A/N: Check me out updating early! :-) It was ready so I figured I'd go for it! let me know what you all think - Charli xx

Sara watched as the doctor walked out of the room and disappeared back inside the ER leaving the door ajar just enough for her to peer inside. Greg sat on one of the sofa's inside the tiny room with his head in his hands, she couldn't hear him but she was certain he was sobbing. Taking a deep breath she heaved herself from the small plastic chair she had been seated in and slowly crossed the floor towards him. Her heels clicked loudly off the clinical floors and she felt as though all the eyes of the other patients and visitors were burning into her as she made her way to that room.

She gently closed the door behind her, looking over Greg and feeling an overwhelming sense of sorrow. He looked broken, more loss reflected in his eyes than she had ever seen in another person. Sara crouched down in front of him, one hand resting on his leg the other tilting his face to look at her.

"Greg... what happened?" She whispered, afraid that her words would assume a huge magnitude if she spoke too loudly.

"She's...she's dying" He muttered weakly.

It was as though saying the words suddenly made it real. His shoulders shook as sobs overwhelmed him and Sara wrapped him in her arms. She had never seen him like this before. Greg was always the positive to her negative, the dark to her light. She simply didn't know how to respond when the roles were reversed.

"What did they say?" She questioned figuring the more information she had then the better placed she would be to comfort him.

Greg took a deep breath, pulling himself together and leaning back in his chair as Sara moved into the space beside him.

"There's swelling on her brain and bone fragments in her spinal cord...She's in bad shape." He sighed staring at his hands as they trembled in his lap.

Sara drew breath having been ill prepared for hearing such devastating news. In a way, hearing of her death would have been easier to deal with than having the possibility of immeasurable disabilities hanging in the air.

"I'm sorry Greg" She muttered, not sure what else she could say.

"She needs surgery... to save her life but she has this stupid directive in place stopping them. They won't let me lift it, they won't save her...They won't save her." He rambled, his voice escalating in desperation and then falling in despair.

Sara found herself wondering what could have made Robyn put such restrictive rules on her own medical treatment. It was never something they had discussed in the time they had known each other but it struck her as out of character for a woman who had basically lived for her son for the last 5 years.

"She was so scared of being trapped in her own body" Greg said, as though hearing her unspoken questions "they held onto her mother for 4 months...I don't think she ever recovered from that"

"that's understandable" Sara whispered, kneading his shoulder gently.

"But that was before! It was before Joel... it was before... us"

Greg shook his head as he struggled to cope with the reality of the situation or the justification behind Robyn's decisions but Sara understood. Sara had first hand experience of the realities of brain injury, she had seen what hanging on to a person's body could do to the family. They simply stopped living themselves. Robyn had been 14 when her mother died, she could only imagine the way it had made her feel to see someone she loved fading away in such a way.

"Maybe she made the right decision Greg. maybe its best to let her go" She said in what she hoped was a soothing voice.

Greg quickly raised his head, frowning at her and shaking his head in disagreement.

"How can it be the right decision?" He argued.

"What if they operate and she ends up paralyzed or brain damaged?" Sara questioned. She wanted him to see past his own loss and understand that sometimes letting go is the only thing to do.

"What if they operate and she's fine? What if she gets better and 3 weeks... or 3 months down the line she walks out of this hospital? What if all she needs is the chance?" He stood, the stress of the situation clearly affecting him as he paced the tiny space rubbing a hand over his face. "You can fix this"

His eyes fixed on hers, wide with the realisation that he had a living breathing and fully able to consent relative of Robyn's in front of his very eyes. He viewed her like a beam of light shining down to grant them another chance but Sara was already shaking her head.

"What? I can't fix it" She debated.

"You can! I'm so stupid. you're her sister... you can lift the restriction. You can consent to the surgery!"

In the drama Sara had forgotten all about the bombshell Greg had delivered her earlier that day. The haste and commotion had washed away the burning resentment she had felt but she felt strangely numb at the thought of losing her sister on the same day she had gained her.

"Its not what she wants Greg" Sara realised that while Greg may want her to live more than anything at one point Robyn had felt so strongly about this subject she had went to the trouble of making it legally binding.

"Sara... please. You have to understand, I know she wouldn't want to give up this easily. She's your sister remember. She's a lot like you, you know? She's strong and determined and completely adverse to someone telling her she can't do something" He laughed despite the tears in his eyes and the desperation in his voice "She wouldn't do this to Joel. She wouldn't leave him on his own..."

"He'll have you" Sara whispered.

He was asking a lot from her. She had known of her relation to Robyn for less than a day and was expected to make such a major decision about her life. The magnitude of the responsibility weighed heavily on her shoulders as she thought about how she would feel if someone overturned her last wishes to avoid their own loss. She realised she couldn't put herself in Robyn's shoes this time. She didn't have a child to worry about nor did she have any kind of ill thought out directive in place regarding her health care. Whether or not Robyn's wishes now were the same as they had been ten years ago she couldn't say for certain.

"But he won't have me! I have no claim over him. He will be taken away, placed in foster care with a strange family. I'll have to say goodbye to him too. He wont have anyone"

Greg selfishly laid on the guilt, forcing her to think of Joel as he fell asleep in a strange bed like she had as a child. She pictured him clutching his dinosaur to his chest as the sounds of other children crying seemed to radiate from the walls and strange shadows danced in the corners.

"Greg, it's not my decision to make...I can't do this" She muttered, her eyes brimming with tears of her own.

Greg kneeled in front of her, catching her eye and clutching her hands in his.

"I'm begging you. Please... let them save her. I can't let her go, I can't lose her. Whatever you feel about being her sister...it doesn't matter now you'd be saving her life"

Sara stared at him for a few long moments, her mind whirring at an incredible speed as decisions and debates collided over and over again desperately trying to form a decision to adhere to. She had never had such responsibility before and it scared her.

"I can't..." She shook her head and stood, intending to leave the confines of the room that seemed to be closing in around her. She needed air, the fresh clean kind you only found hundreds of miles away from the city her mind suddenly yearning for the cabin by the lake. Her heart lurched when she thought about the last visitors to the cabin. She thought about how many beautiful memories they must have created there and how broken Greg would feel if Robyn recovered and didn't remember them. Brain injuries were never simple, even after so much research and time it still remained a mysterious organ to most and there was no predicting how effective surgery could be in draining the fluid surrounding it. There was every chance the damage had already been done and prolonging her life would only stand to serve Greg.

"How can you stand by and let her die like this?" He yelled at her, his temper flaring as desperation filled his veins "Are you jealous? is that it?"

"What are you talking about? why would I be jealous?" She spat, offended by his ridiculous accusation.

"That I'm not your lap dog anymore? That maybe she has the chance of a better life than you? that maybe she was happy?" He continued, collapsing onto the sofa again, his exhausted body bare;y able to hold his weight anymore.

"You're being ridiculous" She dismissed.

Sara knew that getting into arguments with the people you loved in such tense situations never ended well. She and Greg shared a special kind of friendship, one based on trust and honesty and she wouldn't jeopardise that by attacking him when he needed her despite the poison on his tongue.

"I'm not the one being ridiculous here Sara, I never thought I'd see the day where you'd refuse to save someone's life" He shook his head as though he was incredibly disappointed in her.

"It's not like that, you know its not" Sara retaliated, reminding herself that he didn't mean to say such vicious things.

"You're probably glad to get her out of the way, you never wanted her as a sister anyway"

Sara pressed her eyes together, attempting to hold her nerve and understand what Greg was going through. She had bitten his head off more times than she could count, she had lost her temper and took it out on him too frequently too mention. It was often the case that people took out their frustrations on those they were closest too.

"That's not fair Greg... she was my friend too"

"Don't do that! Don't talk about her like she's gone already" Greg cried.

"Greg...I'm sorry" She sighed, realising she had run out of justifications and arguments.

Greg sunk into the sofa again taking one of the pamphlets into his hand and staring at the image of flowers on the front. A soft smile curled the corners of his mouth but it didn't reach his eyes, they were still shadowed with grief.

"We were going to see Cirque at the mirage this weekend" He stated sadly, turning his hand over to reveal the word 'Love' written on the underside of his wrist "She really wanted to see it... it was going to be a surprise"

Sara nodded, they had discussed it at dinner. She and Grissom had been to see the same show a few days before in an attempt to spend some quality time together while they had the chance. She couldn't claim to be a huge fan of the beatles but the show had captivated her and Grissom especially had enjoyed regaling both Robyn and Greg with enthusiastic reviews of the special effects and sound quality.

"She would have loved it" Sara said, sitting beside him and draping her arm around his shoulders. Greg traced his fingertips across the word scrawled into his skin with a sigh.

"She wrote that so I wouldn't forget what it was called" He clarified.

They sat together in silence for a few long moments, Sara lightly resting her head on his shoulder trying to offer some comfort as time slowly slipped away Greg seemed to pull himself out of the darkness he had sunk into. He placed the pamphlet back on the table, straightened out the flowers and stood up taking a deep breath. His eyes were still rimmed in red and drained of the sparkle they usually held but he was at least fully in control of his emotions for the time being.

"I need your car keys" He stated, holding out his hand to receive them.

"What for?" Sara questioned as she fished in her purse for the small bundle of keys.

Greg scanned the room carefully then looked directly into her eyes as he took the cold key from her hand.

"I have to go get Joel" He said "He has to say goodbye to his mother"

With that Greg turned and left, the searing mark of his eyes still burning her skin as she sat there in the tiny room wrestling with her own conscience.

It seemed like she had been sitting there for a lifetime running through the conversation she had just had and reliving memories of her time with Robyn. She certainly hadn't seemed the type of person to give up when faced with a challenge. She had raised a child alone, holding down a full time job and doing so with a positive attitude she envied. It's true that Sara didn't want to accept her as a sister but not for the reason's Greg seemed to think. She liked Robyn, she cherished the friendship they had created and she loved the way her relationship with Greg had grown into a once in a lifetime romance. What she didn't like was the probability that it would all come crashing down when the inevitable Sidle family curse came to call.

One thing she was certain of was that Robyn had never been happier. She had told Sara herself that very same day and no matter how many times she told herself that Robyn made her own decision about this the niggling doubt in the back of her mind was screaming at her and reminding her it was made long before Joel or Greg were ever around.

Dr Crews stuck his head around the door, frowning at the lack of Greg but smiling at her as he stepped into the room.

"Is Greg around? He can go in and see Robyn now" He stated keeping his voice clear of emotion.

Sara shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"No, he's gone to collect her son. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about Robyn's condition?" She held her breath, not entirely sure what she hoped to gain from her questioning.

"I'm not sure that's entirely appropriate Miss. I must adhere to patient confidentiality" He nodded apologetically.

"I...I'm Robyn's sister" She muttered quietly almost hiding from the truth in the words.

Dr Crews frowned and sat on the sofa directly across from her, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned towards her.

"Mr Sanders said she didn't have anyone else..." He explained.

"I guess he forgot about me... we only met recently" She said, making reference to her relationship with Robyn rather than her relationship with Greg but the doctor simply nodded and met her eye.

"What do you want to know?" He asked, exhaling slowly.

"If she has the surgery... what's the prognosis?" Sara asked bluntly. It was one of the things plaguing her conscience most. She could only imagine the guilt she would feel if she prolonged Robyn's life only for her to remain in a vegetative state or unable to live the life she deserved.

"If we get in there quickly? The damage to her brain will be minimal and as long as we can keep the bone fragments below her chest the likelihood is she will escape paralysis, at least long-term paralysis" He said, holding her eye contact "There are always exceptions though and all brain or spinal procedures hold great risk"

Sara nodded her understanding, biting down on her bottom lip as she absorbed the new information. This was a positive prognosis, the chances of her surviving and making a full recovery were high effectively removing her fear that consenting to the surgery would ruin the rest of Robyn's life.

"Does she have to know who consented?" She asked realising it was a strange question "Will she know it was me?"

Dr Crews frowned at her but soon fixed his expression. It was something she had to know before she considered signing.

"Well... if she asks we can't legally keep it from her" He stated cautiously "But if she doesn't ask then she may never find out"

Sara sat back in her seat, contemplating everything she had been told. She pictured Greg, looking so broken and empty as he stared at the word penned on his wrist. She pictured the way he had held Robyn so tight to his body when they arrived for dinner and the way they met each other's eyes across the table. She pictured Joel's cheeky little face and how hard it would be to explain to someone so young that their mother wouldn't be coming home. Taking a deep breath she fished a pen from inside her purse and looked back at Dr Crews with a practiced expression of determination. There was no time for doubts anymore.

"show me where to sign"