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Chapter 4

It was late, the sky was dark outside, when many nights late, Niles and Grace finally had their talk. The one that had been building for a long time, but for Niles, he just didn't know how to initiate it. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, not Grace, so when he found her sitting in the kitchen alone he knew this was the time. This was the moment when he had to end everything between them; he only hoped that she wouldn't be hurt too badly. Watching her from the stairs, Niles watched her tracing her small figure in the darkness. Never before had he realized just how small she was. Grace was wiping tears from her eyes and watching as she did so, Niles knew what bothered her, he sensed it as she sensed his own departure from her. It was a departure that had been happening since their last moment of passion. He had been pulling away from her since then and he knew she could feel it as much as he could. Watching her cry, Niles felt a pang in his heart because those tears were his fault, and hurting her was the last thing he wanted to do. Standing there in silence, Niles felt drawn back to that last moment with her. He remembered laying with her feeling content, but not at the same time. In that moment, he knew why that uncertainty was there, his heart was sending him a message he thought, it was telling him that as much as he cared for Grace, she was not who he was supposed to choose. There was no way what they had could last blossoming into something real. There was no way and because of that that was what brought them here. To this moment he had been regretting. As much as he loved Grace, they just couldn't be together, and staring at her from the stairs, Niles knew now was the time to tell her. In the silence of the darkness, he left his spot on the stairs, and without her hearing or even noticing he was there, he approached her. Not until he was moving to sit right next to her did she look up at him with her ever gentle care free eyes. They were still stained with eyes and looking at her, Niles wanted to rid her of them, he reached for her hand part of her surprised when she let him take it in his own.

"Tears don't suit you" said Niles gently giving her hand a squeeze hoping it would make her smile, but it didn't.

"Grace, I—we need to talk" whispered Niles reaching to take her other hand only to have her pull away completely.

"Sweetheart" said Niles finally capturing her fingers with his.

"I knew it…I knew you'd get sick of me eventually. Sooner or later, you were bound to think me nothing, but a silly little girl" exclaimed Grace her words rushed as a sob left her throat her other hand quickly coming to try to hold that same sob in.

"No that isn't it. We just aren't right for each other" said Niles.

"We never had a chance did we?" said Grace shaking her head.

"No, we really didn't, but I'd like to think we had a good time, for awhile" whispered Niles bringing her hand to his lips. They shared a moment of silence before Grace suddenly looked him straight in the eye.

"Is there anything I could have done differently?" whispered Grace her voice barely audible her eyes downcast until he kissed her fingers again.

"Grace, listen to me very carefully" whispered Niles surprising her when he left his seat to kneel at her feet his hands now firmly clutching hers.

"You are beautiful, remember that, none of this is your fault. We never should have started this…we were out of our heads" whispered Niles pulling her into a hug. After a moment, they parted, and the silence resumed.

"My time with you will not be a bad memory" said Niles finally before they parted both gently smiling.

"You're still my best friend" said Grace after a moment.

"And that is why you will always be special to me" whispered Niles kissing her hand once more as a smile bloomed though small on his face.

"You're my best friend too" whispered Niles getting rid of a single tear as it fell.

"You are very special, Grace" whispered Niles rising from the floor to kiss her fore head feeling as she leaned in close. After a moment, they both climbed the stairs to go back to bed. They would never admit it, but they both felt an emptiness inside as what they shared same to an end.