1
The soft hum of the air conditioner was the only sound in the otherwise silent, immaculate office. Sierra moved slowly, almost reverently, as she packed the last of her things into a modest cardboard box. It was strange, she thought, how something so small could carry so many years of her life, folded into folders and stethoscopes.
For the past three years, St. Vincent Hospital has been more than just a workplace. It was her proving ground, her sanctuary, her second home. And now, she was leaving it behind.
As she walked outside, she saw patients and staff moving around, busy returning to their lives.
“St. Vincent, mamimiss kita,” she murmured softly, clutching the box tightly to her chest.
When she reached the glass-paneled wall, her reflection caught her eye. She stopped, placed the box gently beside her, and looked at herself intently. From head to toe, she took in the image: her lab coat with the name Sierra Imani Sevilleja, MD, Department of Pediatrics embroidered in pink thread; her scrubs, a soft blush color; and her worn-out Crocs, with their familiar pink bands. She patted her pockets and felt it, Daisy, the tiny stuffed toy she always let the kids hold during their check-ups.
“Sie!” someone called, her name stretched out in a dramatic tone.
Sierra turned, surprised, but her lips curled into a laugh the moment Nurse Annette wrapped her in a tight hug.
“Dadalaw ka ha, anak? Huwag mong pababayaan ang sarili mo,” Nurse Annette said, holding her a moment longer, her voice full of warmth.
Annette had become her hospital mom, not just in the ward but in this entire country.
“Jusko, ang nag-iisa kong paboritong doktor, aalis na! Mainit sa Pinas, bumili ka ng maliit na electric fan, at lagi kang uminom ng tubig! Hindi mo kaya ang init doon. Dito nga lang, konting init lang, nagkakasakit ka na agad!”
The nurse didn’t pause, her concern spilling with every word.
“Bakit ka pa kasi aalis?
As Nurse Annette's voice cracked with emotion, more of Sierra's colleagues gathered around, one by one. “Sie, what will we do without you?” Doctor Stevens said, his Australian accent as thick as ever. “I can’t convince Jayden to take his meds! You know how stubborn he is!”
“I’m sure you can handle that little devil,” Sierra replied with a smile. “Just tell him his dad will take him to footy if he recovers well.”
Doctor Stevens patted Sierra’s head gently. “Take care of yourself, alright?” he said sincerely, his concern shining through. “Where are the others? Let’s go to Hopscotch tonight. We need to drink as a goodbye, yeah? I hope not for now, though, you’ll come back, right?”
“I will for sure,” Sierra replied, but her words were cut off by the vibration on her wrist. She checked her watch and saw her mom’s name flashing on the screen.
“Ma!” Sierra stepped back from the group, both she and Nurse Annette nodding at each other as she answered the call.
“Hintayin mo ako, I made you some homemade empanada!” Nurse Annette called out hurriedly, making both Sierra and Doctor Stevens chuckle. Dr. Stevens, intrigued, looked at Nurse Annette.
“I want some too!” he added with a grin.
“Ma, mamaya na po ang flight ko. Opo, I need to get to the airport before 10 po. I will land there at 7 in the morning. Yes, Ma, naka-pack na po ako. I just need to settle my things in the hospital. Yes, Ma, Monroe will drop me off, don’t worry,” Sierra continued; her mother was still asking about her whereabouts and travel details. “Yes, po, I will. I’ll be okay. Love you too.”.
Nurse Annette handed Sierra the lunchbox with a warm smile. “Ihahatid ka ba ni Monroe? Mag-iingat kayo, ha! Magbabakasyon kami sa December, ikakasal na si Mori! Punta ka, ha? Bubuksan na nila yung farm.”
Monroe, Nurse Annette’s daughter, is Sierra’s friend. Monroe had that effortlessly cool aura, with fiery red hair and thick, expressive eyebrows. Her eyes were strikingly majestic. They met when Sierra was looking for a way to help cover her living expenses. Despite having a full-ride scholarship to the University of Melbourne, She also needs to pay the other fees. Sierra still lived with her uncle, who worked as an analyst and rented a place near Parliament Station. Although her uncle supported her, Sierra didn’t want to burden him, and she wanted to contribute to the bills and school fees herself.
So, Sierra found a part-time job as a waitstaff at a bar in St. Kilda. That’s where she met Monroe,the drink master, a genius with cocktails in the evening and a whiz at making perfect coffee in the morning.
During Sierra’s trial shift, she somehow managed to spill an espresso martini that Monroe had just carefully crafted. Well, that wasn’t the only drink Sierra spilled. It was a disaster, and Monroe was doing her best to keep her cool. But it was clear she wasn’t happy about Sierra’s mess.
At the end of the shift, things took an odd turn. Sierra kept running into Monroe on the tram. On her way to St. Vincent’s Hospital, Monroe was also there, just by coincidence since her mom worked at the same hospital.
Monroe greeted her at the entrance, her lips curling into a scoff. "Are you working here? For a doctor, your hands don’t look so steady at all.”
Sierra was caught off guard. She hadn’t expected Monroe to be so blunt. It stung a bit, but it also made Sierra realize Monroe had a point,she was starting fresh in the real world, and she didn’t have any actual job experience. Her years in med school had been spent buried in research, projects, and symposiums, not this.
"Do you know if I’ll get hired? Can you put in a good word for me?" Sierra asked, her voice quieter now, almost pleading. She wasn’t proud of it, but she needed this job. It was the only one that could fit her crazy schedule. Sure, she could apply to work at Maccas, but that felt like a stretch considering her qualifications. Still, she was willing to start from the bottom if it meant making ends meet and helping her uncle out for a bit.
“Why? To make my work even harder? No thanks,” Monroe replied, brushing past her without a second glance.
But deep down, Monroe could see that Sierra was genuinely trying. She admired the effort, so she put in a good word to her manager, who also happened to be her business partner,since they co-owned the bar. And just like that, Sierra was officially a part of the waitstaff team.
Before officially leaving the hospital, Sierra made her way to the department head’s office, her mentor, Dr. Samantha Huxley. A strict, sharp-minded woman with blonde hair and years of experience, Dr. Huxley had taken Sierra under her wing for several years. During that time, Sierra trained tirelessly under the renowned “Huxley Method,” a groundbreaking surgical technique that had saved thousands of children with neuroblastoma.
Dr. Huxley wasn’t just a pioneer in her field; she was also committed to passing on her knowledge to young, passionate doctors. Sierra was one of the few chosen to learn directly from her. It was an honor, but not an easy road. There were so many exhausting days where Sierra had to constantly prove herself to Dr. Huxley. The sacrifices she made ran deep, leaving behind the love of her life… well, the loss of her life now.
The old doctor was reading through a stack of papers when Sierra knocked on the door. There was a hint of sadness in the small smile Sierra managed as she stepped in.
“This is goodbye, Doc,” she said softly.
Dr. Huxley glanced up, her reading glasses perched low on her nose. “Why do you sound so sad? This is just the beginning of your career. I’m sure you’ll make good use of everything you’ve learned from me when you go back to the Philippines.”
“It was such a great opportunity to work with you,” Sierra replied, her voice full of gratitude.
“For what it’s worth,” Dr. Huxley said as she stood up, “if things don’t work out in the Philippines, there’s always a place for you here at St. Vincent. You can always come back, okay?”
Then, for the first time since they’d known each other, the older doctor gave Sierra a brief but sincere hug. It caught Sierra by surprise, but in that moment, she felt something shift. She felt hopeful.
“You’ll help so many kids,” Dr. Huxley said with a warm smile. “You’ll help them live longer, see more of the world. I believe in you.”
As Sierra slid into Monroe’s car, Monroe dramatically opened a magazine, flipping it to the lifestyle page of a well-known Filipino publication. There, staring back at her, was a picture of the loss of her life.
Sierra raised an eyebrow. “Why the hell do you have a Filipino magazine?” she asked as she buckled her seatbelt.
“Dumaan ako sa Filipino Store sa Fitzroy to grab me some cheese bread, and nakita ko ‘yan sa newsstand,” Monroe said, wiggling her eyebrows. Then, her tone shifted, becoming eerily dramatic as she began to read aloud.
“The new CEO of Makati Hope Medical Center is officially announced today. Jacey Elowen Robles is opening the groundbreaking new clinic and surgery center for children... It’s the first of its kind in the country.”
“Sierra, don’t you think this is a bad idea?” Monroe added, glancing at her. “Okay ka naman dito, ha? You help kids here?”
Monroe dropped the magazine and started the car.
Sierra took a deep breath, her voice steady but full of determination. “Rowee, from the beginning, I’ve always planned to help underprivileged kids. I want to offer them the chance to receive treatment, and only I can help them,” she added, her eyes focused on the road ahead.
“Just saying, nandito ako when you were moving forward, and I saw you, literally at your lowest just to get by, or well, maybe function as a person when you broke up with your ex,” Monroe sighed. “Sie, we tried everything, umakyat pa tayo ng bundok, halos ma-alcohol poisoning sa inom, at tumakbo ng ilang kilometers just for you to forget a bit.”
“But yeah, binabad mo sarili mo sa work, and it did help for you not to think about the past. But the thing is, you're just closing up your feelings. You don't let yourself feel everything, and instead, you focus on work to forget,” Monroe continued.
“I know it’s been years, but I don’t really see you moving on. Yeah, for the past few months, you’ve been at your lowest point, but after trying everything, you just decided to drown yourself in work. What I’m telling you is, I know how hard it hits you when it’s fresh, but you didn’t let yourself feel it at all, and now it’s all coming back to you. I’m just afraid of what will happen,” Monroe explained, tapping the brake softly as the traffic light turned red. “Sie, you’re my best friend. I love you, and I didn’t say anything for the past few years about your ex and your coping mechanism, but you just told me a few weeks ago that you’re moving back to the Philippines... and now you’ll be working under your ex!”
“Usad usad rin, uy,” Monroe added, her voice filled with concern.
“Okay, first of all, Rowee, I’ve moved on, okay? We’ll just be working on a professional basis, and besides, the past is the past! I see it from a bigger picture, which is that I can help the children. Seeing Jacey, or working with Jacey, will just be on a professional basis, kasi nga I already moved on!” Sierra explained. It felt weird saying her ex’s name; she hadn’t uttered it in years, and now, it felt strange to say it out loud.
“I get your concern, but professional lang talaga. I’m an ethical doctor!” Sierra added, trying to reassure Monroe. Then, with a quick glance in Monroe’s direction, she awkwardly shifted the topic. “Wow, you dyed your roots! Nice!” Sierra said, attempting to change the conversation.
Sierra didn’t want to talk about it, but as they passed Richmond, the towering skyscrapers and gleaming buildings lit up by the setting sun, she couldn’t help but think of her.
Jacey Elowen Robles,how could she even explain it? Jacey was the loss of her life. As the sun began to dip below the horizon, memories of all the sunsets they’d spent together flooded Sierra’s mind. Flashbacks of moments long past swept over her, and then Monroe’s playlist shifted to a familiar song. The opening notes reverberated through the car, and the lyrics began: "While you're on the sunset, I'm on the subway."
The scene replayed in Sierra’s mind, she and Jacey at a NIKI concert in Pasay, just after finishing their final exams. They had spent weeks studying together, and now, they were finally getting a break. Jacey’s eyes twinkled as she sang along to the lyrics, her gaze full of love. Behind the thick glasses, Sierra could see the spark of the person she once loved, and the warmth of the memory hit her like a wave.
Sierra didn’t want to think about it. She didn’t want to feel this way. But with nothing else to occupy her mind, sitting there in Monroe’s car, NIKI’s song playing in the background, the memories came rushing back. She let herself remember it all, this would be the last time she’d feel like this, she told herself.