Chapter 53

• My body seemed to be moving on its own. I don't know how to think properly. Even though my knees were shaking, I still managed to run. Every step felt both surreal and agonizingly slow, as if the world around me had been muted and I was running in a dream, yet the sharp pang of fear and urgency kept me painfully aware of every movement. My chest heaved violently, and my mind spun uncontrollably, imagining the worst-case scenarios over and over.
• Lord, please, not my son. My hands clutched the hem of my shirt as if I could somehow draw strength from it. My mind raced, cycling through memories of Gio’s laughter, his tiny hands clutching mine, and the very real possibility that they could vanish in an instant. I could barely control the tears pooling in my eyes.
• "M-Miss, Giovani Dagsinal, please," I asked at the nurse assigned in the emergency ward. My voice cracked under the weight of my panic, and I struggled to keep it from trembling too violently. Every fiber of my being wanted to run faster, to tear down the hallway to the OR, yet the strict protocols of the hospital forced me to pause and plead.