I do not own Rookie Blue or any of the characters.

AU after series 4 finale - Andy stayed with Nick instead of getting back together with Sam and now they are married. Established Andy/Nick.

Please read and review and thankyou so much for all of the positive reviews so far! : ) . Also, I know nothing about spinal cord injuries and I'm just using it as a device for character development.

Chapter 23: Aftermath.

Chris and Dove, who were outside of the garage, ensuring that there were no civilians in harm's way, could only stand and watch as the bomb went off, knowing that their friends and colleges were in there. Andy and Nick. Chris instantly called Frank, but the Sergeant already knew. He had heard the whole conversation on Nick's phone, because of the directions he had received from the bomb squad. Sam was also in the room and he had heard Andy and Nick's words to each other, thinking that they may be their final words and he was almost ashamed to admit that he was jealous. If he had been in Collins' position, he would have ensured that McNally had left the building, no questions asked.

Sam was the first to speak, "We need to get there now. Ambulances are already on the way and so are most of our squads." He hesitated, then inquired, "What are the chances they're alive?" He still loved McNally and the idea of her being dead was one that filled him with dread. The answer was that it depended on the severity of the blast.

Sam was surprised because, as soon as he left Frank's office, Oliver was by his side. "Brother, Sammy, you can't go there. If the worst has happened and Andy's dead, you shouldn't see that."

Almost unable to speak, Sam chocked out, "I love her. She can't be dead. She can't be!"

Oliver forced his best friend to sit down and said, "Sammy, she might be and, if she is, you shouldn't be there. You shouldn't see that."

Rage suddenly filled Sam and he threw what was on the desk to the ground as he shouted, "If I'd been there, I would've made McNally leave! How could Collins let her stay there? If she's dead, it's his fault." His best friend knew that there was no point in telling him that Andy had a very clear mind of her own and he understood why she had not wanted to leave her husband's side. He also knew that, if Nick survived the explosion and Andy didn't, he would never forgive himself. Sam grabbed his jacket and insisted, "Oliver, I'm going! I have to see her and you can't stop me. If she's alive, I have to see her!" Sam ran past his best friend and, outside, to one of the squad cars and Oliver knew that all he could do was to go with him, in case the worst had happened.

The first thing Andy became aware of was the sound of sirens, then she suddenly remembered what had happened. The bomb and Nick had shielded her from the blast, with his own body. Her husband was lying on the floor, unconscious and, as Andy assessed her own body, she could not believe that she only had a couple of stretches on her body. She did her best to remove all of the debris that was on top of her husband, but there was only so much she could move by herself. The bomb had not been as powerful as others, but Andy could see that her husband was injured, very badly. "Nick, wake up! Nick Collins, wake up now! You're not going to do this. You're not leaving me, Nick!" She wiped away her tears and begged again, "Nick, wake up. I know we said our goodbyes, but that wasn't the end!" She wrapped her arms around him, then tried to wake him up again. He was breathing and she kept checking his pulse. He was alive, he just wasn't waking up.

"McNally? McNally!" It was Sam and Andy had never been so happy to hear his voice. If Sam was here, it meant that there were others here and ambulances, to take Nick to the hospital. "McNally, are you ok?"

Andy didn't reply, because the garage door was opened and paramedics came rushing into the garage and the fire brigade started to remove the remaining bomb debris that was still on top of Nick and Andy stood, shaking. Chris, Dove, Sam and Oliver walked over to her and a paramedic checked her over. "Nick tried to insulate the charge, but I didn't work. He-he shieled me from the blast and now he won't wake up and I can't move him from under all of this stuff! I need to go to the hospital with him." She could see a look in Sam's eyes. He was angry, but she didn't have the energy to care, or even care about Sam Swarek right now. All that mattered was her husband, so she followed Nick into the ambulance. As a precaution, the paramedics put something around her wrist which was slightly fractured. Nick was still unconscious. The paramedic said that it was probably his body's reaction to such a massive trauma, and it was his body's way of protecting itself. Andy held her husband's hand and prayed that he was going to be alright. Sam and Oliver followed in their car as did Chris and Dove and they also called Tracey and Chloe and they drove with Frank to the hospital.

Arriving at the hospital in a daze, Andy followed her husband for as long as she was allowed, but she couldn't go with him into surgery, so she remained standing there, unsure of what to do, where to go. The man she loved more than anything in this world was fighting for his life. She was so grateful to Tracey, who led her over to a seat and sat with her, holding her hand. There was nothing that could be said, but Andy needed the silent comfort. Half of the Division was there. In a very gruff way, Sam walked over to Andy and told her, "Collins'll be fine. He's touch. He was in Afghanistan." Oliver was watching his best friend closely and he could see what his feelings were.

In silence, Chris, Dove, Gail and Chloe sat with her and Tracey, offering her silent support. The only time when Tracey left Andy's side to call her boyfriend to tell him what had happened and to ensure that Leo was alright, go to Andy and Nick's apartment, to feed Jem, and to give Andy some clothes, which, as the hours dragged on, Andy decided to change into, not really thinking about what was happening. She had never been so grateful for her friends and for 15-Division. Even Frank was still there. Andy knew that she needed to call her dad and mother, but she was not able to make a slight move until she knew what was happening to her husband. She looked down at her wedding and kissed it, praying that Nick would be alright.

After hours and hours of waiting, a Dr stepped out in the waiting room and asked for Nick's family.

Instantly, Andy stood up and walked over to the Dr. "Yeah, I'm Andy Collins, Nick's wife."

The Dr nodded, before she said, "Officer Collins, the surgery went well. There was internal bleeding, but we got that under control. But I have to tell you, there is severe damage to his spinal cord. He's under sedation now, because of all of the pain he's in and we're doing that to protect his body from the pain."

Andy blinked, then asked, "His spinal cord? Does that mean he'll be paralysed?"

Nodding, the Dr replied, "It's his legs that will be effected. But we'll have to see how he responds when he wakes up, but quite honestly based on spinal cord injuries I've seen before, it's unlikely he'll ever walk again." She paused, then reached for Andy's arm affectionately and added, "I'm sorry, Officer Collins. You can go to see him now."

For a couple of seconds, Andy remained totally still. It was possible that Nick would never walk again? Without even thinking about it, Andy turned to Tracey and asked her if she could start to look for a new home for her and Nick, somewhere that was accessible, because where they lived now would not be good for him, if he could no longer walk. It seemed rather strange that that was the first thing Andy said after such news, but she was just thinking of her husband and she left the waiting room to go to see him.

Sam watched her go. He hoped that the Dr was wrong; he couldn't image how Collins would react if it was true about not being able to walk again. How would McNally cope? He was still angry with Collins, but he was also grateful that Collins had protected McNally.

Frank had seen this happen before, so he started to contact other officers who had injured in such a way, asking for their advice. The Dr wouldn't have said such a thing to Andy if there wasn't a good chance of it coming to pass. It would be a great shame, because Nick was a great police officer, but he could also be useful in areas of the police that wouldn't require him to leave the station.

As Andy walked to Nick's hospital room, she was just glad that he alive, because when she had woken up, she had been terrified that he was dead. In her head, she started to see their new future together; she needed to be prepared for this, because Nick wasn't going to be. The reality of awful, devastating, because of how active her husband was, but it was far better than the alternative. Their vows had meant a great deal to both and them and Andy was thinking about their last words to each other, before the bomb had explored. If Nick was going to be paralysed, if this was their future, it would be their future together. As the vows they had spoken only 8 months ago said, for better, for worse and it was their life, together.