Chapter 4

"Franklin's heart was truly broken. He now seemed to have lost half the spirit of his life.

The woman he thought was the only external source of strength he had turned out to be the destroyer of everything.

"Shit! Why did I have to know her if in the end, she's only going to hurt my heart?!"

Franklin punched his motorcycle handlebars. Yelling in frustration, deliberately ignoring the stares from people around who looked at him strangely.

Today, truly became the worst day for Franklin. Everything shattered and disappeared at the same time.

“Franklin.." someone called out softly, afraid of becoming the target of Franklin's anger as well.

Franklin then turned to find Ical, whom he had met earlier, coming to see him.

"Eh, you, Cal? What's up? Sorry for what happened inside. You must feel embarrassed because I caused a scene there."

Ical quickly shook his head. "No, Franklin. I wouldn't be like that. You know, there's nothing good about adultery. If I were you, I'd probably do the same thing."

Franklin tried to keep smiling even though it was difficult for him.

Ical then gently patted the man's shoulder.

"Hang in there. Everything takes time. Maybe today is the phase of your downfall, but it doesn't rule out the possibility that the coming days will be the beginning of your luck."

Ical tried to encourage his friend.

Franklin nodded, internalizing all the words from his friend's mouth, Ical.

"Oh yeah, here. Your money was left on the table earlier. That's why I brought it here. You'd better go back to the hospital now. Before anything happens to your parents again," Ical reminded, not wanting the man to dwell too much.

As if just remembering his mother's condition, Franklin quickly erased the gloomy thoughts from his mind.

He then bid farewell to Ical, speeding off at a fairly high speed to navigate the city streets towards his hospital.

Upon arriving there, Franklin immediately headed to the administrative room.

There, he accidentally ran into one of the nurses who had spoken to him earlier.

"Nurse!" Franklin called, waving his hand.

"Yes? Oh... you from earlier, right? The patient's son?"

Franklin nodded.

"Is the payment ready?" the nurse asked to the point.

Franklin nodded again, looking quite innocent. "But, I can't pay the full amount yet. It's probably only enough for less than half of the total cost."

"Can you, sir? I promise, I'll find a way to get some money as soon as possible, and I'll pay the full amount for my mother's treatment."

The nurse stood still for a moment.

"Wait, let me discuss this with the administrative department."

Franklin nodded, hoping for a miracle. Despite the many misfortunes that occurred that day, Franklin remained hopeful that he would still find some luck. At least in this regard.

Franklin continued to pray, hoping that God would be on his side.

"You can, sir. But, the hospital only gives a grace period of up to 3 days."

Though not as hoped, Franklin finally decided to agree. At least there was still some time, though not much.

Franklin then handed over all the money to the administrative department there. A long sigh marked the end of his heavy day.

"It's already this late. My work hours must be over. I don't need to go back to the office anymore," Franklin muttered as he walked towards his mother's room.

A smile welcomed him, making all the fatigue he felt disappear in seconds.

"Brother!" Vina exclaimed, running to hug her brother.

Franklin smiled, giving his sister a warm hug.

"Thank you, dear. I'm sorry you had to go around looking for help for Mom."

Franklin shook his head, disagreeing with his mother's statement.

"No, Mom. There's no need to thank me. It's all Franklin's duty."

Franklin felt a little relieved. For the next 3 days, he had to work even harder to gather more money.

After all, 3 days weren't a long time; he had to work extra hard.

Drett!

Franklin's reverie was instantly shattered when the vibration in his pocket brought him back to reality.

"Mr. Tio?" Franklin muttered for a moment, feeling ambiguous about the call from his boss.

"Who, son?" his mother asked, making Franklin shake his head slightly.

"It's nothing, Mom. Franklin's boss is calling. Just a moment, Mom. Franklin will step out to take the call."

His mother nodded, letting her son go out to attend to his business.

Once outside, Franklin immediately answered the call from his boss.

"Hello?"

[Hello? Where are you?]

"I'm at the hospital, sir. What's up?"

He heard a frustrated sigh from the other end of the line. Franklin wondered, had he made a mistake?

[What's wrong with you, Franklin! You said you wanted to change. But even in something like this, you're neglectful!]

Franklin furrowed his brow, puzzled by his boss's words.

"I'm sorry, sir? What's going on? I don't understand what you mean."

[The package under Clara's name hasn't been delivered yet?]

Franklin furrowed his brow, feeling like he had already delivered all the packages.

Hastily, he went out to check the box on his motorcycle. Sure enough, a package was tucked inside. Its inconspicuous size had made Franklin overlook it.

[Is it there?]

"Yes, sir. I sincerely apologize. I've..."

[Enough. I understand your situation today. Maybe it's because of your parents. Anyway, deliver the package immediately. The owner keeps calling the office.]

Franklin nodded, even though it wasn't visible to his boss.

Once the call ended, he then sent a message to his sister, informing her that he had to go deliver a package.

After doing so, Franklin put his helmet back on and headed to the address listed on the package.

During the quiet journey as the day started to darken, Franklin could only sigh deeply, feeling the sharp wind piercing his skin.

The shadow of the heartbreak incident instantly replayed in his mind.

"No! I can't be like this. All of this will only affect my job!"

Franklin shook his head, dispelling all thoughts that only led to his loss.

Not long after, Franklin arrived at one of the apartment buildings. As per the instructions, he headed to the woman's unit.

"It seems right. This is her room."

Just as Franklin was about to knock on the door, a loud howl startled him. 

"Argh!!!" she screeched loudly. 

Franklin rounded his eyes. 

"What is that sound?" 

Franklin looked worried, as if he heard the sound of someone in pain from inside. 

Hurriedly, he stuffed the package into his sling bag, trying to open the difficult-looking apartment door. 

Several times, Franklin knocked on the door. 

"Miss! Is everything okay?!" 

Franklin tried to interact with the person behind the door. 

However, Franklin never got an answer. 

When Franklin tried to open it again, the door suddenly opened itself from the inside. 

A woman, whose body looked so limp, ran towards him. His eyes rounded at the blood flowing from her arm. 

"Please... me..." she whimpered seemingly in pain.