Erin kept vigil at Leo's bedside for the rest of the day, Harry and Nikki took it in turns to stay with her whilst the other one went back to check on the lab. Erin had resumed her silence and still kept her unwavering gaze on Leo.

"Hey" Doctor Winters said coming into the cubicle where Erin was sat along with Nikki "Has she said anything else?" he asked Nikki quietly

Nikki shook her head "She's been sat there since you left, hasn't said a word or even moved her gaze away from Leo"

He sighed softly "I've put a call in to Dan Williams, he's found an empty slot and so he's happy to set an emergency appointment to talk thing through with Erin"

"That's good" Nikki nodded "I don't know how we're going to pull her away from Leo tonight though"

"You'll find a way" Will smiled "And after she's talked things through with Dan, she'll see things much more clearly. Right now she's still panicking from seeing him so ill this morning; she just needs to get her turned her head around the situation"

"I hope your right" Nikki sighed watching the young girl's intent gaze on Leo

At that moment someone stepped into the cubicle behind them "Hi" the voice came and the two adults turned around to see Doctor Dan Williams standing there

"Thanks for doing this" Nikki said gratefully

"It's my job" Dan smiled warmly at her "And it's nice to meet you in person, Erin's told me a lot about you, she sings your praises each time I meet with her"

Nikki shook off the praise and turned her gaze back to Erin who still hadn't moved even with the arrival of Dan

"Hi Erin" Dan said walking over to the young girl "I hear you've had a bit of a day would you like to talk to me about it?"

Erin shook her head

"It might do you some good to go and stretch your legs for a bit, get some fresh air"

Erin shook her head again

"Leo will still be here when you get back and he wouldn't want you just sitting here worrying"

This time Erin made no response

"How about I get Nikki to promise us that if Leo wakes up or something that she'll come and find us immediately and you can come straight back here"

Erin looked across at Nikki

"I promise you that, Erin" she said and Erin nodded as she shakily got up off the stool she had been sitting on and followed Dan out into the ward

"She's so devoted to him" Will said as he watched Erin leave

"I know…" Nikki said "I've not seen her act like this…not since Leo first found her"

"And that worries you?" he asked gently

Nikki nodded and her eyes fell upon Leo as she silently wished he would wake up for her sake and more importantly Erin's.


Erin and Dan walked along the corridor until they found some empty seats in a quieter part of the ward

"I've been talking to Will and he told me that you were very upset when you came to see Leo, is that right?"

Erin nodded

"He also told me that you weren't talking to anyone, not even Nikki or Harry, is that right as well?"

Erin nodded again

"We've had a little talk and we both think you're in shock which is something that happens when you have to go through a really scary situation like you did this morning. And one of the ways of dealing with shock is to talk it through, so if you want to talk then I'm ready to listen and if you just want to sit here in quietly for a bit then that's fine too but…"

"He looked dead" Erin said suddenly looking up at Dan

"Did that frighten you?"

Erin nodded "I thought he was…" she began but the sentence was left hanging

"Dead?" Dan finished and Erin nodded

"It's all my fault" she said, her voice quivering with emotion

"How so?" Dan asked and that one question opened the floodgates for Erin

"Leo's got pneumonia which is a chest infection and I had a chest infection a little while ago and I clearly gave it to him and now he's really ill" she said all in one breath
"Okay lets take this one step at a time, he didn't necessarily ill because you had a similar illness a while back and even if he did, well that's not your fault. Germs pass in the air all the time and you cant help passing them to other people. You can't feel guilty about something you can't control"

"But he ended up in hospital"

"Erin, when people get older their immune systems get weaker and it can hit people harder when they're older compared to when they're younger"

"He's really ill"

"He's going to be fine, the doctors said that he's responding really well to treatment and he'll be fine in a couple of days. But what you have to understand is, sometimes people get ill and there's nothing anyone can do about it to stop them getting ill. It's just one of those things I'm afraid but Leo is in hospital where people will make him feel better. And he'll be perfectly fine in a couple of days, you just wait and see"

Erin nodded at what Dan was saying and breathed a sigh and it seemed a weight was lifted from her shoulders

"Do you feel better now?" he asked and she nodded "Let's go back to Leo then and remember Erin, you have nothing to feel guilty about"


Nikki looked up as Erin re-entered the cubicle and took up her place beside Leo's sleeping form

"Can I have a quick word?" Dan asked Nikki quietly and they stepped away so Erin was out of earshot

"Is she alright?" Nikki asked

Dan nodded "She'll be much better when Leo wakes up though; she was feeling guilty because she's got it in her head that she gave the germs to Leo and that's why he got ill"

Nikki sighed "Is that why she was so upset?"

"Partly" Dan said "I think the other underlying issue is that she's seen that Leo is fallible like all humans are. I think she had the idea that he was this super-human who was resistant to everything and today shattered that illusion and left her feeling very confused and very lost"

"But isn't that a good thing now she doesn't have all these false illusions"

"Yes in a way" Dan agreed "But now she has to face up to the harsher reality which is quite confusing for her. Since she met Leo she's been in this sanctuary where nothing could hurt her and now the reality of the world is seeping through and she's becoming exposed. This is what needs to happen of course but I was hoping to expose her gradually and this came quite suddenly which is a bit of a shock to her"

"What can I do to help her?" Nikki asked

"I was hoping you would say that" Dan smiled "Just reassure her that it will all be fine and if and when she comes to you to talk about it, just be there like you always are to listen to her"

Nikki nodded "Thank you"

"Like I said it's my job and Erin's been through an awful lot and I just want to help her"

"We all do" Nikki said softly "It's whether or not she'll let us now"

"This is going to be quite a turning point" Dan said frowning slightly "We're just going to have to wait and see how she reacts to