I'll Be Seeing You Soon

“Miss, I’m sorry but the room has to be cleared. We have other patients that need the bed.” The nurse repeated for the third consecutive time.

“Just give me a few more minutes okay?” Madison cried out, clearly aggravated with the middle aged woman.

“I’m sorry Miss, but I’ve given you all the time I possibly can.” The nurse replied, in a more somber tone. Madison shook her head and held on to Travis’ hand for dear life, fearing that if she let go and walked out of the room that she would never get to see him again. Travis’ mother Sherri arose from her seat across the room and walked over to Madison. She put her hand on top of Madison’s, causing the heartbroken girl to look up at her.

“Sweetie, it’s time to go.” Sheri uttered slowly, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to fall for what seemed like the thousandth time that night. Madison moved her attention back to Travis’ lifeless body and slowly nodded her head, knowing full well that it was time to once and for all part ways with her best friend and boyfriend of four years.

“Can I just have a minute alone?” Madison quietly pleaded with Sheri. “Please?” Having been through a horrific tragedy like this before with her now deceased husband, Travis’ father, Sheri knew that Madison needed to say one last good bye alone; she needed to have a sense of closure.

“I’ll be out in the hall.” Sheri gave the girl sitting next to her son a reassuring smile and walked with the nurse towards the door. Before closing the door behind her, Sheri took one last look at Travis knowing that it would be the last time she would see her beloved son. Once Madison heard the door click and saw that it was indeed closed, she turned back towards Travis. She sat in the chair next to the hospital bed for a couple minutes, simply staring at her hand in his.

“As much as I don’t want to Trav, I have to let go…” she whispered aloud. She finally got the courage to pull her hand out of his, something she couldn’t possibly get herself to do not even an hour ago. Madison stood from her chair and carefully placed it back against the wall. She walked back to Travis’ bedside and glanced over his now pale complexion. Slowly lifting her hand, she ran it though Travis’ shaggy brown locks, something she always loved to do. Tears began to slowly trickle down her cheeks and she found it completely useless to wipe them away. Wanting to give him one last good bye, she cupped his cheeks with both hands and slowly leaned her body over the bed. Madison gently placed a kiss on his icy blue lips and as she pulled away she stroked his cheek for one last time. As she started to back away from his hospital bed, Madison still couldn’t seem to wrap her head around the fact that the only man she has ever loved was actually gone.

***********************************

“Travis! You crack me up!” Madison giggled as they pulled up to a red stoplight and came to a halt.

“Only for you my lady.” Travis joked, trying to use a British accent, but failed miserably.

“So where are we going babe? You said we were going someplace special, because you had something special to tell me.” Madison asked excitedly. Travis shook his head and let out a laugh. He reached over and grabbed Madison’s hand that was resting on the console, and laced his fingers with hers. He looked over at her and she was staring at him with a huge smile plastered on her face.

“I’m not telling you silly! It’s a surprise!” Travis answered her in an equally excited voice, obviously mocking her. Madison quickly scrunched her eyebrows together.

“Travis Allen Carter! Are you mocking me?” she yelled out. Travis quickly shook his head and tried his best not to smile.

“Why would I mock you Maddie? I’d never do that!” he said as innocently as he could. Madison childishly stuck her tongue out at Travis, causing Travis to return the action. Madison couldn’t take being serious any longer and started to giggle, with Travis joining in on her laughter. Wanting to be completely spontaneous, Madison quickly leaned over the console and caught Travis off guard with a kiss. Madison pulled away with a grin toying on her lips, but as soon as she pulled back Travis immediately leaned over and pushed his lips against hers. Out of the corner of her eye Madison saw the light change from red to green.

“The light’s green Trav.” She mumbled against his plump lips. Travis sighed as he pulled back from Madison and placed both hands on the steering wheel. He gave the car gas and started through the intersection. As Madison looked over at Travis to say something, horror instantly overcame her as she saw a speeding car come barreling towards them, obviously with no intentions of stopping.

“TRAVIS!” Madison desperately cried out. Almost immediately the sound of metal crunching together and tires screeching across the pavement could be heard. Madison clung on to the door handle for dear life and shut her eyes almost instantly. The airbags were deployed and Madison felt it hit her chest. Once the car came to a stop Madison opened her eyes and quickly patted herself down, making sure that she wasn’t hurt or had any broken bones. She couldn’t find anything wrong with her, besides a few small cuts on her arms from the shards of glass that had pelted her, and she let out a sigh of relief.

“Maddie…” Madison heard a voice croak out. She shot her head in Travis’ direction and her eyes bugged out.

“Oh my god. Travis! OH GOD!” Madison yelped out. The driver’s side of the car was somewhat caved in and the windshield and driver’s side windows where completely shattered. Travis had his head against the headrest with his face turned towards her. The blood was simply overwhelming for Madison. Tears began to cloud her eyes as she stared at her boyfriend in disbelief.

“Everything hurts Maddie.” He groaned. The tears finally flowed freely from Madison’s eyes as she watched him moan out in pain. Travis used all of the strength he could manage to lift his hand up for his girlfriend to take. Madison quickly grabbed a hold of it, but made sure she didn’t hurt him. Sirens could be heard off in the distance, and although Madison wasn’t religious by any means, she prayed that help would get to them fast enough to save her boyfriend.

“Travis, just stay with me okay? Don’t go to sleep.” Madison commanded, frantically spitting out her words. Saying Madison was scared was an understatement; she was completely petrified. The sirens came closer and closer until it sounded as if the ambulance was right next to the car. As soon as the buzz of voices filled her ears Madison cried out for help. She was soon pulled out of the car by a firefighter and was taken to one of the two ambulances that were present at the scene.

“My boyfriend is in there!” Madison cried out as she watched the firefighters use the Jaws of Life to take off the car door to get to Travis. The medical lady who tended to Madison’s tiny cuts on her arms tried to comfort her and tell her that he’d be okay and that things could definitely be far worse. As far as Madison was concerned though, this was the worst possible thing that could have ever happened. Here she was with only scratches and minor cuts, while Travis was clinging to life. She watched as they pulled Travis out of the wreckage and put him onto a stretcher. Madison ran over to the ambulance they were putting him in and was lucky enough to be able to ride to the hospital with him. She held onto his hand as the ambulance sped through the city at high speed to get to the hospital. It absolutely killed her to watch him struggle to stay conscious. Once they arrived at the hospital Madison was told to stay in the waiting room and wait for further word on Travis’ condition. The ICU was definitely not the place Madison wanted Travis to be. It only reinforced her gut feeling that he was in critical condition. The seriousness of the situation finally hit her and she fell to the ground sobbing. She sat on the floor in the waiting room with her head buried in her hands for fifteen minutes before Travis’ mom came running into the room.

“Maddie! What happened? Where is he?” Sheri spit out. Madison quickly hopped to her feet and wrapped her arms around Sheri’s torso.

“They took him into the ICU and they haven’t told me anything. It’s bad Sheri. It’s really bad. I just know it!” Madison choked out through her sobs. Her body continued to shake as she wrapped her arms even tighter around Sheri’s boney figure. Sheri couldn’t believe that this was happening again. It was only five years ago that she lost her husband in a situation just like the one Travis was in. Sheri prayed to God that history would not repeat itself. She tried to comfort Madison, and helped her towards the uncomfortable seats that were set up against the wall. It seemed like hours had passed by and Madison was beyond hysterical.

“Is here anyone here for Travis Carter?” A doctor asked, as he scanned the room with a clipboard in his hand. Both Madison and Sheri shot up out of their seats and practically ran over to the doctor.

“I’m his mother. Is he okay?” Sheri asked, desperately wanting to know her sons condition.

“I’m Dr. Reid. Travis was in very critical condition from the accident. He had minor trauma to the head and both of his lungs were punctured. We immediately put him into surgery and did the best we could to repair his lungs.”

“But is he going to be okay?” Madison piped up, interrupting Dr. Reid’s speech. The doctor slowly nodded his head and that was all Madison needed to know.

“His left lung was punctured pretty badly, and he might need a second surgery. We’re just going to have to see how everything plays out. But as for right now, he’s okay. Travis is still unconscious from the anesthetics, but should be waking in the next hour or so.” Dr. Reid continued.

“So can we go see him?” Sheri asked, her voice filled with nothing but hope.

“I don’t see why not.” He replied in a soft tone. “Nurse Wickstrom will take you to his room.”

“Thank you so much. You have no idea how grateful I am.” Sheri smiled at Dr. Reid and shook his bear-like hands. Madison and Sheri followed the nurse to Room 309. Madison couldn’t help but find the irony in his room number because Travis was born on March 9th. As the nurse guided both women into Travis’ room, she told them which button to press once he woke up. Nurse Wickstrom left the room and left both women staring at Travis. Madison could only come up with one word that summed up the overall appearance of Travis: vulnerable. He looked so pale, and Madison concluded that it was most likely from the amount of blood that he lost. Madison pulled a chair up to his bedside and grabbed his hand, while Sheri took a seat next to the window. All they could do was wait; wait for Travis’ beautiful brown eyes to flutter open. Time went by ever so slowly, and Madison was beginning to get antsy. She was never an impatient person, but she was screaming inside for Travis to hurry his butt up and wake up.

Madison glanced at the clock that was perched high up on the peach colored wall. Two hours of sitting and waiting had gone by and there was still no sign of Travis waking up. Madison and Sheri kept quiet, and all that could be heard was the beeping of the heart monitor and other machines Travis was hooked up to.

“Travis, please wake up.” Madison murmured. As if Travis had heard her, she felt him squeeze her hand. It was a weak squeeze, but that didn’t matter to Madison. The fact that he squeezed her hand at all was all that she cared about.

“Travis!” Madison happily cried out. Travis began to squint his eyes as he tried opening them. Slowly but surely, his eye lids rose as his eyes adjusted to the bright lights in the room. He looked around the room and his eyes finally landed on an ecstatic Madison.

“Maddie…” he said hoarsely. A small smile could be seen on his lips and that alone made Madison grin from ear to ear.

“You have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice Trav. I was so worried.” Madison explained. She then motioned to Travis’ mom, “We both were.” Travis smiled at his mom as she rose from her chair and made her way over to the bedside opposite from where Madison was.

“Hey mom.” Travis greeted Sheri. Sheri had tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. She leaned down and planted a sweet motherly kiss on Travis’ cheek.

“I love you Travis.” Sheri told her son.

“I love you too mom.” Travis replied.

While Travis and his mother talked, Madison pressed the button Nurse Wickstrom had instructed her to when Travis awoke. Seconds later two nurses walked in, along with Dr. Reid. They checked his vitals and did an eye test. They asked Travis simple questions, such as when his birthday was, what year it was, and what his name was. Travis answered them all correctly and the doctor said he’d be back later to check up on him. Sheri left the room with the nurses and Dr. Reid to get a detailed explanation of just what exactly occurred on the operating table and such. With Sheri gone, Madison quickly leaned over and pressed her lips eagerly against Travis’.

“I was so scared Trav.” she whispered against his lips. She pulled back and looked into his gorgeous chocolate colored eyes. Travis lifted his hand and pushed the strands of hair, that had somehow fallen out of Maddie’s ponytail, behind her ear.

“I’m here with you right now Maddie, and that’s all that really matters.” Travis told her. Madison sat down on the edge of his bed and laced her fingers with his.

“You’re so beautiful Maddie.” Travis said out of know where. Even though it was a simple statement that Madison had heard many times before, it still made her cheeks turn red. “You complete me Madison O’Riley.”

“You are so cheesy!” Madison giggled.

“But you love it.” He retorted. She smiled wide and bobbed her head up and down.

“I do.” She happily sighed.

“And I love you.” Travis said passionately. Madison thought her ears were deceiving her. They have dated for four years, and not once had Travis told her that he loved her. Although she wished he would have, she understood his reasoning for not saying it. He wanted to be 100 percent sure that he was totally in love with Madison before he said those three little words.

“You-you what?” Madison stuttered.

“I love you Maddie. I love you more than anything in this entire world.” Madison didn’t even have to question herself whether or not she loved Travis. She fell head over heels in love with the boy the moment she met him.

“I love you too Travis.” She excitedly told him as she leaned down and kissed him. Travis then convinced Madison to lie down next to him on the hospital bed. Although she put up a fight and refused, she finally caved once Travis began to pout. If there was one thing Madison couldn’t resist, it was Travis’ pouting.

Madison never felt more at ease lying next to Travis. She closed her eyes as she leaned her head back onto his arm and let out a heavy sigh. Madison stayed put next to Travis for hours. The nurses came in every couple hours to check on him and they didn’t mind that Madison was on the bed with him. Every once in awhile Madison could hear the pitter patter of Sheri’s footsteps enter and leave the room, as she went on a coffee run.

Madison felt Travis shift uncomfortably beneath her, causing her to sit up.

“You okay babe?” Madison asked, now feeling slightly concerned. From Travis’ facial expressions, she knew that he was in pain.

“Want me to call the nurse?” she asked. Travis shook his head and muttered ‘no’. He closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. As he let it out he opened his eyes again.

“What’s wrong Travis? Talk to me.” Travis looked a little uneasy as he looked at his girlfriend.

“I love you Madison.” He stated out of nowhere, causing her to eye him weirdly.

“And I love you.” She replied slowly.

“Will you love me forever?” he asked her, completely serious. Madison was bewildered by this simple question.

“Of course I will Trav. Why do you ask?” she questioned. Travis shook his head and silence fell between them. Madison decided to sit up rather than lie next to Travis since he was obviously in pain. She overlooked his weird behavior on the account that she thought it was a result of the medication they had him doped up on.

“Do you believe in the Afterlife Maddie?” Travis randomly asked. She was a little reluctant to answer, but she did nonetheless.

“I believe that there is a place where people go after they die, so yes, I believe in the Afterlife.” She answered truthfully.

“Do you think that we’d be able to find each other in the Afterlife?” Travis asked. Madison didn’t like the fact that Travis kept bringing up the thought of death and the Afterlife. Death was something she most certainly didn’t want to think about, especially with Travis lying next to her in a hospital bed, hooked up to all sorts of machines.

“Travis, what are you talking about? There’s no need to worry about the Afterlife right now. You’re not gonna die.” She tried to reassure him, but more importantly she was trying to reassure herself.

“Madison…I am dying.” Travis uttered. She looked at him like he had suddenly grown two heads.

“No…no Trav. You’re not dying. Don’t even say that.”

“Maddie, I am.” He reaffirmed.

“No Travis. You can’t die. I won’t let you!” She sternly told him, her voice slightly rising at the end. Having Travis talk about how he is so sure he’s dying made Madison break down and start to cry.

“I can feel it Maddie. I just know.” He whispered to her, his voice slightly breaking. Noticing that Travis was on the verge of tears himself broke Madison’s heart. She quickly shook her head and wiped away her tears.

“Stop doing this Travis. This isn’t even funny.” Madison pleaded.

“Maddie, when my dad was in the hospital he knew he was dying. He explained to me how he knew it, and I have that exact same feeling.” Travis tried to explain, but Madison wouldn’t have any of it.

“You’re not even making any sense Travis! The doctor said you were fine!” Madison harshly whispered. “Listen to me Trav, you are not going to die. You hear me?”

“You can’t stop the inevitable from happening.” He stated monotonously. Those were the exact same words that his father had told him just before he died. Travis knew that his life was coming to an end very quickly, and he wanted Madison to understand that whether she liked it or not, death was quickly approaching.

“Travis you can’t leave me. I need you.” She cried. Madison searched Travis’ face to see if he was making this whole thing up; if it was some sick, twisted joke he was trying to pull on her. It startled her even more, when she realized that he was being completely serious. Travis began to intake deep breaths and it scared Madison more than anything.

“Travis! Travis! Oh god. I’m paging the nurse!” Madison yelled. She leaned over the bed, trying to reach the button. Not wanting anymore medical attention, Travis shot his arm up and grabbed Madison’s.

“Madison...please don’t” he croaked out. She immediately stopped and retracted her arm. Sitting down on the bed beside Travis once more, she felt a new wave of hot tears stream down her cheeks.

“I promise that I’ll be waiting for you. No matter what, I’ll always love you Madison.” He whispered aloud. Travis knew that this was extremely difficult for Madison to understand. Hell, Travis could hardly understand what was happening, but he just knew that it was.

“Travis please don’t leave me…” she murmured helplessly. Madison never felt more afraid in her life, than she did sitting in that hospital bed next to her boyfriend. Travis took her hand in his and gave a small smile.

“I’ll never leave you. I’ll always be here,” Travis said lowly, as he moved their intertwined hands up to her heart. “and I’ll always be here,” he continued, moving their hands up to her head.

“But that won’t ever be enough.” she cried. Travis ran his hand along her cheek and wiped away her falling tears. If there was one thing he hated more than anything, it was seeing Madison cry.

“Please don’t cry Maddie.” He quietly begged. As much as Madison wanted to stop crying, she couldn’t will herself to do it. Tears continued to pour down Madison’s face and drip onto the hospital sheets. Travis didn’t know what to do or say to make her feel better about the whole situation. With death literally knocking on the door, he thought of the one thing that always brightened her day. He decided to sing her a song that he felt was most appropriate, considering the horrible circumstances.

“Dear God the only thing I ask of you is
to hold her when I'm not around
when I'm much too far away”

Travis began to sing to Madison in a whisper, and that completely floored her. She knew that it was one of his favorite songs, and she certainly knew that it was always the song he sang to her before he went away on a trip or vacation.

“We all need that person who can be true to you
I left her when I found her
And now I wish I'd stayed
'Cause I'm lonely and I'm tired
I'm missing you again oh no
Once again”

Travis took a deep breath before he continued. The more he sang, the quicker he was out of breath. He knew that that was definitely not a good sign.

“Some search, never finding a way
Before long, they waste away
I found you, something told me to stay
I gave in, to selfish ways
And how I miss someone to hold
when hope begins to fade...

A lonely road, crossed another cold state line
Miles away from those I love purpose hard to find

Dear God the only thing I ask of you is
to hold her when I'm not around
when I'm much too far away
We all need the person who can be true to you
I left her when I found her
And now I wish I'd stayed
'Cause I'm lonely and I'm tired
I'm missing you again oh no
Once again”

“Travis…” Madison moaned as he finished. The song made her even more depressed, because in a weird way, she knew that it was his way of saying goodbye. Saying goodbye was definitely something Madison was most definitely not ready to face.

Madison watched in horror as Travis’ chest began to rise at a much slower rate than before. He gripped her hand with what strength he had left, and looked deep into her eyes.

“Madison, I love you with all of heart.” He softly whispered.

“I-I love you too Travis.” She quickly spit out. The grip Travis had on her hand began to get weaker and weaker. She knew that the inevitable had finally come. Although she didn’t want to believe that the man she loved was literally slipping away before her very eyes, she wanted reinforcement that this wouldn’t be the last they would see of each other.

“Travis, promise you’ll wait for me?” she managed to get out. Madison looked deep into Travis’ eyes and she knew the answer before he even said it.

“I promise.” He wheezed out. All she could do was nod her head, accepting the fact that he’d wait till the end of time for her, if that’s really what it took. Madison wanted to say more to Travis, but as she opened her mouth, she failed to form any words at all. Travis’ eyes began to close and fear filled Madison’s body instantly. She glanced up at his heart monitor and noticed that his heart rate was starting to fall. With one last tug at Madison’s hand, Travis uttered four little words that Madison knew she would never forget.

“I’ll be waiting Maddie.” Travis breathed out with his very last breath of life. Madison watched as his heart rate fell to zero and flat lined. And Travis was gone. Just. Like. That.

********************************

Opening the door to the hospital room was one of the hardest things Madison ever had to do. It only signified that she was truly leaving Travis behind. Needing one last look at her boyfriend, she turned her head in the direction of the lifeless corpse that she’s grown to love over the span of four years. For a split second, her mind deceived her and she saw Travis standing next to the window in all his glory, with his hands tucked in the pockets of his blue denim jeans and his Rockstar hat on his head backwards. His pearly white teeth were quite noticeable as he smiled in Madison’s direction, and to her it was absolutely breathtaking. But as soon as he was there, he was instantly gone, but her eyes stayed focus on the place where he once stood.

“I’ll be seeing you soon Travis.” She whispered into the empty room. Although no one was in the room, she had this gut feeling that Travis had heard her. It gave her some comfort to know that even though Travis wouldn’t be with her in person, he would always be right next to her in spirit. Because if there was one thing Madison knew about Travis, it was that no matter what, he would always stick by her side. As Madison walked out into the hall she let out a shaky breath. Sure this was hard for her, but having the knowledge that at some point in time she might possibly meet up with Travis again, it made her feel somewhat at peace.

“Are you alright sweetie?” Sheri asked, as the young girl of seventeen approached her. Madison slowly nodded her head.

“I think so.” She replied honestly. Although the pain was still fresh and the loss of Travis still hadn’t fully hit her yet, Madison knew that the memories she had of Travis would somehow be enough to help her through.

Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose, the things you never want to forget.

Never will Madison forget the amazingly beautiful, motivated, gentle, forgiving, open-minded, thoughtful, witty, loving, spontaneous boy that was Travis.