He had always hated seeing her in pain, and though many years had passed since he had come to that realization, it didn't make it any easier to deal with. If anything it was harder, especially since he knew he could do nothing to help her. He had to face the facts; Jessie was dying. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised, given their advanced ages and all the injuries they had sustained in their youth coming back to bite them. But he'd always thought he'd go first, never her, not with her spitfire personality and determination.

He'd always imagined her at his bedside, teasing and insulting him so as to hide her true feelings, tears glistening yet unshed in her eyes. But it was not to be. She was dying, and if what the doctor said was true, it could be any time. James clenched his fists the best he could, trying to keep himself together for her. He turned his eyes to her pale, drawn form, resting on the bed.

Jessie had always been beautiful, and age hadn't ruined it in the least. It wasn't until she became sick that she began to lose her beauty, losing weight and having her hair thin. She was still gorgeous to him though, and always would be.

She had wanted to die at home, not in the hospital, even though her doctor insisted upon her staying under observance. She had asked if it made any difference at that point, and the man had reluctantly admitted that no, it didn't. So away she went, back to their home, to their bed, to the love of their family. Even now, their daughters and son waited downstairs with their children, forbidden by their mother to see her in such a state.

James watched the shallow rise and fall of her chest, noting how it was just the smallest fraction of a second longer between each breath. He teared up, unable to keep his composure any longer. His wife was dying before his very eyes, in agony that he couldn't erase, and he couldn't look away, couldn't risk missing her last breath. Blue eyes cracked open just a fraction, but he rushed to her side nevertheless. He took in the way her eyes clenched together tightly, the tension throughout her body as wave after wave of pain washed over her.

She managed a smile for him, never one to give up without a fight. He smiled back, but inside he was dying right along with her. She shifted, her hand coming to rest atop his for a final time. She inhaled a shaky breath, and he leaned closer, desperate to catch the sound of her voice one last time.

"James..." Jessie exhaled in a breathy whisper, "I love...you. Forgive...me..."

She coughed, and he brought up tissue to catch the blood robotically.

"Forgive you for what?" he asked, voice choked with tears. "For having enough sense to move on to something better? Come on Jess, you know you've always been smarter than me."

She gave him another weak smile, and it was all he could do not break down.

"I'll...be...waiting. I...love...you," she said again, eyes slipping closed.

"I love you too, Jessica. I love you, too."

James gently lifted her upper body off the mattress, slding in behind her and laying her against his chest. She sighed, and he knew that even though she was in immense pain she wouldn't want it any other way. He winced at her slight weight. It didn't even feel like he was holding her anymore, but then at that point she really was just a shadow of herself. He remained silent, his mind absorbed in memories, feeling her breathe. At some point, he noticed the time between the breaths was becoming disturbingly long. He looked down at her then, finally releasing his pent up tears. They dripped into her hair, disappearing into the strands.

He kissed her head over and over again as her breaths grew slower and her heartbeat weaker. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, they stopped all together. He tilted her head back, pressing one last kiss to her cooling lips, before easing off the bed and repositioning her body. It was then the wailing began, drawing his children to the room. He barely registered their presence, or being moved to a different room. All he knew was that Jessie was gone, and it felt like a piece of him was missing.

Her pain, the thing he'd despised for so long was at long last over, but his was only beginning.