Chapter One

"I am so sorry, Eric!" Rachel said for the thousandth time. She tried to help him into the house, but he waved her off.

"I've got a broken arm, Rach, not a broken leg." Eric opened the door with his left hand and walked into the house unassisted.

"He's probably too afraid to let you touch him after what you did," Jack joked.

Rachel paled. "It was an accident!"

"Yeah, just keep telling yourself that."

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The three of them were at Central Park. While Topanga went to interview for an internship, and Cory, Shawn and Angela toured colleges, Jack, Rachel and Eric were attempting to rollerblade.

"It's easy!" Eric zipped past them as he expertly skated on the trail.

"How're you doing that?" Rachel asked in frustration.

"I've been skating since I was a kid. I ice skate too."

"Show-off," Jack groused, as Eric executed a perfect figure eight.

Eric only laughed as he started skating away from them.

"Hey! Wait up!" Rachel picked up speed as she tried to catch up with Eric. The increased speed caused her to go slightly off balance, so as she passed Eric, she grabbed his arm to steady herself. Her weight, added to his, made him falter, making him fall awkwardly onto his elbow. As soon as she heard the crack, Rachel shouted, "I'm sorry!"

-------------------------------------------End Flashback-----------------------------------------

After a quick trip to the emergency room and the pharmacy, Eric was back at the house, watching television. Jack came and sat beside him.

"How's the arm?"

"Good. The doctor gave me some painkillers, so right now, everything's peachy."

"Well, if you need anything, let me know." Jack waited on Eric's response. When none was forthcoming, he sat there and looked at the program that was on the TV.

"Since when do you watch British programs?"

"I dunno. For a while."

Jack got tired of the effort to make conversation with an obviously unwilling Eric, so he stood and went upstairs. He paused at Rachel's door, listening to see if there were any signs of life. Hearing nothing, he knocked softly.

"Come in, Jack."

He stepped into the room. Rachel was on the bed, reading a folder of information.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked curiously.

"Heard you coming up the stairs. Figured that you were coming to rub the fact that I maimed one of my best friends in my face. Am I right?"

"Nah, would I do a thing like that?" Jack sat on the bed and peeked at the papers that Rachel was scanning. "Whatcha readin'?"

"Nothing important. Well, if you didn't come up here to mess with me, what did you come for?"

"I never said that I wouldn't mess with you." Deftly, he snatched the packet of papers out of her hands and tore off running. Rachel shrieked and began chasing him.

"You idiot! Give me that back!" She moved down the steps as quickly as she could and ran outside. Jack was waiting on her. When she came around the house, he tackled her and began tickling her until she was gasping for breath.

When he finally stopped, Rachel chuckled as she said, "You know, I miss this."

"Yeah, us just clowning around."

"So, why did we give it up?"

Jack stilled. Forcing a light tone, he said, "Oh, something about not being able to make it work."

"Well, let's try again!" Rachel neatly rolled over, so that she sat on top, facing Jack. She grinned at him.

"Are you serious?" Jack wondered, carefully keeping hope out of his voice.

Rachel's smile began to fade. "If you don't want to..."

"No," he said rapidly. "I didn't mean it like that. Let me start over. Rachel, would you like to go out with me? Again?"

Her mega-watt smile answered the question better than words ever could.

***

They waited two days, cautiously testing the waters. After the delay, Rachel told the girls, Jack told Shawn and Cory found out from Topanga. No one, though, thought to tell Eric. It wasn't intentional. Everyone just assumed that someone else had already told him.

One rainy day, Topanga and Angela decided to go shopping, dragging Cory and Shawn along with them. Eric said that the rain was bothering his arm, so he spent the day in his room. Rachel and Jack were on the couch, idly flipping channels.

"What do you want to watch?" Rachel asked, eyes never leaving the screen.

"Well with us only getting local channels, there's not much choice." Jack quickly snatched the remote out of her hands. Before she could protest, Jack said in a low voice, "Why don't we make our own fun?"

"You're a genius!" Rachel stretched out on the couch. "Well, have your wicked way with me."

Laughing, Jack quickly stretched out next to her. As they slowly, then more passionately, kissed, Jack felt a little divided. While he was glad (very glad) that he and Rachel were back together, he couldn't help but feel that something was... a little off.

He opened his eyes, about to break the kiss to take in some air, when he found himself staring at the very surprised and hurt face of Eric. When Eric noticed Jack looking at him, he turned and left without a word. Jack didn't realize that he was still staring at the empty doorway until Rachel pulled away slightly. "What's wrong?"

"N... nothing," he said, his mind still working furiously. "Now, where were we?"

***

"Where's Eric?"

The innocent question from Cory caught them all off guard. Everyone was supposed to be getting ready for dinner, and they tried to think back to when they had last seen Eric.

"Um... he was here when we left, right?" Angela asked.

"Yeah, he was. He had asked me to buy him some batteries." Topanga looked mildly concerned.

"I saw him around 2," Jack volunteered. "He didn't say he was going anywhere..." He remembered the look on Eric's face before he ran out of the room earlier and shuddered inwardly.

"Maybe he's just out, exploring the town." Shawn said. "He's probably on his way back right now."

"Well, it's starting to get dark outside. If he's not back by midnight, we should do something." Rachel tried to look decisive, but instead looked scared.

"And what will we do at midnight?" Cory asked.

"We'll decide then." Jack said. "Why don't we go ahead and eat?"

***

After dinner, Topanga and Cory called it a night, telling everyone else to let them know when Eric returned. Shawn and Angela went to see a movie, promising to keep an eye out for him. Jack paced nervously in the living room while Rachel tried to watch a movie.

"Sit down! Why are you so upset?" she asked.

"Something's wrong. I can feel it," Jack said seriously. "Look, there's something I didn't tell you," he added.

"What?"

"This afternoon, when we were on the couch... Eric saw us."

"Okay... I'm not getting why that was a bad thing."

"I don't think he knew. About us."

"Oh. But... how could he not know?" Rachel turned off the television and said softly, "Do you think he was upset?"

"I know he was upset. Dammit, I should have gotten up and talked to him. When he gets back, I'll have a chat with him."

"Well, he has been kinda distant this summer. It's my fault too; he is one of my best friends after all."

Jack sat on the couch next to Rachel, not saying anything. Then Jack leapt up. "I can't just sit here, doing nothing. I'm gonna go look for him."

"Do you want me to come?"

"Why don't you stay here in case he shows up?" Jack suggested. "And tell him I'm gonna kick his ass for making me worry." He tried to smile, but it came out a grimace.

He headed into the sultry night, wondering where exactly Eric would be at in a strange town at almost 11pm. He wasn't the type to be in a bar, and besides, Eric couldn't drive because of his arm. Jack passed a school with a playground, which he checked thoroughly, and a café, which was closed.

He was about to turn around and go the other way when he spotted a small hospital. Feeling the pit in his stomach deepen, he decided to check, if only to reassure himself that Eric wasn't there. He walked into the well-lit building, eyeing the people in the waiting room cautiously. He walked up to the desk, swallowing nervously.

"Um, do you have a patient by the name of Eric Matthews?" he asked, hoping that the lady behind the desk would quickly tell him no.

"Hold on, I'll check." She quickly typed something into her computer, and then said, "He's in room 24. I'll get someone to take you back there."