Niles had never felt this terrible since the night Donny had proposed to Daphne and he thought he'd lost her forever, but through some twist of fate his dream of being with her had come true.

But this…Niles was sure he'd destroyed his relationship with his father forever. It had been going so well until he'd made an idiot of himself, and much worse, humiliated Martin. Niles was shocked at his own words, and no matter how much Frasier had assured him, Niles was convinced that their father would never speak to him again.

He didn't dare go to Martin's room and try to apologize; he knew it was too soon. Instead, he headed back to the Montana. Daphne went with him to comfort him, and be there in case he needed someone to talk to. Niles felt as if he didn't deserve her love at that moment, and that made him love her even more. Still, it did not dissipate the guilt and shame that plagued him.

"You'll get through this. You and your dad," Daphne said as she held him close that night. "He wouldn't have gotten so angry if he didn't love you so much, Niles."

"But what if he doesn't want to speak to me again?" Niles asked brokenly.

"He will, Niles. I know he will. Now try to get some sleep, okay?" She kissed him and turned off the light.

Sleep did not come easy for Niles, and what little he got was fitful. His dreams were filled with memories of what he had said and done to his father just hours earlier.

By four o'clock in the morning, Niles was wide awake, staring miserably at the ceiling. And then he knew what he needed to do.

He pulled out of Daphne's arms, gently as to not wake her, and went to his office, where he wrote a letter. He felt as if he couldn't face his father—yet—but he had to do something.

It took the better part of an hour to finish it, but he'd done his best to say what was in his heart.

Dear Dad:

I know I'm the last person you want to talk to, so I'm going to "say" what I need to in a letter.

I'm sorry. I know this doesn't even begin to make up for what I said and for how I embarrassed you, but I can't live with myself until I say this. You've been a great dad. Sure, we've had our differences, but you've always been there for me and Frasier. I don't know what possessed me to drink so much and to turn on you like that. Maybe I felt a pressure to live up to something that was all in my head. Maybe it was my own insecurities and I took them out on you.

I wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to see me again or even talk to me, but I can't run away from what I did.

- Niles

Feeling that he had said all he could, Niles put the letter aside and returned to bed.

It felt strange to be mailing a letter to his father, who lived minutes away, and even stranger to drop Daphne off at Elliot Bay Towers without stopping to see Martin and Frasier.

For the next two days, Niles managed to take his focus off of his fear; his busy schedule at work and the time he spent with Daphne helped distract him.

Then, early on the third morning, Niles got a call. Caller ID showed him was from Frasier, but the one to who spoke was…Martin.

"D-Dad?" Niles said guiltily.

"Listen, I think we need to talk about this and get it over with," Martin said flatly. "I want to meet you for lunch. When do you usually take a break?"

"One o'clock." Niles winced at Martin's emotionless tone.

"I'll see you at the sandwich shop across from your office. Daphne's driving me down, but she'll be doing errands, so we'll have plenty of time to talk."

And then Martin hung up, not allowing Niles to say another word.

The tension between Martin and Niles began the minute they sat down at a corner table in the deli, and it wasn't until their orders arrived and they began to eat that there was some distraction. At length, however, Martin paused.

"Look, son…" he began uncomfortably. "I'm not going to say that I'm not furious and hurt over what you did, and in front of Roz, too."

"I know," Niles answered, unable to meet his father's gaze.

"But if you two boys have taught me anything, it's that when we're at our most vulnerable, we sometimes say things we've kept hidden."

"Dad, no. you didn't deserve that."

"Of course, I didn't. It hurt. It was the wrong place and the wrong time, but I have to admit—there were times I've been a little too critical about how different you and Fras are from me. Your mother even needed to remind me sometimes that things like your hobbies or the fact you don't like sports aren't really important. And I'm sorry about that."

"I'm sorry, too, Dad."

For the first time in three days, both smiled, and then returned to their meals.

"Daphne's going to be back from her errands soon," Martin mentioned as soon as he'd finished his double cheeseburger. "Don't tell her what I had for lunch, or I'll be eating salads for a week!"

Niles grinned. "Don't worry, it's our little secret."

A/N: I thought that 'Room Full of Heroes' had one of the most unresolved endings of the whole series and the episode ended on a really disappointing note.

This is the last story/chapter for now, as I'm writing them as the come to me. There will definitely be more in the future!