Different Time

Hosiptial

Jim sat beside Melody’s hospital bed, gripping her hand tightly, trying to stay as close to her as possible. He stared her over, his eyes constantly catching on the beanie that sat on her head, covering her balding head. Chemotherapy had practically destroyed her, but even without hair, even though she was pale and thinning, she was still the most beautiful girl to him. All he ever wanted was for her to recover quickly enough.

Months had passed since she had been diagnosed. The doctor told them there was a chance she could pull through, though they were fearful that it would spread further and become uncontainable. Everyone who loved her worried, trying their best to keep faith in Melody's condition. As for Jim, he did everything in his power to give her a good life, a life she deserved. Melody wasn't afraid of what was happening to her. All she ever wanted was to spend time with the ones she loves, hoping to be cured, even despite all the negative updates on her condition.

Attempting to comfort Jim, Melody rubbed his back and hushed him while he cradled his head in his hands. He always panicked and became enraged at doctors when they told him she was getting worse and the treatment was doing very little to help. It was hard to hear for, not only him, but for her family too. She was such a young and beautiful girl with such a long life of failures and accomplishments ahead of her. Melody’s mother, Esmeralda, wept and prayed every night for her daughter to overcome her condition. Her father, Tulio, instead kept the strong fatherly facade, doing his best to comfort his wife, though inside he was breaking.

Jim and Melody’s families had been close for years, making Jims frequent home absences and hospital visits understandable to them. Jims parents had been close friends to Melody's parents since their high school years. Eventually, after a long time of lost communication, they had met once more, both having children at this point. They had met when Jim was five and Melody was a year younger, and almost immediately became friends. After growing up together, and eventually becoming closer and closer over the years, they finally realized their feelings for one another. Jim was the first to confess at the end of 8th grade, when Melody was in 7th. Melody remembered how clammy Jim's hands were that day, and how red his face got when he told her how he felt. She remembered just being glad that she was able to reciprocate his emotions.

That was five years ago when they finally started their relationship. It would have been a shame for their relationship to end so abruptly and so close to their six year anniversary, especially since Jim was making her something he knew she would love and accept with all her love and heart, but by the time it was done, he feared it would be too late for her. Still, Jim wanted to wait for her, hoping that there would be a chance that his princess would fight her way through this ailment.

~~~

Melody laid back, her heart monitor going off, her heart rate rapidly dropping. Jim gripped her hand, screaming out for a doctor. She smiled, meekly holding his hand back, coughing away from him. 

“Jim… Please, let me go.”

“No! I won’t! I won’t let you die! Not now!”

“Jim. I’m tired. I’m in pain. But I love you so much. I love you more than you could ever imagine. You’ve done everything to protect me since we were kids, and you’ve been nothing but kind to me. So right now, I want you to know that I love you enough that you’re the last thing i will ever see. And if that’s how it’s going to be, then I’m happy I’ll be ending this way.”

“Melody, no! You’re not doing this to me!” Tears stained his face and as the monitor screamed repetitively, Melody began grimacing in pain. Doctors came racing in, a pair of defibrillators in tow. They had to pull Jim from her, so he wouldn’t get hurt.

“Please Jim. I’m getting cold, and I don’t want you to see me like this anymore…” She closed her eyes and then it ended. The monitor let out a long and and intense beep. She wasn’t there anymore, her hand went limp. Doctors tried restarting her heart, though with lacking results. She was dead.