Yo.

J'ai mal a tete. So I'm just gonna write, okay? Review, s'il vous plais... (Just had french, natch...) (E/N: Thank you online translators!)

Okie dokie, let's rock and roll.

Also, I just found out my best friend has had a boyfriend for a couple of weeks, and didn't tell me. When someone asks out someone four years younger than them, I get freaked. So if I upset you hon, I'm sorry. Just don;t want you to get hurt. And I still don't like him on principle, but if you do, that's all that matters. And yeah folks, I have used the 'break her heart I break your face' line. 6'2... so what? I pack a punch!

Anna :)

Discliamer: I now own CSI:NY s5!!! Yay!

How long will this take
How much can I go through
My heart, my soul aches
I don`t know what to do
I bend but don`t break
And somehow I`ll get through
Cause I have you

Pain.

It was all Jess could feel. Pain in her stomach. Pain in her chest when she breathed. Pain her head when she moved even a millimetre...

Hot pain, stabbing pain, aching pain...

Just... pain.

But pain was good. Pain was definitely good - it meant she was alive. And if she was alive, she was with Don.

With an enormous amount of effort, Jess opened her eyes, blinking rapidly as her sore eyes adjusted to the bright lights of the hospital room. She could see her mother, bending over her, face full of concern. She tried to speak, but her mouth felt like sawdust. She forced herself to swallow, and manage to choke out "Don".

Someone squeezed her right hand. She twisted her head to see Don sat close to her, his blue eyes showing nothing but sympathy and support. He always was good at hiding his feelings from her. She wasn't fooled for a second. She must look like hell - she knew for damn sure she felt like it.

"Baby..." He mom whispered, stroking her cheek. "You're safe, okay? You're alright."

Don leaned forwards slightly. "You gave us one hell of a scare, Angell. I know you hate paperwork, but this is kinda an extreme way to get out of it, huh?"

She winced as she laughed. "I hate hospitals."

Flack looked at Sherry. "She'll be fine."

Sherry nodded in response. "I'll go find Cliff. He'll want to be here."

"Could you grab Messer as well? Thanks." As soon as Sherry was clear from the room, Don leaned forwards and kissed Jess gently on the cheek, resting his forehead lightly to hers. "Jesus, Jess. I wake up and find you covered in blood next to me... thought I was gonna have a damn heart attack!"

"How close?" She asked grimly.

He paused.

"How close?" she repeated, holding his gaze.

"Enough to scare me, that's for sure." he informed her with a wry smile. "I'm glad you're okay, Jess."

"Kiss me." She told him.

Flack raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Well, at this point I'd kiss you 'cause you're so sweet. But since I'm in a hospital bed hooked up to a whole load of machines, you're gonna have to come here, aren't you?"

He laughed at her reasoning, but bent down to her, and pressed his lips gently to hers. She responded slowly, raising the hand that wasn't hooked up to an IV and resting it against his cheek.

They sprung apart when Danny knocked on the door. "Uh, yeah." Flack called, sitting back down.

Danny glanced at Angell. "Hey, Detective. How you feelin'?"

She gave him a look. "Like I've been stabbed."

"That would make sense."

Stella stuck her head into the room. "Can I come in?"

Jess smiled. "Hey, Stell."

"Hey kiddo. How you holding up?" She asked gently, sitting in the spare seat next to Don.

"Been better."

Stella glanced at Flack, whose eyes were fixed on Angell. "We've not been able to drag this one away He left once to grab a shower and change his clothes, is all."

Jess twisted to face him. "Oh yeah? You worryin' about me, Flack?"

"You're my partner, and you'd been stabbed." He deflected neatly. "Course I was worried."

"Uh-huh." Stella gave him a disbelieving look. "And that's the only reason you were worried, was it?"

Jess blushed furiously. "Stell, shut up."

Her parents came back in, and Don leaned back, his demeanor changing from his usual self to someone far more reserved and distant. Stella noted the change, and reckoned it to be due to the arrival of Cliff Angell. After all, no-one like meeting the father for the first time. Don even less so with his slight commitment issues. She doubted he'd met any of his girlfriends' parents - they hadn't stuck around long enough.

Until now.

"Hey, Jess." Cliff smiled, taking a seat on the opposite side of the bed.

"Don't ask how I'm feeling." she warned him.

"Wasn't gonna. You've always hated hospitals."

"But with Matt as a brother, usually I end up in 'em." chuckled Jess. "As a patient and a visitor..."

Flac stood up. "I'm gonna take a walk."

She looked confused. "Don..."

"Jess, you don't need me here." He told her gently. "Besides, I gotta eat!"

Danny frowned as Flack headed out, his gaze flitting between Don's retreating back and Jess' confused, and slightly hurt expression. "I'll go." He sighed, silently trying to tell Jess he was fine, though in truth he had no idea what was going on with his friend.

When Danny found Flack, he was stood in the parking lot, rubbing his face with the heel of his hand. His face was pale, and he looked distracted. "Flack... what the hell was that?" he frowned.

"What, Messer?"

"You just walking out like that. Your girlfriend almost died, and you just walked out."

Flack turned away. "I had to get some air."

"Oh, it's air now? Before, it was food."

He rounded on the smaller man. "What the hell is your problem, Messer? Can't you just leave it?"

"No, I can't. You're my friend, but so is Angell. You didn't see the look on her face when you walkedout. Sure, she has me, Stella and her folks there, but she wants you. In case you forget, you're the one she turns to when she need support. And just so you know, she doesn't hate hospitals I know, I've worked assault cases with her. That terrify her." Danny exclaimed. "She's probably scared to death being fastened into that bed, unable to just get out. What she needs is you there, holding her hand and telling her everything's gonna be okay, she'll be fine, and you won't leave her side."

"And what if it's not enough, Danny?" Flack cried, looking desperately at his friend. "I should have taken care of her. Made her come to the damn hospital when I saw the state of her after that scumbag got into it with her. But I didn't. I let her down. And I... I can see what she has with her family... I can't do that. I'm her partner, Danny. If I care about her at all, I should just let her be with someone that can help her. I can't be her prince, someone to rescue her. I can't be the one she needs. I can't do this!"

(A/N: I have a lump in my throat. I actually do.)

Danny smacked his friend in the arm. "Don, if she was looking for princes and someone to take care of her, she would never have become a cop. She wants you because you're not perfect; you don't look like an Abercormbie model, (A/N: pfft. I think he does, but Messer wouldn't...)(E/N: SQUEE!) you don't have the perfect job, you don't try to be her safety net. If you care about her whatsoever, you'll get your ass back inside and be there for her. If she wants help, she'll ask. And as for rescuing her? She's trying to rescue you at the same time, Flack. You're both broken, you've both been alone. Neither one of you knows how to lead a normal life. She's saving you. Don't forget that."

Flack nodded. "Thanks, Danno."

"No problem." He gave him a brief hug. "Now get over yourself and get back to your girl."

Once Don had gone, Lindsay stepped forwards. "Oprah, eat your heart out." she whispered, kissing him lightly on the lips.

"I did okay?" he murmured.

"You did okay," she confirmed, wrapping her arms round his waist and resting her cheek against his chest. "Better than okay. They'll be fine."

A/N: Hahahahaha! See, I'm gonna put DL in here from now on, thanks to watching too many clips on youtube. I've decided to ship them. E/N: You've gone to the DARKSIDE! Nah, I'm kidding. A/N: Hey! I still ship DnA before them! And FA, of course...

Jess' eyes were wide as Flack swept back into the room, and he calmly retook his seat. "They were all out of Nutter Butters." he shrugged.

She grinned at him, and the smile widened as he reached forwards and took her hand in his, running a thumb over the back, avoiding the IV line. "Shame."

"Not really." He replied. "So... this about you being a patient... you wanna tell me about that?"

"Need to know." She retorted.

"I'm your partner, Angell. I do need to know. Especially if it's gonna affect-"

"Not gonna happen, Flack!"

Cliff grinned. "Her brothers made a tree house when Jess was six. She got mad 'cause they could all climb up and she was too little, so, decided to try one Saturday. Needless to say, it resulted in a hairline fracture to the ankle, a broken wrist and six hours in the Emergency Department."

Flack burst out laughing, partly at Jess' irritated look.

"Thanks, Dad."

"Jess, you're so like my sister. Except she broke her leg 'cause my brother pushed her..." Flack frowned. "Though it gave her space to doodle during double maths."

"How old were you all?" Stella asked.

"Sam was thirteen, I was sixteen and Jimmy was seventeen."

"And her pushed her out of a tree?"

Don smirked. "Yep."

Sherry rolled her eyes. "And I thought our family was dysfunctional..."

Flack squeezed Jess' hand lightly, just so she knew they were okay. After all, Danny was right. If Flack cared for Jess, he needed to protect her. And the best way to do that was to be with her. Killing two birds with one stone, he decided.

A/N: Well. Sorry for Flack's slight brake down, but it was the result of listening to the Bandslam soundtrack. Ledgend. Also, anyone see the feature in S4 p2 of CSI:NY bonus features about filming in the big city, and the FA feature?? I squee'd. Seriously...

And I've picked my A-levels! What a week. Chemistry, Maths, Physics and French. Oh, boy...

E/N: YAY! Hi peoples. Sarah here. :D :D :D I'm so bored. And on a sugar and all A's report card buzz. Plus, my BF kissed me on the cheek. Okay, sorry, Buh Bye, Kissies!~Sarah

A/N: Well, Sarah's life is way more interesting than mine. Me, I'm bored. I need Don Flack to entertain me... Oooh, maybe I can put him on my list for santa?! Yes, I still do it. It makes me smile!