The Twist

How I ended up doing such a crazy thing doesn’t mean I regret what I have done. Yes. I did something
wrong. Something that defied the laws of nature, should I say. A scientist be-like but, I am not.
I am John, as my colleagues call me. A senior student from a medical school, a boarding school at the city.
A future medical practitioner should I be. I devoted my life in studying all about us, our body structures, diseases,
treatments to those illnesses, and even about mortalities or deaths. I even experienced dissecting and analyzing a
cadaver on my own. How rude life would be for those human specimens. Oh well, that’s life. Some would really
end up being them. Victims of their families who abandoned them. I will never do that.
I am Juan, a nickname given to me at home. The youngest of three siblings. My parents were the most loved
persons in the family. My father was a construction worker. A superman of his kind. My mother was a house wife,
a sideline vendor of cosmetic products and home-made delicacies, and a tutor and guidance councilor to us. A
superwoman of her kind. Living without these superheroes in our lives would be a struggle.
We, the three siblings, have lived without any shortcomings. All our needs were provided. Necessities and
even school projects were given and financed. Our parents were the most supportive people we have ever known.
As a result, my eldest brother is now an attorney and a public servant. My elder sister is now a teacher taking up
her master’s degree in a well-known school. As for me, I am a future doctor. I will be a doctor not because my
parents want me to become one but, because I wanted to repay everything they did for us. “Dr. John ‘Juan’ Dela
Vega, your personal doctor at your service!” said I. Then, my parents would laugh.
“Expect the unexpected.” “Anticipate whatever may happen.” “Preparedness is better than cure.” Those
were the words I have learned as a future doctor. But it never really did that way. I never did expect nor anticipate
the causes of my downfall.
Everything was perfect. My dream to be a doctor was about to happen. A diploma will I be giving to my
parents as I march together with them towards the stage. That would be a dream come true! But it will never happen
anymore. Dreams were just dreams. A sum of the illusions of the mind and the unconscious body. None of them
were true.
I was at school that day. “Mr. Dela Vega, a phone call for you. Please proceed to the office of the student’s
affair.” A phone call at the office? Why not call me using my cellphone number? I wonder and so I proceeded. At
the office of the student’s affair, “Good morning Ma’am. I am John Dela Vega. A phone call was the reason of my
coming here at your office. May I?” I requested. “Yes sure. You badly need to answer this right now.” She answered.
Again, I wonder.
“Hello? John Dela Vega speaking. May I know who this is?” I asked.
“Juan? Kuya Gab here.” The person on the phone answered.
“Oh hello there Attorney Gabriel Dela Vega. What can a future doctor do to you?” with a smirking face I
have answered.
“Juan, don’t be shocked of this news we want you to know.” Kuya Gab said.
“Oh c’mon Kuya. You’re frightening me, aren’t you? I am not a kid anymore. Just tell me what is this all
about?” I answered really startling.
“Dad is dead.” He said with a soft, crying voice. I never heard him cry that way before. I remembered the
time when he cried because our father scolded him for not bringing my lunch at school. It was only did my father
know when I got home very hungry. Nevertheless, no major event made my eldest brother cry. Except this.
“What? Stop fooling around Kuya. I just called Dad this morning and his okay. I’ve even promised him
that I will be home earlier than usual.” I started crying. “It is not true!” I mourned. I cried aloud.
 I went home.
An accident happened in the construction site. We told him to stop working. But our father did not listen.
A superman of his kind lost his life because of the accident. My mother mourned a lot more than us. We never saw
her cry before, not even a single drop of tear. She really was a superwoman. But, her world was broken when she
saw the dead body of my father. She was moved. From being a superwoman to being a crying lady until the last
day of the burial wake.
I, myself, was down. We were all depressed but we need to move on. My brother and sister moved on and
continued working for the family. I continued studying medicine. But our mother stopped. Her world stopped
moving. She forgot to live their dreams. So, I, being the youngest, needed to attend to my mother’s needs. I always
find time to make up with the loss she felt when her beloved husband, our father, have passed away. As my mother’s
world stopped, her body’s health and condition was also affected. She was a superwoman. I still believed that she
was. Not until she was depressed. She barely went out from her room. She didn’t even eat a lot. She kept staring at
my father’s old picture. Depression made her ill.
“Anticipate what may happen and prevent the possible casualties.” My professors told us. And yet it seemed
so idealistic.
Mom always stands out whenever tough times happen. So should we, her children, also. Those superheroes
taught us to be super humans in our own kind. And the twist happened again. I was scared.
“Mom, dinner is ready. Please come down.” I called. But no one responded.
So again, I called “Mom, come down. Dinner is set. You need to eat to regain your strength. Dad doesn’t
want you to be like that.” Still, no one answered.
“Mom?” I wondered. So, I went up to her room and personally called her saying “Mom, are you sleeping?
Please wake up first. Dinner is ready. I promise you. This time, the food is very tasty and delicious!” I said with a
giggling voice. And so I approached her for I have heard no answer from my mother. I was scared. I was afraid.
Please.
“Mom? Mom. Mama! Please wake up! Mom! This not a good joke. We know you are not good at joking
us. Mom!” Mom was still breathing that time. I cried. I quickly ran towards my phone and called Ate Mina.
“C’mon ate. Please pick up the phone…” My mind was telling. Then, she picked up.
“Ate Mina! Please come home quick, please. We have an emergency. Mom is ….I don’t know what to
do…I…” I cried.
“Calm down Juan. I will be coming. I will call Kuya also. Just calm down. You get that? Juan? Juan?” Ate
Mina said worrying.
I saw the scariest twist of my life. But I remembered medical school and so I should be the first to calm
down. Ate Mina is right. I need to calm down. I will be my parent’s personal doctor. And now is the time to do my
duty.
“Yes, Ate Mina. I need to calm down. You are right. I will be a doctor someday. Thank you for reminding
me, Ate.” I answered her back. “I know what to do.” I added.
“Update us, okay? We’ll get there as soon as we could. Bye.” Ate Mina said.
I went back to my mother. I checked her vital signs, blood pressure, heart beat, etc. It was getting bad.
Worse than that, I couldn’t help her regain her strength to live the way she was. My thoughts that time was telling
me to do something to revive my mother. I remembered again medical school. As a medical practitioner, future
doctor, mortality and death was just a moment. I needed to go back to school. I needed that formula. I needed to
use that. But I could not leave my mother that time. If I am in a tough time and needed to decide, my mom always
tell me to prioritize. Learn to prioritize. That time, to revive her was my priority. So, I whispered in my mother’s
ear and said “Mom, I need to go to school. But I promise to be back very quickly. I need to do everything for you.
Wait for me, okay Mom? I love You.” And so, I went to the school and meet my colleagues.
At school, my colleagues helped me look for the formula I need. They didn’t ask. I did not tell them. The
formula was complete. I needed what I needed. I went home.
“Mom? I am home.” As I approached her in her bed. Was I late? I was. She was dead when I came home.
Even at the end, she never wanted us to see that she was not okay. I cried aloud. I mourned. I never thought this
would happen. “Prevention is better than cure.” But how can I prevent a thing that had happened already. I cried
while putting on a blanket to cover my mother’s dead body. As I about to call my brother and sister, I remembered
the reason why I left. The formula. We have studied in medical school that the very least moment a dead person
could be revived was when the body started to stopped functioning. But I took the risk. I did not know what time
my mother died. That time, my only goal was to revive my mother. I did it. I took the formula and focused on the
best part of the body to inject the solution. I prayed for guidance and forgiveness.
“Here it goes!” I said. I did it.
I injected the solution to my mother’s wrist and waited for what will happen next. Nothing happened. I
thought. So I cried and mourned to my mother’s dead body. Minutes have passed, still nothing happened. My
brother and sister came and were shocked of the scene they have witnessed. They did cry also while comforting me
for I am the last born child, the most fragile as supposed to be. We hugged each other. We cried together. Then, my
sister hugged my mother.
“Mom. I love you mom.” Ate Mina said while crying. “We love you so much. You and Papa will no longer
suffer. Rest in peace Mom.” She added. Then, suddenly… “Huh? Mom?” she wondered.
“Mina? What’s wrong?” Kuya Gab asked ate.
“Ahmm… I don’t know. Something moved.” She answered.
“Something moved? How come something moved in our mother’s death bed? You’re joking, aren’t you
Mina?” Kuya Gab scolded.
“No! I am not joking. She’s moving. Her arms are moving. Look!” Ate Mina at her amazed, have stood up.
“Let me see.” I said. “The formula worked!” I screamed.
“What formula? What did you do?” Kuya Gab told me.
“There’s this formula we have studied that can revive dead people. It is actually a formula based on
alchemy, a science of transformation.” I explained.
“We all know that it is impossible today for a dead woman to live again. What did you do?” Ate Mina said.
And we continued arguing about the formula I have used. When we heard something.
“Stopped! You’re all too loud!” a voice was heard and we have gone silent.
“Mmm…mom?” I replied frightening. She lend her arms and reached my ear. She whispered something. I
shivered. Then, my mother fully grabbed my right arm and showed a grinning smile. “Mmmmom….mom!.” I
screamed. “She’s not our mother anymore! Kuya! Help me!” I shouted. Kuya Gab grabbed my other arm and pulled
me. Ate Mina shouted. We all ran outside the house frightened. We never knew what happened to our mother. We
never saw her body when we came back.
So, how I ended up doing such a crazy thing? I did it but still doesn’t mean I regret what I have done. Yes.
I did something wrong. Something that defied the laws of nature. But the consequences of my actions were not yet
paid off. Things were still waiting to happen. No one knows. Even I.
Name
Grade/ section

A graphic organizer which includes and links details and a number of things that happened in the story.
Below shows the link between the important events in the story “The Twist.

“I am Juan, a nickname given to me at home. The three siblings, have lived without any
The youngest of three siblings. My parents were shortcomings. Their needs were provided. Necessities
the most loved persons in the family. My father and even school projects were given and financed. Their
parents were the most supportive people. As a result of
was a construction worker. A superman of his their parents’ hardwork, the eldest brother became an
kind. My mother was a house wife, a sideline attorney and a public servant. The elder sister became a
vendor of cosmetic products and home-made teacher. And the main character will become a future
delicacies, and a tutor and guidance councilor to doctor, not because his parents want him to become one
us. A superwoman of her kind. Living without but, because he wants to repay everything that their
these superheroes in our lives would be a parents have done to them. He said, as quoted, “Dr.
John ‘Juan’ Dela Vega, your personal doctor at your
struggle.” service!”
The main character introduced his family.

They were all depressed at that time. But they need

to move on. His brother and sister moved on and
continued working for the family. Juan continued
The main character, Juan Dela Vega, was at studying medicine. But their mother’s world stopped
moving. She forgot to live their dreams. So, Juan,
school when he received the news that their
being the youngest, always find time to make up with
father was dead. It was an unexpected time the loss his mother felt when her beloved husband
because Juan did call his father that morning have passed away. Since then, their mother’s health
before the accident happened in the construction and condition was affected. She became depressed.
site. It was the first twist which happened in his She barely went out in her room. She didn’t even eat
life. a lot. She kept staring at her husband’s old picture.
Depression made her ill.

As their mother got ill, the second twist in Juan’s life Juan remembered the formula they prepared. It
was about to happen. Juan called his mother for was a risk. He did not know what time his
dinner but his mother was already experiencing the mother died. But he still injected the formula to
terminal state of her depression. It was a frightening his mother’s body. Nothing happened until both
night for Juan. But he remembered that he will be a
his brother and sister came. Minutes have
future doctor. And so he did something that would
change his and his mother’s path. He returned in passed, something strange happened. Their
school to prepare something with the help of his mother speak and moved. The formula, made
colleagues. After finishing the needed formula and her lived again but it turned out that their
solution, he went home. But it was too late. The mother became someone they do not know. And
second twist happened. His mother was already dead. they were frightened.