Chapter Thirteen

He slept through the majority of those first three days with brief periods of consciousness. He wasn't really there though- he was home in Croatia. Out of all the Croatian Luka spoke in that period, she only understood three words:

Jasna. Marko. Danijela.

It amazed her how those three words had the ability to make her doubt everything they'd endured. To make her doubt that he'd left behind his ghosts. That she had finally shaken off her demons.

It was a scary place for her- watching him to fight for his life as she fought for her life with him. It was so far removed from anything she'd gone through with Maggie. She hadn't chosen Maggie, but loved her mother nonetheless. In a sense, she hadn't picked him either- he'd found her. Found her and gave her no other option but to love him. Because she did… love him. Even now as she was torn apart by jealousy over his dead wife. Right now, though it was painful and lonely, she loved him.

And that's why she sat here, watching him sleep and dream about another, often forgetting to eat and sleep herself. For love.

Abby carried on with work. It was the only way she could stop thinking about Luka. Stop worrying about him not getting better. Working in the ER forced you to focus on the task at hand. It was the only way to cope down there. But she was here now, in front of his hospital room. Luka was awake and asking for her. She pushed past the demons and ghosts as she opened the door and stepped inside.

Luka was lying in bed, staring out the window, when she walked in. He turned at the sound of her footsteps.

"Hey." He smiled at her weakly.

"Hey yourself. How're you feeling?"

He took her hand, forcing her to sit down. "Pretty shitty at the moment."

"Your doctor seems happy with the progress you've made. Did he talk to you yet and explain what happened?"

"He says I'm still looking at another week in here, and that's if I'm lucky."

"At least you're still alive." Abby said softly, dropping his hand as she stood to her feet. She picked up his chart from the end of the bed. "Your parasitic count has decreased. No sign of resistance to the drugs. And your fever's broken." She placed the chart on the end of his bed. It was too much for her. She turned her back to him. "I thought… I was going to lose you." Silent tears fell from her eyes.

"Abby... come here." He made room for her on the bed and took her into his arms. He could feel her tears seeping through the thin hospital gown. The fever had sapped his strength, but he was more than willing to use whatever he had left to comfort her." Its okay, I'm still here. You aren't getting rid of me that easily." It was a poor attempt to make her laugh, but it worked.

"Sorry, I'm being silly."

"No, not silly, honest. I really worried you didn't I?" He kissed her hair. "I'm sorry, Abby."

"It's not like you can help acquiring a potentially deadly strain of malaria."

"Still."

"Shh… not another word about it."

"Yes, ma'am." He said teasingly, but she could hear the growing fatigue behind his words.

"I'm wearing you out. I should go." She made a move to leave, but he tightened his arms around her.

"No, stay."

"You need your rest more than you need me." She argued.

"I beg to differ." He returned seriously. She laughed at his words, flattered, but not giving in just yet.

"I have a shift to get back to."

"I'm sure they won't mind if you're a little late." She sighed, exasperated.

"If I show you something, will you let me leave?"

"Depends on what it is."

"You'll like it, I promise." He released her reluctantly.

"Fine." She left, returning a few minutes later with a fetal heart monitor. She arranged her clothes, moving the machine around for a few minutes. Finally, the two listened in awe as the sound of their child's heartbeat filled the room. They shared a smile. The look on his face told her that this- their relationship, the baby- was for real. The others were gone.

"I'd better go." He was fading on her. She turned the machine off and stood up.

"Thank you, Abby." He said, fingers brushing her stomach. She kissed him softly.

"Your welcome." He was sound asleep when Abby slipped out of the room.

xxxxxxx

It took Luka nearly a month to recover; his progress was, at times, painfully slow. Abby was just glad to have him back and mostly healthy.

"I dreamed about them… while I was sick." He told her his first night home. She didn't say anything, just waited for him to continue. "I said goodbye to them, Abby. For good. It's just us now, no ghosts." Her eyes met his, the emotion in them intense.

"I know."

"I love you, and only you."

She smiled into the darkness, kissing him. "Trust me, the feeling's mutual."

A/N: And that, my friends, is the end. A bit of a weird way to end it, I know. I just didn't want this to drag out for too long. I now have three completed non one-shots under my belt. Yay!! I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. And thanks to everyone who reviewed: MauraFan228, Lubyforeverx711, Smile90, x-xTwistedNightmarex-x, and Strizzy. And to everyone who's reviewed the story. Thanks so much!