Secretary Joy pushed the door open. Mom stood anticipating Dad would be with her, too. I stayed on my seat wiping all the traces of weakness.
"Mr. Roswell comes with the director in his office. Do you, uhm, need something while we wait for him?"
"Tea," was Mom's quick answer. "Chamomile tea, please."
The secretary expectantly turned to me. Mom slightly blocked her view of me.
"Just a tea, please," she repeated. When the secretary left and closed the door after her, Mom grabbed my arms and forced me to stand on my feet. She looked around frantically in search of something before her eyes returned to me. "Go home. Rest. Or ask Joe to drive you to our rest house in Batangas. You should stay there for a week or two."
"Mom…“
She aggressively shook her head. There were no tears at bay but
