The soapy water bubbled up against her skin, its heat drawing rosiness out of her usually snow-white flesh. She had pushed her sleeves all the way up to her elbows, just to be sure, before beginning the routine of scrubbing and sanitizing that had become the norm every time she re-entered the manse. When the water ran cold, she turned it off and toweled off her hands and forearms on the striped tea towel next to the mirror.

As she did so, she caught her reflection. It had been awhile since she had looked at herself, really looked at herself, and she immediately regretted it. There were circles under her eyes, probably due to the nights she lay awake worrying about Jack. Her gray roots were beginning to become noticeable since she hadn't been to the salon in so long. Everything had taken a backseat for Jack, and surprisingly, she was fine with that. She looked horrible and felt haggard, but for the first time in her life, she felt a strange peace with herself and her life. The household had developed a strange sense of normalcy, like their daily routines which revolved around Jack's incapacities were the way things were supposed to be. And she had to admit to herself that she was enjoying the feeling of being needed. Jack was almost totally dependent on her, and she was more than happy to be taking care of him. The strong bond their already shared was deepening and it was as though she were meant to be doing this for him.

She sighed and smiled at herself in the mirror, ran a hand through her hair before heading up the stairs into Jack's bedroom.

He was sitting up in his bed, reading a small paperback novel through his half-moon glasses. He looked up and smiled at her when she knocked lightly on the doorframe.

Returning his smile, she went and sat at the foot of the bed, smoothing the satin comforter next to her.

"So?" Jack asked, retrieving the bookmark next to him and placing it between the pages of the novel as he closed it and focused all of his attention on Karen.

"He's beautiful."

"I wish I could've gone."

"I know, honey, me too. They're going to bring him over here as soon as they can."

"Good. Hey, you never told me what they named him."

Karen looked down at her hands.

"Jack," she told him softly, "They named him Jack."

She heard him gasp slightly and she looked back at his face, pale and pinched as it was. She was expecting a bright smile, perhaps a glistening in the corner of his eyes, but what she got was a frown. It was a moment before he spoke.

"Did you tell them?"

His tone wasn't angry or accusatory, but matter-of-fact. Karen felt her heart beating through her chest. She knew this was going to happen eventually, but she didn't think that now, after telling him that his best friends' kids had named their son after him would be the time.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "But how could I not, Jackie?"

Jack didn't respond immediately, but brought both hands to his face and rubbed his eyes as a long groan escaped his lips.

"I should never have put all this pressure on you."

"What? Jack - you couldn't have gone through this alone. Besides, you couldn't have hid this." She gestured at the various medical paraphernalia that had accumulated in the corner of the room; humidifier, Kleenex boxes, blood pressure machine. Jack just shook his head.

"Kare," he said, taking her hand in his, "wasn't it enough that I've made you suffer through this? Why them, too?"

He looked tired, and sad. Karen couldn't stand him being sad.

"I'm not suffering, Poodle," she grabbed his chin in her hand and leveled his eyes to hers. "I love taking care of you. There is nothing I'd rather be doing. Besides, you shouldn't feel like you have to be brave for me," her hand moved to his cheek, her thumb gently stroking it as he nuzzled her palm. "It's OK to be scared, Jack."

Jack had grown up a lot during the years they had spent living together, but for a moment, he became the man he was when they had first become friends, and his eyes grew wide, and his lip quivered.

"Good," he whispered, "because I am."

Karen pulled him into an immediate hug, feeling his chest rise and fall with hers as they breathed together, each of them trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall.

"I almost forgot!" Karen suddenly exclaimed, pulling back from their embrace. With her thumb she wiped a tear from under Jack's eye and with her other hand pulled a tiny plastic baggie out of her cleavage. She smiled mischievously as she dangled it in front of his face like a carrot.

Jack squinted at the bag and studied the tiny pills that were inside.

"Karen! You know I don't do drugs."

"No, honey!" she laughed. "These are pills. Ben gave them to me - they're for AIDS patients and they're not even on the market yet." She put the bag into his open hand and closed hers around it. Her face was suddenly serious. "These might actually work, Jack."

Their eyes met, and in Jack's was something Karen hadn't seen for months: hope.

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Karen pulled the black veil back so that she could get a better look at the scene. She was standing in a crowd of people, all dressed in black and shades of navy and dark purple; some of them looked like circus performers. A spotlight was on the middle of the room, where several of the other people were crowded around something that was apparently on the floor, as they were all looking down.

She pushed her way to the front to get a better look at the thing on the ground, when suddenly the spotlight went out and the lights came up, and Karen saw that she wasn't in a room at all, she was outside, standing on a grassy hill. She elbowed through the crowd, their blank faces and stage makeup giving her an uneasy feeling.

When she got to the middle of the group, she saw what they had all been looking at; an empty grave was at her feet, and someone from the crowd had to grab her arm to ensure that she didn't fall in. There was a tombstone with nothing on it at the head of the grave, and as she studied it, she noticed Will and Grace standing just on the other side of it, also looking down into the empty grave with no expression on their faces.

And then, the crowd started dispersing. The strangers started walking away, and when Karen looked back at them, Will and Grace had disappeared also. When they had all gone, and she was standing in the cemetery all alone, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned, and there was Jack, smiling at her.

He was 30 years old, and she was suddenly self-conscious. Confused, she looked back at the grave, but Jack turned her back towards him and gave her the biggest smile.

"It's not over yet," he told her, and offered her his arm. This made perfect sense to her, and she took his arm.

Then the scene changed, and they were panting each other's names in a darkened bed, their naked bodies fused with desire. Jack rolled off of her, but her orgasm kept coursing through her body, making its way to her heart until she felt so full of pleasure and joy, she thought she was going to burst.

Jack leaned on his elbow next to her and reached down to tuck her hair behind her ear as she regained her composure. He bent his head down and kissed between her breasts.

"I love you," he whispered, laying back down next to her and wrapping his arm around her stomach. He pulled her close. "I love you."

Karen stirred in her sleep as she felt a body pressed against hers, an arm tightly hugging her waist. Or was she still dreaming this?

"I love you too, Jack."

In her dream this was full voice, and she was rewarded with a series of kisses down her naked shoulder blade. In real life, it was a mumble, but Jack didn't miss it as he cemented himself next to her in her bed. He loved watching her sleep, and he loved knowing she was dreaming about him. He nuzzled his face into her hair, and soon they were dreaming together.