Chapter Fourteen

Sorry if I am pissing people off with the sporadic updates. I have a crammed schedule and stuff ALWAYS gets in the way. I am trying to update often, but really, it's getting very hard to. Just getting to review replies too—sorry for the wait on that….but I'm grateful for all of them (more than 50, wow!)

…..and now for a lighter chapter…..

Dedicated to R.E.L.F.—who inspired me, who loved my writing, who I will remember every day of my life. It's been one year….and I'll never forget.

"Baby, at least you got the breathing tube out. That's a really good sign." Derek was at Penelope's side, trying to encourage her to speak. The doctor had recently removed the ventilator, declaring her to be on the mend, at least physically. So far, though, she'd made no attempt to talk, and her eyes had remained blank and emotionless. Derek was trying to reach out to her before she shut down completely. Finally, though, she found the words. The right first words to say after her life had so nearly been ripped away from her.

"Thank you." Her voice was raspy, weak, and a bit slurred from all the medication, but to Derek, it was one of the most beautiful sounds in the whole world.

"Why are you thanking me, Baby Girl?" he asked, taking her hand in his.

"You saved me. You saved my life." Emotion clotted her throat, and Penelope had to work hard to keep the tears from falling.

"How could I not save the woman I love?" Derek replied, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"You mean that?" Penelope whispered, hardly daring to believe what she'd just heard. Derek couldn't love her. Not after what she'd put him through. Not after her refusal to trust him enough to tell him about Kevin.

"Of course. There's nothing I've ever been more serious about in my entire life. I love you more than anything. When you were in a coma, all I could think about was the prospect of my life without you. And that was unbearable to imagine. You are not just my solace, but my everything. A part of me was attached to that ventilator with you, a part of me was bruised and broken. I am completely in love with you, Penelope Garcia."

Penelope broke down then. A torrent of emotions cascaded down her face, from pain to fear to love to adoration. Derek wrapped her in his arms and stroked her hair as she cried. He wept too.

"Don't leave me, Baby, don't ever leave me," he repeated over and over. "No matter what, you'll always have me."

"I won't, Derek. I love you too much to."

The one promise that wasn't kept…

"Baby, I know you don't want to talk about this, but how much do you remember?" Derek hated to bring it up, but knew in order for Penelope to get past it, they would have to talk it through.

"Everything. I remember everything." And no matter how much Derek prodded, Penelope said nothing more of it.

Even though she had someone to lean on, she couldn't relive what Kevin had done to her. It had scarred her, torn her apart….and she wasn't ready to be pieced back together just yet.

So for now, she just held onto Derek, the man that loved her, the man that she loved, hoping that his presence could wipe away the memories, the bruises, everything that kept her tethered to the pain she felt.

As her world crumbled, she still had him. And that was enough for now.

Sorry for the shortness of this. More…..but probably not for a bit because I have other projects and stuff. Apologies. And as I'm sure you've realized, this ain't over yet.