The first thing Nick became distinctly aware of was a hand grasping his. He squeezed, and it squeezed back. It was a small, soft hand, and Nick knew it was a woman even before he opened his eyes.

Which didn't help much.

Everything was blurry, so he tried speaking.

"Sara…?" he croaked.

"No, no, no Nicky. It's Catherine. And Warrick." Catherine soothed, and Nick nodded and swallowed.

"Bring my bed up a little, would ya?" he asked, his voice still a little hoarse, but alright.

"Of course." Catherine said, raising his bed. Warrick handed her a bottle of water, and Catherine handed it to Nick. He gulped gratefully, finishing off three quarters of the bottle before he came up for air.

"How ya doin' man?" Warrick asked gently, and he could feel Catherine's hand slide out of his as he and Warrick performed their daily handshake. Once it was over, Catherine thought it best to not pick up his hand again, and Nick was glad.

"I'm alright I guess, but I don't really remember what happened." Nick said, leaving the statement open for them to finish. Catherine exchanged a glance with Warrick, and it was he who spoke.

"I'm not sure man…I think you just kinda lost it…if Sara hadn't found you when she did…I just don't know. They haven't told us much…talk to Sara. She'll know." Warrick said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Sara found me…" Nick muttered, more to himself then to either of his companions.

"Yeah…" Warrick didn't seem to realize he wasn't talking to them, "Damn lucky too man, damn lucky. She's been here ever since they brought you in…Cath and I just forced her home for some rest and food around 2 hours ago."

Nick nodded, staring straight ahead, starting to feel drowsy again.

"We're gonna let you get some sleep Nicky." Catherine whispered to him in a mother like tone before reaching over and squeezing his hand one more time. Warrick patted him on his shoulder twice, and with that, the pair of them left his room, and Nick drifted back off to sleep.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The next time Nick woke up, there was absolutely no one in his room except for a nurse he didn't recognize.

"Well hello darlin', it sure is good to finally see you awake again!" she exclaimed, and Nick couldn't help but smile. He had to admit – she was good looking. He raised the back of his bed to a sitting position before he spoke again.

"Hey…Have you seen Sara?" Nick asked, and before it even registered in his brain that she had no idea who Sara was, the nurse spoke up.

"Oh, tall girl, dark brown hair?" She asked, and she continued when Nick nodded eagerly, "Why o' course! Any one who's even stopped in your room to check on you, including nurses, knows who Sara is. That girl is homeless I believe, cause all she does is sit here with you!"

Nick smiled. It was only a few minutes later that he realized what she had said, and what it meant.

"Is she here now?" he asked, wondering if his luck could get any better.

And with that, the door opened, revealing Sara sipping a cup of coffee. She nearly choked when she saw Nick awake, and sitting up. She swallowed harshly as she came slowly to his bedside, putting the coffee on the nightstand without ever breaking his gaze.

"I…umm…other patients." The nurse stuttered as she beamed at the sight of the two of them together before leaving the room, and Nick cracked a grin, which made Sara smile, lifting the heavy feeling the room had taken on upon Sara's entrance.

Nick reached for Sara's hand, squeezing it firmly before beginning to rub little circles on it.

"So I heard you found me…again." Nick smiled softly at Sara, and she nodded and scooted closer to him.

"Yeah…" she said simply, looking down at her lap. Nick used his free hand to direct her eyes back to his, lifting her chin, then moving to stroke her cheek.

A single tear fell.

Nick caught Sara's tear as his thumb stroked it away, and Sara caught Nick's as her fingertips brushed against his cheek. They stayed like that, silent, reveling in the fact that they could be like this with each other, and that the other was willing to cry in front of them.

Sara let her head fall forward onto Nick's shoulder, and she cried softly for a few moments before speaking.

"I was so scared Nick." She said simply, and Nick rubbed her back in large, slow circles.

"Sara…will you tell me what happened? Catherine, Warrick, the nurses…none of them have said a word. I fainted they've said, but that's all. I remember standing in the manhole…" Nick started for her.

Sara didn't think she could do it. She wondered if she had the strength to tell Nick what he wanted to know. But his eyes were pleading with her, and he was massaging her knuckles as their fingers laced, and she knew she had the strength.

But did he?

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. A sad smile spread over her face as she felt the distinct sensation of Nick kissing her knuckles. She opened her eyes slowly, thinking that there was nothing she'd rather do than tell him it didn't matter what had happened, as long as he was with her now.

"Nicky I…" she tried, faltering once again before she could even begin to tell him. She avoided his eye once again.

"Please Sara…this is just something I have to understand, and you're the only one who can help me do that." He begged her, giving her hand a soft squeeze. A few moments passed, and Nick started to doubt whether or not she was going to tell him, when suddenly she nodded and met his eye. The corners of his lips twitched into a small smile, and he waited for her to begin.

"There was evidence…down in the sewers…" she started, taking a shallow breath, "and we suited up, me and you, to go see what we could find. You began to climb down, and I…I had forgotten my camera so I had to go all the way back to the Denali and get it. But you kept going, and I figured you would just start without me. I was so stupid…so stupid…how could I let you climb down there by yourself?"

A sob caught in Sara's throat, and Nick pulled her to him. She was blaming herself…

"This isn't your fault darlin'" Nick whispered, and Sara could hear his accent thicken deeply. She nodded into his shoulder as he rubbed her back soothingly, and she almost let herself escape in that simple sensation. But she couldn't stop telling him now…if she did, she feared she wouldn't be able to work up the strength to finish later on.

"I called out your name…I mean I was climbing down the man hole after you and I called for you, but you didn't answer. I couldn't see very well, I guess my eyes hadn't adjusted yet, but I called again, and again you didn't answer. Then I spotted you, and I thought you weren't answering because you were joking but…"

Sara stopped and breathed deeply again, her breath slightly ragged, and Nick stopped rubbing circles on her back.

"And I umm…I gave you a little shove, because I thought you were kidding, but you weren't. You were shaking. Shaking really bad. And I was scared; I didn't know what this was or what to do. I kept asking you what was wrong, but you weren't answering…You just kept saying 'No…No…". I was so scared…I thought I was going to lose you…I told you that it was okay, but I don't think you heard me…I caught you when you fell…and I set you down against the wall and just started screaming…help…help…"

Sara nestled her forehead into his shoulder.

"But why…? Why did that happen to you Nick?"

And with the end came the release of breath that Sara hadn't realized she'd been holding. She stayed in his arms, her head on his shoulder, not having the will to face him, and letting him digest all the information she had provided him with.

But after five minutes of complete silence, Sara sat up, ready to answer any further question she just knew were coming. But something was wrong…

"Nick!" she shrieked, staring as he sat frozen, his eyes permanently fixed on the wall across from his bed. She reached for his shoulders and shook them a bit, tears streaming down her face, and he awoke.

A smile wider then he had ever seen before crossed her face, and she sobbed with joy.

"Nicky…oh God I-" she whispered, and he took her hands in his.

"Sara…I know why that happened."