"Graham's waiting for you," Melinda said to Alex. "We should leave them to it. She won't know what's happening, Alex. But it'll be easier for them without you there. You'd hate it, watching the tube coming out isn't nice."

"I want to help her," Alex was stubborn.

"It won't help," Melinda was firm. "She's still out of it, she won't know anything about it. But they need to concentrate, and not to be worrying about your reaction. You can come back in a half hour, once they have her settled again. And don't forget, Alex," Melinda smiled. "They're bringing her out of the coma today. All her vitals are looking good."

Alex nodded. "'kay," she whispered. She replaced Olivia's hand by her side. "I'll see you real soon, baby," she whispered, kissing her tenderly on the forehead.

"And you'll be able to talk to her too, in a few hours," Melinda said, guiding her out of the room.

Graham was waiting for Alex in the cafeteria. He leapt up from the table, and enveloped her in a huge, warm, comforting hug. "Hey, Ali-Baba," he said softly as he rocked her. "How's my favorite sister?"

"Don't let Carolyn hear you say that," Alex said.

"Too late, I already heard it," Carolyn came from around the corner with a tray of tea. "I have a lot of making up to do, to even be in the running."

Graham released his hold on Alex. He looked at Carolyn and smiled. "I'd say you're making progress every day."

Alex nodded, and tried to smile. Carolyn could see the tension radiating off her. She put the tray of tea on the table, and took Alex's arm. "Come, sit," she said. "They're extubating now?"

Alex nodded, trying not to cry.

"That's good news," Carolyn said. "Very good news."

Alex nodded. "It is," she whispered. "And they're stopping the sedation. They're going to bring her round today. And then we'll know, if she's going to be okay."

"She will be okay," Graham said firmly. "You'll be home together before you know it."

"How's Lily today?" Alex addressed Carolyn.

Carolyn smiled. "She's so good. She's a little unsettled, without you two. But she was so good. Sarah and Jay have taken her to Jay's father's this morning. Jay has to work this afternoon, so Sarah and Joe are spending the afternoon together with Lily. I think they're planning to invite their friend from the coffee shop to come over."

"Vanessa?"

"I think that was her name. Now, drink your tea, Lexie. And try and eat some of that sandwich too. You'll be back in there with her before you know it. And she won't have so many machines attached."

"She really is getting better," Alex said. "It's hard to believe."

"It's been a long road," Carolyn said.

"How are you doing, anyway? I haven't even asked, with all this going on. Are you okay?"

Carolyn smiled. "I'm doing okay. Graham's going to build me a bookcase for the new apartment. And I called that counsellor Olivia suggested. I'm meeting her next week."

"Why not this week?" Alex asked.

"Because right now, my family comes first. I'm going to be okay, Lexie. If there's one good thing to come out of this terrible situation, it's that we're talking again. And Sarah," her eyes filled with tears. "Sarah says she's forgiven me. I don't expect she truly has, and I can't blame her for that. But she's trying to. And I'm trying to get used to her being with Jay."

"Jay's great," Alex said, defensively.

"I know," Carolyn's voice was soft. "She really is. It's just kinda weird, overcoming prejudices from so many years. And adjusting my expectations for Sarah. But I'm getting there. And I can see from you and Olivia that you can still have a family. A real family. Your daughter has taught me so much in the last couple of days."

"Lily?"

Carolyn nodded. "Watching her, I see that she loves both her parents. And that you are both her parents, her real parents. And one day, maybe Sarah and Jay can have that too. I know Jay will want to, she's completely in love with Lily."

"We want to help, in any way we can," Alex said. "If you need us. If you want to talk. Liv's a great person to talk to. She has so much experience, and she's so compassionate. She'll want to help you."

Carolyn nodded. "Thank you. I know we're all looking forward to being able to talk to Olivia. I owe her so much. And I need to apologize, for what that animal did to her."

"It's not your fault, Carolyn," Graham interjected. "There's only one person who's to blame, that animal," he spat.

"You never did like him, did you? Nor did Carla?" Carolyn asked.

"I thought he was a sleaze," Graham said frankly. "Now I wish that was all he was. After what he did to you, and now Olivia."

"They'll throw the book at him," Alex said. "Have you heard anything about the trial?"

"No news yet," Carolyn replied.

"I'll call Liz, find out what's happening," Alex promised.

"You focus on Olivia. We'll find out soon enough. Hey," she smiled, seeing Melinda approaching, a smile on her face.

Alex looked up, afraid to ask.

"It went well," Melinda said. "You can come back in whenever you want," Alex was already on her feet.

a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&

Alex had to force herself not to sprint to Olivia's room. She pushed the door opened, and breathed a huge sigh of relief at the sight in front of her.

Olivia was lying peacefully, an oxygen mask over her face instead of that monstrous ventilator.

Alex leant down, briefly pulling the mask away to kiss her softly on the lips. "Olivia," she said quietly. "My beautiful girl."

She sat on the chair by the bed, and took up Olivia's hand, pulling it to her lips. "What's her temperature?" she asked Melinda.

"101," Melinda smiled. "Falling all the time. She looks good, doesn't she? She's even getting some color back in her face."

Alex nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

"I'll leave you now," Melinda said. "I have to go to work in an hour."

"Thank you," Alex whispered. "For everything."

a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&a&

Alex sat by Olivia's bed all day, as she had done for longer than she now remembered. Her back ached, and she was stiff from days sitting at an unnatural angle. But it had all been worth it. Olivia was going to be okay. She was just asleep now, no longer unconscious. There was no apparent sign of brain damage from her seizures, though nobody could be completely confident until Olivia awoke.

Despite herself, Alex dropped off to sleep mid-afternoon, Olivia's hand held between both of hers. So when she first felt a light pressure on her fingers, she didn't stir. But when it came again, she jerked awake. Olivia's fingers twitched again.

Alex immediately pressed the buzzer to call the nurse, who was there in under a minute.

Olivia's eyelids flickered, and her fingers moved once more. "She's waking up," Alex said. "Liv. Olivia my darling. It's okay. Relax, honey. I'm here. It's all going to be okay now," her voice was thick with unshed tears.

Olivia whimpered slightly. Alex reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She let her hand rest on Olivia's forehead for a few moments. "She's cooler," she looked eagerly at the nurse.

"100.2," the nurse smiled. "She's doing real well." She looked up at the monitors. "Her oxygen's good too. You can take the mask off. Her heart rate's gone up a little, but that's only to be expected. Try and keep her calm if you can. I'm just going to get a doctor to call in."

Olivia whimpered again, her fingers tightening once more around Alex's.

"It's alright, Liv. It's okay. You don't have to do anything. Try not to worry, honey. You're in the hospital. You're going to be okay."

Olivia's face creased in pain as she shifted in her bed.

Alex put a restraining hand on her shoulder. "Try not to move, baby. You were hurt. Everything's gonna be sore for a while."

Olivia moaned. Alex brought her hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly. "You need to stay calm, Liv."

Olivia's eyes flickered open, and she looked round in panic. Alex could hear the heartrate monitor increasing. "Liv? I'm here. I'm right here, honey. We're all going to take care of you."

Olivia's gaze finally fell on Alex's face, and the heartrate monitor slowed its rhythm.

Alex looked into Olivia's eyes; they were clouded with fear and pain, but they were open. Olivia was back with her.

The nurse returned with a doctor Alex hadn't seen before. The doctor looked at the various monitors, and at Olivia's chart. Finally, he looked down at Olivia. He smiled. "Well, it's good to see you with us Miss Benson. I understand you've been napping."

Olivia ignored the doctor, her eyes looking only at Alex. She didn't know what was happening, or why she hurt so much. All that she knew was that Alex was with her. Alex was holding her hand. Alex was looking down at her with such love and compassion in her eyes.

Olivia swallowed, her throat horribly dry.

"Here, baby," Alex spoke softly as she spooned a couple of ice chips onto Olivia's chapped lips. Olivia's tongue flicked out and took them into her mouth. Alex added a few more, which Olivia hungrily sucked down.

"Is that good honey?" Alex asked.

"Lex?" Olivia finally managed to formulate a sound.

"It's me, baby. It's me. And you're going to be okay. You're going to be fine, Liv."

Olivia grimaced. The dull ache in her gut was getting sharper.

"You in pain?" Alex asked.

Olivia nodded. "Yeah," she bit out. "Hurts."

The doctor nodded, and went over and adjusted her IV. "That should help," he said. "I'm going to leave you two alone for a while. I'll be back in a half hour, to give you a full work-up Miss Benson, once you've had a chance to acclimatize. Call if you need anything."

Alex nodded her thanks, her attention already back on Olivia. She smiled at her. "I missed you," she whispered simply.

"I went somewhere?" Olivia's voice was scratchy.

"You nearly did," Alex was struggling not to cry. "But now you're back, with me. Thank you for coming back. I was lost without you."

Olivia squeezed her fingers weakly. "I'll never leave you," she promised.

"God, I hope that's true. We need you. I never realized quite how much. I love you, Liv. So very much."

"I love you too," Olivia's eyes were shutting from exhaustion.

"Sleep," Alex kissed her softly on the lips. "Sleep my darling girl."