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Claire heard a voice. She thought. She remembers asking for Shaun, she remembers Lim coming back with a disappointed expression. She remembers-
“Claire.”
That, that , she remembers that, what-
“Are you sure she’s awake- well, you know-”
“Yes.”
Her?
She’s awake?
She really shouldn’t be.
Slowly, ever so slowly, feeling like her neck is stuck in sap. It’s a monumental effort, but she turns her head, and forces her eyes to open.
It’s blurry, at first. Then everything snaps into focus.
She feels like she can breathe again. Her body is light, movement would be effortless. The creeping sickness of her infection is gone. Finally, she looks.
And she sees two very familiar faces.
“Hi Claire,” Neil says with a smile. That smile, his smile.
“Told you she was awake,” he continues.
“Hey,” Asher says to her, expression soft, before turning slightly to Neil and rolling his eyes.
“Listen, I’ve never done this before.”
“I don’t exactly make a habit of it-”
“You said-”
“Guys.”
They both look at her, and she can’t help but smile. Two of possibly the most stubborn people she’d ever met.
Her smile dims slightly. “Why are you here?”
They glance at each other.
“You’re dying, Claire,” Neil says softly.
A lump forms in her throat.
“What?” she says, sounding strangled even to her own ears.
“Don’t worry,” Asher starts, which is a wild thing to say at a time like this. “We’re here to tell you not to.”
Despite herself, Claire laughs.
“I don’t imagine I have much of a choice in the matter,” she replies. They look at each other like they know something she doesn’t – they probably do, she realizes with another lump. They’re past this point.
“Listen,” says Neil, bringing her out of her thoughts. “You can walk out of here with us. You can take my hand-” he extends it. “- and come with us. That’s option one.”
“Option two,” Asher cuts in. “You fight to go back to our family.”
Our family .
They’re still her family, even after everything.
“Your choice,” he finishes.
“But they need someone to look after them from down there,” Neil smirks.
Claire smiles again.
“Is it really my choice?”
Asher shrugs. “Maybe. It’s not always a choice.”
There’s a pang in her heart as she sees echoes of blood soaked hair; yellow tinged skin. They disappear as suddenly as they made themselves apparent.
“But we’re asking you to wake up,” Neil says. There’s a pleading note in his voice.
She hesitates. Then- “I miss you guys.”
“I miss you too,” says Neil, at the same time Asher says “Same, trust me.”
There’s silence for a few seconds, or maybe hours, as they just watch her.
“I don’t think I can stay here,” she says softly, eventually. “I don’t think I get that choice.”
“Maybe you do. Maybe you don’t.”
“It’s okay.”
Claire smiles, a little sadly, at Asher. “Is it?”
Her smile is reflected back at her. She almost feels like he’s going to contradict himself.
“Yes,” he states instead, and it settles deep in her somewhere.
“You going now?” Neil asks.
She nods. “I think so.”
They nod back, but stay. Stay with her. Like she stayed for Neil. Like Rabbi Benjamin stayed for Asher.
“I don’t want to leave them alone,” she starts in the silence. “But I don’t want to leave you guys alone either.”
Asher waves a hand in dismissal and Neil smiles.
“We’ve got each other,” Asher says lightly, and Neil nods.
“And other people,” he adds.
“I’m hurt, Neil.”
“Dr. Melendez to you.”
“Pretty sure being dead means I don’t answer to you-”
“When we’re both dead?”
“You weren’t my superior when I was alive.”
“But I am now. I’ve been dead longer-”
“I don’t think that’s how it works-”
“How would you know? Dead 4 months and thinks he knows everything-”
“You missed 5 iPhones.”
“Guys,” Claire cuts in again.
They look back at her.
She smiles, then laughs as she studies them. “Never change.”
“Can’t now,” Neil jokes. Asher shoots finger guns her way.
“You’re idiots.”
They’re smiling lightly, but something heavier, more serious joins their expressions.
“It’s time,” she states. Not a question, but they nod.
“It was nice seeing you,” Claire says, trying for positive with her voice. Things are starting to get heavy, blurry again.
“You too,” Asher says.
“Anytime,” Neil replies. “Well, not really.”
“I love you,” she says, trying not to get choked up.
“I love you too,” says Neil.
“Love you,” says Asher.
They turn into just blobs on her version, then her eyes close.
Everything fades away.
And her eyes open in St. Bonaventure.
Her family crowds into her vision, smiles of relief on their faces.
She pushes her eyes to the left, just slightly, and feels like she can see two figures who are missing from the room in the window’s reflection. She blinks, and the window shows the room as it is: full of those who love her.
Claire turns her eyes back as they fill with tears, and smiles.
“Hey guys,” she croaks out.
Her family breaks out into greetings, and she closes her eyes briefly.
She’s back home.
“Thank you,” she whispers.