Eight: Meeting his parents

Fear overwhelmed Ivan, he felt weak in the knees and his eyes widened with shock. The once roaring hall became silent to him and all he could hear was the sound of his heart pounding.

"Mr Shay, are you okay?" Mia asked after noticing the sudden change in his mood.

Without replying, he started racing towards the exit "Mr —Ivan!" Mia yelled out as she chased after him.

Her small legs weren't fast enough compared to his long legs and she had to stop in the middle of the street to catch her breath. Panting loudly, she took out her phone from her purse and called Alfred to report the situation.

Ivan ran as fast as he could, every step like a giant leap. Tears rolled down his cheek and he bit hard at his lower lip.

He finally arrived at the hospital and he met Abigail pacing down the hallway "Abigail!" He yelled out running towards her.

"Oh Ivan!" She said running towards him.

"What happened?" He asked, panting loudly.

"She passed out, we're trying to revive her, I don't know what her fate is." Abigail explained with sad tears rolling down her face.

"What about my dad?"

"He's fine, his operation is scheduled for tomorrow. I think you need to calm him down so his condition doesn't get out of hand." She added.

Ivan nodded, he couldn't speak because he knew if he tried, he'd burst into tears.

"You need to be strong Ivan…for all of us." She said, squeezing his shoulders.

Ivan nodded again but the tears already found their way out of his eyes. He wiped them off and headed to his dad's room.

He met the old man praying on his bed and he joined him, squeezing his hands in his.

"Ivan!--" his dad yelled "--where's your mother? They took her away a while ago and they won't let me see her."

"Mom–she went to get her drugs, okay dad, we need to be strong for her." Ivan said, trying to force a smile on his face.

His father kept on praying and Ivan prayed along with him, his eyes closed tight shut and tears gushed down his face.

His phone blew up with calls but he answered none, with his mother on his mind. He left his dad but promised it was only for a minute. He went to find Abigail and ask about his mother's condition but to his surprise, Mia and Alfred stood with Abigail who refused to give them access to see Ivan.

"There he is!" Alfred yelled out.

He pushed past Abigail and Mia followed. He felt his heart sink as he saw Ivan so discombobulated. Ivan fell into his arms and wept like a baby. Alfred patted his back gently assuring him his mother would be alright.

Few minutes later, the surgeons walked out of the operation room and they all ran towards them for answers.

"Who's Mr Shay?" One of the surgeons asked.

"I am!" Ivan yelled, raising his index finger.

"Can we talk in private?"

"Of course yes." Ivan instantly answered.

"Follow me." She instructed Ivan to her office and he followed.

She closed the door behind her and instructed Ivan to have his seat at the chair opposite her. She sat down and rested her arms on her table "Mr Shay–" she sighed "--i don't know how you're going to take this but it's a bit too late for your mother–"

"--is she– dead?" Ivan asked.

"What no! She's fine but–"

"--but–"

"--she's already at stage three which means–"

"--even after a successful surgery, she only has five years maximum to live." Ivan said, melting into the chair.

"I'm sorry Mr Shay." She said with a look of sympathy.

"Thank you very much." He said, forcing a smile on his face for a split second.

He stood up and walked out of the office. He felt a sort of heaviness placed on his shoulder, heavy enough to make him drag his feet while trying to walk. He searched for tears but he had none left, his heart rate dropped and he felt like he was going to pass out.

He stopped for a moment, resting his back on the wall and the next thing he knew, he was on the ground. Abigail, Alfred and Mia ran towards him and knelt beside him.

"Ivan, can you hear me?" Abigail called out to him but he didn't respond.

He sat on the ground with his face buried in his palms, the tears he desperately pleaded for just a moment ago now filled his eyes.

After a moment of emotional outbursts, Ivan finally got control of himself and explained things to them.

"I'm sorry Ivan, I really am. I wish I did more–"

"--It's not your fault." He interrupted Abigail.

They had no words to comfort him and he didn't want to be comforted either. He asked to be left alone with Alfred and they all obliged.

"Are you okay Mr Wayne?"

"I want to see my parents." Ivan said with a stern look on his face.

"What–are–you sure Mr Wayne?" Alfred stuttered.

Ivan nodded in reply and Alfred accepted.

They headed to the cemetery together, it was a long and quiet drive and Alfred didn't have any plans of intruding the silence. Arriving at the cemetery, Alfred leads Ivan to where his parents were buried. Ivan was surprised to find two big birchs standing before him.

"Your mother always said that when she dies, she wants a birch tree to be planted on her grave and so we thought to do the same for your dad since he had no special requests." Alfred explained knowing fully the question Ivan wanted to ask.

"I'll leave you three alone. It's nice to see you again Mr and Mrs Wayne." Alfred said before walking away.

Ivan knelt down In front of both trees and began sobbing, he had no words to say, he just wanted to cry. He crawled towards his mother's tree and hugged it tight, imagining his mother hugging him back.

Everywhere was dark, except for the torch Ivan turned on but it was quite visible that something or someone was lurking in the darkness and even though Ivan was carried away by his emotions, he couldn't ignore that eerie feeling he got that he was being watched.