Hospital
White walls, white fencing, it has everything I don't want to remember and … judging by Yale's face, she is also bothered by the sight in front of her.
"What is this place, Zion?" She asked, not looking at me as her expression turned hard.
"A hospital," I said, looking straight ahead as well.
"I can see that." We both stared at the sign at the very top that says, 'Health Care Hospital'. "But why are we here?"
"Remember the baby shower?" I asked, turning to her.
"Alexis's wife is in there?" She asked, surprised. "But … according to my calculations … the baby is not due in another couple of weeks, at the very least."
"He told me that she is not doing well," I explained, keeping eye contact with her. "I wanted us to visit her and check if anything is wrong. Sorry. I should have checked this place out first."
"You should have." She frowned at me, sighing. "But your intentions aren't really bad so I will let this be for now. Though … I don't know if we will be able to enter there."
"Yeah." I agreed, looking at the building again. "It looks too much like that place."
"Our containment centre." She mumbled. "We saw some things in there that humans shouldn't ever see in their lifetime."
"We can just drop a call to Alexis. We don't have to go in." I said, palms getting sweaty the more I looked at the building, unpleasant memories flooding through my mind. "Want to go to a café?"
"No," Yale said, determination written all over her face. "I want to find out her condition myself. We can't trust Alexis to be honest with us."
"Will you be fine going in there?" I asked, knowing full well that she has seen a lot worse things than I have. "I could just go i-"
Shaking her head, Yale looked at me, "I want to be with you. Let's go in together, ok?"
"Alright," I said as we two locked hands and walked to the building.
The moment we passed the large black gates, I could feel hundreds of eyes on us even though there were only four people in the compound, excluding the gatekeeper.
I am counting the four CCTV cameras on the tree in the distance, two more in the swings beside the building and several littered all around the area.
The only thing that gave me solace is the fact that there were trees and bushes growing around the vicinity with flowers blooming here and there. Adding colour to the place.
At the very least, it is not all white.
We walked down the long pathway leading straight to the building, the grey gravel crunching under our feet.
"Stay close."
"I have no intention of straying. I already learnt my lesson from last time." She said, grinning at me. "Don't worry."
Last time, huh?
Last time she disappeared from my sight, I almost froze myself and the entire building, trying to look for her. It was not a fun time for anyone involved and I think at least three people died that day.
Not to mention, when I found Yale, she was trembling in fear and was twitching on the ground. It took three weeks before she finally started speaking again and she still wouldn't tell me what happened that time.
I also decided not to pry any more than I needed to. She will tell me when she is comfortable, until then, I will be looking after her as night terrors occasionally consume her sleep.
______________________
Walking into the building, we immediately started to relax as we noticed the rich colours of the entire interior.
The walls were a deep brown colour as more plants and flowers decorated the halls. It looks more like the entranceway to a hotel than a hospital.
"It's pretty," Yale said, bringing my attention to a large bulletin board with drawings of varying skills. The frame was decorated with fake flowers and leaves; brown, red and green.
"It is," I mumbled, looking at it. "This place doesn't look like a hospital at all, don't you think so?"
"If I ever had to be admitted," she turned to me, eyes sparkling, "you know where to send me."
"Yeah." I tucked a hair behind her ears. "Though I hope you will never have to be admitted to a hospital. Now, should we look for the room?"
"The reception is there."
Walking to the woman at the front, we asked her where the room number was, only to get a worried look from her.
"Something wrong?" Yale asked, tilting her head to the side at the woman. "We are visiting my aunt."
"Room number 403?" She said, furrowing her brows at us. "Well, it's just … we can't allow anyone in at the moment."
"Why?"
"I'm sorry. You are not immediate family so we can't allow you in." She said apologetically.
"Just a peek?"
She shook her head sadly, "Maybe in a few days?"
I was about to try asking her again but Yale tugged at my sleeve before speaking, "We understand. Then we will be back in a bit. Thank you."
"Thank you for being so understanding." She said, waving at us as we walked out of the building.
Yale didn't need to tell me anything as we stepped out, I already knew what she had planned.
"There are twenty-five cameras in total," I said as we made our way to the back of the building.
"See a blind spot?"
"Not yet." I looked around, calculating the length and the area of vision each camera has, trying to find a blind spot.
Yale looked at the numerous windows on the building, counting which room might be 404.
"There," I said, spotting a tiny distance between two cameras. It was small but it was enough. Not only that, the blind spot extended for a few steps.
"I found the room too." She said as we walked casually to the spot. I took the bags from her first.
"After you," I said, Yale gathering her skirt as she jumped up to the tree and then to the building, climbing the wall almost like she was dancing.
She always had full marks when it comes to execution. I will never not be impressed though.
Stopping in front of a widow, she signalled for me to follow. Looking around, I followed the path she took, appearing beside her in no time.
Though, with the number of things I held, it was a bit of a struggle to make absolutely no noise.
"Took you long enough," Yale said, turning her finger into a flat metal and opened the window. "Come on, we need to check on her."
"Sure."
She jumped into the room as I sat at the window to keep a lookout.
There, in the hospital bed, is the brown-haired woman, hooked up to countless wires as Yale walked to look at the heart monitor and then the patient's chart.
"How is she doing?" I asked, keeping an ear out to the door.
"Not good," Yale said, walking to the woman. She turned her finger into a tiny needle-like pin, pricking it to her neck. "Zion. This isn't good."
"What? What's wrong?" I asked, looking at the door and then at her.
"She is supposed to go into labour in a couple of weeks, right?" Yale asked, though she was the one that kept track of every day the woman was pregnant.
"I guess, how many months is she already in?" I asked, frowning.
"She is only six months pregnant." Yale's eyes widened, pulling the needle from her neck. "Zion, she-"
At that moment, I heard voices getting louder as they reached the door. Without a moment to lose, I grabbed Yale and jumped out of the window, wrapping her in my arms as the figures entered the room.
Grabbing onto the branch of a tree, I carried Yale to the ground as we took off, running out of the compound before we could be spotted.
_______________________
"Two caramel frappes and two slices of cheesecake, please," I said to the man on the counter.
After paying and picking up the tray, I took them to the table Yale was sitting on, tapping viciously on her phone with scribbles on a paper right in front of her.
"I'm here," I said, placing the tray on the table. First, I gave her share and then mine, putting the tray away. "What's wrong?"
"Prematurely born children … especially those born at six months do not have much of a chance at surviving," Yale said, furrowing her brows at me. "But labour can't be delayed. This is a mess, Zion."
"Calm down." I took her hands in mine, squeezing them. "Now, tell me, what's wrong? What did you find out?"
"She … she is very sick," Yale said, chewing at her pen. "Not only that, she is going into labour soon, Zion. Very very soon. In her condition … I don't think she is going to make it."