A cough, "You're on top of me."

"Not an entirely new feeling..."

"Kimberly..."

Kim slowly rolled off of Kerry and onto her back. "Any new injuries?"

Kerry shook her head, then groaned. "I think we've lost some space here."

"Don't forget, it's dark. I'm serious Ker, are you okay?"

There was a long pause, "I'd guess a concussion..."

"What? You were under me." Kerry was silent, "Kerry, don't go away on me luv..."

"Huh... Sorry. The first bump on the head probably did it."

"How can you tell?"

"I don't remember anything before waking up in rubble. I remember talking to you, and then... nothing. Also, I lost consciousness. I'd say you should check my pupils, but unless you've got X-Ray vision or have a pair of night vision goggles in your back pocket..."

"X-Ray wouldn't help..."

"What?"

Kerry's eyes had adjusted enough that she could see something, probably Kim's hand move up to her head. "X-Ray, I'd be able to see inside the eye, not the... never mind..."

There was silence, then out of the blue Kerry spoke, "Do you bleive in God?"

A snort of laughter came from where Kim still lay. "In general or right now?" She paused for only a portion of a second, "No, don't asnwer that, and yes, I do..."

"But, you're a doctor, a scientist... the creation..."

"The creation is only one part of believing in God." Kerry could practically hear Kim's brain working as they both lay there in the dark. "When... Seven days right, forty billion years. People assume because the New Testement is Semi-Literal when it comes to some stuff that the Old is too... How did evolution happen, we had light, big bang, then the formation of the sun, the the Earth. Then plants, the animals evolved, finally, us..." Kim paused, "You need to talk Ker, not me... I didn't bash my head in..."

"Did you lose consciousness..."

"Yes, so.. I'm a hard head remember?"

"Hard ass..."

"You'd know..."

Kerry gave a laugh, but it disolved into a coughing fit. When she caught her breath she spoke, "Sorry..."

"Don't be, it's called gallows humor. It's healthy."

"Gallows would suggest we're going to die."

Kim parried back, "So, we need to find a piece of wood to block the guillotine blade..."

Kerry shook her head, "You always choose the hard way. It's easier to simply pull your head out of the way."

"And you Ker, always first you think about running away..."

Kerry pushed herself up and immediately regretted it. The groan echoed in their small space. Kerry felt Kim's hand on her stomach, "You okay Ker?"

Kerry took a breath, "Just pain." Kerry patted Kim's hand, "Really, I just shouldn't have moved."

After a second Kim removed her hand and scooted over to sit next to Kerry. "You were going to mutter inanely at my point..."

"I wasn't running away."

"Looks like running, feels like running, smells..."

Kerry interupted Kim, "You're, 32 right. So let's say you came out to yourself at eighteen."

"Sixteen..."

"Fine, sixteen years you've had to come to grips with who you are, who you love. I've had... what, six months, and, I don't even know... I mean, I know, but... You're treating me like I've been out myself for more multiple decades when I don't even know..."

Kim was silent, "What do you know?"

"I don't know. I loved my husband, Ellis, Mlungisi."

"Mlungisi?"

Kerry frowned into the darkness, "I haven't told you about Mlungisi? I...I had to have..."

Kim gave a bump to Kerry's shoulder. "We haven't done a whole lotta talking lately."

Before Kerry could speak a voice came through the wall. "Anyone in there?" They heard a bark.

Kim scrambled towards the voice and gave an answering yell, not knowing where the voice was coming from. "Yes, we're in here..."

Kerry didn't mumbled, "They have a dog out, how long has it been?"

"Are you okay?"

"We're bumped, but alive..."

"How many of you are the..."

"Two."

There was a pause, "It's going to take a bit, stay where you are."

Kim gave one last yell, "We were planning on taking a vacation."

There was no response from the other side of the debris. Kim came back over to where Kerry sat. "Who is Mlungisi?"

Kim was surprised when Kerry laughed, "Who wasn't he? I met him during my time in Africa."

"With your parents?"

Kerry nodded, "I was the nerdy white girl missionary with the crutch and bright red hair." Kim smiled, "He saw through all that to the real me."

"Which real you?"

Kerry stared at Kim, then realized that it was still dark and Kim couldn't see the look that Kerry was giving her. "We're in the desk... can you see any shelves across from us?" All Kerry heard was silence and breathing, "Kim?"

Kim shook her head, "Sorry, visualizing where we are. We're in the left side of the admit desk on the back side that faces chairs?"

"Yes... I can feel Jerry's tupperware that he never takes home and has started to smell sticking into my back."

"Okay." Kerry watched Kim's shape move towards where they both assumed was the other side of the admit desk, then Kim's shape paused. "I feel, wait... okay, I think they're a pack of batteries. Either that, or a six pack of beer." There was silence for a few more seconds, "Got the flashlight." Kerry closed her eyes as Kim switched on the flashlight. Then frowned, "What's wrong?"

Kerry waved off Kim as she came closer, "I'm fine." She slowly opened her eyes. "I have enough of a headache as it is, don't need the light making it worse." Kerry winced and glided her fingers along a partially dried cut on Kim's face. "You didn't say anything."

Kim shrugged, "Wouldn't have helped. I know it wasn't too deep."

Kerry put her hand to her face the closed her eyes as her breath hitched. "Kim sat facing Kerry. "Kerry..."

Kerry opened her eyes again and shook her head, "I'm okay, too much going on at once is all." She paused, "You were insulting me? I was telling you about Mlungisi, after which you were going to tell me who the Lori is..."

Kim blinked, "Lori, she's uh... she's my sister." Kerry shook her head, "What, I wanted to hurt you as much as you hurt..." Kim took a deep breath, "How the hell do you spell his name?"

This coaxed a small smile from Kerry which was almost immediately wiped away. "Your sister... you wanted to..." Kerry took her own deep breath, "M-L-U-N-G-I-S-I. He was my first boyfriend, as well as my... friend with benifits for a while as well..."

Kim coughed and looked up, meeting Kerry's eyes, "What... did you just say?"

Kerry shrugged, "I've had hard times in my life. He's someone who knows everything about me and has always, will always be there."

"Even..."

Kerry nodded, "Who do you think put some transatlantic sense into my head between your guerilla kiss and our talk in Doc Magoos."

"Guerilla, it wasn't that bad a kiss..."

Kerry gave a snort of laughter, "Guerilla as in, you made me jump out of my skin with surprise."

"You weren't listening to my words, I had to do something. So, Mlungisi, I'm assuming you two didn't go to a whole lto fo semi-formals?"

Kerry smiled, "No. But my first kiss was with him as well as..." Kerry trailed off, "But I moved away, and we both grew up. But..." Kerry trailed off again and put a hand against her forehead.

"Close your ears."

"What?"

Kim put a finger in each ear, demonstrating. Kerry raised her eyebrows, but did what Kim said. She heard Kim yell through the debris, but couldn't tell exactly what the blonde doctor was saying. After a moment she also closed her eyes as well. Her head felt like it was going to pop off her neck and roll onto the ground. A little time went by before she felt Kim's hand on her shoulder. She took her fingers from her ears.

"They're working. The woman's name is Sandy Lopez, fireman, woman, person, whatever... It'll be a while before they get to us though. You're Ms. Preparedness, where's the first aid kit?" Kim felt the now clotted cut on her head.

Kerry pointed to the right, where there was a wall of ceiling and walls. "Sorry."

"This was not your fault Ker..."

"Unlike everything else. If it weren't for my... sentiment, you wouldn't have been by the desk."

Kim inclined her head, "That's true." Kerry leaned her head back and didn't speak, but Kim continued. "You were going to tell me a story."

"You don't give a damn Kim, I can see it in your face."

Kim closed her eyes, "Have you ever looked deeper than my skin Kerry?"

Kerry was aghast, "You accuse me of what, racism now? Homophobia? I'm in love with you, and truly and utterly loved a fucking African born man. How then..."

Kim put a hand over Kerry's mouth, "Shut up. I'm not saying you're a racist... though your inner homophobe was yelling her head off when I met you..." She shook her head and removed her hand, "I wasn't talking about my skin color, or even my sexual orientation. I'm talking about me... the inner me, the real me... From the moment I met you, do you think I even saw your crutch. Hell Kerry, I even saw through your bitchy facade. But you... It ripped me apart when you asked me to stay quiet at work." Kerry started to speak, but Kim held a finger up. "I understood, mostly, but then..." Kim closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders. She was starting to get a throbbing pain in between her shoulder blades. "Then you walked out of my apartment while I was being talked at by the police officers." She opened her eyes, "And then the... my hearing with Romano, that farce of a thing..." she paused, "There's some religion for you. Were you feeling Peter that day Kerry?"

Kerry jerked up as Kim took the redhead's hand and placed it over her heart. "I have a heart. I may look in total control. I'm the rock, but I needed someone to lean on too, and you couldn't see that, couldn't acknowledge it, or didn't want to, or..."

Kim trailed off, but Kerry didn't speak up either. Neither knew how much time had gone by before Kim sat up so fast that Kerry thought the blonde would pass out. "Shit Kerry, say it again..."

"What? What, I didn't say any..."

Kim made a rewind motion with her finger, "Before I started ranting..."

Kerry frowned, "I'm not a racist or a homophobe?"

"No, after that..."

Kerry raised an eyebrow, "I was madly in love with Mlungisi?"

"No, no, you said you love me."

"No, I'm in love with you... Am I the only one having a bit of emotional whiplash here?"

"Do you?"

Kerry took a hold of both of Kim's hands in each of her own. "Kim. I haven't known a lot of love in my life, I can practically count those who have truely loved me on one hand, but yes, when I look into your eyes I get lost in them, and yet don't really want a life preserver, but just want to drown. I think that means that I love you."

Kim captured Kerry's face in her hands and kissed the chief of the ER with all the energy that she had left. Then sat back a little and smiled, "I love you too, and that was the worst sentence you've ever spoken..."

Kerry raised an eyebrow, "Well, you can be quite... flustering... Kim."

"Who me?"