Things That Fade

Day One

When I woke up, he was already gone. I could hear the faint sound of clanging pots, so I figured he was in the kitchen. As I was trying to find my way out of his bed, I spotted, out of the corner of my eye, a sheet of crumpled paper in his trash bin. I could vaguely make out what seemed to be a medical stamp on the upper right hand corner of the paper. I got out of the bed as quickly as I could and hesitantly read it. What I saw wasn’t something I could understand at first glance, though. The piece of paper was filled with medical terminologies that, after a long while of trying to decipher it, told me only one thing. Tears fell from my eyes only to be caught by the ruffled bed sheets. The upsurge of emotions was cut short by the sound of footsteps on the staircase. I immediately put the paper back where I found it and pretended to sleep; knowing full well that these tear stains on my pillow would betray me. I could hear him entering the room and setting aside the dishes on the table. When he had lain down to embrace me, I hung on to him like death, burying my face into his chest.

“Catchy… Where are you going…?”

            He laughed lightly. It was his solution for everything. While I was busy putting up walls to protect myself from everything, he was busy smiling; laughing it off. He’d always act invincible; but I know better than to buy into it. He’d act like nothing hurts, but in truth, everything does.

“I’m not going anywhere, Hope.”

“…Lies.”

            We stayed in bed for the remainder of the day. I didn’t need anything but the warmth of his skin and the taste of his breath. For some reason, though, as his arms coiled around me, I could feel his fingers trembling.