To Keep Going On

6. Surprises

Thada was shocked to hear it.

"If you can't handle it or you don't want the baby, tell me, there are other ways you can decide to keep or abort the baby, not like this, not hurting them both! Don't get a person pregnant if you can't be "

Now this time, Thada’s eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. "Wh-what? He—"

"Shush! Shut up and listen when I'm still talking jerkface!" The doctor slammed a file on the desk.

Thada frowned. He thought his face was just fine! Thank you!

"Your boyfriend—”

Thada cut him off. “He’s not my boy—”

The doctor cut him off in turn. “I said shut up when I’m talking!”

“Yeah but—”

“What have you been doing to him? Are you abusing him? Are you disgusted that he’s pregnant? Do you know stress and sleep deprivation are dangerous for him? He doesn’t eat—”

“But—” he tried to talk again.

“Still talking!” The crazy man made a zipping gesture on his mouth.

Thada let out a growl. “Would you let me talk old man?"

"Who the fuck you just called old?" the doctor growled back.

"Beamie"

"What?" the doctor snapped but shut up seeing the female doctor giving him an unamused look.

“Sorry P'Yihwa" he spoke with puppy eyes.

She sighed. "You're wasting energy on wrong guy. He is not the father"

"Oh, yeah I’m sure he’s— eh? He’s not?" Beam blinked.

Yihwa rolled her eyes. "He's basically alone and the father, just as well be a one-night stand. He's ain't in the picture so stop your train right there, stop terrorizing the poor kid!"

"You sure?" Beam confirmed.

"Duh, I'm Yihwa, I see and hear everything, I know everything. I interrogate the seller before I buy tooth brush" She rolled her eyes again and turned to Thada. "Sorry honey, Dr. Baramee is cranky, maybe it's the jet-lag or maybe his period's running late"

"Phi!" Beam pouted. "Fine, go away" Thada frowned even hard but walked out quietly.

"Humph! Is his face ironed or something?" Beam mumbled.

.
.

He sat beside the unconscious boy for hours. No moving, no speaking, not even looking at the boy for more than once. No one came for him. Was he really that alone with no one to hold his hand, to cheer him up, to console him? If he died today, would anyone care?

He knows what that feels like. He knows that emptiness. He had felt that too. Once a very long time ago.

He remembers June warming up to that boy in orientation day. He remembered how that boy laughed so cheerfully. Then the hurt he saw in his eyes today. Or every single day before that.

So, when that boy cried pitifully for his baby, hands so desperately stretched out for anything, any support, he held that hand without any thought.

##~~

Kao didn't let go of that hand even after he was done with all his wailing or telling the doctor he had no partner or family. Even now, lying down with the medication in his system and the new IV hooked to his body, he still held onto it.