A/N: Because I will never, ever, be over the death of Sean Pierce.

Three words. Technically it could have been two. By dropping the "I" she still would have gotten her point across. Perhaps it would have been a bit more casual. But that's all she would have had to utter. That's all she'd wanted to say for a long time now. She'd never just said it. He'd never heard it. And now he never would.

It took all her concentration to put one foot into the other. To enter that damn building. The truth was, even though she was worried how people would react to seeing her, that wasn't the main reason for her reluctance.

Sean was somewhere in that building. Dead. He'd taken his last breath on the very floor she would be walking on. In fact, the whole facility held memories of the two of them. Some of them were good. In medical, where he told her he loved her. But then he'd walked out. The hallways, where he'd come back, only to leave again. The place where they first met, but where they'd said goodbye forever as well. Seems like everything about Division was bittersweet.

But when she crossed the floor where his body had lain, she stumbled. There was no blood. Shouldn't there be blood? She drew a ragged breath. Had they already swiped away the last of his existence?

Nikita placed a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe you should head over to medical." Alex furrowed an eyebrow, confusion etched on her face. But she went. She was fine. A few bumps and cuts, but they'd fade in time. And Sean...his body would be there. She couldn't handle that.

Despite her reluctance, she headed down to the room Nikita directed her to. She found herself caught up in a scenario. Sean was still alive. It'd all been a lie, and he'd be waiting down there. She'd fling her body into his arms, and-

No. That was wishful thinking. She'd seen the bullet hole. There'd been no exit wound. With her own two eyes, she'd seen his pain. And then he was gone.

When she rounded the corner, her gaze caught sight of something impossible. She thought she'd stopped dead in her tracks, but her feet drew her closer.

It couldn't be. It must be a hallucination. He-

"Alex."

It wasn't a question, it was a statement. A beckoning, a call. It was his voice.

There he was, sitting on the edge of a bed. His chest was bare, and there was a bandage wrapped around his torso. His deep chocolate eyes were so real, so there. She almost believed it. She found herself standing right in front of him, a hand poised to touch. But she couldn't bring herself to do it.

He couldn't be there. He just couldn't. Amanda's mind games. It must not have worn off yet. There's no way.

She didn't want to make contact with his skin. If she reached forward, and felt nothing but air underneath her palms...she couldn't take it.

His warm hand closed around her own. Tears stung in her eyes, and she felt his other hand rest on her back. He drew her closer, wrapping his arms around her. Her hands made her way around his neck and she clung to him. Like he would disappear at any moment. She was sure he would.

This was the most vivid vision yet. His hair was slightly ruffled, making her mind flash to another time. Different circumstances that had caused his hair to become messy. Different positions. His arms felt the same as always. Strong, firm. Those same arms that had held her after nightmares. During intimacy. The same arms that lifted her playfully up a week before when she'd met him at the door with a kiss on the cheek. It all seemed so real. Maybe too real. She wanted it to be real. But it couldn't be.

"I'm here. I'm alive." The hand on her back reached up to caress her cheek, desperate to make her believe. She leaned into his hand, feeling all her emotions well up to the brink.

She shook her head as the tears made their way down her cheeks. His dropped his hand back down to her waist and his arms tightened around her, causing her to sob.

"I-I saw you die. I shared your last breath with you. I felt it Sean. I felt it leave your body, I felt you die!"

He laughed humorously. "You fainted on me again. As soon as I went down and you saw the bullet wound, you were out like a light. Didn't even have time to find the exit wound."

She pulled away to stare at his face. Her eyes roamed over his entire body, down to the bandage on his side. Her breath caught in her throat, mind racing. Dare she believe it? Could she believe it? Was she finally going insane?

But his face. That's what convinced her. His handsome features, although a bit tired, were the same. His eyes, they were filled with worry and relief, and his lips were slightly pursed.

"Really?"

Sean nodded. His hand came up to gently wipe a stray hair away. "Must have been a hallucination your mind conjured. I fell unconscious too, and by the time Sonya and Birkoff found me, you were gone."

Her lips stretched out, curving into a large grin. Her heart raced, as one of her hands found his own, interlocking his fingers with hers. She'd never smiled like this in her entire life. Never had she been so happy, so relieved. "You're real."

It was a statement, but he nodded anyway.

Before he knew what happened, her lips and found his. She pushed into him with enough force to knock him back, and he teetered a bit before regaining his balance. He pulled her onto his one arm slung about her waist, the other slipping under her shirt to skim her waist and stomach. She tore her lips away, trailing them across his cheek, before resting just above his ear. She hovered there. In a shaky whisper, just loud enough for him to hear, she finally said the words she'd wanted to say since another shooting. A different bullet wound, another time, before they were back at Division, before he'd even confessed his feelings to her.

"I love you Sean Pierce."