A/N 1: It's Saturday somewhere.

I have a busy weekend ahead so I'm posting the chapters in advance.

Enjoy!

LCC

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Have you ever had those moments when you froze on the spot because you couldn't believe what you see?

That's what I felt when I saw the doctor whose hand was holding the door open to let us all in.

Julia looked very professional in her white coat and a stethoscope dangling from her neck.

She smiled at my grandparents then tried to keep the smile on when she saw me.

"Arizona," She nodded before closing the door behind her.

"It is indeed you, Mr. Gomez." She took his hand and pressed it to her forehead.

"Mano po." Julia said softly.

She did the same thing for Lola who made the sign of the cross over her head.

This was a common gesture among Filipinos.

I've seen her do it countless times.

She told me it meant respect for the elderly and I remembered doing the same thing to her parents.

I was used to giving hugs because that's what I grew up with but I think her parents were impressed when I did that.

Julia stepped forward to kiss me on the cheek.

It was a quick peck and the feel of her skin on mine was vaguely familiar.

Once we were done with the greetings, Julia motioned for Lolo to sit on the chair across her desk then offered us the couch.

Instead of sitting behind her desk, she pulled the chair in front of Lolo's.

"When I read the name on the chart, I thought what are the chances that it was the same person I know?"

"How long has it been since we last saw you?" Lolo asked.

"I don't even remember." She answered.

"So, how is everyone?" Julia smiled then turned to Lola and me.

Lola told her she's okay.

"I'm glad to hear that, Lola Paula. You are healthy otherwise?"
She nodded.

"When did you get back?" Julia turned her attention to me.

"A couple days ago."

"She has a migraine." Lola blurted, surprising me with her candidness.

"You still get those huh?"

I nodded.

When we were still together, she used to take care of me.

She would place a cold towel on my forehead then lay down beside me till I fall asleep.

"Is there something I can do to help with your migraine?"

"I'm good." I answered.

Lolo asked how she was.

"I'm fine."

"You seem to be doing well." Lolo scanned the office.

There was a bookshelf to the left of her desk, brimming with medical journals.

A desktop computer sits on top, an iPad, a prescription pad and lots of different colored pens.

"Yes, Mr. Gomez." She blushed.

After all these years, she still couldn't get herself to call him Lolo.

"Let's get down to business. So, what happened?"

Lola told her about the heart attack.

I listened as she gave her the details of how she found him that night and how she thought he was going to die.

Julia didn't interrupt.

I watched as she looked at my grandmother with the empathy of a family member and not a specialist, her expression soft and earnest.

When Lola finished talking, I raised my hand to speak.

"Yes, Ari?"

"I thought it was Dr. Jacinto Emilio who was seeing Lolo?"

She nodded and smiled.

"Unfortunately, he had to deal with something so I covered for him." She paused.

"Are you disappointed?"

"No..I was.." I stammered.

"It's better that it's Julia." Lolo turned to look at me.

"I feel more at ease that I'm not going to deal with a total stranger."

Julia smiled.

"Thank you, Mr. Gomez, but there is a reason why family members don't treat their own."

"I don't care about that. I know you will be as professional as any other doctor." He smiled.

This gesture and confidence in Julia was new to me.

In the beginning, she was intimidated by my grandfather.

Most people are.

Lolo was a no-nonsense kind of guy.

His steely gaze was enough to melt someone's confidence.

He speaks in a gruff tone but he isn't rude.

When he asks a question, he expects people to give him a straight answer.

This rapport he had with my ex was something I haven't seen before.

When we broke up a long time ago, I chose not to ask anything about her.

Even when Lola tried to bring her up, I quickly changed the topic.

I thought it would make moving on easier.

Julia grabbed the iPad from her desk.

"Why don't we start with your profile?" She looked at Lolo who seemed more interested than he was this morning.

"I am going to ask you some questions then we will move on to your history." She looked at us.

"This first appointment is longer because I need a lot of information. Your family doctor already transferred your chart but I have to create a database for our system, okay?"

Lolo nodded.

"If there is something you don't understand, let me know." She smiled again.

She started by verifying the information on their system like his birthday and address.

While she talked, I couldn't help but admire her.

She was more confident and polite as ever.

When we were young, Julia was very quiet.

It was a different matter when we were playing basketball, being the assistant team captain.

She was so different now.

There was an air of authority around her and something else.

She looked happy.

There was a twinkle in her eye, the kind I knew so well because she used to look at me that way.

I remembered how ecstatic I was when she would come running to meet me at the airport.

No longer questioning of her identity, Julia would hug me in front of the crowd.

When she lets go, her eyes shone from the joy of us being reunited.

I wonder if someone else is making her happy now?

That wouldn't be a surprise.

Julia is a catch.

Too bad the two of us didn't last.

"Do you have any questions for me, Arizona?"

I didn't notice that she was looking at me.

I cleared my throat as I try to remember the things I was supposed to ask her.

I cleared my throat.

"What can we do to make sure that he doesn't have another heart attack?"

"That is a very good question." Julia placed the iPad back on the desk.

"Mr. Gomez," She focused her eyes on Lolo.

"Your condition is manageable but it requires a change in your lifestyle and of course, medication."

"Oh boy." Lolo exclaimed.

"I understand how this can be very daunting but from what I can see, you have the support of your family and of course, me."

"So, what are we going to do now?" I asked.

Julia stood up and walked around her desk.

She opened the drawer and took out a thick pad of forms.

"Let's start by sending you for an EKG exam and blood work." Julia sat down and began scribbling on the form, the brisk sound of pen on paper echoing in the room.

"An electrocardiogram measures the heart's electrical activity and how fast the heart beats. It is noninvasive. Let's start with that one before we make a treatment plan." She tore the sheet and began writing on a different form.

Julia was quiet.

Lolo watched her while she wrote.

"Okay." She tore the sheet again then handed the forms to Lolo.

"The blood work is for the troponin test. These are proteins that are normally found in our blood. When a heart is injured as in the case of a heart attack," She motioned her hand towards Lolo, "the proteins and enzymes could leak out of the damage heart muscle cells. That is what we have to check and this is usually done together with the EKG exam."

"Do I need to worry?" Lolo looked away from the form he was reading.

"That is not what I want you do to, Mr. Gomez. Like what I said a while ago, we are all here to support you."

Lolo gave her a weak smile.

I could see in his eyes that he was worried.

Julia noticed it too.

"Mr. Gomez," she placed a hand on his arm.

"Do the test first. It will give us a better indication of what is going on." She smiled.

My grandfather exhaled.

Julia took out a business card and gave it to Lolo.

"I will give you my personal phone number also." She took a notepad and wrote down her contact information then gave the paper to Lolo.

"Call me if you need anything, okay?" He nodded.

She stood up and we did the same thing.

"Do you have any other questions for me?" She looked at all of us.

I couldn't remember any that I prepared so I didn't say anything.

"Well, it was nice seeing all of you although not in the most ideal circumstance." she turned to Lolo.

"Please do not hesitate to call me, okay?"

"Yes." He answered.

My grandparents thanked her while I watched in silence.

Julia walked to the door but before she opened it, she turned towards my grandparents.

"By the way, you don't have to pay for your visits here. It's on me."

Lolo opened his mouth but Julia stopped him by raising her hand.

"You have done so much for me, Mr. Gomez. Now it's my turn." She smiled.

"Are you sure, hija?" Lola asked.

"Yes, Lola Paula. Remember, my phone is always on. Call me anytime." She repeated then opened the door to walk us out of the office.

A/N 2:

As you all know, I published the completed version of this story on Amazon.com under a different title, Being Again.

Here is the link: http://a.co/dDZlYHm

Please check it out.

Don't forget to vote/comment/share if you like this story.

Thank you and have a good weekend.

xoxo,

LCC