🍭MAY
I?💜
(R0m-n-ce is a Meal)
By Sommy Pearl F.
Chapter 53&54.
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
10pm***
“Argh! This is more like it” May said with a ha-rd exhaled breath after drinking her cu-p of soju.
Ryder looked at her and inhaled dee-ply. Raymond tapped his shoulder.
“We came here to have fun. Don’t let that bother you” Raymond whispered to him.
Ryder nodded and drank a gl@$$ as well. Coral slowly sipped from her own gl@$$ while she stole glances at Ryder.
They began to eat the pork they grilled, while they exchanged pours over their soju.
“Guys…” Raymond uttered, looking at his empty gl@$$ cu-p resting on the table.
They all looked at him.
“I have a goal, you know” He smiled, and raised his face to them.
They all said nothing. Their eyes were fixed on his face and the ears picked every word he said.
“When I was little, I dreamt of becoming a doctor” He started.
“Do you know why?” He asked, and slowly raised his eyes to them.
May stared at him, like she wanted to cry. She could read his emotion. It was de-ep, pure and sad.
“It was because they saved lives,, lot and lot of lives. They even saved my brother, Carlos when he nee-ded appendix surgery”
“He was just 19 then when he had the surgery. I was only 5. When I saw Carlos hale and hearty…I was like,, ah,,, I wanna be a doctor too. He saved my brother. I wanted to be like them… Doctors marveled me”
“However, when I was 12… I lost my only parent, a mother. The doctor couldn’t save her. Why? not that they didn’t save her… they couldn’t save her”
“All she wanted was food. Ever seen someone who craved food but couldn’t eat?,, that was the definition of my mum status then”
“My mother had this eating disorder. It was a mental one. She couldn’t eat… yet she was hungry. Everyday and every second, I would hear her growling stomach. I felt unhappy every time”
“No one, no drug could make her eat. She was so hungry that her li-ps got dried, and broke. Her tongue became dry and white. She only took water. She was admitted into the hospital for no reason… all she wanted was to eat but she couldn’t”
“No counselor, psychologist, physician therapists and more could help her. I discovered what my mother really wanted,, late”
Flash Back,, 7 Years Ago,, Hospital***
“Mum. It’s been a week. What’s going on? When will this eating disorder end? Please, just eat…I beg you” Raymond begged, stretching the fork towards her mouth.
His mother whimpered painfully. She could ha-rdly talk. Seeing her two sons before her crying bitterly made her feel sorry.
She slowly pa-rted her li-ps apa-rt. It didn’t even open fully.
“Thank you, Mum” Raymond said, and shook the meal into her mouth.
Carlos wiped his tears and looked at her, quite relieved.
When she was chewing it, she began to cough.
“Mum? Please, easy… do you want water?” Carlos quickly asked.
Raymond took a cu-p of water and poured it into her mouth. It didn’t waste any second when she poured it off, barfing the whole place with her vomit.
Raymond sighed.
“Do you want to eat again?” He asked.
“Sorry” His mother weakly mo-aned and slowly closed her eyes weakly.
“Just rest… We are gonna get your drugs” Carlos said, and searched the bag, where they kept it.
Raymond quickly held his arm which stopped him from searching the bag.
“What are you doing? I nee-d to take Mama’s drugs” Carlos said, in tears.
“Do you think this is what she nee-ds now? Mum nee-ds food and not drugs!”
“What do you know?” Carlos growled.
Raymond poured down the contents of the bag, expo-sing different types, sizes and colors of drugs.
“This drugs is blood tonic” Raymond showed him.
“These are pain relievers” He added.
“These are what triggers hunger into the system. It Fu-cking triggers hunger into her but she can’t eat!”
Carlos looked down, watching his tears fall.
“These are slee-ping pills”
He muttered.
“While…this drip is energy booster” Raymond completed.
“Will any Fu-cking drugs except the slee-ping pills work without food?” Raymond cried out.
Carlos wiped his tears and looked at him.
“You are just 15,, what do you know?!” He quickly for-ced his words.
“I told you,, I wanna be a doctor. I’ve been researching about all this things. Everything in here,, I know their uses!”
“I’m not brilliant for nothing. You know I am top in school. I don’t have an A+ for nothing” He added.
“So? What does she nee-d now? What?” Carlos cried out.
“Like i said and I’m gonna say it again and again! All she nee-ds to be fit right now is… Food” Raymond replied.
“I agree she has an eating disorder. She rarely eats too. Is there nothing we can do since she can’t eat? The doctors, psychologist and more can’t even help”
Raymond looked over, and faced his mother whose now eyes were looking at the white ceiling. He felt pity instantly.
“Hold on” Raymond whispered and walked over to her.
Carlos followed him from behind. Raymond sat on the chair close to his mother on the be-d and held her hand.
“Mum?” He called.
Her eyes strained to look at him.
“Do you wanna eat?”
She for-ced a smile and shook her head. Carlos kept his palm on his face while crying like a baby.
Raymond acted strong, despite feeling the urge to break down into serious tears.
“What do you wanna eat? Tell me,, I’m gonna make them”
He noticed her sudden bulging eyes.
“Anything?” She asked, weakly.
Raymond nodded.
“Anything”
She gestured him with her hand for him to come over which he did. Raymond took his ear on her mouth.
Seconds later, he withdrew his ear.
“What did she she say?” Carlos asked, with a tap on his back.
“Mum wants an Italian dish…
“What? Italian?”
“Yeah. I think she craves it. Since she ate it with us,, alongside dad when he was still alive, She began to grow this undying love for it”
“Well, if that’s what she wants, let’s order it or get it from a neaby Italian shop”
“Have you forgotten?” Raymond frowned.
“What?” Carlos asked.
“The only Italian restaurant here had an issue with the people in the community. They signed a petition for the restaurant to be closed when the owner became a culprit after murdering his wife”
“Oh…So, what do we do now?” Carlos muttered.
“I’m gonna hurry home and make it. You know I’m a fast learner so I’m just gonna search online for the ingredients and buy it. Afterwards, I will watch certain videos online which would help me prepare something delicious”
“Okay then. I’m gonna wait for you”
Raymond smiled and ran out.
“Sometimes, I wonder if that guy is really 15. He is acting 25” Carlos thought as a smile curved his li-ps.
Prese-nt Day***
“That was the last day I saw her. After preparing the food, I went back to the hospital only to see Carlos weeping and when I asked… I was told she was dead. The flask of food fell down my hand and I cried like never before. My mum was really the best. If only I was more quicker,, If only Italian restaurants were around” Raymond said.
“That was when i tarnished the idea of being a doctor. I decided to become a chef and I am simply doing it cause of my mum… She wanted it but couldn’t get it. I decided to do it for others who wanted it”
Raymond stopped when he heard crying sounds. He turned and saw May cried helplessly.
“What’s wrong with her?” Raymond asked.
“What else? Its because your story is quite heart touching” Coral whispered.
Ryder sighed and stro-ked May’s hair.
“It’s alright. It’s okay. I fully un-derstand”
Coral pinched her thi-ghs ha-rd in anger while watching Ryder stro-ke crying May’s hair.
May sniffed and stood up, which caused Ryder’s hand to fall. He quickly looked at her.
She walked to Raymond and slowly began to stro-ke his hair.
“It’s alright. I un-derstand how you feel. It really hurts. I’m sure you were really broken then”
Raymond inhaled dee-ply and raised his face towards her. She kept stro-king her hair.
Coral looked at Ryder. He was looking at May in sadness. He looked away quickly.
“Seat…May, please” Raymond said.
May ru-bbe-d her nose and obeyed him.
“Now, the main motive of telling you my past is not because I nee-d y’all pity or sympathy”
“It’s because I will be nee-ding you guys help. Italian restaurant here ranks 7th in Korea Foreign-Restaurant Nationwide. And that’s my restaurant-
“Who is ranking first?” May asked.
“Thailand” He replied.
“The second?” May asked.
“U.S.A”
“Third-
“Aiish! Search online for that later. As I was saying, I am gonna nee-d your help to rise to the 1st”
“Whoa… 7th to 1st,, not even-
“Coral! I’m doing this to show my mum how far I’ve gone. I can’t be stuck on 7th forever. My target is 1st”
“We get that. Now, tell us your main motive. What do you want from us?” Ryder asked.
“I want you all to prepare yourself for the upcoming Korea Foreign-Restaurant Nationwide Reality Cooking Show. We nee-d to bring the trophy home” He grinned.
Tbc