A/N - First of all I'd just like to say that this was probably as hard for me to write as it will be for you to read lol. But I wanted to challenge myself and this came to fruition. I've been working on it for a little over a week and I'm quite proud of the end result. Just to cover my ass, I don't think/wish/want what happens in this fic to happen in real life. It's just a fan fiction, that's all. I hope you like it and you might want to grab a tissue for this one. It's quite the tear-jerker. Please let me know your thoughts. The lyrics at the end belong to James Blunt. And that's it, go read it now!!
PS - The banner for Falling Into You has been put up.
"Mommy when is daddy coming?"
Stephanie McMahon turned to face her five year old daughter as she tugged her pants from behind. She looked down to find her practically bouncing up and down on the spot with excitement and couldn't help but laugh. Her husband had been away on tour to the Far East for a little over three weeks now and they were all anxious to have him back.
"Yeah mommy, when daddy come?" chimed in little three year old Murphy as she unsteadily walked over to join her sister.
Stephanie glanced over at her mother who was currently sitting on the couch chuckling away to herself at the hyper active children. And they weren't the only ones. Declan and Kenny were there too. In fact the entire McMahon clan were all there. It was Declan's sixth birthday and any birthday was cause for celebration for the McMahon's. She watched as the birthday boy came bounding into the room and practically leaped right onto his grandmother's lap. If he'd jumped any higher he would have taken her out! But as the tugging on her leg got more insistent she turned her attention back to her daughters. Just as she was about to answer them there was a knock on the door. She watched as both girls' eyes grew wide with excitement and they sprinted to the door.
"DADDY!"
She heard her parents laughing in the living room as she followed her daughters to the front door of the house.
"Quick Mommy! It's Daddy!" cried Aurora as she all but pulled the knob off the door in her attempt to open it as fast as she could.
"Calm down honey," Stephanie laughed as she caught up to them and reached to open the door. But all three of the Levesque women's faces fell when they saw who was on the other side. "Oh, hey Tony, Maria" she said trying to mask her disappointment whilst pulling Aurora and Murphy back against her legs as an icy gust of wind blew in from outside. She should have been expecting Marissa's parents to show up at some stage instead of getting herself and the kids all worked up about Paul finally coming back to them.
"Hi Stephanie. Hey girls!" Tony said as he affectionately patted Aurora on the head and shook the rain from his jacket. But the smile on his face quickly turned to a gentle frown when he saw the somewhat angry look on her pretty little face. "And what's the matter with you? You not enjoying the party?" He looked at Stephanie and then back to Aurora.
"I thought you were my Daddy," she said quietly before mumbling an apology and walking back into the living room.
Stephanie chewed on her lip to hide the smile that was threatening to form on her face. She scooped Murphy into her arms before looking at the Mazzola's. "I'm sorry. Paul's been gone for three weeks now and he's coming back tonight. She's a little excited to see him. They both are. Aren't you baby?" she said, bouncing Murphy on her arm.
"I want Daddy," she huffed as she buried her face in her mother's neck.
Tony and Maria just laughed at her antics and gave Stephanie a sympathetic smile. "That's alright. There's no harm in missing your Dad, especially when he's been away for so long. Where are they touring this time," asked Tony as they made their way to the living room and away from the terrible weather outside. "Is Vince here?"
"Yeah, Dad flew back a few days ago but the rest of the gang is still over there. Well they should be in the States by now I think. They were touring the Far East as part of our Asia tour - China, Japan and the likes."
"Ah, I see. He's going to be beat after a long haul flight like that but I'm sure he'll be glad to be home," he answered before his legs were met with something small but forceful.
"Granpa!" cried Kenyon as he ran right into the older man's legs. He was soon followed by Declan and the Mazzola's made their way into the room to join the rest of the family. While Marissa caught up with her parents Stephanie joined her father who was sitting with Aurora on his lap.
"This little girl isn't going to be happy until she sees her dad," Vince said with a sympathetic smile. "Neither is this one for that matter," he added as he glanced at Murphy's little frowning face.
"Or this one," Stephanie said indicating herself. She'd missed her husband terribly these past few weeks, they all had and she couldn't wait to see him come walking through that door. "I......" she began but was interrupted by the ringing of the cell phone coming from the vicinity of her handbag. She reached down the side of the couch and pulled the small ringing device from the expensive leather bag and smiled when she saw who was calling her. "Paul! Where the hell are you?" She watched as Aurora and Murphy's heads both shot up from their slumped position at the mention of their father's name.
"Is that any way to greet your husband Mrs. McMahon?"
His voice immediately widened the smile that was already on her face. "Did we somehow get a divorce when I wasn't looking?" she responded in kind, keeping up with his banter.
"Hell no! You'll not get rid of me that easily woman!" he playfully barked.
"I wouldn't want to get rid of you at all actually," she said as her voice softened. Hearing his voice made her realise how badly she just wanted him to be there.
"Mommy! Is that Daddy? Is he coming yet?" chirped Aurora as she sat upright on her grandfather's knee.
Stephanie nodded and handed her the phone whilst smiling at her dad. Vince couldn't help but laugh at her excitement.
"Daddy! When are you coming home? We miss you!"
"Ah! Is that my little girl I hear?"
"Yes," she giggled. "Where are you? We are at Declan's party waiting for you."
"Well I'm at the airport and I'm just about to haul a cab and come see you."
"Yay!" she squealed whilst looking at her sister. "Daddy's on his way Murphy, he's getting in the cab!"
The adult's in the room laughed and exchanged amused glances while Aurora finished up her mini conversation with her father before happily handing the phone back to her mother, content in the knowledge that her dad was indeed on his way.
"So you're on your way then, huh?" Stephanie asked as she stroked her daughter's golden strands from her face. Aurora had definitely taken after Paul in the hair department.
"Yep, just getting into the cab now. I guess I'll be around an hour or so. Maybe more. There's a lot of traffic this time of night coming from JFK. Wish the little Dexter man Happy Birthday for me and I'll be there soon."
"Alright, honey. I love you."
"I love you too. See you soon, bye."
Stephanie closed the phone and put it back in her bag all the while maintaining a huge smile. She didn't notice the amused glances her parents shared at her almost dreamy expression. She finally looked up and noticed their amused faces. "What! I'm missing my husband and my kids are missing their dad, sue us!" she huffed defensively, pulling her daughter's closer to her for a hug.
"Did we say anything?" asked Vince as they all broke into laughter and enjoyed the party while waiting for the arrival of Paul.
Stephanie anxiously glanced at her watch for the third time in the space of a minute. Her attention switched between the fierce storm that was brewing outside to the exquisite diamonds on her wrist that were telling her something she did not want to know. It had been almost two hours ago since Paul had called them and she was beginning to worry. The weather was terrible outside. She could see the branches of the trees shaking violently as the wind blew them all over the place. A heavy rain splattered against the window and she could see it bouncing off the ground. An ominous feeling washed over her body as she sat there. Something was wrong, she could sense it.
"He'll be alright."
She turned and came face to face with her mother who joined her on the comfortable window seat. She managed a small smile that did nothing to convince her mother of her feelings.
"Stephanie?" Linda quizzed. Her daughter looked seriously spooked and worried. The wind howled outside the window and she felt a shiver run down her spine. She looked outside and saw how miserable it looked. Paul had called just under two hours ago. It didn't take that long to get into Manhattan from JFK. But surely nothing had happened to him.
"I'm sorry Mom. I just......I have a really bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. Something's not right," Stephanie answered sombrely. She stood and waited for her mother to join her before they both made their way back into the living room. With heavy sighs they both plopped down into the soft leather. Linda glanced around the living room of Shane and Marissa's house. The Mazzola's were off near the corner playing around with Kenyon and Declan meanwhile Shane and Vince were occupying Murphy and Aurora who were smiling and laughing at the silly faces they were making. They were waiting for Paul to come so they could cut the cake. The children were becoming more and more restless so everybody's attention had turned to looking after them and occupying their time. Yet here she sat with her daughter who was everything but OK. She reached over and put a reassuring hand on her knee.
"He's alright Steph. It's probably just taking longer because of the awful weather. You know what this city's like with weather like this, the freeways are a nightmare," she said in her most reassuring tone. It seemed to work as Stephanie lifted her head and smiled at her.
"You're probably right. I think I'll call him again just to check and see where he is though," she answered with a small smile. But as she stood and went to get her cell phone she couldn't shake the nervous feeling in her gut. She quickly punched in his number and listened in frustration as the call went straight to voicemail. Why would the call go to voicemail? Did he have it switched off? "Crap!" she muttered as she angrily tossed the phone onto the couch and sat down.
"Did he not answer?" asked Linda. She was starting to worry as well now.
"No it went straight to voicemail. It only does that if the phone is switched off but why would he do that?" She threw her hands into the air in confusion. This didn't help her nervous feeling at all.
"Daddy! I want to eat my cake," cried Declan across the room drawing everybody's attention to him.
Shane smiled at his son and motioned for him to come over to him. He joined him on the sofa along with Murphy, Aurora and Vince. "We've got to wait for Uncle Paul. You don't want him to miss out on your sixth birthday now do you?" he asked and smiled as the little boy shook his head. He adored his Uncle and despite his impatience, Shane knew that he would rather wait until everybody was there before he blew out his candles. "Good boy. Now, how about we put on a movie until he comes? I'm pretty sure he'll be here pretty soon anyways."
His question was met with three resounding cheers of delight as the children hopped off the couch and bundled over to sit in front of the television.
"Come on Kenny! We're watching a movie until my Daddy comes!" yelled Aurora.
The adults in the room couldn't help but laugh as the four of them all sat in a neat little row on the floor in front of the TV. "So, what are we watching?" asked Shane as he walked over and lifted the remote control. He flicked the TV on and looked down as the kids discussed what to watch. He went to change the channel to get the DVD player on when he was interrupted by his sister. He turned to look at her to find she was white as a ghost.
"Wait!"
Stephanie's hand flew to her mouth as she looked at the picture behind the news reporter on the large screen. He stood there tightly bundled up in a weather proof coat and hat in front of what appeared to be a very serious accident on the main freeway into the city. Two mangled cars sat crushed together behind him and she felt her heart sink to the ground as she saw that one of the cars was a New York City taxicab.
There was an eerie silence in the room as everybody's attention fell to the news man and what he was reporting.
"I'm standing here on the southbound Washington Bridge at the scene of a devastating accident involving two cars, one of them a New York City Cab. The accident took place just over one hour ago but the FDNY have only just removed one of the passengers from his car. All casualties are on their way to Mount Sinai Hospital as we speak but we can't confirm their condition. Authorities do tell us that two of the passengers are seriously injured and it's not surprising given this awful weather which is just ripe for an accident to occur. Witnesses tell us that the black SUV veered off to the side and railroaded the cab. Police suspect that the cabbie applied the brakes to try and stop a collision but instead crashed right into the central conservation in the road which caused the cab to flip over and then it was hit by the SUV from behind. As you can see from the gruesome scene behind me, this is a devastating accident and one of many on our New York City roads. We'll keep you updated on this developing situation as we find out more information. This is Steve Kyle reporting for WKMG New York."
The room remained silent. Nobody spoke. Finally Stephanie let out a small wail as she covered her face with her hands and furiously wiped at the tears threatening to fall.
"Mommy?" came the little voice from the floor which caused everybody to turn and look. Aurora sat holding her little sister's hand as she glanced nervously at her mother.
"Mom, Dad, take the kids upstairs will you?" whispered Marissa quickly. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly turned very sour and if the worst did come to the worst, Stephanie didn't need her kids here watching her fall apart.
"Hey guys, why don't we go watch the movie up the stairs huh? Wouldn't that be fun?" coaxed Tony as he lifted Declan and Kenyon to their feet and started to march them towards the stairs.
"I wanna stay with my Mommy," Aurora huffed sadly as she wiped at her eyes.
Stephanie didn't even notice her. Her eyes were glued to the TV screen, hoping and praying to God that it wasn't her husband in that mangled mass of metal. Linda saw the absolutely distraught look on her daughters face and quickly scooped both Aurora and Murphy into her arms.
"Come on girls, let's go watch the movie upstairs OK? You'll get to lie in Aunt Marissa and Uncle Shane's big bed and you can bounce on it all you want."
Her voice carried up the stairs as she carried the two children up to join their cousins. As soon as she was out of sight Vince immediately went to Stephanie and pulled her against him. "It's alright, Steph. That's not Paul, you know that's not him. Don't you?" He almost choked when he saw the picture on the TV. His mind was racing with all sorts of scenarios and none of them were good. He loved Paul, loved him like he was his own flesh and blood. The thought of something happening to him was unimaginable. He couldn't even fathom what his daughter must be going through. But he was getting ahead of himself. They didn't even know who the hell that was in those cars. It could all just be one big misunderstanding. He pulled his daughter tighter as she sat in a stunned silence, her eyes not once leaving the screen. He glanced over her shoulder at his son and daughter-in-law who both wore the same concerned expression. Vince slightly shook his head at them and managed a small smile. He had to be strong for all of them. Maybe if he projected some form of confidence it would pass on to them all.
But suddenly their worst fears came to life at the sound of Stephanie's unabashed and painful wail. He felt her hands grip him tighter and whipped his head around to look at the TV. A picture of his son-in-law's smiling face greeted him.
"We have some breaking news on the terrible accident that we reported just a few moments ago on the Washington Bridge. WKMG has learned that World Wrestling Entertainment Superstar Paul "Triple H" Levesque was the passenger in the cab that was involved in the accident. Mr. Levesque's condition is not known at this time. It is widely known that the WWE Superstar is married to Stephanie McMahon, daughter of WWE founder Vince McMahon. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Levesque, McMahon and WWE family at this time. We'll keep you updated with the latest information as we get it."
The news reporter's words brought about an eerie silence in the room as he went on to report the next story. Just as he stopped talking, the shrill ringing of a cell phone broke the palpable tension in the room. Stephanie froze. Her heart was stuck in her throat. That was her husband. Her husband had been involved in that mess she had just seen. Terrible images of the mangled cars flashed through her mind. The phone kept ringing. And ringing. And ringing. Until she finally worked up the courage to answer it. She pressed the answer button and put the phone to her ear. "Hello."
"Mrs. Levesque?"
"Yes." Her hand quivered as she sat there. She had literally went numb as she prepared herself for what she was about to hear.
"Mrs. Levesque this is Doctor Jenkins at Mount Sinai Hospital. I regret to inform you that your husband has been involved in a rather serious car accident and I urgently suggest that you make your way down here."
She let out a shaky breath. "Is he........is he.........alive doctor?"
"I won't lie to you Mrs. Levesque, the extent of his injuries are very severe. He's in emergency surgery as we speak. Until they finish up in there I don't really know what to tell you."
"Thank you doctor." She clicked the phone shut and sat stoically for a second or two before letting out a heartbreaking sob as she clung to her father for dear life.
Vince gripped his daughter tightly. "Shane, go tell your mother what's going on. Marissa, go grab the keys, we need to get down there now." He turned his attention to the sobbing woman in his arms. "He'll be OK Steph. Come on, we need to leave."
Her body responded to him as if on autopilot. Her cries died down and he could see her physically trying to pull herself together as she stood, grabbed her bag and made for the door. He was instantly at her side and they were quickly joined by Shane, Marissa and Linda who was wiping at her eyes as she descended down the stairs. The McMahon family sombrely got into Shane's car and headed for the hospital not knowing what news awaited them when they arrived.
The sound of the clock ticking away was deafening in the small waiting room. Scattered magazines and newspapers were strewn across the chipped coffee table along with empty plastic coffee cups. Shane examined the heel of his shoe in silence, lifting it to pick at the soft leather before turning his attention to his sister. He glanced to his side and couldn't stop the painful sigh that escaped him. She was ghostly pale, her eyes were red as she sat there fiddling with her wedding ring. Other than that her face gave nothing away. God knows how she was sitting there so calmly. If that were him he'd be all over the place. Little did he know that she was barely keeping it together.
Stephanie closed her eyes and fought back the tears that were constantly threatening to spill down her cheeks. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. Her husband was in there fighting for his life and there was absolutely nothing she could do to help him. When they'd arrived almost three hours ago the doctors had told her that his injuries were severe. Her mind had blanked as they started rhyming off what was wrong with him. She didn't remember much but the general gist was that there was a major problem with his lungs, something about a puncture. She'd walked away at that stage. She couldn't stand there and listen while that doctor treated him like he was just another patient because he wasn't to her. He was her life, her everything. She couldn't go on without him. She choked back a sob as that thought ran through her head. Her feet bounced anxiously off the ground as she grew impatient. She needed to know what was happening. She needed to know if he was OK. "I can't do this anymore."
Her hushed words caused her family to look at her. They watched as she got to her feet and began to pace.
"I can't do this anymore. I just..........I need to............I need to see him." She started to break down as her emotions got the better of her. "I need to know he's OK. Please, please God let him be OK," she cried as her father gathered her into his arms. She didn't hold anything back as she gripped his shoulders and cried her heart out. The nurses at the nurses' station glanced apologetically at the family. They were used to this. But no matter how many times you saw it happen, it never failed to tug at your heart strings.
"It's alright Steph. Just let it out, it's alright," Vince hushed stroking her hair softly. But he wasn't expecting the sharp outburst he received in response.
"No!" she cried as she pushed him away. "It's not alright. My husband is in there.........and I don't know what they're doing to him........I don't know if I'm ever going to see him again. Don't you stand there and tell me it's alright because it's not." She took a brief pause before the sheer anger in her body took over. "What did he do to deserve this? What did I do to deserve this?"
Vince reached out to her but she shrugged him away. "Stephanie...." He glanced at his son with a worried look on his face. She was becoming hysterical.
"What am I going to tell our kids? Oh My God! Oh God, I can't..............." Her breathing became erratic. She grasped onto her father's arm as a wave of light headedness washed over her. "I can't........I can't breathe," she managed to get out before practically collapsing into his arms.
"NURSE!" yelled Vince frantically. Two of them were quickly at his side and took her off his hands as they positioned her onto a nearby chair.
"Oh Vince!" cried Linda throwing herself into her husband's arms. The thought of her son-in-law in an operating room fighting for his life coupled with the sight of her daughter breaking down in front of her was all too much. This was her absolute nightmare come to life. It was for all of them. She felt her husband grip her tighter as they watched on while the nurses calmed a hysterical Stephanie down. They pulled the oxygen mask away from her face and she noticed the relived smiles that crossed their faces when she started breathing on her own.
"We know this is hard maam. But you have to try and remain as calm as you can. You have to remember your own health as well," said one of the nurses softly. They sat with her for a few seconds longer until they decided she was fine and then left the family in peace.
Linda was just about to go and comfort her daughter when she saw the Doctor round the corner. He approached them and she felt a strange and altogether bone chilling frisson run up and down her back at the sombre look on his face. His head was hung low and only when he stood in front of them did he raise it.
Dr. Jenkins looked around at all the expectant faces, just wishing that he was here to tell them good news. Unfortunately, this time he wasn't. He took a deep breath and prepared himself before looking at Stephanie as she slowly got to her feet. It was never easy telling a spouse that their other half wasn't going to make it. It was the absolute worst part of his job. "Mrs. Levesque...." he began and then stopped at the haunted look on her face. Her father gripped her arm tightly as if he was the only thing stopping her from falling to the ground. "We did everything we could do but.......the puncture to the lung is just too severe. I'm sorry but your husband.......he's not going to make it." He stopped again, expecting her to fall apart right then and there but was surprised when she did nothing at all. People reacted differently. Some broke down here, for others it wasn't until they saw their loved one that the tears came. He reached out and gently squeezed her shoulder. "He's in room 247. I'd advise you to say your goodbyes now. He isn't going to hold out much longer. Again, I'm truly sorry." With that he slowly turned and left them to their misery.
Stephanie stood there in a state of shock. She couldn't believe this was happening. That Doctor did not just tell her that her husband was dying. She refused to believe it. "I want to see him," she said shakily, taking a step in the direction of the hallway.
"Stephanie....." called Vince but he didn't actually know what to say. Just like his daughter he was in a state of shock. As he glanced at his other family members he realised that they all were. This wasn't happening, it couldn't be. His heart broke into a million tiny pieces when his daughter turned to him with the most devastated look that he had ever seen on her face. She blindly walked down the hall and he quickly followed after her with the rest of the family hot on his heels.
Stephanie walked almost in a trance like state. She counted the numbers of the rooms as she went by until she finally came upon room 247. The loud beeping of the machines could already be heard from outside the door as she wearily placed her hand upon the knob. But something inside her stopped her from opening the door because once she did, everything would become real and she wasn't sure if she was ready to face it.
"Steph, maybe one of us should go in first, you know," piped in Shane, glancing at his father. He didn't want her walking in there to find her husband disfigured or God knows what else.
"The Doctor said there wasn't much time............I don't want him to.......," she choked back a cry instead of finishing her sentence. She couldn't say it. She couldn't say that she didn't want him to die before she got a chance to talk to him, if he was even able to do that. No. She needed to see him, even if it was for the last time.
"We're right here if you need us Stephanie," sighed Linda as Stephanie opened the door and slowly entered the room. She caught a glimpse of the bed and couldn't stop the tears from spilling down her cheeks when she saw her son-in-law lying there.
"This is unbearable," croaked Vince as he wiped at his eyes. He pulled his family closer to him and prayed for his son-in-law. He still refused to believe that this was happening to him.
The slow but steady beep of the heart monitor rang loudly in her ears. The wheezing of the oxygen machine that pumped air into his body had to be one of the most annoying sounds she'd ever heard but she was thankful for it. It was the only thing keeping him alive right now. Her eyes trailed along the floor as she walked to the bed. There was a chair next to it which she sat down in. She settled herself and took a deep breath before finally raising her head. Her lips trembled and the tears she'd been holding in immediately spilled from her eyes when she saw him. Her chest grew tight and she gripped at the clothes covering it. A painful sigh escaped from her mouth. She gingerly reached out her hand to touch his that was lying against the white sheets. His skin felt extremely cold and its usual sun kissed colour was replaced with a sickly pale tone. Her eyes travelled from his hand, up his arm, past his neck and finally to his face. She gripped his hand tighter as she looked at it. The left side was covered in small cuts and his brow was heavily bandaged. A small red blotch marred the otherwise white material in the middle where some blood was still seeping out. Suddenly she felt faint pressure against her hand. It happened again and ever so slowly his head turned to face her.
"Paul...."she sighed. A sad smile crossed her face when she saw his beautiful hazel eyes open. She watched as he brought them into focus. Her smile got bigger as he managed a small smile of his own.
"Hey," he croaked out as his thumb lightly traced her knuckles. The feeling was so familiar to her. He always did it when they held hands. She could actually feel her heart breaking at the thought that he was never going to do it again. She'd never get that overwhelming sense of comfort and security that she always felt with his touch. She didn't want to cry but God help her she couldn't stop these tears if she tried.
"Steph..........don't...........don't cry. I can never...........stand to see you............cry," he whispered. His face contorted in pain as he tried with everything inside of him to squeeze her hand a little harder.
She could feel him struggling and immediately bent down so that their faces were close together. "Baby don't do that." Her free hand lifted to his cheek which she gently caressed. The cuts on his face combined with his ever present beard prickled her hand. But it slowed to a stop and she squeezed her eyes shut at his words.
"I love you..........and the girls. Make sure..........that they know that."
She forced herself to look at him. His eyes grew heavy, she could see him struggling to keep them open. He was fading on her. She leaned forward and kissed him softly. She let her lips linger there as she breathed him in. Unexpectedly she felt his hand press against the back of her head. He pushed her mouth against his own and used what little energy he had left to give his wife one last kiss. He could feel her tears soaking into his cheeks. If he had the strength he'd probably be crying himself.
"I love you. I love you so much," she whispered against his lips suddenly growing desperate. She pulled back slightly and gazed deep into his bleary eyes. "Please, you can't leave me here without you, Paul. I need you baby. I love you too much to let you go." Her voice cracked as she broke down.
"I'll always.........be with you, Steph. Don't ever....forget that," he managed to get out before his breathing started to become more and more erratic.
"NO!" she cried, gripping both of his hands. His eyes rolled to the back of his head as it slumped against the pillow. She felt the presence of other people in the room but not once did she take her eyes off her husband. Out of the corner of her eyes could see the blue and white blurs of the doctors as they scrambled to his bedside. She heard her father's voice calling her name in the distance but the only thing she focused on was her husband's face. His eyes were now closed. This was it. She desperately squeezed his hands, wishing she was squeezing life back into him even though she knew it was futile. Tears poured down her face as she realised that she would never get to hold him, or touch him, or kiss him ever again. The tears grew heavier and heartbreaking sobs escaped her as she thought about their children who would now grow up without their father. The beeping of the heart monitor was almost frantic before it became one single noise.
He was gone.
Apart from the monotone sound of the heart monitor everything became quiet. The Doctors stopped moving and looked at her in sympathy but she didn't even notice them. Her family bumbled into the room one after the other, each of them swaddling her in a tight hug as they whispered words of apology and comfort but she didn't feel or hear them either. Her attention remained focused on the man laying in the bed before her, the man she loved with everything inside of her and the man that she was now forced to live her life without. She didn't know how she was going to go on now. Her partner, her lover, her best friend and the father of her children was no more.
As she sat in the still of the hospital room, her husband's final words rang throughout her mind. He would always be with her. No matter what happened from this day on, she would always carry him in her heart. She would carry him home.
As strong as you were, tender you go.
I'm watching you breathing for the last time.
A song for your heart, but when it is quiet,
I know what it means and I'll carry you home.
I'll carry you home.