Chapter 1:

A Year and half prior: The Accident

He shouldn't have been there. He shouldn't have put himself in this kind of situation. It was stupid. But that's how he had always been, rushing head first into situations without thinking of the consciousnesses. Gus was right, he was always thinking only of himself. Sure, he had been fine staring down a gun, well...not really, but, he thought he had everything handled at least. Everything was under control. He could do this, he just had to stall the other long enough for the SBPD to get there. Shouldn't have been that hard...

Definitely shouldn't have turned out the way it did.

"Shawn?" Lassiter's voice broke his eyes from the gun, a smile pulling at the younger man's lips as he found Lassiter creeping towards them. His eyes flickering between the gunman and Shawn, gun trained on the man.

"Lassie, you made it!" A toothy grin broke across the man's face before he turned it onto the gunman. "See, I told you someone would be looking for me." He gave a slight nod his eyes turning to glance down at the gun pointed at him. All the man had to do now was lower the gun and-

"D-Don't come any closer!" To his surprise the gun was being waved in his direction, as the gunman turned his head towards Lassiter. "A-Any closer and I'll shoot him!"

What? Shawn blinked.

Was this guy serious? He had the entire Santa Barbara police force trained on him and...and...

Shawn's eyes quickly scanned the room.

"Lassie?" Shawn blinked again, his voice wavering as fear began to finally slip through. His eyes continued to scan the surroundings as he realized that twere was a distinct lack of armed men, the chief and even Juliet...Lassiter was the only one there. Had the head detective really been that stupid? To come without backup?

"Okay, look, settle down. The guns going down..." Lassiter muttered, putting one hand up in surrender as he moved his other down to place the gun as his feet.

"Now kick it over here!" The man demanded, Lassiter quickly moving to put both hands up, his eyes flickering towards Shawn before back at the man, giving a short nod as he kicked the gun his way. The man reached down to pick the gun up from it's spot, Lassiter taking the moment to move again, quickly sidestepping, circling the man to get closer to Shawn.

He didn't get far. "I said don't move!"

The man quickly straightened up, not managing to grab the other gun from the ground as he pointed his own gun back towards the officer, Lassiter quickly froze as he raised his hands up just a bit higher.

"Technically you said don't come any closer." Shawn's voice caught the man's attention, as he attempted to defuse the situation. It obviously wasn't working.

"Shut up!" The gunman snapped, his voice quivering, his eyes were now darting back and fourth between Shawn and Lassiter, his gun flickering side to side like he wasn't sure who he should be pointing at now, afraid one of them was going to lunge for him at any moment.

"Look-"

"Spencer." Lassiter gave a low warning growl, trying to force the other to shut up, but Shawn obviously ignored him as well. Besides he totally had things under control.

"I mean, he's not technically breaking your rule. He's moving in a distinct circle around you, maintaining the same distance as-"

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

Everything slowed down at that very moment as Shawn watched the gun swing back his way, there was only a second pause before Shawn put together everything that was about to happen.

The barrel staring him down, the finger tensing on the trigger, following the calculated direction of the projectile towards him, knowing it would hit just a centimeter left of his chest..and-

And then the sound of a gunshot mingling with the shout of his name. There was no life flashing before his eyes, no fond memories, just a face before his eyes closed.

He braced himself for the impact. Knowing full well that it was humanly impossible to dodge it. If only his body worked as fast as his brain.

He felt the impact, something slamming him in the chest, hard, sending him falling onto his back, head colliding with the cold concrete as a ringing started up in his ear. A ringing the echoed in the silent darkness.

Was he dead? Was that how it all ended? Shawn's own mouth being his final death warrant?

Shawn.

Surely, this was a voice of an angel calling to him.

Shawn.

Calling him up, to...wherever he was going. Shawn reached for the consciousness that began flooding him, as muffled noises met his ear, a hand on his shoulder, shaking him. Finally he forced his eyes open.

"Shawn!" The angel stared down at him, blonde hair glistening, but her glow blinded him.

"Yes, beautiful angel?" Shawn finally mused with a lop sided grin.

"Shawn, it's me. Juliet." She lightly shook him again, and finally the voice was clear and his eyes adjusted realizing he was staring up at one of the warehouse's large florescent lights, the light only slightly blocked by Juliet's head.

His hands moved on their own accord, feeling up his chest. No pain. No blood.

He wasn't dead.

Thank God.

"Lassiter's already been sent off to the hospital, a second Ambulance should be here soon to pick you up." Juliet tried to usher him up.

"Lassie?" Shawn squinted in confusion, reaching up a hand to rub at his sore head. Why was the other...Juliet's lips pulled down as she seemed to swallow her words, a solemn look crossing her feature's as panic began to flood the male. "What's wrong with Lassie?" He asked with more force.

Juliet bit at her bottom lip, her eyes glancing off towards the side, the actions not helping Shawn's nerve's at all. "JULES!"

"He's been shot, Shawn...in the head."

He shouldn't have been there.

Review and Read! ^^