Somewhere Someday
(Chapter 24 – My Girl, My Destiny – The Series Finale)
ALFRED
“Good morning, honey.”
I greeted Hanna with a smile. Looking at her while she is lying on the bed beside me, I can fully see her sweet and lovable face… that adorable look and her gentle smirks, as I touched and caressed her head – from hair to chin. Inasmuch as I wanted to squeeze her cheeks and kiss her supple lips, I had to control the urge. Her body is more sensitive now… compared to her condition two months ago, during our first honeymoon.
As we lie down under the sheets, the rays of the morning sun brought by the warm summer sky slowly reached our bedroom, passing through the glass window. I looked at the clock and glanced at the calendar beside it. The day was special – April 8, 2013 – Hanna’s 20th birthday.
“Happy birthday, my sweet wife.” I gently kissed her lips. It was too gentle that it can be said that our lips didn’t even touch.
“Good morning, Alfred.” My wife softly replied. Hearing her speak words can make a person tell that she is challenged. Her disease is now chronic, and most of the time, pain attacks her.
Having an auto-immune disease, other conditions and sicknesses such as pneumonia and bronchitis entered her system, thus, making her weaker as days passed. The high-tech medical equipment attached to her bed and other parts of the body did little help.
I tried to be patient and strong. Everyday, I can hear sounds and screams of pain and sickness. When she cries because of her disease, I just go beside her and pray. It was not easy. Seeing her like a vegetable makes a tough man like me cry every night, wondering what will happen next… wondering if she’ll still survive the night.
It was also a stab to realize that being a doctor of medicine, specializing in the area of neurology, I can’t do something for my wife. For two months, I did a lot of research and study, even going beyond the boundaries of the sub-specialty. But still, there was no cure… only temporary pain remedies.
I knew this was crazy, but sometimes, I ask God why he gave me a second life, being here on Earth for so long… but Hanna, a girl who has a dream, a girl who wants to experience the world, a girl who has yet to see the future, can’t make it past 20 years. I also know that everything happens for a reason, and that He has a plan.
“When you hear the doorbell, my family would probably be at the doorstep.” Hanna smiles at me, with hope embedded in her deep eyes. Celebrating her birthday with family is one of things she wished to me, even if we’re here in a secluded place beside the sea.
The whole afternoon was all about Hanna. Her family and friends were all present. I was very happy for she took all her time to enjoy herself –catching up with Paula and Trixie on the latest school gossip, chatting with her best friend JC, and bonding with Lloyd, William and Dina, her family. After blowing the candles on her birthday cake, everyone gave her a tight hug and a prayer.
Since the past few weeks, this was the only time that I’ve seen her so happy. Maybe she got tired of seeing my face everyday, but I think it was her being with other people that she love.
Sunset came and its rays became orange shades that went through our living room. To tell you frankly, I hate sunsets. I still remember when Helena got fascinated with the late afternoon sun during our first and last ride at the Ferris wheel, I just hid my own opinion. Sunsets make me sad. For me, they remind me of one’s twilight years, or maybe hours.
“Alfred…” I heard her meek and calm voice. Then she follows “I can’t eat dinner. I just want to rest early.”
I didn’t know what made me think negatively, but upon hearing her say that, I got scared. But of course, I had to keep my cool and be quiet.
“Please stay beside me.”
That was a wish that was granted in a few minutes. After cleaning the mess in the kitchen, I saw her lying down, with eyes looking at me as she waited for my presence. I lied down beside Hanna, combing her ruffled hair. As we were facing each other, she grabbed my hand and held it very tight. From happy and excited, her mood changed… to lonely and worried.
“Alfred, I’m scared!” Tears started to roll on Hanna’s cheeks, unexpectedly. Behind her sunny exterior lies fear and uncertainty in a different and alarming level.
“Why so scared?” I tried to appease her, lessening her worries.
“I’m afraid to die!” Her crying went more intense as her hands shook in fear, now brittle and sensitive to touch.
I did not know how to reply. I can’t tell her that it is okay to die. Neither should I tell that she should be scared to death. Her words made me think more.
“Let me tell you a story before you sleep…” Kissing her head, I began sharing something that I read, so that she will not be afraid, like a father telling a fairytale for her daughter to sleep.
“I read that when a person or a living thing dies, he has two options. Either the person goes to heaven because his or life is already complete in terms of stages and experiences, or… he will join others in a sea of spirits. What happens to those spirits? They are like in a pending area, waiting for a chance to be reborn.” I started telling her this story I read from a theosophical book.
“But why?” Hanna was interested with what I was saying.
“It is for completion of stages. Everytime a person is reborn, he gains more and more experiences, making him better than his previous life. They cycle goes on and on, until one reaches the top level.”
Explaining it to Hanna made her come up with more questions on her mind.
“If I would die today, would we still see each other? Would we still be together? What if heaven assigns me to a different partner?” She made a complex puzzle on her head, confusing her even more.
“Of course, we would still be together. It was proven through your reincarnation. We met for the second time.”
My statement made her smile a bit, making her comfortable just for a while. I tried to speak more.
“And if ever you really have to go… I know you will come back. Just trust time… for time will take us to places and events we are not able to anticipate.” It hurts to say these things, especially when you are saying this straight to her unassuming face.
Holding her hand, I kissed it gently but passionately, as if I would never even let her go. This was the time when I found it hard to hold back my tears. I could not help it. I cried.
“And if we meet again as strangers, we’ll start from scratch. Don’t you love the feeling when we see each other for the first time?” I said to her.
“But where? When?” She asked in response to what I was saying.
“Honestly, I don’t know. But one thing’s for sure. It will happen. Just have faith!”
Her head was just resting under my arm. She grinned at me, and from her chapped lips and dry mouth, she said the words that I’ve always loved to hear “I love you, Alfred.”
She yawned silently, and closed her eyes. Even in her sleep, she was as cute as a baby. Studying her face for a few seconds, she leaned involuntarily, prompting me to assume something that has just happened.
“I know you’re still awake.” I said to her. It took me hours to finally accept what happened. Hugging her will all my might, I endlessly cried until the sun finally sets.
“I love you too, Hanna, Helena… and whatever name you might get in the future. Somewhere, someday, our hearts will cross paths. I will wait for you!” I told her as if she was still listening.
Then I made myself think. When will she really come back? When will I see her again? When will she undergo another rebirth? I still don’tknow.
As I wait, and wait, and wait… time passed by quickly… so fast that I did not notice that I spent another 65 years of my life.
Here I am now, an 86 year-old man, physically, waiting for my 87th birthday in just a few days. In reality, I’ve been living on Earth for almost 152 years. Imagine how long I’ve waited for the woman I love, but only to be let down by heaven. And as I write in this old and brownish journal that used to be Helena’s diary, I can feel my brittle hands shaking due to aging, still remembering the day when Hanna died under my arms. Today is her 65th death anniversary.
After she was buried, I focused all my energies on managing Martinez Laboratories and University of Science & Technology. Being at work all day and all night made me forget the sadness that I can feel when thinking about Hanna.
When my sister Trixie got married with Lloyd, she assumed the ownership of the university, leaving the laboratory under my care. Being a courageous doctor that I am, I moved the lab’s site into a more noticeable and accessible place. I demolished the underground area because for me, it symbolizes secrecy and deception. I was more on sharing the knowledge with other people, with other doctors interested in the field of science.
I also built a foundation that will help people with serious and incurable diseases, as we doctors stretch our knowledge to invent and discover the right medicine for them.
I think my question to God is already answered. He gave me a second chance to live, so that I can use my full potential to help, to inspire and to move and change other people for the better. Who would have thought that a simple Ferris wheel operator who was once poor as a rat, have already gone places, traveling the whole world, and sharing his experiences to everyone. I suddenly remembered one saying that Mang Fernando once taught me.
“When you happen to be on top, be thankful, because it is not just a privilege. It means that you are in a greater position to help others.”
That’s what I always tell my niece when she was little. As I put down my black pen on top of my dresser, I start to cruise around the laboratory with what I call my holographic wheelchair. In these times, techonology can be very overwhelming, even to a man of science like me. People around my age can walk faster by modifying their bodies with chemicals and other additions. I like to age gracefully. I can depend on machines, and external aids, but I will not do anything to change my structure. I am still old-fashioned, especially when it comes to writing. I am one of the few 1% who still writes in paper and pen.
“Katy! How’s the lab?” I called my niece with enthusiasm.
She is Katrina Anne Villegas, the only daughter of Lloyd and Trixie. We call her Katy. At 55 years old, she now enjoys her position as the head and owner of the laboratory – a position once held by me, Dr. Joey, Dr. Edgar, and her father Lloyd.
“Everything’s fine, uncle!” She smiled with utmost respect and courtesy. She is very a bright and kind woman, growing up in a happy family.
“By the way, uncle, you’re looking younger and younger each day! Haha!” Look where this girl got her humor. She must be joking, for when I look at the mirror, my face is getting crumpled everyday, and wrinkles and spots appear, as my skin becomes thin, with some of my bones already showing.
Katy is my only family right now. Her parents have been dead for 10 years already. Lloyd died in his sleep, with findings I don’t want to discuss further. His wife Trixie followed after 3 years, dying because of lung cancer. My stepsister became addicted to smoking when since her late 20s. Contacting Dr. Edgar was a failure, for he cannot be found when I let my team search for him in Germany. Maybe he died a long time ago.
If I would look back on what happened to Hanna’s friends, I can say that I don’t know much about what happened to them lately. The last time I heard of JC is when I saw him in Beijing, China… with Hanna… her daughter from a Chinese girl. At least he has found his happiness with two girls who love him. But with Paula… I have no news.
“Uncle, I received your instruction about the forbidden room. Shall we now inspect it?” Katy tells me.
The ‘forbidden room’ of the laboratory is one place that I don’t want others to see or visit. It has been a secret sanctuary at one corner of the institute. After a long time, I would be able to enter this place again. Together with my niece, we opened the lights and saw the sacred tube in the middle.
Placed inside the transparent tube is a frozen embryo… my child… Hanna’s child… our son who has been kept for six decades inside this incubated place. A week before my wife died, she told me that she was already pregnant, making me propose this arrangement to her. I started to regret about our child, so I told her that he might live… not at that time, but in another decade, or another era, depending on when Hanna can come back.
Instead of letting our son die together with my wife at any moment, I took precautions and decided to extract him from Hanna’s womb, and froze him for future birth. I upheld my decision for decades, but now… I’m starting to think that my wife will not come back anymore. I’m starting to feel that she is already waiting for me… in heaven.
But wait… I have to think twice before doing something that will later regret.
“Ah… about my son… I decided that you pull the plug…” I began to tell my niece.
“R-right now, uncle?” She was surprised. I’m sure she didn’t think that I would ‘murder’ my own child.
“Not now. When I’m dead… that would be the time that you pull the plug!” My instruction was clear. Only Katy and I have the knowledge about the frozen embryo. No one else.
I also don’t know my expiration date. My life can be over tonight, tomorrow, next week, next month, next year… at least I’m ready. I have done my mission in life, and one thing’s for sure. I will never regret anything that happened to me. I enjoyed my trip, and I am more than ready to be with Hanna in the afterlife.
Frankfurt, Germany
April 2078
A secret and discreet laboratory that is found underneath the busy streets of Frankfurt seems to be more than busy, with scientists and doctors from the city form a large circle. At the middle of their formation is an experiment which they properly observe.
“Guten Morgen!” said a doctor to greet Good Morning to a certain patient. “Wake up, Fraulein!” He addresses her as a Miss. As the patient’s eyes open, she notices a sea of people around her.
“Who are you?! Where am I?!” The young lady shouts at the top of her lungs only to be laughed at.
“You are in Germany… and your name is… Hanna, right? It’s what the tube label says. By the way, I am Dr. Bergmann, former assistant of Dr. Edgar Martinez, if you still know him. He has long been dead.” A German doctor shakes her hand. The foreigner finds her pretty, for her beauty is virginal at 20 years of age, physically.
“Welcome to 2078, Hanna! You slept for 65 years!” Another doctor congratulates her. Hanna’s eyes widen, her body shaking in fear, seeing strangers all around. “Alfred, help me! Help!”
THE END
TRIVIA
In real life, the first person to be cryonically preserved is James Hiram Bedford. Offered free of charge, he was frozen after a few hours of his legal death in 1967. Up to this date, he remains preserved.
There are also recorded incidents of frozen embryos and their births after years of preservation. One triplet was successfully born in 2005 after being frozen for 13 years. Another case is a 20 year-old embryo which was born in 2010.
WHAT'S NEXT?
One Love, Two Hearts (Romance Drama)
http://www.wattpad.com/73234858-one-love-two-hearts-chapter-1
Andre is a guy blessed with twin hearts beating separate rhythms. After hearing the news that his organs are starting to fail, with little chance of living after his upcoming cardiac operation, he wants to find his true love who is lost because of a sea accident. In his search, memories take him back 4 years ago, when he was torn between two loves - Bianca, the girl disguised as his best friend, and Ginny, his dream girl.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
It was August 2011 when I watched Captain America: The First Avenger. I was convinced because it was a period movie tackling about the life in 1940s. Little did I know that I would be surprised with the final twist – the main character being frozen and was thawed after 70 years, moving the timeline to 2010s. I can’t get over that scene when he woke up in a different time. That was the first inspiration.
I researched some facts online about cryonics and found some real accounts. I got more interested with the topics, even bringing me to articles about frozen embryos. But the excitement was short-lived. After months, I decided to shelve or postpone my concept, for it might be just a copycat of the said superhero movie.
Fast forward to April 12, 2012, the midnight when my mother and I stayed in Microtel in Pasay City near Mall of Asia because of a convention, I sat by the room window where the view was the seaside area. There’s a mini-carnival located in the baywalk, with rides and other attractions are near their closing time. One particular view that I enjoyed was the Mall of Asia Eye, the largest Ferris wheel in the city. I looked at it and suddenly, thoughts entered my head.
I saw a story while looking at the Ferris wheel. Remembering Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook and Mitch Albom’s The Five People You Meet In Heaven made me imagine the 1940s. I came up with a story about reincarnation. A certain girl should be reincarnated.
After minutes of looking at the Ferris wheel while listening to music, the concept of cryonics came back to my head, and I thought it would be fun if I’ll fuse its elements to reincarnation.
A girl will be reincarnated, and a guy will be frozen… given the timeline from 1940s to 2010s, the present time. As I woke up hours later, in the morning, the concept of Somewhere Someday was born.
Thank you for reading and supporting my work. I may take a break from writing melodramas as I will focus on light-hearted stories to test other genres. Maybe I will make another one next year. Creating My Girl, My Friend in 2010 and Somewhere Someday in 2012 makes me wonder what’s in store for 2014.