A/N: Guys, I've been trying to update for a week! It was so frustrating! I kept getting an error message. Anyway, I'm so sorry it's taken such a long time to get the next chapter. On the plus side, I got the chance to write a ton of chapters, so I will update really often. Please R and R!

John rode in the ambulance along with Casey. He held her hand the whole way, its cold fragility the only thing holding him to reality. It had been a surreal morning.

He knew she would be alright. She had a concussion and one or two cracked ribs, but her life was not in danger. Even with that knowledge, however, John was still so worried he could not think about anything else. He was operating on autopilot, doing what came naturally, and as such it did not even cross his mind that the nature of his and Casey's relationship was finally out. No one at the precinct misinterpreted his reaction as mere friendly concern. It was more, much more.

When Casey said the man was Charlie, John's heart dropped into his stomach. He experienced more reactions at once than ever before. First and foremost, he was sorry for Casey. She told him about Charlie and his schizophrenia a few weeks into their relationship, and John, as someone very adept at hiding his own emotions, was not fooled by Casey's contrived nonchalance. He knew it broke her heart to break off the engagement and that she felt incredibly guilty to have left, even though she really had no other option. For Charlie to show up, call her a bitch, and drag everything back up was inexcusable. It was no wonder Casey had been so shocked to see him.

The selfish part of John resented Charlie long before he appeared at the precinct. Casey had not told him much about their relationship, but John knew that she was anything but flighty. She had been deeply in love with Charlie; there was no other way she would have been engaged to him. It was not just a fling. And John did not like to admit that Casey could love anyone but him. It had taken him so long to find her…and she was perfect for him. He thought he was perfect for her, but then he wondered why she had been engaged. Charlie must have been more perfect for her.

"John?" she whispered, breaking him out of his reverie.

"I'm right here, Casey," he said immediately, stroking the uninjured side of her face with his free hand.

"I…have to be in court."

He almost laughed. To be worrying about the case on the way to the hospital was so like her: passionate to the point of sometimes being illogical. "I think they'll understand."

She shook her head but stopped, grimacing at the pain. "Patrick Rogers needs to be convicted before he can hurt his ex-wife again. I'm letting her down…he has to go to prison…it's my job to put him there…I have to go…now!"

John continued caressing her skin, alarmed at her behavior. She was practically hysterical; he could hear her breathing becoming erratic. "Case, you have to calm down."

She closed her eyes, causing a few tears to spill onto her cheeks. "Oh my God…I can't believe...Charlie…Charlie."

John moved aside reluctantly when they got to the hospital so the paramedics could transport her inside. She was more than slightly delirious as a result of the pain medicine she had been given for the cracked ribs, and as she passed John, she looked at him desperately. "Don't punish him for last time, ok?"

John stared at her. "Last time what? Casey, he's hurt you before?"

"Promise me."

Before he had the chance to question her any more, the paramedics had wheeled the gurney into the hospital and down a long hallway. John followed as far as he could, stopping at the doors that read "Authorized Personnel Only". He stood there, frozen with new fear, until he could no longer feel his body.