Frasier and Martin waited impatiently in the small waiting room and tension was beginning to fill the air. "What in the hell is taking so long?" Martin yelled.
"Dad, just give them time! I'm sure-."
"Time? They've had plenty of damn time! How many pages must a doctor receive before he answers one?"
"They've only paged him once and I'm sure-."
Dr. Watson approached them, wearing a sympathetic smile; one that brought Martin to silence.
"I'm terribly sorry to have kept you waiting. I was checking on Dr. Crane's progress."
Frasier shot Martin a look of annoyance, taking note of the way Martin quietly looked away. "Thank you, Dr. Watson."
"How is he? Can we see him?" Martin asked.
"Of course." Dr. Watson replied. "Now, I've checked your son thoroughly and for an accident of this magnitude, he's made remarkable progress. I was just telling Ms. Moon-."
Frasier's mouth fell open. "Daphne's still here?"
Dr. Watson smiled. "Ms. Moon has been here for several hours. The nurses tell me that she hasn't left his side since she arrived late last night. In fact, she's the one who notified my staff that Dr. Crane had come out of the coma."
The two men exchanged glances, and suddenly it all made sense.
"… one thing you should know." Dr. Watson was saying.
"What, Dr. Watson? Niles is all right, isn't he? Can we see him?" Martin asked. "I need to see my son, now! I've waited too damn long for this!"
"Dad, don't interrupt Dr. Watson!" Frasier scolded. "Let the doctor finish!"
"Damn it, I want to see my son!" Martin yelled. "Now I've been worrying about him for too damn long to waste any more time-."
"Dr. Crane! Mr. Crane!"
They looked up to see Daphne running toward them, and before they could react, she threw herself into their arms, sobbing. While Martin slowly drew back, Frasier held her tightly. "It's all right, Daphne. Everything's all right."
At this she slowly moved away and tearfully raised her eyes to look at him. "It's more than all right, Dr. Crane. Niles is alive! He's…" She started to cry again but Frasier stared at her, stunned to hear her use his brother's first name.
"Daphne-."
She took his hand and led him down the hallway, coaxing Martin to follow. "I'm so sorry I didn't call earlier, but when he woke up I was so stunned, I didn't know what to do! I-."
"You mean he was awake before you called the doctor? Damn it, Daphne don't you know how worried we were? We-."
"Dad-."
She began to cry harder, coaxing Frasier to take her into his arms. He held her closer, his eyes rising to meet his father's. "Go on, Dad."
Her head still on Frasier's chest, Daphne watched as Martin walked down the hallway. Even with the use of his cane, his walk was slower than normal as he entered Niles' room. Before she realized what was happening, Frasier had released his hold on her, leaving her alone in the hallway. And it was there that she stood, remembering Niles' words.
"Thank you, Daphne for saving my life."
How could he think such a thing? The idea was completely ridiculous but the words warmed her heart just the same. And suddenly she longed to hold him in her arms once more.