When Eucharia got to the hospital, the man was placed in the emergency unit.
"The injuries are so much ," Maggie said. "And he is in a coma."
Eucharia nodded and tried to calm her nerves. Lily had narrowly escaped collapsing and now she was here to attend to a patient who had actually gone unconscious. She entered the ward alone and headed straight to the man's bed. No nurse was with the patient. Why? This angered Eucharia. Were they waiting for her arrival? So this helpless patient was left alone? She decided that after attending to him, would correct such attitude of negligence. The man lay very still. Eucharia held his palms, they felt cold. She checked his heart beat, he was alive. Having done that, she knew where to start from.
As she was about making stitches for his injuries, the patient made some movements and suddenly held her tight. The strength behind the grip didn't feel like it was from a dying man. Eucharia looked at the man, he was still unconscious. Hope he is not in shock from the after effects of the accident? Eucharia thought, as she struggled to free her hand. She was about calling for help when a sound came.
"Eucharia." The man whispered. How did he know her? Who was he?
"Please leave my hand, you're hurting me." She whispered. Eucharia wanted hitting him, but he was full of injuries, where would she hit him without causing more damage?
That was when the man opened his eyes. She looked into them and was surprised at how calm and blue they looked, didn't look like those of a man who was in pain. She was even more surprised when the said man stared still gripping her hand. Oh… that was when she recognised him. What??
*************
About ten feet from where Eucharia stood staring at the patient, a young medical student named Todd, stood discreetly watching the scene. He came to the hospital about a month ago for his practical exam. Well … he was actually in this particular hospital for a different thing, to look out for what he was seeing now. He would have chosen a different hospital for his practical exams. His mentor had told him to look out for any strange incident in the hospital and get back to him.
"Just look out for something extraordinary, I trust your judgement and get back to me." His mentor had said.
Todd had sensed something unusual when the patient had been rushed in earlier, he was seriously injured but wasn't bleeding as supposed. This didn't make much sense to him. So, he hid behind the back window , facing the patient and stood patiently watching. The patient was still and Todd had been shocked when the so called "injured man" held on the head nurse strongly. Was he trying to kill her? Todd was ready to aid Eucharia, if the patient tried anything. But nothing happened, the nurse just stood staring man.
Todd was relieved. Maybe Eucharia and the man had some unfinished business. He couldn't really see the man's face from where he hid. This was the point he wished he could. Todd didn't wait long enough to see what would happen because, a nurse called him and quietly left his hiding spot to answer the nurse. Todd was definitely updating his mentor with what he had seen.
*********
Lily was dumfounded, maybe she didn't hear her friend right.
"It's the truth Lily," Jane confirmed, looking at her with concern. "I told you now because, we're at home all alone and it's now I remembered."
Lily felt weak. Why would her own mum do this to her? What was she hiding? So after all these years of telling her mum about her weird artwork, she pretended not to know?
"They would all go away. It's just a phase." Her mother had always said as she destroyed the paintings. What was her mum hiding from her?
Jane soothed her hair and rubbed her back slowly trying to calm her down.
"Lily?" Lily just looked at her, angry.
"Do not make that face dear, your mum loves you so much. She doesn't want to upset you, I'm sure you would know at the right time."
"Hmmm." Lily mumbled, too furious to talk, she felt like a fool.
"Really Lily, she was going to tell at the time she felt was best. It's now know these things happening to you are very meaningful."
"I'm just angry she didn't tell me." Lily whispered.
"Yes, it's normal to be angry . But your mum is your mum. She will eventually tell you. Do not tell her I told you. In your quiet time, go through the books in her cupboards, you will definitely see the paintings."
"Or maybe they are the ones I actually painted. She said she would destroy them, maybe didn't end up doing that, could be my mum piled them up in her cupboard. I think it's what you saw her studying. Because, I can't believe my mum would do that."
"Lily, your mum knows the right time to tell you. I know they are not the ones you drew and besides, when did you start drawing the paintings?"
"Four years ago Jane. On my 20th birthday".
"Oh now … do not be surprised, I saw the drawing in her book on the day she called me to the house, in order to prepare a surprise birthday party for you, that was your 18th birthday."
"And you still remembered?"
"The memory will always be fresh due to two reasons. The first being that, it looked like a dragon but had the face of a bear and a rabbit. It was also red coloured. So you can imagine the feeling when I saw it. And my second reason being that, your mum hastily put it in the cupboard when she noticed I was there. She was shocked to see me and obviously didn't want anyone else to see it."
"Wow." Lily said flatly.
"Hope you're okay?" Jane asked, searching her face.
"Yeah .. I'm trying to be. Maybe my mum is protecting me from something. That's what I want to believe."
"Yes, I am sure she is ." Jane was happy that Lily had sort of gotten over it.
"So what am I going to do now?"
"Just what I told you. Do not tell her anything. She should be the one to, at the time she feels is best."
"Okay, thanks Jane. What would I have done without you?"
"Lily, what are friends for?" They smiled, looking at each other fondly.
Two hours later, Lily sat down watching a movie. Jane had gone home, when her mum called. So, was just alone , she wasn't following the movie, her thoughts were elsewhere; in the books inside Eucharia's cupboard. Instincts told her it was the same book she had read. The book she had seen her exact replica. Lily would have loved to see what the paintings we're about, but she wasn't in the right state of mind. She would definitely wait on her mum to tell her everything at the time she was most comfortable with. Lily had to wait patiently. The movie she watched was not interesting, so she turned it off and slept.
Lily suddenly woke up, something had roused her from sleep. It took some time to know that someone was actually ringing the doorbell. Her mum, she thought and hurried to open door. When she opened it, her mum readily engulfed her in a warm hug.
"Baby you look so great, I'm glad." Lily was surprised at the look of joy on her mum. She had never smiled so widely and openly. Eucharia seemed like a teenager. Maybe she's this happy that I'm now okay, Lily thought. But instincts told her that there was more to that. Well … for now, she should be glad that her mum was .
"Thanks mum." She said.
"Baby where's Jane?"
"Her mum called her, she had to go."
"Okay love. Oh … my … bad. I forgot to introduce you to a friend." Lily heard someone come in.
"So, Lily meet Philip and Philip, meet Lily my daughter."
Lily wasn't listening to her mum anymore. Everything stood still. This wasn't possible. She stared in horror at the man who approached her. The man her mother had introduced, was none other, than the smiling man from her dreams, the one who had followed her and Jane at the ice cream shop!