Y/N's POV:
The sterile white walls of the hospital room seemed to amplify the silence, each tick of the clock a hammer blow to my soul.
My hand, calloused from years of construction work, felt pathetically small as I held Danielle's hand, her skin cool and clammy, the life slowly ebbing from it.
The doctor had said it was a miracle she was still alive after the accident, but the miracle had run its course. The time of death, they said, was 3:00 AM.
"Danielle, please," I whispered, my voice cracking. "Please don't leave me."
Her chest rose and fell, a shallow, rasping breath. Her eyes, normally sparkling pools of laughter, were glazed and unfocused, staring blindly at the ceiling.
I knew, deep down, that she was gone, that the light in her eyes had been extinguished. A part of me, the part that clung to hope, refused to accept it.
The doctor had been blunt, his words like shards of ice in my gut. "Mr. Y/N, there's nothing more we can do. It's a miracle she lasted this long."
"Miracle?" I echoed, my voice a hollow rasp. "This isn't a miracle. This is a nightmare."
He offered a weak smile, a gesture meant to comfort but only served to deepen the chasm of despair within me. He left, leaving me alone with the ghost of my wife, the love of my life, my Danielle.
-Flashback-
"You know, Y/N," Danielle said, her voice bubbling with laughter as we strolled through the park, hand in hand, "I think I've finally found the perfect spot for our wedding."
I stopped, squeezing her hand tighter. "Where?"
She pointed towards a clearing bathed in sunlight, a gentle breeze rustling through the leaves of the ancient oak trees. "Right there, under that oak. We can get married during the golden hour, with the sun setting behind us. It'll be magical."
I looked at her then, at the joy radiating from her, and I knew, with absolute certainty, that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with this woman.
I wanted to be the man who made her laugh, who wiped away her tears, who loved her with every fiber of my being.
"It's perfect," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "But only if you promise to marry me."
She giggled, her eyes twinkling. "You know I'm going to say yes, right?"
**Present:**
The doctor's words echoed in the silence, cutting through the fog of my grief. 'Miracle.' He had called it a miracle. But to me, it was a cruel twist of fate, a cruel mockery.
The scent of lavender, her favorite fragrance, still lingered in the air, a phantom memory of a woman who was no longer there.
I stared at her, at the woman who'd been my everything, and a single tear escaped, a tiny diamond reflecting the pale light of the hospital room.
"Danielle," I croaked, my voice hoarse with pain. "I love you. I'll always love you."
The silence stretched, mocking my pain. The machines beeped rhythmically, a mechanical heartbeat marking the passage of time, each second an eternity without her.
-Flashback-
"I love you, Y/N," she whispered, burying her face in my chest as we lay tangled in the sheets after a night of lovemaking.
"I love you too, Danielle," I murmured, my hand tracing the curves of her back. "More than words can say."
We lay there, silent, just two souls connected by a love that transcended the boundaries of words.
