William took a deep breath and closed his eyes for several seconds before easing open the door to Spencer's room. He immediately caught sight o f the object of his concern propped upright against the headboard. Spencer didn't look up from the papers spread across his lap. It surprised him that Aaron and Dr. Gregory would allow Spencer to work so soon after awakening, but as he carefully stepped closer he recognized the documents as Spencer's own medical chart. Before he had time to really contemplate the discovery, Spencer spoke without taking his eyes from the page he was reading. "I wanted to see what treatment they were using while I was out. I've read that huge advancements are being made in the methods for caring for coma patients."

He paused just briefly enough to let the words sink in but not long enough for William to respond. "What took you so long," he asked causally, the nonchalant tone catching William off-guard?

"I, uh, was just..." he trailed off helplessly, uncharacteristically lost for words as he was unsure how to admit that he was afraid.

"Hotch told me you were across the hall. I thought you'd be here sooner so you could get this over with and leave."

"Spencer I..."

"After all, leaving is what you excel at so all of this waiting around must have been difficult for you," Spencer interrupted in the same apathetic voice.

"Please Spencer I..."

"Unless of course you were just hanging around in case they needed you to pull the plug on me. One less complication in your life right?"

"Spencer!" Finally his son lifted his head and met William's eyes.

"Too far?" His voice was innocence tinged with bitterness and sarcasm. Spencer blinked questioningly at William while continuing to give his icy yet indifferent stare. Tense silence filled the room and suddenly William's loosely knotted tie felt suffocating. He sat mutely in the chair furthest from the bed, unable to gather himself together enough to break the quiet. All of the thoughts, explanations, and apologies he'd planned were scattered into random ideas in his chaotic mind that he couldn't even begin to articulate.

Spencer finally cracked the ice by asking pointedly, "So, you wanted to see me? Did you actually plan to talk or did you just need to know that I'm still alive. Because if that is the case then you're free to leave as I am obviously fine."

The harsh words broke through the fog clouding William's brain as he realized he was quickly losing what was likely to be his only chance to mend things with Spencer. Pulling courage from some deep reserve, he took a long breath and spoke as calmly as possible.

"Spencer I just need to tell you a few things, and all I ask is that you hear me out. I'm not expecting you to forgive me or have any further contact with me if you don't wish too, but there are some things I need you to understand."

"I'm listening." The reply was cold and disinterested; it took all of William's remaining nerve to continue despite the (well-deserved) hostile attitude.

"First of all I want you to know that I love you..." Spencer snorted derisively but William ignored the gesture. "I always have loved you and I always will. I know you don't realize that now but it is the truth." Disbelief showed plainly on Spencer's face but he didn't interrupt. "Also, you have to know that I didn't want to leave you or your mother, but I didn't have a choice."

Spencer rolled his eyes and sighed dismissively. "Yeah, ok, whatever excuse you want to use, dad."

"No, really, it is the honest truth..."

"Truth huh? Ok then, dad, why don't you explain it to me? Tell me why you 'had' to leave me alone to care for mom when I was hardly able to care for myself." Spencer's voice didn't rise in volume but it was laced with pain and barely contained fury. William swallowed the lump in his throat and pressed on.

"Diana-your mother-wanted me to leave." Spencer's eyebrows shot up in shock and William knew he was swiftly running out of time. "I tried everything I could think of to convince her, I really did. She wouldn't have it, though, and she forced me out."

"She was ill! She could hardly keep a grip on her own sanity and you let her make that kind of decision? People typically can't be 'forced' into doing something that the subconsciously don't already want to do."

"It wasn't like that, Spencer. You're right that she couldn't be reasoned with. We fought constantly even though we tried our best to keep it from you. She called the police on me three time when I told her I wouldn't leave. She changed the locks while I was at work and refused to let me in. I spent two nights in a hotel before I convinced her to let me in to pick up my things. She realized I tricked her just to get home and that was the third time she tried to have me arrested. It wasn't healthy for her to be so upset all the time, nor was it healthy for you to be in that environment. You had already been through so much..." William paused to fight back tears as memories of that terrible period threatened to surface again. He saw a tiny flash of pain cross Spencer's features and he hurried on past the subject.

"I didn't want you to have to deal with our problems too. I wanted to take you with me, even begged your mom to let you come but she refused at first. She didn't trust me to care for you anymore; she said that what happened was my...my fault and that she was the only one that could look after you properly. I could agree with her on that but that wasn't why I decided not to bring you with me, even after she changed her mind and decided you should go."

"Yeah, that much I remember," Spencer retorted. "Neither of you wanted the burden of dealing with me and my issues I'd imagine."

"That's not true Spencer! Neither of us ever felt that you were a burden to us. We both love you more than you can possibly realize. Were you a challenge at time, yes, but all children are in one way or another. We considered it a privilege to raise you and I regret every day that I didn't live up to my responsibility. You deserve so much better than what you got and I'm so sorry for that."

Spencer's expression had softened by the tiniest fraction during William's impassioned speech and he seemed to be considering the words carefully. Silence stretched between them again as he gave Spencer time to process. Eventually he met William's eyes again and spoke softly.

"Is that all?"

William was totally unprepared for that response, and he was unsure as to the meaning behind the inquiry. "Is what all?" He asked hesitantly. It was nearly impossible to determine what leaps of logic Spencer's mind could have made during the conversation.

"You said there were things you needed me to know. I just wanted to be sure that you were finished before I reach any conclusions."

"I think those were the most important things. Obviously we still have a lot to resolve between us but whether or not that happens is entirely up to you. I just couldn't leave here without telling you what I just said."

Spencer nodded slightly and replied succinctly, "Ok, then."

"What does that mean?" He wondered the thought aloud before he even realized he'd verbalized it.

"I mean, ok. That's good enough for now. All I ever really wanted was a satisfactory explanation and you provided that. Like you said there are still issues that need to be addressed-such as why you couldn't keep in touch or why you waited until something like this happened to contact me- but those don't have to be dealt with today. I'm not sure I can handle anymore right now anyway."

William noted that Spencer seemed exhausted now that his simmering anger was mostly gone. He sincerely hoped he hadn't stressed him too much so soon into his recovery. "Are you feeling ok?"

Spencer nodded wearily. "Yeah. Tired and overwhelmed but not too bad. This is all a little much to cope with." He indicated the file in his lap and William himself.

"I'm sure it is. I didn't want to upset you or overload you, but I was so thrilled when Aaron told me you would see me that I couldn't pass up the opportunity. "

Spencer raised an eyebrow and gave a small smirk. "Aaron, huh? Since when did you get so friendly with my boss?"

"Well, you weren't the most engaging company for a while so I had to talk to someone."

"Ah. I'll have to warn him to choose his associates more carefully in the future."

"It's too late," William replied. "He's already been telling me all about you!"

"Oh, I guess I'll have to return the favor to him one day then." They shared a smile.

"I'd like that."

"Me too."

This time the silence was companionable, and William knew they finally had a chance to start over. "Well, I better go. You need to rest and I think your friends are still hovering around outside to see if they need to intervene."

"Probably," Spencer agreed with a laugh.

As William headed to the door, Spencer's voice stopped him. "Dad, thanks for coming."

He fought back a tear. "Thank you for letting me."