Contract marriage: Will you marry me?

Peral

I rushed to the hospital from work the moment I got a call saying my mother collapsed in the supermarket and was taken to the hospital, I don't understand what happened to her, it's hardly been six months since we left visiting the hospital for good.

But still, here I am again standing, to ask about my mother who was taken to the ER. I rushed to the reception and noticed there was no one at the desk, and in that instant, the whole hospital filled with people wearing black, as they pulled the stretcher carrying a woman.

I tried to glance at her and noticed her wrists cut open. I moved close to take a clear view but the guards shoved me back running towards the hallways, maybe the OP.

And soon the people returned back to their designated seats, and I noticed a woman coming towards the reception desk wearing a white coat, pulling her hair up in a ponytail.

If not for the person telling me my mother was all right, I possibly have brought the whole hospital down on my head for being irresponsible.

"Yes, how can I help you?" She finally asked me wearing her round glasses and looked up at me, staring at me when I said nothing in reply.

"Oh yeah, I am here Lauren Jones, she was taken into the ER earlier this morning" I spoke and she quickly started typing the name and looked up at me.

"She is the room 102, second floor!" She replied to me forcing a smile on her face, that was weird but I did not complain.

I just couldn't and rushed towards the room, and noticed the doctor walking out of the room.

I gasped at the sight of him, as he was the same doctor who realized how my mother was dying and needed the kidney transplant to live on.

He stares at me blankly, yes, he's probably waiting for me to ask me questions, he's waiting.

"Doctor, how is she?" I asked him, and my voice came out uneven, making me sound a little funny or maybe worried. 

I tried to calm down, but seeing him check up on my mother was not really helping, instead, I was losing my breath thanks to him, he let me take my time and started to speak.

"Are you the guardian?" He questioned staring at the pad he was holding in his hands, I nodded waiting for him to speak, he looked again at the pad.

"Yes, the daughter" I replied looking at him and waiting for him to speak about what was going on with my mother.

"Okay" He paused gulping hard, and looked back at me again, he was taking his time, and held his hands back glancing at me.

'This silence is killing me, just spit it out man, I know you never give me any good news!' I wanted to scream it right at him but it was not easy, I was scared to listen to anything he had to say to me.

"Your mother-" He paused again, I swear I am losing my shit right now, just speak already. I begged him internally to speak whatever it was.

"She has very little time left, a maximum of a month" He replied, I cock my head a little, and without even me realizing I felt tears stream down my eyes.

I could feel the burn in my heart, I was still trying to process the words, I let the words sink in and noticed he was waiting for me to speak but it was not that easy, I stared at him blankly not knowing what to say for a while.

"Do everything she says so that she leaves the world in peace" He spoke again. Did I hear him correctly? My brain struggled to function properly, I was still staring at him taking his words and blinking a few times staring at him.

The woman was in good health until yesterday night after I left her home and now he is telling me she is going to die.

"What exactly happened to her?" I asked him again as nothing made sense, this made no sense, there was no way this was happening to her, not again.

"Her kidneys, they're failing," he informed me, I felt the whole world crumbling, the kidneys again, the nurse called him and he walked away from me, she already had a kidney operation six months ago why would this happen again.

'Maybe she had taken Nana's death to her heart' That is possible only if she was filial to her, but she was not ' You never know!' That is true. I ran back to the doctor.

"Can't you do another surgery on her?" I asked desperately, she is my mother and I can't give up on her, the doctor motioned the nurse to leave and she quickly vanished leaving us alone.

"No, we can't," He explained to me, I narrow my eyes staring at him with his blunt no.

"What do you mean by no and why is it no?" I questioned him, and he stared at me for a while before speaking.

"She is already above 50 and a diabetic person, there is no way she will be able to survive another operation" He confessed leaving me with no questions to ask him, and seeing me speak nothing he walked away from me. I walked back to the room disheartened as there was nothing I could do to help her, nothing.

I walk back to the room to meet Mom, I know it will be difficult for her but she could try, I am not ready for her to leave me soon. I noticed a man walking back and forth around it was not hard to recognize who it was.

"Dad" I whisper under my breath and notice him turn back gazing at me with a faint smile on his face.

He is getting old, though in earlier years he used to live as if he wouldn't get old all his life but the grey strands over his temples made it clear.

"Daughter," he says coming forward to me, I pull back not letting him touch me, he is not worth my time.

"How is your mother?" He asked me, but I didn't really understand what this was, I mean why would he come to the hospital to ask about his ex-wife?

"She is dying," I say, tears falling down my eyes, I quickly wipe them off and walk into the room with him, I am sure he wouldn't care about it.

"The doctor told me my kidneys are failing," Mom spoke looking at me, waiting for me to confirm it.

"Mom, I will find another donor for you, I promise" I held her hands in mine "You just have to be strong" I added smiling at her and kissing her knuckles.

"Forget it, I've lived long enough," She spoke as if it was nothing, while I stared at her in reply. "Honey, I just want to see you get married before I die-" She added staring at me and then at my father.

"You're not dying, Mom! I will find the donor" I know it is not possible, last time it took me four years to get one donor and now I'll have to find a donor in a month.

"Paul?" Mom calls him, and he quickly walks close to her, if only he had listened to her and been worried about her in the past, they wouldn't have been divorced now.

"Yes, Lauren," He says holding her hands in his, I walk away from them, giving them space to talk.

"Can you help me find a suitor for Peral?" She asks him, glancing at me, I glare her back, why would she ask him for that?

"Yeah sure" He agreed right away. The man who never once came to see how we were doing and was never curious about how his daughter grew up is now ready to find her a suitor at the request of his ex-wife.

"You are not dying and I'm not marrying!" I snapped at her, there is no way, I will marry someone suggested by him.

I was clear with my words and walked out of the room leaving them alone. I walked to the parking lot and there was my father's car, a luxurious Mercedes, and there was a red Volkswagen polo, which I bought while working at four different part-time jobs while studying. I shake my head and drive right to the donor center.

"No Peral, there is no donor," Kate, the nurse, and also my friend, says checking the list.

"There has to be anything, please, my mother" I sob "She is dying Kate, and I can't just sit and do nothing" I've been here the whole year when Mom was on dialysis, we both agreed to not meet again unless it's for coffee but here I am asking her again to find the donor, she shakes her head.

"I'm sorry Peral" I broke down, my knees went weak and I fell before the desk pulling my knees closer to my chest.

"I am not ready to let her go" I admit, there was no way anyone would be ready for that.

"Just do whatever she asks you to and whatever she wants" I stared at her blankly, these were the same words the doctor just said to me, and now Kate, she had always pulled me up but now, even she was asking me to let go, maybe this really is the end.

I went back to the hospital and noticed my father was still there, I opened the door and walked inside looking at them.

"Okay now I will leave," He spoke getting up from the chair and watching me walk close to my mother.

"Okay," Mom says nodding her head and he leans in close to her and kisses her forehead before leaving. I just stared at them and he left, walking past me.

"So you ready to get married?" Mom asked me, and it hit me, making me feel that she was leaving. I stare at her blankly.

"This is not a movie mom, there is no one to marry me, I don't even have a boyfriend, let alone a man to marry me just because you ask me to" I confess, there was no time for me to date or meet new people, I was busy making a living for me and my mother and saving money for her surgery and dialysis all these years.

"Your Dad will find the man, you don't have to worry about that" Mom assures me making me question his intention.

"Why do you want him to do that? I don't want him to do anything for me!" I protested but that was not helping, it never does.

"That is decided, I just have a life of a month, just let me die peacefully" She reminded me, tears escaping my eyes listening to her words.

  She was not a great mother, but she was with me, not like my father who didn't care about me, and she trusted her ex-husband more than he deserved.

"I have to go to work mom, Kate will be here in an hour so be sure you rest well and don't cause her any trouble, okay?"I changed the topic, and I could not be here with her, I needed to digest everything that had happened to me from the morning.

Mom nodded eating the apple, as I walked out of the room and took the elevator to the rooftop, yes I lied, I just wanted some alone time, and at this time there could be nothing more safe and near to be than a hospital rooftop.

The elevator stopped on the 7th floor and the door opened with a ping sound, I saw a pair of shoes standing, right by the line, I pulled back and wiped the tears off my eyes raising my head to see the man standing in front of me, he looks familiar, I stare at him trying to remember where have I seen him but I couldn't recall, I quickly looked away and he walked inside and the elevator started again.

I stared at my hands and soon the elevator stopped, we both walked out together, I wanted to be alone, but I guess that was a lot to ask, we sat on the bench staring at the sky, and he slowly turned his head staring and watching me.

"What's your story?" He asks looking at me with his brown eyes and voice as deep as the ocean, making me feel he really wants to listen to me.

I look at him puzzled, I wanted to speak but his sharp eyes shimmer under the moonlight making me want to keep gazing at him.

"Will you marry me?" I asked him, he gazed at me shocked to tell you the truth I was too, I covered my mouth staring at him, regretting what did I just said.

"I am so sorry," I said looking at him and trying to run away but he pulled my arm stopping me from leaving.