I walked into Maddie's bedroom to check on her and saw that there was blood on her face and her sheets. I tried waking her up, there was no response. I yelled for my mom and she came running.

"What is going on?" she asked.

I pointed at Maddie. I was already dialing 911.

"Why this again?" she cried, "Maddie. Maddie. MADDIE. MADELYN!!!!"

There was no reply. I checked her pulse and her breathing. She was still, going, still holding on. Thank God.

Someone picked up the phone, "911 what's your emergency?"

I explained the situation to the lady on the phone and told her everything she needed to know so she could send an ambulance out here.

An ambulance was here in less than 5 minutes. They were in the area as one of the paramedics later explained to me. My mom and I hopped in her car and followed them at their breakneck speed to the hospital. We ran inside and were directed to a waiting room.

5 hours later we were told that she was in a coma and that they had found a tumor that they couldn't remove and that she could get some medication through an IV and that they could only hope that she would wake up. I cried and cried and cried. Why didn't they find the tumor earlier on? We left her in the hospital and continued our daily lives. The next few months flew by. I barely remember them. It's like I was someone else. I visited the hospital every day. I spent the night on weekends. I slept next to her. I never wanted to leave Maddie's side.

Six Months Later - June 22nd

I don't know what happened. I couldn't tell you what exactly happened from December to today. All I know is that today is Maddie's birthday. Me, mom, and Jace were going to bring her her birthday gifts. I got ready slowly and grabbed her present. She was turning 15 today. She had been in a coma for 6 months. They weren't sure if she was ever going to wake up.

We got in the car. Nobody had said a word all morning. The only sounds were the car and the cars around us. The drive seemed like it took forever. I didn't want to go and see her on her birthday while she was in a coma. I felt like someone was stabbing me in the heart repeatedly and that they would never stop. But we had to go and see her. Mom stopped the car in the handicap parking space. We still had the sticker from Maddie. I walked inside full of pain, I didn't want her birthday to be like this. I wanted to see her at home, eating cake, opening presents, laughing with me, with her friends, not in a coma in the hospital with no hope of waking up.

I walked into her room and saw her eating pancakes. She was wearing a party hat and a birthday girl pin was on her hospital ground, "ALEX! How's it going?" she asked.

I screamed, "Maddie's awake! Maddie's awake!"

Mom and Jace came running into the room.

We hugged her and talked to her about the last six months, about summer school and Ruby and everything that she had missed. I was so happy.

"It's your birthday Maddie. You're 15 today." I handed her my present. She opened it. I was a picture of us on the beach. Of us on the day that she remembered.

"It's beautiful. This is the day that I remembered. Thank you so much." She smiled.

Jace handed her his. It was a necklace that he had made in metalworking class, it had her initials and birthday inscribed on it. It also had a moonstone inlaid in it. Or a moonstone look alike. That is the June birthstone. Mom's present was a laptop. Maddie had always complained about doing homework on a phone. So, Mom got her a laptop.

We spent the day with Maddie, talking and hanging out. Mom and Jace left to go get dinner and I offered to stay there with Maddie. We were talking and laughing and giggling like little schoolgirls. Her stomach kept on growling and each time would send us into another fit of giggles.

Mom and Jace had been gone 10 minutes when Maddie went pale and began coughing up blood. I called for the doctor. She was coughing and her whole body was just shaking from the effort of coughing and from the day.

Maddie grabbed my arm, "Tell everybody that I love them, okay? Do that for me."

I nodded. She whispered something in my ear. I choked up as she said it. I began bawling for my sister.

"I love you Maddie. Don't forget that," I said. She nodded and her heart stopped.

The doctors ran in just as she flatlined and they worked to get her heart going again. They ushered me out of the room and I stared in through the glass. They were working quickly and shouting commands. They tried in vain to restart her heart. They kept on going, but it was useless. All of the doctors and the nurses that had worked with her cried a little bit too. They were all sad, everyone had come to love her bright personality. They were all hopeful that she was going to get better because she woke up. But that was false hope. She was dead, my little sister that never had the chance to grow up, was dead. It seemed that me telling her that I loved her was assuring her that if she let go we weren't going to hate her. Me saying that gave her the permission to let go and fade away into oblivion. She died, she was dead. She was 15 forever. She had been found. We found her, but ultimately, she had been lost.

The tears were just streaming, they couldn't stop. I didn't want them to stop. I wanted to sink into a black hole of nothingness and walk away not feeling anything. I am scared that if I feel, I won't escape this black hole of nothing. I rocked back and forth waiting for my sister to wake up claiming that it was all a big joke. That my face was priceless and you should have seen my face and-

One doctor announced, "Time of death, 4:32 p.m."

They covered her face and walked out. One nurse touched my arm and gave me a long, sad look as she walked out.

Mom and Jace came back 5 minutes after Maddie had died. They saw the tears on my face and ran into her room. They came out weeping. My mom walked over to the corner of the room and sank down into a chair. She stayed there for a long time. Frozen and sobbing. She didn't move. I don't think that any of us could. We were all shocked. We thought that she was getting better because she had woken up from her coma and she was eating and talking and laughing.

I walked back into Maddie's room. I pulled the sheet that was covering her off of her. I pulled back the blankets and laid there snuggled up to her still warm body. I sat there and cried for her. I told her everything that I wanted to say to her and promised that I would visit her grave everyday no matter what. I would replace the flowers when they got old. I would put a wedding invitation on her grave when I got married, I would put pictures and everything telling her about my life. I laid there talking to her until her body grew cold. At this point I couldn't just pretend that she was sleeping. I had to walk out.

I looked at my mom and my brother. I was going to give them her last words and hope that they were comforting. I took a big breath and let it out and cleared my throat.

"She said to tell everybody that she loved them," I said through the bitter tears that were leaking down my face. When I said this it was as if I really realized that she was dead.

"Were those her last words?" my mom asked.

I shook my head and sighed, "No, her last words were, I got my memory back. I remember. I remember everything."