a/n: After two years, I've decided to pick up the pieces to this story and finish it. I was thinking of re-writing this, but I don't think I could re-capture the essence. So I will try to continue where I left off. Thanks to everyone who have been reading this and reviewing. It means a lot! Thanks to Straylight Run for helping me write this.

Chapter 21

Jay's tired eyes were still droopy from spending yet another night at the hospital. A week had passed, but it felt much longer. He couldn't recall all the voices that came in and out of the room, but he had woken up for a brief moment to see Emery's dad praying silently. Jay had only taken a peek from beneath his heavy eyelids. He then continued to sleep, grasping to Emery's hand. This was all he had, just her. She was the reason that his heart was still pumping and the reason why the breath ran through his body. There was no one else out there for him. He was madly in love Emery and he wasn't given the chance to tell her everything he was feeling.

His head cocked to the side of the chair when he felt a tingle in his fingers. "Baby…" he spoke softly and watched Emery still motionless. "You're putting my hand to sleep," he tried to tease, using the humor that was in him to make light of the situation. He opened his mouth and was about to speak the words but instead he inhaled the air. "Please…," he exhaled the word and closed his eyes. His sandy blonde hair fell over his face as he let his head droop further.

Evan poked his head inside the room and saw Jay. He swallowed the lump in his throat as he watched his motionless daughter. Nothing. There was no movement in here. Nothing had changed since the last time the doctors had seen her. Coiling his fist, he pressed it against his chest and shut his eyes as rested his back against the doorframe. "Something has got to give," he whispered to no one. He could feel his knees shake, bringing him down to a crouching position. Evan could feel his breath begin to get short as images of Emery as a child flooded his mind.

Her smile was so bright and warm. The wave of her tiny hand that fit perfectly in his, like a jigsaw puzzle piece. He couldn't lose her, not like this. Rage had filled his mind but the police had already caught the person. He thanked the lord for that news. But still, revenge was key in this situation wasn't it? He felt a cold hand touch his shoulder and his head snapped up. His heart skipped a bit as he saw who it was. Loren.

Evan quickly blinked a few times. There was no way this could be possible. She was gone. She couldn't be here. Not now. She wasn't real. His heart ached at the thought of her not existing. It just grew ten times its size and was bringing him down. "Loren," the name was thick on his tongue as he let it slip. He slowly rose to his feet and reached out with his hand to touch her cheek.

"Mr. Knox," the voice quickly snapped him back to reality and he was not facing Loren but the nurse that had done routine check-ups on Emery. Evan felt the tears swell up his eyes and dropped his hand. "Mr. Knox," she repeated and squeezed his shoulder to let him know that she was still there.

"Yes?" Evan finally spoke again and lifted his gaze up to meet her eyes for a brief moment. "Umm..go on in. Just don't disturb the boy, please," his voice was faint as he passed by the nurse. He rubbed his face and walked into the nearby restroom, locking the door behind him. He stared at himself in the mirror and could see the change in his face. The spirit was gone. It was at rest with Emery. He turned the faucet on and let the water run a bit before cupping his hands underneath and splashed it in his face.

This wasn't right. Something was terribly wrong. It was like a shock that jolted through his bones. The pain stung. His memory was playing tricks on him. His fists were coiling and all he wanted to do was give up. That was the one thing he saw as his escape. Giving up. Nothing was going to change, was it?

Jay heard the squeak of the nurse's shoes as she paced inside the room. He glanced up and stood up quickly. He breathed in and rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. "How-how is she," he stuttered the question. His throat was parched, when was the last time he had something to drink? He couldn't remember.

"Oh…well she seems to be doing better," the nurse offered a friendly smile to Jay, sounding hopeful. "I think she'll wake up soon. She just needs help…that's all."

Jay nodded his head and noticed the silver cross that was around the nurse's neck, it had sparkled when the light had hit it directly. "You have faith…that she will wake up?" Jay looked at the nurse and raised his eyebrows a bit.

"I do…I do," the nurse wrote down a few notes on the tablet and then took a step back. She studied Jay's face and reached out to touch his hand. "She will," she repeated to him and nodded her head. "Give her a reason to live."

Jay stared down at her hand and stayed quiet for a minute. He swallowed everything that the nurse had just said to him. His eyes were so tired. They burned every time he blinked. Staring down at Emery's body, it hurt him. Not being able to see her smile, it pained him. "A reason," he swallowed the words and clenched his jaw.

"A reason," the nurse repeated and left the room. Jay breathed in and leaned down a bit when he knew he was completely alone. He pressed his warm forehead against her chilled one. It was like fire and ice. He winced at how cold her body was. But he let it pass. A warm breath escaped his lips making a light contact with hers.

"I can't live without you," he whispered to her and crushed his lips against hers. There was no reaction from her. His jaw tightened as he pulled away from her and shut his eyes tightly. "I can't…" he repeated and squeezed her hand tighter. "Wake up…" he begged her and felt the warm tears escape from his eyes. "Emery…" he gripped her hand tighter than before. The blood was pulsating through his veins at such a high speed. He could have sworn that his heart should have given out at this point. "Emery…" he nudged her and felt his body slowly began to break. His bones were no longer stiff. His muscles were unwinding. His heart was still pounding to the point where it hurt him.

He felt something against his hand. His eyes shot open and he lifted his head. Jay's eyes scanned her body looking for something that could have caused that. Her finger twitched against his palm. Jay stared down at her hand. He tried to speak but no words came out. His mouth was open but there was no sound coming out of it. Her finger twitched again and touched his palm. The coldness of her finger sent another chill through his body.

"Em…" the name finally left his lips. He leaned in closer to her and bit down on his lip hard. His lip was no longer the pinkish color it had always been, it was now a pale color. He watched as Emery's eyes slowly fluttered open and her eyes met his. Jay couldn't help but put on the biggest smile his lips could form.

"Hey dude," Emery managed to whisper to him and tried to wiggle her fingers free from his grasp.