CHAPTER 31: CHAPTER 31

"Why are you restless?" Dreycen enquired, his gaze fixed on Zeenare, who was pacing the study with a frown on his face. "You’re going to wear a trench into that floor."

"Rhea left the country," he stated, standing behind the long couch, his hands on it.

"And what about that? Don’t you want her going out?" Dreycen questioned, leaning on the chair rest, legs crossed. "Because like what you told us, she doesn’t remember you. So is she not free to go out?"

The rest of the guys shared a glance with him.

This fool. That’s not what I meant.

For a long time, Zeenare said nothing to that, then walked to the window side. "Some seconds ago, I couldn’t feel her presence."

"Hmm. What’s that supposed to mean?" Hexma’s voice cut through the room, walking up to him.

"For an instant, she left this dimension," he replied with a frown, his jaw tightened. "Tsk."

Something is not right.

"Othimise, I’m leaving," he called harshly.

"Yes, Master," Othimise replied from outside the door.

"Inform Aluna to prepare the jet, and you prepare the madam’s room. She’ll be returning with me when I get back," he instructed with an eerily calm voice, but his expression told the opposite.

"Yes."

"Should we tag along?" Lorain asked, practically almost at the door.

Zeenare looked from each of them to the other. "Hexma."

As they walked down the hallway, Hexma asked, throwing his coat on, "Is it that serious that you’ve to go bring her?"

Zeenare hummed, eyes ahead.

This has never happened before. Why does it feels like the time she dies. Rhea, what is happening over there?

***

For that whole night, Rhea couldn’t sleep. She flinched at every sound that reached her ears. With every little slumber she had, she sat under the shower and turned it on to the coldest temperature, until she drifted off in the early hours of that morning.

When Rhea woke up that morning, her head throbbed slightly as cold sipped through her body, and she brushed it off—the weather becoming cold since it’s almost winter.

She made her way towards the bathroom.

Moments later, Rhea stood in the middle of the room, staring at her reflection, and took a deep breath.

Everything is going to be fine. Yesterday was just a bad day.

She affirmed to herself before stepping to the door.

She made her way downstairs to the dining room.

"Good morning," she greeted with a faint smile.

Everyone seated looked at Rhea, their brows drawing together, a soft crease forming between them as they watched her sit on an empty chair by Tia.

He tilted his head slightly, lips parted like he wanted to speak but didn’t. He understood the girls would talk.

Instead, with a bright smile, he asked, "Hope you slept well?"

I know they are trying not to bring yesterday up and to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, I did," she replied, her smile cracking before it got to her eyes.

Tia occasionally glanced at Rhea as they all chewed in silence.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Tia asked as they made their way to the room after breakfast.

What could I possibly tell you? And if I could, will you believe me?

"Rhea, you know I’d believe anything you tell me, right?" Tia took her hands, her lips stretching a little.

Is that true? Will you believe me if I tell you I was in another place? Will you believe me when I tell you what I saw?

"Rhea, please talk to me. I don’t want to see you looking like that again." Her jaw clenched, eyes scanning her face as if trying to read between her silence.

"I’ll... when I’ve gathered my thoughts, okay."

"Okay, I’m okay with that."

As the day progressed, her feet gradually became cold.

She moved the bed cover from her body as she tried to pour herself a glass of water.

Immediately as she stood up, her body wobbled. Then she fell back down on the bed, placing her hands over her head as the pounding got worse.

Rhea frowned, trying to make sense of why her head was spiraling. Had she not just eaten.

She groaned softly, pressing her fingers under her nose, then brought them to her gaze. Her fingers were covered with blood. Before she could move to get her phone, the entire clothes she was wearing were stained with blood as her nose and ears bled heavily.

Her eyes were drained of their colours, as a sharp, splitting pain exploded in her head, and an intense cold washed over her.

She staggered towards her phone as her head spun. Rhea quickly grabbed the phone and pressed her power button multiple times, which immediately changed to an emergency call with Tia as the call ID.

Then her legs gave out.

"Rhea? What’s up?" Tia voiced.

"I don’t—" Rhea’s eyelids fluttered once, a brief, rapid tremor, then fell heavy.

"T...ii...a," she could barely talk. "I...c.. come... Help." Her voice died.

The color drained from her cheeks, leaving a waxy pallor, and the tension in her neck and shoulders visibly melted away. Her head lolled to the side, chin resting on her shoulder, and the soft, steady rhythm of her breathing slowed until it was almost unnoticed. She slumped forward on Tia, like a puppet with its strings cut off, silent and still.

Tia bolted from her room, flew through the hallway into Rhea’s room, and saw her lying lifeless on the floor, covered in her own blood.

"Someone call the ambulance. Right now!" Tia’s voice blew the roof off.

"Why does she keep collapsing? But Doctor Amina said she was fine." She gently sat on the floor with Rhea in her arms, Mr. and Mrs. Gunther and some maids rushing towards them.

"What’s wrong with her?" Tia stood up the moment the doctor stepped inside, her face wet, her hair scruffy, her clothes covered in blood.

"According to the reports, she has stage four Glioblastoma brain tumor... and Pancreatic Cancer," the doctor informed.

The sound that escaped Tia’s mother was a sharp, strangled intake of air, a tiny, broken gasp that seemed to get caught in her throat. While her husband stood frozen.

Tia took a step back, with a sombre face, her brows puckered. "That can’t be right. We did series of tests some months back, and she was fine. H...h...how can there be tumor and c...c...cancer? How does someone get two aggressive cancers out of nowhere?" Tia muttered. "It doesn’t make sense..."

She glanced at Rhea, who was now awake looking back at her.

Rhea’s body went rigid, all the air rushing from her lungs as if she’d been punched. She couldn’t speak, could only stare, her face pale with shock, the blood draining from it leaving her ashen and still.

"No, no, no." Tia briskly moved to Rhea and clamped her eyes shut, hoping she didn’t hear anything.

But she did. She heard every single syllable from that doctor’s lips.

The sound that ripped out of Rhea was a maniacal, hysterical laugh, at the same time tears streaming down her face.

Tia pressed a hand to her mouth, draining her tears, her knuckles white. Her eyes, narrowed and fixed on Rhea.

"Rhea, Rhea, look at me. It’s going to be okay, okay," Tia tried to assure her.

"How?" she said, her lips barely moving. The words were flat, dead, a single tone with no rise or fall.

I was even cursed at yesterday. How am I going to be fine?

"What is the next step, then?" Tia’s father asked.

"I’d recommend she stay at the hospital so we can regulate her conditions, because according to her charts, she doesn’t have much time left," the doctor added.

Rhea scoffed. "NO! I don’t want to." She glared at the doctor. "It’s not like there’s a cure, so why’d I waste the little time I have now to stay at the hospital?" she snarled.

"Miss—"

"Don’t you ’Miss’ me," Rhea interrupted. "I’d take the treatments, then go home, and that is final."

As they got home, Rhea lacklustrely and tardily made her way to her room.

"Um, Rhea?" Tia called from behind. "Would you like to go to the beach instead of your room? It’s warm outside."

I think that’s better than locking myself in.

"Hmm." She nodded in agreement. "I’d go change and come down."

Rhea sat under the umbrella, her gaze fixed on the shimmering, clashing waves of the water. The palm trees rustling by the gentle breeze.

Would it not be better to just die? Then I wouldn’t become a burden to anyone.

She glanced at Tia sitting by her side, then back at the water.

All her eyes are so puffy because of me. And her parents are worried sick because of me too.

She glanced at the maids stationed around to give her anything she asked for.

But why do I keep getting sick? I was never a sickly child. She pressed her ears as her eyes trailed to her wrist.

"Tia, I’m going for a swim."

"But—. Okay, I’d come join you after I’m done with this," she murmured.

Rhea stood at the shore for a while before stepping in.

Ah. This isn’t as cold as I feared it would be. I should go deeper.