Forewarning, this story is depicted during a terrible and tragic event in American history, it may still be a sensitive subject for some. In no way is this meant to disrespect any victims or survivors, just my way of showing tribute and what it must have been like that awful day. Please review, and enjoy.

September 11th, 2001

7:00 AM

Lower Manhattan

Benny moved around in bed, his eyes still closed as he shuffled around in the sheets and listened to the birds chirping outside in the early morning sun. He opened them with a slow start as the alarm clock on his bedside table started going off. Reaching over groggily, he tapped the snooze button before turning over and wrapping his arms around a waking body and bringing it close to him.

"Good morning beautiful," Benny said sleepily, a slight grin on his lips as he watched his husband turn over and face him in bed. A pair of deep brown eyes staring back at him, still filled with sleep and exhaustion as he grinned back.

"Hey beautiful, you working today?" Ethan asked, reaching up and stretching his arms quickly before dropping them back down and pulling Benny closer to him.

"Yea, Robert has me coming in early. So I figured I'd take Elizabeth to school and let you sleep in," Benny said, leaning in and giving Ethan a quick yet passionate filled kiss on the lips before sitting up and getting off the bed.

"Thanks sweetie, you sure you don't mind?" Ethan asked, grabbing a nearby pillow and cuddling it close now that his warm husband was gone from the covers.

"Yea babe, you worked all night last night. Take a day to rest, relax, and we will see you when you get home. Or if ya want, when I take my lunch you can come meet me and we can eat together. Sound good?" Benny asked, turning his head to look at Ethan's smiling face as he opened a dresser drawer and got his suit ready.

"Yea baby, sounds perfect to me," Ethan said, his eyes so sleep deprived yet his face filled with a early morning smile as he grinned at his goofy husband who grinned right back.

"Well, I'm going to shower and get Elizabeth up for school. I love you sweetie, sleep well. Call me when you get up, if I don't answer then I'm probably busy filing paperwork for the next case," Benny said, walking over and leaning onto the bed as he cupped Ethan's cheeks and stared longingly into his eyes before kissing him once more and disappearing into the bathroom.

Moments Later

Benny stood there in the kitchen, adjusting his tie as his coffee brewed as their thirteen year old daughter Elizabeth ate jam covered toast.

"Where's Daddy E?" Elizabeth asked, munching onto a piece of toast as crumbs fell to the plate and gathered.

"I'm letting him sleep in today since he worked so late last night. What, don't want Daddy B to take you to school?" Benny asked, looking at his daughter as he grinned and caused her to roll her eyes.

"Yea...totally. That's so the reason!" Elizabeth said, giggling as he father made a stupid face at her before pouring his coffee into a mug and throwing on his overcoat.

"Well come on, I gotta get to work early so I'll be dropping you off a few minutes early today. While your at it, ask Mrs. Wilson about your father and I coming to the PTA meeting this coming Friday," Benny said, his daughter finishing her toast as she slung a backpack around her shoulder and joined her father in walking out the front door.

"God, don't you just love sunny mornings with clear weather?" Benny asked, his daughter still groggy with sleep as she got into the passenger side while her father got into the drivers side and started the car.

"Not really, I prefer my nice sunny afternoons after sleeping in till eleven!" Elizabeth said, turning her head over on the seat head rest to look at her father and stick her tongue out.

"Well, your a teenager now. More responsibilities are coming your way, better prepare miss attitude!" Benny shot back, sticking his tongue out at her while he smiled and started the car.

The car ride to school was fairly quiet as they both listened to music and news on the morning radio, the sun shining over them as Benny pulled up in front of Elizabeth's school.

"Have a good day sweetheart, don't forget to ask Mrs. Wilson what I said. Oh, and tonight when your father tries to cook, make sure he doesn't burn the house down okay?" Benny said, watching his daughter get out of the car before smiling and waving him goodbye. He sat there for a bit longer, watching as a few of her friends ran up to her and began to talk with her. He smiled to himself before putting the car back into drive and driving down the road to work. Benny knew he had a lot of work ahead of him today, and he couldn't shake this bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He brushed it off as nerves and pulled into the parking garage of the World Trade Center before finding his favorite parking spot, still free as he smiled to himself gleefully and pulled into it. He got out of the car and grabbed his briefcase from the backseat, when a young blonde woman walked up to him.

"Hey Mr. Weir, early morning for you too?" the woman asked, waiting for Benny to start in stride alongside her as they made their way to the elevators.

"Yea, Ethan wasn't happy he didn't get a bit more cuddle time this morning but I let him sleep in while I took Elizabeth to school," Benny said, watching as the blonde woman smiled at him with her bright blue eyes.

"She has gotten so big, seems like just yesterday you two were bringing her home from the adoption agency. How old is she now?" the woman asked, stepping into the elevator and pressing her designated floor number as well as Benny's.

"Trisha, you should know by now. You've been to five of her birthday parties, she's thirteen," Benny said, chuckling to himself as Trisha shrugged her shoulders at him.

"I must be getting old, these withered bones need retirement!" Trisha said laughing, giggling when Benny gave her a playful punch in the arm.

"If your old then I'm ancient. I'm twenty-eight for god sakes!" Benny said, with mock desperation as Trisha bust a gut laughing before finally getting off on her floor.

"See ya around Weir!" Trisha said, the sound of her heels clicking on the tile as she walked off to her station. Benny stood there in the elevator waiting for the doors to close before pulling out his phone and flipping it open.

'I love you more than a star loves hydrogen atoms. I hope your sleeping well E, and just remember how much I love you. You and Elizabeth are my world, and I'd be lost without you. I love you sweetie, see you at lunch time!' Benny texted, smiling to himself as he sent the text and pocketed his phone once more before finally hearing the all to familiar ding of the elevator as it reached his floor. He walked out and turned left at a hallway intersection as he passed his fellow coworkers and colleagues before coming to his cubicle. He set his briefcase down onto his desk before settling down onto his swivel chair and turned his computer on.

"Hey Weir, I'm sorry I had to have you work early again this week. Ethan's not too mad is he?" his boss Robert asked, peering around the corner as he leaned onto the cubicle wall.

"Nah, he will be fine. He's meeting up with me for lunch today as a little date for us both. Tonight him and Elizabeth are preparing a nice dinner for us three, to celebrate Ethan's promotion at work and his first day off in two weeks," Benny said, entering his login information before turning his chair around to look at Robert. Robert was a big muscular man with a buzz cut hairdo, head of the top financial claims business in all of Manhattan.

"Well that's good. I hope y'all enjoy the dinner. Sarah and I are going out tonight, date night away from the kids for once. Anyways, make sure those reports are done by two today. Please and thank you!" Robert sang as he disappeared from view, Benny smiling to himself as he turned around towards his desk and looked at a picture of him, Ethan, and Elizabeth all standing in front of Lady Liberty.

Benny grabbed onto the silver picture frame, tracing his fingers over it before setting it back down and starting in on his reports.

One Hour Later

8:30 AM

Benny stood there at the water cooler, drinking a refreshing cup of water as he mingled with a few coworkers. He looked outside the window at the pristine blue skies, hardly a cloud in them as he looked past skyscraper after skyscraper. He walked back to his desk as he sat down and picked up the phone, calling a client of the company as he waited for the person to answer the phone.

"Hey, what's that object over there in the sky?" came a female voice as Benny ignored the comment, still listening to the dial tone of the phone before a voice message picked up. Sighing to himself, Benny set the phone back down as he opened up his filing cabinet and skimmed through it, looking for the clients information. He could hear soft humming noise in the office, coming from the windows before suddenly a huge shock wave blew the office apart. He felt a enormous gust of wind blow down the cubicle walls as ceiling tiles came crashing down, all the while his coworkers screaming as the lights went out. It felt like a huge earthquake had struck the building as Benny fell to the ground, his swivel chair rolling out from underneath him as his computer came crashing down on top of his leg. He screamed out in pain as the sound of a huge explosion ripped through the whole building, everything lighting up before going dark as Benny's vision grew cloudy before going dark with the rest of the office.

Again, this story is not meant to offend anyone! But I do hope you guys will review! It means a lot to me!