Mary spun around and faced her dream roommate, "This is really getting old."

Marshall grinned, "Did you know that it's not uncommon…"

"I don't want to know", Mary grumbled cutting him off as she strolled over to a wall and sliding down. She pulled her legs up and wrapped her arms around her knees, not looking at Marshall or the bed.

He sighed and got off the bed, walked over to her, "Why don't you sit on the bed with me? It's pretty huge; you don't have to sit right next to me if you don't want."

"I'd rather not," her words muffled against her knees.

Marshall sat next to her and pulled his legs up, but unlike her, he just rested his arms over his knees and rested his head against the wall, "You want to tell me about the nightmares?"

"What nightmares?" this time she looked sideways at him and narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

He turned his head to look at her and gave her a pointed look, "The ones you spoke about yesterday."

"I didn't…did I?"

"Yeah, you did. You said you'd rather be having nightmares than be here in this room with me," he said morosely.

"Oh" Damn it, even when I don't try, hurt him.

"Oh? That's all I get? How can you want nightmares then to spend your dreams in my company?" he asked now offended that she didn't want his company in her dreams either. It wasn't enough that she kept him at arm's length at work, she had to exert her powers in his dreams as well.

"Don't you have nightmares?" she challenged him with a glare, "Don't we all have them? It's part of our fucked up lives."

He leaned his head back again and nodded, "Yeah, I guess it comes with the territory. Well, tell me yours anyways. We can try and kill time as it is."

"You tell me one first," she challenged into her knees.

He sighed guiltily and mumbled, "I'm always late…I come to the hospital and I'm always too late."

Mary lifted her head all the way up and looked at him with sadness in her eyes, she knew all too well how it felt to dream of your partner's death. That was one recurring dream of hers as well, not being able to help him in the diner.

"I'm still here," she murmured as she leaned her head against his shoulder, "I didn't die."

"Yeah I know," he kissed the top of her head before resting his head against hers.

He waited a bit and then sighed sadly when she didn't share a nightmare with him, but then again, awake Marshall hadn't been aware of Mary having nightmares. As he mused his relationship with his former partner he hadn't been aware that she was speaking softly into his ear, giving him goose bumps and causing his body to react strongly towards the soft voice.

"…running towards you and I never can reach you. I never come back in time to save you, I always get back to the diner and you're gone."

"But I'm not, I'm right here, alive," he reassures her, whispering into the crown of her head.

"Yeah, I know. We're both still here"

/

Mary's running late and barely jumps on the elevator before the doors close, she pushed the button to her floor and rides up.

As soon as she crosses the gates she abruptly stops when she spots Marshall standing by her desk, "Hey Chief, what's up?"

She walks over to her desk and flops down on her chair, swiveling around to see him.

He arched an eyebrow as he pointedly looks at his watch.

"I know, I know…I had to stop and see Carol at her job, she's having a hard time adjusting to her new life," she explained as she turned around to rummage through her files to take Carol's file out. "Here it is, let me just fill out the necessary paperwork and you can take a look."

"No need, carry on then," he started to walk away but stopped and turned back to her.

She frowned at his attitude and waited. He had been acting strange and with her dreams about him, it was really taking a toll on him.

"Hey Mare? Would you tell me if you were having nightmares?" he asked her looking curiously at her.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him and growled, "What? Where did that come from? I'm not having nightmares, not that I'm willing to share at least. Are you having nightmares?"

Marshall stared her down and when she didn't respond he turned back and said, "No, but with those dark circles under your eyes, that was my first thought."

"Dark circles?" she pushed herself away from her desk and hustled to the restroom, pushing the door open she walked over to the mirror and noticed the dark circles. She sighed heavily and leaned back against the sink, her head down. You don't even want to start guessing what's keeping up at night Doofus.

Marshall chuckled dryly when he saw her almost run to the restroom, "Oh Mare, wish you would confide in me."

He sat behind his desk and pulled paperwork in from of him, if he couldn't hold on to a best-friend or fiancée, he could at least try to hold on to his career in the Marshal service. But he promised himself to get back into Mary's life, even if it was the last thing he did.

TBC