Throughout the last season of his life

It took them a while to find me. More than two months. Not only because I was absent for a while, but also because his mind was playing tricks on him because of the tumor that was growing. He couldn’t quite remember my name. Until yesterday.

 

So I went there today. Mathew asked for me.

 

 

 

Mathew, he looked so much different when he lived in house number eleven. The room he lived in now was almost empty. Only a chair looked very familiar. No music in the room and he was very quiet. No stories to tell as soon as I came in. His eyes looked empty, just like the room with only one bed. Ruth.. She must have passed when I was gone. When I thought of her I saw her smile when she used to play with the rings on my finger. I remembered the smile on their face that evening.(http://hubpages.com/hub/Throughout-the-last-season-of-life)

The nurse came in with something to drink for him. Put it in front of him on the little table next to the bed. She gave me some coffee too and brought me a chair to sit with him. I guess I sat there for more than fifteen minutes before he looked at me.

His empty eyes stared for a while and suddenly a little smile appeared on his face. “I know you” His eyes didn’t look that empty anymore and a tear showed itself in the corner of his eyes. I smiled back at him. ”Yes you know me, we know each other.”

“Yes, I remember” and his smile got bigger. He took my hand and hold it very tight. “Ruth is gone you know. That’s why I’m here in this room. I had to move, because of that thing they found in my head.”

He let go of my hand and tried to get up out of the chair. It was hard for him, but he didn’t want me to help him. He slowly and carefully walked to the cupboard in the corner and got a little box out of the drawer and slowly walked back to his chair. He took the lid of the box and took the shiny ring out. The shiny ring he put on Ruth her finger.

“She wanted you to have it back, so I will give it back to you. Before I leave this life. I promised her. And thank you again for that evening.”

He couldn’t swallow his tears anymore and neither could I. We both just said nothing anymore. Just hold each other’s hands and let the tears run down our cheeks for a moment.

Suddenly he stood up again. Wiped away the tears from his face with his sleeve and went back to the drawer. He put back the little box and took out a big piece of chocolate and put it in my lap.

“I’m going to say goodbye now too you know. It won’t be long for me neither before it’s my turn.” I knew. Otherwise I didn’t have to come here.

In the mean time the nurse came in again. It was time for his medicine and so time for me to leave. I gave Mathew a big hug. “Say hello to Ruth for me when you see her again okay?”

He nodded his head with a smile on his face. ”I will, I will.”

I left the room with a heavy heart,the ring and with a big piece of the wedding cake in my hand. Knowing this was probably the last time I would see him.

“Bye Mathew.”