The Rain and the Ring

When Eulalia opened her eyes again, she found herself in a hospital room, all alone. Her phone was dead, and she had no clue how long she’d been out. She glanced out the window; it was still dark as pitch outside.

Eulalia got up, slipped on her shoes, and grabbed her bag. As she walked past Evadne’s room, she noticed the door was slightly ajar. She couldn’t help but stop in her tracks.

Inside was Evadne, and keeping her company was her husband in name only, Percival.

Evadne had that innocent look, and even the hospital’s blue and white striped gown couldn’t hide her pure and elegant aura. Her fair skin made her almond-shaped eyes shine bright. Eulalia thought, maybe it’s that innocent charm that Percival is smitten with. Compared to Evadne, Eulalia felt like a villain who breaks up lovebirds.

Seeing how sweet Percival was to Evadne made Eulalia’s teeth grind with jealousy.

People who didn’t know Percival would think he was naturally cold as ice. But Eulalia knew the truth; he gave all his warmth to Evadne and didn’t spare a drop for anyone else.

Of course, once upon a time, he had been kind to her too. But those days were long gone.

Her “peeping” eventually caught the attention of the two lovebirds inside. Evadne gave her a glance and then shrank back like a frightened bunny behind Percival.

She looked terrified, her eyes red as if she’d seen the boogeyman.

Percival patted Evadne’s shoulder and shot Eulalia an icy glare. When he saw her standing by the door, he looked visibly annoyed.

That annoyance turned into disgust, and he didn’t bother hiding it. He snapped, “What are you doing lurking there like a creep?”

Eulalia stood at the door, watching the two of them all lovey-dovey. It was like a punch to the gut. She didn’t want to see it, but she couldn’t look away. Because this was a side of Percival she had never seen, the side she longed for.

Her vision blurred, and her heart felt like ashes.

Percival shielded Evadne behind him, glaring daggers at Eulalia. Seeing her pale, bloodless face, something stirred in him. His brows furrowed.

“Now that you’re awake, get out of here,” he said.

Eulalia hesitated, then croaked, “Are you coming home tonight?”

Seeing the guarded look in Percival’s eyes, Eulalia didn’t even bother explaining. She couldn’t fathom what she had done to make him treat her like a thief.

People have feelings, don’t they? She might have been the reason he couldn’t be with Evadne, but she had been his dutiful wife for the past four years.

She never pried into his affairs with Evadne. But did that mean she didn’t care? Hell no!

Being with Percival, Eulalia lost everything. She was diagnosed with stomach cancer and was on borrowed time. But who would lend her some time?

Her heart felt like it was being stabbed with a million needles. The pain spread through her body, making her fingertips tremble.

Eulalia didn’t argue with Percival’s command. She was used to it by now. What started as trying to please him had turned into silent resignation.

As she turned to leave, she heard Evadne’s voice from inside the room.

“Is Eulalia okay after losing so much blood? She looks terrible…”

“She’s fine. She’s always been tough,” he replied.

See, that’s the man she loved. Even her rival noticed how bad she looked, but he didn’t.

Percival wasn’t a careless man. He could spot issues at work in a heartbeat, and he was always the first to know if something was up with Evadne. But when it came to Eulalia, whom he’d known for six years, he couldn’t care less.

Eulalia took a deep breath and walked away without looking back. The rain outside was pouring. She didn’t have an umbrella, and she was soaked in no time. She was freezing, and her lips were turning blue and cracking. Her long eyelashes were weighed down by raindrops.

Eulalia was so cold that her head throbbed and her stomach ached. She clutched her stomach and accidentally knocked off the ring on her finger. She stared blankly as it fell. The ring she had worn for four years had lost its shine and was tarnished. She remembered when she and Percival got engaged, she had casually mentioned that they should have rings since they were getting married.

Percival had bought this ring for 30 yen from a street vendor and tossed it to her with a sneer, “Here, this is what you’re worth.”

Eulalia had just smiled, her eyes hollow. The ring was too small, but she forced it onto her finger. Even when it made her finger bleed, she insisted on wearing it.

She had stubbornly thought that if she wore it long enough, it would eventually fit. But in the end, it just slipped off her finger.

Just like her relationship with Percival.

Huddled in the rain, Eulalia felt like her insides were on fire. She covered her mouth as she dry heaved, her eyes stinging and tears streaming down her face.

People were passing by with umbrellas. Eulalia crouched down to pick up the ring and pressed it against her chest. When her stomach settled a bit, she stood up.

She felt like a lost soul in the rain. In her daze, she bumped into someone. She snapped back to reality and quickly bowed her head to apologize. It was a young mother with her child. The woman, holding her child’s hand, said kindly, “It’s okay.”

The child looked up at Eulalia’s red eyes and whispered, “Are you crying, miss?”

The mother patted the child’s head and gave Eulalia an apologetic look before leading the child away.

As they walked away, Eulalia heard the child ask, “Why was she crying, mommy? Was she scared?”

“How could she be scared…”

Their voices faded in the rain.

Eulalia clutched her stomach and looked up, trying to hold back her tears. Scared? How could she not be? She was scared when she went to the hospital alone, scared during the endoscopy, scared when the doctor called her into his office, and terrified when she was given her diagnosis. Her blood ran cold.

But what scared Eulalia even more was the thought of dying alone, with no one by her side.