Chapter 68: Intermission [PART 2]
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1h
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Suddenly, Connie felt the world become a little blurrier than usual. Her breathing was rapid, and sweat dripped from her face, but she could barely notice her condition.
Her hands moved in unison on Asha's chest in steady, rhythmic motions, providing first aid. She didn't know if she was doing it right, but either she did something, or Asha would never see the light of day.
Her fingers trembled on her sister's white dress, but her hands continued performing the same movements: pump the heart three times, provide oxygen, and keep repeating.
There was no time to think. There was no time for hesitation.
This process lasted long enough for Connie's shoulders to begin to protest.
She had to call for help. She wouldn't last much longer.
With that thought crossing her mind in a millisecond, Connie acted quickly and emptied her lungs with a single phrase.
"Mom!!"
Her scream was so loud that she could feel her own voice vibrating inside her chest. Quickly, footsteps were heard. The door opened, revealing a woman with sharp eyes and rapid breathing.
Her pupils seemed to dilate at the sight of Connie's desperate figure with her hands on Asha's chest, moving continuously. But like a professional, she forcefully removed any concern from her mind and took Connie's position.
"Tell your father to move the car and get the documents!"
Connie, still breathless, only shook her head and ran toward the door with chaotic steps, not quite knowing what was left or right.
Priyanka looked at the girl again, on the verge of death in her arms. It was almost as if the first day she met her was repeating itself before her eyes.
On their first encounter, she had been in a much worse state, full of injuries, in contrast to the peaceful figure in the bed.
As her hands moved across Asha's chest and her lips replenished her artificial lungs, Priyanka again remembered the first promise she made to the girl.
"You will live."
Even if it was the last thing she did, she wouldn't let her daughter die.
Not while she was still alive in this world.
*
In a completely white room, a little girl with black hair lay in a coma. A machine measured her heart rate, and a mask supplied her with oxygen in real time. There were no injuries on her small body, but needles remained attached to her arm, providing everything her body needed to continue functioning.
In front of the bed, three Maheswarans stared at a single man in a lab coat who was reading some documents.
"What's your diagnosis?"
Priyanka asked, maintaining her composure even as her heart raced.
Liam glanced at his colleague, likely more experienced than he was, now forced to wait for her own daughter's diagnosis. It was a strange situation, one doctor treating another, but he kept his composure and spoke to the family with steady professionalism.
"Her body has entered a state of greatly reduced metabolism. We believe this was triggered by a failure in the autonomic nervous system after extreme stress."
"Extreme stress...?" Doug repeated the words contemplatively as the familiar scene of a library flashed through his mind.
"She's in a state of marked hypometabolism. All vital systems are preserved, but they're functioning at a reduced rate. We haven't identified any primary pathological condition. Given her history of cardiac arrest, this may be a delayed neurophysiological response, possibly involving autonomic nervous system dysfunction and worsened by acute psychological stress. However, this is still a provisional assessment pending further evaluation."
Priyanka listened to the report in silence, trying to process the information.
She had closely observed Asha's body during these months. Her body had remained stable and healthy throughout this period. She rarely had extreme fluctuations and always slept at a good time and ate well.
If there were no chronic problems in her body and her routine was good, she could only think of psychological factors. It was very strange that her body reacted so suddenly when she had complete data on Asha's vital signs.
Priyanka's gaze then shifted to Doug, who had a blank expression, then to Connie, whose tears seemed poised to fall at any moment, and then back to Asha's sleeping face in the hospital bed.
She kept a cool head, organizing the data in her mind.
Asha's body didn't function conventionally. For example, she was mute and unable to walk, even though her brain was perfectly healthy.
The traumas this child carried were greater than anything she could have imagined, and they seemed to manifest physically as her disabilities.
Asha regularly went out to sunbathe, usually accompanied by Priyanka, and only for a short time. However, yesterday she spent an entire day out with Doug, someone with whom she showed signs of tension.
She thought that bringing Doug and Connie together to go out with Asha would be a good way to strengthen their bond.
Asha was stable and mature and had already opened up to Connie.
She trusted that everything would work out even without her direct supervision.
It was supposed to be a simple visit to the library.
But how did this "simple visit" reach this point?
How had she allowed it to happen?
*
Author's note
I don't know a thing about medicine so don't ask me questions about it lol. I hope this part was fun XD.
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