CHAPTER FIFTEEN
(chapter title - As Time Goes By)

Roger couldn't believe what John had told him over the phone - his little girl couldn't be sick, not now! John had said that the doctors didn't think she had HIV, but they were running different tests on her, just in case she did. Roger nodded and thanked John. He hung up the phone just as Mark walked out of his and Destiny's room.

"What's wrong, Rog?" Mark inquired. As Roger told him what was going on, Caitlyn came out of her room dressed in Scooby Doo sleepwear. She was also carrying a Shaggy stuffed doll.

"Caitlyn, go back to bed, sweetie." Mark told her.

"I wanna know what's wrong with Roger, dad." Caitlyn said. Mark sighed and followed Roger to the couch and sat down. Caitlyn sat in the armchair opposite them. Ever since he and Destiny got married, Caitlyn had started calling Mark 'dad'.

"Caitlyn, if you don't mind, I would like to talk to your dad alone. I'm sure he'll tell you what's going on later." Roger told her.

"Okay." Caitlyn got up from the armchair and headed back to her room. As soon as the door was closed, Mark focused his attention back on Roger. He knew ever since Roger had to put Lightening down because she had hip dysphasia, he'd been a wreck.

"Okay, Rog. Now since Lightening's not alive anymore, you can't use the old 'Lightening's sick so I have to take care of her' excuse. Something's bothering you, what is it?" Mark asked, turning so that he could see Roger's face.

"Mark, Jules' in the hospital." Roger began, his eyes welling up with tears.

"What? How?" Mark asked.

"She's there because she has a high fever. The doctors don't think she has HIV, but they're running different tests on her, just to be sure." Roger had tears streaming down his cheeks. Mark leaned over and hugged his best friend.

"If you need to go back to Michigan, that's totally fine." Mark whispered in Roger's ear. Roger slowly nodded and broke away from Mark's hug.

"Thanks for understanding, Mark." Roger said, standing up and walking to his room. He was going to check on Crystal and see how she was doing. He slowly opened the door and made his way over to where Crystal was fast asleep on her side, facing away from him. He carefully sat down on the edge of the bed and watched her sleep. He ran a finger up and down her jaw line and sang softly to her. The song was an old favorite of his - As Time Goes By.

"This day and age we're living in
Gives cause for apprehension
With speed and new invention
And things like third dimension
Yet we get a trifle weary
With Mr. Einstein's theory
So we must get down to earth at times
Relax relieve the tension
And no matter what the progress
Or what may yet be proved
The simple facts of life are such
They cannot be removed

You must remember this
A kiss is still a kiss,
A sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by

And when two lovers woo
They still say, "I love you"
On that you can rely
No matter what the future brings
As time goes by

Moonlight and love songs
Never out of date
Hearts full of passion
Jealousy and hate
Woman needs man
And man must have his mate
That no one can deny
Well, it's still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by
" Roger sang softly, climbing in next to Crystal. He took her in his arms and held her close. Crystal, sensing there was someone next to her, suddenly sat up.

"Crys? Are you okay?" Roger asked, looking over at her. He flipped on the bedside lamp to get a better look at her. She blinked several times, just getting used to the light.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Roger. Just had a scary dream. Nothing to worry about." she told him.

"You sure?" Roger inquired, scooting closer to her. Crystal nodded and turned away from him. Roger held her close and stroked her hair. He couldn't believe that someone this beautiful could have an abusive boyfriend.

"Who was that on the phone earlier?" Crystal inquired after a while.

"Oh, that was Mark's son, John calling to tell me some more information about my daughter, Jules." Roger told her.

"Okay. Is Jules gonna be okay?" Crystal asked, taking one of Roger's hands in hers and tracing the lines on his palm.

"I don't know - she's in the hospital due to a high fever. The doctors don't think she has HIV, but I'm gonna take a plane out there, just to be with her." Roger said, not bothering to look at Crystal. She sighed and let go of his hand and laid down. Roger ran a hand up and down her back before falling asleep himself. As he slept, his thoughts wandered to Jules and how she was doing.

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In the hospital, Jules was sleeping with the help of the medication that she was on to help lower her fever. Adam, Eileen and a bunch of Jules' friends came and brought gifts with them, mostly flowers and cards. John was even kind enough to bring Jules her class work that she had missed over the past two days.

By the fourth day that Jules had been in the hospital, her fever had lowered by five degrees, but the doctors wanted her to stay an extra day, just in case the fever came back.

While Jules had been sleeping, John had used that time to call Mark and Roger, just to let them know what was happening. Roger had gotten more anxious with each passing day, not knowing if Jules was going to survive or not. What Jules was going through reminded Roger of Mimi's near-death experience that had happened all those years ago.

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The next morning, around 8:30, the phone rang, but no one was around to answer it.

"Speeeeak!" the answering machine clicked on.

"This is Dr. Catherine Racey calling about Julie Davis. She's doing a little better, so I hope to release her within the next few days. Just calling to let you know about Jules condition. There's no need for you to call me, Mr. Davis, so have a good rest of your day. Bye!"

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By the time everyone came home, they were tired and didn't even bother to check the messages. Roger, Mark and Destiny had helped Crystal move all her things to the loft while Joanne watched Jason and Caitlyn. It had been her day off and she hadn't minded watching them for Destiny and Mark.

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That night, as the world lay sleeping, three figures from up above, watched as the ones that they loved (or had loved) slept and did their nightly things. One of the figures, a Hispanic woman with chocolate colored skin and large eyes, looked on as the two people that she had loved slept. She knew that Mark's friend had been a perfect match for her husband. She also knew that her daughter would fight the fever and go back to her classes and get her life back on track.


A/N: don't own the lyrics to As Time Goes By. 'nuff said.