Disclaimer : As all previous chapters.
Notes : Well this is it, the eleventh and final chapter. It's quite a bit longer than the previous chapters, so if it's too long I apologise.
Thank you to everybody who read this story and a special thank you to everybody who reviewed. I couldn't have finished it without your encouragement.
Okay, on with the chapter. There'll be more notes at the end, so I'll see you there.
Have fun (Hopefully).
PS. Please don't hate me for what I'm about to do, okay?
CHAPTER ELEVEN
"I don't know, Syd." Nigel said a few days later. "Maybe it's time to give up. Everybody we've spoken to seems to agree that your father's death was just a tragic accident and nothing more."
She sighed dejectedly. "I suppose you're right," she said. "But if I drop it, then I'll have to accept that he's dead and I don't think I'm ready for that. Not yet."
Nigel wanted to kill Randall Fox for putting him in the position of having to lie to Sydney and Jenny. Especially Sydney. Now that he had finally admitted to himself that he loved her, it was getting harder and harder to see her in pain and not be able to tell her the truth about her father.
Nigel sighed. "I know," he said gently. "I've been through it, so I do understand how you feel. It's just that there comes a time to let go and I think that time is now."
She just nodded and started crying. He wrapped his arms around her and held her while she cried, just like he had every day for the past week. This time, when she pulled away, he could see that something had changed.
"You're right," she said. "It's time to let him go. He wouldn't want us to grieve forever. I'm going to be okay now, Nigel. I think Jenny will be as well."
"I know you will. You're father would be so proud of both of you."
She pulled him into one last hug before they left the police station where they had spent the last three hours.
"Come on, Nigel. Lets go home!"
Three months later, nearly everything had returned to normal.
Everybody had gone back to America for Randall's memorial service. After staying a few days to sure everyone was okay. Preston went back to England but he still kept in touch. As a strange result of their late night conversation in the hotel bar, Nigel and Preston were getting along better than they had in a long time.
Jenny had moved into Claudia's place for a while because she couldn't face living in the home she had shared with Randall o her own and they had just decided to make the move permanent. They had become close friends since the trip to England and Jenny had started to smile again, which pleased everybody. She had even started to work part-time at Trinity in the languages department, which made it much easier for everybody to keep an eye on her.
As for Sydney and Nigel, things were pretty much back to normal. They had gone back to work at the college. The rest of the faculty had been very sympathetic when they heard the real reason why the entire Ancient Studies department had taken off with no notice. They were used to it with Sydney and Nigel but it was something new for Claudia to go as well.
Nigel had finally moved back to his own apartment about a week after the memorial service. Syd had decided it was time for him to leave when she woke up one morning and found herself draped over him with her hand resting on his chest, under the t-shirt he habitually wore to bed and with his arms wrapped around her. "Mmm!" she thought as she snuggled closer, still half asleep. "I could get used to waking up like this." Her eyes snapped open when she realised what she had just said to herself and she decided right there that it was time to start standing on her own two feet. She had got so used to sleeping with Nigel that it had been hard at first without him, but it was getting easier. She still had bad nights, but she knew that all she had to do was ring him and he would be there. For some reason, just knowing that he was only a phone call away made it possible for her to get through the night without having to actually call him.
The nights were rough on Nigel as well. For his part, the two weeks he spent living with Sydney were the best of his life, despite the circumstances surrounding them. They had never continued the conversation that had been so rudely interrupted by Syd's father and Nigel honestly didn't now if he ever would tell her how he felt. He had discussed it with Preston in one of their now frequent talks and Preston, in his usual forthright manner, had told Nigel to stop being a bloody wimp and to go for it, but he wasn't sure. Now that things had mostly gone back to normal, all his old insecurities had risen to the surface again and he was terrified of losing his best friend, so he decided not to say anything. The decision was mad easier by the fact that Sydney didn't seem to remember the conversation in the first place. She had certainly never bought the subject up, anyway.
Randall had been in touch a few times and Nigel had learned a little more about why he had needed to make Sydney and Jenny believe that he was dead, but he still didn't like lying to them, especially when he saw the sadness in their eyes at unguarded moments. Nigel was sure that he had caught glimpses of Randall a couple of time, just checking up on his girls, but he never mentioned anything to him or anybody else. It was better for all concerned if everybody believed he was dead and Nigel knew that now.
And so, life went on. Days and nights came and went, each one a little easier to get through than the one before. Jenny and Claudia were getting along fine as roommates. Sydney and Nigel had settled into a comfortable routine of working all day and then either catching a movie or dinner, with the occasional late night phone call. There had been no relic hunts for a while, but Sydney wasn't quite ready to get that aspect of her life back just yet, she was enjoying the quiet life for once. Preston called once a week and was planning on visiting when he could get away and everything at the college was going along fine.
Until Claudia answered the phone and everything changed.
"Ancient Studies."
Jenny was in the office with Claudia, making plans to meet for lunch and she smiled. How Claudia could sound so cheerful first thing in the morning was a total mystery. Claudia had put the phone on speaker because she had just painted her nails and she didn't want to smudge the varnish by holding the receiver, so Jenny could hear both sides of the conversation.
"May I speak to professor Fox," said an unfamiliar voice.
"I'm sorry, but she's teaching a class right now. Can I take a message?"
"Certainly. I'm calling from St. Mary's Hospital. If you could ask Professor Fox to call us regarding a Mr. Nigel Bailey, we would appreciate it. It is quite urgent."
Claudia and Jenny instantly snapped to attention. What's happened to Nigel?" Claudia asked abruptly.
"Are you a friend of Mr. Baileys?"
"Yes. I'm his and Professor Fox's assistant. Please tell me what's wrong."
"Mr. Bailey was in a serious car accident this morning. Apart from a credit card the only other thing he had in his wallet was a card with Professor Fox's name and this telephone number on it. That's why we're trying to get in touch with him."
"Her," Claudia muttered. "Professor Fox is a woman."
"We really do need to get in touch with her urgently, so if you could get her to contact us as soon as possible."
"O-of course," Claudia stammered. She was just about to disconnect the phone when she suddenly shouted. "Wait! You still haven't told me what's wrong with Nigel. Is he going to be okay?"
"I'm sorry, dear." The woman from the hospital said gently. "We just don't know. He's got some broken bones and lots of bruises. He also has a serious concussion and is currently unconscious. We're doing everything we can but we honestly don't know at this point if he is going to make it."
By now, both Jenny and Claudia were crying. "Okay. Thank you for telling me. I'll find Sydney and we'll be there as soon as we can." She quietly cut off the connection and they both sat there for a few moments trying to collect their thoughts.
Claudia looked up and spoke to Jenny. "Okay," she said wiping her eyes. "Sitting here's not going to accomplish anything. You go and get Syd out of class and get her to the hospital, just don't tell her what's happened in front of the students though. I'll call Preston to let him know what's going on and make arrangements to get him over here as soon as possible and then I'll meet you and Syd at the hospital. Okay?"
Jenny nodded. "Okay," she whispered. "Claudia, I'm scared."
"I know you are, I am as well. But no matter how hard this is for us, it's going to a thousand times worse for Sydney. We have to stay strong for her. She loves him so much and if anything happens to him so soon after Randall dying, I think it would kill her. Judging by what the hospital just said, we haven't got a lot of time so we need to get moving."
Jenny nodded and ran out of the room, while Claudia took a deep breath and picked up the phone to do the hardest thing she had ever had to do in her life.
She arrived at the hospital about an hour later to find Sydney arguing with the doctor because he wouldn't allow her into intensive care to see Nigel.
"I'm sorry Professor Fox, but it's only family allowed into the ICU."
Claudia could see that Sydney was going to start getting violent in a minute so she decided to intervene.
She walked up to Sydney and spoke to her. "There you are, Mrs. Bailey. I've been looking everywhere or you." Sydney just looked at her like she was insane. "I've managed to get hold of your brother-in-law in England and he's booked on the first flight he could get. He gave me a message for you, but I'm afraid its private so could I see you alone for a few minutes?" Without giving her a chance to answer, Claudia grabbed her arm and dragged her into a corner.
"What is the matter with you, Claudia?" Sydney asked. "Why were you calling me Mrs. Bailey?"
"Look," Claudia was getting annoyed. "You want to get in there to see Nigel, right?" Sydney nodded. "You know their not going to let you in unless you're family, so you tell them you're family!"
"That makes sense, but why couldn't you tell them I'm his sister or something?"
Claudia snorted. "Please Sydney. Nobody is going to believe for one second that you and Nigel are brother or sister."
In spite of her fear over Nigel, Sydney had to smile as she realised Claudia was right. There was just no other way to get into that ward.
"Okay, let's get back over there and see if he'll let me in now."
Sydney smiled sweetly at the doctor. "I'm sorry doctor, you were saying something before we were interrupted."
"Yes, Professor Fox. I was saying that…" he was interrupted by Sydney. "Please, it's Mrs. Bailey. I only use Professor Fox at the college because it's easier for the students. Nigel and I were married a few weeks ago and we decided that I would continue to use my name for professional purposes." She had to try not to laugh at the expression on the Doctor's face, not to mention Jenny who nearly choked when she heard Sydney call herself Mrs. Bailey. "I'm sorry," Sydney continued. "I should have told you I was his wife, but I was so scared when I first got here that I just completely forgot to mention it."
"No need for apologies, Mrs. Bailey. I should be apologising to you. Now, are you ready to go in and see him?"
"Yes, just give me a second to talk to our friends and then I'll be right with you."
She walked over to where Claudia and Jenny were waiting and pulled them into a hug. "That was a smart idea of yours, Claudia." She whispered. "I honestly couldn't think of any way short of knocking that stupid doctor out to get in there."
"That's okay. I've called Preston; he's on his way. He said he's going to get the earliest flight he can and he hopes to be here by tonight. You okay?"
"I'll be better once I get in there and see him. How about you two? How are you doing?"
Claudia and Jenny exchanged looks. Typical Sydney, always taking care of people. "We're fine," Jenny answered. "Don't worry about us. Go be with Nigel, he needs you right now."
"You're right," Sydney said as she finally let them go. "Why don't the two of you go home? I'll call you if anything happens."
"Not a chance, Syd." Claudia said. "We're staying right here. Okay?"
Sydney smiled. "Okay. I'll see you later then." Without another word, she walked over to the doctor and he led her into ICU. The last thing Claudia and Jenny heard before the door closed was the doctor warning Sydney about the machines that Nigel was connected to.
"Try not to be too alarmed by the way he looks, Mrs. Bailey. He is quite badly injured, but it's nothing that won't heal with time. The only worrying thing is the severe concussion he received, he doesn't seem to want to wake up. He is hooked up to a few machines, but these are mostly just monitoring devise although we have got on oxygen at the moment to assist with his breathing." He stopped outside a door. "Before we go in, is there anything you want to ask me?"
Sydney shook her head. "No. I just want to see him."
"Okay." The doctor opened the door and Sydney gasped at the sight of Nigel lying in the bed. He was covered in tubes and wires and he had a drip in the back of his hand. Every inch of him looked as though it was injured, there were bruises and scrapes everywhere. Below the bedclothes she could see the bulky shape of a plaster cast on his leg and his ribs were strapped up. The worst thing though, wasn't the injuries. It was the silence. The only sound in the room was the quiet beep of the heart monitor.
A nurse was checking the readings on the machines and turned around when she heard Sydney start to cry. "Nurse Jenkins," the doctor said. "This is Mrs. Bailey."
"Hello dear." Nurse Jenkins said softly. "I've been looking after your husband since they bought him in this morning. Now, I don't want you to worry about him too much. He isn't as badly injured as we thought at first. Besides, I can tell he's strong. I think he's going to be just fine."
Sydney was still standing in the doorway, too afraid to come into the room.
"Come in," the nurse said. "It's okay, don't be afraid." She walked over to Sydney, took her hand, led her over to the chair by Nigel's bed and sat her down. "We're still not quite sure what happened this morning. All we know for sure is that he was hit by a car travelling at high speed and until he wakes up, I'm afraid that's all we will know."
Sydney just nodded. She hadn't taken her eyes off Nigel's face since she came into the room. The nurse decided it was time to leave them alone. "If you need me dear, I'm going to be at the nurses station right outside." She was just about to walk out when she remembered something. "Oh. By the way, Mrs. Bailey?"
Sydney answered without looking up. "Yes?"
The nurse pulled something from her uniform pocket. "We found your husbands glasses in his top pocket. They're miraculously unbroken."
Sydney took them from her. "Thank you," she said quietly.
"Why don't you try talking to him? It might help."
When she got no answer she sighed and left the room, quietly closing the door behind her.
"They've got a rough road ahead," she thought. "But I think they'll make it."
Sydney stroked a lock of hair from Nigel's forehead. "Why did you have to go and do something this stupid? I was just starting to get over Dad dying and now this." She sighed and for the first time since entering the room, looked away.
"Okay." She said, still talking aloud. "Syd, stop feeling sorry for yourself and concentrate on Nigel. Talk to him, tell him anything." She sat there for a minute trying to think of something to say and then told him everything she could think of. She told him that Preston was on his way and that he wasn't to worry about anything. Everything was going to be okay. He was going to be okay, she would take care of him. She talked for hours, telling him everything and nothing. She started laughing when she told him about Claudia's lie to get her in to see him and then she started crying again. She was still crying when she fell asleep, holding his hand and still clutching his glasses.
She opened her eyes the next morning to find that someone had covered her with a blanket during the night. "Probably that nice Nurse Jenkins," she thought. Se was surprised to find that it was light out. Sydney looked up to find the nurse taking Nigel off oxygen and immediately started panicking.
"What is it? What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong, calm down. He's breathing much better now, so we're taking him off oxygen. In fact, he's doing so well we're transferring him out of ICU."
"Oh, thank God," Sydney whispered. Then she had a thought. "If he'd doing so well, why won't he wake up?"
"He will, when he's ready. Okay?"
"Okay." Syd had calmed down. "When are you going to move him?"
"Right now. We were just about to wake you up."
Just then Nurse Jenkins walked in with two orderlies. "Oh good, dear. You're awake. Let's good this husband off yours out of here and into his won room, what do you say?"
Sydney was shocked to hear Nigel described as her husband, she had forgotten all about Claudia's lie of the previous day. She just nodded and followed them out of ICU and along the corridor to Nigel's new room.
Once they had Nigel settled into his new room and Nurse Jenkins had promised to let Claudia and Jenny know where they had moved him to, Sydney was once again left on her own with Nigel.
As before she sat down by his bed, took his hand and started talking.
"Nigel, you have to wake up. You're scaring me you know. I never thought I would admit to being afraid, but I am. I'm absolutely terrified of going on without you. I love you so much it hurts and I just don't know if I can do it on my own. I don't know if you can hear me but Nurse Jenkins seems to think you can, so I'm just going to keep talking to you until you wake up."
"I must be dreaming!" Nigel thought. "It's only in my dreams that Syd tells me that she loves me. If it is a dream I don't want to wake up, so I'll just stay here and then I won't have to face life without her."
A nurse's aide knocking on the door interrupted Sydney. She opened the door and looked in. "Excuse me, Mrs. Bailey." She said. "You're brother-in-law was on the phone about an hour ago. He asked me to tell you that his plane had just touched down and he would be here as soon as possible."
"Thank you." Sydney said. "Who the hell is Mrs. Bailey?" thought Nigel, confused.
When the aide had left, Sydney carried on talking and telling him how much she loved him. Nigel was trying his hardest to stay asleep, but the pain of his injuries was gradually seeping into his consciousness.
"Syd, would you mind shutting up so I can get sleep?"
When she just kept talking, he tried again.
"Sydney," he croaked. "I love you too, but would you please shut up. I've got a throbbing headache and I would kill for some aspirin."
Sydney's snapped open and she gasped in shock. She looked at Nigel's face and found him looking at her with such love in his eyes that she started crying again.
"You're awake!" she whispered.
"It's a bit hard to stay asleep with you going on for hours," he said with a trace of laughter in his voice.
She started crying even harder at that. He very carefully reached out and touched her face. "Please don't cry Syd. I love you. Please don't cry."
"W-what did you say?" she stammered.
Nigel grinned. "I said I love you."
"I love you too."
"I know you do, but now that that's out of the way, do you think you could get me some painkillers for my hea…"
He suddenly found himself unable to finish the sentence due to the fact that a certain very happy relic hunter was kissing him breathless. "Mmm!" he thought as he wrapped his arms around her, being careful of his fractured ribs. "This is much better than aspirin."
Just then Preston opened the door, took one look inside and promptly closed it again.
Claudia and Jenny were standing behind him. "What s it? What's wrong?" they asked, concerned.
"Nothing's wrong!" he said, laughing. "I just don't think we should go in there for a while, that's all."
He stepped away from the door and he girls looked through the window. They started giggling and went bright red as they backed away from the door.
The three friends looked at one another. "Coffee?" Preston asked. "Coffee," they answered.
In the hospital room, Nigel and Sydney were too wrapped up in each other to even care about anything else.
The End.
Notes: Well, that's it. I hope you liked it.
Please forgive me for almost killing Nigel, but I figured Sydney had spent so long denying her feelings that it would take something pretty earth shattering for her to admit that she loved him.
As for Randall, I've decided that this is going to be trilogy. The first part, which you have just finished (and hopefully enjoyed) deals with his supposed death and how it affected everybody around him. Part two will be written pretty much exclusively from Randall's POV (maybe in the form of a diary, I haven't decided yet) and will deal with his decision to disappear and the reason for doing it. Finally, part three will deal with the after effects of everything that happened in the first part.
If anybody has any suggestions for the next two parts, I would love to hear them. Particularly, any suggestion for what sort of trouble Randall had gotten himself into.
If I haven't already said it, please R & R. I've become addicted and I can't live without your reviews. Thank you.