Hi guys, how are all of you? Lately, I have been obsessed with "The Following". It's such an amazing and intense show, I absolutely love it and I just had to write a fanfic. Hopefully you all like it, it kind of came out longer than I intended it to, but I didn't really know where to end it, haha. This one-shot is basically a rewrite of the last episode of Season 1, the season finale.

Please comment/review and let me know what you think of it, I would greatly appreciate it, thank you! :)

I OWN NOTHING; I DO NOT OWN THE FOLLOWING.

"A Knife To The Heart"

. . .

Claire Matthews stares at the screen of the T.V., her eyes glued to the bold letters on the bottom of the screen that reads, "BREAKING NEWS: JOE CARROLL CONFIRMED DEAD". The words that leave the woman's mouth that reads the news goes in one ear and out the other for Claire. She just wants to know for absolute sure that Joe Carroll is dead and isn't coming back to haunt her, not anymore.

"Joe Carroll's life has come to an end-" Is the only part Claire hears the woman on the news say and that almost makes Claire relax. At those words, she can slightly feel her heart rate slow down and her body eases a little, but she still needs one more thing to reassure her. Just one more thing that can put her mind to rest and allow her to enjoy the rest of her life without constantly looking over her shoulder.

She glances towards Ryan Hardy's direction, where he has his back to her, and talks to whoever it is on the other line on his cell phone. Her eyes can almost burn holes in Ryan's back as she stares at him- she still tries to understand how it is even possible after everything that the two of them made it this far and they're together, here, in his apartment.

Once she sees him hang up and watches him turn around to walk over to her and face her, she asks the three words that can will change her life forever, "Is it true?" She stares into his sparkling blue eyes, almost scared to hear his response. She prays deep down that it is true- that Joe Carroll is finally dead, but she can't help, but shake the feeling that this whole nightmare is nowhere near over.

He doesn't respond right away, instead he just stares down at her, his eyes scanning over her scared features that have painted themselves on her beautiful face. He watches her body tense as she waits to hear him respond, praying she will hear the answer she is hoping for. He digs his hands in his pocket and gives a small nod.

He mentions something about DNA, but Claire barely heard him. All she heard were the two single words that can allow her to finally let out a sigh of relief and actually smile a true smile for once. As soon as those two words left Ryan's mouth, they continuously ring in her ears, "He's dead."

Neither of them says anything after that. Instead, the two of them open up their arms and embrace one another; her arms snaking around his waist, holding him tightly against her smaller body and his arms wrap around her neck, keeping her firmly and securely in his arms.

Claire closes her eyes, trying to think about nothing else except how she is finally free of the man that has ruined her life and has done nothing good besides give her Joey. She can feel Ryan's heart beating quickly, which makes her nervous at the rapid speed it's going, but it also makes her feel a bit relieved, it's almost like an assurance that they both are truly standing here, it's not a dream, and they made it out of Joe's insane plans he had for them in one piece. They're actually together and nothing else is in the way, not now, not ever.

Ryan buries his face in her hair, breathing in her scent and never wanting to let go of her. He wishes he could hold her forever in his arms and protect her from the outside world. He wants to make sure nothing ever happens to her again and she is safe with him- but then again, his mind can't help, but wander:

Is anyone safe with him?

Everyone that is near him ends up dying; can he really take that chance with Claire? He almost lost her- he almost lost her way too many times. Everyone that he truly loves and cares about dies; people in general die around him. Ryan knows for sure that he is deeply in love with Claire Matthews, so, does he love her enough to let her go?

He suddenly feels a shot of pain run throughout his body, making him jump back from the embrace they were sharing. She looks up at his face with concern and fear shining in her sapphire color eyes; a wave of panic spreads across her face. "Are you okay?" Her voice is soft, gentle, but alarmed.

He slightly chuckles and manages a small smile, not wanting to see that look of fear anymore in her beautiful eyes. He looks down and shrugs one shoulder, "Yeah, I'm just a little sore."

The two of them stare at each other and Ryan can tell she is not totally convinced. The corners of his lips curve upwards to offer her a small, reassuring smile, "I'm fine."

Claire still isn't too sure, but she brushes the worrying aside for now- they have had enough worrying for a lifetime. She gazes up to stare at him directly in the eyes and before either of them knows what they're doing, they feel themselves leaning forward and pressing their lips gently against one another.

Their lips move in unison; it's a sweet, but hungry kiss. The two of them have waited so long for this; they both need each other. He keeps her body close to his as he kisses her lips gently, but passionately. Both of their eyes are closed as they wish deep down that they can stay in this moment for the rest of eternity.

One of her hands holds onto the back of his neck while the other is placed on his back, which he does the same movements with his own hands. Her hands practically dig into his back, pushing his body as close to her own as possible. Her fingers play with the small hairs at the nape of his neck as he hand becomes lost in her tangles of silky curls.

It seems like forever to them, but eventually their lips part, needing the air back in their lungs. Neither of them can pull their eyes away from each other and their bodies' desire for more. Claire can feel her own heart pounding in her chest just by looking up at him; she is aching for more of him.

She smiles up at him and he looks away for a split second, but then his eyes retreat back to her own. Not knowing what to say at a moment like this, he clears his throat and raises an eyebrow at her, "You hungry?"

"Yeah," She breathes out, looking away as her eyes stay glued to the floor, "I'm starving." She tries to calm her nerves, but she knows that's impossible. She has been waiting so long to feel his lips against her own and have his body so close in a passionate way for so, so long. She looks back up at him and raises her own eyebrow at him, "Do- do you have food?"

It doesn't take long for him to answer that question, already knowing for sure that he doesn't. "No."

He chuckles as she mimics him, "No." A soft laugh escapes passed her lips, "Alright, I'll get cleaned up." She turns to walk away, their fingers still connected, until she unwillingly lets go of his warm hand so she can head to the bathroom.

Ryan watches her go for a few seconds before turning around to go order some food for him and Claire.

. . .

Ryan kneels down so he can plug in his phone to the stereo so he can play some music for when Claire comes out of the shower. He quickly scrolls down the list of songs that have been downloaded into his phone and chooses one, then clicking the 'play' button. Music consumes the silent room, playing one of his favorite songs.

When he hears a knock on his door, he walks over to it and swings it open, coming face to face with a man, a little younger than middle-aged, and holding a white bag. Ryan's eyes trail down to look at the bag before looking back up at the man's face.

"We just received this downstairs." The man extends his hand with the bag and hands it to Ryan.

He takes the bag from the man as one of his eyebrows go up, "What do I owe you?"

"Nah," The man says with a smirk, "it's on us."

Ryan shrugs and nods his head, smiling back, "Thanks man." He shuts the door and walks back to the small living room, tearing the bag open. When the bag refuses to tear open, he walks over to the kitchen and grabs a steak knife out of the knife holder.

He heads back to the glass table where he placed the bag and goes to cut it open, but when he hears a noise. His eyebrows furrow together as he gently places the knife on the glass table and trails over to the front door.

Confusion is written all over his face when he swings the door open and finds no one there. He pokes his head out and sees no one in the halls, so, he shrugs it off, just thinking he was hearing things from being paranoid after everything with Joe Carroll.

This time, he locks the door and heads back to the glass table to go finish opening the package of food. He looks down to grab the knife that he placed next to the bag, but doesn't find it there anymore. His eyebrows knit together in confusion, knowing full well that's exactly where he placed it.

His eyes scan the table and finds the knife nowhere in sight. He can feel his heart rate increase, knowing something isn't right. He knows Claire is still in the shower, but he feels a presence nearby.

Slowly, Ryan turns around and he finds the air stuck in his throat when he comes face to face with his ex-girlfriend, Molly, who is smirking back at him. He doesn't have a time to react before he feels a sharp knife stab through his flesh and he feels the extreme amount of pain shoot throughout his body.

She yanks the knife out and watches him clench his hands over his wound, trying desperately to stop the red liquid from seeping out of the stab wound. He applies pressure on it, grunting in pain while at the same time he feels his knees going weak.

Ryan crashes into the floor, his hands holding onto his abdomen, his teeth clenched to stop him from letting out a piercing scream of pain. His pants grow loud as he tries to catch his breath, but it's no use.

"You were always my chapter, Ryan." Molly says with a wide smirk as she towers over his fallen body. "Joe promised me I'd be the one…" She stares daggers at him as his eyes widen in panic; he can feel his body begin to lose feeling and grow numb.

The two of them both hear the shower turn off at the same time and Ryan can feel his heart sink and break into two. He needs to think fast because if he doesn't, then Claire is dead because he knows Claire is Molly's next target.

Blood makes its way into Ryan's mouth and for a second he chokes on it before turning his head slightly to spit it out on the carpet. His eyes franticly search around, desperately looking for something- anything that will stop Molly before she can reach Claire.

He licks his dried lips and whips his head around to glance back at Molly. She is glaring at the door with the knife tightly in her hand. He swallows around the lump that formed in his throat and, with all the energy he has left within him, he lifts his leg up and kicks it forward as hard as he can.

His leg connects with her knee, forcing Molly to stumble forward and fall to the floor on her stomach. She grunts as the front part of her body collides with the hard wood floor and the knife flies out of her hand, slipping through her fingers.

Without hesitation, Ryan forces himself to crawl over to where Molly is lying before she has the chance to get up and he snatches the knife that is a few inches from her head. He glares at her, flames burning in his eyes as he lifts up his bloody hand and slams it back down so the knife connects with her spine. The knife imbeds into her skin, causing a loud, piercing scream to leave her lips and echo throughout the apartment.

Claire opens the bathroom door just in time to witness Ryan dig the knife right into a woman's back and then yank it out in the same second. He digs his nails into the skin of her shoulder and forces her to roll over on her back.

Molly gasps for air as her entire body begins to tremble, her body going into shock. Ryan just shakes his head as the adrenaline pumping through his veins. Anger and rage blinds his vision as he drops the knife from his tight grip and, instead, moves his hands so they are wrapped tightly around Molly's neck.

A gasp escapes Claire's mouth as she watches the scene in front of her. She doesn't know what to do and she surely doesn't know what happened while she was in the shower. She takes a step forward, hesitating whether she should pull Ryan off the woman or allow him to continue doing whatever he intends to do with her.

Is he going to kill her?

She has no idea, but she knows that if he does intend on actually strangling her, there must be a damn good reason why. Her blue eyes scan around the room, her mind trying to comprehend all the blood that stains the floor and carpet. Surely, it's not all of the woman's blood, there was blood before Ryan stabbed her in the back.

Ryan's body pins Molly to the floor, keeping her trapped beneath him, as he strangles her with his bare hands. Rage is flowing through his blood stream as he slams her head against the floor, his hands tightly wrapped around her neck that is cuts off all her air circulation.

When Molly falls limply onto the floor, Ryan lets out a shaky breath and then falls backwards, his back colliding hard with the floor. He grunts out in pain as the blood comes pouring out of his wound and he can feel the adrenaline start to leave his body.

"Ryan!" Claire screeches out as she dashes to his side, the towel that was holding her hair in place slipping off her head and falling to the floor. She drops down to her knees and takes his bloody hand into hers, squeezing it tightly as she uses her free hand to cup his smeared blood cheek. "Ryan, come on, Ryan, stay with me. Oh God, please stay with me."

He looks up at her and she can actually see the fear lingering in his eyes. She can see how his eyes are losing focus and how the energy is being drained right out of him. "Ryan, please. You need to stay with me. Can you hear me? W-What happened?"

He tries to speak, but the only thing that leaves his mouth is his blood. He lets out a violent cough as he tries his hardest to keep a tight grip on Claire's hand, but his fingers slip through hers and falls lifelessly by his side. No longer having the strength to keep his head up off the ground to stare Claire in the eyes, he lets it fall back as his eyes begin to flutter close.

"No, no! Ryan, don't you dare do that me. You're not leaving me, not after everything we've been through!" She yells at him, the ending of her sentence being to crack as tears form in her eyes, threatening to spill at any second. "Just hold on, yeah? Just hold on."

Her hand finds his cell phone in his pant pocket and pulls it out with shaky fingers. She keeps her eyes locked with his pale face the entire time as she dials '9-1-1-'. She can see he is having a hard time breathing and she can tell he's slowly slipping into unconsciousness. She bites down on her bottom lip as she desperately tries to not to look down at the pool of blood that surrounds Ryan's body.

"Please, oh God, please don't let him die. Please don't die, Ryan." She mentally says to herself in her head as she rests her forehead on his chest, listening to the sounds of his beating heart that is going excessively fast. She feels a warm tear run down her cheek and she squeezes her eyes shut and waits anxiously for the paramedics to arrive.

. . .

For Claire, it seems like everything is going in slow motion. Once the ambulance arrives at the hospital, they rush the stretcher Ryan is strapped to quickly inside through the doors and immediately begin heading to the operating room.

Claire makes sure she is right next to the stretcher, staying by Ryan's side the entire time and does not intend to leave him. She wipes her tears away with the back of her hand as she stares at the oxygen mask they put over Ryan's face. She pulls her sweater tighter around her body as she runs a hand through her damp hair. "You're going to be okay, Ryan. I am promising you that. Please… please don't make me a liar." Her voice is shaky and when they reach the double doors that lead to the operating room, a nurse stops her, telling her she has to wait there and she can't go any further.

"Please," Claire begs the nurse through her tears, not finding the strength within herself to hold them back anymore, "please, save him."

"We will do everything we can." The nurse answers back quickly and then she turns around, entering the double doors with the rest of the doctors and then shutting them behind her.

Claire feels like pulling her hair out; she has never been such a patient person. She tries to take deep breaths and remain calm, but it's useless. She won't be able to relax until she knows for sure that Ryan Hardy will make it out of surgery and make a full recovery.

After staring at the two double doors for a few minutes, just staring blankly at it, she manages to drag herself to the waiting room and she sits herself down on one of the chairs. She buries her face in her hands that are still stained with Ryan's blood and closes her eyes, trying to keep her breathing even and not worry. She needs to stay strong- she needs to stay strong for the both of them, Ryan and herself.

. . .

The wait seems like forever and without even realizing it, Claire fell asleep in the chair. She wasn't dreaming though, no, she was reliving what she witnessed in Ryan's apartment. All the blood flashing beneath her eyelids and Ryan's grunts and screams of pain echoing in her ears.

When a hand gently touches her shoulder, her eyes snap open, frantic at first, as a wave of panic rushes through her veins. She jumps at the touch and she looks up to see the same nurse as before standing in front of her, her white hospital uniform stained with red- which Claire assumes is Ryan's blood.

Swallowing hard, she finds the courage to ask, "How is he? H-How's Ryan?"

The nurse doesn't answer right away, which terrifies Claire. She goes to ask again, but this time the nurse speaks up, "Ryan Hardy's heart failed six different times and he lost a serve amount of blood. The stab wound was in a difficult spot and we honestly weren't sure if we would be able to save him. His body went into shock and we did lose him quite a few times."

Claire looks away from the nurse, folding her arms tightly across her chest in a way to comfort herself. She hugs herself and closes her eyes for a brief second, trying to find her voice. She takes a deep breath, trying to prepare herself for whatever news she is about to face. "What are you trying to tell me?" She just wants to know if he is okay or not; if he made it out of the surgery or he bled out and died. Claire looks back at the nurse, her eyes cold, "Is Ryan okay or not?"

The nurse stares at her with a blank expression for a few moments before nodding her head, "The doctor managed to save him. He should make a full recovery, but it will take a few weeks without moving around and a lot of bed rest."

Once those words leave the nurse's mouth, Claire falls to her knees and buries her face in her hands, like she has been doing ever since Ryan was brought in. She lets out a sigh of relief, finally able to breathe again knowing the man she is in love with will be okay.

The man she is in love with?

She shakes her head, trying to clear her mind as she stands up, brushing the dust off her pants. She looks back up at the nurse and nods her head, "Thank you. Can… can I see him?"

"Yes, but he is under a lot of sedatives; we sedated him and he is under anesthesia. He may be unconscious for a while, but he may wake up. He is on this floor in room 207." The nurse explains and then walks off after Claire nods to show her understanding.

It takes a moment for Claire to settle her nerves down before she allows her legs to take her to Ryan's room. While she makes her way to Ryan's hospital room, she tries to brace herself for whatever condition she might find him in after having emergency surgery.

She pushes the door open and walks in without looking at him. She shuts the door behind her and then turns to finally make eye contact with Ryan. Her breath is stuck in her throat as her eyes land on Ryan's pale, sweaty face as he lies under a thin, white sheet on a hospital bed.

His eyes are closed, which she takes it that he's sleeping. She walks over to the bed slowly and sits down on the edge of the bed. Her right hand reaches up to run her fingers through his hair that is slightly damp from him sweating and the back still soaked with his, now, dried blood.

Her other hand takes his hand and she holds it tightly. She leans over to press a gentle kiss on his forehead and then sighs, "I am so glad you are okay. God, you have no idea how scared I was."

She glances out the window and shakes her head, "I swear, we have too much drama in our lives." She lets out a humorless chuckle, "Just when we thought it was all over, something comes back to haunt us."

She hates seeing him like this- she isn't used to seeing him like this, in such a vulnerable state. She is so used to seeing him so strong, so confident; not like this, lying in a hospital bed hanging onto a thin thread of life.

"Ryan," She begins with hesitating lingering in her voice, "I still don't know how to tell you this when you are actually awake, but… I need to say it aloud. I need to say the words to you, whether you can hear me or not. If I don't say it now and it becomes too late… I will never forgive myself."

She needs a moment to say the words repeatedly in her head before finding enough courage to say it aloud, even if he is asleep and can't hear her. She closes her eyes as she squeezes his hand a bit tighter subconsciously. She breathes in and out slowly for a few minutes before finally saying the words she has been dying to say for years now.

"Ryan, I love you." She breathes out, feeling a large burden be lifted up off her shoulders. She stares at his face for a moment and adds softly, "I have been in love with you for as long as I can remember. God, that feels so good to admit out loud." She laughs and shrugs her shoulders, looking down at white sheet, "I just wish I could tell you when you're awake and you can hear me."

"Mm, I… I love you… too, Claire." A raspy answer leaves Ryan's lips. His eyes remain close, but he surely is awake.

"Ryan," She gasps out, squeezing his hand again and using her free hand to cup his sweaty cheek, "you're awake. You're…" Her eyebrows furrow together, "you're awake? How, um, long?"

The corners of his lips curve upwards to form a smirk, "Eh, for a bit now."

Claire's eyes widen and she playfully –and carefully- slaps his shoulder with the back of her hand, "And you didn't say anything? Ryan!"

"What?" He chuckles as he grins up at her, which only makes her respond by rolling her eyes and asking with a sigh, "How are you feeling?"

"Better now that you're here, to be honest." He sighs as he tears his eyes away from her so he can stare up at the plain ceiling, "I'm… I'm sorry you had to witness what happened back… back, um, at the apartment."

"Hey, don't apologize to me. You were stabbed and that woman was planning on killing me, am I right?" When he nods his head to confirm what she thought, she continues, "Exactly, so, you saved me. So, don't apologize, alright?"

He takes a minute before nodding his head, "Okay." He looks back at her and his face suddenly grows serious. "You… Claire, I heard you talk when you thought I was asleep."

Her face pales and she quickly looks away, feeling her cheeks warming up as a blush creeps its way onto her cheeks. "Oh… you heard that, huh?"

"Yeah, I did." He says and when he sees her body tense, he moves his hand –with much effort- and places it gently on top of hers. She head whips around to face him and he stares at her with mixed feelings swimming in his eyes. "Claire... I-" He stops himself and sighs, "Despite my feelings for you, we… can't."

"What are you trying to say, Ryan?" Claire forces the question to come out of her mouth as she bites down on her bottom lip.

"Everybody around me dies, Claire!" He lets out a frustrated sigh. "Everyone I love and care about dies around me and I… I can't risk that with you. I won't risk your life and Joey's life." Ryan says through clenched teeth.

"That's not true. Ryan, are you kidding me?" She shakes her head, running a hand through her hair, "That's not true. And even if it was true, I don't care! You saved my life and you saved my little boy's life. I trust you and I know you would do anything to make sure nothing happens to Joey or me. I care about you and I'd be damned if I let you leave me again just because you think you're some kind of monster. You're a hero. You're Joey's hero and you are my hero."

"If something were to happen to you-" He goes to protest, but she simply silences him by leaning over and slamming her lips against his own. He doesn't resist the kiss, he deepens it by slipping his tongue inside her mouth and moves his hand slowly –while ignoring the pain that shoots through him at the sudden movement- to rest on the back of her head in an attempt to deepen the kiss even more.

She places each of her hands on the side of his cheeks and climbs onto the bed a bit further, but makes sure she doesn't touch near his wound. She smiles against his lips as he does the same.

When she feels him twitch beneath her and she hears a groan escape his lips, she pulls away and strokes his hair lazily, "You're in pain?"

"A little," He starts, but when he sees her about to make a move to exit the room to fetch a doctor, he tightens his arms around her, "but don't worry. I'm fine." He kisses the back of her hand and sighs as he lays his head back against the pillow, "Claire?"

She watches him shift over so she can lay right beside him, in his arms on his good side, and lays her head on his shoulder. She sighs and looks up at him, raising an eyebrow, "Yeah?"

He remains silent, which scares her a little, but she allows him to take his time with whatever he needs to tell her. He presses a soft kiss on the top of her head and licks his dried, busted, lips, "Claire, I love you too."

Instead of replying to him, she just smiles and buries her face in his chest, inhaling his scent and curling herself up in a small ball as she closes her eyes. She feels protected back in his arms, even if they are both lying in a small hospital bed. She is happy wherever he is and hopefully after tonight they can pick their lives back up and forget about Joe and his followers.

He closes his eyes, letting exhaustion take over his body as he leans his cheek on the top of her head, wrapping his arms securely around her. Even though a part of him still thinks it isn't safe for her to be around him, he loves her and he can't imagine being apart from her. He can't picture his life without her and Joey in it.

They're a perfect match, despite all of their flaws and all the demons that surround them. She can't think about moving on without Ryan and he can't move on without her.

Even though everything that has happened has been a true nightmare, it has brought them closer together and it brought them back to each other. Now they can start a new chapter in their lives and continue to rebuild their relationship.

With her by his side, he barely acknowledges the pain anymore and he can hardly feel the throbbing pain from his stab wound. With her right by his side, lying beside him, he knows there isn't a thing in the world that he can't get through as long as she is with him.

As long as she is with him, his heart with continue to beat and his life will continue on. Without her, it would be like a knife to the heart and he wouldn't know how to cope, the same goes for her. She thought she was going to lose him today and if she would have lost him, she honestly doesn't know what she would have done. She would have broken down- her life would have fallen apart.

Ryan lets out a deep breath as he allows sleep to consume him. Sleep comes a lot easier knowing he will wake up to Claire in his arms and be able to kiss her; to be able to tell her that he loves her a billion times.

He smiles as he slowly slips into –for once in a very, very long time, ever since this whole Joe Carroll situation began- a peaceful night sleep, his dreams mostly plagued with Claire and their future together.