Chapter 1

He returned to work when it was safe to assume that he wouldn't be the centre of attention any longer. That, and his vanity prevented him from going back until at least some of his hair had grown in. Eli's arrival was unheralded, just as he requested, and only Jordan's brief welcome at the staff meeting drew any attention to the fact he was back after a life threatening operation. But he was back, and fully functional at that. At the hospital there had been a few frightening minutes of disorientation when he first opened his eyes, barely able to speak. But then Nate had arrived and established that, not only had Eli survived, all his mental faculties were intact. Just what you wanted to hear after waking up from a coma, really.

He recuperated at home alone, turning down Nate's request to stay with him and their mother's insistence that she had his old room waiting for him. He refused Taylor's offer to move back in temporarily to look after him, though she hastily added that she would be alright sleeping on the couch. He said no to all of them as gently and graciously as possible. He didn't want them to put their lives on hold for him, didn't need their fussing over him any more than they already were. He assured them he was looking forward to catching up on a pile of novels he'd wanted to read since graduating college, setting up a Netflix account, and taking walks in the middle of the afternoon. He wanted to reacquaint himself with his kitchen, having given it little use since he moved in. He was determined to learn how to cook more than omelets and reheating takeout.

Eli was ready to rest and recuperate, now that it was all behind him. No more aneurysm. No more visions. No more George Michael songs. The first week he was alert, waiting for any sign of a vision that would prove Dr. Chen had been right all along – that they weren't a symptom of his aneurysm but rather a sign that he was an honest to goodness, modern day prophet. Once, when he heard faint strains of "Too Funky" he felt a familiar sinking feeling, only to discover that the music was coming from his new neighbor who was moving her furniture in. Eli introduced himself and gave her a bottle of wine as a welcoming gift, then casually mentioned how thin the walls could be. There was no more music after that.

By the second week he'd stopped waiting for a vision, and laughed off his vague disappointment that it had been the aneurysm all along. There had been nothing special about them. Instead he turned his attention to sorting out what he was going to do with his life. Prophet or not, the visions had given him a purpose, and Eli was committed to working on only the cases he felt were worthy. Jordan, now free of Marci Klein, had assured him that his position was waiting for him at WPK, and that the library was still vacant. No offer of another office yet, but Eli didn't mind – he would work anywhere.

At the end of week three he was nagging Nate to let him go back to the office. When the answer was a firm no, he cajoled Maggie into bringing work to the apartment instead, and they started a new case she'd come across. It was easy stuff, just pretrial motions to begin with, but he enjoyed having something to do with his time. The cooking hadn't gone so well and he had no patience for reading novels. And there were only so many episodes of 'LOST' you could watch without wanting to throw the remote at the TV. Freaking smoke monster.

So instead Maggie would come over after leaving the office at the scandalous hour of 6PM, and would fill him in on all the WPK gossip while they went through case files. He often wondered if her fiancé minded that she spent most evenings at Eli's apartment, but when he finally mentioned it she dismissed the idea. She would be working at the office if she wasn't at Eli's, and Scott understood that her first few years as a junior associate would mean 70 hour weeks. He was okay with that, Maggie confirmed with a happy smile. Eli didn't have the heart to point out how the first few years quickly slipped to ten, and the partners' expectations of long hours didn't cease. Maggie knew it. If she didn't want to discuss it with her significant other just yet, that was her business.

Eli decided he was going to concentrate on his own doings. He had survived dangerous brain surgery. He had a fulfilling job, friends and family who cared about him, and a new appreciation for the important things in life. For the first time in a long time, Eli Stone's future was looking bright.

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"Stone, you got a minute?" Matt Dowd asked, popping his head inside the library door.

Eli didn't look up from the legal pad he was writing on. "Is this work related or are you trawling for ways to ingratiate yourself with my ex?"

Matt grinned lasciviously. "We're past that stage, buddy, thanks anyway. That ended when I saw her naked and–"

"You know, I could happily live out the rest of my days without hearing you finish that sentence," Eli said dryly, cutting him off. "What do you need?"

"Got a case I'm looking to offload. It's pretty straightforward – wrongful dismissal. Wouldn't want you to have nothing to do your first day back."

"You know what, I'm all set." Eli motioned to the stack of files he had in front of him which he'd received from colleagues all morning. Apparently they'd been saving up all of the left-field or problem cases just for him. There were more than a few stinkers in the bunch. He didn't need Matt Dowd's cast offs as well.

"Oh well, it was worth a try," Matt replied with a shrug. He paused, still only halfway through the door, and said nothing more until Eli looked up questioningly. "It's good to see you back, Stone. I'm glad that living will didn't need to be enforced."

"Me too. Especially as it was supposed to be iron clad."

"Don't hesitate to call me if you plan to almost die again."

"You bet."

Matt flashed him a brief smile before leaving. Eli watched as he caught up with Taylor outside the library and they stopped to talk, their heads close together. Eli had gotten over his jealousy when it came to the two of them, although it did help that Taylor still denied anything was going on between them. She certainly treated Matt with disdain whenever Eli was in earshot. If they were seeing each other, Eli was quite content to remain in the dark on the sordid details.

He worked for another hour and tried to ignore the stinging in his eyes as he concentrated on his notebook screen. Only a month off and he was having difficulty getting used to it again. Eli decided caffeine was called for. That was one habit he hadn't weaned himself from during his hiatus from the office.

He drew a few stares as he made his way to the kitchen. Some were curious, checking to see if he looked any different. Apart from the shorter hair, he knew he didn't. But there were also greetings from associates and a couple of partners – people who were genuinely pleased to see him back. Eli's cheeks were hurting from smiling so much in thanks. He ducked inside the kitchen and was thankful it was empty, no small talk required.

"Ah, the nectar of the gods," he murmured to himself as he poured an oversized mug of coffee. He took a sip of the familiar strong brew, and sighed contentedly.

"Eli?"

It was Maggie. He was wondering how long it would take her to start fussing over him again. She'd left him on his own for a good 30 minutes – quite an achievement. He looked around to find the source of the voice but couldn't see her.

"Eli?" It was louder this time.

"Maggie?" He checked behind the counter but she wasn't there. The kitchen was empty apart from him. "Where are you?"

"ELI!"

"What?!" he yelled towards the ceiling.

When he looked down again the first thing he noticed was the countertop had changed. It was marble, smooth and cool. He set his coffee mug down, a frown creasing his forehead. He cast his eyes around the room and saw that WPK had disappeared and he was staring at another kitchen entirely.

"Oh no," he breathed. "No, no, no, no..."

He walked slowly around the kitchen feeling the different surfaces... all of it was real. He could see it, smell it, touch it. No one's imagination was this good.

"Eli! Come up here!"

He looked towards the ceiling again. He could hear it too. He knew Maggie's voice when he heard it. But that didn't stop the panic gripping him as he walked slowly into a hallway. He was in a house. He recognized some of the furniture as his own, and guessed that was why his surroundings felt so familiar. It was the only explanation – he had certainly never been inside this house before.

Eli hesitated as he placed a foot on the bottom step of the dark wooden staircase that led to the upper floor. He tried to tell himself it was just a vision, that none of this was happening. But there weren't supposed to be any more visions. The aneurysm was gone. And he was no prophet.

"Eli? Are you there?"

"Coming!" he yelled back before he could stop himself.

After a deep breath he ascended the stairs. He could hear music coming from a room at the back of the house. His steps faltered as he approached the door that stood ajar. Inexplicable fear gripped him in the split second before he opened it, but he swallowed hard and pushed.

"There you are," Maggie said, throwing him a smile.

"Maggie," he said.

"Which one? We need to make a decision." She held up two paint chips.

Eli was puzzled – about all of it, really, but for now he focused on the samples that she held in her hands. "They're both white."

She tilted her head indulgently. "This one is Whisper White and this one is Coconut Cream. They're completely different."

He could only shrug in response. She sighed, exasperated, and went back to consulting the swatches. Eli took a moment to study her unnoticed. She looked the same, at least from the shoulders up. He tried not to dwell on the spaghetti-strapped top she wore or the fact that her bottom half was only covered in boxer shorts. His boxer shorts. He recognized the pattern.

He didn't realize that she had caught him staring until his eyes traveled up her body to the grin on her lips.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

He only gaped, unable to think of what to say.

"Hello? Eli?"

Her hand passed before his glazed eyes.

"Eli? Can you hear me?"

"Huh?" He finally blinked, and realized that she was staring at him with real worry etched on her features.

He was back in the office kitchen. Maggie was standing before him wearing her red dress, not his boxers.

"Are you feeling alright?" she asked, her voice catching in her throat. "I called your name half a dozen times and you didn't answer me."

Eli took a deep breath, shaking off what had just happened.

"Sorry," he said calmly, "I was a million miles away. Thinking about our client."

She shook her head slightly as if she didn't believe him. "Are you sure? Maybe you should take it easy."

"I'm fine, Maggie."

"If you came back too quickly I'm sure Mr. Wethersby wouldn't mind if you only worked part time... or we could work out of your apartment again."

"I'm fine right here. Probably should cut down on the caffeine, though," he said lightly. He turned away from her before she could say anything else.

Eli made it back to the library as quickly as he could, managing to avoid Patti who was trying to give him another pile of folders. He pressed his back to the glass door, trying to come to grips with what had happened. The perplexing image of Maggie aside, he was forced to deal with the fact that his visions were back. Eli made a grab for his cell phone that was on the table and left again, heading instinctively for Dr. Chen's.