You're Not in this Alone *The final book in the We'll Carry on Series*

They found you on the bathroom floor.

 Gerard’s Point of View:

 Most people would run away if they found out the love of their life, the mother of their precious child had cancer, again. But honestly that thought was the furthest thing from my mind. Stormy was everything to me, she was my best friend. The fact that she was sick pained me to my very core, but there was nothing I could do to take it from her. All I could do was watch helplessly as the love of my life suffered from the sickening disease and ached in pain most days. It was torture, but I would never admit it to her. Instead, I turned to my Grandma Elena, who had passed away in 2004, met Stormy once she had passed on, and gave her back to me three days later.

 "I’m so glad today was a good day for you, my angel.” I whispered inaudibly to my sleeping, naked wife. She was so precious to me; she really had me wrapped around her fingers. Her now all black hair fell in soft, messy waves around her face as her cheeks flushed from whatever she was dreaming of. When she slept, she hid those mesmerizing icy blue eyes that put me in a trance 5 years ago in Starbucks. She was a blonde then, any hair color suited her. 

I couldn’t imagine my life without her, or where I would even be if I hadn’t met her. I didn’t want to imagine it; it was scary and not important because I did have he. I had her, my daughter, and my band. Not to mention I was so much closer to my parents now, which gave me a sense of comfort that I didn’t have in California. My parents knew how sick Stormy was, so they agreed to watch Bandit when Stormy and I went to her appointments. She insisted she could go alone and I could go back to work, but I refused her offers. My wife was dying and she needed me.

My head snapped back into reality when I heard a low whimper of pain escape Stormy’s lips. I pulled her closer to me, caressing her head and stroking her hair. She began to churn in her sleep, waking up from the pain that constantly ran through her body.

“Gee.” She croaked, slightly writhing.

“Shhh. You’re okay, I’m here, and I have you. The pain will subside soon.” I falsely promised knowing that the pain would still be there, only as a dull ache.

“Si-sing to me, please.” She begged, her voice masked in pain. I held her close and began singing the song I wrote not knowing it would become her anthem.

“Turn away. If you could get me a drink of water ‘cause my lips are chapped and faded.

Call my aunt Mary, help her gather all my things, and bury me in all my favorite colors.

My sisters and my brothers still, I will not kiss you, ‘cause the hardest part of this is leaving you.

Turn away ‘because I’m awful just to see and all my hairs abandoned all my body, oh my agony.

Know that I will never marry, baby, I’m just soggy from the chemo, but counting down the days to go,

It just ain’t living, and I just hope you know that if you say goodbye today, I’d ask you to be true.

Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you. Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you.” She drifted to sleep in my arms to the sound of my voice, clinging to my chest as the tears fell from her eye.

****

“Saints protect her now.” I begged to whoever was listening. I wasn’t ready to lose her. Not now, not ever, actually.

I fell asleep counting her breathes.

********

Three days later:

“Are you sure you’ll be okay alone?” I asked as Stormy practically shoved me out of the front door.