Once again, I'm glad to post more Layton Brothers stuff on Fanfiction again! So, there were a few people who wanted me to write about Lucy's eventual awakening. We all want a happy ending every once in a while, right? And so... I decided to fulfill their wish and bring out the next fanfic in my so-called trilogy! And I suck at titles, as usual. Most of them make no sense at all.

This story is in two chapters. Part 2 will come out as soon as I write it after getting over my overwhelming feels regarding PLvsAA and can think straight again.

I don't own Layton Brothers: Mystery Room.

Please read and leave a comment. Reviews are my sunshine.

Sia later! ~SiaCatGirl

The beginning of spring in London this year turned out to be much milder and warmer than meteorologists had predicted. By the middle of March most of the snow was gone, although the chill of the winter air had remained. Small puffy clouds lazily hung in the evening sky decorated with dim twilight. The cool wind still strove to swish in through a half closed door or a window and cool down the air inside just enough to give you an irresistible desire to start actively rubbing your arms and hands to warm up.

Just enough to make a certain Scotland Yard inspector stand up and close the window leaf inside a small ward numbered B62.

With a barely audible sigh, Alfendi Layton sat back onto a chair near a hospital bed and closed his eyes for a brief moment before opening them again to gaze at a young woman who was lying motionlessly in the aforementioned bed.

It's been... How long has it been? Almost seven months now, probably. Al has already lost count of time, so he couldn't say for sure, but it's been almost seven months since his assistant Lucy Baker was admitted to the hospital with a gunshot wound just below her heart. It was a miracle the bullet didn't hit any vital blood vessels, which would've resulted in instant death. Nonetheless, seeing her in such state didn't differ much from a feeling of an irretrievable loss for the inspector, a terrifying feeling he desperately tried to shake off. He listened into the beeping sound of a machine tracking the girl's heartbeat as if his own life depended on it. As long as he could hear it, the hope inside him wouldn't die.

But, walking hand in hand with hope, being its other side of the coin, there will always be despair. The dreadful silence of rhythmical beeps merging into one endless sound of inconsolable grief.

Those last few months were very hard for Alfendi, knowing not only that the sole person he sincerely cared for, even if he didn't openly show it, was now somewhere in between life and death, but also that he may even be partly responsible for her current state. Fortunately, he wasn't left to suffer on his own since Florence, Dustin and 'Sniffer' Hague did their best to help him cope with it. Hilda added her bit of advise into the common stock, too. Even Al's father and sister gave him their moral support. It made dealing with the whirlwind of emotions inside him seem less unbearable.

Alas... Such deep pain isn't easy to get rid of. Like a hungry predator gripping its prey, so does the pain, piercing the heart deeper and stronger than any dagger would.

Sitting there on a chair right beside the poor Detective Constable, Alfendi couldn't help but feel it pulsing through his head, returning back in the flood of agonizing memories. He tried to push them aside, to concentrate on something else, but his mind would obligingly replay everything that happened that day. The nauseous smell of his blood, Lucy's desperate cry, falling onto the ground... and the gunshot he hears in his nightmares to this day.

The inspector let a hand through his dishevelled crimson hair. Watching his assistant's still and pale face brought him a feeling of helplessness. His helplessness.

There's no worse feeling on Earth when someone dear to you is suffering and there's nothing you can do to help them.

That's exactly what Al was experiencing.

Right now he could only take Lucy's hand and let a quiet whisper escape from his lips.

"What have I done?"

Once again, the room fell into silence. The heartbeat machine's beeping was the sole reminder of the existing reality.

...

'It's no use blaming yourself like that.'

'...What?'

The one thought raced through Potty Prof's mind as his other side decided to let know of himself once again.

'I said it's no use blaming yourself like that. It's not your fault, and you know it.'

'Easy for you to say, Placid. You weren't in control when it happened!'

'No, but nonetheless, reproaching yourself with her demise isn't going to help. It isn't going to help Lucy wake up sooner.'

'Thank you for summing that up' was the sarcastic reply.

'I'm trying to be reasonable, that's all.'

'Really?' Potty Prof couldn't help but sneer at this. 'You think it's reasonable to just sit down and wait?'

'Do you have any other options?'

The unexpected question left him speechless. After all... Al did not have another option... Did he?

No. He didn't. And he could only sigh in defeat.

'Uh-huh. I didn't think so. Listen, I understand what you're feeling, and not just because we share the same body. It's hard for me, for you, for both of us, but we won't be able to help Lucy unless we remain patient. After she regains conciousness, she'll need our support more than anything else.'

That was Placid Prof for you, always being the voice of reason and common sense inside Alfendi Layton's mind. And if Potty Prof did have any good traits - which he, of course, does, don't think of it wrong, - patience was surely not one of them.

'Thank you for stating the obvious. I know it, there's no need to remind me. But I'm not going to sit quietly in a corner doing nothing just because-'

Unfortunately, he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence as the lights in the room suddenly went out, and the ward was plunged into shadows and silence.

It took Al a while to adjust his eyes to the sudden lack of light. Due to little to no sunlight outside since it was already evening and the sun had set down the skyline, the hospital room was pretty dark and even the big window wasn't able to bring inside enough light from the lampposts down the street.

Looking up at the ceiling, the young man saw all of the lights were completely off. None of them was even flickering.

"Great. Just great."

A blackout. The last thing he needed in the world right now.

Recently Prof developed a rather strong dislike of darkness. Nearly every time it would remind him of his assistant's courageous act moments before his mind was clouded with that very same darkness. His dear Detective Constable who, for his sake, willingly almost gave her own life, which was now barely coursing through her body with every heartbeat.

Every heartbeat...

...Oh no.

Only at that moment did it occur to Alfendi: the heartbeat machine wasn't working too! No wonder it was so quiet in the hospital room. It must've shut off along with the lights when the blackout happened.

Without a second thought, he rushed to bring his hand to the girl's neck to check her pulse.

It was there. Weak, but it was. Al sighed in relief.

Even in the dim of the room he could still make out the outlines of Lucy's pale face and short caramel coloured hair gently framing her face. He couldn't help but delicately caress her cheeks with a small caring smile on his face. Prof's hair cooled down a few shades, finally becoming soft maroon. The warm feeling of love and many fond memories of her filled his heart, soothing the pain inside him. He thought back to the time when Lucy was still eagerly helping him solve hard and complicated crimes. He was already used to her everyday presence in the Mystery Room, her often 15-minutes-late arrivals and apologies following every single one of them, cups of Earl Grey tea she made for him at lunch breaks, her contagious dedication to work and how well she could handle both of his personalities, like no one else would. He took her presence for granted and never doubted it would ever change.

Until, one day, she was taken hostage by a merciless criminal, with her life being the winner's prize in a "game" prepared specially for the best investigating team in Scotland Yard.

Until that game finally ended with the final strike from the said criminal, aimed to claim his last victim before spending the rest of his life behind bars.

Until Lucy almost became that final victim.

Alfendi felt regret slowly creep up his heart. Regret for being so careless, for letting that happen. For letting her be kidnapped in the first place. If only he agreed to accompany her that day... Maybe none of that mess would've ever happened.

He could only hope to apologize to her for everything.

And as he closed his eyes once more and slightly squeezed Lucy's hand which he never let go of, he muttered a quiet "I'm sorry" under his breath and let the silence of the room fill his head once more.

But not after he felt his own hand being weakly squeezed in response.

Yes, it's a cliffhanger! A freaking cliffhanger!

...Not really. You all understand what it means, right?

And I have a little headcanon that Al's personalities can talk to each other in his mind. When it happens, he kinda like shuts off and stares into one point, usually the floor.