This is the penultimate chapter. Seriously, I've loved writing this one, it's been great fun just to play around with the humorous side of their friendship, along with the love bit of it too eheee! Thanks to Maz for beta-er. I'm sorry it's been a long time coming but Maz has been ill and I hate to post things without her seal of approval.

Thanks again for nominating/voting Not So Lost in America as First Place Best Post Ep Fic. I'm so happy/proud; it makes me want to write more. Sorry for not updating as quickly as I should!

Chapter Four

It was getting late, his one day off in a long time had been full of compromising situations, laughter at their own stupidity, and last but by no means least falling asleep again on the two-seater in front of the TV.

As the street lamp flickered on outside the window, Ray blinked a few times, sniffing, and finding that he was rewarded with wild berry shampoo washed hair up his nose. This made him cough. His movement had jerked Neela awake. He had sat forward covering his mouth whilst he coughed; she fell off of his shoulder sideways onto the sofa. As soon as her head hit the cushions she sat up again in a moment of shock. Before realising where she was and settling back into the pillows.

Once his coughing fit was over, he turned to her, a pain in his voice from the need of water. "I should make us some dinner," he offered, getting up quicker than you could say 'Tell her' and disappearing head into the fridge. Pulling out an array of ingredients he opened up the floor cupboard and produced a frying pan/wok type thing, Neela had no idea.

Grabbing her crutches from the floor she made her way into the bathroom, reappearing a few minutes later feeling slightly fresher, and less of a dead weight like she had for most of the day.

"That smells so good," she enthused as she made her way to sit at the dinner table. Ray turned and flashed her a smirk of a smile before responding. A total mistake on his part, from Neela's point of view anyway, anything her freshening up had done to rid her of all thoughts of him had now successfully been throw out of the second storey window.

"I know I do but what about my cooking."

"Oh that's mature," she was rewarded once again with his smile, before he turned his back to her; he was very nearly done with the stir-fry-esque dish he was concocting.

"Don't want to disappoint now would I?" he turned to one of the wall cupboards and picked out two wine glasses before opening the cupboard beneath it and getting out two plates. Setting both on the table top he made his way back to the cooker, turning the hob off and taking the stir-fry to the table with a heatproof mat. "Dinner a la Barnett."

"It looks lovely, and smells good too," Neela offered holding out her plate for him to spoon a helping out for her.

"What your arm's as useless as your ankle?"

"Yup."

"That's what I thought," he smiled, taking her plate and filling it with the new dish he had made. The steam rose in wisps spreading the aroma about the room, filling their nostrils making their mouths water. Placing the plate in front of her, she lifted her fork and stabbed at the offending article, "Liar."

Neela's eyebrows knitted together, stopping the fork an inch from her mouth in confusion, "Huh?"

"You said you're arms were useless," he laughed, putting a mouthful of their cuisine in his mouth and chewing thoroughly before swallowing.

"Yeah well," she ate the food from her fork before replying properly, "I can't let the -what was it? - 'doting Roommate', off of his duties can I?" Ray laughed in reply, she had him there. His prescription for her was, "bed rest and a doting roommate" which he really didn't mind being. Though bed rest they hadn't particularly done, more like channel hopping and, more recently, hopping races around the lounge.

"I also prescribed bed rest, and I don't think hopping races around the apartment constitute as bed rest." Neela let out a half snort before continuing to eat her meal.

-x-x-

They finished their meal in companionable silence, finishing every scrap of nutrient on their plates. Neela was tempted to lick the plate clean but decided against it.

"Thank for dinner." The break in the silence armed Ray for what was coming next, a few hours on the sofa in yet more silence with occasional yells at the players of Celebrity Poker, or the World Poker Tour, or most likely both, with it all ending with a sleeping Neela on his shoulder. Which then led to him having to carry her to her room and, for the second night in a row, leaving her in her clothes to sleep.

"That's not a problem," he smiled picking up the plates and carrying them to the sink, turning the hot tap on and letting the water run over them for a few seconds. "Uh, maybe you should change, so you don't end up asleep in your day clothes again."

"That's probably a good plan," with that she left, no mention of why it was a good idea, or if it really was needed, because deep down she knew that he was right, she knew she would end up asleep on his shoulder. His undying ability to read her on such matters shone through at these moments. At others like the time on the floor earlier that day, well he didn't seem to be able to read her at all.

Maybe it was her, getting the wrong impression of it all. In a way she hoped that she wasn't. She had to admit living with Ray was never meant to be a permanent fixture, but now, after a few months, she had found that she rather liked it. So he was an inconsiderate asshole some of the time, but he made up for it.

It was times like this she really wished she knew what he wanted. What she wanted. She loved Michael, of course she did, but Ray, well he was Ray. He knew her, he paid special attention on how to annoy her, but he knew her all the same. He knew what to cook her, what TV she liked and, more importantly, he knew when to stop.

Michael on the other hand, didn't know her, he had disappeared to war without a trace, and she didn't know him. She could tell you what Ray's favourite band was, what TV he watched, his favourite film, and food or whatever, but Michael? She had no clue, no clue what-so-ever.

x-x

"Oh come on!" Neela found herself yelling at the TV, some unpredicted movement from one of the players on the World Poker Tour had conjured up such a response.

"Neela, you know this was filmed like a month ago right?" Ray said as he sat down beside her after washing up the remains of dinner. Cleaning down the kitchen surfaces and pretty much anything he could think of to avoid having to be put in yet another situation he'd rather wish he wasn't it.

"Your point?"

"Well, uh, they can't hear you, and well they really aren't gunna change their move just for you now."

"Ruin my fun," she tilted her head and rested it on his shoulder, a few months ago spending time with him was a chore, they argued and moving in with him was just a mad solution. But now it didn't seem that way at all. They had grown closer together and people were talking. The ER was a hive of gossip. With Frank, Jerry and Morris all at the helm, they were certainly going to be a good gossip topic. Especially since Frank had commented on Ray carrying Neela into the ER after her fall.

Granted, it probably wasn't a good idea on Ray's part, but there was no way she could have walked, she would have only caused herself more pain. Why did they have to work the same damn shifts? The whole idea behind the arrangement was that they would never see each other apart from in the cross over at work, that plan had gone to hell.

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