Contagious

--Present--
Vic took a second to soak in the moment. The moment that the doctor broke his dreams, and stole Hilary from him. It wasn't fair, Hilary was so young.
Vic grunted, cleaning his tear stained face with his sweater. She would have hated to see him in the condition he was in.
Vic shook his head and looked back down at his notebook, it was slightly damp from his tears.
He gripped his pen again and began writing again.
They'll never take us alive,
'cause I'll chase away the darkness.
I'll live in love and die.
I joined the party for the recently blind.
So if we're heading there together you can sing all night.
--22 Months Ago--
Vic dug his face deeper into his hands as he cried louder, at this point he didn't care what anyone thought about him. He didn't care if the waiting room bystanders stared at him or felt bad for him. They had all become ghostly figures inhabiting the dark hole he was in. 
Vic felt his heart constrict inside his chest as he continued to cry. Hilary's mother had gone into Hilary's room to say goodbye to her daughter. She had asked Vic to be there for Hilary's final moments, she said that she didn't have the heart to see her daughters eyes close for the last time.
Vic accepted, knowing that he had to get all his emotions out before he faced the woman he loved so dearly.
Mike and Jaime had arrived five minutes ago, they were each sitting on either side of Vic, one hand on each of his shoulders.
Tony watched from the waiting room door, feeling like he had done everything he could do. Tony couldn't handle death, he would rather face a million other things. Anything besides death, anything besides his best friend being gutted from the inside out.
"Vic, I'm so sorry." Mike finally spoke to his brother for the first time. His eyes were glazed over, still in complete shock from the news that Tony had told him and Jaime.
"I don't think any of us know exactly how you feel," Jaime began in a soft voice, "But we're here for you. We're always going to be here for you."
Vic was out of tears, feeling the burning in his throat. His whimpers became quiet, out of breath.
He had nothing left inside of him, he had already given into everything he felt. He had cried tears for the moment Hilary told him she was sick up until the moment the doctor had told them she wasn't going to make it.
Jaime didn't expect an answer from Vic, instead he rubbed his back with support.
"Vic..." Tony walked up to him friend, "I just saw Hilary's mom leave."
Without looking at Tony, Vic drew in a couple deep breaths and cleaned his face with his palms.
Hilary would know he was crying, she would know before he spoke his first word.
He cleared his head mustering all his strength. 
He shook his head, freeing himself from all his negative thoughts.He needed to be numb, feeling was too risky at the moment. If he felt anything at all he would risk breaking down in front of Hilary. Once he emptied himself of all feeling, he lifted his head. Staring down Tony with furrowed eyebrows, he nodded.
Vic stood up firmly and brushed past his friends.
He walked quickly down the white hallway leading to Hilary's room. He passed by nurses, some smiling at family members other discussing things with doctors. Each one of them with their own lives, none of them possibly knowing the hell that was brewing inside of Vic.
He stopped in front of a door with the number 123, and took a deep breath. He prepared himself for the images he was about to see.
He took a deep breath and walked inside.
Sounds of machines beeping hit his ears before he even saw Hilary. A low sound of an oxygen machine made Vic nauseous.
"Hi." Hilary's raspy voice hit Vic's ears next.
He looked up and saw a sight that completely shattered him. Hilary was laying in a hospital bed, hooked up to three machines. A dozen wires were attached to her, some where IV's others were heart monitors.
Her face was completely different than the one that he saw this morning. Her ivory skin was now pale, completely colorless. Her usually plump pink were dry, cracked, a shade of light lavender. Her wide child like vivid green eyes were now a dull pastel green. The red rims around her irises were now much more noticeable. Her eyelids and her water lines were a bruised color, sickly almost.
Vic swallowed the large lump in his throat, "Hi baby." He pulled a chair next to Hilary's bed and sat down. He quickly grabbed her cold hands and pressed them to his lips. He couldn't understand how she could change in a matter of hours.
"You look good, wish I could have fixed up a bit." She was having a hard time talking. Her breath ran thin with every word she said.
Vic smiled running his fingers over her blonde hair, "You look better than I do on my best days."
Hilary pressed her cold cheek against his warm hand, "I know I'm going to die Vic."
He closed his eyes pretending he hasn't heard the words that came out of her mouth, "I'm sorry I took you out today... I just wanted to surprise you."
Hilary squeezed Vic's hand, "Vic, listen to me." She took a sharp breath and continued, "I love you so much, all you've ever done is make me happy and-"
"Hilary." Vic interrupted, "I don't want you to think that I blame you for leaving me."
Vic had thought about it over and over again. Knowing Hilary, she would be beating herself up over the fact that Vic would be devastated by her passing.
Hilary shook her head, "Let me talk."
She waited for Vic to nod and continued, "All you've ever done is make me happy and I know that I've made you happy. The entire time I've been with you, I've been floating on air. I know you'll never forget our days together, or our nights." She squeezed his hand and smirked at him, "You've made me the happiest woman on Earth, and I want you to promise me that you'll love another woman the way you loved me." She paused when she saw him shake his head, "Vic!" She was stern, "It's not fair for you to not treat another girl the way you've treated me. I'm going to die Vic... But you don't have to die with me."