Author's note: Hello all! If I have any readers left after my long absence, I want to apologize. Mid terms took a lot longer than was expected; sometimes, I think teachers have a conspiracy to assign projects when all the other teachers are assigning them. But we are very close to the end; with the holiday coming up, I'll probably be able to finish. ABOUT THIS CHAPTER- Bear with me! I never write character death, so don't be afraid to read on.

Disclaimer: I don't own Covert Affairs or its characters.

But waiting Auggie out was more of a challenge than Annie thought it would be. First, her sister Danielle got to the hospital much faster than Annie had anticipated. Annie had been sprawled in a chair, and as a result Cameron's jacket had slipped open, revealing her bloodstained attire. After another round of sister hysterics, Annie was ushered off to a shower in the vacant room. She showered rather quickly, feeling awkward (the nurses didn't exactly know she was using Auggie's shower), then dressed in record speed. But God bless Danielle; she had brought sweats and a sweater instead of Annie's usual attire.

"Thanks for coming so quickly," Annie said quietly as she shook out her hair over the heater in the room. Auggie still wasn't there yet, and Annie was getting nervous.

"Annie, what on earth happened?" Danielle asked, sounding calmer now that Annie no longer looked like she had escaped a slasher movie. "And don't give me the runaround either!"

Annie took a deep breath. She had come up with a good story in the shower, and she steadied her voice for it. "Auggie called me at around midnight. He was sick with a cold and needed medicine badly. He tried to get to the corner drugstore on his own, but it was closed. So, he got in a cab and told the driver to take him to the nearest open store.

The driver decided to cheat him and drove him for a really long time, racking up a big bill. Auggie got mad and yelled at the driver, so he let Auggie out in front of a convince store in the bad section of town. Auggie didn't know how to get home, so he called me and asked if I could pick him up. I said I would, and I took a cab out there."

"I was wondering why you didn't take your car," Danielle piped up.

"I was really tired and didn't want to drive, but I had to be there for him! I got to the convenience store and met Auggie. We were just heading out when..."

Here, Annie's voice cracked, and Danielle's throat tightened in sympathy. The two girls shared a brief sisterly hug, then Annie took a deep breath. Oh, how she HATED lying to her sister! Yet, as Annie spun her story, she found herself half believing it. It was easier by far to believe Auggie had been simply knifed; the Julius affair was much, much more complicated.

"We were just heading out when... a man in a mask tried to grab my purse. Auggie tried to fight him; he was being gallant for me, you know, like a protector. But then... then the guy knifed Auggie. He got away (without my bag), and I was left there holding Auggie as he was bleeding to death. A nice man lent me his coat so I'd be kept warm when I went into shock... and Danielle, I'm so scared!" With that, Annie uncharacteristically burst into tears.

Danielle was as sympathetic as ever, and soon both girls were weeping. Finally, Annie got all of her tears out of her (so it seemed), and the sisters were wiping each others faces when Joan walked in.

Joan posed as a member of the police, and soon Annie was in a room with her describing what "really" happened. It seemed to take forever. Finally, Annie was allowed to go back to waiting for Auggie, and saw with relief that Auggie was finally in his room.

He was hooked up to several machines that made the small sterile space seem like it was filled with wires. Several monitors beeped (the heart monitor was the loudest), and Annie felt like the room was extremely small. Even Auggie seemed small; the tubes that cocooned his body made him look frail.

A doctor was in the room; Annie hardly heard what he was saying to her. Danielle picked up the conversation for her; Annie later found out that Auggie's right lung had collapsed due to the knife wound. The lung was re-inflated, and Auggie was given a couple units of blood to make up for what he had lost. All in all, the surgery had been simple (no complications because Auggie was in such good health), and Auggie was expected to make a full recovery, if his body survived the shock of the trauma inflicted on it. The next few hours were crucial; Auggie still hadn't regained consciousness, and his pulse was very weak and thready. His condition was still recognized as critical; once his body stabilized itself, he would be on the road to recovery. But his body was not there yet.

Usually, the doctor wouldn't want anyone in the room with a patient that was recuperating from such a massive trauma. But just Annie's presence seemed to make a difference to this young man; oddly enough, his pulse had marginally stabilized after hearing her voice. The doctor had seen some strange things in his time, and he knew from experience that for some patients, the best medicine was the presence of their loved ones.

"One of you may stay with him," the Doctor stated, looking from Danielle to Annie, unsure of where their relationship stood.

Danielle immediately got up. "I have to be getting home anyway; I left everything in a mess. Annie, if you need anything, just let me know. I'll be back to visit you this evening, okay? Bring you dinner?"

Annie didn't think she could ever eat again, but she didn't want to hurt her sister's feelings. Annie smiled a strained smile and said gently, "Thanks. I look forward to it."

Danielle practically beamed at this and then took her leave. Annie sat by Auggie's bedside, feeling as though the world had ended. Gently, she picked up Auggie's hand and stroked it, willing him to wake up. He didn't twitch a muscle. Sighing, Annie sat down in a chair and pulled it up to Auggie's bed. She held onto Auggie's hand tightly, willing him to be strong (though not saying a word, lest the doctors want to throw her out).

Time seemed to stop. It was the longest afternoon of Annie's life, to say the least. She sat by her friend's bedside and didn't move; she couldn't even think! Without Auggie, life seemed colorless. She felt nothing in her heart but sorrow, and some dread that if she left Auggie's side for a moment, he would slip away from her forever. It was getting harder and harder to organize her thoughts; after all, Annie had been awake most of the night. Her entire body felt numb, and as the afternoon wore on and the nurses changed shifts, Annie began to feel her brain shut down. Remembering that she sometimes walked with Auggie in dreams, Annie decided a power nap would be a good thing. Annie hunched over in her chair, using the side of Auggie's bed as a pillow. It was an extraordinarily uncomfortable position, but in moments Annie's exhaustion took over and she was asleep.

Annie looked around her. The park was not in full bloom anymore; all the leaves were brown and red. They were hard, and crackled in the wind. Annie looked around her as fall claimed the park. Normally, Annie loved the beautiful colors of the fall. But now, the colored leaves seemed to mock her.

"We're all dying," they seemed to laugh. "Our time of death is here. There is nothing new anywhere, no new bud. Summer has come and gone, and so have we."

Annie frowned as she walked among the trees, leaves swirling in the breeze before her. "Auggie?" she called quietly. "Auggie, are you here?"

Annie certainly felt his presence, but it was very weak. Frowning, Annie wrapped her warm coat around her and set off into the park, searching. Dead leaves crackled under her feet rhythmically as she trudges, their rustling sigh the only sound in the unnaturally quiet world. Mist began to roll in over the mountains, dampening every noise, until even the sound of Annie's walking was stifled. Then, when Annie felt as though she had been walking forever, she spotted him.

Auggie was laying in a small dip in the land, his back against a tree. He was as pale as the mist around them, and his dark clothing made him look even more lifeless. The vibrant red and orange of the leaves around him had been dampened by the mist, almost representing a rather macabre piece of art Annie had been bidding for last week. Annie ran up to him and gently eased him into her lap. His brown eyes opened weakly.

"Annie?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Annie smiled. "I'm here," she replied.

Auggie grinned weakly. "I wasn't sure you'd come," he said.

Annie scowled. "What do you mean? Of course I'd come for you!"

Auggie gave a genuine smile at the indignation in Annie's voice. "I'm so tired," he sighed. "What happened again?"

"You were stabbed by "John," who wasn't even really John. You had a collapsed lung. The doctors say you'll be okay if you can last through the night; they're very hopefully. But you have to fight! You've got to be strong, okay? You have to pull through this."

Auggie was silent for a long moment as he processed all this. "Why?" Auggie finally asked.

The question caught Annie off guard. "Why what?" she asked.

"Why do I need to pull through? Why do I need to be strong?"

Annie understood the question then, and it cut her like a sharp knife. "Of course, Auggie doesn't know you love him," her mind admonished. "He thinks you are just being a good friend. And who could blame him? When have you ever shown him any of your feelings? How would he know you loved him in return?"

Annie took a deep breath. "You have to stay, Auggie. You have to, because I love you. I didn't notice the love before, because it grew over time. It grew strong and slow, like a tree. I didn't notice it because it wasn't loud and flashing and blaring. But now I realize what a great gift it is that I was throwing back in your face, and now I understand the pain you felt when I wouldn't reciprocate it. I feel that way now; if you were to die, I'd live that pain out for the rest of my life."

"Could you bear it?" asked Auggie.

Annie thought for a long moment. "No," she said at last. "No, I couldn't bear it. I'd live on, understand that. But it wouldn't be much of a life without you, Auggie."

"A life without color. A life blind," Auggie stated, almost bitterly. "That's what someone once told me lost-love was."

Annie sighed sadly. "I'd learn to live blind if only I could be with you," she whispered.

Auggie's unseeing eyes opened wide. "You really care for me that much?" he asked. "I'm not just fantasying this moment?"

"If you are, then you really need to work on your creative skills," Annie laughed. "I could think of a whole lot more places to be hanging out than a creepy park that looks like it got it's backdrop out of a horror movie."

Auggie smiled. "How about a cafe in Paris?" he teased with a grin.

"So you can go all 'spy' on me? I think not. How sad is it that I'm a spy, and yet I still haven't gotten to Paris?"

Auggie's smile faded. "Annie, I feel really strange," he said after a moment.

Annie tensed trepadaciously. "Strange how?"

"I feel... Annie? ANNIE! AHH!"

Annie was jolted awake by the sounds of the heart monitor going flat. In seconds, there were several doctors in the room. Annie stood by the walls and stared as the doctors perfectly depicted the "crashing and clearing" scene from hundreds of medical movies throughout the years. The world moved in a blur as the medics tried to keep that frail human body beating and breathing... but it was all to no avail. The heart monitor continued to ring flat, and finally, someone gave up and turned it off.

The doctors filed out one by one, beaten, angry, and sad. Annie stood by the wall, disbelief at what had happened being etched out in her face.

"Auggie?" she asked, terrified. "AUGGIE! You can't do this, Auggie!" Auggie remained motionless, and Annie broke into sobs. "No, no no! It wasn't supposed to be like this; you were going to fight it! Oh Auggie, no!"

Annie moved back towards him and sat down in her chair by his bedside. She picked up his still warm hand and laid her head down on it. Sobs racked her body.

"Please, please," she gasped. "Please, no! Auggie, you can't... I love you."

Then suddenly, Annie's world began to shake.