Before I could plunge the dagger into my heart I felt a strong resistance. I opened my eyes to see her standing before me. Her hands clutched the blade of the dagger and were now most probably cut. She didn't seem to care about her hands; the pain etched into her face was something different. "Trowa," I could almost feel the desperation in her voice.

She managed to yank the dagger from my grasp and throw it aside. She turned away from me for a moment. "Why?" was all she said. Her voice was cracked, yet frosty.

I could not bring myself to answer her though. For some reason I couldn't seem to tell her why. I looked away, embarrassed because she caught me, and angered because it was obvious she didn't care. Not about me at least. Like I said before, no one cared.

She turned to me and asked again, this time her voice held some frustration, "Why?"

I still could not face her. "No one cares," I whispered quietly.

I could feel the heat of her gaze on me. I felt helpless, I felt hopeless, I felt childish under her careful scrutiny. She reached for my injured hand. After a moment of thought she dropped it and went to the bathroom. "How sad," she replied, returning with a first aid kit. "A man who doesn't believe he's loved." She took my torn hand and began to clean it. I hadn't even noticed when she had finished wrapping it.

That simple phrase invoked something in me. What did she mean by that? Why did it hurt so much? My eyes met hers and I saw something in them. I saw a flame and tears that turned the flame into the smoky blue haze of her eyes. I had to look away. "Maybe I am sad. So what?"

"Are you that selfish?" she asked disbelievingly. "Are you that blind?"

"What am I not seeing? I no longer have a best friend or a sister. I don't have…"

"Oh stop feeling sorry for yourself. All this time you think no one cares, that it won't bother people you if you die. You claim that your sister and you best friend have abandoned you. But you're hurting them! You can't hide your pain from those who love you. Your sister, Quatre, they hate seeing you like this, but they don't know how to help."

I suddenly felt numb as I looked at her. I didn't feel the pain in my now bandaged hand, and I wondered absently if she hurt at all, I could even see the blood dripping from her hands onto the carpet. I was drawn to her and gently took one of her injured hands into my own un-injured one. "You caught a dagger for me. Why would you do that?"

I gently traced the cut. I doubted that she had done that because she actually cared for me. It was probably something to do with how she owed Quatre, or maybe how she was just returning the favor.

I was surprised when she brushed my cheek with the back of her other hand. I hadn't noticed the few tears that had slipped silently down my cheeks. "Because I hate to see you in such pain. Because I know how you feel, and I want to show you what there is to live for."

Her voice, her voice was so beautiful, soft and gentle, but firm and unwavering. I was so tired. I hadn't eaten or slept and her voice just pulled me to her. I felt my knees give out and I fell into her open arms. And I cried again. Dorothy just wrapped her arms tightly around me and knelt to the ground. "It's okay," was all she said, and for some reason I couldn't help but believe her.

"Even though your sister is married, even though she won't be physically always near, her heart will always be close. And she's also just a phone call away. They're not disappearing, Trowa, just getting married."

My tears stopped. I felt so weak, I felt like a little child, selfish and weak and ignorant. But I wasn't, and I didn't deserve comfort. I sat back so I wouldn't waste her compassion. I didn't deserve it.

"I'm not finished with you yet, Trowa Barton."  She crossed her arms in front of her. "I'm not going to let you get off that easily. You owe something to your sister and Quatre. They deserve an apology. You also need to learn that not everything is about you."

That caught my attention and my gaze snapped to her eyes.

"Life's not always about you, or what happens to you. When you don't have anything to live for you end up throwing you life away. Everybody needs a cause." Her knees buckled for a moment. She was probably weak from the blood still draining from her ruined hands. I reached for the kit and repeated the process she did to my hand on both of hers. She stood quietly while I wrapped her hands, when I finished she gave a small sigh.

Dorothy then looked at her hands for a minute as if inspecting them for something I could not see. "Do you understand?" she asked sounding somewhat far away. "Do you understand now that life is not about you but what you can do for others?

"Many people have special some ones they are able to love, and live for, but not everyone. People like you, hell people like me; we have to divide our love among many people."

I nodded. Was everything really so simple? Suddenly I needed to know. I needed to find this happiness, this peace, that Dorothy had been able to find herself. "Teach me," I asked. "I've seen you change, now teach me how to do it. I need to know."

She stood and looked out the window a moment. "I can't just tell you what you have to do be happy. Each person must find happiness for themselves, in their own way, and they have to have people to share it with.

"I've found happiness in my work. I'm able to make sure that people get what they deserve when the government tries to cheat them. I've found happiness, and have done my best share it many people. But they all have lives of their own. I wanted to ask you this later, because I knew you were sad. I was going to ask you if you wanted to come live with me. I have a beautiful life, Trowa, but no one to share it with. And I noticed that you seem to feel the same way. Misery loves company right?" Dorothy ended with an unsure laugh.

All I could do was stare out the window like an idiot child. She was offering me a part in her life? She was lonely…too. What if just maybe she could teach me something?

Dorothy shook her head and stared out the window as well. "I figured you wouldn't want to. I mean it was most probable that you wouldn't to come with me anyway, much less now." She turned to leave.

"Dorothy," I said quietly. "I don't want to stay by myself any longer. I accept."

She faced me, and her eyes were somewhat glossy. "I'm…glad, I…" she shook her head and smiled at me.

We looked at each other for a while. I had no idea what she was thinking or why should care about me. I didn't know why she would be so generous or so open. I didn't care either. I had someone now. Someone to be with, at least for a little while, and, for the first time in a while I felt happy.

Dorothy walked over to me and laid a hand on my arm. "C'mon let's go say goodbye to everyone."

~~**~~

Okay everybody, what'd you think? I hope you liked it, and I'm sorry about leaving the cliffhanger. And just for your information, there will be a sequel. (By the way, all you Finally fans out there, the more reviews the more inspiration, the more Finally! So go out there and write those reviews!!)