Hello everyone! I know it's been a while once again, but I'm really busy coming up to the Summer, so I hope y'all can forgive me :D here is the final chapter of Alone! Sad to finish this story, but excited to start some more :DD I will try to reply to everyone's reviews as well, as I've been slacking lately. Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed and invested in this story.

HUGE THANK YOU TO ZTOFAN, MY SPIRIT ANIMAL! LOVE YOU GIRRL. Can't wait to come see you in August and have afternoon tea :DD

Alone: Chapter 10

Jess drummed her fingers on the table in front of her, the paper cup of green tea next to it cold and forgotten. Her eyes were trained on the board above her head, her flight displayed in bright orange letters: DELAYED.

"Just my luck," she muttered under her breath as the words mocked her. The one day she wanted out of here as soon as possible, the world was deciding to take its time. She had a whole extra hour to kill trying to ignore the nagging feeling at the back of her mind that she was making the wrong decision.

She heard someone tutting next to her, and turned her head to see a family of four struggling through the terminal, ridiculously oversized carry-on bags slung over every free space on their bodies. The mother made a disgusted sound, before glancing at her husband. "I hate it when people do that," she hissed, pointing with her head at a young couple in their early twenties by departures, wrapped up in each other. "It's totally unnecessary, there are children around."

Jess watched the family stumble past her, her attention drawn to the couple she had been talking about. Good-looking but dishevelled and puffy-eyed, it was clear they hadn't slept much in their desperation to have more waking hours together before they parted ways. Jess saw them break their embrace, hands never leaving the other's face, scared to pull away too much and lose that warmth. The girl was crying.

A lump rose painfully in her throat. That was love. Sure, it was young love, all too often short and passionate and powerful, but it was a little slice of perfection. Jess wanted that. She had had that, and she had run away from it. All of a sudden it hit her. This was the stupidest thing she had ever done.

She shot to her feet, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Nick could be falling in love with someone else and she was here, doing absolutely nothing about it. God, she was a fucking idiot. Who was she kidding? She would never be happy until she had fought tooth and nail for this mysterious man she met in a bar months ago. There was no one else for her but Nick.

"Excuse me," she panted as she reached the check-in desk, ignoring the irritated murmurs from the people behind her. "I need my stuff back, I've made a mistake." She laughed, the sound coming out slightly crazed. "Such a terrible mistake."

The young girl stared at her, unimpressed. "Miss, your luggage is probably already on the plane by now. I highly doubt we will be able to get it back."

"No, you don't understand," Jess continued, her mouth ahead of her brain as the angry mutters grew louder. "I was trying to run away from the best thing that's ever happened to me. I came here and gave you my luggage and now I realize I need to go back and tell him I made a mistake, and maybe yell at him a bit for what he did, but mostly just tell him I love him and I want to make us work." She inhaled sharply, a smile spreading over her face. "So…can I have my stuff back, please?"

There was an awkward silence as everyone stared at her. "Probably not, like I said," the girl replied, eyeing the large line behind Jess. "Please join the back of the line Miss, and we'll get to you when we can."

It was then that Jess registered the ever growing mass of people behind her, their glares penetrating her skull. "Oh. Right, yeah. Sorry everyone." But she couldn't help the huge grin that was plastered firmly over her features. "My bad."

Her suitcase could wait – there were more important tasks at hand, like finding Nick. Jess didn't know what had come over her, but all of a sudden her previous actions seemed alien to her. She couldn't run away from this until it was done, and right now it was unfinished business. She turned on her heel and headed for the exit, her vision blurry and her stomach turning.

She crashed through the revolving door, searching her bag for her phone. Cece would be delighted to find out she was staying. She couldn't wait to tell her, hear her excited scream. It had been a tearful goodbye.

In her haste to find her phone and call her best friend, she didn't see the figure approaching from the parking lot, as desperate to get inside the building as she was to leave it. Apparently, he didn't see her either. They collided painfully at the entrance, the air whooshing out of both of them.

"Oof!" Jess exhaled, dropping her bag as they bounced off each other. "Ow." She looked up, and the air left her lungs all over again.

"Jess." He was staring at her, one hand rubbing his chest where she had head-butted him.

Nick.

"You're here," she gasped, straightening up. He looked a mess, but the sight of him still turned her legs to jelly.

"Cece told me…" He smiled a little, and Jess could see the relief etched into every inch of his face. It was a wonderful sight, to see him gazing at her like she wasn't quite real. He thought he had missed her, that she was gone. She smiled back in understanding – they had found each other.

Nick reached out and placed his hands on her arms, the warmth of his palms seeping through her shirt. "I'm mad at you," Jess managed to say. "Really, really mad, Nick." Suddenly she wasn't so sure anymore. Memories of what had happened flooded her brain. She wanted this, right?

"I know," he replied, his eyes never leaving hers. "I fucked up with everything. I didn't want to lose you and then I got in too deep and…I should have told you it was me."

"The story…" she started, feeling herself well up, but Nick cut her off.

"It's gone. No one will read it again. I want you to know that I never wrote anything like that in my novel. I swear to you. Jessica Knight is the hero of the story."

Jess laughed, shaking her head. "This is all so overwhelming, I don't know what to think, or what I'm doing. I mean, your girlfriend-"

He shook his head, and Jess' chest lifted a little as she stopped speaking. "I couldn't be with anyone else, I just want you." Nick stated, the apprehension in his eyes giving way to a spark of determination. "I'm in love with you." She closed her eyes as his words washed over her. I'm in love with you. How long had she wanted to hear someone say those words to her with such absolute conviction?

He stepped closer, stooping down to her level, the pads of his thumbs grazing her cheeks. She was reminded of the couple inside the terminal, so consumed by love, never wanting to let anything slip through their fingertips. She clutched at his wrists and decided then that she wasn't going to let go. "I want to be with you Jess, nothing is the same without you. I love you. Please forgive me, please tell me you love me too." He was staring at her, fear clouding his features. This was everything Jess had ever wanted to hear. She could see her happiness dangling in front of her. All she had to do was fearlessly reach out and take it.

"I'm scared," she sighed, squeezing his wrists. "I don't want to be hurt like that again, I don't think I could handle it from you." The thought of Nick doing what Spencer had done made her heart hurt. She chased the thoughts out of her brain. Someone who looked at her the way Nick was gazing at her…well, maybe she didn't have to worry about getting hurt any more. If she could let someone in, she could be happy.

He shook his head, dropping his eyes to the pavement between them. "I'm asking for one more chance to make you happy, and if you give it to me I'll spend it making sure you never regret it." He gripped her face, forcing her to look at him. "I promise." His voice cracked. "Please. The thought of living the rest of my life without you is damn scary, Jess."

Jess sniffed, blinking back tears. After Spencer she swore she would never let anyone cause her so much pain, but it felt like she was a world away from the person she was back then, alone and miserable. She hadn't known what real love was until Nick, and now she realized that it made you do stupid things, like forgive people. "Okay," she said quietly. "Okay, let's give this a shot."

"Okay?" Nick asked, the elation evident in his voice.

Jess giggled. "Okay." The word felt sweet on her tongue, so she kept saying it. Okay. We're okay. Everything is going to be okay. Nick repeated it with her, his relief leaving him in a breathy laugh as he pulled her towards him, burying his face in her hair, mouth brushing over her neck, ear, cheek, taking his sweet time making his way to her lips.

Her fingers clutched at his shirt and her eyes squeezed shut as they finally met, pulling each other close and ignoring the people around them. Jess briefly pulled away from him to choke out a gasping "I love you too by the way," before his hand was on the back of her neck and his lips were on hers again, sweet and warm and completely mind-blowing. She had forgotten what it was like to be kissed by Nick Miller. She smiled when she realized she was never going to forget again.

They were both smiling when they finally broke apart, flushed and panting. "Don't you have a flight to catch?" Nick asked, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear. "Cece said something about Portland."

"Oh," Jess said, waving a hand carelessly, "about that. I'm not going anymore."

Nick breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, because I want you to stay."

"I want to stay too. I want to do this properly with you."

He grinned at her. "Like, all in?"

She shrugged. "You could say that."

"Jessica Day," he announced, stepping away from her to extend his hand with a flourish. "Will you go out with me?"

She laughed, swatting his hand away. This was nice, how easily they slipped into romance, like no time had passed. Jess found herself wondering how they had ever fooled themselves into thinking it could just be about sex. "You have to take me on a date first," she retorted, folding her arms. "Somewhere fancy."

Panic flashed in Nick's face, and his hand quickly went to that tell-tale spot at the back of his head. "Uh…"

She slipped her hand into his. It fit warmly in the middle of his palm. "Actually, I could really just go for some fries and a shake right now." She smiled when he gave her fingers a relieved squeeze.

"Anything for my girlfriend," he said, and they looked at each other, pleased and relieved and content. "Let's go on our first date."

"There she is," Julius said as he approached the woman in front of him, gazing silently out over the city. "Our Knight in shining armour." He smiled as she turned to look at him, a faraway look in her eyes. "I thought I'd find you here."

"I like it up here," she shrugged, placing her elbows on the wall as Julius came to stand by her. "Sometimes you can look out at the city below, and you'd never guess we came close to extinction."

They stood in silence for a long time. "We don't have to worry about that now. You saved us all, Jessica." He glanced at her small frame. "Your sister would be proud."

She smiled at him, and he saw the bright blue of her eyes in the fading sunlight. It made his heart clench with relief. "Julius… we saved the world. What do we do now? How do we go back to normal?"

Julius considered this for a while, before shrugging. "Well, I suppose I need to look for a new job. There isn't much use for a zombie detective around here anymore."

Jessica continued to stare ahead, avoiding his gaze. "You don't have much use for an assistant."

"I guess not."

"So this is goodbye?"

They shared a look. "If you think that's best," he said quietly, and he knew she didn't believe him.

She tilted her head to the side, her gaze sweeping over his face. "The doctor said my memory might never come back," she stated, and Julius nodded. "But I still feel like it's there, just under the surface." She paused, seemingly deep in thought, and then she reached up and kissed him. It was soft and lingering, almost like she was waiting for something. His hands found her waist and he held on, terrified of losing her for the third time. His heart couldn't take it.

He rested his forehead on hers when they were done. "I love you, Knight. I don't want you to leave me again."

"I won't," she replied immediately, and he could hear the stubbornness in her words. "I know I could have died after the attack, but I must have fought my way back to you because we're not done here. There is more to be said and done, and I plan to say and do it with you." She smiled at him, but her gaze was hard and determined. He would always love that about her. "We saved the world, Pepperwood, and we're only just getting started."

Nick was struggling. In his arms were two grocery bags, spilling over with Thanksgiving food, and he clutched his car keys between his teeth as he backed into the apartment, almost tripping over a moving box full of very fragile and expensive-looking crockery. "Jeth!" he shouted, tasting the metal of the key on his tongue and grimacing. Oh, the germs. He spat them out and they landed with a clatter on the floor as he turned full circle, facing the empty space with an annoyed expression on his face. "Jess, a little help here?"

"I'm busy!" she sang, nowhere to be found. Nick placed the bags on the kitchen island, shaking his head and wiping sweat from his brow. Typical. Sending him on a wild goose chase around the city while she probably knitted a sweater.

"I'll unpack then, shall I," he muttered, pulling food items out of the paper bags and heading for the fridge.

"Everyone is coming over at four," Jess shouted from what sounded like their bedroom, "so we have a couple of hours. Cece is doing the dessert and Winston said something about beers. Schmidt just claimed he was bringing 'the swag.' I didn't ask him to elaborate."

Nick chuckled. "Okay. So what do you want me to help you with?"

"Well, you can start by helping me out of this pesky outfit."

Nick turned to the sound of her voice behind him, and dropped a stray carrot on the floor. She was doing Knight again. He loved it when she did Knight. It always made him swell with pride when she gushed about his writing, and it was even better when she used it against him in the bedroom. Two years ago, Nick never would have thought the real life Jessica Knight would be living in his apartment. Their apartment.

"Hello, Julius," she giggled, twirling a piece of hair around her finger. Nick grinned. "What crimes are we solving today? The mystery of where I put my panties?"

"Come here, you," he growled playfully, and she screeched, turning on her heel to scamper into their room. He caught her at the door, swinging her around and lifting her into his arms, planting a kiss firmly on her mouth as she wrapped her bare legs around his waist. "I missed you," he said, and she ran her fingers through his hair, beaming.

"You've been gone about four hours, that isn't possible," she replied, laughing when he shook his head. Suddenly, her face changed. "Oh! Did you call Angela about the book?"

"Yeah, she said it was full-steam ahead, should be on the shelves by April," he stated proudly, and Jess wriggled around excitedly in his arms, doing a strange victory dance that was causing friction in all the right places. "Okay, stop that. You know exactly what you're doing, Jessica."

She giggled and kissed him again, and before they knew it the playful mood turned heated and eager, Jess' tongue meeting his with a sweet moan, fingernails scratching softly at his scalp. "The dinner…" Nick tried to say in between kisses, knowing there was no way he was letting her out of his arms. Not with the feel of the bare skin under her skirt pressed against his hands and her teeth nibbling on his bottom lip. He walked her to the bed, moving his mouth to her shirt and sinking his teeth into her breasts through the material as she pushed herself closer to him.

"Thanksgiving never goes according to plan anyway," Jess groaned, tugging at his shirt. "Now, remind me of my assignment again?"

Nick placed her on the bed, getting to work. After all, they only had a couple of hours left to be alone. Nick had never loved the word so much in his life.