The pain, when it hit him, did so in full force and he wanted to scream out in agony. But he didn't dare. To do so would send her running back to him and at that moment he did not want to see her. It was a thought that stunned him, for she was constantly on his mind-and in his heart.

But he couldn't bear to see her; not now anyway. To see her would mean being subjected to the most painful moment imaginable. And it was painful only in the physical sense. Her soft hands on his bare skin were enough to make him want to turn and take her into his arms, kissing her passionately, the way it so often happened in the movies. But if this moment were a movie, it would definitely not be a romance. It would be a horror movie; one that was so realistic that the audience would cry out in pain along with the characters.

She didn't hurt him intentionally of course. Her gentle and kind gestures were only meant to soothe his excruciating back pain. And now he wished he'd never done whatever he did to earn such agony in the first place. But he gratefully took her up on her offer to apply some liniment, despite the warnings of his father that it would hurt like hell. Perhaps he should have been grateful to his father for being so lenient in his warning.

It was much worse than hell. Much worse.

After he'd tried unsuccessfully to cool his burning back by practically climbing into the freezer, he'd raced across his brother's apartment, headed for the door. Freedom. And had it not been for Eddie's incessant barking, she would have never known.

But suddenly, to his horror, she was there, like a fresh breeze, and dare he even think it, a hazard. When she reached for him, he flinched, even more so than before. It was the first time he'd resisted her hands on his body. And even she seemed to be surprised.

"Dr. Crane, what's wrong?"

He turned to her, cringing as he did so and forced a smile, pretending (actually pretending!) that he was grateful to see her. "Oh… Daphne…"

"You were leaving weren't you?"

He turned in the slightest, and then cried out in agony. "Well, I… Oh! Oh God… It hurts!"

She was at his side at once, taking his hand. "You poor man! You're still in pain, aren't you? Well, I know just the thing. Some stronger liniment should take care of that!"

His eyes widened at the thought that anything could be stronger than the flames of hell, but perhaps hell had different levels. If so, he was definitely at the top.

"NO!" he screamed, as loudly as possible. As though acting out a scene from a suspenseful horror movie, he backed away slowly his eyes wide with terror.

"Dr. Crane, what is it? You're scaring me!" She replied.

Dear God she had no idea what she was doing to him. Or what she'd done. "N-no Daphne. For the love of God and all that's holy, don't touch me, please! I can't take it anymore! I'd rather suffer this back pain!"

Ignoring him, she moved closer and he flinched as though she'd intended to hurt him. "What's wrong?"

He held up his hands in surrender. "No liniment. I just can't do it! I just can't!"

"But how is your back ever going to get any better if-."

"I don't know… I… I'll live with the pain and suffering I guess. I've been putting up with Maris for all of these years so I probably-I… I have to leave… now. It just hurts too much."

She looked crestfallen. "Y-you mean… I hurt you?"

A deep sigh came over him, escaping before he could stop it. "Yes, very much."

The moment the words left his mouth, he saw her eyes well with tears. And he wished, oh, how he wished, that he could have taken those words back. God how he wished it.

She stared at him for a moment and nodded. "I see… Excuse me."

"Daphne…"

For a moment he forgot about his fiery skin, feeling helpless as he watched her walk into the hallway and disappeared from sight. His eyes closed and he leaned against the front door, breathing a sigh of relief.

Thank God…

In the hallway, he pushed the elevator button and when the doors opened, stepped inside. The elevator jolted slightly, prepared to make its way down to the lobby. He could feel the sting of the liniment that seemed to scald his skin. It burned like nothing he'd ever felt before and he couldn't wait to get home and find something to relieve the pain.

But when the elevator stopped on the ninth floor (which was surprisingly empty), he rushed into the hallway. And then without giving it a second thought, he made his way up ten flights of stairs. He was exhausted by the time he reached the nineteenth floor, but he only took a moment to catch his breath.

At Frasier's door he stood, forgetting all about his physical pain, for the emotional pain that he was feeling hurt much worse.

He rang the doorbell and waited, but of course there was no answer. And so, against his brother's wishes, he used his spare key and let himself in. The door opened easily, but what he found shattered his heart.

"Daphne…"

He went to the sofa and sat beside her, placing his hand on her back. He didn't have to ask what was wrong, or why she was crying quietly. He knew. And he was deeply ashamed.

She looked up with tears in her eyes. "Dr. Crane..."

"Daphne, I am so sorry." The words were trite and he should have said something else, but nothing else came to mind.

"I just… I only wanted to make you feel better." She said brokenly. "I never meant to hurt you. I would never-."

"I know and please don't blame yourself Daphne. You've been absolutely wonderful."

She took his hand in hers. "Dr. Crane…"

"It is I who hurt you. And for that I will never forgive myself."

"No…" She whispered, softly touching his cheek. "Just stay here and I'll be right back."

He watched with a heavy heart as she disappeared into the kitchen and then returned a few minutes later, holding a blue cloth in her hand. He regarded her carefully and cautiously and he didn't mean to do it, but he recoiled when she came near. And unfortunately she took notice.

"What's wrong?"

"N-nothing. I-I just…"

"Here… un-tuck your shirt and this will make you feel better."

He swallowed hard, preparing himself for the inevitable sting. "No, I-."

"Just relax…" She said quietly, sitting down beside him. "I promise this won't hurt a bit. Un-tuck your shirt."

For the first time in his life he didn't trust her. He couldn't. "I-I can't." He said remorsefully.

She nodded and he saw the faint sheen of tears in her eyes. "All right…"

Damn…

"Daphne?"

"Yes?" she asked, turning in the hallway to look at him.

As he gazed across the living room he knew that he couldn't hurt her feeling anymore. He'd already hurt her more than enough. "What's that in your hand?"

She looked down at her fingers. "A cool cloth."

"I mean in your other hand."

She opened her fingers, revealing a white tube. "Some aloe cream. I thought it might soothe your skin. But if you don't want me to bother you, I won't. I'm sorry."

"You're never a bother, Daphne. Never." He said, patting the sofa beside him. "Please?"

Cautiously she went to him and sat down, and he obediently began un-tucking his shirt. As he'd done before, he lay on the sofa and closed his eyes.

"Just tell me if I'm hurting you, all right?"

He nodded. "Okay."

He lifted the hem of his shirt, shivering slightly when he felt the cool cloth touch his back. She was, true to her unspoken words, very gentle, dabbing the cloth around his back. But then he heard her crying softly. He lifted his head and tried to look at her. "Daphne, what is it?"

"Nothing… Oh… your poor back! It's all red and look at those streaks! Oh, Dr Crane!"

"It'll be fine. Whatever you were doing felt heavenly."

Her worried eyes met his. "Well, if you're sure…"

"Please…"

"Well… All right."

She dabbed his back a bit more with the cloth and then waved his shirt up and down to dry his skin. And then she applied the cream; carefully of course. It was so soothing that he felt as though he could melt into the sofa. He closed his eyes, almost drifting off to sleep and when he opened them again, he was suddenly aware that she was standing in front of him. He wanted to stay, to drift back into the unexpected slumber, but he knew that all too soon he'd become an imposition. So after his skin was cooled and dry, he rose from the sofa, prepared to leave.

However he couldn't simply leave without saying goodbye. Not without thanking her.

"Are you feeling better?"

He grinned. "Daphne, I feel wonderful and I can't thank you enough."

"I'm so sorry I hurt your back, Dr. Crane."

Her quiet words broke his heart and he reached to hug her. But the hug seemed to surprise her.

"What's this for?"

He couldn't resist leaning to smell her hair. "To thank you, Daphne."

"But I hurt you! I-."

He held her a little closer. "No…. You're the most wonderful angel on earth."

When she gasped at his words, he knew he should say something... (confess his love for her, perhaps?) But instead he simply kissed her hair and held her even closer.

THE END

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