Chapter One: Go Through Fire

"Are you happy?"

"Hmmm," came my reply, turning over and feeling utterly complete at the notion of Nicholas's arms around me. "Yes. Are you?"

He grinned. "Of course. Having a sleepover with my girlfriend? Please. One of my top-three favorite things to do."

I propped myself up on my elbow, knowing that my alarm will go off any minute, which would likely wake up Iana, and signal that Nicholas had to return to his condo to get ready for work. "I, of course, now have to know what the other two things are."

Nicholas chuckled, yanking me towards him then, and rolling himself over and onto his back, so that I was on top of him. "Do you now?"

"Yes," I replied, leaning down and kissing him, "of course I do. But, something tells me that me being on top of you like this will serve more as a distraction..."

"Okay," he says, tangling his fingers in my hair, hesitating for a moment, and allowing his fingers to brush my neck ever so slightly. "Sleepover entails also sleeping with you," he explained, and I rolled my eyes, "but, of course, you already knew that."

I scoffed a little, sitting up so that he couldn't attain me so easily, and a stroke of disappointment came into his eyes as I pulled away from him. "Yes. I assumed."

"Okay, then," he replied, sitting up himself, keeping a good hold on me. "The other two are spending time with Iana and your family, and the last one..."

"Does it have to do with me?" I joked.

He grinned, amused by my impatience. "It's the one thing that doesn't." He leaned down then and kissed my neck, and I put my chin up, allowing him access, in the hopes that he would answer me and answer quickly. "It's winning a case."

I giggled then, the sensation of his lips on me like fire on my skin, and I enjoyed every moment of the flames. "Well, I suppose I agree with you there..."

Nicholas looked up at me then, his eyes dark with hunger. "God, you're gorgeous—even when you just wake up in the morning."

I felt that delicious giggle escape from my throat again, unsure of how it managed to program itself into my system. "Glad you think so. I'd have to agree."

Nicholas raised an eyebrow. "Would you?"

"With you being gorgeous!" I cried, smacking him on the shoulder. "I like to think I'm not a vain person, Nicholas."

"You're not," Nicholas assured me, his hands on my back, but quickly descending to cup at my ass, which sent a shiver through my body and a squeal through my lips at the impact. "You're not a vain person, Murphy. Which is why I fell for you in the first place."

I checked my clock then, seeing that we still had another ten minutes, and shoved Nicholas down back onto the bed. "Prove it," I said, grinning down at him.

The ten minutes came and went quickly, and I threw on my robe and slippers and made a grab for Iana as Nicholas got dressed, moving after him so as I could say goodbye to him at the front door before Ian and Liam attempted to give us looks of mock-surprise. We got all the way down the hallway, making our way towards the front stairs as quickly as we dared, with Nicholas helping me over the child-proof gate so I didn't go spilling onto the main floor, and carrying Iana down with me. As Nicholas opened the door, I moved with him, and as he turned around, he said goodbye to Iana first, who basked in the attention, before he turned and looked at me, the hunger in his eyes returning.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours," he replied.

I nodded. "Remember, it's a Friday, so I've got to drop off and pick up Iana and Liam today, and then there's your plans..."

Nicholas dragged his hand over his face. "Right. Charlotte's grave."

"Like I said, I'll go with you if you want," I said, reaching up and touching his face. "I really wouldn't mind, you know."

Nicholas smiled. "You know as well as I do that one of us has to be at the firm to continue the preliminary work on the Eastman case."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "Of course, of course. But if I recall correctly, Blomqvist, I've done most of the work on the case already..."

Nicholas dragged me to him then, and Iana squealed with delight, and we mutually hushed her as my cheeks bloomed beneath his gaze. "There you go again, Gallagher—keeping me on my toes, just the way I like it."

I giggled a third time then, really unaware of how to get it out of my system. "Well, I guess it's one of my many talents."

"Not the only one that I'm aware of..."

I smirked up at him. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, really," Nicholas replied, leaning down and kissing me.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Ian's voice said from beside us, interrupting us as he stepped forward. "As much as I love it when your boyfriend sleeps over, Murph, keep Iana out of the PDA that comes with it," he said, stepping in and making a grab for her. "Good morning, princess! Oh!" he said, immediately hold her at arm's length. "And you decide to take a shit immediately when Uncle Ian takes you! My god," he muttered to himself, moving her towards the living room, where I assumed he would change her and give her breakfast.

"Bye, bye, Nicky!" Iana called.

"Bye, Ana!" Nicholas replied, turning back to me. "Are you disappointed?"

I grinned up at him. "For a tiny break? No."

"No. Disappointed that your daughter prefers an abbreviated version of her nickname?"

I laughed aloud then. "No, of course not. In fact, I think it'll make things easier down the line. If I'm mad at one of them, one of them doesn't have to be in mortal peril for a second and a half as I say their names."

Nicholas smirked. "Well, we'd better get our days really started."

I sighed. "You're right. I still have to shower and make myself presentable, and get my shit together, and make sure that Iana and Liam are ready..."

Nicholas scooped me up into his arms then, kissing me. "I'll see you after lunch, okay? Then we can discuss our weekend plans."

"Here's an idea," Ian said, carrying a freshly-smelling Iana back into our midst, whereupon he handed her over. "Why don't you go over to his condo tonight? There!" he said, walking back towards the kitchen. "Problem solved!"

"What's up his ass?" Nicholas asked, stepping outside onto the porch.

"Not Trevor," I replied, smirking for a moment. "I think their honeymoon phase is officially ended, which means that, by default, it's sickening for him to see anyone else close to him in that phase of their own relationship."

Nicholas raised his eyebrows. "That's oddly philosophical, for so early in the morning."

I laughed. "Another one of my many talents."

Nicholas leaned down and kissed me again. "Sure you're okay?"

I rolled my eyes, gently pushing him back. "I can keep Ian and the rest of the Gallagher brood in line," I replied. "In my three years here, Fiona has taught me well, and now that I've got this one to look after," I said, looking down at Iana.

"Mama!" Iana crowed, pleased at the attention.

"Yes, sweetie," I said, kissing her forehead before turning to look back at Nicholas, "I think I've got things handled here."

Nicholas held up his hand. "I'll see you both later then."

"Say bye, bye," I whispered to Iana as Nicholas walked away.

"Bye, bye, Nicky!" she called after Nicholas.

"Bye, Ana!" he called back before turning momentarily back to me. "Bye, Murph."

I bit my lip, wanting to provoke him one last time. "Bye, Nick," I said, watching his eyes darken as I turned around and slipped back into the house, knowing that I was likely to pay for that later, and looking forward to it.

. . .

I dropped off Iana and Liam at daycare and school respectively, getting to the firm at a good hour and handing over smoothies to Rachel and Cindy, who looked pleased. They'd noticed in the last three weeks—after Nicholas and I had taken off a few weeks during the summer—that there was something different about me. I could detect a new lightness to my step, now that I was not weighed down by the implications of the heavy ring from Josh, and I was much happier on the whole as a person.

"Good night?" Rachel asked casually.

I laughed, sticking the straw of my smoothie into my mouth. "Wouldn't the whole firm like to know," I replied.

I headed down the hallway and towards my office, seeing Hugo and Allie in the staff lounge and waved to them briefly before stepping inside. I caught them both smiling as I stepped inside and found myself continually smiling as I shut my door behind me and walked towards my desk. It had been a stunning display during the first week of September, when Nicholas and I had retuned from our summer break, when Hugo and Allie had seemed to accidentally on purpose come into their son's office without knocking, and had seen us together, locked in an embrace. Initially thinking that we were about to get a scolding, the both of them seemed overjoyed, and I could detect the word, "Finally" on Hugo's lips after they'd left us alone.

I smirked at the conversation Allie had inevitably had with me, informing me that if Nicholas and I wanted to get frisky at work, then there were certain rules. We had to be all caught up on our paperwork for whatever cases we were working on, plus any messages from any other clients we might have. Then, we would have to lock our office doors, and inform our assistants to hold all of our calls; this would then be passed along to Cindy, Allie's assistant, and Artie, Hugo's assistant, who would then automatically receive all of our calls, which would then be transferred to Allie and Hugo in the meantime. The last rule—which was a two-parter, really—was that we had to be as quiet as possible, and that we couldn't be more than an hour, except if it was after six p.m., and then the time limit could last anywhere until nine p.m., when everyone was expected to leave the firm.

I set down my things and organized them; my office was still in a temporary state of funk, due to me being gone longer than I'd been back. All traces of Josh had vanished, and the crystal cut vases had been smashed by me, Nicholas, Ian, and Fiona over the summer, to signal out with the old and in with the new. I continued in this fashion as I breezed past emails and messages that were considered unimportant, and was pleased when there was a knock at my door just a bit before twelve o'clock.

"Come in!" I called.

Nicholas popped in immediately, shutting and locking the door behind him and moving for me then, and I felt my cheeks flushing as I got to my feet. "Since we didn't go through the customary precautions," he said, pulling me towards him, "we only have a few moments before we're caught."

"We'd better make the most of them, then," I replied.

He grinned down at me. "I seem to recall you calling me 'Nick' when I left your house earlier this morning," he said quietly.

I laughed then, feeling utterly delicious at the feeling of his hands on me. "I may have done something like that," I replied.

"It's too bad we don't have longer," Nicholas said, his breath hot on my throat, "because then I could punish you accordingly. This will have to suffice," he said, and I felt him disengage one of his hands from its grip around me, and swung it upwards, then down, as a crack resounded around my office, when his palm hit my ass.

Immediately, instinctively, I pressed my face into Nicholas's shoulder, letting out a soft mewling sound at the beautiful ache that his palm had left. "You're bad," I muttered into him as he gathered me close to him again. "So bad," I whispered, my voice throaty as he tilted my chin up to kiss me.

"And don't you forget that, Gallagher," he said, nipping at my lips before slowly releasing me, and I could feel that he regretted doing so.

"Well, you'll text me, after I get Iana and Liam, then?" I asked as he moved towards the door slowly. "We still need to plan our weekend...although I think I may be spending some of it on ice," I said with a laugh.

Nicholas turned around, smirking. "Oh, you know I'm going to text you," he said. "Maybe you and Iana can come and stay at my condo this weekend."

"Hmmm," I said, flashing him a grin. "We've never done that before."

"The first of many nights together, Murphy," Nicholas declared, blowing me a kiss, before he unlocked my office door and slipped out, before shutting it behind him.

I turned around and returned to my work, going over the research on Geoffrey and Guinevere Eastman, a multi-millionaire twin sibling duo who were fighting about the app that they had created. We were working for Guinevere, who claimed that she had created the product, but that her bother had stolen the plans and had only given her ten-percent of the profits. I truly felt for Guinevere, and the logic that the Geoff & Gwen Gizmos were the product of just one of them truly stumped me.

My phone buzzed a short time later, and I smiled as I accessed the texting app.

On my way to the cemetery now. Miss you already.

See that you do, I wrote back. Because the feeling is mutual.

As I continued my work, I detected the smell of smoke coming into the office; given that I was placed just outside the staff lounge, and given that we were just past noon, I knew that it was likely that someone had merely burned their lunch. Although the smell was unpleasant, I didn't let it bother me, and did my best to return to my work. However, the screams that followed were not something I was altogether prepared for, so I got to my feet and opened my office door, and saw many people running around in a frantic manner.

"Hugo?" I called, seeing him running down the hallway, and he moved for me immediately, his eyes filled with concern.

"Murph, someone placed explosives in various air vents throughout the building!" he said, and was coughing, so I knew he'd gotten it pretty bad. "They screwed up the wiring, too, so we've got to get out of here! Grab anything important, but hurry!"

I nodded, my heart pounding in fear. "No problem!" I cried, breaking away from him and dashing back into my office.

I grabbed my bag, which was already partially filled, and grabbed all my notes for the Eastman case, knowing that mine were far more detailed than Nicholas's were anyway. Pushing the thought of our unnecessary competition out of my mind, I next grabbed my contact book and day planner, knowing that I would be lost without either one of those. I finally grabbed all the photographs I had of my family, plus my Tort book, and some other books that I would need, and then made for my office door.

I dashed through the hallway, smoke making my eyes water as I brought my cardigan up and over my mouth, struggling to breathe, coughing my way towards the assistants' station. I ignored the elevators and making my way towards the emergency stairs, shoving open the door and ignoring the constant smell of urine as I stumbled to make my way to safety. The stairwells were even smokier, and as I struggled to climb down, the screams got louder, and I felt instant relief when I finally reached the bottom, firemen surrounding the people who had gotten out. I shoved open the final door and emerged into the September sunlight, shaking from the sudden change in temperature, blindly feeling my way along the wall of the building.

"Chief Dobsen, that's one of ours!" said a familiar voice—I knew it to be Hugo's—as I was suddenly dragged forward. "Murphy, thank god!" Hugo went on, pulling me into a hug; I could feel the relief physically pouring through him.

"You often hug your attorneys, Hugo?" Chief Dobsen joked, fitting me with a respirator, which pumped clean air into my lungs..

"Come off it, Cliff," Hugo replied, slightly annoyed. "She's Nicholas's girlfriend—she's practically family to Allie and me."

"Is that right?" Chief Dobsen asked, his rich, Caribbean accent sending a significant amount of comfort through me as my vision returned. "Nice to finally meet the girl who could finally tie Nicholas down. Good to meet you, Murphy."

I breathed in deeply, temporarily removing the mask. "Nice to meet you, too, Chief Dobsen," I said, bringing the mask back to my mouth. "Where's...everyone?" I asked, looking around through the people continuing to stream out.

"Some people are still coming out," Chief Dobsen replied.

"Others were helping find safe routes for others to leave," Hugo explained.

I coughed then, immediately grabbing the respirator, my eyes watering as I held it to my face, shaking ever so slightly. "Do we...know who did this?" I asked.

"We've sent teams in to get the security footage," Chief Dobsen assured me. "It will then be handed over the police and dealt with accordingly."

I gave a stiff nod, continuing to inhale and exhale, attempting to really focus on my breathing, so as the pair of them would leave me alone and potentially help others who needed it more. When they finally drifted away, I took off the respirator, and tried breathing on my own and, once I found I was able to do so, felt unsure of what my mind was telling me to do, but also knowing that I had to help in any way I could. Getting shakily to my feet, and before anyone could tell me to stop, or see what I was doing, I left my bag behind and ran for the door, hearing the collective sirens coming closer, knowing that Ian was likely on his way with his team, and I couldn't let him convince me not to go back in. Just as I cleared the first flight of stairs, I was jarred by a voice saying my name and, when I turned around, saw Hugo running after me.

"Cliff'll kill us—but I've gotta find Allie," Hugo declared.

I nodded. "I've got to see if I can find Rachel," I replied.

"We'd better hurry," Hugo said, pulling his handkerchief out from his pocket and tying it around his mouth, whereupon he grabbed ahold of my cardigan and yanked it off me. "Tie it around your mouth!" he said, through the handkerchief, and I nodded, obeying him as we trekked up the stairs and into the fray.

We heard popping sounds—likely the sound of something detonating—and immediately dove behind a wall. I felt Hugo breathing heavily beside me, and I was concerned for him, but he pushed me on, going towards Allie's office, while I decided the best way to look for Rachel would be in the ladies' room. Making my way as quickly as possible past the assistant's area—which included jumping over overturned desks and chairs—I finally made it to the ladies' room and shoved the door open.

"Rachel?" I called, struggling to enunciate, due to the possible smoke inhalation. "Are you in here, Rachel?"

A stall door opened slowly, and Rachel popped out, her pale blue eyes taking me in then in a moment of fear. "Murphy?"

"Here, come on," I said, stepping forward and holding out my hand. "We've got to get you out of here, Rachel—haven't you heard the popping?"

"I thought it was a prank," Rachel said, sobbing as I moved after her "I thought it was a stupid prank made by teenagers..."

"Aren't you a teenager?" I asked.

Rachel sighed. "Yeah, yeah I am," she replied. "My dad is old friends with Hugo, and he got me started here for when you arrived. I was almost sixteen," she said, her voice breaking. "And I'm going to turn twenty any day now, and now I'm going to die..."

"You listen to me," I said firmly, keeping a good grip on her arm. "You're not going to die, okay, Rachel? You're not."

Rachel nodded. "Okay. I'm not."

I sighed, looking around then as the smoke became thicker. "Where's your cardigan?" I asked her, continuing to attempt to see through the smoke. "You always wear one..."

"I gave it to Cindy when we first got in," Rachel replied. "She was cold. She must've gone to safety and still has it."

I sighed, immediately removing my cardigan and handing it over, securing it around her head and over her mouth quickly. "Get to the stairs, and get down there as fast as you can," I ordered her, attempting to keep my voice steady and my breathing even. "Chief Dobsen is out there, and I saw some EMT's arriving when I came back up."

Rachel clutched at my arm. "What about you? Aren't you coming with me?"

I shook my head. "Hugo came up here looking for Allie," I explained. "I need to make sure they're out before I leave."

Rachel nodded, not fully aware if she should leave me or not, but ultimately broke away from me and hurried around the desks, through the smoke, and to the stairs.

Keeping as low as possible, I kept a hand over my mouth as I walked through the smoke, finding the hallway and walking down it. I found Allie's office through the haze, the door pushed open ajar, and stumbled inside. "Allie?" I said, attempting to look through the smoke. "Allie! Are you in here?!"

"Here!" she called, waving her arms. "Come quick! It's Hugo!" she said, her voice on the verge of desperation as I stumbled towards her. "He collapsed from the smoke, and I can't lift him on my own, Murphy..."

"Let's get him up, then," I said without hesitation, and bent down, finding his shoulder. "Get his arm over your shoulder, and I'll do the other one. Got it?"

"Got it," Allie said, her voice shaking as we managed to lift Hugo between us, and stumbled out of her office.

As we walked, I remembered that there was one more air vent down the hallway, and suddenly wondered if whatever was inside it would go off. As we walked, I heard a clanging from within as we stepped closer, and I knew we only had a few moments. "Down!" I screamed, and Allie dropped to her knees, pulling Hugo with her, but it was too late for me. I felt whatever was inside the vent shoot out as I turned my head away, and make contact with the right side of my neck, singeing my skin and hair instantly. "Fuck!" I yelled, doubling over at the pain, which seared through me, as I attempted to get to my feet.

"Murphy!" Allie screamed.

I shook my head, unwilling for whoever had planted these things to beat me completely. "Come on, Allie. We've got to get Hugo out of here while we still can..."

"But, Murph—"

"No, Allie," I said, my voice firm. "Just across to the lobby, and down the stairs. We're almost there," I said, just as we entered the assistant's area. "Come on."

Allie and I managed to get over the desk, all the while struggling to breathe, and made it as safely as could be expected to the lobby. When at last we reached the stairs—after hearing several more pops throughout the building, I braced myself momentarily against the doorframe, although I knew we had to hurry. Finally, I pushed myself fully upwards again, and Allie and I stumbled down the four flights of stairs, supporting Hugo between us, and made our way back outside and into the sunshine.

"Jesus Christ, Gallagher," Chief Dobsen said, shaking his head in shock as Allie and I emerged with Hugo between us. "You're a keeper."

"Gallagher?" said a voice in the crowd, as Chief Dobsen lifted Hugo from the two of us and brought him over to the ambulance.

Peering over, I vaguely saw Ian, in his EMT uniform, seeing me standing there, caked in smoke, as I felt the blood pooling out of my neck. "Ian..." I whispered.

"Murph!" he said, immediately charging forward. "What the hell?!"

I blinked, trying to remain steady on my feet, but found it was too difficult to do so, as blackness threatened to overtake my vision. "Ian..."

"What?" Ian asked, nearly to me.

"Catch me," I whispered, my knees buckling, the last thing I saw was Ian charging for me then before I collapsed onto the concrete.

. . .

NICHOLAS'S POV

"We're going to put your sister into a medically induced coma so that we can determine her smoke inhalation, and the damage done to the right side of her neck."

"That sounds fine. Thank you."

"Thank you, doctor, for looking out for our sister."

"Ian! Fiona!" I called, finally getting towards the fray of what was happening. "Is everything okay? I got the text from my mom as soon as I got back to my car..."

"There was a fire at the firm, Nicholas," Ian said, his voice devoid of emotion, but his eyes having a different story to tell.

"Were there any..." I clear my throat. "...casualties?"

"One confirmed," Fiona replied, and I felt my heart stampeding for my throat in the wake of her answering the question fully.

Ian's brow furrowed in an attempt to remember. "Cindy something..."

"She's my mother's assistant—nice young woman," I replied, looking around. "They told me where my parents were, and I had to bribe them to tell me where Murphy was..."

Fiona caught Ian looking at the room I assumed was Murphy's, a tortured look on his face, so she attempted to ease the tension. "How are your parents?" she asked.

I sighed; it was obviously an easier subject for them to hear about right now. "My dad went into cardiac arrest ten minutes ago," I replied, and Ian turned back to me, raising his eyebrows. "He's okay, though—they brought him back..."

"And your mom?" Fiona asked.

"Minor smoke inhalation—not as bad as my dad's—but they both got some minor burns, which the doctors are looking at..."

Ian nodded. "Well, it's good that they're looking at all of it..."

"It's good that they're taking a look at everyone," Fiona said quietly.

"Where's Iana?" I asked, hoping I was asking an appropriate question. "Is she still at daycare, or...?" I wanted to know.

"Trevor got her and Liam from daycare and school," Ian said, his voice quiet, restrained. "He took them back to the house, trying to keep a sense of normalcy..."

"And Murphy?" I asked, trying my best to keep my own tone restrained. "They barely gave me the information where she was. I don't even know if..." I said, knowing that it wouldn't be the best thing to cry right now, but, nevertheless, the tears formed at the back of my eyes, while I did my best to prevent them from escaping.

"She's in there," Fiona said quietly.

"What did the doctor's say?" I asked.

"Burns," Ian said quietly. "And she took some smoke to her lungs pretty good..."

I nodded, sensing from his tone that that wasn't the extent to it. "What aren't you telling me here?" I asked, and both of their eyes snapped to mine.

"There were small, little, pipe-bomb-like things packed into the air vents of the firm," Fiona said carefully, as Ian stepped slightly away from us, and placed his head onto the wall. "When Murphy went back inside..."

"Hold on," I said, holding up my hand. "I was told she got out quickly..."

"She went back in," Ian replied, speaking through his teeth.

"Jesus," I whispered, putting my face into my hands for a moment. "What possessed her to go back inside, after she was safe...?"

"Her assistant, Rachel," Ian whispered. "She wanted to make sure she was okay. Then, your dad went in after her, to get your mom..."

"Okay...?" I said, turning back to Fiona. "Then what happened?"

"As I understand it, Murphy found Rachel and sent her out, then went to check and see if your parents had gotten out," she said quietly. "Then, once she found then, instead of running for help, Murphy got them both out of there, but..."

"What?" I whispered, looking between them, my heart hammering in my chest as I thought of all the things that could've happened to her. "Tell me."

"A pipe bomb or whatever that thing was exploded," Ian said, his voice expressionless again—he was numbing himself to the pain, I saw that now. "The bomb went off, and it hit Murphy. She was bleeding pretty bad..."

I shut my eyes, attempting to steady myself, wondering if I would be reencountering my girlfriend in several pieces. "Where did it hit her?"

"The neck," Fiona said, her voice hitching as she, too attempted to keep it together. "Ended up flaming up some of her hair, too..."

"Is she all right?" I whispered, my voice cracking, as I opened my eyes. "I mean, she's going to be all right, isn't she?"

Ian sighed. "We're hopeful."

"Can I see her?" I asked, looking between them. "Please?"

Fiona bit her lip and turned to Ian. "What do you think?"

Ian sighed. "Go in and sit with her. It's what she'd want, Nicholas."

I felt the relief hit me then as if I'd been punched in the gut, but I nodded, attempting to keep my cool. "Thank you," I said softly, going over to the door and taking ahold of the handle, before I stepped inside. I shuddered slightly as the door closed automatically behind me, and as I walked over to the bed, I got a good look at Murphy then, and I felt the tears coming automatically as I moved to sit beside her. "Jesus, Murph. What were you thinking?" I whispered.

Her hair had been trimmed to just an inch or two below her shoulders, due to the scorching it had sustained near the burn on her neck. The wound itself was bandaged, and the gauze holding it in place nearly matched the color of her skin. There were several other burns along her fingertips, and I saw bruises on her arms and legs, likely where she'd stumbled while attempting to get through the smoke. There was an ashy tone to several portions of her body, letting me know that she had truly been inside of a burning building. There were several superficial cuts on her knuckles, and around her lips, but she was still just as beautiful as she had always been, from that first day I'd met her.

"Murphy," I whispered, reaching out and touching her cheek. "You scared the hell out of me today... You can't do that..."

. . .

MURPHY'S POV

"...you can't do that."

Immediately, I felt the need for my eyes to shoot open, but the medication pumping through my system had rendered me exhausted, and I couldn't. I recognized Nicholas's voice immediately, and yet I knew that if my body reacted of its own accord, then the heart monitor would alert every doctor into my room. I couldn't have that; and yet, in this instance, the medication seemed to be on my side, keeping me virtually silent.

I'd scared him? Such a thing seemed almost foreign to me, and yet, I was desperate to hear his voice again...

"The moment I heard you were here, I had to come down and see you... Of course, it was easy to do that, because my parents are here, too... I ran into Ian and Fiona outside. They're really worried about you, Murphy, and so am I. What possessed you to run back into a burning building to save my parents?"

I felt the urgent desire to smirk, but I couldn't move.

"It's just as well," he said, sighing then. "Just goes to show you why I care about you do much—you're so goddamned stubborn. Normally, it's an unattractive quality, Murph, but, somehow, you wear it very well..."

If only I could get up and dance for him in that moment, because I was in desperate need to shake my hips at the notion that he knew me so well.

"I guess what this all comes down to is, you scared the fuck out of me today," he went on, and I stopped dancing internally, "which made me put things into perspective."

Perspective? I thought to myself. Oh, no, no, no, no. This can't be good—none of this can be good! What if he wants to end things?! What if—?

"It's not what you think," he said gently, and the sensation of his hand in mine then sent my mind over the moon. "I love you, Murphy," he said softly. "I love you so much, and I can't have you scaring me like that if we're going to make this work. You were a hero today, by saving my parents, and I think you for it, but you don't need to save a life to be a hero. You just need to be yourself, Murph. And be mine, Murph," he whispered, his breath hot on my cheek then as he leans down, and gently brushes his lips with mine. "I need to go and check on my parent's now, Murph, but I'll be back soon. I promise."

I listen as he walks out of the room, and the click of the door as it closes behind him. And then, I am suddenly brought out from the curtain I am held under, and I open my eyes slowly. I look around my room then, shaking my head, and wondering if this is just all the medication getting to me as I turn at the sound of the door opening a second time.

"Ian," I say, smiling as he comes in.

"They need to up your medication," he said with a lighthearted chuckle, as the door opened wider behind him, and Fiona came inside after him.

"Hey, Fi," I said as she bustled past Ian, throwing her arms around me. "Hey, watch the I.V.! I mean, the last thing I want is for some doctor to come running in here, and..."

"Too late," said a voice, and the door opened wider, revealing the doctor, a clipboard in his hand as he looked it over. "Oh," he said, lowering it. "Murphy?"

I raised my eyebrows then, feeling more secure with the notion that Ian and Fiona were there by my side, although quickly wondering if I stood to still be arrested that afternoon, given the complexity of the circumstances currently before me. "Hey, Josh," I said, getting a good look at his nose, which was no longer straight and perfect, but possessed a reasonably visible bump along its bridge, which it had sustained when I'd slammed my forehead into it, only three months previously. "How's it going?"

Josh shrugged. "Can't complain. How about you?"

I shrugged back at him, feeling pretty positive that he'd taken a good look at the clipboard and had a pretty good idea of what my day had been like. "The same."

Josh nodded, and I knew he was putting the hard feelings on the back burner for a while, for the notion that he had an obligation to his patient overrode his personal feelings. "All right. Let's take a look at you," he said, and stepped forward.