Andrie carefully seated himself in the passenger seat. Azora couldn’t help but grimace at his cautious movements. It was all pointless anyway, since he would just be taking her back to prison.
She noticed him adjusting in the front seat, so she closed her eyes. She was defeated.
“Have you realized that you love making dumb decisions, Azora?” he asked as he settled into the driver’s seat.
She felt his gaze on the side of her face but didn’t flinch. She didn’t open her eyes or respond to his question.
Dumb decision?
She wanted to smirk. She knew. She could feel that she had a knack for making pointless decisions. She didn’t think. She didn’t weigh the pros and cons, as long as she saw a benefit for herself, but in the end, it never paid off. Maybe her decision-making skills were getting rusty. She sighed.
She felt the car start moving. Her shoulders slumped even further. There really was no escape from the Clasisos. After this escape attempt, she wouldn’t get another chance.
“It’s because…” she thought to herself.
She should have joined marathons before; then she would have had better stamina to run fast. There should have been a chance for her to get away, but in her current state, she doubted if she could escape.
“Your knees are bleeding,” Andrie said.
That’s when she opened her eyes and glanced down at her knees. Her dress’s hem was raised, revealing her bleeding knees from the wounds she got when she fell on the cement road. Azora winced. That was the only time she registered the stinging pain in her knees.
She sighed deeply and closed her eyes again. She didn’t want to blame herself anymore because she had been blaming herself for her misfortune since earlier.
“Open the compartment. There’s a first aid kit there,” Andrie instructed.
She furrowed her brow with her eyes closed. Why was that guy nagging so much? She sighed again.
“Azora,” Andrie called out, his tone carrying a hint of threat. “Open the compartment and get the first aid kit out,” he ordered.
“Don’t boss me around,” she retorted irritably, folding her arms. She kept her eyes closed. “If you want it, get it yourself.”
“I’m driving.”
“Then let’s forget that kit and never mention it,” she sighed again. “As if you care.”
Andrie fell silent. She opened her eyes and glanced at him with a furrowed brow. He was staring straight ahead with a serious expression, his grip tight on the steering wheel.
She looked away, focusing on the road ahead. She frowned when she realized the car wasn’t heading back to the Clasisos’ mansion.
“Where are we going?” she asked, genuinely curious, turning to look at him again. His expression hadn’t changed from earlier, making her unsure of what he was thinking.
“Hospital,” he replied curtly.
“Really?” She looked ahead. “You’re taking me to the hospital?” she chuckled sarcastically, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
She saw Andrie furrow his brow from the corner of her eye. “I’ll let them check your wound, then I’ll drop you at the nearest police station. You can ask them to send you back to Alibata’s place.”
Azora raised an eyebrow, still skeptical of his words. She decided to keep her mouth shut and stared out the window.
Darkness dominated outside the car, with only the occasional streetlight and the car’s headlights illuminating the surroundings. She noticed lights coming from houses not too far away. She thought they were driving on a cemented road through rice fields.
There were still rice fields in South Cebu traversed by motorists heading north. But it wasn’t the coastal road, so it was likely not a main road they were on.
Before long, Azora spotted something in the distance-a sparkling hospital amidst the darkness. It was a large building, standing alone. The bright lights outside made several ambulances visible, ready for action. There were also guards stationed at the hospital entrance.
She turned to Andrie, who was silently driving beside her. He didn’t say anything, but she noticed his grip on the wheel had loosened. He didn’t seem as angry anymore. She wanted to speak up but couldn’t think of anything to say at that moment. She kept her lips sealed and focused her attention on the hospital ahead.
Andrie pulled the car into the parking lot. When the car stopped, she didn’t hesitate to open the passenger door and swiftly exit the vehicle. She heard the driver’s door open and close but didn’t pay it any mind.
She looked up at the towering hospital building as the passenger door closed. Perhaps due to adrenaline, she managed a few steps, but before reaching the entrance, her knees gave out completely.
She almost stumbled and nearly kissed the concrete pavement if Andrie hadn’t swiftly wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her back towards him.
She gasped as the back of her head pressed against Andrie’s firm chest. Her eyes widened feeling the rapid beat of his heart.
She heard him chuckle softly. “Would you like to be careful next time?” he taunted before releasing her.
She scowled at his remark and sighed. She didn’t dignify his comment with a response. It wasn’t worth arguing about. She was somewhat tired but still wanted to know why Andrie had brought her to the hospital. She didn’t believe it was just because of a simple wound.
He guided her towards the hospital entrance. She noticed the guard’s glance but ignored it. When they saw Andrie, they smiled and gave a slight wave. Andrie returned a brief smile to the two guards. Azora couldn’t help but speculate that they knew Andrie and had a good relationship with him at the hospital. She suppressed her thoughts.
“Andrie,” greeted a doctor attending to a patient in the ER. “What brought you here, bro?” He straightened up and looked at her. “And you brought some beauty, huh?” he commented with a smile.
Azora blushed slightly and narrowed her eyes at the doctor. He was looking at her now.
She heard Andrie sigh from beside her. She sighed too, remembering how he had carried her up to the elevated entrance. She had been walking too slowly, so he simply lifted her towards the entrance. She exhaled and pushed that memory aside.
“This is Mikael,” Andrie introduced the doctor to Azora. “Mikael, this is Azora. She has wounds on her knees. I’ll wait outside,” he said abruptly before leaving the ER without another word.
Azora watched his retreating figure with a furrowed brow. She wasn’t sure if he was teasing her or not, so she let herself be led by the doctor’s hand. As far as she knew, Andrie shouldn’t leave her here if he intended to take her back to the Clasisos’ mansion. He probably knew what she was thinking. She could easily escape if she wanted.
“Miss Azora?” called the doctor.
She jerked slightly and looked at him. She hadn’t realized he had approached so close to her. She cleared her throat. “Y-Yes,” she replied and sat on the chair he gestured to.
“The ER beds are full, and I don’t think Andrie intends to dodge this, so I’ll just clean up your knee wound,” he stated matter-of-factly.
“Oh,” she swallowed and glanced up at the doctor standing in front of her. “How about the nurses?”
“Do you see any nurses around?” he asked, scanning the area.
Azora looked around and shook her head. There wasn’t a single nurse in sight. It was quiet, and it seemed like only one doctor was present in the ER that night.
The doctor pulled up a chair and placed it in front of her. He sat down and gently lifted her leg onto his thigh. As he held her leg steady against his thigh, Azora’s cheeks warmed up. Just as she was about to lower her leg, the doctor began cleaning her wound, causing her to bite her lip.
“Are you Andrie’s girlfriend?” the doctor suddenly asked, still focused on her knee as he applied antiseptic.
She grimaced at the sting but eventually answered. “No.”
“Ah,” his voice sounded somewhat disappointed.
Her brow furrowed deeper. “Why?”
The doctor paused briefly but resumed gently dabbing the cotton on her wound. “You’re the first woman he’s introduced to me.”
Azora raised an eyebrow at the doctor’s statement. As far as she knew, Andrie came from the States. Judging by the doctor’s speech and attire, he seemed to have grown up in the country.
“You’re his childhood friend?” she asked.
“Sort of,” he admitted. “We met in the States, but my parents moved back to the Philippines, so we didn’t see each other for a long time.”
Her suspicions grew stronger. “How old are you?” she inquired.
“26.”
Her lips quirked up. “26? How come you’re Andrie’s childhood friend? He’s only around 20 years old.”
The doctor paused for a few seconds at her words before lifting his gaze to meet hers. Azora blinked at the intensity of his gaze, so she smiled and maintained a serious expression, not showing her unease to him.
“You’re something,” the doctor commented.
Before she could respond, he released her leg and took the other one. He placed it on his thigh as well. Azora’s cheeks heated up even more. She really wasn’t comfortable with how he was holding her leg against his thigh. It felt too…
She cleared her throat. “You haven’t answered my question yet,” she said.
The doctor sighed as he continued cleaning her wound. “Andrie didn’t have typical childhood days. He and his twin, Anthony, were always indoors, studying. Our families were friends, so I had the chance to visit them once when I was twelve.”
“So…” Azora lowered her gaze. “You knew Anthony.”
The doctor paused his dabbing momentarily, then smiled faintly and resumed his work. “Yeah,” he said softly.
“How was he back then?” she inquired.
A small smile formed on the doctor’s lips. “He was active, full of life.”
“Really?”
The doctor nodded. “Anthony and I were playmates back then.”
“Playmates when you were twelve?”
The doctor chuckled softly. “You can’t blame me. I didn’t have the chance to enjoy childhood.”
She shrugged. “And then what?”
“We had a great time together.”
“How about Andrie?”
The doctor fell silent for a moment before responding. “Andrie was a sickly boy back in the States.”
“Sickly?”
The doctor nodded. “He often fell ill. He was pale and didn’t know how to smile.”
Azora swallowed. She recalled Andrie, the one who had driven her to the hospital. If what the doctor said was true, that he was frail as a child, how did he become so healthy now?
Esma had mentioned Andrie was an underground fighter. If he was indeed sickly, how did he manage to win fights? How did he lift her without much effort?
She fell into deep thought. But she was brought back to reality when the doctor smiled.
“What?” she asked, puzzled.
“Don’t let the gauze get wet for a day,” he reminded her, gently lowering her leg. “Eat plenty of nutritious food. You’re too thin. And if you have free time, visit a doctor for a check-up. You seem… down.”
She was surprised by his direct comment. The doctor stood up, but before he could move away, she quickly grabbed his arm to stop him. He halted and turned to look at her.
She swallowed. “Is it possible to clone someone?”
The doctor blinked at her question. His brows furrowed slightly before he shook his head gently. “As of now, cloning humans is impossible, if you ask me. But some have successfully cloned animals. Why do you ask?”
She shook her head and sighed. She lowered her hand. “Do you know what happened to Anthony?” she asked.
The doctor avoided her gaze. “Y-Yeah.”
“So you know me, too?”
“Of course.”
“Good,” she nodded and stood up. It was a bit difficult at first, but she managed to keep her balance until she stood straight.
She stared seriously at the doctor. “Is it possible that Anthony is still alive?”