Chapter 6

Nathan and Kristin stayed that way for several minutes. However, his efforts to stop her from shivering seemed futile because he could still feel her trembling. "Kristin, we really should get you to medbay," he said, his tone gentle but insistent.

Kristin pulled away and shook her head, however. "N-no…I f-feel w-warmer already," she replied, but her bottom lip quivered as she spoke.

Nathan frowned, eyeing her carefully. She looked very pale, her skin almost having a bluish hue, and dark circles rimmed her eyes. She didn't look much like herself. "At least let me page Dr. Levin?"

She shook her head and snuggled up against him again. "J-just h-hold m-me…p-please? I promise I'll feel much better soon."

Nathan sighed and wrapped his arms around her and did his best to help her get warm again. He knew she was stubborn, but... This really didn't seem like her. Had she been through a storm that left her nearly hypothermic, he knew she'd never refuse medical help. Then a thought came to him. "Do you remember what happened?"

Kristin pulled away to look at him, her brow furrowing. "D-don't you know? The others? They…they did find the others, didn't they?"

Nathan put an arm around her shoulders. "They did, and there's no need to panic. Dr. Levin says they're all going to be fine. Lucas, Ben, Jonathan…they're all back safe and sound."

"And Jeffrey and Adam?"

"Resting in medbay as well. It would really make me feel better if you let Levin look at you as well."

Kristin put up a hand. "Nathan, I'm fine." She stood and removed the blanket from her shoulders. "See, I'm not even shivering anymore."

He nodded, seeing she wasn't shaking anymore. "But…your head. You're bleeding, which is why we really should get you to medbay. Joshua can check to see if-"

Kristin walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. "Oh, this is something I can take care of myself," she told him. "Can you hand me the first aid kit?" she asked.

Nathan obliged and watched as she cleaned the wound.

After a while, she noticed his reflection and gave him a look. "It was just a little bump on the head," she said, turning around to face him. "It's going to be fine."

"And you remember everything that happened?" he said again.

She shrugged. "Of course. Now I suppose you're going to lecture me?"

Nathan put up his hands. "No, not at all." He placed his hands on her shoulders. She wasn't shivering anymore, but she still looked pale. He pulled her into an embrace, needing to feel her close to him to be sure she wasn't a dream.

"I'm sorry if I scared you," she muttered.

He nodded, tightening the hug. "It's just-" He stopped short and pulled away to look at her when he heard her gasp. "What's wrong?" Concern laced every word.

"It's nothing," she said, a hand on her chest, trying to compose herself again. "I got thrown around a bit during the storm…just a few bruised ribs, I'm sure. Things are a little tender, but it's feeling better now." She turned back to the mirror to finish tending to the bump on her head.

Nathan continued to watch her, still worried something was off about all this. However, as he heard her wince, he realized he didn't have time to analyze it now. It would have to wait.

He stepped forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you let me help you…please?"

Kristin handed him the small piece of gauze she'd been using and allowed him to tend to the bump.

"Ouch," Nathan commented when he looked at her head. He couldn't tell before because her hair covered most of it, but now, examining it in the light, he could see a dark bruise with a small gash in the center. There was still dried blood that needed to be cleaned. Nathan gently dabbed at it, but heard Kristin wince again. "This…this is going to sting a little." Nathan offered his opposite hand to her. "Squeeze my hand when it hurts."

She gave him a doubtful look. "Just get it over with," she told him, looking at his hand but making no attempt to take it.

"Just trust me, okay?"

Kristin sighed and finally took it.

Nathan gently cleaned her wound as best he could. He felt her squeeze his hand every time it hurt, but she held still for him.

A few minutes later, Nathan said, "There, all clean…and I don't think it needs stitches either."

Kristin offered him a smile. "That…wasn't so bad."

"My hand helped, didn't it?"

She nodded. "You were right."

He shrugged. "Well, you're not used to being on the patient end of things…I, on the other hand, have been there many times," he said with a wink. "I know a few tricks."

"I'm not the best patient, am I?"

Nathan smiled. "Doctors never are, are they?"

Her smile faded.

"No…I…you were fine," he told her. "I do wish you'd have those ribs checked out, though."

Kristin sighed. "If I spoke with Joshua in the morning, would that make you feel better?"

Nathan nodded. "Yeah, it would. Thanks."

She walked over to him and placed a hand to his cheek. "You're very welcome. As I said before, you are so cute when you're worried."

Nathan took Kristin's hand in his and gently removed it from his face. He then took his other hand and placed it on top of hers.

"Nathan?" she asked.

"Kristin…can I ask you something?"

"Anything," she replied softly.

"How…how did you get back to seaQuest? You do know the others were found before you were?"

Kristin hesitated slightly, running a hand through her hair as if it were going to jog her memory. Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "I… The last thing I remember is helping Lucas, and then..." She trailed off as a hand rose to her mouth. "I can't remember how I got back here."

He pulled her into his arms once again. "That's...that's all right. You don't need to worry. The important thing is you did get back."

He had expected this, however. He'd seen this same situation before, but he couldn't tell her, not yet. She needed to find out for herself. And with time, he knew she would.

He also knew what it meant for her. He hoped that by the good grace of God that they'd find her in time, perhaps even before she found out the truth. He shut his eyes, knowing it would break her. The thought of it nearly broke him, and he didn't want to admit the woman before him wasn't quite real.

He heard soft sniffles from her. "It's all right," he said again, rubbing her back gently in an effort to calm her.

After several minutes, she seemed to relax. "Nathan, would you mind if I lie down?" she asked. "I'm suddenly so tired. I don't think I'll be able to make it to my room."

"Of course," he told her and helped to his bunk. He covered her with a blanket and sat next to her. "Are you feeling warmer now?"

She nodded. "Much, thank you. I...I am sorry I showed up like this. I know it's late. I needed..."

"It's no trouble, really, Kris. I'm just...happy you came back to me."

"Of course. I couldn't... Something told me I had to come to you first," she said between yawns.

He nodded, standing up. "Well, I should let you get some rest."

She placed a halting hand on his arm, though. "No... I mean, could you stay with me until I fall asleep?"

"All... All right," he said, sitting back down. "Would you still like to talk?"

She nodded. "I feel like if I fall asleep, you'll disappear. Promise me that won't happen. I... I don't want you to to leave me."

He shook his head. "I promise that won't happen. I'm not going anywhere. I won't disappear." He squeezed her hand. "I'll be right here, okay?"

She nodded and closed her eyes. It wasn't long before Nathan heard light snoring from her, so he placed a gentle kiss to her forehead and dimmed the light above his bunk. He then padded to the small sofa on the other side of the room and lay down. He let out a deep breath, the worries about what was really going on bombarding his mind, causing him to toss and turn in an effort to get to sleep. Hours later, sleep finally claimed him, but his mind had other plans.

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Annapolis Naval Academy, 1983

Nathan had been attending the academy for two years, and he loved it. He was a career man through and through, and he'd met so many wonderful people there. Of course, he and Scott Keller were roommates, but he'd also met William 'Bill' Noyce. And then there was Sam Paxton. Sam was quiet when he first arrived at the academy, mostly keeping to himself. However, Nathan helped bring him out of his shell. He and Sam had grown close.

Nathan and Sam were among the top-ranking junior officers in their year, along with Bill and Scott, and they were offered the opportunity to attend a special training exercise. That day had finally arrived, and it was exciting, since they'd meet other top-ranking officers like themselves.

"You will be split into two groups," their instructor called out. "When I call your name, please stand." The list of names included Nathan and Sam. "You will be assigned to the Alliance." The instructor motioned to a small ship nearby used for practice simulations such as this. Then, he continued to call out another list of names, including those of Bill and Scott. "The rest of you will be assigned to the Confederacy." The man then gave out orders to higher-ranking officers and explained what they would be doing in this simulation.

The concept was simple. This was a war-simulation in which some of the members had to prepare a battle plan. However, Nathan and Sam weren't needed for that. They were on the rescue team. They were to help get the 'injured' members to the medical team without getting caught by the 'enemy'. Since Sam and Nathan had both been trained in first aid and were among the best swimmers, it seemed simple enough.

Both teams were given a time period to 'prepare'. And then, a gunshot rang out, signalling the start of the simulation. At first, Nathan fumbled a bit, but he quickly calmed down as he noticed that Sam and the other members of their team seemed to know exactly what to do. He and Sam dove off the side of their boat to help one of the 'injured' members waiting for their help.

That's when Nathan found out the simulation wasn't going to be as easy as he'd originally thought. The opposing team members were to 'block' Nathan, Sam, and the rest of the rescue team from helping the 'injured'. Therefore, Nathan's rescue team were immediately forced to improvise and think of an alternate strategy...all while they were being bombarded by simulated weapons.

Nathan and Sam ushered their group to move to a small clearing away from the weapon fire so they could construct some sort of new plan. But when they did so, they didn't realize that a battle strategy group was already waiting for them.

Although the simulated weapons weren't meant to harm or hurt, Nathan felt himself being hurled beneath the water. He wasn't even sure what had hit him. Suddenly, pain coursed through his head, and everything had gone dark.

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The next thing he knew, he saw a bright, white light in the distance. A disembodied voice had told him to follow it, and he had little choice but to listen. A minute later, he found himself standing in an emergency room, staring at his lifeless body on a bed in the center of the room while various doctors and nurses worked to revive him.

"He's gone," one of the nurses announced, looking at the flat-lined monitor, the long familiar beep a telling sign.

"No," one of the doctors protested, taking the defibrillator paddles in his hands. "He's not gone. Not yet...not until I say."

"But, Doctor…" another nurse protested. She went over to him and placed a hand to his shoulder. She whispered softly. "He's been gone for nearly five minutes. He's not coming back. It's a lost cause."

"No…there's no such thing as a lost cause." He turned to the woman. "Charge the machine."

She nodded and hit a button.

"Clear," the doctor said when a red light on the machine lit up.

Nathan couldn't believe what he was seeing as the doctor placed the paddles to his chest. Well, it wasn't his chest, it was the one lying on the bed. Did that mean...? Was he dead? He shook his head. No, he couldn't be. He didn't feel dead, but then he wasn't sure what exactly it was supposed to feel like. He watched as the doctor charged the defibrillator paddles again when suddenly, a hand on his shoulder caused him to jump, tearing his attention away from the scene before him, turning to see Sam.

"Hey, buddy," his friend said, waving. Only something was wrong. The young man was smiling, but he had a trickle of blood running down his forehead.

"Sam? What happened? You...you're hurt. What? How?" He ran a hand through his hair. "What the hell is going on?" He motioned to the bed. "Do...do you see?"

"Yeah, I see," Sam replied, though he didn't seem as frantic as Nathan. " I'm in the room right next door. Or…at least I was."

"Was? You mean you... Did you... Did I... Are we... Are we both…dead?"

He nodded. "But there's a problem. We're both not meant to go."

"What do you mean?"

He wasn't graced with a reply. Instead, he was met with a jolt as he felt himself being pulled away from Sam by some unseen force.

"Goodbye," Sam said before disappearing.

"Wait!" Nathan cried, but the next thing he knew, he was suddenly back in his own body. He coughed and sputtered as the doctor tried to explain what had happened.

"Take it easy, son. You've had a nasty bump to the head. You're going to be okay, though."

"But…Sam…my friend…" Nathan rasped.

The doctor patted his shoulder gently. "I'm sorry. We tried…but he was just…gone too long. But there has to be a reason why you're getting a second chance..."

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Nathan sat bolt-upright in bed, gasping for air. His heart was beating so fast, and he was drenched with sweat, causing his clothing to stick to him. He put a hand to his chest, willing himself to calm down.

"Nathan?" Kristin called, moving to sit next to him. "Are you all right?"

"I…I'm fine. I just…had a very vivid dream…a bit of a nightmare, actually."

Kristin narrowed her eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'd say. You look as though you've seen a ghost. Do...do you want to talk about it?"

"N-no…thank you." He gently removed her hand from his arm and forced a smile. "You just go back to sleep. I'm just going to do a bit of reading to help me relax once again."

"I think that perhaps I should go back to my room," she said. "You've been so kind to let me stay here, but what would the others say if they saw me here in the morning? Besides, I think that the reason you're having nightmares is because I'm forcing you to sleep on that lumpy sofa."

Nathan smiled softly. "It's not as uncomfortable as it looks, really."

"Well, be that as it may, you need your rest, too. I really am feeling much better, thank you." She gave him a small peck on the cheek and started towards the door.

"You'll still see Levin in the morning?" he asked.

She smiled. "I promise, Father."

Nathan chuckled. "Well, you certainly must be feeling better if you're remembering to tease me now."

"I remember quite a lot, actually," she said with a nod. "At least about some things, like... Once out of nature I shall never take; my bodily form from any natural thing; but such a form as Grecian goldsmiths make; of hammered gold and gold enameling; to keep a drowsy Emperor awake; or set upon a golden bough to sing; to lords and ladies of Byzantium; of what is past, or passing, or to come."

"The poem…you remembered," he said after a pause.

"I couldn't possibly forget. It was only just yesterday. I also remember you promised me we'd have a discussion about it."

Nathan smiled. "I thought you said we both need our rest?"

"Well, I didn't mean tonight."

"Tell you what, how about we plan something tomorrow night once I'm off duty? Maybe I could make you dinner?" he offered.

"That sounds lovely."

"Great," Nathan replied. "See you then."

"If not before," she replied, opening his cabin door and starting down the hall.

Nathan stood in the doorway and watched her go. "Goodnight," he called quietly.

"Goodnight, Nathan. Sweet dreams...and thank you for everything," she said before disappearing around the corner.