CHAPTER 5 The Two Unfortunate Souls

BEGINNING when Nicole talked to her daddy through his dream and was able to convince him to go back to work and not understand her condition too much, she was locking herself in her room. He talks to the unconscious body and listens to the classical music played by the hospital during breakfast and snack time. At night, Antonio visits him and talks about what happened at his work like they often did when he wasn't sick. And then after a while it will say goodbye to go home. Mallwan was alone again, watching over his body all night until the sun rose again.

Perks of being a soul, you don't have to sleep, he said to himself. Well, technically, my body is asleep. But the disadvantage is that I'm bored. I do not have anyone to talk to! Neither do I

turn on the TV.

From time to time, especially in the early morning, he would walk around the corridor of the hospital, reading the posters and charts posted on the wall. It seems that he has already read all of that.

When he couldn't bear the boredom again, he left the room and left the medical ward. There was no one in the hallways except for the on-duty interns and student nurses. He is jealous of the student nurses who are visible. He is only in his fourth year of high school, and he plans to study Nursing.

But how can I study to become a nurse if I'm comatose? he said to himself in frustration.

Nicole went up to the coronary unit just above the medical ward. He was surprised to find that people were busy even in the early hours of the morning. He scratched his head and went back down to the medical ward.

I'll make a mental note that when I become a nurse, I won't go to the coronary unit.

He went down to the first floor where the diagnostic tests were being done. He entered a room labeled Endoscopy Room. There is no one inside. He went out again and went straight to the ER where people were also very busy. A patient who had an accident while driving a motorcycle was rushed. There is also shortness of breath. In one corner, someone was performing CPR and at the entrance to the ER, someone was rushed to give birth.

Another mental note, I don't want to be an ER nurse. Sounds like a lot of work, he thought.

He was about to leave the ER when a jeep suddenly parked in front of it and many people got out. They were immediately attended to by the nurses in the ER, put on wheelchairs and stretchers. The people who got off the jeep were injured and covered in bruises. He thinks they look unfortunate.

He avoided the nurses and other people inside the ER. He stepped back to one side. But the number of people passing in front of him didn't decrease so he didn't stop avoiding either.

Wait, why am I avoiding? They would just penetrate me, he realized. He didn't dodge, but as he stepped back he tripped over something he didn't see right away.

Suddenly he fell and penetrated the wall behind him. He did not immediately get up from the shock. "Ouch..." he moaned. "Why do I feel pain even though I'm empty?"

Nicole's feet were on the other side of the wall. He felt there the thing that tripped him. Before he could even think of getting up, he inhaled a mixture of smells - pungent, pungent, stinky. "What is that? It stinks!" he frowned and complained.

He looked up and noticed a sink and

mirror near him. He looked to his side and a toilet bowl was revealed to him. His stomach wanted to turn over and his body went weak. He couldn't stop crying like a child on the floor. "Daddy!" he shouted with his eyes closed. "Germs!"

Nicole felt an overwhelming sense of dread when she realized that she had slipped and was lying on the floor of a dirty bathroom. Even with his eyes closed, he could still see the hideous image of the bathroom in his mind. Add to that the penetrating smell.

A man entered the bathroom and found her lying on the dirty floor.

"Oh, Miss... Are you okay?" it asked. There is concern in his voice. He immediately knelt down next to her and helped her stand up. "Miss, are you alright?"

The first thing he saw was the shape of a dirty toilet bowl. At that time, what he saw was a top view. The toilet was full of urine, it even had a "foam effect" from the bubbles of almost orange urine that had accumulated and had the bonus of floating human deposits.

"Yuck!" In disgust, he buried his face in the chest of the man who helped him to stand. "Get me out of here please, please!" he begged.

"Come on, let's get out of here," he said. He almost hugged the man who was leading him. He almost carried her out of the bathroom

because of the weakness he feels.

Even after they came out of the bathroom, the smell seemed to linger in his nose. He also couldn't get the look of the toilet out of his mind. Happy place, think of your happy place, he whispered to himself.

"Does something hurt you?" asked the man.

"It's nothing much. It's just a little bit painful."

"You feel weak. Are you really okay?" "Yes..." He suddenly let go of the embrace

to the man when he realized how he would end it.

"T-thanks for the support."

"That's not there."

"Wait! Just wait!" he exclaimed in shock as he realized something. "Do you see me?"

"I'm not blind," the man replied.

"And you hear me?"

"I'm not deaf"

He held her arm. He pinched it. "I'm touching you?" He couldn't believe it.

The man just smiled and removed his hand from her arm. "What do you think?"

He stared at the man's face. Gentle, angelic. Is he my guardian angel? By the way, Sono was even loaded like he thought. "I-I'm sorry," he said. "I'm really quite weak at such things."

"Which one? In the disgusting bathroom?"

"Yes... And on the biceps..." He bit his tongue at the slip. "Este, yes, I don't like dirty."

The man just laughed at what he heard. Embarrassed

He was surprised by what he said. Oh, my gosh, Nicolel What are you talking about? He wanted to slap himself for being so embarrassed. Keep it together. Act cool!

"I'm sorry," said the man. "I guess it's my fault why you fell."

"Huh? Why?"

"It's my chain that's binding you."

The butterflies, rainbows, and glitters around Nicole suddenly disappeared when she heard what the man said. "It's your fault?" he exclaimed angrily.

"Yes. Sorry, huh?"

"Sorry? What can your sorry do? I almost had a heart attack because of the disgusting toilet" "I'm really sorry, Miss," apologized again

of men. "I'm looking at my chain if

is starting to break down."

chain? Broken? "Wait, w-what do you mean?"

"Aren't you a soul too?" it asked again. "I'm talking about the chain that connects our chest and body."

"W-are you a soul?" Nicole's shocked reaction.

"Yes. Why not you?"

"Promise? Are you really a soul?" she cried.

"Yes," he said, seeming to be teasing her. "I know you, eh. You're the girl I bumped into last week!"

"You that guy?"

"Wow! I haven't seen you for a week," he said. "I'm Lance by the way. I hope you don't run away from me."

If only I had realized then that the person chasing me had an angelic face, I would never have run, inside of him. Suddenly, rainbows and butterflies returned around him.

"Sorry, I was scared. I thought you weren't a soul. It turns out I'm Nicole."

"Wow, wild soul who is afraid of Lance's life joke. "Come on, let's go outside first. There are a lot of people inside."

They left the ER and sat on one of the bleachers in the waiting area where people were waiting for news about relatives or friends inside. A lot of that is focused on the TV movie show.

"Hey, people really are," Lance said

"Why?" he asked in surprise.

"Because I was on duty here before, and I know

many of the people here in the waiting area are just here to watch TV even though no patients are rushed in."

"Are you a nurse?"

"I'm still a student, Nicole," he said..

Her face heated up when he mentioned her name. It was like music to his ears.

"I would have been in my fourth year if I hadn't been comatose."

"Why, brother? Where are you confined here in the hospital?"

"Don't call me 'brother', just 'Lance'," he said. "My body is confined in the surgery ward, ICU."

"Because you are three years older than me," he said. "I'm only in my fourth year of high school."

"Uy, graduating! Any plans for college?"

"I hope it's nursing. But I doubt."

"Why? That course is so good," he said with a smile. "There are many requirements, the exams are difficult even with multiple choice, there is a lot to learn and memorize and... there is much more... but we can do it!"

"Those aren't the reasons, eh."

"Hey, what?"

Even though he didn't answer, Lance got what he meant. Not because he's afraid he'll have a hard time in college, but because he's here in the hospital and wandering around like a ghost.

"You're in the medical ward, right?" it said. "Why can't I see you? I often pass by there at night."

"How did you know I was confined there?"

"The first time I went around the hospital, I went to the medical ward, then I saw your room. I went in and saw your body."

Shocks! This is destiny! His mind is becoming dull again. "That's why you know me

I bumped into you."

"We're different. Earlier, you seemed to be very close to each other

CR. I know it's really disgusting. That's exactly what it is

CR here if the janitor hasn't passed by yet. Case

like- "OA too much?" He laughed when he got what he wanted to say. "Because I'm sick."

"What's the connection?"

"My illness is OCD," he answered.

"You're OC-OC," Lance said with a laugh.

"I'm not artistic, unlike other people with OCD. Flaws like wrinkles in the bed, Imperfect artworks, and whatnot are okay with me," he explained. "But I can't really avoid that when it comes to dirt"

"Even though you are a soul, you still carry such things," it said.

"I can't help it, eh," he explained. "You said earlier, you were looking at your chain. Why?"

"Because I was told, it will be destroyed little by little, you know."

"You're new, aren't you?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, you must have been comatose," he clarified.

"Yes. Is that you?"

"I've been in a coma for over a month," he said. "There are many factors that affect the breakdown of the chain"

"Really?"

"Yes. Of course, first is the length of your comatose stage. Then there is also your distance, how far you are, and many others," he explained. "Weren't you oriented by the man with the bird?"

"Peter?"

"Yes, he is."

"It's always gone, eh."

"Because we are not the only souls he needs to guide."

Lance frowned and made a face; like saying "okay dot" and not answering.

He laughed at her face. He's still cute even though he's making a face, he whispered to himself.

"Do you think we'll ever see someone like us here?" Lance asked.

Well done, but there is a flight of ideas. "Maybe, I don't go out of my room often so I don't know much like us, or the ones who really died. I only see Peter, Maya, and crows."

"Why don't you come out of the room? We can do so much now that we're souls and no one can see us; things we couldn't do when we had bodies."

"Just like?"

"Follow your crush without him realizing it, listen to people's conversations. "You can

also peek into the bathroom of the actors."

"Lancel" he exclaimed. "Great, ah, you're a bitch."

He laughed out loud at her reaction. "Just kidding. I'm just making you laugh. I forgot you're too young for such jokes."

"I am no longer a graduating high school student."

"You said, eh," was the only answer. He couldn't look into Lance's eyes. His face was heating up again. Well, I'm a young woman.

"Are you blushing?" it suddenly asked. He was shocked. His eyes widened and he shrunk in his seat. "No, ah!" he quickly denied.

"Because your neck is also red." Gosh, even my neck is hot! "Ah... uh... no

so."

"You're so cute," Lance said jokingly. It's officiall I'm dead! They say I'm cute? "Well, your bully.

"Why? I'm just telling the truth."

"There you are. I'll just go back to my room."

"This one is sensitive," he said. "As for you, you're just kidding."

"You, huh, maybe you're forgetting what happened to me earlier was your fault."

"Sorry. I really didn't mean to." He scratched his head and was like a child asking for forgiveness and being ashamed of what happened.

He smiled at her appearance.

"Oh, why did you suddenly smile?"

"Nothing." You're so cute.

Lance just smiled as if he wanted to say something.

"What does that smile mean?" "Nothing."

"Oh, there you are!" he says. "I'm going back to my room."

"You tend to leave when you're pissed off."

"No, ah. I just really want to go back to my room."

"Why? Are you sleepy?"

"Nonsense! We don't need to sleep. I want to keep an eye on my body. Maybe later something is being done to my body without my knowledge."

"The doctors and nurses probably won't do anything bad to you."

"I know that. But I just want to make sure that the body I'm going back to is in good condition."

"Oh, fine, I'm not going to tease you and stop you anymore," Lance said. "Tomorrow again?"

"What do you mean?" Oh, my gosh! Will this hottie date me? O-M-G!!!

"See you again," it continued. "For days you were the only person I talked to."

Nicole tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled. "Alright. You know where to find me.

"GREAT, Daddy! She's so cute!" Nicole excitedly exclaimed as her father read the newspaper next to her lying body. "Knight in shining armor! Savior!" He added that you thought you saw a famous actor.

Antonio continued to read the newspaper, but of course he couldn't hear him. Coffee is still steaming next to it, bought from the vending machine outside.

"He's so kind. Even if I scold him, he doesn't get angry!" he continued. "Then her smile... gosh! It's melting! I can't feel my legs. Even when I just remember her smile, I still feel the same way. It's a good thing you don't hear me, Daddy. "

His father had a day off from work so he was already at the hospital this morning watching over him. He couldn't move on from what happened to him and Lance last night, so even though it was awkward at first, he told his daddy. Because he didn't hear it.

She doesn't have a boyfriend yet. "No boyfriend since birth" as they say. He's not a manhater and he doesn't like men either. He often has crushes and many people flirt with him. She is waiting for a sign so she can know if a man is "the one" in her life.

Lights. The sign has so many lights.

"Our age difference is only three years," he continued to tell the story. "She's in college, her course is Nursing. I think she's caring, and she's kind. It's rare for a nurse to be antipathetic. I think, Daddy, you'll like her for me... Oh, here I go again and a- assume again. Not flirting, eh."

Antonio turns on the TV and changes the channel to a TV station that plays old movies. He turned up the volume, then pulled out a large pack of chips from the carrying bag.

It's really Daddy. He's a doctor, but eat junk food! Who else is really in the health profession, they are the ones to blame.

"I will give you what you eat now," he said to his father. He often gets angry whenever he eats junk food. "Anyway, even if I'm angry, you don't hear me. That's compensation because I can't tell you that I have a crush. I know our deal is that I'm supposed to tell you who my crush is. Well, you can't hear me. Also, I just met him last night, but I have a crush on him right away."

"What is that? Who is your crush?"

Nicole heard a familiar voice from behind her. He froze where he stood. He seemed to be doused with very cold water.

"Did I hear you right? Do you have a crush?"

He slowly turned around, and wanted to disappear when he saw Lance. His neck and face quickly became hot and his palms began to sweat.

The smiling young man just smiled, as if teasing. He covered his face with his hands. The handsome! It's wrong, it's embarrassing! He heard! He exclaimed in his mind and quickly ran out of his room.

...ΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩ...

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