It was the final straw and it was time to move on. Eric couldn't believe that he was even thinking of it. "Moving on." It sounded so final, so heartbreaking, so sad. It sounded like he was dealing with a death, and in some ways he was – the death of his desire, his dream. His mind, his thoughts, his heart were in so much turmoil, so full of pain and longing and confusion. Why not him? Why not him? What did they have that he didn't? He was told so many times that he was a good looking guy; he knew kept himself in shape, was intelligent, had an interesting (at least to him) job, and had a modest savings. And the most important thing was that he loved her. He really really loved her. What was he missing? Where was he lacking? What was he missing that those other guys she dated had. He tried and he tried, and he cried and he cried, but he just couldn't figure it out. He truly believed that he and Calleigh belonged together; that Calleigh was not only his best friend, but that she was meant to be his lover, his wife, and his life.

Eric continued to stare at the black screen of the off television in his room, revisiting and retelling in his mind the story and hopes of his life. At what point in your life do you say good-bye to your dreams, and try to dream new dreams? When is it time to give up? After Eric was shot, he no longer took for granted what most of the people around him did: Life. It amazed him that even in the business he was in of life and death, most people he worked with lived as if they were going to be around forever. He knew, in the most basic sense of almost dying, that his life was not endless, that he did not have an infinitive amount of time. If he wanted something in his life, he needed to do it soon. He knew he wanted more from his life: a wife, a home, children, a family. And Calleigh was supposed to be a part of that, at least in his mind; but, apparently, not in Calleigh's. Calleigh was with another man again.

Finally, he decided, finally, it was time to move on. Time to live his life, and stop waiting. Time to live for him and his future and time to make some of his dreams come true. He knew he loved Calleigh, would always love Calleigh. Should he wait forever for her to return his love? What if she never does? He can't and wouldn't force her. He would have wasted his life – his one and only life. Should he harass and stalk her? No, that doesn't show love and never would. Calleigh did not love him, as least not the same way he loved her. He should be honest with himself. He loved her enough to want her happiness, even if it was not with him. He had to let her go or he would end up an emotional mess, a lifeless man. He had to let her go before he turned into someone he no longer recognized.

He finally went to bed and went to sleep feeling as if he could start his new life – tomorrow would be the start of his future. He would try to be open to all possibilities.

* * * * * * * * * *

Eric arrived early at work the next morning, trying to be open to the possibilities of his life. He forced himself to greet Calleigh normally and easily, but similar to the way he greeted everyone else. She gave him a look, either because she noticed the difference or because she was wondering what he would say about the new man in her life.

Eric got right to work, trying to finish up his work left from his previous shift, and also what the night shift needed him to do. He hoped there would not be any new cases for him today until he could at least catch up.

Perhaps as an omen of his new, better life, fate was good to him. He was pretty much caught up when Horatio called him to go to a crime scene at an animal hospital.

"Sure, H, what's up?" asked Eric.

"The veterinarian came in this morning", Horatio paused as is his trademark, "to find the tech who watches the animals for the night on the floor dead. The place is a mess. Check with the vet to see if anything is missing."

"Shall do, H", replied Eric as he took his gear to his hummer and drove off to the scene.

Eric arrived at the scene taking in the view of the area. The veterinary building resembled a red barn, surrounded by a white picket fence with a few goats in a small paddock on the side of the building. It looked rather quant, however, its ambience was destroyed by the police cars and ME vehicle parked haphazardly in the parking lot.

Eric walked through the barn looking front door, and was shown down the hall by an officer. He entered a back room full of cages to see Alex bent over the body of a middle aged woman, examining her with the compassion and respect she showed all who came across her table. Alex gave a short smile to Eric as he entered the room and started speaking to him. "This poor baby died somewhere between 2 and 3 am. She was smashed on the head with something, but she doesn't seem to have put up much of a fight. I'll let you know more when I get her on my table."

"Thanks, Alex", Eric said, as he open his kit and got started on the room.

After taking the basic pictures and noting the main information of the crime scene, Eric went to speak to Frank Tripp. Frank had interviewed the vet who was the first one on the scene. Frank told Eric that the vet, Michael Martin, was supposed to come by the station for a formal interview, but in Frank's experienced opinion, Michael was not involved in the crime.

Late afternoon, Michael arrived for his interview accompanied by his sister, Lucy. Eric greeted Lucy and Michael when they arrived, and then took Michael into one of the interrogation rooms. Lucy had a seat in the lobby while her brother was giving his official statement.

Eric thanked Michael for coming in and was introduced to his sister, Lucy. Lucy was an attractive woman, early 30's, with light brown hair and hazel eyes. She had a ready smile for all those she met, and brother and sister seemed to get along well. They both volunteered with a citizen's ocean clean-up group, and their meeting was this evening. The official clean up day was the following Saturday. Eric's eyes followed them, or rather her, until they were out of his sight.

Eric turned around and almost bumped into Calleigh, who was watching him.

"Oh, uh, hi, Cal", Eric stumbled over his words.

"Hey, Eric, what's going on?" Calleigh asked, looking at him curiously.

"That was the veterinarian on the case I'm on, and his sister." Eric replied. "No guns involved, at least not yet, just blunt force trauma".

"Ah, Eric", Calleigh smiled. "You really know how to ruin a girl's day".

Eric chuckled. God, how he loved Calleigh. He really was going to miss her in his dreams and in his future family.