Unconditional

Epilogue

*Justins POV*

"I, love..." Jessica wheezes. "you." She whispers.

Jessicas small hand went limp in my own and her eyes drifted shut. I could feel the tears rolling down my face and I press my lips against her cheek. Her beautiful face was pale and her small fragile body lay completely still. The monitors that were hooked up to her body, stop beeping. She was gone. She was finally gone. I hug her limp body close to me as I sob. I kiss her lips and will myself to let her go. To let her body go.

I knew this was a possibility. We all knew. So it shouldn't have come as such a shock... but it did. To all of us. She was supposed to be in remission. She was supposed to be ok. I wasn't sad anymore. I was numb. Jessica was everything to me. She was my wife for a total of a few hours...and then she was gone. I forced myself to remember how much pain she was in and how she didn't feel it anymore. That this wasn't goodbye. I knew I would see her again one day. I just didn't know how I would make it until then. Without seeing her smile. Hearing her laugh. Feeling her touch. I felt broken. Lost. Empty.

Images of Jessica flooded my mind. Every embrace we shared, every kiss, every touch. How she always smelled of sweet candy and flowers. The way her nose scrunched when she thought of something unpleasant. Her resilient spirit that would live on in the heart of every person that knew her. The thing that I found strang was the image I saw of her when I thought of her. It wasn't the way she was when she had her long blond curls that I loved to run my fingers through...but of her when she lost her hair. I had grown to love the way it made her beautiful green eyes stand out.

The room was filled with people. All in black. People that Jessica touched while she was still here. There was a heavy sorrow that filled the air. Even Emilee, who's hair was always some wild color...was now wearing her natural black hair. She walks over to me and hugs me tight.

"Justin-" She crys.

I wrap her in a hug. "I know Emilee."

She pulls away and wipes her tears. "She wouldn't want this." She says gesturing to the room of sobbing and moping people.

I nod. Emilee was right. Jessica wouldn't want us to mourn her. She would want us to be able to think of her and smile.

"Justin...what am I going to do?" Emilees eyes are glossy.

That's when I realize that as hard as this was for me...losing Jess was even harder for her; in a completely different way. Emilee had grown up with Jess. She probably felt as lost as I did.

"Justin, dear." Jessicas mother says as she hugs me.

I give her a one armed hug and quickly break away. Jessicas parents never made her suffering any easier. I resented them for that.

"Justin, are you ready to see her?"

I take a deep breath and nod.

As I make my way into the room where her body lay. My heart literally aches. When I finally get into the room as see her I break down. She lays there, completely motionless. Dressed in a simple, but beautiful black dress. As hard as it was to see her like that...there was something comforting about it. Her face wasn't twisted with pain. Instead, a look of peace was on her face.

I take her hand in mine and kiss it. "I miss you so much baby." I choke out.

I gently take the diamond wedding ring from her finger and slip it into my pocket. I needed a peice of her. I bend down and kiss her cheek and struggle to pull myself away from her body. I move my lips to her ear and whisper.

"I will, always, love you Jessica."

As I finally pull myself away from my wife's body and head towards the door. I stop in the doorway and turn back to her.

"I'll see you again baby."