I have been swamped with studying these past few months so I apologise for the very late update! This should be the second last chapter, so I hope you enjoy it! Please read and review as it means a lot x

Zoe watched from one of the cubicles as Dylan entered the reception area, checked shirt slightly rumpled and hair sticking up on end. He hasn't slept a wink, she thought, her eyes following him as he paid for a cup of coffee and a chocolate bar at the shop. She knew she'd have to talk to him eventually, but Dylan was so unpredictable when it came to emotions – you never knew when he was just going to explode.

She saw Noel give her a worried glance, and sighed. If the others were starting to see him getting worse, then she knew she had to step in.

Crossing the linoleum floor towards the staffroom, she gingerly opened the door and gave him a small smile. He didn't look pleased to see her.

"Not in the mood, Zoe," he said before she had a chance to open her mouth.

"I know, I just wanted to make sure-"

"I'm fine. Now, I have a very long shift to get through, and I'd rather get it over and done with. In silence, if it's all the same with you?"

She nodded, pretending to zip her mouth in some kind of comedic gesture. She should have known that today was not the best day to do something that light-hearted. He gave her a steely glare before marching out of the room and slamming the full coffee cup in the bin.

"Today's going to be a long day," she muttered to herself, before heading off to find another patient.

xxx

Sam entered the airport and checked the time. Two hours and counting. She checked her mobile, and sighed. Absolutely nothing. Not one call, or message, or even a voicemail. She had said her goodbyes, and now everyone had moved on. Except her.

Yanking her suitcase over to the metal seats by the automatic door, she slumped into one and put her head on her knees. She could already tell she was making a mistake, but she was too stubborn to turn back now. She had gotten herself into this mess, and she was damned sure she wasn't going to call Dylan for help. Even if she desperately wanted him to come rushing in and save her. He had never understood the whole 'knight in shining armour' thing, or in their case, knight in latex gloves. In his head, romance was pointless, even before they had gotten married. The only romantic gesture he had ever shown her was when he proposed, and even that was short-lived. And yet she loved him. It didn't hurt as much to think it now, knowing that she would soon be leaving him behind for good. She loved his coldness, his obliviousness, his general brutal honesty. His flaws made him the man he was, and she loved him, warts and all.

Scrolling through her contacts list, her finger hovered over his name, unsure whether to call him or delete him. If she wanted to make a fresh start, the latter was a sensible decision, but she simply couldn't take such a big step, not when there was still time. Two hours and counting. Maybe this time he would prove her wrong.

xxx

"I don't know what happened, Doc. One minute he was fine, and the next he'd collapsed."

Dylan ignored the frantic boy standing behind him, and examined his rather irritating younger brother. "Nausea? Headache? Vomiting?"

The younger boy shrugged, seemingly uninterested in being treated, or in fact, being diagnosed.

"He said he felt a bit sick. Didn't you, Josh?"

The boy said nothing, now staring at the tray of scalpels and syringes by his bed. Dylan clicked his fingers to gain the boy's attention, and shone a torch in each eye. "Right, well, I'll send away for some blood tests, but it doesn't look too serious. He hasn't had any alcohol this morning, has he?"

"Absolutely not. He's only fifteen," the older brother replied immediately, almost indignant. Dylan hated indignant people. Actually, he hated people in general.

"Right, well, Nurse Conway will deal with you now. Have a nice day," he said sarcastically, marching off in the direction of the door.

Once out in the corridor, he let out a relieved sigh and leant against the wall. He felt claustrophobic, as though everything was closing in him, suffocating him. An hour till she boarded the plane. One hour to stop her. And he knew he wouldn't do it, not because he didn't care, but because he did. If she loved Matt enough to fly over to Dubai with him, then she had evidently moved on. And that meant having to let her go, even if it was tearing him apart.

Rubbing his forehead, he decided that only by immersing himself in his work could he stop his mind from breaking down. Keeping busy – his solution for every problem.

"Doctor Keogh!"

He turned, the panicked voice of Nurse Conway signalling a problem, and jogged back into the ED where the young boy was now flushed and unconscious.

"What's going on?" he demanded, pushing aside the older brother to get a better look.

Scarlet pulled down the railings of the bed to make room for Dylan and moved aside. "He complained he was feeling hot and dizzy, and then he fainted. His blood pressure has dropped dramatically."

Dylan pulled the stethoscope from around his neck and checked the boy's heartbeat. "Have those bloods been sent?"

Scarlet nodded, chewing on her bottom lip. "Should I chase them up?"

"Yes, tell them it's an emergency."

But Dylan could already guess what it was, even without the proof. Nausea, dizziness, a fever, and now low blood pressure - they were all signs of Addison's disease.

xxx

Just under an hour, and still nothing. Sam shook her head and ignored the disappointment threatening to engulf her. She had so hoped that he would come, if only to say goodbye. And now it was all too late – too late to change her mind, too late to tell him how she felt, and far, far too late to save their doomed marriage.

Pulling out her mobile, she scrolled once again through her contacts until she found his name, but this time she didn't hesitate. If he had moved on, then so could she. Sam couldn't allow herself to be the one left behind; it simply wasn't in her nature. She exhaled slowly, and then pressed DELETE before she could have any more doubts.

It was easy as that. She had erased him completely from her life, and now she could start again, without fear or guilt. Maybe Matt wasn't the man she wanted, or indeed the man she needed, but she could find her own way in the world without being dependant on anyone else. She was a modern woman, and she not going to clutch hold of a childish fantasy when it had long since evaporated. Dylan had made his decision, and she had made hers.

There could be no turning back now.

xxx

There was no time to doubt himself – he had to act now or the boy would only deteriorate further.

"We'll have to do it ourselves. I'll need an intravenous injection of glucocorticoids and a 500ml intravenous saline solution with dextrose. Now."

Scarlet looked up from the number she had been dialling and raised her eyebrows questioningly. "The tests aren't back yet-"

"I am perfectly aware of that fact, Nurse Conway, but I have diagnosed the patient myself. The blood test is only confirmation. So, if you wouldn't mind…"

She stared at Dylan for a moment, suspicious of his current emotional state. After all, she knew Sam was flying to Dubai today, and Scarlet couldn't help wondering if it was affecting his judgement. But, being the only doctor currently available, she could hardly refuse to make up the treatment.

"Everything all right in here?"

They turned to see Zoe standing in the doorway, arms folded across her chest as she looked between their rather guilty faces.

"Doctor Keogh thinks Joshua has Addison's disease," Scarlet blurted out before she could stop herself.

Zoe's head snapped round to face Dylan, eyebrows raised questioningly. "Thinks, or knows?"

"Knows," he replied immediately, giving Scarlet a cold stare before taking the syringe from her. "He is presenting all the symptoms. I'm not wrong."

"Addison's disease is a bit of a jump, isn't it, Dylan? I hope you have more than just your own certainty to go on. What do the blood tests say?"

Scarlet looked at her feet, deciding it was better not to say anymore. But Zoe wasn't stupid, and she soon realised exactly why they both seemed so furtive. "The tests aren't back yet, are they?"

"We don't need them."

"Yes, you do, Dylan! You can't start treating him when you don't know the diagnosis!"

"It's Addison's disease!" he yelled, his voice cracking the silence around them. "If we don't treat him now, and I was right, his condition will deteriorate, his blood pressure will plummet further, and he could die. Let me get on with my job, Zoe."

She took a step towards him so that only he could hear what she had to say. "We are waiting for those tests, and when they come back, I will treat your patient and you will take my car and drive to the airport. We all know that's what is really going on here."

He was about to deny it when she pulled out her car keys and dropped them into his top shirt pocket. "You have twenty minutes to get there. If you go now, you could still stop her."

Dylan wanted to deny it. He wanted to lie and say that Sam meant nothing to him anymore. But he just couldn't pretend any longer – it was too much effort when it seemed everyone knew but him. He loved her, and if he had another chance to tell her, than there was only one thing he could do.

"Thank you," he whispered in her ear, placing the syringe on the tray and hurrying from the room, heading straight for the car park.

xxx

The sky was just beginning to darken as Dylan climbed out of Zoe's car and sprinted towards the airport doors. His heart slammed against his chest, and his breath hitched in his throat as he scanned the flight destinations on the screen above him. Dubai: Boarded. It flashed above him like a warning, and he felt sick at the thought they would soon be taking off. He searched the crowds of people around him, desperately hoping that she had decided not to go. But even with his keen eye, he couldn't see her.

She'd gone. He was too late. He was always too late.

He could already feel his throat closing up as he clenched his fists and walked slowly outside, the cool gust of air shocking him back to reality. He stood for a moment, trying to understand the fact that he had failed, before sensing others looking at him and hurrying towards the car. His hands trembled as he unlocked the door and slide inside, relieved when it clicked shut behind him.

The quiet calmed him, but with the silence came the over-whelming crush of pain on his heart. What had he been thinking? Why hadn't he left earlier, or called her to let her know he was coming? Why had he chosen the most difficult route possible?

For the first time in years, Dylan felt the unfamiliar prick of tears behind his eyes, and though he tried to stop them coming, eventually he gave in and let them come, trickling down his rough cheeks and dripping from his chin. A broken sob escaped his partially open mouth, and he forced himself to sit up and turn on the ignition, knowing that he couldn't sit here wallowing.

He sniffed hard and wiped away the rivulets travelling down his skin, blinking away the remaining tears. He promised himself it would be the only time he would allow himself to cry. He had to accept that he'd lost her for good, and the sooner he did that, the better.

xxx

Zoe checked her watch as she glanced at the entrance to the hospital, wondering where he was. She hoped he hadn't done anything stupid, but Dylan had never been one to do anything extremely drastic. He was cool to the point of freezing most of the time.

Just then, the doors whooshed open to reveal an almost unrecognisable man – dishevelled, visibly shaking, and eyes red from… tears?

"Dylan-"

"I didn't get there in time," he said, his voice unusually quiet as he sat down on one of the seats in the reception area. Zoe sat beside him, speechless, and took his hand in hers.

"Why didn't you just phone? I could have saved you from all this grief…" She didn't get any further as she sensed someone else beside them now, and she knew it was time to leave.

"Dylan?"

He froze, his mind trying to explain the voice he had just heard, and finally turned to face her, unable to say anything more than her name.

"Sam…"