A/N: So here is the final chapter! Thank you all for staying with me! Special thanks to PeggsterLover from one of the characters ;)

I don't own them…

Chapter 20

The sun was shining brightly, providing a spectacular light to the scene. The birds' singing was a truly wonderful soundtrack. Agent Benjamin Dunn was a thankful viewer of the film that was called his life.

He didn't know when exactly he had turned from a character into a viewer. And when exactly things had stopped looking real. Even now, when he was out of the hospital, and had been for a month already, and had regained the full control over himself (even his formerly unresponsive left arm) he still didn't feel like himself.

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"Are you sure you are alright?" the concern in Brandt's voice was beginning to make the former technician feel sick. The answer was so painfully obvious that he really didn't want to lie and say "yes". Instead he just looked down and remained silent. He was about to be released soon, and now he was sitting on his bed, trying to look forward to it but not quite succeeding.

"Well, at least everything ended well," Brandt's attempt at being encouraging sounded incredibly awkward. Benji didn't lift his eyes up. Had it ended well? It sure didn't end well for all those people killed by Benzie because he had only suspected them of knowing too much. It hadn't ended well for agents Morgan, Edwards and Cartwright. And obviously for all of their families. 'Happy endings are a myth', Benji thought, 'designed to make us feel better about the fact that life is just…'

He didn't finish his thought as he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Brandt looking at him with the same concerned expression. Still keeping silent, Benji managed a sharp nod, hoping that it would look convincing enough.

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The flight back to America had been a fairly logical thing to do. Benji had had to report about the mission at the IMF headquarters. Agent Topp had looked almost apologetic, and the former technician found it almost amusing. Everything was almost normal. The usual visits to the bar with Ethan, Jane and Brandt were almost same as before.

The word "almost" being the key to everything.

But once he had felt he had made a full recovery, he had decided to get another flight.

Now he was standing at his father's grave, looking at it and trying to think of something to say. His mother had been so happy to finally see her son that she had looked almost disappointed when he had told her that he had wanted to "visit Dad" by himself. However, she had understood. Benji knew she had.

"He would be proud of you," a familiar voice sounded next to him, and Benji looked up to see Mike who now looked well and recovered. The agent knew Mike had been keeping in touch with his family so no wonder he knew about the visit home. "If he knew what you do…"

"But he never knew," Benji sighed. He had spent half of the day just wandering around his hometown, looking at all places he had known since his childhood, until finally getting to go to the graveyard. And even though he still didn't feel quite complete, the sights and the normality of things which was now so unusual to him made him feel more like himself. He nodded a bit reluctantly.

"I think it's time to go home," Mike said after another silence. "I can give you a lift," he offered a smile as he got another nod in response.

The car pulled up near the house, and Benji walked toward the front door. As the door opened, the agent found the living room unexpectedly crowded. Moving his gaze around the room, he recognized all the people as his old college friends.

"They are here to say thank you," Mike said quietly, suddenly standing next to him. When Benji turned a disbelieving look at him, he added: "Without your interference more of them would be dead. And I would be dead, too. They don't know about it. But you do".

Benji threw another glance across the room, noting cheerful grins turned at him. He stood there for a few seconds before finally realizing: for the first time in the past months he was actually smiling.

THE END