Sorry this one took so long to come out, I had the funeral, and then the week kind of ran away from me! But it's here and I hope it's worth the wait! Sit back, relax and enjoy, and thanks go to Mars, Keisha and Pam for all the support, and pushing you guys did!

A/N: If you have the song these lyrics are from, I urge you to listen to it as you read this, makes it much sadder!

Enjoy!

Taking Comfort

Phones off the hook,
No one knows where we are
It's a long time since I drank champagne.
The ocean is blue, as blue as your eyes
I'm gonna take it with me when I go
(
Take It With Me, Megan Mullally)

That evening had been one of the most emotional moments in her life. It had been the first time that she'd spoken the words out loud, the first time that it had all been real. She could tell at the time that Will had felt guilty over his words, and he had gone on to apologise for them several times that evening. She'd understood, though thinking of them still hurt a bit. They had been words intent on causing pain after all.

They'd all been a little awkward after separating, it wasn't everyday that they saw Karen Walker collapse into tears, and she herself had been annoyed that she'd let so much show. She'd been especially annoyed when she'd realised that Jack would now be the last to know, not the first as she'd intended. It hadn't taken much to convince Will and Grace to keep quiet about what they knew; she had their shock to thank for that. Unfortunately, the night had taken its toll on her, and with the pain behind her eyes having increased, she'd been forced to spend the night at Will's apartment. She'd hoped that things could return to normal the next morning, but things hadn't been normal, they'd been as far from normal as she had always feared they would be. Grace had stopped mocking her, and Will had hovered around her as though waiting for her to drop any moment. Eventually she had stormed from the room, her last words something about her knowing she shouldn't have told them. She wasn't exactly sure of the wording, but it had done the job, for when she'd gone in to work that afternoon, Grace had acted as her usual self, and when Will had dropped by he'd only hovered slightly.

Of course with the twosome knowing, it had made it even more important that she tell Jack as soon as possible, but she had been dreading it for so long, that it had become, in her mind, an almost insurmountable task. She'd worried about Jack's reaction to the news. She'd known only two ways that it would play out. He would either think it all a large joke at his expense and when she continued to press it, he'd storm away and not talk to her, or he'd yell at her for not telling him sooner. Of the two she'd feared the latter as having the greater chance of playing out. She'd had several opportunities over the years to tell him, even before it had become critical. Jack had been the only stable thing in her life. Throughout her divorce, Stanley's death, her second divorce; Jack had been there in varying ways and she knew she wouldn't have made it through quite as in tact if he hadn't been. They were a duo; not quite as good apart as they were together, and that worried her, because no matter what Jack said, they wouldn't be together forever, and knowing what it would mean for them to be, she was glad of that. Jack had a long life before him, and she wanted him to live it, even without her.

It hadn't been too hard to find a night where he was free, the guy from the club had apparently not been so much the one, as no one. So on the next night she'd made the arrangements, ensured that Grace and Will knew not to disturb either of them, and tried to keep as sober as possible so as to not make it any harder than it had to be. The best she had hoped for was that he would hear her out completely before he left her. If nothing else, she needed him to know it all.

: flashback :

The elevator doors closed behind her, the sharp 'ding' causing her to jump slightly. She'd known it was a bad idea to do this at Jack's apartment, but there would have been too many distractions at the Manse, too much chance of being interrupted. But now, standing in front of his door, she found herself wishing for the safety of her home.

Sucking in a deep breath and exhaling slowly she reached up and knocked on the door. This was it. The moment she'd been dreading for several years. As the door opened and she looked up into Jack's smiling blue eyes, she realised it would be harder than she had ever imagined. Because she couldn't stand to see the light in those eyes dim, and she hated that she would be the one to cause it.

: kw :

"He wasn't worth it anyway Kare. I should have just come round to yours. He got all freaked out when I said that I wanted to borrow a thousand dollars. I mean, hello! Did he really think he'd get all this for nothing?" As he spoke, Jack ran his hands down his body, ending with a flourish and one of his trademark 'adorable' expressions.

His comment wasn't met with the giggle he expected; instead Karen was sitting unusually quiet. Thinking about it, Jack realised that she had been that way since entering his apartment. Though they had of course had their usual fondle, Karen had gone straight to the couch, and not moved since. He was starting to get a little worried about her. He'd not seen her much that week, and that in itself was strange, but since they had finished his meal of party snacks, Karen had drunk only half a glass of wine, no where near her usual quota. She looked more pinched too, but he assumed that was just the lack of alcohol, and the inevitable hang over that should be creeping up on her. He hoped that was all.

Sliding onto the couch, Jack lifted the wine glass from Karen's hand and dragged her down until her head was in his lap, one hand stroking lovingly through her hair. He loved when she had it down; her hair was just like the rest of her…perfect. Looking down at her, Jack found she had her eyes shut tight, her face not having the relaxed look he was used to.

"Kare, are you okay? You've not been yourself at all tonight."

Karen swallowed past the lump in her throat. She really needed to tell him before it got much later or she chickened out once again. Turning on his lap so that she was laying looking up into his worried eyes, she braced herself, and prayed for the first time, that the evening wouldn't go as wrong as she knew it would.

"Jackie, there's something I need to tell you, and I've been putting it off for a long time because it scares me." She trailed off as Jack lifted her back up into a seated position, pulling her close, but angling her so he could still look her in the eyes.

"Kare, you know you can tell me anything." Jack's voice spoke of true sincerity, and she loved him for that, it gave her that little extra courage that she desperately needed.

"Honey, you know how a year ago when Will made me go to the hospital I was really worried? It was where you first found your love for all things nursing. Well I wasn't completely honest about why I hate hospitals, and why I was so worried about those tests. Remember after we first met, that very first time you asked me about all the pills, and I said that they weren't just for pleasure, and then I wouldn't tell you more? Well, Poodle, about a year and a half before I met you I was really sick. I had a tumour in my lower intestine. I had to have a lot of intense treatment, but I beat it, and I got well again." She broke off, the first part of her story over, the worse part yet to come. Before she could continue, Jack had pulled her even closer and began to speak himself.

"Aw Kare, you should have told me. I'm so sorry that happened to you. I wish I could have been there for you." He too paused, as though suddenly realising something, and Karen felt her heartbeat slow to an almost stop. "But why are you telling me now Karebear?"

"When I was being treated, they told me that there was a really high chance that even if that tumour went away, I would develop more in the future, and that they might be harder to treat. They also said that it could easily develop into cancer, and that I should be aware of that." She looked back into Jack's eyes, saw the confusion and growing worry there, and she grasped both of his hands tightly in her own. "A few weeks ago I woke up with a nose bleed. I went to the doctors and they ran some tests. They said that the Cancer was back."

Jack looked at her in incomprehension, unable to even think what her words implied.

"Its everywhere now and they can't do anything to stop it. I'm dying Jackie."

: kw :

The room was still, as though frozen in time, no breaths in or out, no ticking of a non-existent clock and no sounds from the two people sat like stone on the couch.

Jack's expression hadn't changed since Karen had stopped talking, his grip on her becoming no tighter but no looser. Though his eyes were still locked with Karen's they had a distant look to them, as though his thoughts were far removed from his body. Karen began to get worried when she could no longer feel the rise and fall of his chest, but was saved from jumping up to resuscitate him, when his eyelids blinked. She knew this would be hard for him to take in, and she resigned herself to letting him adjust in his own time. Besides, the longer he was silent, the more time she would be able to spend pulled up close beside him.

Jack was in shock. That was the only thing his mind could process. At some point after the word 'dying' his brain had shut down; freezing the blood in his veins and the air in his lungs. He knew he'd heard her right, she'd been speaking clearly and he really had been concentrating hard on what she had to say, but still it couldn't be true. There was no way that Karen's words could be true, because then that would mean that at some point in the future his Karen would be no more, and he refused to believe that. But then she wouldn't lie about something like that. But then that would make it true, and oh he couldn't handle this. He had to know more, he had to understand exactly what it was she was saying.

Finally turning his head, Jack looked down on the special woman leaning against him, her face angled away as she stared at nothing. She looked like an angel, light from the small lamp surrounding her and highlighting the smoothness of her skin and the colours in her hair making her almost glow. The only fault with the picture was the presence of a frown on her face. There was still so much he needed to process, but right at this moment, his angel needed him.

Karen turned when she felt Jack's hold tighten slightly, and was met with tearful blue eyes. Before she could say anything, she was pulled tightly against him once more, her ear to his chest, as he buried his face in her hair. She held him just as tightly, her own eyes filling up as she felt his tears soak her head. She always hated when he was sad, and to be the cause of that was just too much. Gripping his arms her body shook with his, both their frames wracking with sobs. Their minds both on the future and what would happen, their hearts aching for each other, and the pain that would come.

Karen calmed first, her tears drying on her cheeks, and she pulled Jack's head down and placed a sweet kiss on his forehead, before bringing it to rest against her own. Placing her hands either side of his face she spoke softly, her voice rough from crying.

"I'm so sorry Jack. I wish there was a way I could stop this, I didn't want to upset you honey, that's why I waited so long to tell you." She realised that Jack had yet to actually speak, and she wished he would. She needed to know what his true feelings were so she could try to fix them…if she could. "Say something Jack, please."

Jack pulled away from her slightly, looking her straight in the eye, a single tear sliding down his cheek.

"I don't want to lose you Kare." He could feel his lip quivering, and he pulled himself together; he had to be strong. There would be time enough to fall apart after…just after.

Though it felt like his heart was shattering with every passing second, he took a deep breath and continued. "I don't want to lose you, but I know it's not your fault, and I'm glad you finally told me. I wish you had told me sooner." He paused upon seeing Karen open her mouth in defence. "I'm not angry with you Karebear, I understand that you did what you thought was best, it's just that…I wish you hadn't had to go through all that on your own. I wish I had been there when you got your results."

"I wish you had been too Poodle." Karen's voice was barely above a whisper, but she felt full of relief. The evening had gone nothing like her expectations, she was so lucky to have a best friend like Jack in her life. "But you know what, you're here for me now, and that's all that matters."

Jack smiled, not quite as brightly as usual, but it was a smile nonetheless, as he stood and pulled Karen to her feet.

"I am here now Kare, and I'm not going anywhere. We'll get through this together I promise." He bent slightly to kiss her lips, and then caught one of her hands in his own, his other hand going to rest on her hip. "Dance with me."

Giggling lightly, Karen nodded her acceptance; she'd never refuse him anything. As she lay her head against his chest once more, feeling his heart beating beneath her, it didn't matter that there was no music to follow. All that mattered was that her Jackie knew now, and there would be no more hiding, no more lying. What ever was to come she would face with her friends beside her. It was moments like these; pressed up against Jack, his soft humming drifting past her ears, that she would cherish and remember. There would be plenty of time to cry and yell at the unfairness, but right now, she would just take comfort in the support of her friends.

: end flashback :

tbc.


Please let me know how you found it…I hear it's a pretty sad, tear jerking chapter…what did you think?