His Nineteenth Secretary [✔]

Fifteen

"Mike?" I called in disbelief. He looked so thin and pale and his chin was covered with stubble. Apart from that, there were bruises on his face and neck. I tapped him but there was no response. He remained unconscious. The worst part was, I wasn't with my phone making calling an ambulance impossible at that moment.

An old lady came out from a nearby house that moment with a watering can to water her flowers.

"Ma'am," I called out. The old lady slowly turned around to look towards my direction, with a questioning look.

"Please I need your help, can you please call an ambulance, I don't have my phone on me." I requested, beads of sweat already forming on my forehead. The old woman got ahold of the situation quickly and hurried into her house as fast as her weak legs could carry her to get her phone.

*

Tears glided freely down my cheeks as the doctor's words echoed in my ears over and over. Mike had been diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer, a little too late and didn't have much time left to live. That explained the change in attitude and the reason why he broke up with me. He knew I would be hurt if I found out.

I wasn't allowed to see him until the following morning when I had to leave very early to prepare for work.

I wasn't myself throughout that day at work and I cried at every little thing. I cried when my drawer got stuck and refused to open, also when my pen slipped from my hand and others I couldn't remember.

After the last work assigned to me that day, immediately I finished reporting to my boss, I had dashed to the elevator.

When I got to the hospital, I found out he left the hospital just a few minutes before I arrived there. Upon hearing that, I quickly took out my phone to call him.

"Hello," I said when the call was picked on the third ring, but there was no response from him. "Mike, are you there?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, where are you?" I asked.

"You don't need to know that." He said after some time.

"Mike, please where are you?" I wanted to know so badly.

"Ruby..."

"Where, please."

"I can't tell you, Ruby. Bye."

"Wait Mike! Mike! Mike please..." But he already hung up. I rushed over to my car, got in and drove away from the hospital.

The very place I drove to was his place and the moment I stepped out of my car, he also stepped out of his house dragging a traveling bag behind him.

"Ruby, I told you not to..." I didn't pay any attention to what he was saying but instead ran over to where he was, engulfing him immediately in a tight hug once I reached him. I'd really missed him and hadn't realized I was crying until I felt something warm gliding down my cheeks.

"I've missed you." I said in between tears almost wailing, or maybe I was wailing already. I felt his body tense up at my words. He tried pushing me away but that made me wrap my arms even more tightly around him.

"Ruby, let go." He requested, his tone between soft and harsh.

"I don't want to." I shook my head stubbornly.

He tried to push me away again, but I didn't yield. When he saw I wasn't going to let go easily, his arms slowly wrapped around me as well.

"Where did you get the bruises on your face?" I asked, looking up at him while he continued to play with my hair. I didn't want to bring up anything concerning his illness yet, since I didn't know how he would react. We were seated on his couch with my head on his chest.

His lips curved into a soft smile.

"Just fell."

"I'm sorry about that." I knew he was lying but I was ready to let him off because what mattered was, that I got to see him again.

*

It was as if my world ended on the day Mike died but my only joy was the fact that I was by his side until the day of his death.

Before his death, we spent each day together. At work, things were going on fine but not all the time and sometimes I wonder why my boss didn't fired me during those two months before Mike's death. On certain days whenever he had any of his attacks and I got to work late, my boss would only tell me to prevent a next time but no matter how much I tried to avoid it, there were other times, I would admit, but he never fired me.

During those period, Alicia served as a comfort and she comes over to spend some fun time with Mike and me.

Mike's parents on the other hand were carefree and would only show up once in a while to check up on their son and while around, his Mum would act as if I was invisible. All they cared about was their career not about their son. Phoebe comes to visit sometimes whenever she was free and we were quick to become friends.

•

His parents came for his burial with flowers but didn't stay for long before leaving. Phoebe, Jennifer, Ellis and others who were Mike's friends from the studio also showed up. Lizzy, my former boss came as well and apologized for not giving me a second chance.

It turned out the new secretary I was replaced with wasn't capable enough and had caused a lot of damage before she was eventually fired.

I sat on the grass with Alicia, a little distance from his cemetery after everyone had left.

I didn't cry when Mike died and even when he was buried and no matter how many times Alicia and my grandma told me to let it all out, I wouldn't listen to them. Right from the moment Mike passed away, I haven't uttered a word to anyone and while not with anyone, I would simply space out. I had my head on Alicia's shoulder and was staring at nothing in particular, lost in thought when she told me she needed to go and get something from her car.

I was lost in thought again after she was gone when the familiar scent of my boss's cologne hit my nostrils all of a sudden and I had looked up to see him making his way over to where I was.

He walked over to Mike's grave and placed the flowers in his hand before it before walking over to me.

Hesitating a little when he reached me, he knelt on one knee before me and while on his knee, he had his eyes which were today, soft, staring unwaveringly into mine with so much concern. The situation seemed so unreal and when he had asked if I was okay, that was when I knew for certain I was beginning to daydream too.

Not wanting to have anymore of it, I had called out for Alicia who appeared beside me in no time, pleading with her to take me away from there immediately.

Mike died on Friday night and was buried on Saturday morning on the First of February that year.