A Year in the Life: May
Authors: Sim & Cam
Disclaimer: Oh come on, would we really be sitting here and just write fanfics about them if they were truly ours? Don’t ya think we then would have a huge party and have some fun? *g*
Authors’ Note: So May is the 5th month, and therefore the 5th part of this series. Just in case not all of you are as sharp as a page of Oscar Wilde witticisms, rolled into a cone, saturated in lemon juice and jabbed into someone’s eye!!
Authors’ Note II: Yes, both me and Sim are on a Red Dwarf kick. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
****
The sun was streaming through the window, making patters on the floor. The tree outside was moving slowly with the wind, the leaves beginning to change color and occasionally hitting the window. That was the only sounds in the room.
Except breathing. Rachel Goldstein was desperately focusing on her breathing to keep her from feeling the dull ache in her heart.
Breathe out, breathe in. Breathe out, breathe in. That’s it. Breathe out…
And the pain was there again.
Not the physical pain, that the painkillers had blocked, and the doctors taken away. But the raw, gaping hole she felt in her stomach, where something had been ripped from her. Her baby was dead.
Closing her eyes, she could see the blood.. and feel the pain that had throbbed through her body.
She hugged herself, rocking back and forth in the bed. She didn’t notice Frank standing in the doorway, just looking at her. After a while he left quietly, closing the door behind him. He was at a loss for what to say, or do.
She was so far from him now.
“Miss Goldstein?” the doctor asked, entering. She nodded.
“Are you sure you are ready to go home?”
“Yes,” she whispered, then raised her voice, “yeah, yeah, I am.”
“I would preferred to have kept you longer,” the doctor said, sitting down on the bed, “but the choice in this case is yours. Take some time off work to relax and get back on your feet, a 12th week miscarriage is very…”
She lifted her gaze confused.
“12th week?”
“Yes, almost 13 in fact, after the first trimester, the baby may have had a better chance",” the doctor explained.
“But I thought I was only 9 weeks along… 10 maybe…” she said, trying to comprehend what he was telling her.
“No, you were definitely further along, the tests confirm it.”
“Mid-January,” she muttered.
“Yes, that’s my estimate as well.”
She closed her eyes, fighting a well of tears.
“Miss Goldstein, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she snapped back, getting up. She almost fell over, the doctor caught her, but she waved him off impatiently.
She walked out feeling like someone had punched her right in the stomach.
It wasn’t Ben’s. It’s was Frank’s.
****
“Frank?” Helen called out as he entered the office.
“Yeah,” he muttered.
“There’s been another robbery, this time at the south harborside.”
“Right,” he sighed. Another robbery. There had been several in the beginning of this month, and so far they had nothing to go on. Nothing.
“You okay Frank?” Helen asked, seeing the deep frown on his face.
“Yeah, I just.. she’s so far from me Helen.. it’s like I can’t reach her.”
“Give her time Frank,” Helen suggested, patting him lightly on the shoulder.
“Yeah…” he looked around in the office, which was simply too big for him alone. Sighing, he got up to get some work done. This new robbery probably wouldn’t offer any more clues, but he was thankful for the opportunity to focus on something besides…
Damn. Damn! Why had this had to happen just as they were in the process of fixing things between them? It wasn’t fair. But then again life was rarely fair at all.
“Frank…” came Tommy’s voice and he snapped out of his daze.
“Yeah, Tommy?”
“Well, I just thought you could need a second, and with Rachel in hospital…”
“Sure,” Frank said with a shrug. He didn’t mind taking Tommy, as long as Rachel..
“Stop it,” he told himself firmly. He didn’t want to think about it, think about how she had cried in his arms as the Doctor had told them she had lost the baby, think about all the blood, think about how she hadn’t said a word to him the day after, think about how afraid he was that..
He closed his eyes for a brief second, wishing he could just fix it all, take away the hurt and everything that had happened the last year.
“Let’s go,” he said when opening his eyes again and he and Tommy walked out.
Helen looked after them, before heading up too see Jeff.
“Jeff… you said there was something you wanted to talk to me about?” she asked, poking her head in.
“Yeah.. take a seat,” he offered, then rubbing his eyes slightly.
“This is a hell of a timing.. but our department is getting a review next month.. it seems they think the whole Police Department needs a shake-up..”
“They always seem to think that’s the solution,” Helen shot in.
“Yes.. but this time they think it might be a good idea to bring in some fresh blood. They want to transfer one of our detectives out and bring in someone new,” Jeff explained
“You’re kidding?”
“No.”
“I can just imagine how Frank and Rachel will take that,” Helen said with a sigh.
“How is Rachel?” Jeff asked, showing a hint of concern in his voice.
“She’s in a bit of a shock… I told her to at least take two weeks off.”
“Did she agree?”
“No, but what did you expect?”
“Order her to take it. But make sure she drops in by my office this week. I want to have a chat with both her and Frank.”
“Will do Jeff,” Helen exclaimed as she went down the stairs again. She intended to seek cover when Frank and Rachel were told the news.. Neither would be quite happy, she imagined.
******
“Great, no friggin clues whatsoever!” Frank exclaimed as he and Tommy came back to the Station a few hours later.
“They seem quite professional,” Tommy agreed.
“5 robberies just this month! They’ve gotten away with millions in jewelry, and even some cash that one lawyer stored on his yacht. And we have nothing to go after. I tell ya, this one is driving me nuts!” Frank said as he sat down on his chair, looking out the window.
“Sure you have looked closely enough?” Rachel asked as she entered the office. He stared.
“Rachel! What are you doing here?”
“I work here,” she remarked dryly.
“But.. I thought you were still at the hospital..”
“Why? You didn’t seem to come bother checking on me!” she shot back.
“Excuse me, but you were the one who told me to piss off the very next morning when I did come! And need I remind you I followed you in the ambulance!” he shot back angrily, not sure if he was more hurt or more angry.
“Oh, bite me!” she snapped, then took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I was just…”
He nodded.
“Yeah, I’m sorry, I guess I could have been a bit more stubborn and stayed…”
“That’s a first-timer, Francis James Holloway not being stubborn,” she said with a small smile. He chuckled.
“Yeah.. so we’re okay?” She nodded, and found herself wrapped in a big hug before she could blink.
“Frank, Rachel, my office!” Hawker exclaimed, interrupting the tender moment between the two. Rachel quickly freed herself, wiping away some tears. How she was going to tell Frank about the baby, she had no idea.
“Better not let the boss wait,” Frank remarked, feeling ridiculously happy Rachel was back again.
“Yeah,” she replied, leading the way to Hawker’s office.
“What’s up Jeff?” she asked as they got in.
“You’re not gonna like this, but this goes from the top.”
“What?” Frank said with a frown.
“Next month our whole department will be reviewed. And you two especially. But I can tell you right away.. they want to transfer one of you out.”
Both detectives spoke at once.
“What???!!” Frank snapped.
“You can’t be serious!!” Rachel exclaimed.
Hawker hold up his hands.
“I will fight this, but you two better be on your best behavior next month.”
“Scout’s honor,” Frank said with a frown, his mind already racing. He couldn’t even imagine working with anyone else anymore, he had always assumed whatever else they had, no one could take their partnership away.
“And Rachel, you are hereby on a 2 weeks leave,” Hawker added.
“But I’m..” she began.
“No but’s, this is not negotiable Goldie.”
“Fine,” she said with a shrug, marching out.
“Take care of her Frank,” Jeff said as his other detective got up.
"Yeah…”
Downstairs, Rachel felt Helen’s worried glance on her.
“Rachel?”
“Helen..”
“Come on, what’s wrong?”
“I…” Rachel looked around, seeing no one else was in hearing range.
“Have you talked to Ben yet?”
“No… and I don’t need to.”
“But I thought he was the father,” Helen remarked.
“So did I.. but um… It was Frank’s. And I don’t know what to tell him, or if I should, or…” she trailed off, realizing she was babbling.
“Rachel?” came Frank’s voice, and she looked up to see him just a few meters away, “look, I gotta check some more into this robbery thing, but do you wanna like… grab a beer afterwards?”
“Sure.. call me, yeah?” He nodded, then walked upstairs again, wondering why Helen was looking at him in that way. He had a strange feeling he had been the topic of conversation between the two.
“I’ll see you later Helen,” Rachel said quickly, stepping outside to take a big breath. She had to tell him. It was burning on her tongue, and hanging between them like a dark cloud.
But first.. there was someone she needed to see.
******
“Mom!” David exclaimed happily as she stepped out of the car in front of his house.
“Hey pumpkin!” she grinned back, wrapping him in a big hug.
“You well again?” he asked, and she gave him a reassuring smile.
“Yeah.. hey, listen, your dad is away this week, so what do you say we have some fun? I have time off work.”
“Really?” David’s face lit up, and it warmed her all the way to her toes.
“Yeah..” she grinned. He gave her another hug, then took her hand as they walked towards her car.
“Can we go on the Nemesis again?” he asked hopefully.
“We’ll see,” she replied, remembering to have a chat with Tommy one of these days again. He had gotten her son hooked on police boats!
******
“So you are sure you didn’t notice anything unusual about these guys?” Frank asked the owner of the latest robbery-stricken yacht. Mr. Henriks shook his head.
“No.. they spoke plain Aussie, they were masked… I’m sorry, I just didn’t notice anything.”
Frank sighed, tapping his pen against the desk. This case seemed to be one dead way after another.
“Well, thank you for your time. If you think of anything, please give a call,” Frank said as the man got up.
“Yes, of course.”
“If we don’t get something on this case soon…” Frank remarked to Tommy, who had been following the interview.
“It’s weird how they seem to get away just before we get there,” Tommy remarked.
“Yeah, almost as if they are listening to our….” Frank trailed off.
“Police radio,” Tommy finished.
“Of course… have we had any thefts of police radios lately?”
Tommy shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe, I could look into it.”
“Yeah.. maybe we finally have *something*,” Frank noted, feeling his spirits lift somewhat. At least he could still catch crooks.
“I’ll go see if Helen knows anything,” Tommy said, slipping out. Frank nodded, deep in thought. After a while he snapped out of it, remembering he had promised to call Rachel.
Picking up the phone, he dialed Rachel’s number. She picked up on the third ring.
“Heya,” he exclaimed.
“Hey Frank,” she replied, and he heard someone else say something as well.
“You got company?”
“Yes.. by a gorgeous guy,” she replied.
“Oh? Someone I know?”
“Yeah…”
“Mom!” he could hear David’s voice, and he smiled.
“Tell the little bugger he better be nice to his mom.” She laughed.
“We’re watching The Lion King.”
“Room for another one the couch?” he asked with a smile.
“If you can handle singing giraffes.. Yeah.”
“I’m a cop, I think I can handle that,” he joked, “and I’ll bring some popcorn too.”
“Yeah!” he could hear David exclaim.
“You spoil my son,” she remarked.
“I’ll spoil his mom too,” he promised, then hung up.
To his surprise, he found that he was smiling. Maybe life was being fair.. for just one evening anyway.
******
Life could be fair, Frank figured, as he stood in Rachel’s kitchen some days later, listening to her putting David to bed.
The week had been pretty uneventful, allowing him to spend some time with Rachel and David. He took them to the fair, the cinema, even to McDonalds.
It gave him a strange pleasure to be with both of them, he found himself almost wishing.. Well, that he had one as well. Of course, first he had to get a wife, and one who stuck with him this time.
“Sound asleep,” Rachel declared as she got down, interrupting his chain of thoughts.
“He had an eventful day.”
“Yeah.. thanks Frank.. a beer?”
“Sure,” he replied, taking the bottle she gave him.
“We.. haven’t really talked about this department shake-up.”
He sighed.
“Can it wait Rach? I mean, till ya get back to work? Cos I don’t wanna think about work just now.”
“Yeah.. I just thought.. I mean.. I don’t want to be transferred, and I don’t want you too either.”
“I know.. you would miss me too much!” he said with a grin.
“Would not!”
“Would too!”
“Well, not more than you would miss me!”
He chuckled, knowing she had him there.
“So.. you okay?”
“Yeah.. I guess so.”
“You’re a great mom,” he said with a smile. She glanced up at him, then decided to jump into it. She had gone over it again and again, and she had to tell him. She owned him that much.
“You would make a great dad, Frank,” she said honestly. He grinned.
“Well, just gotta find the right woman to make a baby with first,” he teased, but the comment seemed to make her tense.
“What’s wrong?” he asked worried.
“I.. I’m trying to find a way to tell..”
“Ben,” he cut in, “about the baby and the miscarriage?”
She shook her head.
“I don’t need to talk to Ben.”
“Because you miscarried?”
“No…” she shook her head, “he doesn’t need to know.”
Frank frowned, trying to figure out where the conversation was going.
“Even though you lost it he was the father and…”
“No,” she cut in, “he…. Has no reason to know about this.”
“What are you trying to tell me here Rach?” Frank asked confused
“My baby… wasn’t Ben’s,” she finally said, and lifted her gaze.
He stared at her, just stared.
“It was.. mine?” he finally asked, his voice totally even. She closed her eyes and nodded, grabbing the wall for support. He just stood there, staring at her numbly.
“We were gonna have a baby,” he continued, “you and me?”
When she said nothing, he leaned in closer, so close he could feel her breath.
“Rachel? Please talk to me, just tell me if…”
“It was our baby,” she whispered, swallowing. He closed his eyes, and they stood like that for an eternity. Finally he opened his eyes again, and shook his head unable to grasp the concept.
“I can’t believe I was going to become a dad,” he remarked, “I never…”
“It doesn’t matter now.”
“Yes, it does,” he insisted, “we shared something special for a while, and..”
“It’s dead Frank!” she shot back.
“I know that!” he replied angrily, “but what if it had lived? Then what?”
“It didn’t, so there’s no point in going there!” she shouted, then felt to her horror tears emerging.
"Rachel… Don’t tell me to piss off, cos I won’t this time. I lost something too.”
“I didn’t want it Frank… but I could feel it live inside me, and I remember how it was like to have David…” she trailed off as the tears finally overcame her, and Frank wrapped her into his arms. Her stroked her back slowly, feeling some tears of his own.
It wasn’t fair.
“I would have loved to have a baby with you,” he muttered, so low he wasn’t sure if she heard it or not.
It wasn’t fair at all.
******
“Hey Helen, any news on the single clue we have?” Frank asked as he entered the office the following morning. She shook her head.
“No.. nothing has turned up yet, but we are keeping our eyes open.”
“Bugger,” he muttered, his mind not really on the case though.
“She told you, didn’t she?” Helen asked.
“How did you…” he gave her a glance, “nevermind. Yeah, and I… just don’t know how to feel.”
“Feel about what?” Tayler asked, as she entered as well.
“Nothing,” Frank snapped, walking upstairs.
“What’s eating him?”
“Tayler.. none of your business!” Helen said forcefully.
“I was just…”
“You were just getting to work!”
“Yes, Sergeant,” Tayler replied, getting a compassionate look from Syksie.
Frank slammed down on the chair as he got into the office, feeling frustrated beyond reason. His case was a series of dead ends, nothing concrete. His personal life was a mess, and he might loose Rachel as his partner.
“Damned if I will,” he said determined. He was gonna solve the case, somehow keep Rachel as his partner, and win her over. Not necessarily in that order.
First things first. He marched into Jeff’s office.
“Jeff, I mean Rachel on this robbery case.”
“But she is..”
“Is fully capable of getting back to work!”
“Frank..”
“I mean it Jeff! I need her on this one!”
Jeff Hawker looked into the eyes of Frank Holloway, and saw that he meant it.
“Okay.. if she feels she is up to it…”
“Thanks boss!” Frank shot as he left the office in a hurry. It was a beginning.
Not long after he was knocking at her door, and a sleepy looking Rachel opened.
“Frank..”
“You can come back to work!” he exclaimed, “Jeff cleared it.”
“I thought he said 2 weeks,” she remarked.
“I convinced him you’re irreplaceable.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
******
“You’re right, this is a series of dead-ends!” Rachel exclaimed, as she slammed the last of the reports onto the desk. It was the day after, or evening was more like it. She had used most of the day to sniff out any rumors about the upcoming review as well as having a long chat with Helen. She felt much better now.
Things were almost the same. And if she hadn’t known about the upcoming “doomsday” as Frank had nicknamed it next month she might have allowed things to slip back to the comfortable routine.
Instead she had a feeling they were treading uncharted water, slowly searching for some firm ground to stand on.
“Yeah…” Frank shared her frustration about the case, it was like a sticky pile of mud they were wading through.
"I think you could be right on the police radio idea, but we have nothing to go after. Nothing.”
“But we’ll crack it.”
“Awfully sure of yourself there, eh Holloway?”
“No… but now that I have my favorite partner back, I can solve anything!”
She laughed, then yawned.
“Well, I was thinking.. dinner?” he offered. She looked up surprised.
“It’s late, and we need food…” he said with a shrug.
“I remember the last dinner we had… you hoping for a repetition?” she teased.
“It was nice,” he admitted.
“Well… if we stop by a shop on the way over, can I tempt you with some pasta a la Goldstein?”
He gave her a broad grin. “I’d be a fool to pass that down!”
And so, an hour later, they were sitting in her kitchen, eating pasta. David was back with his father, so it was just them.
And somehow.. it felt comfortable.
“You gotta give me the recipe for this!” he exclaimed as he finished the last bit.
“Secret family recipe,” she replied, taking away the plates.
“Oh, so I hafta marry into the family to learn the secret?”
“Yep,” she said with a smile.
“Any other goodies coming with marrying into the family?” She shook her head at him.
“Quite the teaser, eh Francis?”
“Blame it on the beers!”
“That a hint of you needing a refill?”
“Oh, you know me so well!” he said with a smile. She handed him another beer as they walked into the living room.
“I heard Jacobs is the one doing the review of our division,” Rachel remarked after a few moments silence.
“I know him… He’s not exactly a big fan, if he got his way, he would kick me out.”
“I won’t let him,” she said with a strength that surprised him.
“You won’t let him?”
“I won’t let him” she repeated, “I just won’t.” He glanced up at her, deciding this was as good a moment as any.
He leaned in close to her, so close she could smell the scent of him. The pure Frank scent she had come to recognize ever since they had.. well.. become close.
“I…” he began, “I’ve been thinking and…”
“I’ve been thinking too,” she said slowly.
“Yeah? What about?”
“Me and you and work…” she shrugged her shoulders slightly.
“Me too.. I think..” he chose his words carefully, “that maybe we can..”
A clear ringing tone interrupted him.
“Shit! I hate those things!” he exclaimed as she picked up the mobile phone.
“Tell me about it…” she muttered, before answering, “Yeah, Goldstein.” Her expression quickly changed.
“In progress? Okay, we’ll be right there!”
“What?”
“Robbery in progress!” she explained, picking up the car keys as they raced out, “if we’re quick we can nail this case!”
*****
Their breaks screamed as they pulled up in front of the given address. Two officers were already at the scene, but there were no signs of the robbers.
“Damn! Don’t tell me we are too late!” Frank exclaimed as they got out.
“Detectives!”
“Where’s the bad guys?”
“They seemed to have disappeared just before we got here.”
“Bugger!” Frank muttered.
“Hey Frank.. if they do have a police radio..”
“Yeah?”
She held up the mobile phone.
“Maybe we should communicate through other means.”
******
“So now what?” he asked as they were sitting in her car.
“Now we wait.”
“You really sure they will strike again tonight?”
“Yeah.. And besides, they think we are all on the scene. If they are listening to a police radio that is.”
He groaned slightly. Stake-outs were a drag. They were watching the south end of a pier with plenty of likely targets, so far everything seemed quiet.
He tapped his fingers on the dashboard, first slowly, then increasingly faster, before going back to the slow rhythm he had begun with.
“Frank.. could you be a little less annoying?” Rachel asked, rubbing her temples. He sighed, but did stop the tapping.
“Can’t we just forget about this and go home?”
“Don’t you want to solve this?”
“Of course I do.. but I don’t think they’ll show up and besides we could use a talk and..”
“Frank?” she interrupted. “Next time, trust me. Look over there!”
She pointed to two dark clothed men walking down the pier, heading for one of the yachts. Quickly, she dialed Jeff’s number.
“Jeff.. we may have something. Get some back-up, but don’t announce it over the radio.”
“They seem to be in contact with a third.. one of them is carrying a walkie-talkie” Frank observed through the binoculars.
She scouted around.
“Looks like there is someone in that parked car over there.”
“And the cavalry have arrived!” Frank exclaimed, noticing the car pulling up, “this time we got them.”
Getting out, they both pulled out guns, stepping quickly towards the arriving car.
“We take the third.. you get the two inside,” Frank motioned to the other officers, then he and Rachel carefully stepped towards the car Frank had noticed. As they approached it, they saw the front door open.
“Must have seen us coming,” Rachel noted, then took a quick look around. Frank stepped away from the car, straining to see in the dark. The loud shouts from the pier told him the two others were successfully apprehended.
Turning, he realized he couldn’t see Rachel anymore.
“Rachel?” he called out, when feeling something cold being pressed against his neck, pushing him down to the ground. The ground was soft, and smelled of Earth.
“Ashes to ashes, Earth to Earth,” his mind chanted for some absurd reason.
“You’re dead copper,” came a hoarse voice by his ear, he could feel the cold steel against his artery. So this was how the end came!
He braced himself for the shot, and it came, a loud echo throughout his body, but instead of everything going black, the cold steel fell from his throat as the guy dropped dead next to him.
Looking up he saw Rachel standing just a meter away, her gun raised. She had saved his life.
She dropped the gun as soon as the shot had gone off, feeling all strength vanish from her limps. Frank got up from the ground slowly, trying to grasp the fact that he was alive.
“Rachel,” he called out, and she turned her gaze to him, convincing herself he was alive. She hadn’t lost him. He was alive.
She was unaware of crossing the distance between them, but she suddenly found herself in his arms, being held gently. He was alive, that was all that mattered. He was alive.
*****
When the statements had been taken, and the bad guys taken away, it was late at night, the face of the moon replacing that of the sun.
Frank’s car
“Wanna come in.. for some coffee?” she asked as she fiddled with the keys.
“Do you want me to?”
“Yes,” she said honestly, but avoiding his gaze. He followed her into the kitchen where the light was off, only a soft light from outside allowed them to avoid stumbling into the furniture.
“Close call today,” he remarked when she said nothing.
“I can’t loose you Frank,” she whispered so low he almost thought it was just his imagination.
“I’m right here,” he replied softly, and she finally met his gaze.
She looked at him. His face was covered by shadows, while his hair was resting in the pale blue light from outside.
“I should probably go,” he said, but she shook her head, crossing the distance between them slowly, all the time holding his gaze.
“We will stay partners,” she said firmly.
“I couldn’t imagine working without you,” he admitted, causing her to give him a quick smile.
Her hair glowed a pale blue in the poor lightning, and he couldn’t resist reaching out to touch it. She titled her head slightly, leaning in.
The kiss was awkward, nothing like the fiery ones he remembered. Just one long touch, lips to lips. After what felt like an eternity he gently lifted her upper lip to deepen the kiss, to taste her.
As she let him explore her mouth with such gentle intensity, she felt her body lean against his, letting him take control. For once she didn’t mind.
It surprised him that she was letting him be in charge, to let him take time. And he found he was nervous. It wasn’t like they hadn’t done it before, they had. Two times in fact, but things had changed since that.
This was a new beginning. He had nearly died today, and a dark cloud was hanging over them. Work could spilt them up, and then what would they have?
This. If they fought for it.
He broke off the kiss gently.
“Rachel…”
“Yes, Francis James Holloway?” The use of his full name made him smile.
“We’ll fight them to the end,” he promised, stroking her cheek.
“We’re good as partners,” she stated
“Only as partners?” he asked teasingly as she let a finger trace his nose, then his lips.
“Oh, you mean we can be good in other areas as well?”
He gave her a broad smile as he dipped her, then kissing her with greater intensity than before. She let her hands travel to his neck, pushing him closer to her. He had to fight to keep his balance.
He left her lips to wonder across other parts of her body, eventually ending up kissing her breasts though the thin fabric. The sensation was overcoming, she closed her eyes, her lips parting in a soundless sigh.
He forced himself to go slow this time. The two first times had been so fast it had been over before it had begun, pure lust. This was more of a slow dance, a feeling spreading to every part of the body, filling them.
She lifted her hands over her head as he pulled at her shirt, helping him remove it. He held her hands there even after the shirt was up, slowly stroking her wrist with his thumbs, in slow circles. Her gaze never faltered, never left his face.
She did the same to him, lifting off his tie, then the shirt.
Their mouths locked again, hands stroking bare skin. The blue light gave it all a feeling of being inside a dream, not in it, but living it.
He lifted her up, carrying her to the couch, and putting her down slowly, assaulting her neckline while at it. The last pieces of clothing disappeared in the same slow manner as the rest. She ached towards him when he found that spot just at the hollow of her throat, just as he remembered.
“Frank,” she moaned, pushing herself on top of him. And then there were no more spoken words between them, lost as they were in the feeling. And where one body began and another ended as impossible to say.
She fell asleep a while afterwards, but he lay awake, listening to her breathing, wondering what tomorrow or next week would bring.
Finally, he left himself be carried by an dreamless sleep into an uncertain future.
Dark clouds were gathering on the horizon.
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