It was a long walk to Shen Ling. The man and I had to help each other numerous times from falling down cracks and tripping over chunks of asphalt. Many people were just like us, walking into the hospital with injuries. Somehow the building still stood, although cracks on the sides showed it too went through the tough time.

Once we got there, the doctors immediately ushered the man to the emergency room.

One nurse looked me over, and started to walk me in the same direction as they led the man. “Come on, you’re injured too.”

“I’m fine,” I insist, pulling back. “I’m looking for my parents. I was told by a doctor they would be here.” I shake my head constantly as she still tried to persuade to get some medical help.

Finally, the nurse gives in. “Follow me.” She led me through a crowd of doctors and nurses, rushing around, yelling commands as they wheeled stretchers, IVs, and carts of supplies through different doors and down numerous hallways. Finally, the nurse stopped at a desk. “What are their names?”

“Wu Jing and Zhang Bao Li.”

“Come.” She again led me, but this time in the major hospital rooms. I heard babies wailing and adults crying. My throat tightened, and I clutched Yin Yang a little closer to me.

She finally stopped at a room and ushered me in.

I walked into the white-walled room. Two beds lay on my left, hosting two heavily bandaged figures.

“Are you Kalyn?” A female appeared on my right, wearing a doctor’s uniform.

“Y-Yes.”

She smiled. “I am Dr. Ling. Your parents are doing well.”

“What are the casualties?” I managed to choke out.

“Your mother has a slight bruising of the ribs and small breaks in her arm. She will definitely recover.” Dr. Ling frowned. “Your father, however is a different case. One of his ribs has shattered. We will need to do surgery to make sure none of his vital organs have been pierced. However, his pulse is strong and his breathing is normal. That makes his chance of surviving a lot greater than it would have been in the opposite case.”

I nodded, blinking away tears. Ba-his laugh this morning. Would it be the last laugh I ever heard from him again?

“I’ll leave you all alone now,” she said. “In a half an hour, I will return so we can proceed with the tests.”

I nodded again, and she left.

I took my Ba’s hand into mine. Both are dusty, and dirty the white sheets he lies on. His face was peaceful, even with all the bandages covering it. His hand was warm, the way it always was, even in the dead of the winter. The feel of it comforted me. If he died, at least it would be in peace and in the way I always remembered him.

I then went to Ma’s bedside. When I clasp her fingers, her eyes flutter open.

“Ma?”

Her lips started moving, but the words were inaudible. I leaned forward, my ear close to her face.

“Call…Kris…” she said with gasping breaths. “Ask…him…stay…”

I stood up and nodded. She smiled and squeezed my hand. When her eyes closed, the grip on my hand loosened, and I knew she fell asleep again.

Even with those few words, the meaning of Ma’s words were clear. My heart sank as I replayed them in my head.

I was to call Kris, my cousin, and ask to stay with him. Even my mother, when she was awake, knew I couldn’t stay.

The thought that she couldn’t fight…She had always fought, especially for me and against me. She would fight when I was about to give up. She would fight when people were about to give me up. But now, she was reduced to a hospital patient with limited abilities. That all she could do was lie down and wait was more daunting than any feeling, even constant shivering down my spine.