Love at last sight

It was around eleven o' clock on a stormy night when Richard slowly hopped out of the warm hospital bed and approached the window. He'd normally be asleep at this time,but after the news he received today , his mind couldnt rest for even a second.

 Just a few hours ago his life long doctor diagnosed him with stage four cancer and told him that he only had a few weeks to live.

 Restless as imaginable,he drags himself across the room and has a look out the five floor high window. "Not much activity " he thought as he looked down at the few cars passing by. He slightly lifts his head up,facing the building directly across the hospital. On the very last floor to the right,his eye gets caught by the sight of a young couple passionately making love. For a split second he feels his briefs getting tighter,but he immediately brushes it off as he continues to stare at them. 

The young couple reminded him of himself and all the chances he had at love in his day,which now seem so far away.

He walks back to the bed and gentle lays his head on the pillow. Forty years on this earth and nothing to show for it. No family,kids or wife,just fun memories and regrets,things he wished he would've done differently.

All this runs through his head as he struggles to fall asleep. The loud bangs of the thunder and the scary lightning flashes made it worse,especially since he has a phobia of these kinds of storms.A slow tear runs from the corner of his eye to the tip of his earlobe as the storm continues."oh what could of been "

The following day, something very unusual but familiar happened in the cold walls of St. Percy Johns hospital. Instead of the usual tasteless peas,potatoes,and cold meats,the warm smell of fried bacon,eggs and toast roamed the staff kitchen. Much to his surprise,richard woke up to this delicious meal personally prepared for him by none other than the benevolent nurse Leila. Nurse Leila was notorious for her thoughtfulness and kind gestures towards her patients. Who better than a dying man to give a little special treatment?

She walks in.

"Good morning Mr Sanchez. Compliments of the hotel."

"Good morning,Whats the occasion?"asked Richard,who's mind was still wrapped around a weird dream he just had.

"No occasion,I'm simply just treating you the way I would want to be treated if you were my nurse",she winks.

She then places the food on his table. As she leans forward,richard is immediately struck by the nostalgic scent of her strawberry deluxe perfume. Her silky hair blows with the wind as he feels himself slowly getting weaker.

"Thank you,he says immediately after he snaps out of it.

I could get used to this,pity I won't be staying long."

"How does it feel,you know if you don't mind me asking?"

"No it's okay,I feel normal I guess. "

"You not scared?"

"Not really,more like curious"

Their eyes lock for a moment.

"Well you go on and enjoy,I got something I want to show you after this"

"Very well then"he replies.

A few moments later,on the very last shelf to right,Richard eye gets caught by a book with a very interesting tittle,"The secret of dreams".After contemplating for a while,he gets up and grabs the book before returning to his bed.

"The secret of dreams 

By Yacki Raizizun"

He reads.

"Dreams. Everybody dreams but there are few who place any importance to the phenomenon of sleep. Before we can begin to comprehend or even analyze dreams,whether our dreams are symbolic or otherwise,we must first devert from our mind our materialistic concepts of what the individual called man really is. The external or physical man,is no more the man than the coat he wears. The physical man is only an instrument of which the real inner man or soul expresses itself in the physical universe. Various materialistic theories have been given in the past,trying to explain the mighty phenomena of dreams,but these theories have always been more or less unsatisfactory. why? Because the materialist tries to explain the riddle of human existance without an individual human spirit his explanation will always be unsatisfactory. Dreams afford a separation of soul and body. As soon as the senses become torpid,the inner man widraws from the outer. There are three different ways which afford this separation. First,natural sleep. Second,induced sleep,such as hypnotism,mesmerism or trance. Third,death."

He immediately pauses before being interrupted by his nurse.

"Am I interrupting you?she asked"

"No not at all"

"Oh good,I finally have time to show you what I was taking about early.

He reaches on the counter,grabs a pen and slips in the book before gently closing it.

"Well then,what are we waiting for",he replied.

Nurse Leila leads him to a hallway filled with the most cultured and aesthetic displays of art.

Wow this just...whos idea was it?

"According to research,art really helps patients heal. It also encourages them to get out of bed and go for a walk. A few years ago a group of employees came up with the idea and managed to raise funds for it. Its been up and running ever since. This hallway is known as the inspiration collection."

Whilst careless walking Richard stumbles,almost falling before be assisted by the nurse. The temporary feeling of her hand on his lower torso accompanied by the lavender smell of her hair made him go numb.

"Are you Okay"?

"Yeah,just abit clumsy"

"Do you need me to hold yr hand"?she joked.

Laughs. No that won't be necessary.

As they strolled through the hallway,Richard found himself paying more attention to nurse Leila than to the paintings. She graced through the hallway as if she and the paintings had come to an understanding,admiring the beauty and creativity hanging on the walls.

Richard however wasn't a huge fan of art but he loved the idea of leaving something behind that people will remember you by. With each painting he saw,he'd always wonder whether it was a recent painting or a painting from years ago,whether the artist who made it was alive or not,either way they probably going to be remembered throughout history,wish I could say the same for myself,he thought.

Later that night,Richard returned to his room feeling rather ambivalent. He notices the book on the counter but doesn't have the energy to read it. The loud thunder roars as the lightning strikes,but his mind is too busy to even notice it. He thinks back to a specific painting he saw which had a qoute on it.

"Every man has a legacy,whether he wants one or not."

After some time of sitting quietly he reaches for a pen and notepad and begins to write.

Confessions of a philanderer:

Feels like forever

Seems like whenever 

Minds still addicted

Hearts still conflicted

Destined for greatness but struggled with patience

My idea of love was meaningless statements

To an opposite gender

So kind and so tender

Consisting of promises I can bearly remember 

Tho people do change

And Ideas do to

Whenever I think of love

I first think of you

My new found perception

Has taught me a lesson

That what might seem needles 

Just might be whats destined

For men,women,children all those that relate

I pray that love finds you

Before it's too late.