It had been 14 days since I was admitted to the hospital. I could only do so much as move my arms and head around. The crash left me badly beaten, my lower body completely mangled. The doctors said I was a hopeless case, and all they could do was prolong my inevitable death. They had done so only by finding a way to stop the blood loss from staying serious, but they ran out of what they used today. They told me I wasn't gonna make it to the end of the hour. I felt depressed when they told me, but I accepted it and told them I wished to be alone.

I lived by myself, as my parents had passed away long ago. Around 1 or 2 years, if my memory still serves me correct. No girlfriend, either. I was not a very lucky man when it came to having a relationship. The only girl I had a chance to be with turned me down at my high school dance when I was a lot younger. I spent the next years trying to make myself a better person, and got a job at a decent company that paid well. They shut down last month, and I had only my savings to get me through trying times.

I wasn't religious either, and I mostly stayed at home after the shutdown. No criminal record, thankfully. I was able to tide myself through everything with the money I had left. I was checked into this hospital after a car crash left me like this. It had been a rough two weeks, but I knew it was all gonna end today. At least I wasn't going down painfully.

As I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling, I noticed someone was standing across me. He didn't look normal, but I didn't mind. He approached me, and sat next to my bed. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his dark suit. He took one out, and motioned it close to me as if offering it. I didn't smoke for the entirety of my life, so I might as well try it now. I nodded in agreement, and he put it in my lips and lit it. He did the same for another cigarette, and put it in his lips instead.

He held my hand, and for the next 5 minutes, the room was silent. I looked to the right, and I noticed my heart rate was slowing. This was it. My time had come. I looked back at the man next to me, and my grip had tightened. I reviewed the past moments, as tears had welled up in my eyes. My entire hospital stay involved no one coming to visit me except for the occasional medical staff. For once, someone was there for me. At least in my death, someone was there to comfort me. I didn't have to look at the monitor this time to notice it was all about to end. In my last few actions in this world, I had released my grip, and finally, after getting a clear look at the man's face, I said my last words.

"Thanks, Stefan."