6
Richard's hospital room was 313. His family was waiting right outside, hearts pumping like crazy, their bodies even shivering from anxiety. After only two minutes, the doctor slowly walked out of the room. His face, covered in perforations from being a band-aid, was serious and sullen. He took a deep breath but held it in for a few seconds. He seemed unsure of how to break the news to the family, wondering how they would take it. He only had a split second to make a decision, seeing them almost literally on the edges of their seats. Slowly, quietly, he let it out. He looked at Nicole with seriousness and sympathy in his eyes before closing them as he gave the message.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Watterson. He's gone," he said in a low voice. Immediately, the family gasped, and it became so quiet, one could hear a pin drop from the other side of the flapping door. Slowly, they all got up and entered the room to look at their lost family member.
Richard's face no longer looked like he was fighting to stay alive. He looked more relaxed and indifferent. His usual joyful open-mouthed smile had long since disappeared, replaced by a nearly straight line. His right hand, hanging slightly off the bed and beginning to get cold and rigid, was open a little, the fingers in such a position that it seemed like it was reaching out for someone else's hand. Tears forming, Nicole put her hand in his and stared at him. She was now a widow, and she needed time to accept this. It had to be overcome for her new life to become normal.
She fell to her knees and hugged his corpse, sobbing into his fur and shirt, and making his fur, and hers around her eyes, become a darker shade. After a while, she got up, kissed him one last time, and the kids tearfully took turns saying their goodbyes.
Nicole pulled the blanket over his face and watched as the doctor removed Richard from the room, handing the hospital bill to Nicole before he left. Slowly and miserably, she, Gumball, Darwin, and Anais left the hospital, got in the car, and went home. They had gone right past the receptionist's counter because they had health and life insurance, so they wouldn't have much trouble paying the expense.
As soon as she was parked, Nicole went straight upstairs to her bedroom to weep, and the children followed. Instead of upstairs, though, they went into the living room and sat down on the couch. They stared blankly at the TV, wondering what the future would hold for them. With Dad gone, it would be hard, but they knew deep in their hearts that they could handle whatever life would throw at them. They had before, and they would again. Now, though, was the time to grieve and remember. They did just that.
THE END