"Totty!" Jyushimatsu exclaimed, literally flying up to his younger brother's bed, jumping up and down. "We brought you breakfast and snacks!"

"We hope you like them," Choromatsu said cheerfully, though, like everyone else, his eyes were clouded with grief. It was difficult for them to just watch their brother die, and have absolutely nothing they could do to save him from his fate.

Ichimatsu held out a plastic bag, filled with the goodies for their brother.

Karamatsu and Osomatsu both sat down on the small, two person sofa in Todomatsu's room, not saying much.

There was nothing to even say, really.

"Thank you so much," Todomatsu spoke as he took the bag from Ichimatsu, his voice filled with genuine gratitude. They had no idea how lonely he had been getting at hospice.

As he opened the bag, he found it was filled with some of his favorite things.

His favorite manga from his childhood, a small container of pears, an apple, and a soft, pink wool blanket his mother had made.

Todomatsu began to cry at the sight of just these few things.

"Don't cry!" Jyushimatsu hugged his frail brother gently. "We're here! You should be happy! We should all be happy, too! We're getting to spend time with you!"

"You're right," Todomatsu laughed a little, wiping away his tears. "I don't know what's gotten into me lately. I guess I'm just tired..."

Todomatsu's glanced about the room at his brothers, his gaze slowly drifting over to the window.

"The snow looks so beautiful outside," Osomatsu commented. Karamatsu nodded his head in agreement. "I wish we could all go out and play in it."

"We're not children anymore!" Choromatsu scolded his two older brothers.

"Well...technically...." Ichimatsu mumbled. "We're all unemployed and live off of our parents...and depend on them for food and clothing..."

"Nii-san is right!" Jyushimatsu laughed, running up to Ichimatsu, leaning on his shoulder like a puppy. "So can we all go out?"

"Don't be absurd!" Choromatsu scolded once again. "Todomatsu can't go out! He'll get sick!"

Todomatsu laughed a little, his legs shaking as he slid off of his bed, putting on his oversized slippers.

"It wouldn't hurt, to have a little fun, would it?" Todomatsu asked. His skin was unhealthily pale and his legs were barely supporting his body. Nothing about the man seemed healthy anymore.

"Will the nurses let you go out?" Karamatsu asked.

"We all look the same, so I'm sure you guys can sneak me out easily," Todomatsu replied, his eyes glinting with mischief. Then quietly, he added, "Plus, this is probably the last time I'll ever get to go outside with you guys..."

Luckily, nobody heard his last part, and in just seconds, the were all outside in the cold.

With his new wool blanket wrapped around himself, Todomatsu sat down on a bench that overlooked hills of snow.

While everyone else was playing around, including Choromatsu the hypocrite, Ichimatsu sat down next to Todomatsu.

"So, I guess you know you're almost out of time..." Ichimatsu sighed. "Nothing is going to be the same..."

"I-I know..." Todomatsu shivered in the cold. "But it's moments like these that I'm still lucky enough to experience with you guys. Thank you for staying with me up until the very end."

"Do you feel like you'll know when you're about to leave...or will it just happen...?" Ichimatsu asked, his voice shaking. Todomatsu couldn't tell if he was upset, or if his brother was just cold like everyone else.

"It's soon..." Todomatsu muttered. "I don't...like it...I never knew letting go could be this hard..."

"Who said you had to let go?" Ichimatsu questioned his brother. "So what if you're going to die? That doesn't mean you still can't be here with us."

"What do you-" Todomatsu began, but stopped himself.

"In spirit," Ichimatsu replied. "You're not going to just abandon us, are you?"

Suddenly, Todomatsu felt as if he couldn't breathe. Gasping and choking as he struggled to breathe, the man dropped down in the snow.

One hour later...

"Todomatsu?" Karamatsu called his brother's name desperately. "Are you awake..? Are you okay???"

Todomatsu blinked open his eyes, surprised to find that he was still alive. He could have sworn he had died.

"I'm fine," Todomatsu choked, surprised to find that he was wheezing. His heart seemed to barely be beating now. He could go on for several seconds and not feel a thing in his chest. "I just haven't been sleeping much...I stayed up all night for several night, so I'm just tired."

Todomatsu's eyes fluttered shut, yet he snapped them back open.

"Not yet! Not yet!" a voice seemed to scream in the back of his mind. "It's not time!"

"Christmas is in just a few days now," Karamatsu reminded Todomatsu. "What do you want? We've been busy, but we can always pick up some more books for you or something."

"Presents...?" Todomatsu felt as if he could laugh. The thought had never even crossed his mind. He was quite content, after all. "But I have all I want."

"Come on, there must be something!" Jyushimatsu exclaimed.

"Well," Todomatsu looked up at the ceiling, thinking as well as he could. But his reply was much simpler than his brothers had expected. "could you stay here tonight...? It's been really lonely...especially when I haven't been able to sleep."

"Sure thing!" Osomatsu replied, rubbing under his nose. "We'd do anything so long as you're happy, Todomatsu."

"You can say that again," Choromatsu commented.

"Thank you, guys," Todomatsu sighed contentedly, feeling as if the wings of an angel had wrapped around him. "This means...so much to me. I love you all....so so much..."

At that very moment, Todomatsu took one, final breath, then just like that, he was gone.