It was Friday night and the boys arrived just like they always did with Chris in between them. The three sat in their usual spot at the bar, Maggie running back forth between tables, stopping to talk to them when she could. Rocco getting absolutely pissed but still managing to tell funny jokes. Doc rambling on with his mismatched proverbs. And at the end of the night Rocco would walk Maggie home, well, more like Maggie walking Rocco back to her place where he would promptly pass out on the sofa. Murphy and Connor would walk back to her place with her and usually ended up spending the night. At first it was because she was afraid for them to walk home after a night of drinking, but after a while it just became another part of the routine. Connor would sleep on the sofa while Murphy stayed in her room with her. Connor would lightly tease them about it from time to time, mostly his brother, but for the most part left them alone about it. Chris had grown accustomed to waking up wrapped in Murphy's warm arms. It was her favorite part of the day in fact. She would always wake up just before he did due to her internal clock and she would spend that time enjoying the warmth and tracing his face. That was her other favorite part. She enjoyed how peaceful he looked while he slept. No frown lines on his forehead or scrunched up nose. Just smooth and peaceful. Once both the boys were awake Murphy and Chris would make breakfast and then the boys would go to work. Maggie would come over and the girls would do their thing then go back to Doc's that night, meeting the boys there. Sundays were different though. Sunday's they went to mass then they spent the rest of the day doing whatever they pleased. Usually, Chris would play her violin while the boys made dinner. Then, in the evening the boys would tell her about all of their wild adventures as young lads.

It had almost been a month since they started this routine and it fit them well. In fact, Chris couldn't go back to her old way of life even if she tried. She truly enjoyed the boys company and loved them dearly. She had accepted the fact that they were her family now and had grown comfortable with them. She had told them more about her family over the last month and in turn they had told her more about their mother, she had already known a lot about the woman but by now she felt like she practically knew her. She loved how much the boys cared about their mother and called to check up on her. It was sweet. She had told them about her life with her parents before they passed. About how her mother used to let her paint her nails and how she'd ended up painting her fingers more than the nails themselves. She told them about when her father used to build snow forts and snowmen with her. About when her parents took her to a carnival for the first time. And how her grandfather used to take her to see the Nutcracker every year, even after she lost her sight because she adored the music more than anything else. Yes life had become quite enjoyable for the three.

The only thing that was unpleasant was when she didn't get to see the boys during the week. Sure the came over for dinner every night but they always went home afterwards. It always made her a bit sad when they left. She no longer found any sort of happiness in the silence around her. She had learned a long time ago to deal with the silence and being alone, and it didn't bother her too much. But after having the brothers in her life so much she no longer enjoyed the silence.

On this particular week though the boys were working a double shift and wouldn't be able to come over until Friday. As I sat in the teacher's lounge eating my lunch I couldn't stop the dejected feeling that was filling my heart.

"What's got you so down sweetie?" I looked to my left where Mrs. Cyrus' voice came from,

"Oh it's nothin'." The older receptionist let out a small scoff,

"Honey it's plain as day that you're not happy right now. Now, tell me what's bothering you." I sat my fork down and put my chin on my hand,

"I dunno… the boys are workin' a double shift this week an' I won't get to see 'em till Friday. I guess I jus' miss 'em is all. I'm used to havin' 'em around my home and keepin' the place lively. Now it's… quite, an' I don't like it. It's only Wednesday an' I don't know how I'm supposed ta make till Friday." The older woman let out an amused chuckle before taking hold of my hand.

"Now see, that's not nothing. That's a sign."

"A sign of wha'?"

"Love my dear." I blushed madly. My face was on fire and my ears burned,

"What makes ya say tha'?" She chuckled,

"Because I can see it plain as day! The boys are here every day to pick you up and that Murphy… well, you don't see the way he looks at you like I do." I blushed more, "That boy is in love with you. And he and his brother will take good care of you. I know they will." The bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period, "Just embrace the moment when it happens my dear."

The day continued on and I threw myself into my work. I stayed busy and tried not to think about Mrs. Cyrus' words just yet. More than likely I would end up thinking about them later that night while lying in bed. I was walking down the hall back to my classroom from a trip to the bathroom when I felt something hard hit me in the face. I cried out as a sharp pain filled my mouth and stumbled back before I fell down. My hands flew to my mouth as blood began to gush out of my lip.

"Miss Doyle!" I could hear footsteps thundering towards me before someone knelt down next to me, putting a hand on my shoulder, "Are you okay Miss Doyle? Oh my God, I need help!" Will, I had never heard him raise his voice before let alone shout like he was currently doing.

"Wha' happen'?" My voice was muffled as I kept my hands over my mouth in a vain attempt to try and keep the blood from getting everywhere.

"One of the boys was throwing a football, I think you split your lip open. It looked like a hard hit. Can you stand?" I nodded and let him pull me up. He kept his arm around my shoulders as he led me toward the sound of more footsteps,

"What happened?!" Mrs. Cyrus.

"Is she okay?"

"Someone call the nurse!" There were so many voices going on at once that I couldn't tell who was who. Will explained while I was lead into the office where the nurse took a look at me, cleaned me up, and stitched up my lip. I had three stiches in my right bottom lip. Apparently there was a large ugly bruise around it and it was rather swollen. There was almost two hours left in the day but I was sent home and wasn't expected back until Friday. Thankfully Mrs. Cyrus drove me home so I wouldn't have to focus on walking. I already had a headache and having to focus on everything around me just would've given me a migraine. Once I was home and Mrs. Cyrus was assured that I was okay I changed into pajamas and crawled into bed. I spent the rest of the day sleeping and icing my lip. This had to be the worst week ever.

When Friday came around my lip was a bit less swollen and little less purple but it was still bad. The day hadn't been any prettier. I had to deal with the mess that the sub had left behind. Special needs substitute teachers are in short order so they settled with a normal teacher. That was a mistake. My students hadn't done anything productive and were set back by three days. So when the end of the day bell rang I found myself slumped in my desk with my head bowed, running my fingers in circular motions against my temples,

"Thank da Lord this day is over."

"Had a bad day love?"

"Murphy!"

Chris' head shot up in surprise but a wide smile quickly made it's way across her face before it just as quickly disappeared and she hissed in pain. Her hand covering her lip. Murphy's grin and happy demeanor quickly fell away as worry and anger filled him. He crossed the room in a matter of seconds, gingerly he took hold of her chin and tilted her head to the side, exposing her injured lip to him. Lightly he ran his thumb across the stitches causing her to wince,

"Jesus lass… what da hell happened?" She sighed as she leaned against his hand. She explained the story to him and his anger began to fade. "Are ya alrigh' though?"

"I'm fine Murph. Really I am."

"Do ya wanna skip goin' to Doc's tonigh'?" She nodded,

"It still hurts to try and drink or eat thin's." He nodded,

"Alrigh' then. Well, Connor's got da car out front. Can have him drop us off."

"Murphy this is your firs' nigh' off all week. Ya should go out with ya brother an' have fun."

"Chris, trus' me I'd rather sit on the sofa with ya an' listen to music." She let out a tired sigh,

"Alrigh', I'm too tired to figh' ya." Murphy chuckled,

"Come on then. Let's get ya home." After they got in the car and Chris explained what happen to Connor they drove home. Connor was completely understanding about her not wanting to go out. He could tell she had had a long week, hell so had they and his brother would benefit from some alone time with the lass. While the two were very much alike, Murph found reading and listening to music to be a better stress reliever than going out and getting pissed drunk like Connor did. Not that Murphy didn't enjoy going out and getting drunk with his brother and having the occasional bar fight because he did. He enjoyed it quite a lot actually. But on a day like today, and after the week they had had, spending time with the lass relaxing would do him more good than going out to the pub with him would. Connor had gotten out and kissed her good cheek and hugged her tightly,

"You'll be over later though yeah?"

"Probably tomorrow mornin' yeah. Our place is closer to Doc's so I may jus' spend the nigh' there then be over in da mornin'." She frowned but nodded all the same,

"Well, don't get into too much trouble then." Connor chuckled,

"I make no promises lass." She shook her head with a small laugh, "I'll see ya both tomorrow."

After Connor had left and Murphy and Chris had gotten in the house they both made a simple sandwich before settling down on the sofa. Murphy had Chris pressed against his side, her head buried in his chest and arms wrapped around his waist. The sounds of violins and cellos filling the air from the cassette player on the table. Both were tired, both felt drained, and sitting there just enjoying one another's company felt so good.

Chris had held off as long as she could but being curled up there in his familiar and warm arms had made her want to see his face even more. So, slowly she took her hand from around his waist and trailed it up his chest and neck until she reached his cheek.

Murphy smiled as she ran her fingers across his face. This had become a regular thing for her and to be honest he really enjoyed it. He loved the way her fingers slowly ran across every inch of his face. Her soft and tender touch always made him feel at peace. Her thumb ran across his bottom lip and he had to hold back a shudder at her gentle touch. God he loved this woman. And if it weren't for her lip he may have kissed her right then and there, because this was the woman that he wanted to spend his days and nights with. His eyes fell closed as her fingers trailed down his jaw. He let out a contented sigh,

"God I've missed ya love." She smiled,

"I've missed ya too Murphy." She pit her head back down and buried her face in his neck, trying to keep him as close as possible. Normally she would be blushing like mad at the amount of contact there was between them but after the week she had had she just couldn't find it in herself to give a damn. For the longest time the two did nothing but sit there wrapped in one another's embrace and listening to the music but as the night went on they slowly drifted off to sleep.

It was early that much Murphy knew, he also knew that he wasn't in his apartment because he was lying on a comfortable sofa with a warm body pressed against him. None of these things were anything new. What was new though was the sound of whimpering. Murphy rubbed at his eyes, waking himself up a bit. When he was a bit more awake he quickly discovered where the whimpering was coming from.

"Chris?" She was still curled up next to him on the sofa but her brow was covered in sweat, she had tight grip on his shirt, and she was cringing. She was whimpering and flinching at unseen dangers. Murphy's eyes widened as he scrambled to sit up. He took hold of her shoulders and began to shake her a bit, "Chris… Chris! Wake up, it's jus' a dream."

When Chris woke up from her nightmare there was a dying scream on her lips as she gasped for breath. Her eyes tried to search for something real to anchor her to reality but being blind didn't provide such relief. It wasn't until she heard Murphy's voice that she found her anchor to reality.

"It was jus' a dream love. Jus' a dream. Breathe." Chris took deep breaths, all the while she kept a tight hold of Murphy. He was real, he was here with her. After she got herself together again and found her voice she spoke,

"Sorry for wakin' ya." Her voice cracked a bit,

"No, don't be. Ya wanna talk abou' it?" She swallowed hard before nodding. "Nightmare?" She shook her head.

"More of a memory really. I was back in school. I had only been blind for abou' a year an'… the other kids… they weren't nice. They were cruel an' made fun of me a lot. T-They'd trip me, move my chair, take my bag an' hide it from me… They did this for so long… an' they laughed. They always laughed. They'd invite me to thin's then leave me to find my own way home. An' I cried, I always ended up cryin' because I had kept hopin' that they'd be nicer to me an' that this time it'd be different… but it never was. They jus' laughed and made it into a game." By now the tears were running freely down her face and Murphy pulled her fully into his lap. He wrapped his one arm around her and held her tightly to him while using his other hand to wipe her tears away.

"I'm so sorry love. I'm sorry tha', even as children, people can be bastards. I wish I could go back and fix it for ya. But I'm here now, I'm here and I'm not gonna let anyone treat ya like tha' again."

"Thanks Murph, but it was a long time ago. I'm jus'… I need to jus' get over it." Murphy frowned.

"No, this isn't somethin' that ya jus' get over like flickin' a switch. They hurt ya, they took part of your childhood from ya. They took a part of ya soul. I know that I'll never be able to understand how ya feel but I'm willin' to be there for ya no matter what. To help ya through the good an' the bad." Murphy took her face in his free hand and gently brushed his thumb across her cheek, "I want to. I want to help ya get over this. I want to help ya through the good thin's and the bad. I want to tell ya what the world looks like and I want to hold ya and shield ya from all the bad." Murphy looked at her tear stricken face and saw all the pain in her eyes, "Chris, what I'm tryin' to tell ya is…" When Murphy looked deeper into her eyes he could see it, he could see her. He could see all of her. There was no more hiding, no more walls, no more secrets. He could see the pain, the anguish, the love… he could see the raw unabashed emotions that dwelled within her. This was Christian Doyle at her core… and damn it all if he didn't love her even more. Murphy threw caution to the wind and closed the gap between them. He pressed his lips softly against hers, being mindful of the stitches. For a brief moment she didn't respond and then in an instant she slowly began to kiss him back. There was nothing rushed about it, it was slow and intimate. Not a kiss shared by lovers, but rather, one that is shared by two souls bound by such a deep, trusting, and loving relationship that it exceeds all others. When they pulled away for air, both were left breathless. Murphy closed his eyes as he pressed his forehead against hers, "I love you."