Terminal Stage: 2

Early the next morning, Jacky woke up and stepped out of his room looking for his mommy. Heading toward the living room, he saw his mommy still sitting in the same chair on the balcony, since last night. Even though his mommy didn’t explain to him why they had left his new daddy in the park and went home yesterday, Jacky has a bad feeling that his mommy hasn’t been happy since leaving the park. Silently, he walked up to Myolie and called, “Mommy?” His mommy didn’t answer to his call; she just gazed ahead with a blank drained expression. “Mommy!” he called loudly with a push on her lap. His mommy snapped out of her thought and looked down at him with a pair of reddens weary eyes and a thin smile. “Mommy, why did you cry? Did he bully you?” asked Jacky with concern.

Shaking her head with a faint chuckle, Myolie replied, “No, he didn’t.” Longingly, Myolie reached her hand out to ruffle his hair. She then patted her lap, gesturing him to climb on and sit with her.

Grinning brightly, Jacky happily climbed on to sit on his mommy’s lap. He had always enjoyed time being alone with his mommy, since he didn’t had much chance during the past four years. Myolie tightly cuddled her son as she lovingly rubbed her cheek against his hair. She whispered into his ear, “Remember that I’ll always love you, alright?”

Nodding, Jacky replied, “Me too.” He glanced up at his mommy and felt really sad to see her eyes watered. Pouting, he asked in a protective tone, “He was picking on you, huh?”

Laughing, Myolie shook her head and assured, “No, he loves mommy a lot. Mommy is the one that had hurt him.” Even though, Myolie knew that she had made Bosco really unhappy, but she knew eventually he will get over her and find a better half. What she worried most now was her son. She didn’t know how to tell her six-years-old son that she was dying and will have to break the promise of not leaving him behind again. At least she was comforted to know that she could depend on her two childhood best friends Moses and Bernice, whom she grew up with at the orphanage, who will be willing to take care of Jacky like their own son.

Feeling his stomach growled, Jacky sheepishly exclaimed, “Mommy, I’m hungry.”

Chuckled, Myolie lovingly asked, “What would you like to have for breakfast? I’ll make anything that you name.”

Quickly, Jacky replied, “Can I have Oreo and milk? Please, please…” Sneakily, Jacky peeked back into the flat to make sure Bernice is not around before he started his complaint, “Aunty Bernice never let me have cookie for breakfast. She always forces Nancy and me to eat cereal, waffle, or pancake. She is not up yet, mommy, so can I please have Oreo and milk?”

Laughing, Myolie nodded and said, “Just this one time. Jacky, Aunty Bernice just wanted you to eat healthy.”

“I know, I’m not mad at her,” replied Jacky with an excited grin. He quickly hopped off his mommy’s lap and pulled on her to head in.

After getting her son settled with milk and Oreo and his favorite cartoon channel on, Myolie headed back to sit on the balcony chair, gazing ahead into deep thought again. During the commercial break, Jacky turned toward the balcony and frowned to see his mommy sitting all alone out there again. He knew that his mommy was very unhappy about something and that it all started after they left the park yesterday.

The doorbell suddenly rang making Jacky jumped, since he didn’t expect anyone coming by this early. “Mommy, someone is at the door!” hollered Jacky, since he wasn’t supposed to open the door himself. Seeing his mommy not hearing him or the constantly ringing doorbell, Jacky hopped off the sofa to answer the door. When he opened the door to see it was Bosco, Jacky’s face quickly darkened and his eyes glared at him.

“Jacky, can I come in to talk to your mommy?” asked Bosco, who too had weary looking eyes.

“What did you do to my mommy yesterday? Now she is so sad and had been crying… You promised me to make her happy,” pouted Jacky, who crossed his arms and not willing to step away from the doorway.

“I’m sorry. Let me come in and make it better, please?” requested Bosco. Bosco peeked in and saw Myolie sitting out in the balcony behind the dinning area. Jacky looked toward his mommy too, whom seemed to not realize Bosco has arrived.

Jacky tugged on Bosco’s arm for attention. After Bosco looked down at him, Jacky pleaded, “Please make mommy happy again.” Bosco nodded repeatedly, so Jacky stepped aside to let him in. Returning to the sofa, Jacky returned to his cartoon, but every few seconds he would turn around to check on the grownups.

Meanwhile, Bosco silently stepped into the balcony and headed to kneel in front of Myolie. Surprised to see him here, Myolie just looked down into his dark brown eyes longingly as her eyes began to water. Bosco reached to softly sweep her tears away with his thumbs. In tears himself, he pulled her in to embrace her tightly. “I don’t want to let go,” he whispered into her ear. Sighing longingly, Bosco sincerely asked, “Tell me Myolie; if the situation is switched around would you be willing to let me go?” Myolie did not reply; she knew what he was trying to do to her. “Then please don’t do this to me,” he begged.

“I don’t want you to regret. Your parents don’t even like the idea that I have Jacky. What will they say if they know that I…”

“You’re married to me, not them, so let me handle them. All you should think about is us…you, me, and Jacky…”

“I don’t want you to see me die,” fearfully whispered Myolie. “It’ll hurt too much…” she added.

Letting out a soft disbelieving chuckle, Bosco replied, “You think that by not marrying me, I would not stick around you to the end? It’ll hurt either way. Myolie, at the time that I proposed to you, in my heart I had already said ‘I do’, therefore I had already agreed to the commitment of for riches or for poor and for health or for sickness, until death do us part.”

“You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into…”

“I’m not being rash. I had thought about it the entire night. I have not had a wink of sleep. All I could think of is that I shouldn’t had let you walked off yesterday at the park,” he told her. Releasing their embrace, Bosco looked deep into her eyes and sighed. In a serious tone, he spoke calmly, “No one could promise us a long happy life. Who knows, I may get into an accident and leave you tomorrow.”

“Bosco…”

Stopping Myolie from saying more, Bosco continued, “Myolie, what I’m trying to say is that it doesn’t matter if we get one happy day together or eternity, what’s most important is that we cherish them and don’t give up on them ourselves. I want to be that special person that who you can count on even during tough times. I will regret if I do let you go now.”

Bosco turned to look toward Jacky, who quickly turned back to the TV when he saw Bosco caught him spying on them. Bosco returned his sincere gaze back to Myolie and said, “I’d like a chance to be Jacky’s father. He needs a father, especially at this time. Let me be that important person to him, forever. Let both Jacky and me support you through this tough time.”

Looking toward her son, Myolie sniffed on her tears and worriedly stated, “I don’t want him to be your burden after I left.”

“Nonsense,” snapped Bosco. He clamed himself down and promised, “He will forever be my son, no matter what happen. He will be my support, not a burden. I know we will make a happy family. I wanted our life to be filled with more laughter than tears. Myolie, give us all a chance, please?” Looking toward the living room to see Jacky spying on them again, Bosco let out a soft chuckle and said, “Look, he really needs this family. I do too. Please?”

Leaning in to embrace Bosco, Myolie shut her eyes and whispered, “Me too.” Relieved, Bosco embraced her tighter and rubbed his chin against her forehead, while she silently sobbed, thanking heaven for such a husband.
……………..

After being married, Myolie started her radiation and chemotherapy treatments to control her cancer from spreading. Her husband and son were her greatest emotional support; they had given her the courage to face her cancer with a laugh. Even though she was doomed with this disease, she still lived her life with great colors of happiness. She had never felt as loved her entire life until now, with a great husband and a true meaningful family.

The only set back was that because of radiation and chemotherapy, she was not able to give her husband a child of their own, since her radiologist advised them to avoid pregnancy, fearing that it’ll be an abnormal child. Bosco had told her many times that he doesn’t mind and that Jacky is a child of their own. Her husband told her that the only thing he wished for is to have as much laughter filling their days as possible, therefore Myolie had learned to let go of her sadness, anger, and guilt to enjoy the family and precious moment that she has now.

“Mommy, hurry up!” yelled Jacky as he pounded on one of the changing stall at the beach. It’s a warm summer Sunday, a family day that they have decided to spend picnicking at the beach.

In the stall, Myolie had changed into her swimming suit a long time ago, but she was in a bit of pain and didn’t want her son to see her suffer, therefore she wouldn’t come out. Both Myolie and Bosco still haven’t told Jacky or anyone else about her cancer. In pain, Myolie squatted down hugging her bended legs while pressing her curved back against the wall to control her pain as she replied to her son in the calmest manner possible, “I’m almost ready. Jacky, where is daddy?”

“Daddy went to get my sand toys out of the car,” informed Jacky. He continued to pound on the door and impatiently rushed, “Mommy, hurry up!”

Nodding from inside the stall, Myolie made an excuse trying to keep Jacky busy. “Jacky, go find daddy and ask him to get our beach towels too. He probably won’t remember.”

Seeing Bosco returned dressed in his swimming trunk and a white tank top, Jacky grinned brightly and charged up to him. “Daddy, mommy asked if you remembered our beach towels,” said Jacky as he excitedly grabbed his sand toys.

“Of course! Even grabbed the sunscreen lotion, so you won’t get burned into a barbequed piglet,” smirked Bosco with a wink at his stepson.

“Eww…no! No, sticky white glue!” protested Jacky as he began to run. When he saw his daddy taking off to chase after him, he laughed and ran faster. Swiftly, Bosco caught up and quickly lifted Jacky off the sand. He threw Jacky back to sit on his shoulders. Startled, Jacky clenched his two hands onto his daddy’s hair, to make sure he won’t fall. Bosco raised his hands up to tickle Jacky’s two sides making him laughed hysterically as he wiggled around, but didn’t dare to let go of his daddy’s hair. “Not fair!” complained Jacky with laughter.

Laughing joyfully, Bosco asked, “Surrender?”

“Never!” stubbornly chuckled Jacky.

Stopped tickling his son, Bosco asked, “Is mommy changed yet?”

“No, she is still changing in there,” said Jacky pointing toward the stall that Myolie is in.

Curious to what took his wife so long, Bosco ran toward the stall with Jacky still sitting on his shoulders. “Honey, are you alright in there?” he asked sweetly.

“Bosco, did you grab my orange bag from the car?” Myolie asked in a weakened voice that was obviously in pain.

Getting the hint that she needed her medication, Bosco replied, “Yeah.” He quickly lifted Jacky off him and placed him down. “Jacky, you go ahead and start building your sandcastle, let daddy help mommy with her swimming suit first, okay?” instructed Bosco in a clear and patient manner.

Happily, Jacky nodded and replied, “Okay, but hurry.”

“We will,” answered Bosco as he gestured his son to go ahead. Jacky took off running in the sand barefooted and hopped the rest of his way due to the hot sand. “Stay nearby and don’t go anywhere near the water!” hollered Bosco. Jacky turned around and nodded.

Finally returning his attention back to his wife, Bosco requested, “Let me come in.” Myolie unlocked the door to the stall. Bosco quickly ran in and found her squatted against the wall of the small stall. Worriedly, he pulled her up and helped her to a chair as he concernedly asked, “Morphine?” Myolie nodded as she faintly smiled and held her fist against her back to apply pressure to the pain. “One, three, or five?” Bosco asked as he quickly opened Myolie’s small orange medicine bag and grabbed the narcotic.

“Give me three, I don’t want to feel too drowsy,” said Myolie slightly trembling voice. Nodding, Bosco quickly measured three milliliter of the powerful painkiller into a medicine cup and also opened a bottle of water. Seeing her husband looking a bit anxious, Myolie assured, “Don’t get worry, it doesn’t hurt as bad as last time.”

“I know,” replied Bosco with a thin smile, just so his wife doesn’t feel guilty or think of herself as a burden that caused his worry. Expertly, he collected the right drug and amount and handed it to his wife. Standing there quietly, Bosco anxiously watched Myolie drank it down. With pale looking lips, Myolie let out a faint smile and looked into his eyes. “Thanks,” said Myolie with an assuring smile. She then chuckled and asked, “Did the swimming trunk you bought Jacky fit him okay?” She reached her hand out for her husband.

Interlocking Myolie’s hand, Bosco gave it a squeeze as he replied, “A little bit big, but he will grow into it in no time.” Seeing Myolie looked so worn out, he softened his tone and suggested in a whisper, “Let’s go home. I wanted you to have a little rest. I could always take Jacky down to the swimming pool to learn how to swim instead.”

Shaking her head, Myolie gave his hand a squeeze and assured, “Don’t worry, just give me ten minutes, it’ll go away. It’s a perfect day, I want to enjoy it too and I don’t want to disappoint Jacky.”

Understanding that his wife wanted to do more for her son as time slowly became limited, Bosco nodded. Standing up, Bosco smiled at her with a smirk and offered, “Mrs. Wong, since you generously offered me a ten minutes time alone with you, I’ll offer you a spectacular body rubs with Today’s most specially formulated sunscreen lotion. Aren’t you the luckiest lady of this beach today?” Myolie nodded and chuckled at her husband’s playful little smirk and his foolish way of chasing her glooms away.

After the rest in the stall, both Bosco and Myolie walked across the hot sand in their flip-flop heading toward Jacky, who was shoveling and dumping sand into a pile. While her husband set the area with a large beach towel spread on the sand and assembled a huge beach umbrella, Myolie went to pull her son up to face her. She couldn’t help but laugh at how easy Jacky flushed under heat. Laughing, she turned to her husband and teased, “Honey, there is one thing that he is just like you. You both blush like a girl under heat.” Bosco and Jacky glared at her for calling them a girl, which made her laughed harder. “Never mind, you two have too many common traits,” she teased at the two exact expressions.

“Of course! We are father and son,” proudly smirked Bosco as he launched the umbrella open to provide shade.

“Honey, can you throw me the sunscreen?” requested Myolie.

Bosco dug for it out of their bag and threw it toward his wife, while Jacky kept shaking his head and whined, “No sticky glue please. Please no sticky glue, it hurt my eyes…”

“If you don’t rub it, it won’t get into your eyes. Come on Jacky you’re turning bright red. You’ll be peeling like a snake tomorrow, if you keep it up. Jacky Wong stand still and stop squirming around,” warned Myolie, while Jacky pouted and finally stood still for his mommy to rub his body.

“I’m hungry mommy! What are we eating?” Jacky asked.

“Sweetheart, it’s only ten, you just had breakfast an hour ago,” reminded Myolie. Jacky pouted.

Cheering him up, Bosco suggested, “I thought you wanted to learn how to swim? You can’t do that with a full stomach. How about the three of us share half a sandwich, then go swim until around noon before we eat the rest?” Smiling cheerfully, Jacky nodded to the idea.

After they shared the small half a sandwich, Myolie hinted to her husband, “How about you teach him how to swim, while I enjoy the warm sand and join you an hour later?”

Knowing that it must be her medication making her felt sleepy, Bosco agreed. He reminded, “Get me if you needed anything at all.” She nodded with a smile that scrunched the bridge of her nose. “Okay rascal, let’s go learn how to drown properly,” joked Bosco to Jacky, as he hopped to his feet and gestured for his son to follow.

Wrinkling his worried brows, Jacky nervously asked, “Drown?” Once he stepped out of the shady area onto the hot sand he began to hop back and forth alternating his foot as he screamed, “Hot, hot, hot, hot…”

Both Bosco and Myolie couldn’t help but laughed at their son. Bosco stepped back to pick him up and piggybacked him to the wet sand before he put him back down. As they splashed water at each other rather than learning how to swim, Myolie watched them with amuse. Slowly, she felt too drowsy, so she lied down and dozed off to sleep.

When she was stirred by the soft chuckling of her son, Myolie realized that beside her head, her entire body was covered with sand piled up like a dome. She turned to her left and noticed her husband was lying beside her also covered up with a high pile of sand. He grinned at her and shut his eyes to enjoy the warm sand bathing his body. Myolie turned to her right and there squatted her son with a toy shovel as he sheepishly chuckled. “I thought you went to learn how to swim from daddy,” confusedly asked Myolie.

Bosco yawned and answered for Jacky, “We did. Besides drinking a lot of the salty water, he did pretty good for the first lesson.”

“How long have I napped?” questioned Myolie, since it felt like she had just closed her eyes for five minutes.

“A long time,” stressed Jacky.

“It was just two hours,” answered Bosco.

“It’s noon, now?” asked Myolie dauntingly.

Nodding repeatedly, Jacky exclaimed, “I’m hungry.”

Bosco just chuckled, while Myolie quickly pushed the sand off of her body. She dug the sand for her husband’s hand and yanked him up too. They enjoyed their lunch, which consisted of sandwiches, chips, grapes, Jell-O, and apple juice. After lunch, they worked together to build a sand castle, which kept falling apart because Jacky kept insisting on adding more sand to make it taller. Later in the afternoon, they headed back into the water and played there until near sunset before Jacky was too tired and finally was willing to go home.
………………