Unfinished Life (1)

How does it feel to leave something unfinished?

That's the question I asked myself when I'm lying in the hospital bed. The heartbeat monitor constantly pinged beside me, preventing me from getting any rest. The white blanket on top of my numb body provided no comfort either.

They say being sick makes your mind thought about many things, and unfortunately, I'm beyond sick at this point. I found no comfort in thinking about the past, of the life I had for 45 years. The hardships I endured, all the people I had made enemies with, and the things I have sacrificed in order to achieve my dream, only to be shattered by my sudden illness.

Now, all that's left of me, of the President of this country, is this sickly body, corrupted by cancer.

The doctors didn't hesitate to say that I had only a couple of days left to live. He was experienced, the best one in the country, I trusted his words more than any other doctor. He felt shame not be able to safe me, I can only share his sentiment.

My thoughts drifted to the past, even though I tried so hard to prevent it. Memories of the past flooded my mind. I remembered of when I first dreamed of this position, of being the highest person in this country way back when I was only 6 years old. I had hopeful dreams back then, untainted by reality.

Then time past by in my flashback, now I saw my teenage self. I was still chasing my dreams, even as my parents fought against each other. It ended with them separating and I was left with my father.

He was a good man at heart, I know it, it was just his addiction to those poisonous liquid that made him lose his custody of me, leaving me with my grandmother, who can't even hear correctly anymore. And yet, I pushed on.

I graduated university with a degree in political science and began my career in the field. It was during these early days that I made a lot of mistakes, countless scandals marked my term as a legislator, and yet it failed to dissuade me. Using my talent in persuasion I managed to fend off all the attacks against me, legally. While it saved me, it made a lot of people angry, they eventually become my enemy when running for this office.

And yet, I won, I won....

I sat on that chair, in that pristine white room for 4 months, before the news hit me hard. The people didn't know of course, the last thing they needed was a sickly president to guide the nation. And so, my vice president had been running the country in my absence. He did a great job, the country still maintained a steady course, yet, I still feel like something missing.

Even though I'm here, in the top of the world, my heart still thirst for something else. I realized now that everything I had done up until this moment, my dream of becoming the leader of this nation, was not my true ambition. It was shocking to myself, and yet I felt it was correct.

Why did I want to be president?

A sudden realization hit me again, it wasn't hard thinking clearly when you were with nothing to think of.

'I want to change the world'

I remembered saying that when I was a child, only then the the dream of becoming president came up and stuck in my mind. Even though I succeeded in the latter, I forgot completely about the former. And that made me restless, more so than I had already experienced.

I want to throw a tantrum, cursing and letting it all go like a child. Yet, I can't, not with this crippled body. I had no one to blame but fate, who put me in this situation.

I always thought life was balanced, people who worked hard will be rewarded, and the ones who didn't work at all will receive nothing. Yet, I worked so hard, sacrificed everything, and I all got was a crippling tumor inside my flesh.

I didn't realize my eyes were wet, not until several drops had merged with the bed sheet. In all honesty, I didn't even know if I could even cry, I thought my body wasn't strong enough. So with all emotions pushing me, I cried a lot, some might say I forced myself to cry. It's not like there's anyone in the room to accompany me.

"What a sad life you had, Ms. President"

I didn't know if I was dreaming or this is reality. A white figure had sat herself on a chair by my bed. Her feminine voice extracted authority even though she forced herself to speak as calmly and as sympathetically as possible. Her face remained hidden behind the white hood she put over her head. I only assumed she was a woman based on her voice.

"You know, your intellect surprised even myself. I thought an oligarchy might take the throne of this nation, or maybe a famous dynastic politician whose father and grandfather proceed him on being a legislator. But no, it was you, a sad little girl from an unknown town who wrecked the political scene of this nation and succeeded, only to be stopped by something out of your control. How sad"

I blink my eyes twice, tried to dispel this weird dream.

"No, you're not dreaming my dear, you are not". The figure quipped while forming a smile on his concealed face, I don't even know how I noticed it.

"Do you want to try again?"

It was an abstract question, it could be interpreted in many ways. But of course, I know exactly what she is talking about. Trying to nod was another challenge all on it's own for me, but I managed.

"I can't stop your body from failing, girl". She stated clearly. "But I could steal your soul and bring it somewhere else"

Suddenly, I could feel a strong pull from inside me. Not like when someone tried to bring my body closer to them, but like when my soul is literally being peeled off and separated from me.

"Listen closely, in truth we both need each other" She removed her hood, revealing a striking beauty with platinum-teal hair and similarly colored eyes. "I foresaw an incoming doom in my world, of an ancient evil who emerged from the land and destroyed what all life has created"

She stared at me, no, at my soul with those authoritative eyes. "You will be my champion girl, someone with a mind focused on being a leader, someone who can successfully predict and handle the future".

I thought about her statement. What did she mean by predicting the future?

She picked that up from my mind, as she smiled and giggled in a polite manner.

"History in not unpredictable girl, you'll see"

If I did have another chance at life, then I hope I could live long enough to achieve what I want.

"Oh... Trust me girl, you will, you absolutely will"

She disappeared immediately after saying that. And in a span of a second, I could feel my eyelids getting heavy. No, more accurately I couldn't feel anything at all. The chill air of the sterile hospital room suddenly gets colder as I lose my sense of touch followed by my smell and taste.

I could hear the nurse screaming a moment later, something about calling the doctor. They were panicking, obviously. But, my consciousness had already faded.