"How is she?" Vince asked Bill as he emerged from Chloe's room. Bill's eyes were so heavy with sadness Vince had to swallow his tears. He couldn't imagine the pain this man was feeling.
"At least she's not in pain…" Bill's voice lingered off and scooted past Vince towards the bathroom. Vince watched him go and took Linda's hand who was sitting beside him. Their children had since gone home earlier that morning, but neither Vince nor Linda could leave this family here. They had opened up their home to them to stay in, which Chloe's family had greatly appreciated. All her brother's wives were coming in, but not until tomorrow. Vince had decided that whatever the cost it took to take care of Chloe, medical… and funeral… he would take care of it.
"A parent should never have to bury their child…" Linda's voice was distant. Chloe and Linda had become close, they would often grab a coffee once a week and Linda had stepped in as a Mother figure for Chloe while she was in Connecticut. Vince pulled his wife closer and kissed her forehead.
"How is she?" Vince and Linda both jumped at Mark's voice and turned in his direction. He had a box full of different things.
"Her condition hasn't gotten any better… but they haven't gotten worse." Mark nodded and sat beside them for a moment. His face was splotchy from crying and he couldn't hold anyone's gaze.
"I brought her some of her things, pictures… she loved her pictures… and her favorite blanket. You know her Grandmother knitted her this blanket when she was little?" Mark reached in and brought out the blanket, while Vince and Linda sat there and watched him.
"Mark… you can't blame yourself." Vince grabbed Mark's shoulder and squeezed it tight.
"No, but I can try to make it up to her. I was a bastard." Mark stood up and pushed open the door to Chloe's room. Her mother and four brothers were in there. Her mother was sitting beside her daughter stroking her hair, talking to her.
"I remember the time you thought the dog ate the bunny you found. It was about six in the morning and I heard your sniffles all the way down the hall way. I thought you were hurt, and I came running down the hall way. You were sitting cross legged in the middle of your floor crying over an empty box. Oh Chloe, you were so upset. We finally found your bunny hiding underneath your dresser, and the look on your face is a look I will always remember. You called me the best mommy in the world, and reminded me every day that I was the best mommy in the world." Sherri paused as tears slid down her cheeks, "Sweety, you're the best daughter a mother could ever ask for."
Mark felt the sacredness of that moment. No one wanted to talk about her dying, but they knew it was inevitable. This was their way of saying goodbye; that was something Mark did not want to do.
"I brought her some things from her house…" Sherri and her brothers all turned to look at him; and Sherri nodded. Mark sat the box down and brought out the first picture his hands could find. It was of her and her mother baking cookies back home. Both of them were covered in flour and laughing. Mark held up the picture towards Chloe direction and wiped his face from the tears.
"Chloe, I remember you telling me about this picture; you love it so much because it's a candid. You told me it captured the essence of the bond that you and your mother have. You told me that your mom was your hero because she always smiled in spite of circumstances." The room grew quiet and all that could be heard were sniffles; Mark reached for the next picture. He drew out one of her and her oldest brother, Matthew. She was dressed in a simple red prom dress, she had made it herself and her brother was in a pair of khaki's and a red shirt. They both were making a funny face at each other, but the love shone in their eyes.
"This is you and Matt. You didn't have a date to your senior prom so Matt decided to take you. Money was tight and you didn't want to burden your mom and dad for a prom dress so you took down the curtains in your room and made your own. Everyone wanted to know where you bought your dress and your brother said they couldn't find it, it was specifically made for you. About half way into the prom, ya'll ditched it and went bowling and made a Waffle House run. You loved this picture so much because you said Matthew always made sure you were protected, and you never fully understood that until your prom." Mark walked over and handed Matthew the picture and did the same with the following pictures. He had purposely grabbed pictures of her and an individual family member and told the same story she had told him when he had asked about various pictures.
For Jonathan he picked the picture of her and him dancing at his wedding. She was in a bright green dress and he was in a handsome tux. She loved that picture because Jonathan wasn't only her brother, but her best friend. Instead of standing on the bridal side for the wedding, Jonathan had asked her to be a groomsman. Chloe had the personality to take it. For Robert he had chosen them when he was five and she was two. She was laying in her bed with the flu and Robert had come in to read to her, he had just started learning to read on a first grade level. Chloe had her head rested on his shoulder as he read her the Cat in the Hat for the sixth time in a row. Chloe loved this picture so much because Robert had made her feel special even when she was it her worst.
The picture he had of her and Adam was when she was five and he was eight. They both had black eyes and were standing on the front porch of their house. On the bus ride home that day, someone had called Chloe a nasty name and Adam heard it and decked the guy. When the guy hit Adam back, Chloe had jumped up and gave him a black eye and she got one in return. Chloe had loved this picture so much because Adam was her defender.
By the time he had given Adam the picture, Bill had come back in staring at all of them. Mark reached in and brought out the last picture. It was Bill holding Chloe when she was just born. Bill had tears in his eyes and was laughing so hard in the picture.
"Chloe loved this picture merely because it showed that you were Daddy; and she knew she loved you the moment she met you." Mark whispered as he handed Bill the picture. As much as Mark hated to admit it, he realized he was helping everyone say goodbye to the woman that managed to touch everyone she met. Bill grabbed Mark in an embrace and hugged him tight.
"Mark… thank you…"
Mark felt the knot in his stomach and the lump in his throat and hugged the man back. He had no idea how he was going to pull through this, he felt like he was on auto pilot.