Danny knocked rapidly on the door. His worry made him impatient. "Jacqueline," he called. "Can you hear me? It's me, Danny."

He heard someone moving within. A moment later, the door opened. Jacqueline leaned wearily against the door. Her face was pale and her posture tensed. Danny could see the strain in her eyes and it frightened him. She whispered his name and Danny immediately moved close to her. He took her into his arms and felt her buried her face in his shoulder. Jacqueline closed her eyes and breathed deeply, inhaling his comforting manly scent. Danny gently stroked her back. They stood there holding each other, seeking comfort in the each other's presence.

After a while, Danny helped her to the couch. He sat down beside her and laid a protective arm across her shoulders, pulling her close so that she was leaning against him.

"Danny?" Jacqueline whispered as she rest her head on his shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Thank you," she said.

Danny understood perfectly. He continued to hold her for a while longer. Neither of them said anything else. There was no need to. When two souls had touched each other, words became merely sounds in the wind.

Danny was the first to stir. "Hungry?" he asked.

"Not really." Jacqueline tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear.

Danny looked at her ashen face, his brow creasing with worry. "You've got to eat something. When did you last ate something?"

When Jacqueline wasn't able to give him an answer, he stood up. "Let me go to the kitchen and see if I can find something." Danny went into the kitchen and rummaged through the refrigerator and the larder. Jacqueline had kept them well-stocked with food. Looking through the ingredients, Danny decided that he could prepare something fast and simple to eat.

"How does some pasta sounds?" Danny asked, coming out of the kitchen. He noticed Jacqueline looking down at something she was holding in her hands. He walked closer and saw the she was holding a photo of a younger version of her and her husband.

"That's Johnny and me," she told Danny as he sat down beside her. The couple in the photo were laughing at the camera, their faces bright with youthful exuberance and optimism for the future. Jacqueline took on a faraway look as she thought back to the past. "We met in high school. Johnny was the quarterback of the school team. I'm in the cheerleading squad. The quarterback and the cheerleader. We dated through college and when we got married, it was like a fairytale ending."

A sad smile appeared on Jacqueline's face. "We were very happy in the beginning. We didn't have much but it was enough as long as we have each other." Her fingers gently touched Johnny's face in the photo. "Danny, you only saw Johnny the way he is now, but he isn't always like that. Johnny is..." Then she caught herself. She looked distressed as she said softly, "Was."

Danny placed his hand over hers and gave it a squeeze. Jacqueline smiled gratefully at him.

She continued, "Johnny was a sweet guy. All he ever wanted was to be a football player in the NFL. When he was spotted by a scout from the Giants, it was like a dream come true. Then one day Johnny got injured during practice and the doctor said he would not be able to play again. Johnny started drinking to forget. At first it wasn't much, just a can here and there. But the more he drank, the more drunk he got and the more he wanted to drink. It got so bad that sometimes he was drunk for the whole day. Then the agents stopped calling."

She paused, thinking about the past. The sad smile still lingering on her lips. "Of course this made Johnny drink more and more. I tried to help him but everything I did just made him angry. And when he's angry, he said hurtful things. It got from bad to worse until finally I didn't try anymore. I told myself to stop caring about him. But for a long time, I still hoped that Johnny would go back to being the sweet boy I once knew in high school."

Jacqueline quickly brushed away a drop of tear from the corner of her eye. Danny patted her hand, trying to think of something to comfort her.

"You know, this may come as a surprise but I understood how Johnny felt," he said. And he told her about that summer when he ignored the doctor's orders and sneaked out to play baseball. He ended up hurting his arm so badly that he had to give up the game he loved. "I was pretty beaten up about it. Baseball was my whole life back then," Danny concluded.

"How did you get over it?" Jacqueline asked.

"Well, my older brother, Louie, didn't let me sit around moping for long. One day he came into my room and punched me, telling me to get off my butt and face it like a man." Danny rubbed his chin, remembering where Louie's fist had made contact with his face. He gave a wry smile. "I was pretty mad with Louie back then, but on hindsight, it was probably more effective than all the consoling in the world."

Jacqueline chuckled then quickly stopped. She said somberly, "Perhaps that's what Johnny needed; an older brother to get him back on his feet again."

Danny replied, "Don't blame yourself. You couldn't have known how things would turn out."

Jacqueline shook her head. "I know you are right, Danny. But I can't help feeling that I should have tried harder, I should have stuck by Johnny... then maybe Johnny would be still alive today."

Danny did not say anything. He understood how Jacqueline felt because he felt the same way about Louie. If he had made up with Louie, if he had taken the time to listen... Then maybe, just maybe, Louie wouldn't be lying on the hospital bed in a coma.

Danny swallowed the lump in his throat that appeared whenever he thought about his brother and forced a smile. "So... how about some pasta? I'm not too bad a cook."

Jacqueline thought for a moment and said, "How about we go out? I want to get some fresh air."

"Sounds good to me. No dirty dishes to wash up," he joked as he helped her up.

Danny and Jacqueline bought a hotdog each and sat in a quiet park nearby to eat their lunch. Then hustle and bustle of the big city faded away into the background as Danny watched late afternoon sunlight shone through the gaps in the trees, painting the grass with patches of warm gold. Enjoying his tranquil surroundings, Danny felt a kind of peace that he had not felt for a long time.

Suddenly Danny's mobile rang. He picked it up and saw that the caller was Lindsay. The was a momentarily stab of panic as he wondered if Lindsay had spotted them. Then logic took over and he knew that there was no way that Lindsay would know as she was back at the crime lab. But he was still a little shaken as he took the call.

"Yeah?" Danny tried to keep his voice as neutral as possible.

"Danny, could you pick Lucy up from her nanny? I'll be working late today," came Lindsay's voice.

"Sure, I'll do it."

Danny felt relieved as he hung up. He looked at Jacqueline. "Hey, I'm sorry..."

"I know. Duty calls. Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"You sure?"

Jacqueline smiled, "I'm sure. Don't worry, I'm a big girl now. You better get going, you don't want to get your boss angry."

Danny smiled back, "Okay, but you call me if you need anything." He left after giving her a quick kiss.