Their drive to the University of Kentucky's campus passed without event. Traffic was mild for a Tuesday afternoon in Lexington and Nick couldn't help but feel thankful for that. Once they hit campus though, everything changed. They'd found themselves sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on Rose Street inching along only a few feet every minute or so as more cars pulled out of side streets and parking lots and students dodged in and out of traffic on their bicycles and with their backpacks without a care in the world other than making it to their classes on time.

Nick sat in the driver's seat, his head leaned back against the headrest, his hands rubbing his face as he willed the traffic to move along faster. When that didn't work, he simply sat there and closed his eyes for a moment. Watching the students pass was nearly too much for him. This was where Grace should be... here at UK working on her Master's degree, not in the hospital be pumped full of the chemicals that made completeing her dreams impossible.

His eyes filled with tears as a couple walked by on the sidewalk. They were holding hands and looking happy. The guy stopped and kissed the girl gently on the lips before they parted ways, the guy heading into a campus building, the girl skipping off down the sidewalk. Nick couldn't help but think how much he would rather be visiting Grace here on campus. How he'd walk her to class and kiss her goodbye knowing he'd see her in an hour... knowing he'd see her again at all.

He smiled in spite of himself remembering the first time he'd visited her. It hadn't been that long ago, a little over a year. He'd come to town to visit Brian on one of their tour breaks, or at least that's what he'd told Brian at the time, and he'd snuck away for an afternoon just to see how the girl he had a little more than a crush on at the time was doing.

"Let's get some lunch, I'm staaaarving," Grace urged Nick along, pulling his hand as she led him between the campus buildings. A request he couldn't argue with as his stomach growled loudly.

"No kidding," He laughed when she gave him a funny look, "Where are you taking me to eat?"

"Hmm..." She scratched her chin as they strolled along, her fingers enterlaced with his as they crossed a street, running faster when the light turned green and a car honked. "There's a little sandwhich place called Ovid's under the library, it's really delicious."

Nick nodded, "Delicious is right up my alley."

They rounded a corner and Nick caught sight of what can only be described as a building sitting on top of a hill that's surrounded by a big hole. "What's this?" He asked as they began to trudge on the circular sidewalk that surrounded the pit in the earth.

"Oh... this is our library. They built it on sink hole or something like. It's kinda cool though huh?"

Nick nodded, "It would be hella fun to sled down in the winter."

"If it ever snowed!" Gracie laughed, "But you know what, there's something else you can do..."

Nick eyed her curiously, his smile growing at her giddyness, "What?"

Her fingers slipped from his grasp and she took off running. He followed until they were seated side-by-side at the top of the sink hole. She leaned over and kissed him gently on the cheek before laying down on her back in the grass and rolling all the way down the hill.

Nick couldn't help but be both amazed and a little nervous. He looked around quickly to make sure she hadn't drawn a bunch of unwanted attention... she hadn't. In fact, no one seemed to even notice. And then, he felt jealous. He felt the sudden urge to lay down in the grass and roll himself.

"Come on then, try!" Grace yelled as she stood up at the bottom of the hole, out of breath and full of giggles.

And without knowing what had taken over him, Nick found himself rolling. He rolled and rolled, and laughed and laughed until he too was at the bottom of the sink hole. He laid on his back when he finally stopped and stared up into Grace's eyes. They were filled with tears of laughter, her nose was running and she wiped it on her sleeve. He made fun of her for doing that and then laughed and offered her his sleeve just to be sweet before he wrapped her in his arms and hugged her tightly.

Nick remembered that moment as if it had only happened seconds before. He remembered the loook on her face when she pulled away from his embrace, and how they'd had their first real kiss only seconds later. He remembered thinking how he'd never met anyone quite like her before and how he could easily see himself loving this carefree, easy spirited girl forever.

His thoughts of the past were quickly turned back to the here and now though when AJ hit him gently in the arm and pointed out that the traffic was moving once more. After a few more minutes of inching along, the hospital finally came into view.

Nick hated hospitals. Hated everything about them from the food to the smells to the very idea of why they existed. A place where all the sick people had to stay. And UK was no different. Sure it was a nice enough hospital as far as hospitals were concerned, but it was still a hospital and no amount of anything anyone could say or do could change that simple fact.

He pulled off of the main road and into the parking garage after what seemed like way too many mintues of sitting in traffic. He collected a ticket and didn't even bother looking for a parking spot at first, passing plenty as he steered his car straight to the top floor. Very few people parked up there, mostly just employees, and so they were far less likely to be bothered walking in.

He pulled into an empty space and turned to AJ. This was it. AJ nodded his head and put his hand silently on Nick's shoulder as if to say, "I'm here for you bro." They slid on their sunglasses and baseball caps on the outside chance that they did run into anyone who might recognize them, clambored out of the car and rode the elevator down to the main floor where they headed towards the Markey Cancer Center - a place Nick had come to know too well.

They slipped through the door, Nick in front of AJ, and immediately the woman seated behind the front desk stood. She opened the little window that separated her from the hall and motioned them forwards. Nick gave her a small smile when she handed him two visitors passes and thanked her politely when she slid the paper with Grace's room number on it across the desk.

"2nd floor and to your left sweetheart," she smiled with a wink as he and AJ turned down the hall and headed off towards the elevators.

Nick definitely appreciated the kindness of the women who always sat at that desk. He'd come to know them well too and they treated him with immense respect and were wonderful about honoring his privacy.

The elevator doors opened and the two men stepped inside. Nick quickly recognized the woman riding with them as one of Grace's nurses immediately and she smiled, "Here to visit?" Nick nodded his head in return as the elevator stopped on their floor. It opened and the three of them stepped out.

"I can take you to her room."

Nick and AJ followed behind as the woman led them down the long hallway. She paused briefly at a doorway marked "Family Waiting Area" and motioned towards it, "Just so you know, we've made this your family's private waiting area. Grace's room is just down the hall there and to the right." They thanked her quickly as she headed back down the hallway towards the elevator and AJ turned to open the waiting area door. The room was empty.

Nick was already headed down the hallway so AJ closed the door and followed quickly behind. The moment they turned at the end of the hall they caught sight of everyone standing huddled outside her room.

Nick stopped dead in his tracks and everyone turned to look. His heart dropped when he saw Brian's face. It was stained with tears, his eyes bloodshot. Leighanne leaned over and whispered something in his ear and he reached up to quickly wipe his eyes.

Howie was the first to speak after awkward moments of long silence had passed. He rushed forward and gave AJ and Nick each a small hug, "Thank God you're here!"

Kevin was the next to move in. He hugged the young man with great strength before holding him out at arms length and staring him down.

"Wh... what?" Nick whispered... "What's wrong?"

Kevin sighed, "Things aren't going well Nick. The doctor came down to talk to her a few hours ago and ever since then she won't let any of us in the room or tell us what's wrong. She's been in there by herself for hours now and she's only letting the nurses in. They said they gave her something to help her relax and sleep... but Nick, no one knows what's going on... and Brian's really freaking out."

Nick could feel the tension building in his body and releasing at the same time. Building because she needed him... releasing because at least she was still alive to need him. When he'd turned down that hallway and seen Brian in obvious tears, his thoughts had wandered to dark places... awful places. He'd thought she was gone. He'd thought he was too late. But now, as relieved as he was that she wasn't, he was equally as terrified for the woman he loved laying in a bed beyond that door, suffering more than he could ever imagine, and he'd been too big an ass to be there for her when she needed him most.

He pushed past Kevin and Howie and walked up to where Brian was leaning against the wall by her door. He hugged him tightly. He turned to give Leighanne a kiss on the cheek and then, breathing a deep breath of air, he opened the door to Grace's hospital room just enough to allow himself to slip into the darkened room.

The shades were pulled and all was quiet except for the steady beeping sounds from the monitors beside her bed. He stood back for a moment by the door and took in the sight of the woman he loved more than life itself laying in her hospital bed. Her face was pale and thin and a wet washrag lay across her forehead. He could hear the gentle sounds of her breathing as he moved closer and sat down in the chair beside her bed.

He sat there beside her and watched her sleep just as he'd so often done in the weeks after she'd first gotten sick. She looked so beautiful, and yet, there was something different. Something he hadn't noticed before during those many nights of watching her dozing. Today her eyes were moist as if she'd been crying for hours and dark circles had formed beneath her them. She looked tired and worried, not peaceful like she'd always looked before.

He hated himself in that moment for what he'd done to her. For what he'd put her through by not being there for her. He took her hand in his and held it tightly, tracing the lines of her veins as he leaned down and gently kissed her cheek.

"Oh God, Gracie... I'm so sorry. I'm here now, and I promise you I'm not going anywhere."