Natara Williams continued.

"There you are". His piercing blue eyes smiled at me. I just wanted to squeeze him, but I hadn't gained enough strength back to do that yet.

I tried to speak, but my throat was burning. "I need… water. I need water."

He went to the table next to the hospital bed and picked up the pastel Dixie cup filled with water, holding it to my lips, I chugged every drop. After the water was all gone, I could finally speak. "Mal… what the hell happened?"

He chuckled. "That's… a very long story. But of course, I guess that just depends on how much you remember."

"No, no. I remember being held hostage but… did I really sleep that whole time? Why am I in the hospital? What happened to me? And why can't I remember it?"

He took a deep breath and plopped down in a chair next to my bed. "No, You were… drugged? I guess. That gag that they shoved in your mouth had been soaked in a highly toxic, normally very fatal substance that they planned to kill you with.. But thankfully, Esmeralda was a little forgetful and forgot to wash the substance off of her hands before she did a line of cocaine. True fact."

The situation was pretty funny, but also very tragic. Somebody as smart as Esme would only go down as an idiot. "But why don't I remember?"

He shrugged, as his fingers found mine and laced with them. "Who knows, probably a side-effect of the chemical."

"What chemical was it?" I asked.

"It's called I think 'Nitro 1'. Popular among the drug cartels, apparently. If you don't like your client, killing them is fairly simple. This drug puts em' down real easy."

"I've heard of it, actually!" I replied, "And actually, if I did intake it… I think I'm a living, breathing miracle. I've never heard of anybody surviving that."

He smiled again, locking me in with his gaze. "Yes. Yes, you are."

He planted a soft kiss on my forehead, sending shivers down my spine. It then hit me that this was what it was supposed to be like. Being in love. Somebody that gives you butterflies not just on the first date, but every day. Somebody that you know cares for you horribly, that you also care for horribly; somebody you'd take a bullet for without hesitation. Despite all the flack I was going to get from… everybody. I knew I was going in the right direction, at least. "So when can I leave?" I asked, "I just want to go my hotel and… sleep."

"Yeah, Anders actually gave me some time off. If you can believe it. And Guess what else. You won't even believe it."

I waited.

"We're partners."

I was confused. "No, we used to be. Did you forget that…" I found myself begin to frown, and the thought of not working with Mal ever again made me want to bawl my eyes out and cry half an ocean, so I stopped.

"Listen," he began, "he saw what happened today and decided that San Francisco needs us to be partners. We can't be separated. Besides, he kind of figured that I would refuse to work with anybody else."

Joy filled my cheeks and I couldn't help but smile. "Wow, can't say I'm not surprised! How did you accomplish that?"

"I didn't do anything, actually. That's what's really shocking. But there's a catch…"

Uh oh. This was going to be the buzz kill.

"We can't date. Or rather, nobody can know that we're together. Because the second anybody at the precinct finds out, they'll separate us."

Of course. This was only going to be the dilemma of the century. Love? Or my career? I wanted to be with Mal, very badly, and now more than ever. But was it worth risking knowing I'll have him taken from me the second that they find out we're together? It would be impossible to hide. Somebody would slip eventually and say something. I didn't know what to think. "So… what do you think we should do?"

He looked down and shook his head. "Give up. Obviously. I mean, you're cool. But I can't risk it."

I was horrified, and I felt the color wash from my face. How could he have interrupted my wedding, confessed he loved me, and just saved my life again, but not want to be with me? It was definitely a huge risk, but maybe it was worth it.

That's when he smiled, and his eyes met mine again, knocking my walls right down. "You believed me just then." He chuckled. "Don't do that, at least not there. Natara, I've waited too long. Having feelings and letting them grow inside of me, but not saying anything, and having been denied by you before. The last thing I'll ever do is let something like this stand in our way. I know earlier we were in life or death but I still meant what I said. I love you. And I want to be with you, as a partner romantically and in our career. If somebody finds out then we'll have to cross that bridge when we get there. Okay?"

His answer was perfection. He couldn't have said it better, nor I. Or anybody, for that matter. I waited for his lips to meet mine, but I didn't wait long. Our lips moved together in synchrony. And everything was warm. Perfect. Despite everything, all that I could do was smile. "So when can I get out of here? You didn't answer my question."

"That's because I have no idea. I know Anders or the Captain will want for you to at least take the rest of the week off. But as far as hospital discharge, I'll have to find out."

"You should. I hate hospitals…'

He smiled. "Yeah you do. Let me go find a nurse. I'll be back in a minute, babe."

Just a tiny, four-letter pet name sent a shiver down my spine. Just because it was said with his voice.

Twelve Hours Later- Mal Fallon

The hospital said it was mandatory they kept her at least 24 hours. Really, it may have been necessary, Natara wasn't exactly conscious long. And her breathing seemed slow. But either way, after she was discharged, we grabbed Chinese, just as I promised her. After waiting a painful thirty minutes for the food to be ready, I took her back to her hotel and ate with her.

We watched TV together, cuddling and whatnot for about two hours. But before she fell asleep, she asked a question. "Mal, are you going to stay with me tonight?"

It was going on one-thirty in the morning. I wanted to. And the thing was, I could be a real dog. But with Natara, she wasn't somebody I wanted to hook up with. I mean, I did. She was gorgeous. But I wanted to be with her. And not rush anything. So I didn't know what to say. "I'd definitely like to keep an eye on you. But that's up to you. Your place."

"Please. Please."

Hearing Natara beg was strange. She sounded so desperate. But I knew why she was. It was so warm, so perfect. I didn't want to leave her, either. I could have fallen asleep at any minute. I wrapped my arms tighter around her shoulders, letting her know I wasn't leaving. "Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."

I waited for a response from her, but didn't get one. I looked down, and soon after I heard heavy breaths. She was sleeping already.

Which didn't surprise me, she was exhausted. And I was, too, but I didn't want to sleep yet.

I mean, I did. But I couldn't. My mind wouldn't let me. It kept making me toss and turn, and eventually, get up and go to the restroom. And when I came back, Natara was awake. I should have figured she would have been.

Natara Williams

As soon as the warmth left my body, I felt myself about to wake up. I peeled my eyes open to the light of my bathroom sneaking into the pure darkness of the hall. And shortly after, the light turned off. A tall, dark shadowy figure moved towards my bed. I was a little alarmed, and then I realized it was just Mal. 'Where did you disappear off to?"

"Just the bathroom. I can see I was missed."

I let my lips form a smile as he curled up next to me again. "You sure were. Have you even slept at all yet?"

He waited a moment before shaking his head. "No. I'm working on it, though."

"Work harder." I replied, sending a smile towards him.

He chuckled with me momentarily and pecked me on the forehead briefly. "Your attitude is tiring me out. Keep it up."

He must have been telling the truth, because he suddenly seemed much more drowsy, and like he could fall asleep any minute. And even though it seemed like I slept too much already, I felt the same way. I rested my head against his chest. The world burnt out like a candle, flickering in and out and then my eyesight turned black. I felt warm. I felt safe, but most of all, I felt loved.