𝐅𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 828 || 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬

𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐞𝐝 || 𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬. 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫

his cancer was back. hearing those words from dr. alex bates had haunted you since the day you heard them. he was rapidly declining by the day.

you were sitting next to him in the living room as he lied there in hospice. he had made sure his family was doing everything they could to solve every last calling. he didn't want to stop them from doing that, stop them from potentially saving the lifeboat.

you, on the other hand, had refused to leave his side. you had spent everyday there for the last week curled up by his side on that tiny hospital bed that was rolled into the stone family living room.

"y/n, you can go, it's okay." cal says softly, rubbing a thumb against the back of your hand. "no, i'm staying here with you." you reply, pressing a kiss to his hand.

he smiled gently. he thought about how he got so lucky in the short span of his life. he met the perfect girl and he wasn't even in his 20's yet. you loved him, cared for him. you were there for him through everything flight 828 had to offer.

"thank you, y/n." he whispered softly. you raised an eyebrow. "thank you for?" you asked, confused.

"everything." he replies. "you've been by my side since day one. i don't know what i'd do without you. i sure wouldn't have hung on this long." he says, a light chuckle escaping from his lips.

tears start to form in the bottoms of your eyes. you didn't have a clue what you'd do once cal was gone. he was your person. he knew you better than anyone did. he knew how to cheer you up when you were upset. he knew the in's and out's of how your mind worked.

even if you were to meet someone else one day, you couldn't think about the thought of replacing cal without wanting to throw up. you didn't know what love was until you met him.

he felt the same way. grace always told him to find a good woman, and that girl happened to be you. it gave him even more comfort knowing that grace absolutely adored you before her passing, and she wouldn't have picked anyone better for her son.

"cal, i'm not ready for you to leave me." you choke out, sobs shaking your entire body now. you laid your head down on his chest, letting the tears soak his long sleeved shirt. you felt his salty tears fall into your hair.

"you're goingto be okay. olive promised me she'd watch over you, dad too." he mumbled, trying to hold back his cries. he had everything prepared for you once he was gone. he didn't want you to have to worry about anything.

"who am i supposed to talk to? who am i supposed to play monopoly with?" you ask him. he runs a gentle hand down your back. "i made sure zeke had that handled." he replies.

you lean up and press a kiss to his lips, your hands resting under the side of his chin. you'd been cherishing as many kisses as you could before he was gone. "i love you, cal." you whisper softly against his lips.

"i love you more. i promise i'll be watching over you." he says in return, and the two of you go back to laying in a comfortable silence, only wishing it could stay like this forever.

all good things must come to an end, as grandma karen would've said. you knew both her and grace would be waiting for cal with open arms.