Disclaimer: I own nothing, don't sue!

Author's Note: This story came to me while I was reading BeccaGirl's "Ever Afters" on Kindred Spirits

Summary: Natalie is slipping shortly after the Cristian reveal; can John stop her from slipping through the cracks?

A/N2: Flashbacks are in italics; also takes place a few months after where the show is now (which is the day after John/Natalie's little adventure with the binoculars)

Also, I know the first chapter's kind of short but I wanted to get it down before I lost the concept.

Sadly I had to remove the quote since Becca never got back to me… Here's hoping she's doing well!

Dedications: To Becca for inspiring this entire story/series, whichever it becomes!

PLEASE REVIEW!

Slipping Through the Cracks

Natalie was lying on the couch trying to concentrate on an old movie that was playing, but it wasn't working. All that she could think about was John, and it was driving her crazy. She sighed and turned the TV off groaning with frustration as the memories rolled over her yet again…

"John?" Natalie walked into the hotel room surprised that he wasn't there. She'd gotten used to him being home when she came home from visiting with her mom and Jessica, but he was nowhere to be found. She frowned and sat at the kitchen table.

Suddenly the phone rang. She grabbed it quickly. "Hello?" John's voice was crackly due to all the static on his cell. "Natalie? Look, something big has come up and I need to tell you about. Don't turn on the TV, don't answer the door or the phone, don't even listen to the radio until I get there okay?" She had frowned, worried. "How long are you going to be?" "Just another half-hour to an hour, I promise." She sighed. "Okay, baby. I love you."

She hung up the phone, unaware that twenty-five miles away John was standing silent beside Cristian Vega's body. "I love you too," he whispered, all too aware that she had broken the connection but not being able to stop himself. He hung the phone up and looked at the officers standing around him. "Come on, we've got to get him to the morgue."

Two hours later, John walked into the hotel room. Natalie was asleep on the couch with a baby blue throw over her. He smiled sadly. She was so beautiful that his arms ached from the need to hold her, then he reminded himself of what he had to tell her and forced the impulse to the back of his mind. He knelt beside the couch and smoothed her hair away from her face.

"Hey gorgeous, time to wake up," he whispered in her ear. She sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him with her eyes still closed. "Why don't you wake me up?" His breath caught in his throat. "We need to talk." She groaned and sat up, stretching. She yawned and opened her eyes, rubbing the sleep from them. "Hey baby—Oh my god, what's wrong?" John was suddenly aware that he was sobbing, and he tried to stop but couldn't.

Natalie slid to the floor and took him into her arms stroking his hair gently. "Hey, hey." She didn't let her terror communicate itself to him; whatever he had to talk to her about had to be bad. She had never seen him cry before; he never let himself cry he'd told her once. It made him lose his focus, that edge that kept him going day to day.

"John?" He pulled back and wiped the tears away. "I have to tell you this before I completely lose it… Natalie, Cristian wasn't dead… but he is now." She didn't move, still looking into his eyes. "What? John, I think I need the whole story." She couldn't believe how calm she was being, and neither could John. He took his hand into his and held it tightly as he started from the beginning.

Natalie shook her head and stood up, she needed to get moving. Maybe that would help get her mind off of John. She nodded to herself as she put her hair up, trying not to notice how pale and thin her reflection in the mirror was.

TO BE CONTINUED…