As if on cue, the damn man noticed me. With a smirk, he wrapped an arm around Auntie’s waist and flashed me a triumphant, mocking wink.
There was a time when Auntie never left my side in a hospital. Even the smallest scratch would make her fuss over me, bandaging my wounds and soothing my pain.
Yet now? She knew I couldn’t swim, knew I had claustrophobia and knew how close I came to dying, but still, she chose to save him first.
A bitter smile tugged at my lips. Yet, beneath the surface, the pain began to ease, replaced by a strange, quiet calm. The turmoil in my heart subsided. It made me able to look at them without flinching.
Finally, Auntie noticed me. Her expression frosted over as she stood to shut the door in my face.
I stepped forward and stopped her.
“Auntie,” I said softly, “whatever happened, I just want to say to you that tomorrow, for your birthday, I’ll be at home waiting for you. Consider it my last request. Can you grant me this?”
Auntie hesitated for a moment. When she looked at my pleading expression, she finally nodded. Then, she closed the door, shutting me out.
The doctor soon came by to assure me that I was fine, I just inhaled a bit of water.