They all sat around the living room, plates in their laps, containers of food laying everywhere.
“It’s too quite in here,” Melody said, “does anyone wanna watch a movie?” There was a chorus of sure and yes.
“What do you want to watch? We just got The Green Mile, do you want to watch that?” Mrs. Hartford suggested. Everyone looked at Melody, this was her time, and they were going to let her have whatever she wanted.
“Sounds good to me.”
Mrs. Hartford put in the movie and turned on the TV. She was about to switch the mode to video when they noticed what was on. John Norris was on the screen, ready to do his new report.
“News on The Backstreet Boys, or should I say, a Backstreet Boy. Aj McLean has recently become not so single. He was spotted at a baseball game with a young female, who never left his side the entire night. Sources say the girls is Melody Hartford, a resident of Florida.”
The screen showed Aj and Melody waving at the camera during the game. Aj shook his head, nothing ever stayed private in his life. Melody saw the look on his face.
“Hey, don’t sweat it. I actually think it’s cool, I’ve never been on TV before,” she smiled at him.
“Okay, the movies ready,” Mrs. Hartford informed them, taking her seats again. They all watched the movie in fascination, except for Melody, who was asleep ten minutes into the movie. Aj nudged her to wake her up when the movie was over. She opened her eyes slightly, focusing in on Aj briefly. All of a sudden her eyes rolled back into her head and she slumped farther into her chair.
“Melody, Melody?” Aj said frantically, rubbing her hand, trying to get her to open her eyes again. Everyone jumped up, concerned. Suzy and Vallery were the first to her side, followed by her parents and the other four Backstreet Boys.
“We need to get her to a hospital, right now!” Mr. Hartford said
“My car is the closest to the road, I’ll drive,” Vallery said, running to get her keys. Vallery had taken her parents van to the house, so they could fit more people into.
“Only six people can fit in her van. Vallery is driving, Suzy can sit in the passenger seat, my wife and I can sit in the two middle seats, and Aj can be with Melody in the back. Howie, Kevin, Brian, and Nick, you guys should probably head home. We will notify you later about how she is,” Mr. Hartford said, taking charge.
“I got Melody,” Aj said, picking her up gently. Vallery ran back into the room, keys in hand.
“Ready to go?” said hurriedly. Everyone nodded and the six quickly made their way to the van. Aj sat on the left side of the seat and put Melody next to him, laying out across the seat with her head resting on his lap. Once everyone was in the car Vallery hit the gas, speeding towards the closet hospital. No one in the van said anything when they arrived ten minutes later. The just rushed in the doors, Melody in Aj’s arms, and went straight to the emergency room. The doctors took her right away, putting her on a rolling bed and taking her to an empty room to be examined.
Melody’s parents, Suzy, Vallery, and Aj sat in the waiting room. It was 6pm by the time the doctor came out.
“I’m afraid I have bad news. Melody has severe heart damage, she is beyond any point of help. We are very sorry, but she doesn’t have much longer. Right now she is sleeping, she had just blacked out from lack of oxygen. She shouldn’t have any visitors tonight; not even you, Mr. and Mrs. Hartford, but please come back in the morning. Melody will be here for a while; we can’t let her leave the hospital,” the doctor told them.
They already knew Melody was dying, that didn’t shock them, but they didn’t like that she would have to spend her last days in a hospital bed, away from her home. Mrs. Hartford sobbed quietly as the left the hospital. Vallery drove back to the Hartford’s house to drop them off.
“Goodbye girls, Aj, we’ll see you tomorrow,” Mr. Hartford said before he closed the van door.
“How would you two like to stay at my house tonight? That way when we wake up in the morning we can all go to the hospital together to see Melody,” Vallery suggested.
“Sure, why not,” Suzy said.
“No, I think I’ll pass. My car is here, so I’ll just go home. I need some time to think,” Aj said sadly, they could see the pain in his eyes. Both knew Aj didn’t want to be away from Melody, and they understood that he wanted to think for a while.
Aj got out of the van and walked to his car. Vallery pulled out of the driveway and started for her house. Aj pulled his keys out and got into his car. The drive to his house was all a blur. When he arrived, he was amazed that he had made it. He dragged himself into the house and up the stairs to his room. He looked at the blankets on the floor next to the bed, where he and Melody had slept the night before. Without bothering to change his cloths or even take off his hat, he spread out across the blankets. Aj rested his head on his arm and thought about Melody. She was only away from him for a few hours and he already missed her terrible. If I can’t handle a few hours, he thought, how am I going to handle it when she is gone forever. Aj punched the floor, overcome with emotion. Melody meant the world to him, and without her, the world came crashing down. Tears fell from Aj’s eyes, he loved Melody so much, that he would take her place and die for her. Aj soon fell asleep, dreaming about Melody.
