He's in the med bay.

All my fault.

Sometimes he's screaming. Sometimes he's shaking. Sometimes he's motionless.

All my fault.

I got careless. That's what it comes down to. If I had been ready... if I had done something, anything differently... maybe this wouldn't have happened.

All my fault.

He might not survive. There have been cases less severe than his that have caused deaths, and that was the first time those people had inhaled Scarecrow's hallucination toxin.

All my fault.

It's been almost a day now. I haven't left his side. Dick has been in often, Barry nearly as much. Nearly everybody in the entire League has stopped by.

All my fault.

Batman and Dick are off at the Batcave, trying to develop a vaccine, or at least something that can slow it down.

All my fault.

I look down at him. He's pale, shuddering from whatever horrible vision he is currently suffering from. The love of my life, and because of my carelessness, he's being tortured by his own mind.

All my fault.

"There was nothing you could have done, Artemis." I look up to see Conner in the doorway.

"But I could have! If I had been more careful, if I had... why did he have to be so fucking heroic? Why couldn't he have let it be me? Why did he have to give himself up?" I'm crying.

Conner shakes his head. "He's a hero, and he loves you. He'd do anything for you, including give up his own life, without a second thought."

I can't respond. I'm practically bawling.

Conner looks at Wally again. "Wherever he is in there, whatever he's dealing with, I bet you he's happy that he did what he did. He gave himself up, but he saved you, and I believe that that's what matters to him."

I shake my head in disbelief. "I'm not worth that. I'm not worth dying for or being tortured for."

"He thinks you are. So do I, but that's just as a teammate. What Wally feels for you is far, far stronger than what any of us feel. You know that. He's in love with you. Love makes people do crazy things."

I wipe away tears. "How... what if he dies, Conner? What if I have to live the rest of my life knowing that the only person I'll ever love is dead because of me?"

Conner shakes his head. "Wally's a fighter. He's going to make it, and you're going to be the first thing he sees when he wakes up."

He looks at the clock. "It's almost midnight, Artemis. Get some sleep." He walks out of the room, my whisper of gratitude going unheard, or at least unacknowledged.

I lay my head down next to Wally, who's gone quiet, at least for the moment. The sound of his heart monitor beeping lulls me to sleep.

"I'm home!" He walks in, smiling, and I smile back at him.

"Hey, Beautiful. How was your day?" All this time, and I haven't tired of hearing him call me that.

"It was tiring, but I survived. How was yours?" My Stanford classes start earlier in the morning than his, but his end later.

He shrugs. "Pretty similar to that, I guess. Are you busy tonight?"

I shake my head. "No, why?"

He grins. "You are now. We're going out. Trust me, it'll be fun."

I raise an eyebrow. "You almost sound like you've planned something."

He grins again. "Can't a guy surprise his beautiful girlfriend once in a while?"

I laugh. "He certainly can."

The restaurant he ends up taking me to is gorgeous, but what's truly amazing is afterwards.

We're sitting on the roof of our Palo Alto apartment, looking up at the stars and holding hands.

And then he turns to me.

"I, um, have something else planned."

I raise an eyebrow. "And what might that be?"

He smiles sheepishly. "Stand up for a second." He gets up and offers his hand, pulling me up to my feet.

"Wally, what are you doing?" I'm excited, but confused.

He fumbles with something in his pocket... and drops to a knee.

"Artemis Crock, would you make me the happiest man in the world?" He opens the box he's pulled out of his pocket... to reveal an engagement ring.

I gasp. "Oh, Wally... yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"

We kiss, the moon shines down on us, and everything is perfect.

I wake up just as Kaldur walks in. 3:12 AM.

"Hello, Artemis. How are you? And how is he?"

"He's been quiet for the last couple of hours. I've been asleep."

"That is good. You needed rest, and his being quiet is a good sign. His vitals still read normal."

I look up at him hopefully. "Do you think it might be beginning to filter out of his system?"

Kaldur shakes his head. "It is not impossible, but I cannot say. I have not had any experience with Scarecrow's toxin, and I do not know how long this may take. Wally will make it through this, though. I am confident in that."

"How can you be so sure? I... Kaldur, it's my fault. He's like this because of me." I wipe away a tear. I'm no crier, or at least I wasn't, but this is diffferent. Wally makes me feel things and do things I never would have felt or done otherwise.

"Artemis, you cannot think like that. It could easily have been any one of us."

"But it wasn't! It was me! Wally might die and it's all my fucking fault, Kaldur!"

"He is going to be okay. And when he wakes up, you are going to be the first one to see him. I promise that everything is going to be just fine. Artemis... you cannot allow yourself to shoulder the blame for this. There is nothing you could have done, nothing any of us could have done."

I nod, but my heart isn't in it.

All my fault.

He leaves wordlessly as I sit, staring at the love of my life as he silently endures unimaginable pain, until I once again fall asleep.

All my fault.

"I'm home, babe!"

I kiss my husband as he walks in the door. "Hey, honey. How was your day?"

He smiles. "It was decent, actually. I got a couple of new leads on the case I've been working. How was yours?"

I smile back. "Awesome, babe! And it was fine, I guess. Some low-life crook tried to make fun of me for being a female cop and I broke half his ribcage."

He shakes his head and grins. "That's my girl. Absolutely terrifying but absolutely perfect."

I kiss him again. "Do I tell you often enough how much I love you?"

He laughs and kisses me back. "It never hurts to hear it more. I love you too, by the way. Do you have anything to do tonight?"

I take a moment to ponder the question. "No, I'm off tonight. Do you?"

His eyes light up as he hears my answer. "I do now." He picks me up and speeds over to the couch, turning on the TV after he puts me down.

It only takes him a few seconds to find what he wants, and I laugh. "The Princess Bride? Again? Haven't you seen this movie at least twenty times?"

He laughs. "I'll stop watching it when it stops being an incredible movie."

He cuddles me on the couch as the movie starts, and I smile as I realize for the millionth time that I have the best husband in the entire world.

I don't know exactly when I fall asleep, but waking up next to him in bed is the greatest feeling I can imagine.

I wake up again. Wally has remained silent, which I guess is a good sign.

A tear rolls down my cheek as I take the hand of my unmoving speedster.

"Don't take my dreams away from me, Wally. Stay alive. And if you do stay alive, ask me to marry you. I don't need a ring, or any dramatics. Ask me to marry you so that I never have to leave you again."

"I love you, Wally West. I love you more than anything else in the world."

A new chapter? Crazy, I know.

It may be the last thing I ever post on this site. I may post something tomorrow. For now, I hope you enjoy this. Make sure to leave a review!

- JT