Beep... beep...
Inhale... exhale...
Inside a white spacious room, a white bed and a bedridden girl surrounded with medical equipment that were working on full throttle to support her fleeting life was present.
Beep... beep...
Inhale... exhale...
Eyelids gently parted from one another, revealing a pair of marbles resembling the cloudless skies at daylight, although their glow seemed to be on their last leg just like the person who had them.
Beep... beep...
Inhale... exhale...
As the sound of the heart rate monitor and her breathing through the mechanical ventilator permeate the white room, the girl mustered all the strength she could to cast her gaze on her surroundings.
"Things haven't really changed since they put me in here. The white ceiling... the air conditioner on the wall on my right... and the window curtains on my left the nurses would open so I can see the outside from my bed every once in a while. They're all the same."
Needless to say, staying in the same room that felt like a prison, unable to move every part of her body other than her eyes, bored the girl out of her mind.
The only way to help rid herself of boredom was by counting the days where she would wake up and sleep on the same bed, count the number of times they would swap the blanket for her with an identical one, as well as the number of times the nurses would come and help her change her hospital gown with another one.
Though it did help with putting the bedridden girl's mind to something, it did not last long. Much like against her terminal illness, she was powerless against her crippling boredom.
Beep... beep...
Inhale... exhale...
Callisto Mandjet, 15 years old, was the second and youngest daughter of the Mandjet family. Ten years ago, Callisto got diagnosed with an unknown and incurable genetic disorder where a single DNA underwent mutation, spread that mutation to other DNAs in the body, and slowly kill the body from the inside.
It was the same genetic disorder that killed Callisto's older sister, Leona Mandjet at the age of 15 years old.
Just like Callisto, Leona got diagnosed with it when she was 5 years old. That was why, when Callisto's parents learned that she got the same disease, they knew that their youngest daughter's days were numbered.
Eyes fixated on the white ceiling above her, the bedridden girl began reminiscing the past.
Back when she visited a flower garden with her parents and her older sister in a wheelchair, they came across a field of white lotuses, reminding Callisto of her mother's trading company named after it. Then, an idea sprung up her mind.
"Mama, can we buy one of these?"
"Sure thing, Calli."
That time when Callisto's father was having a breakfast with a newspaper in hand, he got surprised by his youngest daughter rushing at him, jumping with excitement.
"Papa! Papa! The new volume of Ezreal just got released today!"
"Is that so? All right, I'll get one for you."
"Thank you!"
Back when they visited a theme park as a whole family, Callisto took interest on the carousel in front of them.
"Leona, look! They're allowing wheelchairs in the carousel! Let's try it!"
"I guess we can try it."
"Have fun, you two."
Knowing that Callisto wasn't long in the world, her parents gave their youngest child everything she asked for and let her do everything she wanted. Everything they did for Leona, they did it for Callisto.
As the memories of the past faded, Callisto thought to herself, "Looking back, I did get all my wishes granted, right? Thanks to Mama and Papa, I can finally go to heaven without regrets..."
A short pause in her thoughts before Callisto erupted internally.
"What am I even thinking?! Am I insane?!"
If Callisto had the ability to move one of her arms right now, she would have struck a blow on her own face for thinking she could now go to kingdom come satisfied.
"I'm sure Leona hit herself in the face for thinking the same thing. Not that I know she did."
There was no way she could just pass on now without regrets. After all, she still had one more wish yet to be granted.
Door creaking...
"Be careful, everyone. Right now she's as fragile as glass."
"Yes, Doctor Mandjet."
Two doctors and some nurses, all of which were wearing a scrub suit, entered Callisto's room, slowly and carefully transferring her to a wheeled stretcher so they could take her to the operating room.
Callisto muttered in her thoughts, "Papa said the same thing to Leona back then. The chance of the operation working is one in a million."
Before long, they managed to take Callisto to the operating room without problems.
"It's a very slim chance, but it's more than enough for me."
Callisto thought it was a shame that the operation didn't go the way her elder sister would have hoped for. The bedridden girl was also certain that she would not hear the end of it once Callisto's mother realized that her daughter gave consent to her father to perform the operation in secret, given what happened in the past.
However, Callisto had a wish. And she would do whatever it takes to make that wish come true.
"The mutated DNA is ready. We can begin anytime, Raymond."
"Thank you, Phillip."
All the necessary tools, equipment, and the manpower to perfom the operation were in place. All that was left was Callisto. And so, one of the doctors named Raymond approached the girl.
With a gentle voice, he asked, "Are you ready, Calli?"
In response to Raymond's question, Callisto's eyes blinked twice, signaling the doctor to start the operation.
"Let's begin."
The other doctor nodded at Raymond. "Beginning the Mutated DNA Fusion on Callisto."
As the world around her went dark and her consciousness slowly drifting away, Callisto fervently asked god, "Please, if you are real, make my one last wish come true. Let me live."
.
.
.
Several days had passed since Callisto underwent the operation. Though for her, the feeling of losing and regaining consciousness felt more like a blink of an eye.
"So bright... is this... am I in heaven? Wait, no..."
No, she was not in heaven. The longer she looked, the more it became clear that the white scenery before her was none other than the same white ceiling from last time. From her point of view, the air conditioner mounted on the wall on her right was present. To her left, the curtains that were usually left closed were fully opened, giving way for the glow of the outside to meet her gaze and the white room. The familiar view brought her to an obvious conclusion.
"I'm back in my room."
A sense of relief was felt, knowing that her initial thought was wrong. Then, as she lifted herself to sit, Callisto gave the palm of her white hands a good look.
"... I'm not dreaming, right?"
Far too well, Callisto remembered how the two doctors, one of which was her father and the other his friend, transferred her to a wheeled stretcher with the help of the nurses who came along with them as they brought her to the operating room to perform the operation her father's friend called the Mutated DNA Fusion. That was how she figured out the answer to her own question.
"I'm alive."
A joyful smile spread across her face, tears flow down her cheek like serene rivers, a pair of cup-shaped ears overhead perked up and a fluffy tail from behind her wagged with vigor as the oblivious Callisto slowly came to terms with reality.
The reality in which her wish came true, but with a little bit of twist.