Ty felt his eyes growing heavier, and he gave into their strain and fell asleep. Almost as soon as the dark curtain was drawn over his eyes, Ty fell asleep. He was lying there, not quite dreaming but not conscious of his surroundings. Nothing was unusual in the room, just his even breathing filled the air. In and out. In and out. The sounds of the hallway clock added to the silent chorus. In and out. In and out.

            Something changed. Ty registered the presence in his room, slowly starting to wake up under its heavy stares. He glanced up, still clouded with sleep and saw a form sitting in the chair across the room. He thought it was Carlos, who lately had a habit of checking on him. Tip toed around him like he was a time bomb waiting to go off.

Ty was in no mood to have a babysitter watching over him, and he intended on telling Carlos so. He sat up a little, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and throwing the sheet off of his legs. He looked up again and stared towards the chair. The shape was too small to be Carlos, and it was too dark to really determine who it was. Ty's instincts kicked in, something was not right.

"Who are you?" he whispered at the figure. It didn't reply, just stood up and walked to the window, looking at him as if it were waiting for his next question.

Definitely too small for Carlos, Ty thought as he peered up at the figure. There was a slight beam of moonlight peeking in through the blinds. If the person moved just a little to the right he would be able to see it more clearly. As if reading his thoughts, the figure shifted and stepped directly into the patch of moonlight. Ty let his eyes adjust to the darkness before he looked up. When he did he almost jumped in fright.

There, bathed in moonlight, was Alex. The silver light cast off of her golden hair, making it shine brighter than the sun. Her face was half hidden in darkness, but there was no mistaking those high cheekbones, or slight curve of her chin. Her slender build was the same, as well as that stance she took, staring him down waiting for him to make the first move. Stubborn as he used to call it. Then there was that unmistakable air that hung around Alex, that presence she held when she entered a room. She demanded attention without so much as a word; just simply standing there brought every eye in the room around to her.

Ty held his breath, hardly able to believe that she was there. "Alex," he said, although the word escaped as more of a question than a statement. She watched him for a minute, her brow creasing in that adorable way it did when she was concentrating on something hard. She took a step towards him then hesitated, gauging his reaction. When he did nothing she took another step, and another until she was next to the bed. Finally she sat down on the edge, twisting so that she still faced him.

She was definitely there, the bed creasing under her weight, her perfume filling the air around her. She tilted her head back, looking into Ty's eyes, questioning him as if to say, "Do you believe it, do you believe me that I'm here?" Truth was Ty didn't know what he believed. He wanted to talk to her, tell her he loved her, yell at her for leaving, hug her to him and never let go. Emotions played across his face, and his confusion must have shown because she smiled compassionately and leaned towards him. For a crazy minute he thought she was going to kiss him, and he froze, holding perfectly still.

Her smile broadened at that, and she reached down and took his hand, lifting it to her face and holding it there. "There, you see? I am here, you can touch me," that action said. Her eyes were waiting, understanding his confusion and willing to help him. He felt her encouragement, and took his other hand to hold her face. She liked that, giving him the mischievous smile he was so used to. It broke his heart to see that, something he thought he'd never have again. She took her hands and placed them on top of his, looking back into his eyes as if to banish all his negative thoughts. It was too much for him, he couldn't hold back. She was there, and there was so much he needed to tell her. He didn't know he was crying until she frowned at him, tugging his hands down and holding them in front of her. He stared down at their entwined hands, finding comfort in the gesture, and looked up to see her watching him with concern. She picked up one of her hands, tracing the path of his tears, wiping them away with her fingertips. He shuddered at the touch, so faint yet entirely tangible.

They sat there for a few minutes, just looking at one another until she started to tug away. "No, no I'm not ready," Ty thought, holding her hands firmly in his own. She easily pulled away, smiling at him to assure him that she wasn't going anywhere, not yet. She walked over to his dresser and pulled a CD off of it. She crossed the room again and placed it in his lap. He looked at her quizzically, but she seemed to say, "Trust me, go with it." Then she touched his face, not saying a word but willing him to understand her.

He saw images of her mother flash through his mind, and his own mother. They were talking and laughing, sharing some special bond together. "Is this what will happen?" he thought, and heard in his mind, "Let me finish." She continued sending him pictures, some of him cleaning out her apartment, some of Kim weeping. "So you knew all along what we were going through?" he asked, and she nodded, "Yes" he heard. "So you know that I love you?" he felt uncertain asking, and in return felt a rush of warmth and happiness edged with sadness. "Yes, yes it's true," she thought, and he thought he saw a tear in her eyes. He wondered if ghosts could cry, and was answered with a light tap on the shoulder. He almost cried at the typical Alex behavior. She stood up, impatient now, "If you cry I will leave, there is no time to cry yet." He smiled at her stubbornness and relaxed.

Ty sat there, willing to do whatever Alex needed. She sat back down, and again placed her hand on his face. She sent him pictures of her mother at home, drinking and bitter. She was alone in the world except for her son, but that wasn't enough to keep her grounded. Ty sensed distress with the next picture he saw, and that was a funeral procession. "She's going to die?" he whispered aloud, and felt Alex's sadness course through him. "What about that first picture, my mother was talking to yours? They were laughing." He felt her urgency hit him, and he knew he had nailed it. "That's it, I need to get them to talk?" and he felt her relief at that thought. "Done," he thought, and was rewarded with a smile.

Alex stepped away from the bed, smiling down at him. He smiled back, and went to ask her something, but he felt her presence getting weaker. "Alex?" he wondered, then more franticly, "Alex?" She just stepped away from him, wiling him to know that he didn't need her now. "But I do," he pleaded, his eyes searching hers, "I still need you." She just smiled at him, nodding to the CD on his lap, "That's for you" he heard in his head. "Will I see you again?" he wondered, and she looked pained for a minute, wistful. "Whenever you think of me I will be there" was the answer. She stepped away, fading into the blackness. "Alex!" Ty called, "Alex!"

"ALEX!" Ty screamed, waking with a start. He jerked his head to the window, seeing that the sun was already up. So that was it; that was a dream. He felt the tears coming back, but crushed the thought of crying by swiping his hand across his face. He was going crazy that's it, no ghosts just one crazy man. He stood up to leave his room when he heard something clatter softly to the floor. The CD. He picked it up, seeing Linda Eder's face on the cover.

"How did that…" he wondered aloud, then stopped. Maybe it wasn't a dream after all. And if it wasn't then Alex's mother needed him. Not only did he need to talk to his mother for his own sake, but Beth's. Their mothers' knew suffering and could comfort each other. Suddenly Ty knew the words to say to his mother, and leaned over to the phone. But first he would put on some music, call it divine inspiration.

"Hello?" Maggie answered on the second ring, stifling a yawn.

"Hi mom," Ty started. He smiled. Things would be ok.

I don't remember

How much I needed to be near you

And I can't close my eyes and hear you

No, no I simply don't recall our love at all…