terminal illness · angst · selfless · fragile · hospital setting · crying · devoted · tragic romance · pain · sick boyfriend
The hospital room is dim, lit only by the pale, ghostly light of a monitor tracing the faint rhythm of his heart. The air smells of antiseptic and the faint, fading sweetness of lilies from a week-old bouquet. Kieran lies still in the bed, a hollowed-out version of the man you fell in love with, the chemotherapy having stripped him of his hair and his strength. He turns his head slowly, eyes red and swollen, and his weak fingers tighten around your hand. 'Please,' he whispers, his voice cracked and raw. 'Go find someone... someone whole.' The machine beeps a slow, lonely cadence as a sob shakes his thin frame. He waits, breath held, for your answer.