A/N: A great big thanks to everyone who left me reviews on the last chapter, it's thrilling to know you are enjoying my little adventure. And yes, I know this chapter is a bit shorter than usual. I'll try to do better next time.;)

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own the Pretender, because if I did, things wouldn't have ended with an almost kiss! The point is, no profit is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

The Evolution of Things

Chapter 6

By M. Rose


With his face turned on one side, so it could rest against the mattress and one hand grasping the woman he loved, Jarod slept. He spent hours held up in one of the guest rooms he had turned into a makeshift lab; formulating, testing and perfecting an antidote to counteract the Centre-made poison seeping through Parker's system.

Even though, thoughts of never seeing those beautiful blue eyes staring back at him pushed him through the fatigue and anxiety consuming his body, Jarod would suffer bouts of panic causing him to stop whatever he was doing. It baffled him; never had he encountered that kind of trepidation in the past. Then again, his Pretends never hit so close to home before. There was no time to analyze. With a few long deep breaths, he quickly recovered and continued his work.

At one point his father came in with a tray of food, Jarod politely declined, not wanting to waste a moment of his time on anything that didn't have to do with Parker's condition. He knew that if he didn't come up with an antidote soon, her organs would begin shutting down and then it would be too late for a cure. But his father was adamant that he would be of no use to her if he didn't keep up his strength. He realized his father was right and ate his food, albeit quickly.

After working throughout the night and into the break of day, Jarod finally emerged from his cocoon. He rushed to Parker's side with syringe in hand and injected the precious liquid into her IV, all the time praying he wasn't too late.

Every four hours he would inject another dose of the serum and carefully watch her vitals signs for any change. Major Charles pleaded with him to get some sleep in an actual bed rather than in a chair, eventually Jarod relented, but only got in a couple of hours of sleep before ending up in the chair next Parker's bed once again.

"Coffee?" Jarod turned as his father handed him a mug. He gave him a sad smile as he grasped the handle, "Thank you."

"She looks better," he commented. Two days had passed and even though Parker's vitals had improved vastly, she had yet to wake from her unconscious state.

With a voice thick with worry Jarod said, "She should have woken by now. What if I got the formula wrong?"

He felt a hand on his shoulder, "Give it a little more time, son." Before walking out of the room, his father added, "In the meantime, maybe you could try talking to her."

The idea hadn't occurred to Jarod. He was so concerned about her physical health; he hadn't thought that maybe there were other reasons why she wasn't waking. It couldn't hurt, besides there were some things he'd always wanted to share with her and maybe she would awaken if only to tell him to shut up. He smirked as he pictured her rising from the bed and yelling at him.

He nodded and whispered, "Maybe."

Soft rays of morning sunlight streamed through the window, highlighting her features with an ethereal glow. He then rose from the chair and approached the bed. Brushing a lock of hair away from her face, he stood before her marveling her beauty. "Parker, I … I" were the only words he could get out before all the feelings he had tucked away in the far corners of his mind exploded to the surface.

He slumped back into the chair with his hands on his face and cried.

When there were no more tears left to shed, he held her hand and began talking. It was cathartic in a way, letting his feelings for her and her importance in his life flow out of him, he only hoped she was listening.

Emotionally drained, he fell asleep in what had become a customary position, his face resting against the mattress as he held her hand in his.

Suddenly he bolted out of his chair when he felt her hand move.

"Parker?"