Chapter 2

Raiko

LIFE IS FULL OF UNEXPECTED TWISTS AND TURNS. I graduated high school with my girlfriend Kiara and my friends. We got to the best universities in the city, and we're doing good with our chosen degrees. Everything was fine and happy, but one day, it changed.

One day, Kiara was rushed to the hospital. I skipped my last class that day, worried about what had happened to her. When I got to the hospital, I saw Carly too. She looked at me and held my hand, telling me everything would be alright.

"Kiara is diagnosed with bone cancer. She needs treatment immediately."

She was diagnosed with cancer, but that cancer got even worse than better. She had it when she was in her teens but couldn't figure it out. That explains the sudden pains in her joints and her exhausted breaths in our PE class.

When I heard that, I left and cried in the chapel. I can't take it; losing Kiara is hard. She has been my partner and my love for the past years. She is my everything. Carly also followed and cried with me. Kiara has been a good friend to her, and we both can't take it when she dies.

Months of treatment went by, Kiara is still not okay. She is on Stage 3 and is losing her hair. She keeps smiling, but her face can't hide the pain she is suffering.

"Love, I know you're having a hard time balancing your classes and me. It's your first year, but you're here with me." She said while I was busy watching her after her session.

"I wanted to be there with you after your chemotherapy sessions. I wanna make sure you're fine." I assured her.

She sighed while looking at herself on the photo she took with Carly. "I look different now. I feel like I'm slipping away any minute now."

"Stop saying that," I said as I held her hand. "You will be fine, and you'll be outta here. We'll finish college, right?"

"What if I'm not? You know how hard it is every session, seeing my parents crying before entering that room.

Watching you and Carly being sad because of my condition and seeing you here with me instead of enjoying your first

year in college." She said while tears started streaming on her face. I understand why she's breaking down like this.

I left the hospital with a heavy heart. Hearing Kiara saying it made me lose hope, but I can't. I'm her boyfriend, and I must be strong for her. But sometimes, I tend to break down, and only one person can help me. As I was sipping my coffee, Carly seated beside me.

"How's Kiara? Is she okay?" She asked.

I hugged her. Knowing I was starting to cry again, she started patting my back. "She's getting worse, Carl. Kiara is getting worse..."

"Hey! Something happened? Or wrong? Why? I thought she's going to be fine with her medication and therapies." Carly started to panic.

"I can't take it Carl. If I'll lose her, I don't know what to do."

And I stayed there in Starbucks, not to drink coffee and unwind, but to cry in my best friend's embrace. I'm not sure what will happen tomorrow, but I hope it's not the worst.

The next day, I woke up to the sound of my phone. I picked it up with my sleepy state without realizing who was calling. Then it turned out it was Kiara's mom. She's crying. "Kiara is in the ER... She's not waking up."

As soon as I heard that, I went downstairs and checked for my cousin's motorcycle. He won't use this tomorrow since he has his car. I then rushed to the hospital. As I got there, Kiara's mom approached me with tears on her face.

"Kiara won't wake up. The doctors said she was in a coma, and no one could explain why she is in that situation. They're all useless! My daughter!!!" Kiara's mom went hysterical, and I calmed her down.

When the nurses brought her to the ICU, her mom went with her. I just waited for some stuff they left in her room. As I was packing, I saw a jar of pills thrown inside a garbage can and a crumpled photo of my and Carly's. I picked it up, and there in the images were words.

I'm sorry, Carly. I took him away from you.

- Kiara

I'm sorry, love, I'm false. I'm an impostor.

- Kiara

Those words made me wonder what she meant by this. If only she's awake by now and not in a coma. The doctors then confirmed that Kiara nearly committed suicide due to anxiety and depression. The tests show she overdosed on pills or drugs. I felt like I was a useless boyfriend because I never did something to ease her burden. Those pills she took nearly took her life. She barely survived, and the doctors hoped for a miracle to happen to her.

"So she nearly killed herself?" Carly asked me when she went to the hospital after her class.

"The jar of pills and the results are stating she committed suicide. I felt useless Carl." I told her.

"You are not! You were the one who is with her the entire time. You believed she'll be okay. You fought with her too!"

"But I never sensed that this would happen. She started to keep secrets from me. She became more moody and worse telling me that I'm not doing enough."

Carly started hugging me again. "No!! Always remember that you did your best as a boyfriend to her. She is depressed that's why she did that. Let's just pray that she'll recover from this."

I hugged her. "What can I do without you Carl... I don't know why this is happening to her, to us."

"God has plans, okay?"

I just hugged her tight. She has been my best friend ever since high school. When Kiara and I became official, she was there with me. She always told me that Kiara was the best girl for me. That's why I matched her with my cousin so that I'll be fine seeing her happy with him. Carly is my one and only best friend.

She's more than just a best friend to me. She's more like a family...