There she was, an all her grace, walking quickly towards to fence, as if she wouldn't dare the spent any second of their limited time together on silly things like walking too slowly

This chapter is dedicated to Amy a.k.a wrldpossibility, for her kind help and because she is such a sweetheart!:) Thank you for everything sweetie.

Hmmm.. Just one more question…anybody out there who would like to do beta for me? As you all surely know, my English SUCKS. lol. Anyway, in case you are interested in long hours and no pay, let me know.:)

CHAPTER 3 – Half-filled glass

"And I love you too Mike." Lincoln said but before Michael could say anything else, he was already making his way towards to car again to get the person for who's presence Michael has been waiting eagerly whole day long.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

There she was, in all her grace, walking quickly towards to fence, as if she wouldn't dare to spend any second of their limited time together on silly things like for example walking too slowly.

He observed her through the fence, seizing her up and down, his gaze so intense it made the sun pale. Lincoln's words still on his mind, he observed her more closely than ever, paying much more attention to the small details today instead of looking at 'the larger picture', Sara as whole being that always used to somehow deceive him into thinking that considering the given circumstances, she was ok.

He noticed the two size bigger jeans she wore, jeans that obviously weren't new. He also noticed that although it was terribly hot, she wore a shirt with long sleeves, so long that they covered almost the whole of both of her hands and she used her fingers to nervously pull at them as she walked. She wore a baseball cap that shielded the pale skin of her face, but it was now that Michael noticed her skin was not only as pale as it used to be back in Chicago, which would mean she didn't get to see the Panamian sun much, but it was even a shade paler, somehow ashen. The peak of the cap covered her eyes, but from now and then she would gaze up to the road ahead and he could see, as so many times before, the dark circles under her eyes. But not matter how terrible her appearances might be, today there was something different about her. She had actually a smile tugging on her lips, her walk steady and a bit frolic. She finally reached the fence and leaned against the wooden rail.

"Hi." She smiled broadly and damn, every previous thought vanished from Michael's head just like that.

"Hi." He whispered back.

"I missed you." She said, still smiling broadly.

"Well, I would say the same, but there's this new cute prison doc…" He started playfully and earned himself a small chuckle.

"She any good?"

"Nah. She counted ten toes on my feet." He said and after her amused chuckle that made his heart leap with joy, their quiet laughter died away and they were left with a serious atmosphere hanging in the air between them.

"How are you?" Sara asked worriedly, as she did everyday.

"Fine I guess." Michael replied as always with a shrug, studying her intensely in return.

"Don't lie to me Michael." She said like she always did in return, but today, she was smiling.

"What's so funny?" He asked pretending interest and genuine surprise. Her smile grew even wider.

"Lincoln was right, you ARE a terrible liar Michael." She said and laughed as the understanding dawned on him. He smiled back sheepishly.

"You know, I wonder WHY on earth my stupid brother asked me to even try pretending when he told you straight away."

"He didn't. But he is even a worse liar than you are. He had it practically written all over his face and I knew everything by the time he even reached the car." She was grinning, her eyes despite the dark shadows shining with happiness he haven't seen in weeks. His heart melted at that sight.

"One week." He told her quietly.

"Seven days." She replied with a sigh.

"You are doing it again." Michael said half amusedly, half seriously.

"Doing what?" She asked, eyebrows raised in genuine puzzlement.

"Seeing the glass half empty." She sighed and hid a smile.

"Not true. YOU are seeing it half full, which is an incorrect presentation of reality. I on the other hand, see it half filled. Not full, not empty." She corrected him still smiling. They were looking at each other challengingly, an unusual amount of sparks firing between them today. Then Sara's expression changed, softened.

"You are tired." She stated without question.

"I am." He admitted. "But the news definitely aroused some energy reserves I didn't even know I had."

"I am glad to hear that." She said and Lord help him, was that 'innuendo' in her voice? He wanted to shoot something equally cheeky back at her, but a sudden unexpected wave of nausea and exhaustion overwhelmed him and he had to grip the fence for support, closing his eyes momentarily.

"Michael?" He heard a scared call and he used all his power to force his eyes open only to find her staring at him and he momentarily lose himself in her warm ones. They were so beautiful but altogether full of such incredible concern for him, it made him wince inwardly.

"Michael, are you alright?" She called out again letting go of the railing momentarily and he watched as in slow motion as she crossed the remaining gap between them and with a short look shot at the guards tower, she quickly grasped his hands through the fence.

"Michael please, answer me." She was starting to panic, he could tell. He quickly shook his head as if to clear it, then focused his gaze again on her.

"I am sorry. It's the heat…" He said apologetically, giving her a tired smile. She put her hand up and pressed her fingers through the fence gently against his forehead.

"Jesus, you are so hot but are barely sweating. How long has this been going on?" She was slipping into her doctor manner and Michael suddenly realized he didn't have power to fight back her questions.

"Two, maybe three days." He said with a tired sigh. Her eyes widened.

"Any other symptoms except those I was just witness to?" He shook his head.

"How much water are you drinking?" She asked gently but her questions were shot quickly and he had to process them first so his answers took some time. That unnerved her even more.

"Uhm… I don't know…one…maybe two glasses a day." God knew he was exaggerating but he couldn't let her know the whole truth.

"WHAT?" She asked in shock. "Michael that's extremely little. A person like yourself needs in conditions like these at least half a gallon!" He knew she was only concerned and he cursed his body for letting him down like that right now. The nausea was subsiding quickly again, as well as the weakening feeling. He squeezed his fingers through the fence, hoping the gesture would assure her.

"I know, but water is a major problem in here. Everybody gets a glass, no exceptions." He winced at the fact he gave away the real amount of water he drank, but thank god, Sara seemed so in her own thoughts she didn't notice. She kicked her foot into the dirt angrily, causing the sandy dry ground to form a small cloud of dust at their feet.

"Isn't there any way you could get some more? If it's a question of money…"

"No Sara." He interrupted her gently, but firmly, his eyes often flickering from her beautiful face to the guards post, but obviously, it was too hot even for the guards, since they were nowhere to be seen, probably sitting under the straw roof having a drink themselves.

"Trust me Sara, there is everything you can buy with money in here. Everything except water."

"Why?" She asked with transient interest.

"If they redistribute water unfairly, the prisoners will get angry. And the people pulling the strings in here can't afford a riot."

"Is there no other way?" She asked desperately.

"The only other way is to either steal it from somebody less fortunate or kill somebody and take it." He said seriously and regretted his words immediately as he saw the dismissal and disgust in Sara's eyes.

"One week." He whispered hopefully and smiled at her through the fence. "Now I know when and how, there is nothing in this world to stop me from surviving these seven days. And then I will take you to the beach with a bucket of ice and a couple of beers and limes." They both closed their eyes for a second imagining what Michael was whispering through the fence and for a second, both of them almost believed they were there. However, the moment passed quickly and Michael was left with the cruel reality of watching a lonely tear slip down the cheek of a woman he loved most in this world.

"Sara…" He breathed her name almost painfully. This was definitely not the reaction he wanted to induce. Another tear escaped her eyes but she pushed them away almost angrily.

"I am sorry. I am usually not this emotional. It's just…right now, I week looks like hell of a long time." She breathed in despair.

"We can do this." He said, using the word 'we' on purpose.

"We?" She asked.

"We." He said firmly. He decided it was time to change the subject.

"I wanted to thank you." He said, loosing himself in her soft eyes once again.

"For what?" She asked, her brows furrowed.

"Lincoln told me about everything you did to get me out." He said, carefully studying her face. Color crept onto her cheeks but the subject was clearly a bit unpleasant for her.

"Well, for what it's worth, my father had more loyal friends than one would think." Sara said in a small voice, her eyes on the ground.

"It must have been tough. Contacting you father's old associates I mean…" Michael told her, clutching her fingers reassuringly through the fence and catching her gaze once again.

"Well, it was not exactly an enjoyable thing to do. But…" She stared into his eyes now, offering him a glimpse of her soul and a small smile.

"..I would do it again. And again. And again." She added the last part and offered him a knowing smile which he returned.

"You know, I like the idea of these separate visitations. We should do it this way from now on, what do you thing?" Michael asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eye and was rewarded by a knowing grin from Sara. As a reflex, he once again shot a glance at the guards tower, but thank god no guard was in sight so far.

"I am glad you see it that way." She replied, a wicked grin spreading along her face. The feel of his fingers on hers made her want to jump out of her skin and she definitely wanted him to know. She gave him a raised eyebrow and a challenging look, the wicked smile still dancing over her lips and it drove Michael crazy. He scraped together all his remaining self restrain to reply.

"Sara, I am afraid that in case you won't stop this right now, I will get into some very serious trouble by tearing down this fence." He gave her a half serious smile.

"Just a small kiss Michael. Pretty please?" Sara demanded and batted her eyelashes irresistibly. He gave a small chuckle and leaned into the fence kissing her as good as possible through the thin metallic lines. Unfortunately like those few days ago, also today they had to part rather quickly and Michael only noted with disappointment how they deserved so much more. However, he was quickly grasped out of his misery at the sight in front of him. Sara clearly didn't seem to mind their surrounding nor conditions, her eyes shining with love and trust and hope and happiness and it broke his heart to break this somehow happy moment by starting the conversation he's been postponing since the time she walked in here.

"Sara listen, I want to ask something from you." He said eyes averted momentarily.

"Anything." She replied firmly with such force and at the same time gentle care it made him speechless for a second. He gulped. She definitely wasn't going to make this easy for him.

TBC

AN – Leave feedback pls. Oh, and I can't be sure when the next chapter will be up, I had no real time to write lately, so no promises. But I hope to update soon though. Cross fingers

5