[29th December]
"Ethel! Can you help me search for my necklace in the drawers?" Dylan's mum, my aunt called from the kitchen. "Where are you going?" I inquired, poking my head through the doorway.
"Meeting the in-laws for a bit. I'll be back before you know it." she ruffled my hair when she reached me. I was astounded to discern how sweet they were to Ethel. Perhaps Dylan's threat wasn't conceivable after all.
"Alright. Where is it again?" she gave me a look.
"Ugh, you're always forgetting things!" she stated with a chuckle. "It's the third drawer of my nightstand."
I hummed casually as I rummaged for the necklace where she directed me to. "What necklace? There were several..." I scratched my head and decided to choose the loveliest one.
"Okay-" I stood up to leave but hesitated when I noticed a brown, thin folder slipping out of the first drawer. I opened it by the tiny, golden knob to arrange it evenly in the drawer but the photograph of Ethel on the cover of the envelope caught my eyes.
Hurriedly peeping at the door, I seized it and removed the slip. My eyes grew when I realized what it was reckoned to be.
Ethel's birth certificate.
"Ethel! Did you find it?" my aunt's voice pulled me out of my trance. "I-I think so!" I sneaked the folder under my sweater and raced down the stairs. "Is it this one?" she beamed, nodding proudly. "Yes, it is. Help me put it on."
"O-okay..." I was a neurotic as I attempted to fasten the chain, especially when I sensed her eyes boring into me through the mirror. My eyes were blurring as I tried to put the loop through the hook. I sighed in satisfaction when I eventually made it.
"I think I need contact lenses," I muttered. She turned around with a raised brow. "Where are your glasses? Don't tell me you broke it again." Ethel had glasses? "I think I misplaced it. I'll go look for it later on." she nodded with a hum before stretching for her bag. I observed as she did.
Suddenly, I felt as if the folder was persisting to bent over and form a dubious dent in my sweater so I buckled forward by reflex. "Are you alright?" I immediately said yes. "My trousers were a bit loose," I lied. Oh, they were sweatpants.
"Are you losing more weight? Seriously, eat more! I baked your favorite cake and placed it safely in the fridge! Have some of it while I'm away!" "What about Dylan?" I asked out of curiosity, watching as she slipped her feet into her polite heels.
"He doesn't like cake."
I hummed before hurrying her out of the door. "The in-laws will be mad if you're tardy." she rolled her eyes, hand holding onto the doorknob. "They're always on the TV watching some oldies. They have no sense of time!"
Slamming the bedroom door behind me, I locked it and extracted the folder from under my shirt. I took a seat on the mattress and easily pulled out the records in it. They looked like dull white documents with boring information until my eyes caught on to something so significant and bolded.
Ethan Wang.
My pupils trembled in dismay and terror. What does this mean? Why is the name 'Ethan' on Ethel's birth certificate? Did he really change his name like Nick had stated? Why?
My phone rang on the study table. I lurched off the bed to pick it up on time. "H-hello?"
"Jay just got sent to the ER." my eyes widened at the sudden news.
"I'm on my way to pick you up right now." Nick hung up just like that.
Jay...got transferred to the ER...? my head started spinning and I began to overthink. No, I can't do this. I saw a flash of a pill bottle on Ethel's nightstand and lunged for it. I gulped down a couple without a second thought and down water from the partially empty cup I had in the room. My mind gradually cleared up and I could think straight again. What even was that pill? I studied the prescription.
Antidepressants.
I couldn't even process what that meant as a honk outside alarmed me. I darted around the room for a coat and my phone before running down the stairs. Unlocking the door, I saw Nick's silhouette in the driver's seat. He was tapping on the steering wheel impatiently.
"What happened?!" I directly asked as I jumped into the passenger seat. I hadn't even shut the door yet but he was already pushing onto the accelerator firmly.
"He had a seizure."
My face morphed into horror and I turned to stare at my thighs. I subconsciously began to rock my legs and chew on my lips until they started to bleed. The metallic taste reminded me of Jay's deathly appearance and I squeezed my eyes shut.
Nick noticed. "Ethel," he called rather calmly.
"Jay is strong-willed. He'll survive." at that, tears started to drop down my cheeks. "I can't bear to see him dead, Nick!" I had to gasp for air, my mind beginning to get cloudy again. I should've brought the bottle with me.
[2nd person POV]
Nick gritted his teeth and sped off to the hospital. He didn't mind if he got a speeding ticket. He could pay for it. What matters to him is that you'll get to the hospital to see your lover whose conditions have worsened in time.
Truth to be told, Nick had fallen into this ridiculous love triangle not long after you took over Johnny's body. He fell hard, he didn't even know why. He didn't even know he fancied men until now. Perhaps, he only liked you.
It didn't please him one bit when you and Jay proclaimed your relationship.
In fact, he thrashed his room shortly after he reached home. He tore every piece of paper he laid eyes on with angry tears. He even managed to rip the thin lining of his curtains apart. Nick didn't eat for a couple of days until Silas practically forced him to. But nonetheless, he put on a mask in public and always yearned the best for both of you.
It wasn't that Nick was jolly now that Jay was on the brink of death, no. He didn't feel a hint of glee. He didn't feel like Rikki had finished the job for him. Not even one bit.
Ever since you had uncovered the truth about you being Ethan from the future, Nick started to bear mixed feelings. He'd always wonder if it was Johnny that he had a crush on, or Ethan.
When Ethan asserted with a firm voice that he was only interested in the opposite gender, Nick was somewhat disheartened. He had just started viewing the eldest in a new light.
After some thought, he pushed aside the idea of love and chose to concentrate on the mission at hand. He had also presumed that if the mission was a victory, then you'd connect souls with Ethan while Johnny and Jay would continue on their merry way.
Perhaps your feelings would still linger, but Nick was prepared to make it disappear once it was all over. But there was a sudden turn of events and he no longer knew what was next.
Now that you were in Ethel's body, he started to perceive hope again. However, it was tainted when he saw the tears you shed for Jay.
[1st person POV]
With sharp breaths, I raced into the hospital and followed the paramedics that just happened to pass me with Jay on the portable bed.
"Jay!" I called out but to no avail. I don't know why I expected something. Maybe it was because Jay was the tenuous thread that tied the remnants of my heart together. He became my lifeline, though this wasn't my life, to begin with.
His face was so different from when I first visited in the afternoon. So tranquil and wrinkleless despite his vegetative state, but so unlike now as he was rolled away into the operation room where everyone dreaded. My heart sank when I realized what kind of 'welcome gift' Johnny would wake up to. He'd wished he never returned.
"Please stay outside of the operation room," one of the nurses prevented me from entering the room Jay disappeared into. I observed as the green light overhead the doors turned red, indicating that an operation was taking place.
I whimpered, a tear cascading down my face. "Please stay alive, oh god..." I begged with all the energy I've got.
-
It had been an hour and a half following Jay's departure into the operating scope. My lips were blanched and dry. I've not eaten dinner yet, even. My stomach growled but I had no spirit to move from my seat, not until I knew of Jay's condition.
I understood that the likelihood of him surviving was slim. You could say he was barely hanging on by a thread. But I still desired, deep down that he'd open his eyes and gift us his signature smile again.
"Here," a plastic-wrapped sandwich obstructed my view. I gently shoved it away. "I'm not in the mood," I mumbled. Nick grunted, taking the seat beside me. "You wouldn't want to collapse before the doctor appears, do you?" I provided him a look.
"You are beyond exhausted," he added. I ignored him and continued to stare at the light that had been red for an eternity.
"You think Jay would want to see you like this?"
A string tugged on my heart at the mention of Jay. "Nick, not now please." I gritted my teeth and screwed my eyes shut. "Eat up, you need the energy to stay for another hour because, by the looks of it, it won't end any time soon." Nick sighed heavily, taking a hesitant bite out of his own sandwich. "Did you even eat dinner?" I thought about it.
During our visit after school, we were voting on where to dine in until Nick received a call from someone and announced that he had to leave in an instant. Since it was only the both of us left, Ethan then suggested ordering takeout and going over to my grandma's antique store. Why was he so attached to the shop?
However, he also got a text not long after from his younger sister. "She wants me back home." Ethan pursed his lips. He wasn't that keen on going home yet.
I nodded understandingly, encouraging him to go home and spend time with his family. Heck, he wasn't even with them for his birthday. I ended up not eating even after I've gone home, besides the water I consumed along with the pills. Dinner must've slipped my mind.
"Yeah, water." Nick was not satisfied with my response as he unwrapped the sandwich and guided it to my lips. "Please, eat something."
I sighed and seized it. "Fine." it tasted so insipid and I didn't feel like taking another bite. But Nick was watching me intensely. With a quick glimpse at him, I took another mouthful and gulped with all my might. Oh, the loaf was awfully solid.
"I'm going to visit Johnny," I ached to go too in case he woke up, but I had to be there for Jay. At least until Johnny awakes. "Alright," Nick left his seat and traveled to Johnny's floor.
I glanced at the light which remained bright red. I leaned my head back on the wall with a sigh, dropping the unwanted sandwich in my lap. I was debilitated, but it was no time to rest now.
Peering at my phone, I realized it was already midnight. I nonchalantly tapped my fingers on the chair. Perhaps a quick nap wouldn't hurt. My eyelids started to flutter shut, and I let it.
Then, the light shone green, followed by a loud ping.