Beep. Beep. Beep. Damn. Why did I have to get fired from CSI? I wish I was with Calleigh, but instead I'm working in this dumb grocery store. All I ever do here is scan items and repeat the same line over and over again,"Do you have your Shop N' Save card?" I am expected to do it in a cheery voice , but how can they expect me to be happy working in a grocery store? It is just so tedious! The janitor gets more brain stimulation cleaning the aisles than I do interacting with customers. That's probably due to the fact that a large percentage of the customers are senior citizens. Slow, indecisive senior citizens who are partially deaf and always need help finding their coupons. In my opinion, they might as well get a card because they save more with the card. Plus, the bright lettering makes it easier to find. Another large percentage of my customers is female. And these ladies aren't just some random old bags. Oh no. These women are young ladies and I'm pretty sure I've dated about 50% of them. Okay maybe it's more like 75%. Either way, I don't care because now I have an great life with Calleigh. I love Calleigh, she's my everything. That's why I married her. I sighed. I am such a fiend for her.

I checked my watch. 4:35. Yes! My shift was over in 10 minutes. I worked on my customers until someone came to replace me for the night shift. When I was finally free from that cold prison, I rushed out into the stuffy parking lot and jumped into my car. I quickly started the engine and sped off to the pre-school to pick up my 4- year- old baby girl, Gabriella. Gabriella and Calleigh are the only two things that get me up in the morning and keep my heart beating until I fall asleep. My life is pretty screwed up right now, but at least I know that I have my girls to come home to every day.

Within a matter of minutes, I had reached the pre-school. I walked up to the entrance and stepped inside of the brightly colored, cold building. I still can't get over how big this place is. There were pictures on every wall in every hallway and classroom. Calleigh's friends owned the school so Gabriella came here for free. which was such a relief because of my current situation. I made my way to the afternoon center to pick up my little girl. "Mr. Delko?" A woman's voice asked. I turned around and saw Gabriella's teacher walking towards me.

"Yes?"

"Gabriella's in the infirmary. She wasn't feeling well this afternoon and we contacted Mrs. Delko about her earlier. She was worried and decided to pick her up, but she hasn't shown up. And that was about 4 hours ago." she said checking her watch.

"Wait a minute. You're telling me me that Calleigh hasn't shown up at all? She hasn't called you or anything?"

"Yes." She nodded, her eyes wide with concern. This is freaky. Calleigh was always on time for everything and this was definitely unusual. I had the strongest gut feeling that something was wrong, and I couldn't shake it off. I threw on a fake, reassuring smile anyway.

"It's probably nothing. Something must have come up and she always forgets to charge her phone."

She nodded and smiled. "Alright then. Why don't we go and get Gabriella? She's been asking for you all day." She motioned for me to follow her. That was one thing that I disliked about these teachers. They talked to me like they would their students, really slow and as if I couldn't understand. I followed her to the small white room where Gabriella was fast asleep in the corner. She was sprawled out on a blue cot with her blanket and her little Teddy bear. Her little purple backpack was resting on the wall next to her. I slowly walked towards her. I bent over and shook her lightly. "Gabriella.." She exhaled heavily and rolled over onto her back. I shook her again. "Gabriella..." Her eyes fluttered open. "Daddy" she mumbled. Her voice sounded hoarse and weak. "Princesa, how are you feeling?"

She closed her eyes. "I feel horrible!" she said throwing her hand up to her forehead. I chuckled softly and shook my head. That was something she had definitely picked up from Calleigh. " Come on, Princesa. Let's go home." I said, lifting her up into my arms as I stood up. I bent down to get her bag and I swung it over my shoulder. She wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face in my shoulder as we head out towards the car. I opened the back door and I strapped her into her car seat then I jogged around to the other side of the car to open my car door. I jumped in,buckled up, and drove home.

When I pulled into the driveway there was no sign of Calleigh, which wasn't unusual. Calleigh usually got home later than me on Tuesdays and Fridays because she extended her hours into the night shift. And since it's Friday today, I wouldn't expect her to be home. But that still didn't stop me from worrying. I took Gabriella out of her car seat gently because she had fallen back to sleep and I carried her to the door, then I dug out my house keys and slipped them into the lock. I opened the door and flicked on the light.

Our house was small compared to most houses in Miami. It was pretty simple; 2 bedrooms, 1 and 1/2 bathrooms. It always smelled like food in here, and that was probably due to the fact that we were always cooking. Calleigh and I fought all the time about who would cook. Since we could never agree on it, we just would mix them together creating some....interesting dishes. Gabriella doesn't mind because, just like me, she eats everything. And I mean everything.

I walked upstairs and laid Gabriella on her bed with her bear. I threw a blanket over her because for some strange reason, she enjoys having one even though we're in 100 degree weather. What a strange child. I jogged down the steps to watch some television and wait for Calleigh. Dang. I bet there is going to be nothing good on. I flipped on the news channel. They were showing a surveillance video of an old couple who robbed a convenience store yesterday. I spread out on the couch to watch the rest of it. I almost had almost drifted off to sleep when my phone rang, scaring me out of my peaceful state. I hate modern technology. I flipped it open. "Hello?"

"Eric? Where are you? Are you ASLEEP?! What the hell are you doing at home?"

"......Who is this?" I asked, confused.

" Seriously?? Eric this is Natalia! Why aren't you at the hospital?"

"The hospital? Why would I be there? Is there a problem with someone at the lab?"

"Wait....you don't know?", she asked softly. "Calleigh's in the hospital. She was in a car accident earlier, on the way to a scene. She's in critical condition.....why didn't you get a call?"

I didn't say anything. "We're at Jackson Memorial Hospital. You can bring Gabriella if you need to. You know, if she has nowhere else to go." I nodded but since she couldn't see me, I muttered a brief "thanks" and I hung up. I sat with my head buried in my hands. It took me a moment before I jumped up and raced upstairs to grab Gabriella. She was sitting on her bed, talking to her Teddy bears and she stared at me curiously when I came in. "Daddy, what's wrong? Are you sick?" she asked me sliding off the bed. I smiled slightly at her but it quickly faded away.

"No, Princesa. Mommy is hurt and she's in the hospital. We need to go see her now."

"Okay." She said, slipping on her sneakers. I secured the straps for her and picked out one of her sweaters from her closet in case she got cold. I ran to the coat closet and grabbed a backpack. I rushed back to her room and I filled the bag with a couple of picture books and a few coloring books. I put in her favorite trucks as well because she didn't like dolls. She only liked to read and play with cars and trucks. I took her hand and led her into the kitchen. I put in as many snacks as I could. I also made a quick peanut butter sandwich for her since she didn't have dinner yet. I knew that I would need more things for her but for right now, this was going to have to do. I threw the bag over me shoulder and I led Gabriella out to the car. I strapped her in and threw the bag on the backseat next to her. I was about to shut the door when her little voice yelled out,

"Wait!"

"What is it, Princesa?" I said impatiently. Now, I love my little girl, but she has some bad timing.

"I want to get something for mommy."

I sighed and took off her seat belt. She ran for the front door and waited patiently for me to unlock it. I unlocked it and she ran up towards her room while I waited by the front door.

"Hurry up, Gabi!"

"I'm coming', I'm coming'!" she said. That one was definitely something she got from me.

She came down the steps carrying her favorite bear. It was from when she was a baby. It had old, tattered, brown fur and two different buttons for its eyes; one bigger than the other. Honestly, it gave me the creeps, although it didn't seem to bother Calleigh or Gabriella.

We jumped back into the car and sped off to the hospital. Soon enough we were in the parking lot. I carried Gabriella to the entrance of the hospital, My whole body was tense and my face must have shown what I felt because everyone I walked past threw me looks of remorse and sympathy. This was just like the time when I lost Marisol. No, Lord please don't let this happen again. I couldn't lose Calleigh. I shook the thought out of my head. I would not lose Calleigh. She's a fighter and I know she'll pull through. I walked through the glass doors and scanned the room for the reception desk. The waiting area was full of old people, crying babies, and a bunch of pregnant women who kept looking around the room at other pregnant women. I finally found the receptionist and i walked-well, jogged-over to her desk.

"Excuse me? ......Excuse me?" She was bent over a stack of files, scribbling notes about patients.

"EXCUSE ME?!" I repeated a bit louder, since she obviously wasn't paying attention the first time.

She put her pen down and stared at me with a look of annoyance in her icy, blue eyes. "What do you want?" she said, a hint of a southern accent in her voice.

"Oh, ah, I need to see my wife. It's an emergency."

"Isn't it always" she muttered under her breath. "What's her name?" she said, pushing her desk chair toward the files and away from her desk.

"Calleigh Delko. C-A-L-L-E-I-G-H."

"Calleigh...Calleigh...oh here it is. She's in room 421."

"Thank you." I rushed of in the direction of the elevator and jabbed the 'up' button impatiently. I put Gabriella down and continued to press the button until the elevator FINALLY came to the main level. We filed in, along with about 6 other people. I pressed the 4th floor button and thankfully, we were the first stop. The doors of the elevator shut and it lifted us upward. That elevator was extremely untidy and you would think that a nice hospital like this would have some decent elevators.

We reached our floor and we had to push through the crowd to get through the doors. I must have tightened my grip around Gabriella's hand because she looked up at me and tried to tug her hand out of mine.

"Daddy, ouch." I quickly let go of her hand and rubbed the perspiration off of mine.

"Oh, sorry." I looked up and saw people from the lab. H was the first to see me.

"Eric..."

"H, how is she?'

He hesitated before he answered. "Not too good."

Everyone turned to look at me. All of their faces were filled with a mixture of sadness and anger, but no hope. H took Gabriella's hand and led her back to where the rest of the lab sat. Alexx came over to me with a worried expression on her face.

"Now, Eric," she said in a low voice,"I haven't told everyone else because I wanted to tell you this first. Calleigh has suffered many major injuries. The largest one is a TBI which is a traumatic brain injury. And I don't really want to worry you even more, but I need you to know that there might be a slight chance that she won't wake up. If she does wake up, she'll have a bit of memory loss and lack of concentration. In addition to that, she has a spinal injury which will require therapy for a long period of time in order to recover. Then she has a torn spleen which we stitched up since it was only a small tear, so it should heal just fine over time. She also has a fractured leg and arm. Luckily, these injuries are only temporary, but they will require extensive hospitalization. But Calleigh is strong and she's a fighter." she laid a comforting hand on my cheek. "I also have some more news. The man in the truck that hit Calleigh decided to pay for her entire recovery process since the accident was his fault."

I took all of this in. I didn't know what to say. Alexx understood and pulled me into a warm embrace. She held me for a moment and then let me go. "You should go see her now." I nodded and walked towards her room door.

I slowly pushed it open and stepped in. I shut it quietly behind me and I walked to a set of chairs. It was silent except for the steady beeping of the heart monitor. I sat in the chair next to her bed and stared at her. She looked so fragile. Her skin was pale and covered in scratches and bruises. Her arm and leg were in casts and she was covered in bandages. I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out so I gently lifted her hand and brought it to my lips. I shut my eyes tightly and tried not to think about Marisol, but of course I failed and images of her in the hospital flooded my mind.

Marisol's skin was pale and she looked peaceful, almost as if she was asleep. The room was dead silent except for the continuous beeping of the heart monitor. This cancer was eating away at her, and it could take her life anytime she couldn't fight anymore. It pains me to see how she barely ever lived her life because of the cancer treatments that consumed her schedule, and the pain that was too unbearable for her. Her life was over before it even began, and I couldn't do anything to help her. I walked over to the set of chairs near the wall. I sat in one and pulled it forward so I was sitting closer the bed. I took her thin, fragile hand in mine and I put my head against the edge of the bed. "Lord, please help her through. I need Mari...."

I opened my eyes and stared at her. My eyes flooded with tears. Men don't cry! Men don't cry! Screw it! A tear rolled down my cheek. I sat with her for a half hour, talking to her, praying with her, humming her favorite songs......I didn't know what else to do. So I got up and kissed her softly on the cheek. I walked to the door, giving her one last look, before heading out into the hallway.

Alexx must have told everyone what Calleigh's condition was because they looked worse than before. I wonder what I looked like? Hell, like I care. My heart feels like the Hulk just stomped it to bits and now it's expected to heal itself. I heard a fit of high-pitched giggles to my left. I turned around slightly and guess what I saw? Jake, of all people, tickling my princesa. I hate Jake with a burning passion. I was slightly jealous of him because he still held a special piece of Calleigh's heart. He still loved her and she still had some feelings for him. I could see it in her eyes and I could never tell her how much it hurts me when she looks at him like that. Her feelings are the only thing stopping me from blowing his head off. I mean COME ON! He looks like a fucking Wolverine!! How any girl could fall for him is unclear to me. But for Calleigh's sake, I just had to grin and bear it. Damn.

I focused on something other than the Wolverine for a minute, and I went over to Alexx. "Alexx, I want to stay here with Calleigh but I don't know who Gabriella could stay with. I don't want to keep her here all night, since she has a slight fever, so do recommend anyone?"

"Honey, you don't have to worry. I'll take care of her for as long as you need me to. Besides, I have a key for the house, so I can get whatever I need if you're not home."

"Are you sure, Alexx?" Because Gabriella can be quite a handful sometimes...."

"I'm sure. I had two babies of my own at one point, remember?"

"Right. Thanks, Alexx. I owe you one."

"No you don't. Just stay here with Calleigh and don't worry about it."

I smiled. Isn't she just the best? "Gabriella!" I called

"Yes, Daddy?"she came running over.

"You're going to sleep over Aunt Alexx's house for awhile. She frowned and pouted a little.

"Why? I want to stay with you!"

I crouched down on the Linoleum floor to meet her eyes. "Now, Princesa, you know Mommy is sick, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

"And you know I need to stay with her, right?"

She nodded and sniffled."I wanna stay, too"

"Princesa, you can't stay with me right now, but I'll come and see you tomorrow."

"You promise?"she asked softly.

"I promise."

"Okay, I'll go with Aunt Alexx. But can you give this to mommy?" She handed me her Teddy bear.

I nodded and kissed her on the forehead. She wrapped her arms around my neck, squeezing the heck out of it.

"Alright - Princesa - Go - with - Aunt - Alexx - now." She released my neck and kissed me on the cheek. Hallelujah.

"Bye daddy!" She ran off and grabbed Alexx's hand.

Alexx had gathered all of her things into her bag. I stood up and thanked her again. "No problem, baby" she said.

When they left, I went to buy Calleigh some tulips. I bought a bouquet of white tulips in the gift shop on the second floor and took them up to her room. I slipped Gabriella's bear under Calleigh's arm, then I gently set the vase of tulips on the table beside her bed. I sat down in a chair and stared at her until I fell asleep.