Disclaimer: I own nothing I'm just borrowing them for a little while.

Author’s note: Story takes place after end of series. 

 

Friends

By Lady Lightspeed

 

On Wednesday morning Dana and Ryan were sitting in the kitchen in their new apartment. It had been three months since they'd retired their morphers. Now Dana was back to working as a paramedic and waiting to hear from the schools she'd applied to. Ryan was working at a local construction site and trying to decide what to do with the rest of his life.

 

"He hasn't called?" Ryan asked his sister and she frowned confused, they’d not been talking so what was this about?

 

"Who hasn't called?" Dana asked taking a bite of her pancakes in hopes it would buy her time to figure it out.

 

"Come on sis you know who. The guy that you've been half in love with forever." He said shaking her head.

 

"Carter?" she asked regretting ever having ever mentioned the crush she'd had on their old leader for the longest time.

 

"Yes Carter." Her brother rolled his eyes. "I still don't know why you never just asked him out. He was crazy about you."

 

"Ryan he was not. He thought of me as just a friend." She said and her brother frowned. Could she really be that dense?

 

Just then she glanced at her watch and nearly choked.  She had to be at work in ten minutes.  Her boss would have her head if she was late. 

 

"I'm going to be late for work. I'll see you later." She called dumping her food in the trash and her plate in the sink.

 

"Have a good one!" She heard him call even as she slammed the door with her foot.

 

*****

 

Carter Grayson was not having a good morning. He’d gotten off work after one last night and now it was barely seven and he was in the middle of another fire fight.

 

"Ok, let's do this." Dana said looking at her partner Bob.

 

"Got it." As one they threw open their doors and hopped out of the ambulance.

 

*** 

 

 Dana looked around to get a handle on the situation and saw an elderly woman lying on the ground.

 

"Over there!" she called to Bob and they headed for the soot covered woman.

 

"What happened?" Dana asked a man kneeling beside the woman.

 

"She got stuck in her apartment when the fire started." The man said and Dana hadn't even waited for that as she and Bob went to work on her.

 

***** Staggering out of the building Carter headed away from the inferno.

 

"Again!" the medic was trying to revive one of the other victims as Carter laid the child on the ground.

 

"Nothing." Another medic was saying and he knew that voice. Looking over he saw her.

 

"Dana it's over." Bob was saying and Dana nodded fighting back the tears.

 "We better call it in." She was saying as she looked down at the lifeless face. She felt her mind going fuzzy but there was a hand on her shoulder.

 

When those blue eyes met his Carter saw the desolation. He also knew that there was no time for it. As if still her leader he took that old tone.

 

"Dana, you have to pull it together." He said but she didn't understand. "Dana, the demons are back you have to pull it together." He said hating to have to use one of her fears against her but just now a life depended on it.

 

"What?" She asked snapping back to herself immediately. The she realized she was just sitting there and that Carter Grayson was squatting in front of her. Then she looked around trying to get her Barings. She saw Bob working over a child and was immediately on her feet.

 

"How bad?" She asked her partner.

 

"Smoke inhalation." He was saying. Just then a second ambulance arrived.

 

"Let's get him back." She said and then they were moving.

 

*****

 

Dana stood on the sand looking out over the water. It was so peaceful there with the breakers lapping at the sand. She had always loved to come here when she was growing up. It was the one place where she could think. When ever things had gotten to be too much, when she'd first started to train with her father. Then when she'd decided to become a doctor. It was just her safe place. She'd come here a lot after Ryan's return, she'd been trying to sort out her feelings, her memories and then after they'd found out that tattoo she'd had to face the possibility that she might lose him again. She'd come here the day after the defeat of the demons. She'd needed the solace this place provided as the thing she'd been trained for her whole life ended. Now, she was here again.

 

Her dream was over. She was giving up on being Doctor Dana. It was not for her. She lost one patient today and had almost lost another because she'd gone all weird. If it hadn't been for Carter she would have. There was no way she'd risk that again. She couldn't. She had spent so long trying to save lives.

 

"I Thought I saw you here." A familiar voice said and Dana turned slightly to find Carter standing there his hands stuffed into the pockets of his blue jeans.

 

"Hey." She said looking back out at the water hoping he'd just go away. She didn't need any other reminders of today, she had enough.

 

"Want to talk about it?" He asked and she remembered the one thing about Carter that had made him a good ranger. He was persistent.

 

"No." She said flatly, she started walking to emphasize her point.

 

He didn't like the look shadowed look in her azure eyes, as if she'd just given up. On what? What was going on?

 

Dana felt him fall into step beside her and gritted her teeth. Why couldn't he just take a hint?

 

Instead Carter continued to walk besides her not speaking just being there. The first time he'd lost a victim he'd gone into a depression. He was not about to let Dana do that. One way or another he'd pull her out of it.

 

Ahead of them a seagull spotted prey and white swooped low over the sand as if smelling food then screeching it rose into the sky once again.

 

"Carter why are you doing this? You look exhausted and should be sleeping not following me around." She said turning to face him.

 

"Because losing your first patient is affecting you the same way that loosing my first victim did me." He said and added. "From that look in your eyes your about to scrap everything you've worked for your entire life and Dana you can't." He said touching her arm lightly. "If you let this scare you off than more than a woman died today."

 

Carter's eyes did it and the tears she'd felt burning the back of her eyes broke free.

 

"We couldn't save her. We tried but." Carter drew her to him and held on while she sobbed. He could feel her pain, anger, and helplessness pouring off of her and wished he could absorb all of it.

 

"I know, I know." he murmured stroking her hair gently. She just cried even harder as the warmth of his embrace penetrated her body chasing away the last

Of the cold. The pain of the loneliness she'd felt since they'd retired added to the mix and she tried to get even closer clinging to him as if her life depended on it.

 

When she was all cried out Carter pulled back just enough to wipe tears from her face. He wondered if she'd ever been lovelier. He didn't think she'd looked as lovely when she'd been the Glitz girl. It occurred to him that he was probably a sick man for preferring Dana in tears but right now he was glad to be there with her any way possible.

 

"Carter I was such a brat." She began but he just touched a finger to her lips.

 

"You were hurting. Everyone’s like that when they're in pain." He pointed out gently.

 

"But you were the best friend I ever had and…"

 

"Hey," He tilted her chin up so she had to look at him. "What else are friends for?" he asked.

 

"But." She started but Carter never gave her a chance to finish. His lips covered hers in a soul stealing kiss that sent her heart leaping into her throat.

 

"Carter?" She breathed when they finally broke apart. She realized she was in his arms again. Hers were around his neck. Clutching she lowered her eyes and would have stepped back but Carter held her fast.

 

"I had to do that." He told her solemnly adding. "I know the timing's not the best but it's been three months and I'm not letting this go another three."

 

Dana's eyes flew up to meet his and she could only stare. He did care. The emotion in Carter's cobalt eyes mirrored those in her own. She didn't have to see to know that. Hadn't she felt that for a long time now? Wasn't Ryan right?

 

"Ok, so the question is what do we do now?" She asked.

 

"Well, I think we should try dinner. I'll bet you haven't eaten all day."

 

"I wasn't exactly hungry." She sighed remembering once again her wonderful day.

 

"Well I spent the afternoon looking for you." He said and she frowned.

 

"You did? Why?"

 

"I have always hated to see you upset."

 

"You have?" She inquired and he nodded solemnly.

 

"Yeah," he blushed a little. "I used to follow you out here. You know when you were upset. Like when you found out that your father had lied about Ryan." He confessed. Dana's eyes widened. She'd never seen anyone else there.

 

"How?"

 

"You know the cliffs?" He asked and she nodded. "I used to sit on a bolder and watch you. You know lest things got to be too much."

 

"Oh Carter." Tears filled her eyes once again. To think he cared that much and she'd never even known.

 

"Do you know what the best cure for crying is?" he asked and she frowned?

 

"What?"

 

"A bath." With that he scooped her up in his arms.

 

"Carter?" She asked then when he started running out into the water clothes and all she yelped. "Carter no don't you!"

 

The icy water covered Dana's head. She came up sputtering a minute later and lunged for him but Carter just caught her to him and kissed her tenderly.

 

"Told you it's a cure for crying." He teased. Before Dana could reply her stomach did for her.

 

"I think you better feed me before my tummy starts speaking for itself." She said and he nodded and kissed her nose.

 

"Yeah don't want my little mermaid hungry or she might turn into a shark." That earned him a shove which sent them both over into the water.

 

    The End