Jess' POV
Jess opened his eyes and looked around. There was something strange about his surroundings, and he couldn't quite place it. Everything seemed too quiet, too bright, and the weather felt warmer than it should have. Wasn't he just in the middle of the night, during spring, in New York? He could have sworn that he was just in the car park of the hospital, looking for someone. Had something happened to him?
"Jess, turn around," said a voice behind him. A very familiar voice.
Not daring to believe his ears, Jess slowly pivoted on the spot. Stopping, he came face to face with the last person he could ever expect to see.
"Angelyne? No, it can't be you. You've been dead for years. Am I dreaming?" Jess rambled.
"You are definitely dreaming, my love. It's just not a dream you can wake up from yet."
"What do you mean?" Jess asked, walking over to his beloved late wife.
Angelyne shrugged. "I guess, technically, you are still alive, but you aren't in great shape."
"Am I dying?"
"No. I won't let you die. Our baby still needs her father, and that lovely girlfriend of yours doesn't deserve to lose you."
"You know about Sarah?"
"Of course. I keep watch over you and Tali all the time."
"Are you upset?"
"About you moving on? No. I'm glad you are happy again. Sarah seems lovely, and she cares about our daughter like it's her own child. How can I ever be upset about that?"
Jess smiled. "I do like Sarah."
"Good, but that's not what we need to discuss. Right now, I need an answer as to why you let our little girl fly alone to another country and go to boarding school away from everyone she knows."
"Tali is right around the corner from Nelson and Marilou! And Clinton as well!" Jess exclaimed, missing the cheeky spark in Angelyne's eyes.
"And?"
"She wanted to go! She's happy there! Happier than she's been in ages."
Angelyne laughed. "Jess! Relax! I'm not upset. I was just messing with you. I miss doing that to you!"
Jess sighed and relaxed a little. "Angie, you know how much I hated that, right?"
"I know, but it was still hilarious." Grinning, Angelyne continued. "Ever since Clinton left the team and my family moved to Canada, you haven't been yourself. I know you miss them, but I don't get why you feel so out of sorts when they aren't around."
"You know how I feel about them, Angelyne. That hasn't changed."
"They are more of a family to you than your own, I know. Still, you've been away from them before, and were fine. What's the difference now?" Angelyne waited a moment, then smiled. "I know what it is. You miss them, but you wish that you had the courage to leave here and go someplace new."
"Is that a bad thing? That I want to leave the FBI?" Jess finally asked.
"Not at all! You do amazing work, Jess, but you can't do it forever. You lost me, Tali was almost taken from you, now you've been able to rebuild your life. Sarah loves you more than she's ever loved anyone, and deep down, you know that. A new life was all you needed to figure out that your job wasn't satisfying anymore."
"What would I do?"
"Whatever makes you happy. I would say that you might want to be closer to my family, so going to Canada or, at the very least, a state closer to the border, would be your first move. Maybe you could take a break from work for a while? Just focus on Tali and Sarah? Or maybe there's a job somewhere that will catch your eye? I don't know. It's definitely up to you, though I think Sarah and Tali would have a lot to say about the situation."
Jess smiled. "You are so frustrating sometimes, you know that?" he asked with a laugh.
"And yet, you still married me. Who's the dummy now?" laughed Angelyne.
Sighing happily, Jess took Angelyne's hand and sat down under a nearby tree. He felt Angelyne rest her head on his shoulder.
"I wish I could stay here forever, Angie. I miss you more than you could ever know."
"As much as I love and miss you, Jess, you can't stay here. This is not a place for someone alive," Angelyne said, shaking her head. "You have a life waiting for you, and people that need you. You're just here until you heal, and that won't be very long."