It was mile nineteen and Eddie tried to put herself on cruise control, but her body was really starting to feel the stress of running at race pace for all those miles. The pain that started to radiate through her muscles seemed to be the only thing she could concentrate on. She started to slow, and she almost let her mind convince her to stop and walk. But then she thought about Jamie waiting for her a mile away and she knew he would be wondering where she was. No, she had to keep fighting.

She needed a distraction until she could see him again. So she started to take more notice of her surroundings by listening to the cheers from the crowds that lined the streets while staring down the backs of the runners that were in front of her. She wouldn't let them get any farther away from her than they already were. She didn't want to fall behind.

And that's when she noticed one of the guys in front of her start to falter. His legs became wobbly like rubber and all of the sudden he just dropped.

Eddie's cop instincts kicked in. She stopped running and knelt down next to him as the other runners in the pack turned their heads and stopped to ask if he was okay.

"I got him," Eddie told them. "You guys just keep running." She motioned them on ahead and they complied.

He quickly came to but he was breathing very heavy. "Sir? Sir, can you hear me?"

"Yeah," he answered roughly, but he wasn't looking at her. At first she was thinking maybe he had a heart attack. She took his pulse and it was steadily pounding away.

"Does your chest hurt?"

"No…I just felt dizzy and weak and lost it."

"Can you see? Here, track my finger."

After blinking for a few seconds, he was finally able to focus his eyes and follow her finger as she waved it back and forth in front of his face.

"Hey, does anybody have any water?" Eddie yelled at the crowd. Someone threw her a bottle. She held up his neck so he could sip some water.

"I think you're just dehydrated. I'm NYPD. Officer Janko. What's your name?"

"Chris."

"Okay, Chris, I'll call medical for you, okay? Just relax and keep sipping. You'll be fine."

"Yeah, thanks," he sighed. "Already feeling better."

"Good," she smiled at him as she helped him to sit up.

Eddie grabbed her phone out of the zipper pocket of her capris and called medical. She stayed with him until the EMT's came and took over, which thankfully didn't take long. Then she texted Jamie to let him know what had happened and that she'd be a little slower in getting to the twenty mile marker.

Eddie sighed as she stood up and looked at her watch. She lost about five minutes of time, but she was just glad that she could help. As she started back up running, her own legs felt heavy and it was not a pleasant feeling trying to get back into her pace, but she eventually did get back up to speed. So maybe that wasn't the distraction she really wanted, but it did give her a chance to get a second wind, and she soon had her eyes on Jamie as she arrived at mile twenty.

"Hey Girl, I'll hold you and help you sip water after you faint," he smiled at her.

"Oh sheesh! I couldn't just let him lie there in the middle of the road!"

"Officer Janko, you are representing the 12th brilliantly today! Not only do you take time out to save a man's life, you are still out in front of Reynolds!"

"Yeah? I thought for sure she would have passed me since I stopped."

"Nope! She's a half mile back, struggling."

Jamie held out her bottle for her and she realized that he had refilled it for her. She relished any energy her body could get out of the nutrition as she took some time to drink it down.

"Well I have to admit, I was starting to struggle too. And now these last six might as well be one hundred. I feel like the finish line is that far away."

"Well it's not. Break it up into two 5k's from your cross country days in your mind. Now's the time to reel it in! It will be over before you know it. Go get it!"