Chapter 10: Chapter 10

Waking up the next morning in a hospital bed wasn’t the best, but considering how much attention she got, she couldn’t complain. Strange, because it is something she never liked getting much of. She had only been there for half a day and they already made it look like she had been there for weeks. Still, she never felt more cared for. She always thought she had to look out for herself, but the people around her made her feel special. Lovely Tina had brought almost all of her grandmother’s family desserts. And Kate could not stop worrying; she even called Olivia’s parents, which Olivia did not quite appreciate as much. Then there was Tyler Brown.

Just when she started to think about him, he walked into her room with his flawless suit and polished shoes. Her whole face lit up.

“I’m glad you are doing well, Ms Acker. Ms Kingsley, you may stay here for the day,” he said, turning to Kate. “I will tell the office that you won’t be coming in today.”

“Thank you, sir,” Kate replied, realising how lucky she was as she had nearly forgotten to take leave.

“I’m glad to know that Blanca can take over my job for the day,” Olivia remarked sarcastically, knowing that a beginner to work for Tyler Brown won’t cope with it alone. She had experienced that herself before. It didn’t go so well, to say the least.

While they all sat in silence, Olivia started wondering why he would still call her “Ms Acker” after he had just told her that he wanted her to stay?

After a while, Brown said goodbye and left.

Later, the doctor came in to give her the results of all the tests he had run. She felt they were completely unnecessary. I won’t need to see the doctor for the rest of the year after almost a full body check-up, she told herself.

“It’s nothing serious, Ms Acker. It's just high blood pressure. You should try to release some of your stress. Try to go for a run every now and again,” Dr Wilson said.

Olivia and Kate both gave a sigh of relief. The nurse had told Olivia earlier that Tyler Brown had made sure that the best doctor took care of her and so she trusted the doctor’s opinion. Yet, Olivia had noticed that there was something strange in the way the nurse had told her this; she somehow smiled strangely when she told Olivia.

“Running isn’t really my cup of tea,” Olivia said. This only added to the list of things she needed to do which actually added more stress.

“Well, Ms Acker, we can’t always just do what we want. Sometimes we must consider our health too.”

He made her feel like she didn’t take care of her health at all. She only nodded along as he spoke.

“You’ve been discharged and can go home, but…,” he started. Oh no, she should’ve known that he was not going to let her off the hook that easily. “You must avoid stress for at least a week. Just to ensure your blood pressure stabilises.”

“I’m sorry, but with my work comes stress. There’s nothing I can do about it.”

“Yes and that’s why Mr Brown has assured me that he’ll make sure you take it easy. You are only going to do odd jobs here and there, according to him,” the doctor added before leaving the room.

“Well, I guess we can go then,” Olivia said to Kate who was still sitting in the corner with a big smile on her face.

“I’m glad to know that someone else is going to take good care of you,” Kate said.

“Oh please. That’s still your job.”

Packing up all her things, including all the desserts Tina had brought and the flowers Olivia’s parents had ordered, the two of them headed out. On their way home, Olivia left a voice note for her already traumatised parents, “I’m leaving the hospital now. Thanks for all your support. Call me if you settle on a funeral date; I’ll be there. Take care.”

Throughout the whole ordeal, her grandmother’s death was at the back of her mind. She simply kept the tears at bay. She had always been stoic. It had only ever been with Tyler Brown that she showed her emotion. So she hid the tears that were again welling up in her eyes from Kate, as they drove to her apartment. A lifetime’s memories of her and her grandmother together flashed in front of her.

“We’re here,” Kate suddenly announced.

When Kate noticed Olivia’s tears, Olivia wiped them away and said that there was something in her eye. She could tell that Kate saw through her, into her broken soul.

Kate stayed with Olivia for hours, even having a late-night cup of peppermint tea. They talked about all the strange things that had happened that day, including everything they knew thus far about the strange Blanca. Kate then put Olivia to bed, like a mother tucking in her child, and left.

Finally alone, Olivia could no longer stop the tears from flowing. She could not control the sadness as she had always tried to control her life.