Disclaimer: I don't own any CSI: NY characters, including Sam. Everything else is a figment of my imagination...that kind of sounds weird. Anyway, enjoy and let me know what you think!

A few days later Audrey called Don early in the morning. She hoped he would be awake. His voice was still raspy from waking up only a few minutes before she called. She told him she was about to go on a run, then asked if he wanted to join her. He agreed and they decided to meet at a newsstand in between their apartments. When Audrey got to the newsstand she waited for Don to come strolling down the sidewalk. She chuckled at how he drug his feet as he walked toward her.

"Come on, old man," she scolded as he got closer. "You'd think you were half asleep or something." She smiled.

"I am half asleep," he replied as he yawned. "And you are the same age as me so don't give me this 'old man' crap."

"Yeah, yeah, let's just run, ok?"she swooped her shoulder-length blond hair into a ponytail.

"Alright, let's do this. The usual route?"

"Sounds good to me." They both stretched a little then started across the street then began their weave through the Lower West Side.

They didn't say much as they ran. Audrey had always told him she wanted to stay focused as she ran, so instead of conversation she preferred to listen to music. So, each equipped with an iPod they continued to run. The weather was getting slightly chilly. It was mid-October and it felt like winter was just around the corner. The leaves of the trees were bright orange and beginning to turn red. They finally reached the newsstand at their halfway point where they would get bottles of water.

Audrey chugged down some water as Don did the same. "Hey," she started. "I forgot to tell you, Sam she found another job and she's just saving now for a down payment on an apartment."

"Oh, yeah, that's great."

Audrey could detect the sarcasm and rolled her eyes.

"What?"

"Nothing," she swallowed down the rest of her water. "Let's just finish."

"I know you're not saying something," he called out to her as he caught up with her.

"Really, Don, I'm fine. It seems like you're the one that can't let it go." She stopped suddenly. "Alright, listen, you get on your sister for all this stupid crap she does, but really have you stopped to think that maybe if you didn't join the PD that maybe you would've gotten caught up in some of the same stuff?"

"I don't need this from you right now." He tried to walk away, but she grabbed his arm.

"Don, come on, don't get mad at me. Just try to look at this from a different angle. I have younger siblings, too. I know what it's like to worry about them."

"So, you're telling me that if Cody was in the same situation that you wouldn't be treating him the way I treat Sam?"

She sighed. "I don't know, Don." She looked away then looked back at him. "I'm sorry I brought it up let's just finish our run." She tried to force a smile.

He didn't say anything, but put his earphones back in his ears and started to jog down the street. Sometimes Don wished he didn't have a younger sister like Sam. She was so reckless with her life. There were a handful of times he or his dad had to bail her out of a tough situation. Now, Sam was dragging Audrey into it. Although Audrey seemed to be pulling herself into it without any begging from Sam. Don didn't really have any right to get mad at Audrey for helping Sam. He knew that if one of Audrey's siblings was in the same state as Sam he would help.

When they finally got to the coffee shop where they would stop, Don went in and got them each a coffee then came out to the table Audrey had picked. They were both silent for the first few minutes as they sipped their coffee and watched the people pass by them.

"Hey," Don started, getting her attention. "I'm sorry about what I said."

She smiled. "I've been your best friend for a long time. There's no way in hell we can actually stay mad at each other. So, it's ok."

"It's because you're my best friend that you can forgive me. Anyone else would call me an ass and move on."

She laughed. "You are an ass, but I still love you anyway."

He chuckled and shook his head. "A little honesty with my coffee."

Audrey looked at her watch. "I gotta go. I need to get some work done. My editor has been breathing down my neck for days." She stood up and he did the same.

"I'm gonna go home and finally get some sleep." They headed to the nearest subway entrance.