coming up, so I needed to practice with Nikki and Eric ASAP. To cover my bases, I applied for a couple of short-term projects and another full-time opportunity. There were more openings in Manila, but I wasn’t desperate enough to purse that option yet.
I crossed my fingers that I never would be. The mere thought of the city brought back memories of my happiest moments in college along with the worst moments in my life. Memories of being mocked and bullied because I was considered inferior, unworthy , by virtue of my background.
My so-called friends had brought me up only to tear me down. I’d had to rebuild myself piece by piece in this place that I’d escaped to. My haven.
“Cam!” Inang called from the living room.
I got up and hurried out to find her hunched over on the sofa, clutching her chest. My heart pounded as I ran to her side. “What happened? Are you okay?” Fingers trembling, I checked her pulse. It seemed abnormally fast, and her skin felt clammy to the touch.
“Can’t breathe,” she gasped.
Cursing, I racked my brain for what to do in case of—what was this, a heart attack? Why hadn’t I prepared for this? “You’re going to be okay, Inang,” I told her as calmly as I could. “Just—continue breathing. In, out. Hold on, let me get my phone.”
Running to my room, I grabbed my phone. I should have dialed 911, but in my panic, I called Eric instead. Luckily, he picked up after two rings. “Eric! Inang’s having a hard time breathing,” I told him as I sat beside Inang and stroked her back. “Can you bring us to the clinic?”
“I’ll be there in ten,” he said before hanging up.
He made it in seven minutes—thank God, he had a car. Since Juana didn’t have a hospital, we debated driving to the nearest town. But Inang insisted on going to the local clinic, saying that doctor already had her records.
When we arrived, the nurse recognized her and attended to her right away.
“You have hypertension?” I asked Inang after her condition had stabilized and the doctor explained what happened. “Why didn’t you tell me you were diagnosed last year?”
“I didn’t want you to worry,” she said from the hospital bed, where she was hooked to an IV.
Of course I’d worry , I stopped myself from snapping in fear of raising her blood pressure.
The doctor had said she was prescribed medication to help control her condition, but she admitted to not taking the pills.
It wasn’t hard to figure out why. Maintenance meds added to her recurring expenses, which she already struggled to cover.
As Eric and I waited at the billing area, I said, “Thanks for coming so quickly.”
“Of course,” he said. “I guessed there was something wrong when you called out of the blue.”
The cashier passed the bill to me. My stomach lurched at the amount reflected there. It would wipe out half of my savings, and it didn’t even include her meds. I didn’t know how much money Inang had, but I knew it wouldn’t be enough.
“I’ve got this,” Eric murmured, pulling out his phone.
“I’ll pay you back.”
“Don’t,” he insisted as he scanned the QR code to pay. “You’re still looking for a job. Let me help.”
I agreed because I wouldn’t be able to afford Inang’s meds otherwise. “Thank you, Eric.”
Shaking his head, he nudged his knee against mine. “Stop that. You’d do the same for me.”
No arguments there. My friends had given me hope and happiness when I thought I’d never experience both again. They’d given me a home. I would do whatever I could to take care of them, even if it meant swallowing my pride.
Alonzo
When I walked into my first class of the second semester, my classmates who’d barely said hello to me previously headed my way. I smothered a sigh and arranged my mouth into a smile.
“Lonzo!” Tommy slung his arm around my shoulders. “How was your break?”
“Good. How about yours?”
“Not as good as yours was. Dude, why didn’t you tell us you knew Jason Meyer?”
Rico, one of Tommy’s friends, joined us. “You’re almost brothers now, aren’t you?”
I chuckled and tried to play it casual. “Not exactly.”
“He’s marrying your sister, right?” Tommy asked. “Damn, your family won the jackpot. You don’t even need to be a lawyer anymore—the guy can hook you up with anything you want.”
“I prefer to earn what I have,” I said lightly. “And I actually want to be a lawyer.”
Rico shrugged. “I get what Tommy’s saying. Why put yourself through three more years of this when you don’t have to?”
“You could make a fortune selling signed merch,” Tommy suggested. “You know, go the business route. Bet that would impress your girlfriend.”
My smile almost faltered. They’d met Dani a few times, and she must have left an impression on them, as she always did.
Before I could come up with a response, I heard Miggy saying, “Santos is coming up behind me.”
Tommy and Rico scampered away at the mention of our professor’s name. Miggy and I sat on the third row from the back.
Looping his bag’s straps around the back of the seat, Miggy asked, “You good?”
“Yeah. You saved me there,” I whispered as I pulled out my notebook. “Thanks.”
A few seconds later, our professor strolled inside the classroom.
Miggy held out his fist to me, and I met it with mine. “Good luck.”
Ready or not, this was my fresh start. Time to give it everything I had.