“All night long, Veronica couldn’t stop thinking about what Darwin said about his stepmother. Veronica’s inner thoughts continued to churn. A dilemma arose within her – should she follow Darwin’s advice to reconcile or stick to her decision to maintain distance, or if possible, continue to pretend that Cristina doesn’t exist in her life.
Distracted and lost in thought since waking up, Darwin noticed and was puzzled. He finally spoke up, inquiring about his wife’s state.
“Ve, what’s bothering you? You’ve been silent for a while now,” the man asked curiously.
Veronica looked up, smiled faintly, and then shook her head.
“It’s nothing,” she replied briefly, continuing her breakfast.
Now, Darwin smiled. He reached out for Veronica’s free hand and held it gently. Even though they had only been together for a few years, he seemed to understand what was going on with his wife.
“Why? Are you still thinking about Mama Cristina?”
At that moment, Veronica looked up again, gazing intently at her husband, and shortly thereafter, she confirmed what he had guessed. There was no point in denying it or pretending otherwise, as it seemed her husband had already figured it out.
“Why hold onto grudges without reason, Ve? Instead of hostility, why don’t you slowly open your heart and build a good relationship with Mama Cristina?”
“It’s not that easy, Win.”
“It’s not easy because you’ve never tried. Just like how I used to dislike you so much. But, after slowly opening my heart, I discovered many good things about you. And I think the same could happen with Mama Cristina. What’s so hard about giving her a chance while there’s still time?”
Veronica fell silent once again. Darwin’s words occupied her thoughts entirely. As she continued to weigh her options, her husband suddenly got up and extended his hand, leaving Veronica confused.
“Why?” she asked.
“Instead of you being constantly puzzled, how about keeping me company?”
Veronica’s brow furrowed even more.
“Keep you company this early in the morning?”
“Yes. I haven’t visited Mama Cristina yet. Since it’s a holiday, there’s no harm in paying her a visit. Will you come with me?”
“But, Win-”
“Come on, darling. If not you, then who else should accompany me?”
In the end, Veronica didn’t refuse. After changing clothes, they both hurriedly left. They made a quick stop at a fruit and pastry store before continuing on to the hospital.
Upon reaching their destination and standing in front of the room, Veronica could see her father, who seemed to be engaged in a serious conversation with the doctor in charge of Cristina. From their conversation, Veronica could hear what they were discussing.
“To avoid any delays, it would be advisable for Mrs. Cristina to undergo heart surgery with stent placement or bypass surgery. With this operation, her condition will significantly improve,” the doctor explained.
“Is my wife’s condition really that severe, doctor?”
“It’s not categorized as severe, but it’s serious enough to warrant caution. To prevent further deterioration, I recommend the surgery.”
Damian nodded. Shortly thereafter, he spoke again.
“If I were to refer and take my wife for surgery abroad, is that possible, doctor?”
“It’s possible,” the doctor replied confidently. “I can provide a recommendation letter. Then, Mr. Damian, you can choose which hospital to go to.”
“I’d like to take my wife for treatment in Singapore. According to the doctor, when can I take her out?”
“This afternoon is possible, Mr. Damian. I’ll reevaluate her condition once more. If there are no complications, I’ll prepare the recommendation letter, and you can then promptly take Mrs. Cristina to the chosen hospital. But, please contact the doctors there in advance.”
“I’ll take care of the hospital arrangements, Doc. Please inform me as soon as my wife is ready to be taken.”
After concluding their conversation, Damian, noticing Veronica and Darwin’s presence, immediately greeted them. He was glad to see both of them at the hospital to visit.
“Aren’t you coming in?” Darwin asked before entering the room.
“I’ll stay out here. You go ahead and meet Mama Cristina.”
“Alright then. You wait here for a moment. We’ll take turns if that’s the case.”
While Darwin and her father entered the room, Veronica chose to sit alone in front of the room. She continued to be lost in her thoughts, not realizing that 30 minutes had passed by. Darwin, perhaps finished with his visit to Cristina, emerged from the room. He approached Veronica and took a seat beside her.
“Don’t you want to see Mama Cristina? She’s going to Singapore this afternoon, and the day after tomorrow, she’ll undergo surgery. Not wishing anything bad, but we never know what might happen afterward.”
Veronica turned to him, her gaze filled with questions.
“What do you mean, Win?”
“What I mean is that while there’s still time to meet and talk, you should take that opportunity. You can’t be sure that you’ll have the chance to chat or talk again tomorrow or the day after.”
Veronica fell silent again. She sighed deeply and then bowed her head once more. It seemed incredibly difficult for her to soften her heart and follow Darwin’s advice.
“Come on, Ve. What’s wrong with being big-hearted? Besides, Mama Cristina didn’t do anything wrong to you originally. So, why have you treated her like an enemy? Even if you don’t want to accept her as your stepmother, at least show some support for her upcoming treatment. It may be a small gesture, but it means a lot to her.”
Veronica still remained silent, processing all of Darwin’s words from earlier. After a while, she stood up abruptly. Without saying much more, she walked into the treatment room.
Inside, she found her father, who had been faithfully accompanying Cristina, displaying his affection as if they didn’t want to be apart.
“Darling,” Damian greeted when he saw his daughter enter the room. “Do you want to talk to Mama Cristina?”
Whether consciously or not, Veronica nodded. While wanting to give her daughter some privacy, Damian chose to leave the room, allowing Veronica to be alone with Cristina.
“Veronica,” Cristina greeted with a smile. “Thank you for coming to visit. Mama is happy to see you here.”
Veronica nodded without uttering a single word. She was still unsure of how to speak to her stepmother.
“Mama is sure you already know that Mama will be moving to a hospital in Singapore this afternoon and undergoing surgery the day after tomorrow. Before I go, I want to apologize to you. I’m sorry if I haven’t been a good mother to you all this time. I apologize because my presence has disrupted your life and even caused a rift with Papa. I swear, I never intended to take Papa Damian away from you.”
From her eyes, Veronica could see how Cristina spoke so softly. Her stepmother’s eyes even appeared to be teary.
“Throughout all this time, Mama is aware that I’ve made many mistakes towards you. I apologize. I’m not expecting you to accept me. But, you should know that all this time, Mama genuinely loves you like my own child.”
Struggling to contain herself, Veronica’s defenses finally crumbled. She stepped closer and unexpectedly, for the first time, tightly embraced Cristina’s frail body. She cried there for a moment, releasing all the mixed emotions she had been feeling.
“I’m sorry too, Ma.”
Those were the only words Veronica could muster. The rest of her feelings were expressed through tears until she felt relieved, slowly letting go of the hug.
“You don’t need to apologize. You haven’t done anything wrong here. Mama hopes that after today, our relationship can be much better than before.”
Veronica nodded and once again threw herself into Cristina’s embrace. In her lifetime, she had never felt such relief in her heart. It was as if the heavy burden that had piled up had now evaporated. It was replaced by happiness and relief beyond measure.