13

"Hi Mom!" Sarge bussed a kiss on his Mom's cheek while offering her a cup of coffee. "How's everything? Were you here for a check-up?" Sarge continued after sitting down in front of her and sipping his own coffee.

"I think we all caught some sort of bug at home." Mommy replied.

"Oh?"

"Cocoy must've gotten it from school and passed it on to Daddy and me. I think Yaya and Mang Narding caught it, too."

"Oh dear! Do you still have enough vitamins at home? I can send some more over plus some zinc tablets. Just let everyone drink lots of lemon water and have the whole house disinfected."

Mommy nodded. "Your dad called for the cleaners already today that's why I had time to come over. It's also time for my regular check-up. Dr. Allen looked at my latest lab results and said that it was all good. He said to just continue my maintenance meds plus he gave me something for my cold."

"Good. There, the medicines should be delivered to the house later today." Sarge said after using his phone and setting it back down on the table.

"How are you, son?"

"I'm fine. Thank you for asking."

"Have you been getting enough sleep? Are you eating well?"

"Work has been a little hectic these days. Actually, I have to go in a little bit. There's a meeting I need to attend to. And yes, I have been eating well. You know how I'd rather prepare my own food, right?"

"That's true. I wish you could influence your brother..." Mommy sighed.

"Did Dad just buy another box of luncheon meat?" Sarge chuckled.

"...those two never cease to amaze me how they can eat that almost everyday! And your Dad tries to justify it by saying it's healthy because they sometimes ask for egg or have it mixed in fried rice and Yaya adds some frozen vegetables." Mommy shook her head in disbelief.

Sarge chuckled. His Dad and younger brother, Corn or Cocoy, bonded over breakfast meats and white rice. Whenever the family went to the warehouse supermarket to shop, a whole box of either luncheon meat or vienna sausage was a priority purchase. As consolation, Daddy and Cocoy also enjoyed eating "normal food" during other meals, but they both "needed" their breakfast meats fix almost every breakfast time. On the other hand, Sarge would sometimes have "Spam nights" with his roommates when they dormed together. They'd have breakfast food for dinner usually after long weeks of studies because it was the most convenient and easiest to prepare.

"...anyway, how about you? Have you been able to cook anything new?" Mommy asked. Growing up, Sarge liked to spend time in the kitchen, helping out his Mom when she prepared meals for the family. In fact, his parents thought that he would go into the culinary field. They were surprised when Sarge chose to take up medicine.

Sarge nodded. "...I watch the food network to relax. I've tried out some of the recipes, too."

"That's good. But aren't those dishes usually for a crowd? I mean, you live alone now. You must have a lot of leftovers..."

"Not really. I usually bring most of what I cook to share here. And my..."

"There you are! Hi Tita!" Eli approached and kissed Sarge's mom.

"Elijah! How are you? When will you come by the house again?"

"Hopefully soon, Tita. Things are just really busy here now. But I miss your callos and paella already."

"Ay sus! I'll send some over tomorrow. What else do you want?"

"Stop spoiling him, Mom, He's losing his appeal with the girls because of his big belly," Sarge teased while rubbing Eli's tummy.

"Shush it! Those are my love handles. Girls can't resist that. More to hug, right Tita? Anyway, we gotta go. The meeting is about to start."

"Department meeting?"

"No, po. There's a mentoring program that junior residents need to undergo. More training..."

"Oh, I see. Which reminds me, a friend of mine just started work here at the hospital. Maybe you can assist her or something."

"Oooh Tita, are you trying to set Igi (Eee-gee) up?"

"...just meet her first..."

"Mom! Lots of your friends' kids work here." Sarge said, playfully hitting Eli on the arm. He hugged his mom and kissed her. "I'll text you. Tell everyone to drink more water and rest, okay. Love you."

"Love you, son. I'll see you."

"Bye, Tita."

"Bye."

---

"So, you haven't told them about your..."

"...girlfriend. No, I haven't. And I am requesting you to shut your mouth."

"Whoa! Really? When? How? Are you now staying in one unit? Hers or yours? Is your place free? I've been wanting to move to a place nearer the hospital, you know?"

Sarge was amused at Eli's reaction. He had not been in a serious relationship for a while and Eli knew that Sarge had a crush on Aina. But because they also worked in different departments, they hadn't really talked much about personal matters.

---

"Ruby says she heard from the grapevine that you're dating a fellow doctor." Naomi whispered to Aina at the meeting.

"I wonder what teams we'll be working with?" Aina whispered back. It was a good thing that Sarge was seated far from where Aina was. They greeted each other while both their best friends were busy listening to the speaker in front of the auditorium.

At the end of the talk, some senior doctors approached the young residents. "Dr. Mendez?"

"Yes, Ma'am." Aina acknowledged Dr. Sevilla, Emergency services chief.

"You've handled a lot of pediatric patients recently?"

"Yes, Ma'am, The bus accident over a month ago, the group of teenagers who were allergic to alcohol, the boy who swallowed a coin..." Aina enumerated some of the pediatric cases she had handled.

"They failed to mention it earlier but we're working on having a separate pediatric ER just across from the lobby. We've seen a steady stream of pediatric patients coming to the hospital so we want to provide top-notch services for them as well, in a less stressful environment." Dr. Sevilla said while showing Aina some sketches and pictures on her phone. These were photos of pediatric emergency rooms and departments in other hospitals. "In about a year's time, construction will also begin for the full pediatric hospital annex. We'll be needing more staff to work in pediatrics."

Aina enjoyed the fast-paced atmosphere of the emergency department. Because theirs was a general hospital, she shared the task of working with their pediatric patients with the others. However, upon meeting Sarge, she secretly wished to gain more experience in pediatric emergency. Dr. Sevilla's offer was heaven-sent.

"Excuse me, Dr.Sevilla. This is Doc Sarge. He work in pediatrics." Dr. Rodriguez approached Dr. Sevilla and Aina, with Sarge.

"Dindo. This is Dr. Athena, emergency services."

They exchanged pleasantries. Sarge and Aina pretended not knowing each other and shook hands.

"I told her about the planned pediatric ER we're putting up..."

Dr. Rodriguez nodded. "Sarge can mentor her in pediatrics and she can teach him something about emergency medicine..." Dr. Rodriguez added, patting Sarge's shoulder. "You two will work together and join the team for the proposed full pediatric annex."

Aina and Sarge just smiled and nodded.