Disclaimer: Not mine, no copyright intended

Danny stared at himself in the bathroom mirror with disgust. He had hoped a shower and shave would make him feel and look better, but no luck. His face bore the tell-tale signs of someone who had not had much sleep. He'd spent the night mulling over the previous day's events and trying to work out everything he had done wrong.

It had begun with his decision to split up Abby and Connor. The team dynamic had always worked well before, and the pair of them looked out for each other. If he'd let Abby stay at the back with Connor, none of it would have happened. She'd have realised straight away that Connor had fallen, and he wouldn't have been left behind.

Then there was the split second decision he made about locking the anomaly. He knew the ceratosaurus were about to come through the anomaly and then all hell would have broken loose. There were a large number of houses nearby and people would have been killed. It would have been carnage. But to leave a member of the team behind? That was unforgivable. It was only sheer luck that Connor had stayed well hidden in that cave; he could have been seriously injured or killed. He'd often thought of him like a younger brother, Patrick would have been about the same age as him now. If something had happened to Connor, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

He made his way into his lounge and hunted around for his car keys. He couldn't put this off any longer. He had to face the rest of the team, especially Connor, and admit he had been wrong. He slipped the sealed white envelope containing his resignation letter into his jeans pocket, and took a deep breath. "OK, Danny." He said to himself. "Time to face the music." With that, he left to begin his final journey to the ARC.

-o-

Abby hadn't slept much either, she'd tossed and turned all night and had even got up at one point to make a drink. She'd heard Connor moving around upstairs and she thought about going up to him. She'd even got as far as the bottom of the stairs, but then stopped herself. He would still be angry with her and only push her away. His words still stung, "Now you know what it feels like." She'd been putting up a barrier between them for months, but it was only now that she was realising just how much she was hurting him. He didn't deserve that. She had her reasons for not letting him in, but by protecting herself, she was hurting the one person who really did care about her.

They went about their usual morning routine without saying a word to each other, other than the occasional "thanks" – Abby had made toast for them both as usual, Connor had made a pot of strong coffee. Abby couldn't bear it, and she'd tried to start a conversation, but every time she opened her mouth, Connor turned away.

Abby went into her room to find a jacket, and when she came out, Connor had already left. She rushed to catch up with him, passing him in the street in her car. She stopped and leaned out. "Get in, Connor!" she said. He shook his head. "Connor, this is crazy! Get in the car!"

"I'm going to get the tube." he said flatly.

"Fine! Have it your way." Abby snapped, and pulled away. She was annoyed, but understood why Connor was being like this. She didn't know how much more of this she could take, sharing a flat with someone who won't talk to you was not Abby's idea of fun. She could see him still standing there through her wing mirror, looking sad and lost. She screeched the car to a halt and reversed, stopping by Connor. She opened the passenger side door and folded her arms. He got in, closed the door and fastened his seat belt.

"Thanks." he mumbled and turned to look out of the side window. Abby smiled and started the car again. She decided to try and start a conversation, at least he couldn't escape whilst he was in a moving car.

"Did you manage to get a ticket for that thing you wanted to go to at the weekend?" she said.

"Yes, I have to pick it up on the door on Saturday morning." he said quietly.

"That's good. You need something fun to look forward to."

"How do you know what I need?" Connor snapped.

"OK, sorry I said anything. Just trying to make conversation that's all." Abby said.

The rest of the car journey passed in awkward silence, and a couple of times Abby hesitated at junctions to blink away the odd tear she could feel welling up. As she pulled into the car park at the ARC, she hoped things could be cleared up today. If not, she didn't want to think about what would happen.

-o-

Connor sat at his computer, trying to look like he was engrossed in something difficult. They all knew not to disturb him when he was lost in his computer work, and he hoped he was putting on a good enough act today. He really didn't want to speak to any of them. The people he had trusted with his life had let him down in the worst possible way and now he didn't know if he would be able to trust them again. He watched Abby disappear into the lab, closely followed by Sarah. He'd heard Sarah ask Abby if she was OK. That annoyed him, Abby wasn't the one that had been left stranded in the Jurassic period in a tiny cave by so-called friends, why should she be the one that got the concern?

Becker passed him on his way to the gym, as he did every morning. "Morning, Temple." Connor didn't look up, he just grunted a response, then watched Becker disappear. Finally, Danny came in. Usually, he followed Becker into the gym in the morning, but not today. He hesitated by the desk Sarah used and took a deep breath before coming over to Connor's desk.

"I can see you're busy, but can we talk?" Danny said.

Connor thought for a moment. Danny was the last person he wanted to talk to at the moment, but he also wanted to hear what his explanation was . "OK." Connor said flatly. He swivelled around in his chair and faced Danny. He waited.

"I wanted to apologise for yesterday. I messed up, big time, and there's no excuse for what happened." Danny said.

Connor sniffed. "Apology accepted. Thank you." He turned back to his computer.

"It won't happen again, that's a promise. I should have listened to Abby instead of being 'the boss' and dishing out the orders." Danny said. Connor was suddenly interested. Abby had disagreed with Danny? "… and I can't believe I let Becker restrain her. We're meant to be a team!" he was shaking his head.

"What?" Connor said. "Becker restrained her?" he spun on his chair to face Danny again. He felt a lump in his throat that wouldn't move when he swallowed, and his anger swelled. How could they do that to her?

"She wanted to go back for you, but I insisted it was too dangerous. Wouldn't like to make an enemy of Abby, I reckon Becker's sporting several bruises this morning." He half smiled. "If it's any comfort to you, she was fighting your corner the whole time. She even told me she was quitting. I know the pair of you have issues over something, but back there at the anomaly yesterday …"

"I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Connor yelled. "You leave a member of the team behind and physically restrain another!" he felt his face burning, and his hands were curled into fists so tight it hurt. "Who the hell do you think you are!" He banged his hands on the computer desk; it was either that or punch Danny.

"I know, and I understand your anger. I wouldn't blame you if you punched my lights out right now." Danny said.

"Cutter would never have let any of this happen!" Connor spat out, his anger turning to frustration and his face creasing as he fought back tears.

"I'm not Cutter though am I?" Danny said sadly. "And I will never be able to live up to the person he was."

Connor stood up and Danny took a step back, thinking Connor was about to take a swing for him. "You're damn right you're not Cutter!" Connor said through his tears, and stormed off, heading in the direction of Abby's lab.

-o-

"Abby, we need to talk!" Connor said, pushing his way through the door to the lab without knocking. Abby and Sarah looked up. Connor was taken aback when he saw Abby, she had obviously been crying and Sarah had been trying to comfort her. "Sorry, if this is a bad time…" he began to back out.

"Actually, yes it is a bad time, Connor!" Sarah said.

"No, Sarah, it's OK. Connor and I do need to talk." Abby said softly. "Thank you, for everything." Sarah smiled and left, glaring at Connor as she passed.

There was an awkward silence. Abby turned and pretended to be interested in some plants to the side of her. Then they both spoke at the same time.

"Abby, I …"

"Conn …"

"You first, Abby." Connor smiled weakly, and sat on the stool Sarah had just left. Abby looked at him and took a deep breath.

"Connor, yesterday was a huge mistake, but I think lessons have been learned and ..."

"Do you have any idea what it was like, Abby? So many things went through my head back there, I even thought that maybe it was deliberate at one point." Connor interrupted.

"I can only imagine how you felt, Conn. I'm sorry we left you and if I have anything to do with it, it won't happen again." She took his hand and squeezed it, relieved when he didn't pull away.

"You have nothing to apologise for, Abs. Danny told me what you did. I assumed because of the way you've been acting around me recently that you went along with it. I shouldn't have given you such a hard time, I'm sorry." He placed his hand on her cheek, and wiped a tear with his thumb.

"Connor, It's me that's been giving you a hard time when all you've been doing is looking out for me. I'm not used to that, and all my instincts tell me to be wary of shows of affection. I have a few 'trust' issues that's all. Maybe one day, I'll tell you about it." she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"Is it OK if I hug you? I could really use a hug right now." Connor said.

She pulled him towards her, and they wrapped their arms around each other. All the emotion and frustration of the day before came flooding out, and they both cried. Connor closed his eyes, trying to imagine Abby fighting and arguing with Danny and Becker, and all because she cared enough about him to challenge her superiors. He was not going to find it easy trusting the others again, but he should never have had doubts about Abby. Both needed this hug, and neither wanted to end it. This wasn't just about yesterday, months of repressed emotion were pouring out.

Suddenly, the door was slammed open. They pulled apart, wiping their eyes. "I'm sorry, but this is important!" Sarah said. There was a flash of panic in her eyes. Becker was stood just behind her, looking equally worried.

"What's wrong?" Abby said.

"It's Danny. He just handed in his resignation to Lester!"

Abby and Connor looked at each other. "We have to talk him out of it!" Connor said. Becker was already halfway down the corridor, and the others all followed him at a pace.

-o-

Danny stared at the computer screen in front of him, he had made a start on his written report for Lester – the date. His meeting with Lester had gone as well as he had imagined. He'd related all the details of what happened whilst Lester sat stone faced throughout.

"I'm sure I don't have to say how serious this is, Quinn." Lester had said. "I need a full written report on my desk by the end of the day, and your plan to ensure this doesn't happen again."

"Oh, I already know how to deal with that one, Sir. I take full responsibility and it definitely won't happen again." He pulled out the envelope and placed it on Lester's desk.

"What's this?" Lester said,

"My letter of resignation, Sir." Danny said. He stood up and made his way to the door. "The report will on your desk this evening." He felt sick as he left, leaving Lester staring at the envelope in disbelief. He loved this job, in fact it was more than a job to him, but how could he continue after yesterday?

He had passed Sarah in the corridor and she stopped him to ask if he was OK. "I just had to fill Lester in on what happened yesterday and I handed in my resignation, so no, I'm not OK, thanks for asking." He walked away, not looking back, and shut himself away in his office.

He knew news travelled fast around the ARC, and he suspected Sarah would have told everyone by now. It wasn't a surprise to hear a knock on his door, but it was a surprise to see the whole team standing there, including Connor.

"Danny, you can't resign over this!" Becker said. He led the others into the office and stood by the desk. Becker looked imposing at the best of times, but his tall frame dressed entirely in black seemed doubly menacing as Danny looked up at him from his seat.

"Connor could have been killed yesterday!" Danny said. "I'm supposed to be the leader, looking out for all of you, and I let everyone down."

"You're only human, Danny." Sarah said. "And we all played a part in what happened. Abby was the only one who spoke up, we're as much to blame for this as you are." Connor squeezed Abby's hand as Sarah spoke, and Danny briefly smiled when he saw them. At least they seemed to have sorted out their issues now.

"We can learn from yesterday." Becker said. "It didn't feel right, holding back Abby like I did, and I should have said so." he looked at Abby. "I'm sorry." She nodded and smiled at him.

"It's great that we're thinking like a team again." Danny said. "But we should have been a team yesterday. If I had been a better leader, we wouldn't even need to be having this discussion. As Connor has already pointed out to me today, I'm not Cutter, and he wouldn't have let this happen. There's no excuse for bad leadership and it's best for all concerned that I go." He turned to his computer, his body language signalling that he was not willing to discuss this any further.

Becker, Sarah and Abby looked at Connor. They couldn't believe he'd had the guts to speak up and compare Danny to Cutter. "We owe you a massive apology, Connor." Becker said after an awkward silence. "We all let you down badly yesterday and I'm sorry."

"Yes, I'm sorry too, Connor." Sarah said, placing her hand on his shoulder.

Connor took a deep breath. "Apologies accepted. I can forgive, but it's not going to be easy to forget." He stared down at his feet as Sarah stroked his shoulder. Connor knew things were going to be very awkward for a while, but he also knew it would be even more awkward with yet another new leader. He couldn't let Danny give up. "Guys, can you give me and Danny some time. I need to speak to him alone, if he'll let me."

The others all nodded, and left. Connor moved himself to stand directly in front of Danny's desk and waited for Danny to speak. Danny tried to ignore him for a minute or so, but he couldn't do it for long. He could feel Connor's eyes on him, demanding attention. "What do you want, Connor?" he said at last.

"You don't have to go you know." Connor said.

"Yes I do."

"Walking away from the problem is the coward's way out, and you're not a coward. This team needs your guts and no-nonsense approach. There are no rules for what we do, and occasionally mistakes happen. Cutter made mistakes too, Lester sacked him over a bad decision that almost got Abby killed." Connor swallowed down the lump in his throat when he recalled that particular day, and how he had argued with Cutter about what they should have been doing to find Abby. It was almost a role reversal of yesterday.

"So Mr Perfect wasn't quite so perfect then? That's comforting." Danny said sarcastically. "Look, Connor, I am really sorry about yesterday, I can't say it enough … but my mind is made up."

"Actually, he was a lot like you in some ways." Connor sat down on the edge of Danny's desk. "He made a big mistake that day, but he faced up to it and tried to put it right. He didn't give up looking for Abby, and it all turned out OK … apart from … um, yeah, that's not really important to this discussion." Connor blushed bright red and looked down at his feet again. He took a deep breath. "What I'm trying to say is, Cutter wasn't perfect, he knew he wasn't and he made the odd cock-up. But what made him a good leader was admitting he was wrong and trying to put it right. Just like you did yesterday." He faced Danny again.

"I already handed in my letter to Lester." Danny said.

"Maybe he hasn't read it yet?" Connor said. "Or maybe he'll let you retract it?"

"You don't give up, do you?" Danny laughed.

"Think about it at least, Danny. This team needs you. Give it until the end of the week, and if you still want to leave, then we'll respect your decision." Connor stood up to leave. He was almost at the door when Danny spoke.

"Connor…"

He turned. "Yes?"

"Thanks."

Connor smiled and walked out, heading towards Abby's lab. There was the small matter of an unfinished hug he wanted to deal with.

-o-

Connor could sit and watch Abby for hours if she let him. He loved her meticulous attention to detail with even the most mundane of tasks, and the way her brow creased when she concentrated. If felt good to be able to sit with her again without her complaining that he was crowding her.

"Do you think Danny will change his mind?" Abby said.

"Hope so. I think I said the right things." Connor sighed.

"What did you say, Conn?" Abby asked. She knew Connor often struggled to say what he really meant, and was intrigued to know how his conversation with Danny had really gone.

"I told him about the time Cutter messed up and we almost lost you." Connor said quietly. He blushed and turned away, unable to make eye contact with her.

"I see." Abby said, her voice almost a whisper. The events of that day were permanently etched in her mind. She'd seen Connor in a completely different light then, and suddenly he wasn't just the guy she happened to share a flat with. "Did you tell him everything?"

But before Connor could answer, the ARC was filled with the familiar sound of the anomaly alert, and they began their well rehearsed routine. As they hurried down the corridor towards the ADD so that Connor could get the co-ordinates of the new anomaly, they were delighted to see Danny fastening up his gun-holder and also heading towards the ADD.

"Joining us?" Abby said with a hopeful smile.

"Yeah. Someone needs to keep you lot in line don't they?" he said. Connor briefly glanced back at Danny with a huge grin on his face.

They were a team again, and although Connor knew he would be practically clinging on to Abby the whole time, he was glad they were all still a part of it.