Finally...

Chapter 4

As Annie Tyler drove south -possibly forever- to try to re-start her life, in his hospital bed in Hyde Ward DCI Sam Tyler awoke from his prolonged coma telling tales of a long ago time and a man called Gene Hunt. He underwent months of psychiatric testing and therapy before being allowed back to work and was then requested to send tape recordings of his dreams to a police psychologist in London who was collecting reports like these from officers that underwent severe trauma, Drake, he thought her name was. She was writing a book. He wasn't sure how he felt about that. Did he really want the whole of the police service to know of his delusions?

*LOM*

London was a cruel city, no different to Manchester except its geographical location. I was moving on, slowly. I almost left the force, except it was all I knew, all I wanted. My new team accepted me readily; I became firm friends with a DC named Jayne and was slightly in awe of our DI, Alex, she was also a psychologist, so we got on well. It was nice to have some female colleagues, it was nice not to have the men leaving rude magazines on your desk and making dirty jokes, but in some ways I almost missed it. Crazy right?

My life was slowly turning around, I was starting to move myself forwards. There weren't many questions about my life before; of course I was asked why I had transferred. I told them that it was because of my husband's death. I received condolences and we got on with the job. There were just as many murders in this place as there were before. More so. Day after day it got a little easier; I just wished that I had his leather jacket or a picture. My life was going okay, I was doing okay.

That last day started like any other, with coffee from an American chain called Starbucks and an apple on the way out of the door, it's funny how it used to be me that told Sam to slow down and make time for food. I arrived at the office early, which was odd for me, the DCI wasn't in yet, but Alex was and she looked busy. Already she had surrounded herself in files and papers. Probably more case studies for her project.

Suddenly a voice filled the room, a voice that I would always recognise.

"My name is Sam Tyler, I had an accident and I woke up in 1973..."

My head pounded. Sam was alive. Sam was awake. Sam. Sam. Sam. For all the miniature steps that I had taken forward since Manchester, I took twice as many back at that moment.

"DI Drake! Where did you get that tape?" I did little to hide my excitement.

"Oh! Annie, I'm so sorry, I didn't realise that anyone was in yet! This?" She indicated the stack of tapes on her desk "It's for my book, Sam Tyler's circumstance is remarkable, he was hit by a car and whilst in his coma he believed that he was in 1973."

"When did he wake up!"

"A few months ago. Did you know him? He's DCI at your old division, that's such a coincidence!"

"Yes, you could say so."

He'd woken just as I had left for London; after all of my waiting we'd missed each other again.

"How did he get back?" I wondered aloud. How did he get back when he died?

"It's quite remarkable actually. His brain created constructs, one in particular, DCI Gene Hunt was the tumour on his brain, in the end he had to choose, leave his fantasies to die in an illegal heist, or stay trapped inside his own head in 1973."

"Illegal heist?" I didn't remember that. Oh! That was the day! That was the day of our first kiss. He didn't go home then! That wasn't right!

If Sam had been awake for months then why hadn't he gotten my note? Why hadn't he come looking for me? Had his mother not told him? Did he not believe her?

*LOM*

"Mrs Tyler?" I asked her as she sat by her son's bedside. Today was the second and the last time that I would see Sam in this world, I hoped that she'd understand that I wasn't giving in on her son, just that I couldn't cope with losing him again.

"Yes dear?"

"I'm going t' London this afternoon, I just wanted to say goodbye, and to ask you a favour."

"Anything"

"If- when" I corrected myself for her sake "Sam wakes up, could you give him this?"

I handed her an envelope, inside was a photograph of me stood outside the station in 2006 with a short message on the back. I had a million things to say to Sam but when the time came, the words did not. So it just read;

Sam,

Please believe in me, I need you.

A x

She smiled and took it from me, a silent goodbye, with a single tear and a soft kiss pressed onto Sam's lifeless cheek I left the hospital and Manchester.

*LOM*

"DI Drake, I'm sorry, I have to go!"

"Go where?" She asked as I was already halfway out of the door

"I just have to go, I'm sorry."

And I left. I'd probably get into a hell of a lot of trouble for that later, but I didn't care, I just had to get to him.

That drive was the longest time of my life, the minutes passed like decades as I travelled through county after county, not once stopping for anything.

It was funny, I thought as I drove back how I'd tried desperately to leave Sam behind me and now I was willing to risk my whole career to see him again even though he may not even believe that I exist.

What was I doing? How would I know where to find him? What would I say? Would he even recognise me?

My heart dared to hope that everything would be okay; I dared to believe that I could have him back.

I knew exactly where to go. Where it started. Where it all started.

I barely knew what I was doing by the time I arrived in our old stomping ground. I didn't stop to explain myself as I burst into the old station; I was acting on autopilot as I headed upwards.

"Annie!" Bloody Daniel shouted from behind me, running to catch me up. "Why're you here?"

"Where's Sam Tyler?" I asked, not even breaking stride.

"I don't know, I think he went to the roof"

I knew it, I ran faster.

The roof had become our place over time, when a case got too much Sam would come up here and at first I followed him, scared that he'd do something rash, over time I knew that he was going to stay and that he would never do something like that to me. I trusted him completely.

I burst out into the sunlight expecting to see his smiling face waiting for me. But he wasn't. As my eyes adjusted to the daylight I just caught a glimpse of the man I loved sprinting towards the edge, my picture in his hand.

"SAM!" I screamed, knowing that I was too late, my voice was lost in the roar of the wind and he disappeared over the side, gone forever. Gone home.

If I'd been seconds earlier. Just seconds, I could've saved him.

My screams were all that I heard after that, the demented wailing of someone who had lost everything. He'd chosen to die.

Or... he'd chosen to go home to the younger me, to a time where we were happy, to a time where everything was perfect.

Now I really didn't understand. What was I doing here? Why did it hurt so badly? Why was I being tortured this way? I just wanted to leave; to escape...I was standing on a roof.

I was standing on a roof. Right back at the beginning, I was alone, but I understood. I had been shown this to show how much he loved us, he'd given up everything that he fought so hard for. For me.

I didn't see it as suicide. Like I don't believe Sam did. Not even as I jumped and felt myself falling, no, it wasn't suicide because I wasn't dying. I was waking up. I was going back home.

*LOM*

A/N So...I finally finished this, however after the recent Ashes to Ashes final, I am toying with the idea of an epilogue with Gene and Annie, it depends on how people receive this chapter I guess, anyway, thanks a bunch for reading, please feel free to comment :P