A\N: I thought I would shed some T & G love after the ending of the The Last Visit: Life in London. Enjoy!

A MIDNIGHT RUN

I heard a gunshot. There was blood in his shirt. I saw him fall down.

I couldn't breathe. I yelled and ran to him. Blood was streaming down his chest and down the road. By the time I reached him it was too late. I heard their voices and the screeching of a car. My palms felt sweaty. I tossed and turned around my bed. I couldn't remember how to breathe.

"Come back, please" I begged him, holding his head in my hands.

I jolted awake. I looked around my room and everything was still the way it was. The chair beside my table still holding the sweater I had thrown off earlier. My door was still shut with the three locks. I tuned to my bedside table and read the time

11:54 PM

Putting on my sweats I closed the zipper and got down and tied my running shoes. Reading myself I opened my apartment door and prepared myself for a run. Going down the stairs I hastily walked past the other doors and finally out the building. I felt a gush of fresh air hit me. Closing the door behind me I started down the narrow street. By the fifth house I picked up my pace and began running like I always did at midnight. I looked forward and the images got blurry and distorted. I ran faster with every second and I felt the pain in my ankle return. I closed my eyes and ran even faster. Memories of my father came to me. His laugh and silly jokes, the way he would dance with me, his warm embrace. I wanted to go back in time and change it. But I was too afraid. I was too afraid of relieving that day.

I felt the wind pick up and decided by the end of the corner I would go back. It was dark and foggy. Not a single person in sight.

Turning the corner I saw a quick figure disappearing. Slowing down I tried to squint to see better but it was too dark.

"Is somebody there?" I could feel a presence near me. I stood still with my eyes wandering the street.

"Who's there?"

"Don't move" I felt his breathe run down my shoulder.

I tried to calm down but fear overpowered my mind.

"Please don't kill me" I whispered

"Don't move"

He was behind me, close enough to feel his pants blowing on my legs. Not daring to turn around I talked to him looking straight forward, praying that tonight would not be my last night

"Who are you?"

"Your worst nightmare"

1:15 AM

I opened my eyes but it was still dark. I felt something covering my eyes. It smelt like ash.

"Hello"

I heard footsteps drawing near and then stop

"I'm not here to hurt you" he said

"Then why am I tied to a chair?"

"So you won't run"

"From you, no" I didn't know how I was able to be sarcastic when I flinched everytime time he would come close to me

"Don't test me"

"...I'm scared"

"You should be" he said

"Can I…have something to drink?"

"No"

"Are you going to kill me?"

"….I'm thinking about it"

2:45 AM

I heard him come in again and pull a chair and sit next to me

"Gabriella Montez, twenty-three years old, works in a fashion magazine but you don't like it, you saw your Dad get shot in Stanson Street and you've never recovered since"

Still covered by the cloth I turned his way "How do you know that?"

"Lucky guess"

"What do you want from me?"

"I don't know… what have you got?"

"Nothing, I don't have anything on me right now but if you take me home you can have whatever you want, I promise"

"Huh, you're a smart girl aren't you? I let you go you, you run and go to the cops and rat me out"

"No I won't, I promise"

"Well Ms. Montez promises to me are worth zilch, so don't even bother"

"…What's your name? You know everything about me but I know nothing about you"

"…Troy"

"Troy" she tried the name out and shook her head "It doesn't suit you"

"Then what does Ms. Montez?"

"You sound like a Gunther, Slit or a Chase"

I heard him stand and seconds later felt his breath near me "Listen here, I'm not your friend nor will I ever be"

He said and sat back down. I sat there not knowing where I was or what would happen to me, but all I could think about was my father.

2:58 AM

I must've fallen asleep because I heard my chair being dragged and something was placed on the table

"Eat" he ordered

"I'm not hungry"

"I'm not gonna tell you again"

"I can't see"

He untied my hands but strengthened the knot around my legs and shoulders "You don't need your eyes to eat, and if you take that bandana off, I'll slit your throat"

I quivered and searched for the spoon around my table. Grabbing it I pulled my plate closer and it burnt my hands

"It's hot" he said smugly knowing telling me that after I had been burnt was pointless

"Thanks" I picked up my spoon and tried to feel what I was eating. It felt smooth yet thick

"It's hazelnut soup" he said

"…That's my favorite"

"I know"

Taking a sip he said "It's not poisoned, if that's what you thinking"

"It wasn't what I was thinking? I was thinking about…my father and how he loved to make it for me"

"Your father, he meant everything to you, didn't he?"

"Yes"

"I'm sorry about… him"

Though I couldn't see him I looked up "Thank you, Troy"

"Yeah" he said and cleared his throat, I could tell he was uncomfortable and that things were getting personal

"Call me when you're done" he said standing up

"I will"

And the door closed. Waiting a few minutes I heard nothing and grabbed the spoon and tried to cut the thick robe behind her back.

"Come on" I tried stretching my hand further and cutting deeper "Come on, please"

"Just because I closed the door doesn't mean I went out" he said in the silence

"Please, let me go"

"Now you know why I don't trust or believe in promises" he said grabbing the spoon from my hands

"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME? WHAT" Troy ignored me and I heard him take the plate from the table and walk away

"DON'T BE A COWARD"

"I WANT YOU TO FIGHT, GODDAMMIT, I WANT YOU TO FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE, I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT BEING ALIVE DOESN'T MEAN YOU'RE ALIVE IF YOU'RE NOT LIVING YOUR LIFE" That was the last thing I heard him say before he slammed the door

3:27 AM

"TROY" I called

"WHAT" he opened the door minutes later

"Can I have a glass of water?"

"No"

"Please, I know you don't like me but please don't treat me like trash"

"That's the way you deserve to be treated"

Hiding my hurt I asked "Why"

"Because you live like that Gabriella, your Dad's dead, boo-hoo get over it, I lost my entire family in 9\11 but you don't see me shutting out the people who are alive and still care for me"

"…You lost your family?"

I asked and seconds later heard him sigh and walk closer to me and grab the chair

"…Yeah"

"How did you deal with it?"

"They say one day at a time but that doesn't really help, it only makes it worse, so I went to confession"

"Confession?"

"Yes confession, I told the father that I was planning on killing myself because it was just too hard"

"…What did he say?"

"He told me to do it, but before I do, to think of all the people I will be leaving and hurting after my death"

"Did you?"

"Yeah I thought of my neighbor" he said smiling

"Your neighbor?" I giggled

"I didn't have any other family so I thought of him"

"What was his name?"

"Nathan, he was, ah, builder and he constantly asked us for sugar, so I thought if I died who would he borrow sugar to, he was a bit shy"

"Did you ever tell him?"

"No…I never told him that he saved my life"

"...What do you look like?"

"What do you think I look like?"

"I don't know… can I touch your face"

Troy was about to say no but I held out my hands and although he convinced himself he didn't want to, I knew he wanted me to touch him. He dragged the chair closer and sat there for a while. I held out my hands again and felt his soft face on my hands. I felt his eyes, his cheeks, his chin and small locks of his hair. I touched his head and his hair felt so soft. I hoped he looked the way I imagined. I prayed when he finally took off this bandana on my face I would see the man that was drawn on my face.

"So"

"I think that you're tall, short hair, kind, funny and… I think you like me"

He grabbed my hands and held them in front my face. Though I knew his hands would leave a mark I asked him something I never thought I ever would

"Will you kiss me?"

"I can't…"

"I want you to kiss me"

I felt him leaning in and seconds later felt his hesitant lips on mine and in that moment I knew one thing: I wanted to found out who this Troy was. He let go of my hands and I placed them on his face again, kissing him more. We fell deeper and more into the act and we both knew at some point we would have to stop. He held my hands again and stopped. I didn't what he was doing but he stood and I heard him open a drawer and pull something out. He closed it shut and grabbed my hand and I felt a gun in my hands

"Shoot me"

"…What"

"Shoot me"

"Why"

"Because I told you too" he said

"No" she said

"No" he asked her

"No" she confirmed

"Well, I guess I have to kill you"

"Why"

I felt his breathe close to me again "I told you, I'm not your friend"

"Troy, why are you doing this?"

"I told you, you need to learn that you want to fight, you want to live, you're just too afraid to"

"Why me? Why now"

"Gabriella, if you don't shoot me, I will kill you, I can gurantee that"

"Troy I know you feel something for me, I know we've just met but I can feel that you feel something for me, I can feel it"

"It doesn't matter what I feel I need to complete the job nonetheless"

"What job"

"Gabriella-"

"What job"

"...Your mother hired me"

"My mother hired you…to do what?"

"To make you fight again"

"I'm not following you"

"…She told me that after your father died you stopped trying, you lock yourself in your room, you don't eat, you've been in hospital twice…she wants to save you"

"She wants to save me by hiring a guy to scare me to death"

"Gabriella, you're missing the point"

"THEN WHAT IS THE POINT?"

"If you carry on like this you're gonna die, and I was hired to re-enact the moment that changed that your life"

"I don't believe this"

"SHOOT ME"

"Take this gun away from me"

"SHOOT ME"

"TAKE IT AWAY FROM ME"

He pushed it in my hand and I felt it burn on my hands, I saw those men, holding it "Take it away Troy" I cried

"SHOOT ME" he yelled

"I CAN'T"

"You're a coward, fight, Gabriella, fight"

"I can't"

"FIGHT"

"I can't do it Troy, please take it away"

"NO I'M YOUR LIFE" he hit me "I'M HARSH" he hit me harder "I'M CRUEL, I HURT YOU, I DISAPPOINT YOU" he took the gun and slapped me with it "I DON'T UNDERSTAND YOU, I DON'T FEEL ANY REMORSE"

He kicked me "WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO? YOU'RE JUST A COWARD, YOU'RE PATHETIC, USELESS" he bent down and whispered in my ear "You're just a piece of trash I can throw anything in"

I cried as his words hurt me like a thousand knives in different parts of my body. I cried as hard as I could, I wanted to hit him, I wanted to kill him, but I couldn't

"I watched your father die, I saw him turn to nothing"

Though I couldn't see him I looked at him

"SHOOT ME" He yelled and I removed the bandana I could've removed a long time ago and grabbed the gun from his hands and shot him four times in the chest. I saw him fall to the floor. I saw my father lying there. I couldn't breathe. I ran to him but it felt like my feet where too slow. I saw people standing in the street, gasping. I reached my father but he was already dead. I shook him as hard as I could but he lay still, unmoving. I heard the car screeching and driving away as fast as it could. His eyes were wide open. I begged him to come back but he didn't.

I saw Troy for the first time. He was beautiful. Nothing like I had expected, he was far beyond my expectations. He also didn't move. I loved him and I shot him.

He coughed and turned to the side "Well, it took you long enough"

Hearing his voice was like a breath of fresh air. I took a deep breath and he stood holding his chest

"I shot you" I said disbelieving

"Bulletproof vest"

"This whole time?" I asked and he nodded

"I can't believe this"

"Gabriella, I believe you have just claimed your life back"

4:50 AM

We sat in an all night diner. I couldn't believe what had just happened, it all felt like a dream, unreal.

"So my mother really hired you to act out the moment that killed my father?"

"Yes"

"And you're a cop?"

"Yes"

"Did she pay you?"

"No, sometimes when the Docs can't help people with a traumatic experience usually the best way to help them is to take them to the scene of the crime and act like it's happening again, in front of them"

"What's so different about the second time?" I asked

"Well the second time they know what to expect and they have a chance of changing it, kind of like changing fate"

"Do I look healed?"

"Well you referred to your father without getting emotional so, I'd say we've made some improvement"

"We've"

"I mean you; I meant you've made some improvement"

I leaned in "Tell me Troy, when you kissed me, was that a part of the act too?"

"…Yes of course…I had to make it look real"

"Okay"

"I'm sorry for hitting you by the way"

"It's okay, you probably did more good than bad, and at least I know you saved my life"

5:07 AM

He walked down to my apartment and although we had not talked about us, he asked to hold my hand.

"I'm sorry again for hitting you"

I slapped him on his chest "Even"

He smiled and said "Even"

We reached my building "This is me"

"I know"

"Thank you Troy, for everything"

"Don't thank me" he said reminding me of my mother and I nodded in acknowledgement

"So"

"So"

We stared at each other for a long time before I had to break it

"It's dawn" Troy said and I laughed

"Goodnight Troy"

"Goodnight"

I walked to the door and unlocked it before I turned and looked at him looking at me "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah" he said, putting his hands in his pockets and walked away and I closed the door behind me

5:59 AM

I held a mug of hot chocolate and my teddy in my other hand cuddled in a warm blanket watching T.V. By the T.V stand stood a picture of my father, the picture that always brought painful memories was now a reminder that my father would always love me. Looking at his picture brought a smile on my face. Though I would always miss him, my heart didn't ache for that kind of love from a man anymore. I thought of his face, blindfolded, touching him. I wondered how long 'later' was and seconds later heard the doorbell. Getting up from my soft spot on the couch I put on my slippers and tiredly walked to the door.

Opening it stood Troy, concentrating in his watch "Hey" I smiled but he continued looking at his watch

"Is something wrong?"

"It's just my watch" he said

"What, is it broken?"

"No, I was trying to figure out if an hour and eight minutes qualify as 'later'"

He looked up and smiled at me.

THE END

I loved writing this story and I hope you did too. Please review

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