Fan Fiction |
by Mimosa
Ada peeled the little sticker off the monitor with a sigh, and dialed the oversea number... The line was picked up almost immediately.
“Jessica Hsuan speaking!”
“Hello, this is Ada Choi from HKU, I’m working for Dr. Lo and Dr. Cheung! I’ve just sent you the new model of the valve earlier!”
“Oh thank you for calling back Ada. I do have some details I want to verify with you before I have the prototype made… First of all...”
“Dr. Hsuan,” Ada interrupted the other unceremoniously “First I must tell you I’m not the author of that model…”
“Oh!” At the other end of the line, Jessica’s voice showed a faint hint of annoyance “May I speak to the author then?”
“I’m afraid you can’t, Dr. Hsuan!” Ada took a deep breath “He’s still undergoing a surgery as we speak!”
“Gallen?” The other voice deemed with vivid concern “Why did he need another surgery? I thought his wound is improving? Tell me Ada, please!”
“Well, he’s been too active for the wound on his spinal disc to heal properly…” Ada shook her head in dismay “He kept on coming to the lab when we’re not watching, working on that latest model as you could see…”
======================================================================================================================
[Queen Mary Hospital]
“I swear I’ll give him a good smack on his stupid head when he comes round!” Nick paced out of Dr. Chu’s office with heavy step, seething through his teeth. “Stupid!”
“Nick Gor…” Nick stopped just in time not to crash into the two petite girls in front of him “Flora, Annie?”
“What did Dr. Chu say, Nick Gor?” The girls asked in identical weary tone
“If you’re looking for something positive, then I don’t have anything to tell you!” Nick said sulkily “Blame that hard-headed brother of yours, Annie! I told him not to do so! Now he’d just simply eliminate his chance of standing up and walking again!”
Flora covered her ears, but that didn’t help the thing she heard to be not true.
======================================================================================================================
[3 weeks later – Lo’s residence]
[Gallen's room]
“Dai Gor,” Annie stuck her head in without waiting for her brother to reply “Are you ready?”
Gallen didn’t answer. Annie frowned, and stepped fully into the room “What are you doing?”
“Annie,” Gallen finally spoke without looking up “You go ahead, I don’t think I want to come!”
“What are you talking about?” Annie shook her head “You promised Flora Jie you could come! You don’t want to break your words, do you?”
“You don’t have to tell her that I’m not coming, just tell her I’ll be there, late!”
“Now you want me to lie for you?” Annie rolled her eyes “You’re getting worse and worse, Dai Gor!”
“Annie, please!” He lifted his eyes “I just don’t feel like coming!”
“Okay, then you stay home and…” She glanced at the pencil on his hand “have fun drawing!” Annie sighed “I’ll tell them you’re not feeling well, and you’ll stop by once you feel better!”
“Thank sis!”
Annie cast another weary glance at her brother before closing the door behind her. Gallen waited until Annie’s footsteps diminished at a distance, before dropping his head into his hands. The sheet of paper on his lap fell down onto the floor, from the sketch Flora’s adorable face smiled at him, brightly.
But Gallen simply couldn’t return that smile!
Tonight was the last night Flora remained in HK. She’d fly back home tomorrow to have her surgery done.
And he had promised her to come to the farewell party the group had prepared for her. But now Gallen didn’t know what he should do anymore. He was caught in a web of entangled feelings. He felt lost… He felt helpless!
He wheeled the chair back a little and tried to fetch the sketch on the floor. But a breeze from the open window had just blown it away a little out of his reach. Gallen felt yet another bitter pang of reality. He could hardly take care of himself now…
How would he ever bring her happiness? He loved her… He couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her … Yet he’d rather leave her than become a burden of her life.
Flora was so young, so talented.
Life was still ahead of her. The operation would certainly be successful. He’d worked very hard to ensure that. He believed she would be saved from that horrid heart disease. She would have a long, happy life to live after that.
And he didn’t want to ruin that beautiful life of hers!
“Don’t be so selfish to decide everything yourself!” His better self told him “Let her have her choice!”
“But I don’t want her to pity me!” His other self argued stubbornly “What if she’s only staying with me because she pities me?”
“So you don’t trust her love?”
“We fell in love just 10 days after we met… We’d just been together for not even a month… She will forget!”
“What if she doesn’t want to give up?”
“That’s not fair for her!”
“What you’re doing is not fair for her either! What if she truly loves you?”
“I just know Flora deserves someone better than me!”
“Cut that crap! You know she loves you!”
“She loves my former me! The one who could stand up and walk into the ER everyday to save people, not this cripple me!”
“It’s not for you to say! You have to let her say it!”
“I can’t! I can’t ruin her life! I don’t want to!”
He flung his arms, and sent the pencil flying into the far corner of the room. Leaving the sketch on the floor, he wheeled his chair toward the door…
============
[Down stair]
“Son, why didn’t you change?” Mrs. Lo looked at her son with a frown “Did you see the suit I left on your bed?” She rose to go check, when Gallen stopped her
“Mom, I saw it, thank you. But I don’t need it tonight!”
“But are you going to the party? And why didn’t you let Annie and Kevin drive you?”
“I’ll see you later Mom!” Gallen hastened to leave the conversation. He wheeled himself swiftly out of the door and disappeared. Mrs. Lo stood at her place, frowning deeper.
======================================================================================================================
[Fantasy Palace]
“Good evening Lo Siu Ye, what brought you here?” the old manager greeted him warmly “Your father sent you to check on us again?”
“How’s the wedding tonight, uncle Tsui?” He asked just for the sake of asking “What time will they be done?”
“As usual,” Tsui looked at the young owner curiously “We always rent out the hall until 11 at night, unless they specify a later time! But why, you need the hall later?”
“No…” He lowered his eyes “I’m just asking, uncle Tsui!”
“You’re not quite yourself today, son! Are you okay?”
“No… I meant yes, I’m fine…” He looked blankly around “May I stay here for a while?”
“Of course Gallen! It’s your place after all. Would you like something to drink?”
He kept silent for a while, gazing at the piano at the other end of the splendidly decorated hall. Memories rushed back…
“Gallen? Gallen!”
“Oh, yes… What did you say?
“I asked you whether you want something to drink!”
“Lemonade…” The word slipped from his reminiscence
“Sure!”
The flowers, the guests, the musics… were all fading away… In his mind he had the exquisite ballroom all for himself again, where Flora’s beautiful face reappeared, vividly, adoringly.
There on top of the piano, she was blushing deep…
He smiled. The first contented smile since so many days… He felt good drowning in those sweet films of memories… He had fought back, had tried to be tough… But what would be the use of being tough here tonight, or any other night after this?
She wasn’t here… And after tonight, she would not be a part of his life anymore.
From the other side of the world, she blew into his life like an ocean wind, revived his frozen heart, and forced it to feel the stir of love again…
He cherished her like no other!
But that precisely why he would have to let her go!
======================================================================================================================