Matt Jeevas watched from his window as the sun fell behind the horizon, the sky fading from the dark tangerine color of Tang to the indigo of night. He let soft breath escape his overly rosy lips, ragged and slightly shaky. He tore his eyes away from the window, fighting back the onset of tears that threatened to fall.
One year.
For one full year he had been attacked by this dreadful disease...this tuberculosis. He was already losing, too. Soon, it would take his life, he knew it.
The young man drew away from the window, his eyes burning. His champagne colored hair fell into his face, softly obscuring his once bright, emerald orbs. They were now sunken and bruised, making him resemble the shallow face of a corpse. Empty. Tired. Matt's skin, once a pale olive, now had become papery and sallow. Stretched, taut across his bony frame.
He reached out to a small, mahogany table by his bedside, thin fingers brushing against a picture frame. A soft smile graced his chapped lips as he looked through the glass at the picture. It was singed around the edges, and discolored from the sun and water stains, but this was the picture had been what drove him to survive. He felt the delicate skin of his lips tear a little, letting out a stream of rusty blood...but ignored it. Matt traced a crack in the glass, beaming down at the picture.
It was of a girl, likely in her early to mid teens, standing in front of a rose garden. She wore a loose, lavender dress that swept elegantly around her knees, and tall navy and aquamarine patterned rain boots. Her chestnut hair was just past her ears, framing a narrow face with round, soft features. She was smiling gently, a dimple on her left cheek only added to her charm. Lastly, she held onto a bright, scarlet umbrella.
'Yes,' he thought, 'I must survive for her sake...my dearest sister.'
He laid back in the hospital bed, the white sheets smelling of everything else in the hospital...a mixture of sanitizer, medication...and death. Slowly, he closed his eyes, absolutely exhausted. Small sounds that echoed throughout the room gradually faded from his awareness as he slipped into an eternal slumber.