Disclaimer: in the first chapter.

Chapter 10: Away From the sun.

Piper sat up out of a nightmare. Her heart was beating wildly like a wild bird caged in her chest. Placing her hand over her chest, Piper looked down on her comforter to see Kit in her bed. Rubbing his head lightly, She stood and walked to her window.

The darkness of night always comforted her for some reason. With a sigh she opened her window to sit on the sill she watched as a car pealed down the street, then stop at the corner. She looked at the car. She knew that car. Throwing house shoes on, she rushed downstairs, careful not to wake her family up.

Leo' Car

He couldn't remember the last time he broke down like this. It had to have been three years ago. That was the last time he ever remembered a tear running down his face. He couldn't drive like this. His tears blurring his vision made it impossible for him to drive.

A light knock on his window caused him to jump.

"Piper?"

"Leo what's wrong? Why are you crying? Why aren't you at home?"

Leo took a deep breath he needed to talk three years of clamming up didn't solve anything. If anything it just made matters worst.

"I don't know. Piper? Where am I?" Leo asks confused.

"Leo scoot over I'm parking your car and you're staying here tonight. You are in no condition to drive." Piper pushed leo over sat in the driver's seat. Turning the car swiftly around she parked it into her driveway. She turned off the engine and got out. Walking with cat like movements, she went to Leo's side and pulled him out.

"Let's get you something to drink." Piper pulled him into the manor and half-dragged him to the kitchen, but not before locking the doors again. Sitting him at one of the chairs around the island, Piper grabbed a cup from the cupboard and poured him some juice.

They sat in silence for who knows how long. Piper stared pointedly at Leo waiting for him to say some thing, anything. The silence was deafening and suffocating, and Leo wasn't bothered by it. Leo was staring into the cup of juice in front of him obviously deep in thought, tears steadily dropping onto the counter top. Not really noticing his surroundings until he felt steady warm hands grip his chin. Leo brought his sad weary eyes up to look into Piper hard eyes. Burying his face into her stomach, he sobbed. Three years of built up emotions burst forth. He was tired and weary of the life he was leading. He felt her arms encircle his shoulders and soaked her shirt with his tears.

Letting him cry out his pain Piper comforted him the best way she knew how. When his tears finally subsided to sniffles, Piper finally decided to say something.

"You want to talk about it?" Piper asked in a voice barely above a whisper. She felt Leo shake his head no. Well he was either shaking his head no or wiping his nose either way she knew they weren't going to be doing much talking tonight.

Grasping his hand, she started to lead him up stairs to her room. She knew she wasn't going to get much from him tonight so they might as well get some sleep. Closing her door she kicked off her house shoes and took off her outer sleep shirt.

"Leo get comfortable. It's going to be a long day tomorrow. " Piper said as she climbed back into bed and scooted over so that Leo could get into bed. Leo got in to bed and stared up at the ceiling. Piper looked at the rings on Leo's necklace. Both beautifully crafted diamond rings.

Leo knew she was staring at the rings. She was the first person outside his family to ever see them.

"They belonged to my mother and my ex-fiancé. They died three years ago. I, we were 16, my fiancé and I. We had been dating for four or five years before. We decided to get married when I found out on her birthday that she was pregnant. Both of our parents disagreed to the marriage but both sides decided that maybe it was for the best for us to get together. A couple of months later I gave her the ring and we found out we were having a boy. So my family decided to go out and celebrate the good news.

That night it was raining so the ground was wet. I was in my car with Marina, she was four or five months pregnant by then, and we were driving to a restaurant. But we never made it. A big rig, slammed into my parents car killing them instantly, Patrick was in the back with them. It was a miracle that he came out of the accident unharmed.

My parent's car slammed into my car on Marina's side. Trapping her. She survived but the baby didn't. I was in the hospital for massive head and neck injury. And Marina stayed in due to massive blood loss. It was a week before I learned that the baby and my parents were gone.

Weeks later, I was going through physical therapy. Marina became mute. She wouldn't talk to me or her family and therapists told us to get her institutionalized but by the time we decided it was for the best it was too late. She left the ring on my doorstep and wandered off into some woods. She had fallen off a cliff. The last thing I have of hers is the ring and a note that said sorry."

Leo's warm tears dripped onto Piper's shoulder. This time they were tears of relief. His guilt for their deaths was weighing heavy on his soul. It was too much. Piper could smell the musk of his cologne. Snuggling her face into his chest she spoke, her words muffled and distorted.

"Hmm?" Leo asked in the back of his throat.

Piper lifted her head. " I said why did it take you so long to talk?"

"I felt guilty. I was the one who suggested that we go out to celebrate. I was the one who didn't hit the gas fast enough. I knew that it was supposed to rain all night. Yet I couldn't wait. If I had waited, I wouldn't have lost my family. Maybe things wouldn't have happened this way with Patrick. I've lost everyone. My parent's are dead. My son and his mother are both dead, and my brother's going to jail because he couldn't find a better out to his bitterness." Leo's voice strained.

Piper climbed on top of Leo to straddle his waist. "You haven't lost everyone. You still have me. And though yes your brother was stupid for not being able to handle in a legal way. But you can't let your past guilt determine your future. Yes you lost the love of your life, and your child, but be thankful that you're able to have another chance to have the love life you were meant to have."

Piper went to lie down on Leo's chest but he stopped her. He sat up and gently kissed her. It was in that instant they realize her spoken words were for them. They both had a chance to love again. Lying their selves back down the cuddled up together and silently drifted off to sleep.

couple of hours later

Piper and Leo slept on through the morning while the rest of the manor slept on.

Pheobe peeked her head into Piper's room. Shaking her head she closed the door back and started down stairs. Piper was going to be in so much trouble when she wakes up. Unless she could divert her grandmother.

Walking into the kitchen she saw grams walking up the back stairs.

"Where ya goin?" Pheobe asked her grandmother's retreating form.

"Upstairs to tell Piper that Leo's missing."

"Don't worry I think she knows where he is."

Grams looked back at Pheobe then rushed upstairs to break the news to piper. Pheobe was hot on her trail. Then rushed in front of her to stop her from entering the room.

"All right what's going on?"

"Um...Leo'sinbedwithPiper."

"Slower."

"Leo's in bed with Piper."

Penny raised an eyebrow then moved pheobe out of her way. She opened the door to see the still slumbering couple entwined together.

"PIPER LYN HALLIWELL WHAT IN THE WORLD IS LEO DOING IN YOUR BED!"

AN: This Chapter was more or less a chapter to lighten up the mood a bit because with the saying that it can only get worse before it can get better is definitely going to apply to this story.