My Sweet Superchef

EPILOGUE

I was in constant communication with Lucien's mom since I went back to the Philippines. It was her promise before I left Vietnam. She told me, "Don't worry, I'll update you about Lucien everyday."

She told me that his hallucinations were gone and he spoke to them normally. She told me he's eating well and would sometimes ask for coffee from them. However, he can only eat what the hospital serves, usually soft healthy food.

After almost 2 weeks since I went back (3 weeks since he's been in the hospital), Lucien was flown back to France. His mom was happy about it when she told me 2 days before their flight. I was glad about it too. No more language barrier. It is their home. I remember how frustrated Lucien's mom was when we were in Vietnam. She was almost in tears when she told me about it. She said she can't understand everything the nurses are saying especially that they only use Google Translate. Only Lucien's doctor spoke French but was not always around. So, their flight back to France was a big sigh of relief for them.

They stayed in one of the hospitals in Paris. His mom still updated me of Lucien everyday. I sometimes send her a one-minute long video greeting for Lucien and would play it to him.

After a week, Lucien chatted me using his mom's Messenger. It was his first chat since he had his accident (after a month). I was happy that he could already use a phone. He told me he will call me soon. His attitude haven't changed. Even in chat, I could feel he's still positive about life. He's happy and didn't sound a bit depressed about his situation. Though he told me his body is not the same, saying, "it's destroyed". However, I didn't feel that he meant it in a negative way but he was just stating a fact. Still, I reassured him that everything will be okay soon. It may take time and he just have to be patient about it. He expressed his love for me and I did too. I told him I'll always be here for him. Then he sent me a selfie. It looked like he lost weight. I told him to eat well so he'll stay healthy.

Four days after Lucien chatted me, his friend Minh sent me a message about the lockdown in France because of the pandemic (the virus that spread and affected the whole world). It was also the same time for the lockdown in the Philippines. She told me that no visitors were allowed in hospitals. Therefore, Lucien will be alone. I got sad about it. He'll be lonely. Nobody can visit him. Not even his mom or dad. I guess this was the reason too why his mom stopped chatting me. She can no longer give me updates about Lucien. I'm sure she was not happy about it because she won't be able to visit his son anymore. Mihn told me not to worry about Lucien because he has his own room, has a TV set and the hospital serves healthy food.

Three days after Minh chatted me, Lucien called me for the first time. I was ecstatic. I was happy that he got his phone with him. The last time we communicated, he was just using his mom's phone (chatting through her Messenger). He told me about the lockdown too, saying his mom already went home to their province since she can't visit him in the hospital anymore. I felt sorry for him that he's alone and his parents can't see him. However, he saw it as something good for everybody. Stay home or get infected by the virus. Good point.

He called me or we talked everyday since then. He said he also talks with his mom and dad everyday. After a few days, he announced that he will be transferred to his province. I felt the eagerness in his voice when he told me about it. Of course, he'll be closer to his family, relatives and friends.

I thought he'll be moved to another hospital in his province but I just learned recently from him that it's a recuperation facility. So, he's moved to a place for recovery in his province. He has therapy sessions everyday.

I was getting updates from him real time. He'll tell me of his developments. I'm really happy that he's slowly recovering. Slowly but surely. After a week, he told me he can already use a wheelchair which was good news. Since his accident, he was bedridden. This was refreshing because it's his first time to get off bed and be in a wheelchair. He was happy about it. He told me he drove in his wheelchair and went out to get some fresh air. He also announced happily that he was already able to drink coffee. He requests coffee every morning and he gets it. Another one in the afternoon. I joked with him, "Oh you're a king there, huh? Your wish is my command!" He laughed.

I'm really grateful of how things are going with him. A lot of development has happened since he moved to the recuperation facility.

Also, I'm thankful and I appreciate his positive outlook in life. I guess that also helps in his recovery. He has strong faith that sooner or later he'll fully recover. I believe that too.