Resuscitate

Epilogue

He takes one last gulp of air and tilts his head back before sinking deeper.  So deep, he knows he won’t be able to swim back up to the surface.  His lungs fill with water.  He flails his arms as he starts to feel heavy, the water in his lungs weighing him down.
 
He surrenders.  This is what he wanted anyway.  He has nothing to live for anymore.  He might as well leave this life like Yna and their baby left him but before he finally succumbs and closes his eyes, a face illuminated by the faint glow of moonlight appears before him, her lithe hands pulling him up to safety, the beautiful goddess kissing him back to life.
 
“This is the final boarding call for passenger Mr. Richard Faulkerson, Jr. booked on flight KL0716 bound for Manila. Please proceed to Gate G16 immediately."
 
He is startled awake at the sound of his name being announced on the paging system in one of the airline lounges at Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport for the last leg of his flight home from Sierra Leone.  It has been three years and he still wakes up most nights to this dream.  In this rare occasion, however, his dream vividly showed her beautiful face. Under the moonlight, she indeed looks like a goddess, a faint halo swirling around her.  Even in the haze of confusion, after she resuscitated him back to life, he is drawn to her dark brown eyes, so full of concern and care for him, a stranger whom she snatched away, without question or hesitation, from the claws of death.
 
Her eyes keep haunting his thoughts since that night. He finds himself longing for her kiss, praying that one of these days, he'll see her again. He never got to thank her for saving his life but he promised he wouldn’t waste any minute of the second chance she so selflessly gave to him. He has been keeping that promise.
 
He has been volunteering his services as a doctor in Sierra Leone in behalf of the World Health Organization, taking a sabbatical as an attending physician at St. Luke’s Hospital, to help, primarily concentrating on maternal health care and reducing neonatal mortality for the past two years.  He knows he won't be able to bring their baby back to life but he could at least help others keep theirs alive.  Mourning for one's child is a pain he would never wish even on his worst enemy.
 
“Ma, opo. Opo. Boarding na po ako. Sige na. I’ll see you in about sixteen hours.  Board--” He is talking to his mom on the phone as he finally reaches the door of the aircraft when…  “Ma, I’ll call you back pagdating ko sa NAIA.”  He says absentmindedly, his gaze staying focused on a pair of brown eyes he never thought he’ll ever see again.
 
***
 
Maine greets every passenger entering the aircraft, welcoming them aboard with her genuine smile while her companion, Sophie hands them a glass of champagne.
 
She faces the direction of the aircraft door when her eyes lock with a pair of familiar brown eyes she knows she’ll always remember no matter how much time has passed.  She felt her cheeks warm as the memories of their first encounter three years ago suddenly flood her memories as he hands her his boarding pass with that beguiling smile she is seeing for the first time, his still eyes fixed on hers.
 
“Welcome aboard, Mr…” She reads his boarding pass and smiles. “Mr. Richard Faulkerson, Jr.” She smiles even wider. Richard…finally.
 
“Hi--” He reads her nameplate. “Maine. Finally...” He smiles gratefully, taking his boarding pass from her, his hand lingering a few seconds on hers.
 
She watches the muscles of his broad shoulders shift as he took each step towards his seat, stares a little too long at his dimple as he puts his backpack and luggage into the overhead cabin.  May dimple ka pala. She can’t stop smiling, still not believing he is here, alive.  He was lying on his back, his arm over his eyes, crying the last time she saw him and she is glad to see him again. And this time, dare she say, happy.  She blushes as she notices him waving at her and quickly turns to face one of her fellow flight attendants, hoping she isn't being too obvious.
 
Once everyone is onboard, the crew starts demonstrating safety procedures.  As she reads the safety manual, she feels instead of sees him watching her.  She sees him leave his seat and walks toward her the moment the seatbelt light is switched off.  She quickly turns around and tries to busy herself with preparing the passengers’ food for the first service instead, if only she doesn't feel his eyes on her as he leans against the wall of the lavatory about two feet away from her.
 
“Uhm, Maine?”  He asks tentatively.
 
“Yes, Sir?”  She smiles, her heart almost jumping up to her throat.
 
“I never got to thank you for saving my life three years ago.  Your CPR training surely came in handy.”  He says, a playful smile lingering on his lips.  “You have no idea how you turned my life around.”
 
Her cheeks blush crimson remembering what happened after that CPR but she quickly recovers.  “For the better I hope.”
 
“Yes, most definitely.”  They stare at each other for a few more seconds until they hear the sound of the door opening, catching both their attention, giving Maine the chance to finally breathe. Richard smiles and points his thumb to the lavatory.
 
“Jusko naman, Maine. Focus. nasa trabaho ka. At hello naman, Richard. Mas malapit sayo yung lavatory sa kabilang dulo, oh.” She mutters to herself.  This is a fourteen-hour flight and it has only been 45 minutes since takeoff.  She’s not sure if her heartbeat can handle his piercing stare or if her knees can stay steady against that be-dimpled smile in the next thirteen hours and 15 minutes.
 
“Maine, that cute guy wants to talk to you.” says Sophie, a Dutch flight attendant on her crew, a few hours later.  “I think he likes you.”  She giggles.
 
“I highly doubt that. What did he say he needed?”
 
“Maybe your number.”  Sophie teases and shrugs her shoulder as Maine walks away from her.
 
"I saw that." Sophie pokes Maine's side with her finger when she returns.
 
"Saw what?  He was just asking for a hot towel."  She says defensively.
 
"You're smiling.  Oh my God, Maine!  You're blushing!"
 
"Sophie, shut up.  Ssssh!" She giggles. "Now go back to work.  I'm gonna take this to Mr. Faulkerson."
 
Every time he presses the call button, Sophie purposely makes sure that Maine attends to him.  Maine won't even be surprised if Sophie already talked to the rest of the crew and told them to let only Maine wait on him for the rest of the flight.
 
***
 
As the captain announces their last hour on their flight, he presses the call button again and as he hoped, Maine is already walking towards his seat.
 
"Hello Sir, what can I help you with?"
 
He takes a deep breath before speaking because her smile still renders him almost speechless.  Stay strong, RJ.
 
"Hi Maine.  Can I have another glass of champagne please?  Kinakabahan ako e."  He asks, pummeling his chest with his first.
 
"Are you okay, Sir?  Do you need me to get a doctor?"
 
He sees once again the same concern in her eyes he saw three years ago.  "No, no. I'm okay. I'm a doctor, too. Kinakabahan lang talaga ako."
 
"Are you sure you're okay, Sir?" She asks again.
 
"Very much. Nakita na kita ulit after three years. Okay na okay na ko." Okay, way too forward, Faulkerson.
 
She turns away to hide her smile.  "Ok, Sir. Let me get that for you."  She says when she recovers then briskly walks away.
 
“Hi Maine.  I know you’re still on duty but I don’t think I can wait till we land to tell you this.”  He begins when Maine returns, his heart beating erratically as he takes from her hand the flute of champagne he asked for.
 
“Tell me what, Sir?” She asks as her brows furrow.
 
“RJ.  Just call me RJ.  I want to properly thank you for saving my life and I will not take no for an answer because it took us three years to finally meet and I’m never letting you out of my sight again and I apologize If I’m being too forward...”  He says all in one breath for fear that he loses his nerves halfway.
 
The middle-aged French lady sitting next to RJ already puts down the book she's been pretending to read for hours now and looks at them alternately, an expectant smile on her face.  “Say yes, mademoiselle.  Say oui. So I can finally finish reading my book. The suspense is killing me."  She exclaims giggling.
 
Richard beams at the woman.  “Thank you, Ma’am.”
 
Maine on the other hand grips the nearest backrest she can find.
 
“As I was saying.  I need to tell you everything.  How you changed my life. And most of all, I need to tell you that looking forward to kissing you again kept me sane all these years.  Please have dinner with me when we land in Manila.”
 
“Sir…”  She put a hand on her chest, lost for words at his confession.  “I don’t---”
 
“I will wait until you deplane and finish anything else you need to do.  Just...please.  Ayoko nang pakawalan ka pa ulit.”  His voice almost breaks, realizing that he might have scared her away, that she could very well say no to the man who kissed her unabashedly and called her a different name after saving his life.
 
"Yes, RJ."
 
They are both surprised as the passengers from nearby seats gush and clap around them, because of them.
 
***
 
His pleading eyes and his charming smile would be the death of her. Could she really say no to this face? And he’s still not over our kiss?!  Out of everything he said, that one stuck.
 
Three years is long enough. She too wouldn't let this chance slip away, anyway. Not when she sees the truth and sincerity in his eyes, something she hasn’t seen in any man she tried to date for the two years. Maybe she's ready now. She wouldn't know until she tries, right?
 
So, she says yes.  He waits for her in one of the coffee shops lining the NAIA arrival area and there, he tells her that her name reminded him of something he heard three years ago, about an Eric and an Eve talking about her.  She only smiles.  She has moved on.  In fact, Eric and Eve are now married.
 
She tells him why she was crying the first time they saw each other. He tells her about Yna and the baby they lost and how Yna is married now and living in the States.  She tells her why she walked away after he kissed her.  They tell each other about what happened the last three years and how they got to where they are now.
 
They tell each other everything, emptying every dark secret out in the open, leaving all the pain and grief behind. They're both ready now.
 
Two more years later and they are back to where their paths first crossed.   As the sun bids farewell to the skies, leaving in its wake a rosy light swirling around streaks of orange and blue, they relive the first time they kissed, this time without protest, without hesitation, without anyone else on their minds.  This time, no one needed saving.

As the sun descends further into the horizon, they break away when their lungs crave for air.  He kisses her forehead and wraps his arms around her as they both face the sunset, his chin resting atop her head.
 
"Mahal, no words can express how grateful I am that you saved me from drowning, from himself. I could never repay you for the second life you bestowed upon me. I never could." He pauses and tips her chin up so he can look into her eyes. "And here I am again, asking you for another favor."
 
"RJ? What are you talking about?"
 
"Maine…" He fishes from his pocket a diamond ring. "Will you make this second life my happiest lifetime and be my wife?" He asks, his heart racing as he waits for her answer.
 
She gasps in surprise.  A tear rolls down her cheek that RJ wipes away with his thumb.  She nods.  "Yes, in any lifetime. In every universe."
 
 
 
A/N:
 
Thank you AMACon for another opportunity to share my story. Happy anniversary!
 
Thank you @covertmaichardfan for this prompt. You gave me a challenge that I hope I was able to accomplish.
 
To @noodlesbychi for beta-reading my initial draft and the constant encouragement.
 
And for @writingmaichard for believing that I can do this and for being one of the very few people that I go to when I need to take a breather and rant, or scream at the top of my lungs with (virtually) because of MaiChard-induced kilig.
 
I hope I was able to give justice to this prompt. That’s all I’m hoping for.

What do you think? Comment down below and let me know. 😅

©📷 jaysonmagbanua