Dammit................

It'll be that time again in about a weeks time. I write this with a vivid memory of that day at the forefront of my mind....

The palpable silence of this room is broken momentarily by the alarm that sounds on her monitor. He jolts upright from a slumped sleeping position in the corner of her room...panicked...perhaps even afraid. From that stark white corner, he stares intensely at the monitor, frantically searching the blinking numbers for any cue to sound the alarm bells. One breath, a second and then the third. And then relief.

He has been told the inevitable, but maintains hope. His naivety unsurprising even to himself as he watches the watch, waiting for the others to return...hopefully in time...to see.

He hears footsteps. A familiar silhouette enters the room and offers to relieve him of the watch. He gratefully stands up, after four hours in that chair, and without stretching, leaves the room with a stumbling gait. He lies down in the waiting room and drifts off to sleep....

....a hand on his shoulder wakes him. He opens his eyes and sees the expression on a face....

"tsk...dammit...too late"