Chapter I

Falling or Flying

The suspect was surrounded, the dock was blocked by the NYPD team, he could try and escape in the water but Henry noticed his nervousness, it was the same as Hanson's, they were both terrified of water. 'Maybe some childhood accident' he thought. Nevertheless, there was no way he could escape, so Detective Martinez went on to cuff him, gun pointed out. "Wait here!" she asked them. She knew Hanson wasn't going anywhere near the water, it was Henry she was worried about.

"Put your hands behind your neck." Jo demanded as she got closer to the killer. The man did exactly so, but when she reached for the handcuffs he kicked her in the head drawing her unconscious and making her fall off the dock and into the ice cold water.

In the night, a bullet flew from Detective Hanson's gun and right past the suspect, the second one hitting it's target and lodging itself into his torso. Next to Hanson, Dr. Henry Morgan, started running towards the deck with a petrified look on his face, he threw his scarf and jacket to the ground and then he threw himself in the water where Jo recently fell. The murky river embraced him, his heart cringing, shocked by the temperature. He had to find her fast, or she would either drown or die of hypothermia … but she was nowhere in sight. The river was not as shallow as one would expect, full of weeds and trash, Henry could hardly see anything. Slowly, like a snake through grass, the thought that he may not find her in time slowly crept into his mind and he began to panic. What would he do if he will fail to save her life? His only friend … If he didn't calm down it may be both of them lying on the river's bottom, only he will come back … and she won't.

Hanson looked helplessly from the river bank, it has been a couple of minutes since Dr. Morgan jumped after Jo, and he was worried they both might have drowned. His worst nightmare was enfolding right in front of him, and he could do nothing. Mike felt useless, especially after seeing the doctor throw himself into the river without a second thought. That man may be a nut job, but he admired his courage.

Henry's body shuddered, the cold water and dark thoughts were getting to him as he desperately looked around. He swam downstream, thinking the current must have taken her body, but with no avail. His heart constricted and he knew it wasn't the cold this time. Losing her physically hurt and he almost gave up to the cold when a slender silhouette touched his leg, he turned and saw Detective Martinez's hand. A jolt of adrenaline and hopefulness went through his body making him unusually fast and aware.

Not long after, Hanson heard the splashing of the water and then Henry Morgan's guttural gasp for air, in his arms he could see the limp body of his partner, but he couldn't say if she was alive or not, the distance between them was getting bigger as the doctor was swimming towards the shore.

"Jo!?" he tried. "Jo, please!" he pleaded, but there was no answer. 'She isn't breathing.' was the first thought that crossed Henry's mind as he cradled her slender frame. 'No, no, no. Don't do this to me, Jo.' His body was shaking now, this couldn't happen, she couldn't die. Not her, not now. This was the moment he realized he might have deeper feelings for the woman that had been his partner in the last couple of months. Wasn't this the perfect timing? The lack of oxygen was doing him no good, it rendered his brilliant mind almost useless. 'What do I do?' he asked himself as he felt the tears swelling in his eyes. He kept staring at the inert body in his arms, then it came to him … he was a damn doctor. So he proceeded to perform CPR; his hands went on her torso, pressing firmly on the diaphragm, one two three, one two three, then he blocked her nasal airways with his hand, opened her mouth, placed his warm lips on her cold ones and exhaled, he could feel the gurgle of the water blocked in her lungs. 'Please come back to me … I need you.' he thought as he went for another breath of air, pushing it into her lungs, the water came pouring out of her mouth and she started coughing. He turned her on her side so she could expel the liquid, Henry's heart loosened. She was alive …

She could feel hot air forcefully entering her lungs, jolting her mind back to reality. Warm lips pressed on hers … The first breath of fresh air she took by herself burned, she could still feel the taste of murky water as she inhaled. It took a while to finally realize what happened, and when she remembered she tried to stand. A pair of arms went around her torso stopping her, and her head snapped to look at whoever did it.

"Henry?" she gasped, her voice hoarse and guttural. He smiled, but the smile was only there because he was relieved, his eyes were red and still teary. She felt him tremble, or was it she who was trembling? She couldn't tell. Jo felt Henry wrapping his arms around her in an attempt to warm them both, or maybe it was something else. She has come to care a great deal about him, but he made it clear he wasn't into her, so what was going on now? She felt light headed, but at the same time she wrapped her arms around him too, remembering his warm lips…

The blue and red lights of an ambulance finally washed over them – and when the paramedics wrapped them in blankets Henry was still holding Jo for dear life.

A/N: Thank you for reading. I would really appreciate some feedback. Next Chapter: Henry decides to flee.