If You So Desire (sequel to Turn... and Walk Away)

Chapter 10

A/N: The image above does not belong to me. It belongs to the person who uploaded it on the internet.

Tul's POV

I woke up early to get ready for work. I could not wait to go back to work. I needed to keep my mind busy so that I would not focus on my misery.

I missed Max so much. I wanted to hug him and tell him how much I love him. I wanted to tell him how sorry I was for whatever I did to make him leave me. Was it going to be for ever? The thought that it could be for ever made my vision blurry because I was starting to cry again.

I tried to focus on the traffic around me as I drove myself to work. I heard a motorist honk angrily from behind me. I had not noticed that I had cut too close into his lane when I merged into the main thoroughfare of the city.

My boss arrived while I was waiting for the elevator to open.

I bowed in greeting to him and stepped aside to let him walk inside the elevator first.

"How was your vacation?" he asked.

"It was great," I lied. Well, technically, I did not lie. Max and I had a wonderful honeymoon vacation in Taiwan. It was the trip back here and our first day back here that turned out to be a disaster. Max had suspected me of having an affair with that flight attendant and I did not get the chance to deny it.

I went through my work day like a robot. There was a lot of work that had piled up on me  while I was away, so I decided to skip my coffee break and my lunch break in order to catch up on my backlog.

By the end of the workday, I was feeling faint from hunger.

I went down to the basement where there was a canteen owned by a concessionaire. I bought a chicken salad sandwich and a strawberry drink.

While eating my sandwich in a corner of the canteen, I wondered whether Max would take my call if I called him.

I pulled out my phone and tapped on his number. My call went directly to his voicemail. My number was still blocked.

I quickly finished my sandwich and my drink and went back to the ground floor and then made my way to the employee parking lot.

I was unlocking my car door when I started to feel dizzy.

I held the side of my head while leaning against my car.

"Tul, are you alright?" I heard my boss' voice faintly beyond the buzzing sound in my ear.

When I recovered consciousness I was on a hospital bed, my boss leaning towards me with a concerned look on his face.

"You fainted in the parking lot," he explained, "and so I brought you here. I will go to the nurses' station to inform them that you have regained consciousness. Don't move that left arm too much because the IV line is attached to your left wrist. The doctor said that you were dehydrated that's why you are on IV hydration right now."

I was not surprised by the diagnosis. The past few days I had not been eating or drinking much at all.

A nurse came in and took my vital signs.

"Your blood pressure is low, although not critically," she said. "The rest of your vital signs are normal. We will finish up the IV bag but in the meantime I would encourage you to eat the hospital food that the orderly will bring in shortly. In the meantime, if you happen to have your health insurance card with you and the rest of your personal information, I would be glad to record them now."

I tried to take out my wallet from my pocket but I was having a little difficulty doing so from my lying position. Aside from that, my hand movements were limited because of the IV that was attached to my wrist.

"Tell me which pocket your wallet is in and I will pull it out for you," my boss offered.

"It is in my left pocket," I informed him weakly.

I was so thankful that I had a kind and caring boss who had gone out of his way to bring me to the hospital for the treatment I needed.

"Whose name shall I write in your chart as your emergency contact number?" the nurse asked.

I did not want to give my mother's name because I did not want her to panic if she found out that I was in the hospital. I did not want to give Max's number either because I was sure he would not want to come and see me.

I turned an embarrassed face to my boss.

"Is it alright if I give your name as my emergency contact number, sir?" I asked, hoping hard that he would say yes.

"Why can't you give your husband's name and number?" he asked, looking a bit confused. "I mean it's alright for me to be your emergency contact. I'm just wondering why you can't put your husband as your emergency contact."

I could not hold myself back anymore. I burst into tears making both my boss and the nurse look at me with a very concerned look on their faces.