~ Chapter Four ~

Close Call

Barbara didn't know what happened.

One moment she was crossing a deserted street towards the opposite sidewalk, then, the next thing she knew, a white box truck suddenly sped around the corner and had come out of nowhere. It ran the red light and was heading straight for her, skidding out of control.

There was no time to react.

The squealing tires filled her ears, the bright headlights blinded her, and all she could do was brace herself for what would inevitably be a harrowing, if not fatal, accident. The truck driver tried to avoid her, but she was too close.

Barbara opened her mouth to scream and shut her eyes, but instead of the truck hitting her head-on, a crushing sensation suddenly slammed into her from the side, knocking her away right as the truck shot past her and slammed into the light pole.

Barbara screamed and grunted out in pain as she was whiplashed in the opposite direction, and when the truck hit the light pole, windshield glass showered her. Her knees collided with the gravel, and she rolled a few times before coming to a stop.

It was a rough landing, but she wasn't dead. Her lip and face skimmed the ground, cutting them up, and her ribs ached from the crushing sensation which slammed into her side. Her knees were also screaming out in protest at the sudden impact of the ground.

Barbara groaned, and in the background, she heard various people screaming. But one voice stood out from the rest and was screaming her name.

"Barbara! BARBARA!"

Barbara opened her eyes warily, and her vision swam dangerously. But, she knew the voice and longed to focus on it. And only it.

She was suddenly aware that someone was holding her against a rock-solid body, and hands were supporting her head. The voice she heard the loudest and recognized the most was Walter's.

"Walt?" Barbara asked quietly, and his face suddenly loomed over hers. His red and yellow eyes were wide and terrified.

"Oh, Barbara," he gasped in relief, resting his head down into the crook of her neck. His arms wrapped her into his chest, and his hands continued to support her neck. "Thank goodness! Are you alright?"

"I," Barbara began, then winced at the pain, "I think so." She looked around at the chaotic scene, to the crushed truck that was now smoking from the engine block, then back into Walter's eyes. "I… I'm not dead, so that's a plus. What happened? That truck just came out of nowhere!"

Walter's eyes grew darker suddenly, and he bared his sharp teeth. "That's what I'm going to find out." His tone promised vengeance for whoever was in the driver's seat and responsible for nearly killing her.

Barbara opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she realized that he was covering her body with his large, bat-like wings and had shielded her from thousands upon thousands of sharded glass.

Blinking back her swimming vision and forcing it to focus, she suddenly gasped when she realized what had happened.

"What?" Walter asked, looking down at her again with fear. "What's wrong?"

"Walt, you saved me?" Barbara gasped. They stared into each other's eyes, and he was watching her with great intensity. "How? You were nowhere near me!"

Walter remained silent for a second, then softly moved some of her auburn red hair away from her slightly bleeding face.

"I wasn't about to let the woman I love get crushed by some blundering idiot in a speeding truck. No matter what it took, I was going to save you." He paused, then smiled at his wings. "Besides, it helps that I am a swift flyer."

The woman he loved…

Barbara's heart pounded against her aching rib cage, and the words he spoke, so profoundly but casually, echoed in her mind.

"You… you love me?"

The intense look in his eyes said it all. The way he held her body protectively against his and held her gaze, despite all the chaos around them, she knew.

Yes, he loved her, and she loved him.

Walter leaned forward, guiding her lips towards his when the screaming crowd reached them- interrupting them once again. Walter shut his eyes and exhaled sharply.

"Holy shishkabob!" NotEnrique suddenly yelled, jumping from the top of the box truck, and landing next to them. "Doc, are you okay? I can't believe bossman reached you in time! I thought you were dead, for sure!"

"Bar-Bu-Ruh," Aaarrrggghhh cried out, running on his arms like a gorilla towards them. "You okay?"

"Yes," Barbara said, sitting up with Walter's help. "I… oh, ow!" She stopped moving and held her side.

"Barbara?" Walter asked frantically, looking her over.

"My side," she gasped, "it hurts. Most likely a bruised rib- or- two, but I'll be fine."

Walter blinked and didn't find any comfort in hearing those words. Instead, his eyes were wide in horror.

"I… I injured you?"

"No," she gasped, reaching out and touching his shoulder. "I mean, yes, but it was either getting slammed into by the truck and killed or being banged up by you, which is less fatal of an option, so I'll take it."

When her light explanation didn't help him, she gently grabbed onto his face, gazed into his eyes, and whispered, "Walter, you saved my life. Don't beat yourself up that I have bruises. Okay?"

Walter opened his mouth to speak but stopped when the door to the box truck opened, and a heavier-set middle-aged man stumbled out of the driver seat.

The man had brown hair, a bushy mustache, and was a disaster. His clothes were soaked, he was sweating profusely, and he was bleeding from his forehead.

"Oh my God! Ma'am, I'm so sorry! Are you-" The man then stopped cold when he saw Barbara on the road, embraced in Walter's arms. His eyes widened in terror, seeing Walter's troll form, and he stumbled backward faintly.

"It's one… he's one of THEM!" He then charged forward, grabbed Barbara's wrist, and yanked her to her feet away from Walter's arms. "Quick! RUN! IT'S A MONSTER!"

Barbara screamed out in pain at him pulling on her, and Walter was instantly on his feet. He grabbed the driver by the neck and pinned him to the side of the box, choking him out.

"Release her," he hissed, his face inches from the driver's.

"Walter!" Barbara cried out, but the driver still wasn't letting go of her. The man continued to stutter in fear.

"I… but you are…!"

"I said, RELEASE HER!" Walter suddenly roared, his voice menacingly guttural. "NOW!"

With a frightened gasp, the driver did, and Barbara fell to the side of the truck, gasping in pain and holding her side.

Walter growled deeply, then released the driver by slamming him into the truck's box. Kneeling, he gathered Barbara into his arms and held her to his side, who wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I… you…" the driver stuttered, glancing between them. "I don't understand! So you… you aren't going to hurt me?"

"I should," Walter hissed, clenching his claws into fists against Barbara's back. "For almost killing the woman I love, I really should."

Barbara glanced up at him, right as the driver gasped out loud. He repeated it, and her heart began soaring.

"Oh, Walter."

Barbara wanted to tell him how much she loved him too, but Walter stepped towards the driver and pointed a clawed finger at him before she could.

"What is your problem? Why were you driving so erratically and recklessly through this town? The milepost says it's thirty-five!"

"I'm sorry! It was a complete accident! I didn't mean to hurt the woman!" The driver stopped, then suddenly looked over at Barbara. "Speaking of… ma'am, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Barbara said, wincing in pain when moving, but thankfully, the pain wasn't as bad now that she was walking around. Her eyes then went wide upon focusing on him. "But, you're not. Sir, you're bleeding from your head!"

"I'm not hurt, I promise," the driver said, waving her off. "It's just a small cut. It's nothing too serious."

Barbara left Walter's arms and placed a hand on the driver's shoulder. "How about you sit down? I'll call an ambulance."

"I don't need one. I… we…"

"Sir, I'm an ER doctor and think I know a serious injury when I see one."

"No, you don't understand!" The driver suddenly begged. "We all need to run! We are all in genuine danger!"

Barbara raised an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean?"

"That's the reason why I was driving so fast and erratically!" The driver cried out. "I know it's no excuse, but if I didn't escape this town, then I was going to die!"

"What was gonna kill ya?" NotEnrique asked dryly, looking him up and down, then muttered, "other than too many Cheetos?"

"No," the driver gasped out and grasped his hair frantically. "It was a ten-foot-tall metal robot with lava coursing through its limbs! He called himself Magma-Tron, and he was trying to kill me!"

Barbara's jaw fell open, and she stared at the man for a few seconds; then, she glanced over her shoulder at Walter, who crossed his arms over his chest, and shook his head in disbelief.

"Um," Barbara said slowly, "a… robot was chasing you?"

"Yes!" The driver cried out, grasping her shoulders. " A killer robot! But, that's not all! Then, I saw two alien teenagers just a few blocks away!" He pointed in the general direction he came from. "They were glowing blue and had four arms!"

No one said anything for a few seconds, then NotEnrique mumbled, "he's coo-coo."

"I'm not crazy!" The driver yelled, shaking Barbara again, who stepped away from his grasp as Walter growled in warning.

"Sir, what's your name?" Barbara asked gently.

"Barry," the driver gasped, sweating profusely still. "Barry Thomas!"

"Alright, Barry," Barbara continued calmly, "I think you've hit your head a little bit too hard. Here. I'm going to call an ambulance." She turned and caught eyes with a nearby witness and pointed to him. "You. Can you call 911?"

"Yup," the witness replied, already having his phone to his ear. "I'm already on the phone with them. They are sending an ambulance to check you both out."

"Oh… goody," Barbara grumbled, then turned to face Barry. "Alright, Barry, I need you to listen to me, okay? Remain calm, and let's have a seat over here, away from your truck. We need to get your bleeding under control until we can transport you to the hospital for further evaluations."

"I'm NOT crazy!" Barry yelled. "I swear to you, this happened! A killer robot was attacking me, and I then saw aliens!"

"I didn't say you were crazy," Barbara said calmly. "I heard you. Aliens and... killer robots."

"You don't believe me? Fine! What about him?" Barry suddenly pointed to Walter, who flinched slightly and looked confused.

"What about me?"

"You, and this big dude here, are one of the rock monsters who attacked this town two weeks ago!"

Barry pointed to him and Aaarrrggghhh, who exchanged glances with each other. "I thought I was crazy then, but I was here when it happened!"

Barry turned onto the nearby witnesses and began yelling at them. "You all pretend that it didn't happen, even when you have evidence right in front of your stinking eyes! But it did! Now, I'm TELLING you that you have a killer ROBOT blasting through your town, as well as glowing blue aliens, and none of you believe me?"

"That's because everyone has a theory nowadays as to what is next for, what they believe to be, the end of the world," Walter added quietly. "But, they are all crazy."

"Walter, please, that's not helping," Barbara sighed, then helped Barry sit on the curb of the street. "Alright, Barry. Take a seat here, and we'll figure this out. Okay? I believe you."

"Really?" Barry gasped and looked up at her with hopeful eyes.

"Sure," Barbara said, shrugging. "I've seen enough crazy things in my own life. Trolls, wizards, flying bat-like zombie creatures. You name it. We can add aliens and killer robots to the list." At this, she straightened up and wished she didn't. A sharp pain shot through her side, taking her breath away. Wincing, she gasped and held her ribs.

"Barbara?"

Barbara turned at Walter's voice, who walked over and placed a claw on her shoulder, looking worried for her.

"Are you alright? Truly?"

"Yes," she answered honestly. "Moving around is kind of painful, but I'm pretty positive that nothing is broken. I'm just going to be sore for a little while, that's all."

"I'm so sorry for causing harm to you," Walter said, looking downcast.

"Hey," Barbara whispered, touching his face, "we talked about this. You don't have to apologize for saving my life. I'm thankful and indebted to you. Thank you."

With that, she planted a quick kiss on his lips. It was nowhere near how long or deep she wanted, but almost losing her life gave her the courage to do so.

Blushing, Barbara looked away from him right as the ambulance showed up, but when she gave him a glance over her shoulders, he was beaming.

A half-hour passed by, and Barbara was officially late to work from her break, but thankfully the hospital knew what happened and that she was in an accident and was pardoning her. She assisted the paramedic's control Barry's head bleeding, then let her ride in the back of the ambulance to the hospital.

Barbara knew the paramedics well since they were the ones who brought her patients to the ER. So she turned to one of them, by the name of Kathryn, and smiled at her.

"Thanks for letting me take a ride with you, Katie. I really appreciate it."

"It's not a problem at all," Katie replied, grinning back at her. "We are two minutes from the ER, and Barry is most likely going to be your patient anyway."

Barbara chuckled dryly. "Huh, yeah. Most likely."

"Are you going to be okay?" Katie asked her, looking concerned. "You took a hit to your ribs and are still going into work? Shouldn't you go home?"

"Unfortunately, I can't," Barbara replied. "We are a bit understaffed right now. So, it's just another doctor holding down the fort and me. Come hell or high water, so to speak; I have to work."

"I get that," Katie sighed heavily. "Oh, boy, do I get that."

"I know you do." Barbara clapped her on the shoulder. "I'll be ready to leave in just a second." She then turned and faced Walter, who was back on the sidewalk in front of Benoit's Bistro. He had replaced the cape over his wings and had the stroller, now filled with two sleeping babies, in his control.

Barbara walked over to him and smiled. "I see Nomura and Walter Jr. are finally asleep. Did it take a loud and chaotic car accident and all of these lights and sirens from the emergency vehicles to do the trick?"

Walter chuckled and stared down at the two sleeping baby familiars for a moment.

"I suppose so." Then, he narrowed his eyes suddenly and looked back up at her. "Not to sit and continue to fret over you, but that paramedic had a good point. You really shouldn't be going to work still. Not with your injury."

"I'll be alright," Barbara said softly, chuckling at him, then stopped when the pain shot through her rib cage. She tried to hide the wince, but he caught it and sighed out in exasperation.

"Oh, Barbara…"

"No, Walt, don't worry about me. I'll see you in the morning, okay? To make you feel better, I'll even have Doctor Davis or one of the nurses give me an X-Ray. I'll prove to you that I'm fine. It was just a close call."

Walter smiled but shook his head at her in amusement. She was so stubborn; it was ridiculous, sometimes.

"Alright, then. Whatever you say, darling. You're the doctor here. So who am I to argue with you?"

Barbara grinned endearingly at him. "Put those sweet babies to bed, and I'll see you in the morning." She began walking away, paused, then glanced at him over her shoulder and said softly, "good night, Walt," then turned and left.

"I love you, Barbara Lake," Walter whispered to himself as he watched her get into the ambulance, his heart still pounding from adrenaline. He told her that she was the woman he loved right after he thought he'd lost her, but he wanted the moment to be right.

Walter wanted to look at her directly in her beautiful, sapphire blue eyes and tell her how much he loved her. Not because she nearly died in a close-call car accident, but because they had the rest of their lives to live together in blissful happiness.

And then, maybe one day, she would agree to marry him.

The idea made Walter shake from nerves. He was a skilled, cunning, and ruthless warrior, but Changelings were raised cruelly. There was no honor amongst Changelings. They did what they had to do, even by killing others, to bring Gunmar back from the Darklands and save themselves.

Walter was once selfish, horribly so, but Barbara Lake undid him every time, and now, he'd give up anything… everything... to make her happy. To love her.

Whenever Barbara looked into his eyes, his entire world no longer revolved around himself- but her. Her son, Jim, had helped change his past evil ways, but Barbara forever changed his heart.

Walter understood their differences, but after all his time as his Changeling Familiar, Walter Strickler, he felt that he was a human in his heart with a troll's exterior, and he prayed she saw him that way.

One day, very soon, he hoped that he and Barbara figured out their relationship and finally gave in to the fire burning between them. They would share a long-awaiting kiss, and he would wait for as long as it took because she was worth the heart-pounding wait.

More chapters to come. :)