Underneath

Underneath-Chapter 16

I had to go visit Brett today.

It had been a month and a half since I had last seen him and from what I had heard, his health had only gotten worse.

His mother had been telling me how it was so bad that he was strapped to his bed, not eating or drinking.

I had to see him one last time.

After driving for a little bit over two hours, I was back in San Diego at Rancho Penasquitos at his house.

There was no hesitation this time, though.

Once I parked my car, I went straight to the door.

Mrs. Stevenson had already opened it before I even got to the porch.

However, she was quieter than when I first came and a look of defeat was slowly being etched into her aged face.

I didn't ask many questions.

I already knew the answer to a majority of them.

After putting on my face mask and doing the necessary cleansings, she took me to his room once again.

"Brett, Adam's here to see you." She said.

From across the room, I could see his frail form curled under several heavy blankets.

His arms were skeletal and he was limp, dervied of energy.

He slowly started to flip to his side and I braced myself.

I felt my heart sink as soon as I saw his face.

His cheeks had completely sunken in and his eye sockets were very pronounced. There were deep purple rings underneath his darkened eyes and he looked like he could break at the slightest misstep.

All I could do was move to his bedside and sit in the plastic chair provided.

His mother stepped out, closing the door behind her.

"Hey, how are you doing?" I asked him.

It was the only thing I could think of to ask even though the answer was right in front of me.

"I'm holding on. I was beginning to wonder if you were going to come back." He said weakly with a small smile.

I felt something hard punch me in the chest and I fought off tears.

"But what matters now is that you're here." He continued on.

It seemed like it took all his strength to produce statements every time he spoke.

My heart slowly started to break.

He asked me about how my career had been since we last talked and though I had much to say, I felt numb on the inside.

I couldn't believe I was sitting next to one of my closest friends and he was going to die.

Reality was hitting me hard.

"Adam, I'm so ready to see her again." He said to me.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't talk like that. You're going to make it through this." I said to him.

"No, Adam. I think we both know that this is inevitable." He said.

I lowered my head.

He was right.

There was no way around this.

"But let's not dwell in it. I'm so glad you came! I've missed you so much over the years. I never forgot about you and I never stopped loving you. We were brothers, and even now, we still are." he said to me, loyally.

I took one of his skeletal hands in mine and lowered my forehead to it.

He tightened his grip as much as he could.

"Yes, we are." I said.

I felt Brett's weak body shutter as he laughed lightly.

He lay his head back on his white pillow and closed his eyes.

He looked so peaceful.

It was like he never was in any pain in the first place and he was resting.

"Brett, I love you." I said to him.

"I love you, too, Adam." He responded back to me.

A silence came between us.

Brett's chest stopped expanding.

"Brett!? Brett!?"

My heart raced as I desperately waited for a response.

"Brett!?" I asked, panicking.

I placed two fingers on his neck and felt no pulse.

And it hit me.

I started to bawl, tears covering my cheeks.

I put my forehead on his and sobbed loudly.

I wanted to scream, but all that came was a cry of deep anguish.

My tears continued to fall as memories of us together flew through my mind and each one cut deeper into my soul.

"Adam!? Adam!?" I heard a voice say.

I couldn't tell who it was through the pain consuming my heart.

I took my forehead off his and ripped my face mask off.

And as my body shook violently, I lowered my head and placed my lips on his forehead.

I wanted for him to still be alive and breathing, not for my tears to be falling on his pale face.

I wanted to be able to still talk to him, not to hear me breathing by myself and the echoes of my pained heart.

"He said he didn't want to die alone, but I wasn't expecting it to be now." The same voice said. coated with tears of its own.

I pulled away and put the side of my head on his bed, hitting the mattress with my fist.

Brett's mother came beside me.

Against my will, I got up and took his mother in my arms.

She cried loudly into my clothes.

I stood as her support, but I wanted to fall to my knees so bad.

My heart was broken.