A/N: English is not my mother tongue, so I apologize for any grammar and spelling mistakes.

Again, thanks for the reviews ^.^

Kinda funny that it's always late in the night when I upload a chapter. Whuuuuuu didn't know a cup of coffee would keep me up this long (It's 4:30).

Well anyway, don't take the medical stuff seriously, I just made something up. Same thing with Gail's age, I kinda guessed that she might be in her late twenties.

xxXxx

"Female, in her late twenties, GSW to the the abdomen, she's lost a lot of blood!"

"Do we have an ID?"

"No ID was found on her and she isn't in the system."

"Ok, prep her for surgery."

….

(Gail's POV)

"Steve?" Gail asked in disbelieve. She looked around and she found herself standing in the living room of the house where had spent all her childhood.

"Hey, little sis." Steve stood at the doorway. "I'd really like to say that it's good to see you, but you know…you being here means that.…" he let the sentence drift off into silence.

"I got shot and bled out." Gail realized.

"Well, you're not really dead. Nearly but you're barely holding on."

"But I'm here, so it doesn't really matter." Gail said. She looked at Steve. He hadn't changed at all. How did it work here anyway, with all the being dead business?

Steve walked up to her and both of them sat down the sofa. He looked at Gail, studying her features. "You have bags under your eyes and it looks like you lost a little weight."

"Well thanks. I thought you people up here know what is going on down on earth, so haven't you been aware of how I was doing?"

"Oh if you're talking about you talking to my tombstone, yeah, I've heard." Steve said with a smile.

"Oh shut up. You know I'm still mad at you." Gail pointed at him, trying to sound angry. She didn't know what to feel. The two of them sat in silence until Gail opened her mouth, trying to form any words. "I don't know what I've been doing all this time. Feels like i've lost precious time but I just couldn't…." She gazed into space, trying to order her thoughts.

Steve looked at his little sister empathetically. He knew it had been tough for her, so he waited for her to go on. He was her brother and he needed to listen.

"All this time felt like I wasn't really there. Physical I was attending duty, but at the same time I wasn't really present. And you probably know the issues I've been dealing with, panic attacks and nightmares" , Gail snorted. "My everyday-reminder that I'm weak. Something we Pecks are not allowed to be."

At hearing that, Steve lowered his eyes to the ground. He knew their parents had had high standards; Gail called them peckspectations. He knew the pressure all too well.

"I know you know whatever is going on down there, but you don't know what is going on inside my head." Gail leaned back and let her head fall back onto the backrest. "After the break up with Holly, the thing with Sophie and then you, I felt like I was a failure. I was still that childish, self-destructive, immature little bitch that nobody liked and I was angry at everybody; at you, our parents, my friends, at myself. I couldn't do anything right. I've alway got to mess things up and I get reminded of what I really am. Nothing."

Gail sounded so defeated, it made Steve sad to hear his sister talk like that about herself. "Wow, you really have no idea, do you?"

Gail leaned her head to the left and looked at him with furrowed brows.

"You really have no idea how brave and amazing you really are. Gail, ever since I've known you, pretty much since the moment you were born, you never backed down from a fight. It's not something mom and dad talked into us, it was something that came from within YOU. Gail you're one of the strongest people I've known and I know that you would have always had my back."

"Have I already told you about me being like a cat, climbing a tree?"

"I've heard about that, too. Okay look, everybody's got a vulnerable side and this is yours. You're just not really good with dealing with people, so you can't let them get too close. You hold them at arms length and you hide behind sarcasm." Steve looked at Gail.

"Thanks for the assessment, Dr. Peck. I had trouble realizing why I was such a bitch to everyone." ,Gail commented and looked back at the ceiling, wanting to avoid any eye contact with her brother. She knew he was right.

"Look what I'm trying to say is, don't run away or shut people out because you're afraid of getting hurt. People get hurt everyday and you can't avoid it. Life's it too short to be all alone, Gail." Steve scooted closer to her to take her hand.

Gail pulled her hand away and looked Steve in the eyes. "Oh YOU want to tell me that life's too short?! It's YOU who left me without saying anything. You killed yourself!" She didn't actually want to sound so harsh, but her feelings got the better of her. All of a sudden she had felt a rush of anger.

"Fair enough." Steve averted his eyes to the ground. He deserved whatever she had to say and she was just stating the facts. "I made a lot of mistakes and the biggest one of all was betraying you, Traci, my friends, our parents. I couldn't live on, knowing that I've lost all of you. I've lost the only family I had and the love of my life." Steve tried to blink away the tear that threatened to run down his cheek. He looked at his little sister with sincere eyes. "I'm sorry. I really am."

Tears were running down Gail's cheeks and she looked away, not wanting to show Steve her vulnerable side. But he moved closer to her and wrapped his strong arms around her small frame. Gail didn't fight his touch and buried her head in the curve of his neck. "I'm sorry." ,Steve kept whispering, as he held Gail's shaking form.

….

"We're loosing her!"

"Charge to 300! Clear!"

"No pulse."

"Come on, come on, come on! Clear!"

….

(Gail's POV)

"So what happens next?" Gail asked.

She and Steve had been sitting arm in arm for a while now. Steve just kissed her head and said with a gentle voice, "As much as I enjoy your company, your time hasn't come yet. Gail I know that even if mom and dad wanted us to be cops, you love your job. You've held your head high and I'm already so proud of you Gail Peck, but I know you still have much more to give. You are so much stronger than me. Don't ever give up, little sis."

Upon hearing the words, Gail felt like she had been set free. "I love you Steve." , she managed to say. She looked at Steve one last time.

"I love you, too."

The words faded away into the distance and Gail was suddenly blinded by an illuminating light.

….

Beep….Beep…

Gail's eyes fluttered open, but she shut them as soon as the light blinded her. Everything was so bright and it smelled like disinfectant. She concluded that she must be lying in a hospital bed.

Her brain was trying to remember what had happened to her and then suddenly she recalled the conversation with Steve. A tear slipped down her eye and she smiled. She was alive. She would live for Steve and for herself and she was going to make him even more proud.

xxXxx

Guys, thank you very much for following the story up until now. Thanks you for reading and reviewing. Every review has made happy, even the one written in spanish (I translated it XD).

I was thinking of writing a sequel, but I noticed that I'm really bad at making up a plot and writing it down, but hey….maybe I'll try it out. (I'f there will be a sequel, I'll upload another chapter and write down the title.)

You guys are awesome! Have a nice day ^.^!

THE END

s1l3ntm0nst3r o.O