38 Days, 5 Hours, and 23 Seconds Earlier

“Are you sure this is what you want to do Ugo?” Adam, Ugo's best friend for as long as Ugo could remember, said, trying to convince Ugo that this may not be the best idea.

“It's not like I want be coming back. I'm just tired of being surround by death, I can just feel it, I can feel that there's something bigger out there for me.” Ugo paused, looking sadly to the ground. “Another patient died today, there wasn't anything I could do. She was only 23.”

Adam put a reassuring arm around Ugo. “Ugo, you have to stop taking these things personally and besides, anywhere you go, you'll always face the same things. Perhaps it was meant to be this way... we take what we can and learn from it.”

A moment of silence passed as Ugo and Adam sat on the old withered green bench, waiting for Ugo's bus. It was an awkward moment as neither of them wanted to say goodbye. The bus pulled up to the stop and Ugo got up and stepped inside.

“Please Ugo... don't go.... running away is not the answer, you're making a big mistake.”

Ugo stopped and turned around to face Adam.

“I'm sorry Adam.” was all he could manage to say to his one and only true friend. Ugo stood still, as if waiting for one last word from Adam, but there was none. The bus door closed with Ugo and Adam still facing each other. Ugo walked to an empty seat by the window and sat down, but avoided looking at his dear friend. It was difficult explaining how he felt to Adam and perhaps Adam was right, maybe it was all going to be a big mistake.

Ugo, now miles away from home and Adam, stood at the front desk of a hotel in an unfamiliar small town, thinking of Adam and his last words, “running away is not the answer, you're making a big mistake”. Adams words seem to repeat in his mind over and over. Why couldn't Adam have been more supportive to him?

“Two nights please.” he finally told the clerk.

“I'd be sure not to stay any longer if I were you!” the clerk seemed angry. Ugo felt something was strange ever since he arrived but paid no special attention to it. He grabbed his key from the clerk and headed for his room.