PRELUDE: 10000 Hours with You

Heaven Ace de Torres, a young lady from the Philippines who lived in a remote area of Pangasinan province. She is a 26-year-old woman. She works at St. Luigi Orione Grade School as a special education teacher. She had a self-sufficient and humble existence, although she was also a bit reckless at times. Since her sophomore year of college, she has already had a cold and silent boyfriend named Royce Edge Sullivan, who is a responsible and loving guy too. Edge works as an engineer for Lennox Builder and Architectural in Manila, a well-known construction company in the country. They've been through a lot of trouble in their seven years together, especially during their college days, with Edge having secret conversations with many girls and Heaven having problems in her personal life. Some people thought they were a boring couple because they were perfect opposites and always fought about little things, but little did they know that being opposites made them a perfect couple to keep the relationship going. They thought the worst part of their relationship was misunderstandings, a lack of time and attention because they both had duties and responsibilities at work and in their families, but then things came up very quickly, challenging their relationship once more.

Heaven recently visited the hospital for a checkup because, lately, she has been feeling sick and tired, maybe because she is exhausted from her work and has a bad feeling about Edge that makes her feel doubtful about her partner again by not seeing him for a week because of his work in Manila. Her last hospital examination upset her and urged her to see Edge for a specific reason: their relationship was on a dead-end trail.

"Miss Heaven, I have bad news for you." The doctor said.

"What is it, Doc?" I asked.

"You have a problem with your uterus." The doctor carefully said.

I was too confused to say anything to him.

"As we run some tests on your uterus, you have signs that your ovaries have many cysts." He explained.

"W-what do you mean, Doc?" I confusedly asked.

"Does your family have a history of having PCOS, commonly known as polycystic ovary syndrome?" The doctor asked.

"What is that PCOS thing, Doc?" I confusedly asked.

"Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a condition in which the ovaries produce an abnormal amount of androgens, male sex hormones that are usually present in women in small amounts. The name polycystic ovary syndrome describes the numerous small cysts (fluid-filled sacs) that form in the ovaries. However, some women with this disorder do not have cysts, while some women without the disorder do develop cysts." He explained.

"From what I remember, my aunt on my mother's side died of a cyst on her uterus, so I assumed my family had a history of having PCOS," I answered carefully.

The doctor looked tense as he looked down at the result of the examination all over my body and then looked back at me.

"What is the result of my examination, Doc?" I nervously asked him.

"Sorry to say this Miss Heaven, but you are positive of having PCOS based on the physical tests and signs that you had." He sadly mumbled.

I was too shocked to react to anything and speechless to say something because that was the worst thing I heard in my whole life like I was already losing important things to go on.

"Women with PCOS are more likely to develop certain serious health problems. These include type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, problems with the heart and blood vessels, and uterine cancer. Women with PCOS often have problems with their ability to get pregnant (fertility)." He added.

"W-what? You mean I will die soon?" I utterly spoke to him.

"There is a possibility, but the only thing is that you may not be able to carry your own child because of your illness. I'm so sorry, Miss Heaven." He apologized.

I just cried and cried and more. Thinking it was just a nightmare that I needed to wake up so soon and live my real world.

"What should I do? How will I tell them about this? I don't know how to tell Edge?" I asked myself about this nightmare. "Should I tell him that I will end our relationship, or hide and tell him a lie to save my ass? God, what should I do?" I asked while looking at the cross in the chapel of the hospital.

The result of her examination was that the doctor announced that she had PCOS and she may not be able to carry her own child in the future. She was torn between telling him the truth about her condition and causing a major breakup in their relationship, but her decisions were both hurting them and leading to their permanent separation. The next day, she calmed herself by thinking positively and about how everyone, especially her family and Edge, had given her the bad news. Heaven didn't want to lose him and their relationship, but she didn't have a choice; she needed to make a decision as soon as possible. Hurting him with a lie is the best way for him to move on, but not for her. And there is also another problem. Heaven and Edge intend to marry on her 27th birthday and start a family, but there is something that prevents them from exchanging vows. She had a million thoughts before deciding to pay a visit to her boyfriend in Manila. She wanted to talk to him first before telling her family.

Heaven spoke up to Edge about breaking him up because she decided that she wanted to end her relationship with him because of her illness, but the guy didn't want it either because she couldn't tell him why. Edge told Heaven to spend her last 10000 hours with him as a deal to Heaven as he found himself, someone, to be his next partner before they were letting go of their relationship. Edge decided to make Heaven last 10000 hours more memorable to both of them without finding himself someone that Heaven wanted him to do. What could happen if Heaven told him in the first place about her condition? Would Edge let her go that day rather than stay with her? What will Edge do if he finds out about her condition? And what do you think will happen to their lives after 10000 hours?