Beep. Beep. Beep.
The machine next to the bed made soft high-pitched sounds at an even pace. I smiled as my eyes scanned the room. The cards that cheerily screamed Get Well Soon contrasted the wilted flowers beside them. They had been sitting there for weeks. The sun was only beginning to rise, washing the Candy Kingdom in warm orange light. The bed-ridden patient coughed deeply.
"Oh Jake! You're awake!" I exclaimed. "Hah yeah man. Hey you made a rhyme!" he muttered. I chuckled. "Wait dude, have you been here all night?" Jake inquired, attempting to face the window. "Well, yeah I couldn't just leave you!" I beamed. He smiled wearily. "Thanks bro." He plopped his head back onto the cot. "How're you doing?" His smile faded. "Dr. Ice Cream said the cancer is spreading, actually."
His words made my heart drop. "But I thought she said the chemo was working," I stammered. He shook his head. We stared at the sinking metallic balloons in silence. I cleared my throat. "I brought you something!" I declared, trying to lighten the mood. I pulled my fraying backpack onto my lap and extracted a framed photo. In the picture, Jake and I were laughing on our couch back at the Tree Fort as BMO talked to a chicken wearing lipstick. Jake took the snapshot from my hands.
He grinned, his eyes sparkling as the memory replayed in his mind. "BMO was so convinced the chicken was named Lorraine," he chuckled. "Yeah, and that she took my sock!" We snickered. Jake started to cough again. Blood erupted onto the white hospital sheets. "Aw dangit," he groaned. "It's okay man, just take it easy," I said softly. He grabbed my hand. "Finn, I know this isn't gonna be easy for you, but I don't think I can do this much longer." I looked at him in desperation. "Of course you can! The doctors, th-they'll make you better! And then we can go on tons of adventures, just like the old days. Remember? And we can kill monsters and bug Ice King's nephews and-" He stopped me. "I know you want me to get better, but it's just not gonna happen, man. Look-" He struggled to sit up.
"I may be leaving this world, but you can still go on adventures! You've got your whole life ahead of you. You've got Flame Queen to start a family with and Banana Man to fix more trucks with! Maybe you could fix BMO again! I'm just an old dog, bro."
My eyes started to water. "No, Jake. I want to do all that cool stuff with you. I want you to be the godfather of my first lil Flame Finn and I want you to help me get BMO working again and-" My breath quickened. "And I just can't lose you," I finished, trying hard not to cry. Jake's eyes were dry, but glimmered with despair. "Don't worry man. I heard from a guy that dying will be 'an awfully great adventure.'" I attempted a smile. "Who said that, some big nerd?" He nodded, beaming. "Probably." The beeping was starting to slow. My heart pounded as I grasped my best friend's hand. "Please don't leave me Jake. Please," I begged. His fading eyes twinkled for the last time. "What time is it Finn?"
Beeeeeeeeeeep.