Fate

After a few minutes, all I could hear was sirens, which terrified me and prompted me to rush downstairs. When I came downstairs, I saw two police officers scribbling notes in a notepad in our living room, interrogating our severely injured mum. Jake was downstairs, which meant he had arrived before me. The cop then approached Jake and me, but we remained silent.

The paramedics and the reporters arrived at our house a short time later. The paramedics carried Mum and Dad while the reporters created a commotion as they always do. They attempted to question us by asking us inconceivable questions, but the cops quickly intervened.

Mum said she was alright, despite the fact that she need medical attention. The paramedics tried to persuade her, but she was certain that she would not go. I approached her and gently took her hands in mine.

"Please, Mum. I don't want to lose you because you mean everything to Jake and me. We will support you in any decision you make, mum, because we both know that a wife can be erroneous, but a mother can never be flawed ", and I let go of her hold on my hands.

Tears streamed down both of our cheeks, and she eventually agreed to be taken to the hospital by paramedics for immediate treatment.

We accompanied them outside, and an ambulance transported them both to the hospital. Jake and I were taken to the station for questioning by the cops. When we arrived at the police station, we were directed to a chair close to the inspection office. I told the cops all that had happened. Aunt Lauren arrived at the station in a rush, sprinting over to meet us and hugging us passionately. Her tears could be seen in her eyes. Aunt Lauren is mum's younger sister, yet she and mum don't have much in common in terms of appearance. Unlike Aunt Lauren, who has a broad nose, Mum has a pointed nose.

"I apologize for being late; there was traffic on the way here," she explained, despite the fact that she did nothing wrong. She turned to the cop and inquired if we were free to leave, to which he replied affirmatively. She drove us to the hospital, where my mother and father were admitted. We arrived at the hospital in a hurry. After a brief conversation with the hospital receptionist, we were directed to Mum's ward. I walked into the ward and noticed Mum just staring at us, saying nothing. I started wiping my eyes as tears kept streaming down my cheeks, I didn't want mum to see me sobbing. Aunt Lauren went to give mum a cuddle and they both continued to cry. A young nurse in her late twenties entered the Ward and informed Aunt Lauren that the doctor wanted to speak with her. Aunt Lauren instructed Jake and me to keep mom company while she went to the doctor. I helped Mum with her water and served her the chicken soup Aunt Lauren had made for her, but she avoided looking Jake and I in the eyes. Jake had been incensed since the incident and had remained silent. I had just finished feeding mum her soup and cleaned my hands in the ward's toilet basin.

"Jake I'm confident that everything will be well. Will it? ", I questioned, tired of it all.

Jake looked me in the eyes but said nothing. Aunt Lauren arrived with the doctor not long after, her face dark and melancholy. So I was curious as to what the doctor had said to her.

"Is everything okay, Aunt Lauren?"

"Has she done drinking the soup?" she inquired, attempting to avoid the topic I had posed. That demonstrated to me that something was certainly wrong. The doctor had a blue piece of paper with him, which I assumed was mum's medical report. Another nurse entered Mum's ward, and the doctor handed her the report. I was so curious to find out what aunt Lauren and the doctor were hiding that I exited the ward as soon as the nurse left.

Aunt Lauren asked, "Where are you going?"

I had to tell her a fib: "I haven't eaten today, so I'm going to grab something to eat," which wasn't exactly a lie because I had not eaten today. I followed the nurse to the receptionist's office.

"Miss nurse," I said confidently, and she returned my gaze, waiting for me to say what I needed to say.

"The doc told me to come see you and get mum's medical report because he wants to show my aunt something," I said, successfully lying.

She handed me the report without even suspecting anything. With a feigned grin, I added, "When he's through, I'll bring you the report. Where can I find you?"

"I'll be at the reception," she said with a smile, as she walked away.

I was ecstatic and terrified all at the same time. I was able to obtain the report, but I was terrified by the contents. When I opened the report book, I discovered that Mum suffers from PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, and that she was in the final stage of the disorder, known as long-term reconstruction.

Tears flowed down my face as I learned she would have to be admitted to a psych hospital until she recuperate.

This is the reality aunt Lauren and the doctor were concealing from Jake and me. Which meant that mum must have discovered she had this disorder, because she didn't bother telling us about it. And this may have been the reason mom wanted me to major psychology in college, but I could have pursued psychiatry instead, but she refused.

Then it occurred to me that the doctor had said nothing about my father. I handed the report back to the receptionist and returned to Mum's ward.

"Doctor, where is my dad?" I demanded, enraged by the situation.

Aunt Lauren turned to look at us and said he was no longer alive.