Tim shifted slightly and felt a hand grip his tightly.
"Tim? Honey?"
"Calleigh?" he mumbled.
"Oh you're okay!" she exclaimed, a relieved tone on her voice. She leaned up and gently kissed Tim. He sighed into her mouth and tiredly lifted a hand to her cheek. "Here,"
Calleigh shoved a glass to his lips and forced him to drink the water.
"What happened?" Tim asked quietly, trying to get his eyes to focus. Calleigh held his hand in one and stroked his cheek with the other.
"You don't remember?"
"It's hazy."
"We found Jen and Kerner set a bomb off..."
"Is Jenny okay?" Tim asked, his eyes alert now. "Where is she? Where's Abbie? Nick?"
"They're all okay." Calleigh assured. "Just take it easy sweetie. Kerner shot you."
"Are you okay?"
"Yes. We're all fine!"
"Did they catch Kerner?"
"Yeah. He... he was downtown."
"What was he doing there?"
Calleigh paused for a minute.
"Watching people..." she trailed off.
"Do these people happen to be around nine and seventeen? Miniature versions of me and you?" Tim asked.
"Abbie was there."
"I want to talk to her..."
"She's fine!"
"Who was with her?"
"Ryan."
"I want to talk to him. I want to talk to both of them."
"That's not possible." Calleigh said quietly. "Kerner saw Abbie and... and... Ryan saw him and pushed her out of the way, just as the gun went off. He died."
"Still, I want to talk to Abbie."
S/C---------
Tim watched Abbie's mouth go a mile a minute as she chewed nervously on her gum.
"So I hear you had some excitement yesterday." he finally said.
"If you call getting shot at exciting then yeah I guess so." Abbie snapped.
"I'm sorry. I phrased that wrong."
"Damn straight."
"Watch your mouth."
They went into another lapse of silence.
"How are you feeling?" Abbie asked quietly.
"Alright I suppose." Tim mumbled. This was awkward for them. Usually, they could talk easily to one another. This felt like they were pulling teeth.
"You know Mom said you wanted to talk but you're not doing much of that."
"What's with your attitude?"
"I don't have an attitude."
"Yes you do. I know things are really odd right now. They have been."
"There's the understatement of the century." Abbie snorted. "You don't understand what this has been like."
"Why don't you tell me?" Tim suggested. "But I think I have a good idea. Remember, I was there this whole past year."
"Yeah but it wasn't like you could read my mind or anything."
"I don't need to. I know you and Nicky and Jen went through hell this past year. So did I."
"You don't understand though."
"You keep saying that."
"I just... ever since I was little I guess I knew that Allison and David were not my parents. We... there wasn't that... feeling I guess that I have with you and Mom. I know it's totally stupid but I got jealous of Casey. I mean, here I was thirteen years old and I was jealous of a baby."
"I know how you feel."
Abbie stared at Tim.
"Your uncle and I are thirteen years apart." he explained.
"I kept my distance from them but I watched how they acted with Casey."
'What is she the female version of me?' Tim wondered silently.
"They were different with her than they were with me." Abbie muttered. "Then you guys came into the picture and slowly things were the way that I wanted it to be; a brother and a sister, my parents actually love me... but then something had to go wrong and Mom left. I... Eric, I actually believed what he had said but it was all made up for her cover but... Eric, he told me what had 'happened' and I didn't want that happening to you or Nicky or Jen and I felt like I had to watch you guys 24/7. But then Mom came back and I thought that we could actually be a normal family. When she told me about Kerner, all the fear that I had during the past year came back. Now this all happened. I heard that shot go off and saw Ryan fall... and I just couldn't help but think that if he hadn't saw Kerner then it would've been me lying there. I mean, I go over my friends house and they go 'so what did you do over summer vacation?' and I say, 'well my mom came back from the dead, my sister was kidnapped, oh and me and my dad nearly died."
Tim rubbed his eyes and stared at Abbie. She wiped her cheeks and Tim realized that she was crying.
"Abbie, come here."
She moved over to him and he held her the best he could without hurting his side.
"I know things are... different for us but things have got to get better or else we have the shittiest luck I've ever seen. But we will be a normal family, I promise."
