"Okay." He stalked off with Nick behind him. He entered the morgue and could smell death.
"Sir, I have to do something, can you help me?"
The guy stared at him with a blank expression on his face. "What?!" The guy asked rudely.
Brian pulled the ring out of his pocket. The guy gawked at it.
"WHAT?!" He repeated, rudely, even more so than the first time.
"I have to do something. I need to give this to someone in here...and you're the only one who can let me in." The guy shook his head.
"What's your name and who?"
Brian questioned his query. "Oh, my name's Brian and the person is Brandi Cardullo!"
The guy walked over to the phone and dialed a number. Brian listened as he heard the man talking to a doctor. A minute later, he came back.
"Okay, well, I just got off the phone with the doctor. He'll be here in a minute!" Just as he said that, the doctor walked in.
"Brian, hello. You're the one he was talking about." Brian nodded.
"Yeah, I came here to put this ring on her hand and dead or alive, I'm not leaving 'til I do!" He seemed angry, but he was too upset to be.
"Okay, come on. I'll take you in there, but you only have about 5 minutes!"
He led Brian to a room in the back of the morgue. He opened a drawer and Brian braced himself for what he was about to see. As the doctor unzipped the bag, Brian got weak in the knees as he saw her lying there. She was so pale. He lips were blue and she was so lifeless. The doctor left him and Nick alone. Brian slowly walked over to her. He grabbed her hand and shivered. She was so cold. He reached for the ring and slipped it on her hand.
"I love you." he whispered.
He kissed her hand and began singing to her 'their' song. When he finished, he asked Nick to leave for a minute.
After he left, Brian whispered "Will you marry me? I know if you were here, you would have said yes. Good bye!"
He kissed his fingertips and placed them on her lips. He walked out with tears streaming down his face. Nick looked at him as Brian fell to his knees. He bent down and hugged Brian, knowing that was all he could really do. Surprisingly, Brian held on for dear life. The stayed like that for a few minutes, 'til Brian looked at his hand. He was still clutching the envelope. He stood up and tore it open. He began to read:
Dear Brian,
By the time you read this, I'll be gone. I'm sorry I left so soon. And yes, I did know all along that it would be this soon. I just couldn't bear to break your heart. I'm sorry and I hope you'll forgive me. I want you to know, above everything else, that I love you and I love the way you made me feel. Thank you for being there for me. I'll never forget. And I'll never forget my promise either....or OUR promise, rather. We'll be together forever. No matter who you're with, what arena you're playing at. I'll be there. Together forever, remember!?
Show me the meaning of being lonely
Is this a feeling I need to walk with
Tell me why I can't be there where you are
There's something missing in my heart
Til we meet again, Brian. Together forever. Always.
Love,
Brandi
A tear fell from his eyes as he read the last of the letter. He missed her already. They decided to leave the hospital and as they walked out in the morning, darkness loomed overhead. When they got to Brian's jeep, he asked Nick to drive 'cause he couldn't see through the tears. All the way to the hotel, he cried. The tears just wouldn't stop.
As they entered the hotel, they ran into AJ and Kevin going into the breakfast area. They stopped as they saw Brian.
"Oh, God, Brian, what's wrong?" Kevin walked over to his cousin.
"She, uh, she died."
Kevin gasped. He hugged Brian and Brian didn't let go. AJ just stood there staring helplessly at the two. He wished he could do something. He spoke up.
"Uh, Brian, we were just about to get some grub, want something? My treat!"
Brian shook his head to AJ's offer. "Uh, not really. I'll order in later. I'm going to my room to rest!" He walked off towards the elevator.
When he got to his room, he saw the red light on his phone flashing, indicating he had messages. He picked up the phone to listen to them. There was only one and it was Brandi's mom. He listened closely:
"Brian, it's Kary, Brandi's mom. Please call me as soon as you get in. My number is 843-1258. Thank you. Good bye."
He put the phone down and sat on his bed. She sounds distressed, he thought. What could she want? He picked up the phone again and dialed the number. He waited for someone to pick up. Then she picked up the phone.
"Hello?" She sobbed into the phone.
Brian tried hard to hide his fear and worry as he spoke. "Yeah, um, it's Brian. You called."
She breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, yes! I just wanted to tell you that the funeral is in 2 days at 3:00 p.m. at the Bowling Funeral Home. Brandi would like it if you said a few words. Will you?"
Brian began crying. "Yeah, I'd love to...for her. Well, I have to go now. See you later. Good bye."
He hung up before she said anything. He wiped a tear from his cheek and laid down. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was asleep.