Okay, I'm going to try a little bit of a different twist on this story, a bit of an idea I got from 4X4 last week. I'm going to start with the ending, and work backwards while continuing forward at the same time. So if you get confused, don't worry, all the chapters will tie in eventually.

Thanks to all the wonderful responses I've gotten so far. And there will be plenty of Sara/Greg angst later on.

Chapter Two: Hospital

It was the same smell, the clean, disinfectant odor, that all hospitals carried. Yet each one was different, this one, in her opinion, was more pungent. Leaning her weight back on her arms, she watched as Catherine gently rolled a sock over her bandaged foot, smoothing the fabric out, before slipping an open-toed sandal on.

"That's not going to bother you, is it?" Catherine asked, sitting back on her heels to glance up at her.

Sara shook her head, swinging her leg lightly with a grimace. "No," she commented lightly.

"If it is, then I'll just take them back off. But at least this way your foot has some protection, just in case something happens."

Sara waved her off, sitting up further to examine the cast that held the bones of her lower leg in place. "No, I'm fine, this is great…thanks," she added softly.

Catherine nodded, standing up as the doctor came back in, carrying a pair of crutches. "Here we go, these are a bit shorter than the last, let's see if these work."

Catherine reached around her; Sara held onto her with one arm, using the other to push herself off the bed, balancing on one leg like a flamingo. She reached out with her free hand as the doctor placed the crutches in front of her. Once situated, she used them to walk in a small circle around the room.

"Yeah, these work great," Sara nodded to him, coming to a stop.

"That's good to hear," he smiled at her, "Now, plenty of rest for the next week, I want you to lay off of work, and try and stay off of that leg. Keep it elevated and take some Tylenol whenever the pain gets too bad. Is there someone at home that can help take care of you."

"I'm staying with a friend," Sara explained quietly. She hadn't wanted to, but Nick had persisted. He had an extra bed she could use, and after everything that happened, no one wanted to see her left alone.

"That's good," the doctor nodded, holding his hand towards the open door. "You can go home now."

Catherine had followed behind her, then next to her as they made their way down the hallway. When they came to the elevator, Sara didn't stop, only kept on going, prompting Catherine to catch back up with her.

"Exactly what are you doing?" Catherine asked, walking alongside her now.

"I want to see Greg," Sara answered shortly, already shaking her head as Catherine started to protest. "I haven't seen Greg all week, I want to see for myself that he's doing okay."

Catherine fought off a sigh, "He's doing better, he doesn't look all that great, but he is improving."

Sara came to a stop, turning to her as best she could. "I know what he looks like," she whispered fiercely, "I was with him the entire time, in case you have forgotten. He can't look any worse now then he did then."

"Okay," Catherine nodded, "I just don't want you to be upset, that's all."

"The only way I'll be upset is if I don't get to see him," she stated, already moving forward. She came to another stop shortly after, biting her lip as she cried out shortly in pain.

"You okay?" Catherine asked, watching her.

Sara nodded, opening and closing her hand as she balanced the free crutch under her elbow. "Yeah, must have twisted my hand," she commented dryly.

Squeezing her hand shut once more, she grabbed a hold of the crutch, moving forward again. That had been strange, her hand hadn't hurt like for years now. The same hand that had been cut during the lab explosion. She hadn't seen Greg during that time…why hadn't she?

Greg had been hurt worse than her, and earlier that day they had been joking around. Greg was her friend, so why then, hadn't she gone to see him? She bit her lip as she came up to the open window, remembering why. It was because she couldn't stand to see someone she really cared about in the hospital.

Greg's face still had traces of ash residue, smeared under his eyes along his cheek bones. His one arm was in a cast, folded across his chest, the other tucked up against his head, resting lightly on the double pillows. The sheets ended at mid chest, but Sara knew he had more bandages underneath, he had, after all that happened, it was only expected.

Nick was already in the room, sitting across from the bed talking with him. Greg was awake, his eyes open in tiny, narrow slits. A small smile crossed his face as Nick laughed, before his eyes shut completely, his shoulders raising in gentle sigh.

As she came into the room, Nick glanced up at her, then back to Greg who hadn't responded to the new visitor. Instead of saying anything, Nick stood up, walking over to Sara and pulling her into a gently hug. Sara returned the embrace, doing her best to keep her balance as she pulled back.

"I'll be waiting outside for you," Nick told her, patting her on the back.

Sara gave him a small smile as a thank you, before making her way inside. She dropped her crutches on the chairs, hopping backwards a little before sitting down on the edge of the bed. At the movement she had caused, Greg opened his eyes again, managing to give her a small smile.

"I heard that they're letting you out of here already," Greg told her, his voice still scratchy.

Sara nodded, looking down at her hands in her lap. "Yeah, they said I could go home. I'll still be out of work for a while, Nick's going to take care of me."

Greg smiled, his eyes closing again as he yawned. "That's good…Nick knows what he's doing. You'll be a pampered queen before too long."

"Yeah right," Sara laughed easily, her tone becoming more serious now. "How are you feeling?"

Greg opened his eyes, watching her, "I still can't feel my legs very well…they say that's normal though. They want me to start physical therapy here sometime, that has to be a good sign, right?"

Sara nodded, "You took quite a hit Greg, you're lucky to be alive."

"So says everyone, there's no guarantee that I'll get out of this alive," Greg told her.

"Don't talk like that," Sara scolded him lightly, "You'll be fine, it's just, going to take a while. Probably longer than you want."

Greg only nodded, his eyes closed again. Sara bit her lip, sighing before leaning over, and giving him a small kiss on the cheek. Greg didn't even respond, didn't open his eyes, didn't even smile. She shook her head, watching him. If he had been alright, Greg would have been dancing around the room right now, bragging to everyone that she had kissed him. But he wasn't alright, that was a hard fact she had to face.

"Greg?" she asked quietly, her tone uneasy.

"Hmm?" he opened his eyes, the non-committal sound quiet, maybe even pain filled as he watched her.

She shook her head, giving him a small smile. "Nothing," she told him, "Just get some rest, and I'll see you later."

He muttered something that sounded like 'okay' as she gathered up her crutches, meeting Nick and Catherine outside in the hall. Nick turned to her, nodding, "You ready to go home?"

Sara smiled, nodding back as she followed the him into the elevator. It was a small, cramped area, no windows, only one door. Just like the building, only the elevator had lights. She closed her eyes as the elevator started to move, calmly telling herself that everything was going to be okay.

Suddenly the lights went out, and all noise disappeared. Opening her eyes she saw nothing but darkness around her, the smell of dust, heavy and thick caused her to cough, as she scrambled to her feet.

She winced as her head connected with metal, and she sat back down, rubbing the bump that was now forming on the back of her head. She had forgotten that she was under a table. Wait…why was she under a table?

Everything came back to her in a rush. Crime scene, earthquake, Greg….where was Greg? She glanced around wildly, calling his name a few times, her voice sounding eerie and muffled, barely echoing now where as before it had echoed endlessly. Coughing again, Sara moved slowly on her hands and knees, still calling for Greg.

"Sara?"

She glanced up quickly, blinking in the lights as a cool breeze hit her. She turned to him, a bit confused as Nick stepped out, holding his hand out to her. "We're at the bottom floor. You okay?"

Sara nodded to, moving quickly as the doors slid shut behind her. "Yeah, I'm okay," she told him, making her way towards the exit. She shuddered as she reached his truck, biting her lip. It had all seemed so real, but it wasn't. It was over, she reminded herself. All of it was over.

TBC