Coffee Cups and Onion Rings || Brad Simpson (The Vamps) Fanfiction

twenty-six (trigger warning)

Things come to an end.

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Norman Hayes died peacefully at 2:48 in the morning one week after he "traveled around the world" with the people closest to his heart.

His family were all in the visitors' lounge after getting a phone call from his former private nurse, who got a call from the hospital that his heart stopped beating for a while, but they were able to resuscitate him.

He and his ex-girlfriend, who was sleeping beside him at his house, raced to the inn where her parents stayed, then they all went to the hospital, where they were allowed to say their last goodbyes, even if he wasn't responding. He was in so much pain that they knew that his final wish wasn't to travel the world, but rather, to die peacefully in his hospital bed after battling the cancer that developed inside of him.

It was a devastating sight, of course. To see him be plugged off of life support, then to never see him open his eyes again. It was a pain none of the people there were able to endure.

His late son's ex-wife and her current husband volunteered to go to the mainland with his body to be cremated, since it was part of his final wishes. Meanwhile, his granddaughter was taken home to his house, which had never felt so empty. The familiar old door creaked as they closed the door behind them, locking it shut. Their minds operated on overdrive as they went upstairs to her bed, where they both laid down on the soft mattress.

"I can't believe he's gone. Everything happened too quickly," Noah said to the boy lying next to her, then he looked at her with small tears in his eyes.

"Same. It's weird how it only took a second for everything to change," Brad said, making Noah shift her gaze from the ceiling to the side of his face.

"I know," Noah said, then Brad looked at her as she wiped her face with her hands in sadness and denial.

"Hey," Brad said softly, making Noah look at him, then he shifted his body so that he was completely facing her. She then noticed the tear falling out of Brad's eye, then her heart started to shudder.

"Oh, Brad," Noah said as she reached out for a hug, which Brad returned. She rubbed his back as he sobbed, then she gently kissed his forehead.

"It's okay. Just let it all out," Noah said, and when they separated for a while, she noticed that her shirt was wet with some of his tears, but she didn't mind at all. Instead, she waited for Brad to calm himself down a little before encouraging him to speak.

"I spent two and a half years of taking care of that old man. I was trained to not get attached to patients, but he was special. He always treated me like his grandson, you know?" Brad said, then Noah nodded her head.

"I understand. You have every reason to be sad, Brad. And although it pains me to see you like this, I want you to know that it's okay for you to feel this way," Noah said, then Brad wiped some of his tears.

"You're right. As usual," Brad chuckled, infecting Noah with his laugh.

"Well, what about you? How do you feel?" Brad asked Noah, who shrugged.

"Terrible," Noah replied, then Brad brushed a thumb over her cheek after resting his hand gently over her face.

"Like, you know that point where you're just so broken and lost that you don't know what to feel, so you choose to just wander around those emotions until it sinks in? Yeah, I'm there," Noah said, then Brad sighed.

"If there's anything I can do to help, please let me, okay?" Brad told Noah, who chuckled lightly.

"You already are. You're here with me, and that's all I need. I just want to be with someone so I don't feel alone," Noah admitted, then Brad smiled.