I can't even remember how we got home. It just... happened. We were in a hospital waiting room, then we were here, sending Spike off home before the sun came up, looking in on the girls, the apartment seeming too small and quiet. It'd be eerie, if it weren't so welcome.

Following Mike into the bedroom, I watch that ungainly slide to the floor, and then I'm right there with him, sitting down on the carpet with my legs folded awkwardly under me. My head tips over against the mattress and my hand slides inside his coat, splaying out on his chest and over the steady thrum of his heartbeat.