So, until next time, enjoy and thank you again....

Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

9:34am

The rhythmic sounds of the machines surrounding her where like a slow lullaby to her tired senses. She nonetheless fought off sleep's appealing offer that was beckoning to her. Sitting in a not-so-comfortable chair at Sam's bedside, Mallory waited impatiently for him to show a sign that confirmed that he was going to pull through. She dreaded the thought of Sam waking up and her being asleep. She wanted to be the first person he saw, wanted him to hear her say the words she hadn't been completely sure of before yesterday. So, for the past 3 hours, she had sat by his side, in silent contemplation of the man that had conquered her heart.

After the last visit from Dr. Thomas a few hours ago, things had become a little less frantic among the 5 concerned friends. The doctors had told them that Sam wasn't out of the woods yet, but that his chances were improving as time went by. After hearing those encouraging words, Toby called the President and Leo to pass the information on to them. Relief ran rampant throughout the White House. Taking the promising update into consideration, the President thought that it might be a good idea if CJ returned to Washington for the morning briefing, since she had all the information first hand. Donna also agreed to return to the White House, seeing that Josh had become much calmer after his short vigil over his best friend. Leo was relieved to see at least one of the Senior Staff members returning. He refused to even imagine what he would do if something were to come up and he was the only senior advisor present. He would have felt better if either Toby or Josh were also returning, but he knew better than to ask. He knew where the 2 men's allegiance stood, but right now, being with their younger friend took precedence.

Josh had told Donna to call him as soon as she arrived at the White House so she could bring him up to speed on things. Not that his mind was in 'work' mode, but no matter what, he still had a job to do. Donna was hoping that compassion and understanding would be abundant when speaking with the people Josh was supposed to meet with during the day to reschedule the meetings. After the night she had had, she was in no mood to deal with the complaining and irrationality of some high level politician who thought that the whole world had to come to a stop because he or she had a meeting the with Deputy Chief of Staff. She'd seen and heard it too many times to dismiss the possibility.

The news of Sam's disappearance and rescue had made headline news throughout the country. The question on everyone's lips that morning was "What happened out there?" Some commentators were coming out with their own hypothesis and some of them were downright ridiculous. A botched kidnapping attempt? Modern day pirates? Inexperience on Sam's behalf? Some people were even suggesting that the Senior Staff should consider having the same kind of protection the President has and apply restrictions on the activities they perform depending on the risk level. It was all talk though, the stations having to fill up the time between updates with whichever panel members that they were able to get on the air at the time.

Mallory remembered watching the news report on CNN about Sam earlier that morning, when Toby turned on the television in the waiting room, himself trying to keep track of the day's current events. They went through a detailed account of his injuries that CJ had compiled during the night and hearing them again still made her cringe. Her gaze was captured by a picture of Sam that was shown to the right of the newscaster. Mallory felt like he was staring directly at her. His eyes displayed that ever-present twinkle behind his thin-framed glasses, his radiant smile and his genuine expression of happiness completely took over the screen. The young man in the picture was, unfortunately, a far cry away from the man lying in the hospital bed.

Mallory sighed heavily, her gaze resting on Sam. Toby had been by a few minutes before to tell her that he and Josh were going down to the waiting room, where they had been brought upon their arrival, to make a few phone calls to work and deal with some urgent items that had to be dealt with. He made her promise him to get to them immediately if there was a change in Sam's condition.

'I love this man. I truly love this man,' she told herself with pride, a smile appearing on her tired face. Her mind went back to the conversation they had all had on the helicopter ride to the hospital. For Josh, CJ and Toby, this incident had made them realize just how much Sam meant to them and how strong their friendship was. They were all part of a whole, and if a piece of that whole was missing, everyone and everything was affected. Mallory wasn't surprised by Josh's reaction to the incident, knowing how close the two men were, but Toby's simply took her by surprise. 'If Sam only knew', she said to herself. It then dawned on her that he probably did. That thought made her giggle quietly. She knew that she could never put anything past him.

The same applied to her. With a tinge of regret and embarrassment, she had to also admit the incident had made her realize just how important Sam was to her. She knew that she had genuine feelings for him, but looking back now, she realized that she was frightened to give in to them totally. But what was she afraid of? Only one answer came to mind and that was that he wouldn't reciprocate those feelings. She knew how he felt, he had showed her on numerous occasions, but she had been hurt too many times in the past and she really wanted this relationship to work. Sam was so very different from any other man she had ever met. His determination, dedication and perseverance reminded her very much of her father. She admired that professional side of him, but his nerdiness, his clumsiness, his charm and honesty were what attracted her to him. Well, that and the fact that she could spend a lifetime staring into his coral blue eyes and his soft and handsome features. In her eyes, Sam was the embodiment of a truly beautiful person, both inside and out. That type of person doesn't come around too often, and when one enters your life, the thing is to grab onto them, for they will make you a better person in return. That is exactly what Mallory had discovered and she intended to do everything in her power to make Sam a part of her life. By finally giving in to her feelings and sharing them with him, she hoped to be on the right track to accomplishing just that.

She suddenly felt her eyes getting heavier and heavier, the lack of sleep finally catching up to her, but a quiet mumble from Sam jerked her back to her senses and her tiredness was quickly forgotten. She bounced up from her chair and got as close to him as she could.

"Sam? Sam, honey, can you hear me?" pleaded Mallory, her hand softly rubbing his cheek. The mumbling increased and he started to move, which Mallory didn't think was a good thing. She quickly grabbed the call button and pressed it repeatedly, hoping that would make someone come faster.

"Sam, try not to move. You're safe and you're going to be okay. Just stay still," she said, her voice as calm as possible, hoping he could hear her and would be appeased. A nurse came running into the room and quickly assessed the situation. She observed the heart monitor, his heart rate had increased slightly.

"I think he's coming to and he started moving... and ...I didn't want him to hurt himself... so, I thought it was better if....so I pressed the button..." Mallory explained to the nurse, trying her best to remain calm despite her fears.

"It's okay," replied the nurse, giving the young woman a reassuring smile. "You did the right thing." She peeked down at Sam, who was still mumbling and obviously trying to wake up. "Keep talking to him, I'll go and get Doctor Thomas." The young nurse ran out of the room as fast as she had come in. Mallory refocused her attention on Sam.

"Come on, Sam. Please wake up." Mallory's face suddenly brightened when his right eye fluttered and slowly opened, but her smile disappeared when Sam's face contorted in pain and he started having a coughing fit. The paleness of his face was now replaced by a dark red glow caused by his sudden exertion. Mallory was frantic, not knowing what do to.

"Sam! Try to relax. Breathe! Breathe!" she said, rubbing his back, hoping that would help. He instinctively wrapped his right arm around his agonized rib cage, every cough sending sharp tendrils of pain throughout his body. Just as Mallory was about to completely lose it, Doctor Thomas ran into the room. She made her way to her patient, whose coughing was starting to subside. She glanced at the monitoring machines at the side of the bed, making sure that the readings were within normal parameters. She looked up and saw the terror on Mallory's face. The young woman was on the verge of tears.

"Don't worry. This, unfortunately, is normal with pneumonia. His ribs are going to take a little pounding, but that the only way for the lungs to expel the accumulated fluid," the doctor explained as she took her patient's chart from the nurse, trying to sound as comforting as possible. When the fit seemed to have passed, Sam eased himself back against his pillow. Mallory cringed at the raspy, gurgling sound of every one of his breaths. She gazed as his face and detected lines of pain that hadn't been there before.

"He seems to be in pain. Can you give him something?" she asked, obviously unaware of the conversation that the doctor was having with the nurse.

"We're going to do just that," the doctor answered as she passed her patient's chart back to the nurse after scribbling a few notes on it. Sam was moving again, as if he was trying to get up, which wasn't a good thing considering the injuries he had sustained.

"Mr. Seaborn? Sam? Can you hear me?" Doctor Thomas asked as she leaned over her patient, trying to rouse him. Sam answered with a low mumble. His eye fluttered for a few seconds, then slowly opened. He blinked repeatedly, trying to focus on his surroundings. His hand suddenly reached for his bandaged eye. The doctor quickly stopped him before his hand could reach its destination. Gently, she pushed his arm back down on the bed.

"Wha....? Where... ?"he asked, his raspy voice barely more then a whisper.

"You're in the hospital, Mr. Seaborn. I'm Doctor Thomas. You had an accident on your boat. Try not to move too much. You have a few broken ribs, but I guess that you probably already know that," she said, noticing that his arm was again hugged around his rib cage. "Do you remember what happened?" the doctor asked, trying to rise his level of awareness. Sam gave her a quizzical look, apparently not sure of what she was referring to. Everything was a blur. He tried to bring up the last memory and a vision of water, a lot of water, appeared, a wave of fear suddenly overwhelming him.

"It's okay if you don't. It'll come back to you eventually. Just try to relax," she said, noticing his sudden increased breathing.

"My....eye? Can't ..see," he mumbled.

"You injured your eye. It's covered, that's why you can't see." Mallory looked up at the doctor, wondering why she wasn't giving him more details about his injuries. She thought Sam had a right to know what was wrong with him. She knew that he was strong and would want to know the truth. Actually, she thought, she didn't like the fact that she knew, so decided that he was better off not knowing right now. She realized that she was standing on his right side, and he couldn't see her. She wanted him to know that she was there, by his side, that she wanted to be with him.

"Sam," she said softly. In that moment, upon hearing that voice, all of Sam's fears and uncertainties disappeared. He suddenly remembered laying on the deck of his boat, and her face being the only thing that would subside the pain and the fear. That voice meant everything to him. He longed to hear it again, to touch her face, to have her in his arms. He knew that she would make everything okay. Slowly, he turned his head to the right. There, in plain sight, stood the most beautiful sight in the world to him. For a few moments, he simply stared at her, breathing in her presence.

'Hey," Mallory said, not knowing what else to say. The turmoil she had been gathering for the last 12 hours suddenly drained from her the moment their eyes met. She quickly covered her mouth to confine a sob that wanted to escape. The last thing she wanted was for Sam to see her cry, but she was having a hard time preventing that.

"Mallory," Sam whispered, followed by a smile. The tears in Mallory's eyes were now flowing freely, her happiness and relief creating a tug of war with her emotions. Sam slowly raised his good arm and reached out for her. She quickly took his hand in hers and brought it up to her lips, kissing it repeatedly.

"Don't....cry," Sam said to her. Mallory simply shook her head, amazed by his concern for her. She smiled back at him.

"We were so scared of losing you, Sam. We didn't know where you were. But everything is going to be okay now. Toby and Josh are here. They've both been going out of their minds, worried about you....." she babbled. They both maintained their gaze on each other, hoping that this moment would never end.

"Ms. O'Brien, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave. We're going to run a few tests and Doctor Truman is on his way as well. I'll meet with you in the waiting room in the ER when were done." Mallory simply nodded her head, but her body refused to move. Being here, beside the man she loved, the man she almost lost, holding his hand felt so right, she didn't want to let go, fearing that she wouldn't be able to get it back if she left.

"Ms. O'Brien," the doctor said again, this time a tinge of insistence in her voice. Mallory looked up at her with pleading eyes, but knew that it was useless. She looked back down at Sam.

"It's okay," Sam mouthed, his voice still a mumble. She kissed his hand, keeping it closely to her lips.

"I love you," she mouthed the words, not trusting her voice. He answered with the biggest smile he could manage, followed by his own declaration of love. Mallory wanted to wrap her arms around him and hold him forever, but she was being forced to do the complete opposite and let him go. It took all her willpower to do so.

"I'll see you soon," she said as she made her way out of the room. Their eyes didn't leave each other until she was out the door. Once in the hall, she leaned against the wall and let all her emotions pour out. The relief, the happiness and the love she had for that man metamorphosed into a crying fit she couldn't control. In that moment, she realized how tired she really was and that weariness was probably the culprit for her emotional outburst.

At that same moment, Toby made his way around the corner to see Mallory practically sitting on the floor, her hands covering her face, crying her heart out. The second he saw her, he ran down the hall as fast as he could, his worst fears popping into his mind. When he reached her, he bent down on one knee and put both his hands on her shoulders. Taken by surprise, she immediately uncovered her face and stared at the devastated expression now on Toby's face.

"What happened?" he asked fearfully. Mallory continued to stare at him for a moment, realizing what was probably going through his mind, what he must be thinking seeing her here, crying on the floor. She quickly gathered herself and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"He's awake. He smiled at me and .... ", she was unable to maintain her temporary composure and started crying again, but this time, tears of joy ran down her cheeks. " ... and he told me he loved me." Toby didn't know what to say. He simply stared at the young woman for a moment, then took her in his arms, holding her tightly against him. A lonely tear emerged from the corned of his left eye, Mallory's emotional outpour of relief and joy breaking through his barrier.

"What did the doctor say?" he finally asked, pulling back slightly, but still holding her shoulders.

"They are going to run a few tests and the ophthalmologist is on his way up. She said she'd meet up with us in the waiting room downstairs." Toby nodded.

"Let's go and tell Josh the good news," he said after getting up on his feet and offering her his hand to help her up. She wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled up at him, giving him her hand. They both made their way down the hall, Toby's arm around Mallory's shoulders.

****

2:04pm

As Josh, accompanied by Toby and Mallory, made his way down the hall to Sam's private room, he couldn't help but think about the last few hours. All the waiting, the worrying, the uncertainty and the fear of losing his best friend were now at an end. Just a couple of hours ago, Doctor Thomas had told them that according to the tests they performed, Sam was starting to show signs that his body was responding to the medication they were administering to fight the pneumonia and that he didn't seem to have any residual effects from his head injury. Doctor Truman had also said that his eye pressure was slowly but surely decreasing and that surgery would probably not be required at this point, just as long as the pressure continued to decrease. All in all, the conclusion was that Sam was going to pull through. Josh, knowing his best friend and how impatient he was, wondered just how long of a recuperation period he would be able to handle. Asking Sam not do anything for a whole day was bad enough, but ordering him to do nothing for a few weeks was going to be torture on the young man. Josh decided that he was going to have to come up with something to occupy his friend's spare time, but that he would deal with that later. Right now, he was going to see his best friend. After the results of the tests, Doctor Thomas determined that moving Sam out of ICU was a safe step. He was still going to be closely monitored, but without all the rules and regulations regarding visitation, which made the three friends extremely happy.

While waiting for Sam to be moved to his new room, they all decided to all take a quick nap. Now that their tension and worry had been considerably diminished by the recent good news, sleep came to them fairly quickly.

It wasn't long before Doctor Thomas entered the waiting room and awoke the threesome, telling them that Sam was awake and asking for them, and if they wanted to see him, he was now in room 315. Within a few minutes, they were up and walking through the labyrinth of corridors. Doctor Thomas also warned them that he was still groggy and tired, and not to push him. She knew they all had many questions, but they would all be answered in due time.

As they arrived outside of room 315, Mallory slowly opened the door and all three entered. The curtains were partially closed, only permitting a thin ray of light to sneak into the room, but it was enough for them to see Sam lying in the bed at the center of the room. As they approached, they all noticed how peaceful he looked. The lines of pain that had etched themselves on his youthful features were no longer as pronounced and he seemed to have a little bit more color, but nonetheless, but he was still pale. He was still sporting the nasal cannula and his breathing didn't sound as rough as it did before.

Obviously aware of their presence, Sam slowly opened his functioning eye and absorbed the sight of his three closest friends. Toby made his way around one side of the bed, while Mallory approached him on the other, Josh by her side.

"Hi," said Sam, his voice a little stronger then before, but still raspy. Mallory smiled back at him, putting her hand over his fingers left exposed by the cast.

"Hey, buddy. How are ya feeling?" asked Josh, the question just slipping out of his mouth, a huge smile plastered on his face. He was trying to control his jubilation at seeing his best friend alert. He wanted to give Sam a hug, but considering his current condition and the fact that Mallory and Toby were around, he put that thought in the back of his head and decided that once Sam was well enough, they would sit down and cover a few things, including the hug.

"Alive," he answered, after thinking about it for a moment.

"Amen to that," said Toby with a grin. "Seriously, how do you feel?"

"Right now.....they've pumped me up with all sorts of pain killers.......it's hard to tell," Sam answered.

"Sam, what happened out there?" asked Mallory, no longer able to keep the question bottled up inside her and also well aware that Toby and Josh were as impatient as her to hear the answer.

Since he had woken up, Sam had had a chance to review the images and memories that were scattered throughout his mind and piece them together somewhat. Most of it was still a blur, but the gist of the events were slowly coming back to him.

"I've been asking myself the same question. I remember it started to rain and I took down the sail, then... " He had to stop and refocus his thoughts, his next memory being a painful one. "I must have slipped and hit my head somehow, because the next thing I remember is waking up on the deck and....it was dark and raining, raining hard. The wind was ...tossing the boat and then...." Sam closed his eye, attempting to subdue the sudden sense of panic that was blossoming in the pit of his stomach. Realizing his sudden change in demeanor, Mallory softly caressed his cheek, looking sad.

"Sam, it's all right. You don't have to remember everything now. What counts is that you're here and you're going to be okay. Whatever happened out there doesn't matter anymore. It's in the past. All we have to think of now is the future." A twinkle appeared in her eyes when she said that last word. She would have said more if not for Josh and Toby being right beside her. Even with Mallory's comforting words, he nonetheless felt like he had to put his memories into words, and that by doing that, he would be able to accept them and then hopefully, forget. He opened his eye, looked up and met her gaze.

"I fell overboard," he said, still gazing into Mallory's eyes.

"You what?" exclaimed Toby. Horrific images suddenly formed in their minds.

"I remember something hitting me in the chest... and I fell into the water. That's the last thing I remember." Having said it out loud make him feel a little better, but that fact that he couldn't remember most of it still bothered him greatly. One thing he was sure of, though, was the fact that he had stared death in the eye and hadn't blinked. If he had, he probably wouldn't be lying there telling the story.

"But, how did you get back in the boat?" asked Josh, trying to picture the scenario.

"I don't remember. Everything after that is...a complete blank, but I'm sure that the fact that I had my life jacket on and tied myself to a line had something to do with it."

"And thank God for that," added Toby. Sam smiled at his boss, but the smile suddenly vanished as he was hit by a coughing fit. An alarmed look appeared on the faces of the three people standing around his bed, not really knowing what do to. Sam immediately wrapped his good arm around his chest, like he had done before. Fortunately, this fit wasn't as long or as stressful as the one that Mallory had witnessed.

While he was trying to catch his breath, Sam put up his hand, attempting to signal to his 3 friends that he was okay. He saw the look on their faces and it hurt him to see them that way as much as it did to cough.

"Don't worry. The doctor said this...was a good thing. It helps to break up the congestion. It hurts like hell, but apparently it helps," he explained with a slight grimace and still a little out of breath. The panicked expressions slowly melted off their faces. For the next few moments, silence reigned within the private hospital room. Toby, Josh and Mallory simply drank in the sight of the man that meant so much to them. It was hard for them to believe that only hours ago, the doctors hadn't been sure of his outcome and before that, if he was even alive or not. Those 3 people felt like the luckiest in the world.

"Mmmm... would you guys mind if I have had moment alone with Sam?" Mallory asked Josh and Toby, somewhat hesitantly. They both looked at her and responded with a smile. They were both aware of what she wanted to talk to him about and thought that it was about time. They nodded.

"Of course," Toby said. He looked down at Sam and placed his hand on his shoulder. "We're going to go call Leo, which we should have done when you first woke up, and tell him to tell everyone that you're still alive and kicking. I'll talk to you later," Toby said with a genuine smile.

"Thanks, Toby," whispered Sam.

"Toby, don't get all sappy on him now. He's been through enough don't you think?" Josh said, using his usual banter to downplay his true feelings. Toby simply glared at him as he headed for the door.

"Shut up and let's leave them alone," he replied as he made his way for the door. Josh looked back at Sam.

"You be good and don't overexert yourself," he said, pointing his finger at the young man.

"Yes, mom," replied Sam, smiling at his friend's taunt.

"Oh... and if you want, we can put a "Do not disturb" sign on the door for a while, if you know what I mean?" he added in a low voice, with a mischievous grin. Sam replied with a genuine smile and Mallory with a huff. Josh stood up straight and his face suddenly turned very serious. Him and Sam simply looked at each other for a moment, no words necessary to say what they felt. They had been best friends long enough to read each other like open books with big, bold lettering.

"I'll talk to you later," Josh finally said, gently patting Sam leg.

"Okay," Sam replied. Josh slowly started walking out of the room backwards, not wanting to lose sight of his friend.

"Come on, will you. He's not going anywhere," Toby said, grabbing Josh by the arm, dragging him out of the room.

Once they were both out of the room, Mallory shook her head, smiling.

"Do you have any idea what kind of effect you have on those two? A few hours ago, they were pouring their hearts out, worried sick about you. But don't tell them you heard that from me," Mallory said, leaning in a little closer to him, her hand on his cheek.

"Really?" he asked, a surprised look on his face.

"You really don't have any idea do you? Josh, Toby, CJ, Leo, the President. They all care about you so much. You should have seen them last night......" Images and thoughts of the nightmarish events of the previous night suddenly invaded her mind. "Josh actually blamed himself for what happened and to be honest with you, so did I." Not understanding the logic behind what she just said, he gave her a quizzical look.

"What do you mean? That doesn't make any sense. It wasn't...."

"I know that, but believe me, at the time, it did," she said with a slightly embarrassed grin. "Hindsight is 20/20, Sam. After something goes wrong, we always wish we had done things differently and this was one of those times. Josh said that if he had gone with you instead of sleeping in, this wouldn't have happened... If I hadn't decided to go on the field trip and stuck to our plans..."

"Mallory, we made that decision together. First of all, it's not fair for you to take full responsibility for it and secondly, you and Josh have absolutely nothing to feel bad about. Nothing! What happened, happened. That's it." She pondered what he said for a moment, realizing how right he was. Tears suddenly appeared in the corner of her eyes and made their way down her cheeks. She was still a little overwhelmed that she was actually by his side, having a conversation with him. Her emotions were off the charts and there was so much that she wanted to tell him, but couldn't get her mind wrapped around them. Mallory decided to get a grip on herself before continuing with what she truly wanted to tell him and not to get Sam too worried about her emotional state. But she had a feeling she was too late for that when she looked into his saddened and guilt ridden eyes.

"Mallory.... I'm sorry...." he said, his voice full of sincerity. He was obviously feeling responsible for making the woman he loved cry. Mallory face suddenly went from sadness to surprise, completely taken aback by what he just said.

"Now I think it's time for you to take a huge spoonful of your own medicine, Mr. Seaborn." She eyed him seriously. "I know what you're thinking. You feel guilty because we were all worried about you. That's just a normal reaction people have when someone they care about is, in your case, missing in the middle of the *bloody* Atlantic Ocean! What did you think we'd be doing, sitting around patiently, twirling our thumbs waiting to find out if you were alive or not?" she exclaimed angrily, her tone of voice having gotten away from her. She sighed heavily, trying to compose herself again. "We all love you and you have absolutely nothing to be sorry about. You know what, I think that we should completely forget what happened, because, if we don't, I have a feeling that neither of us are going to win this conversation. We're both too stubborn. Because, believe it or not, I did have a real reason to ask Josh and Toby to leave and it wasn't so we could argue over...you know," she said, a smile finally appearing on her lips.

"Oh, really?" he asked, her smile reflected on his face. She peered deeply into his eye and realized how tired he looked, but she needed to tell him how she felt. She refused to delay it, not knowing what the future could bring.

"Yeah," she replied softly, leaning a little closer to him, half sitting on the edge of the bed. She breathed in a long breath of air and looked directly into his eyes.

"We've been going out for sometime now, and things have been great. Like, who would have thought the both of us together after the way we first met? Things have been going so well, but I was a little hesitant to...take the next step because I was...afraid. I was enjoying the time we were having together...and I guess that I was afraid that it would change if ...we became more serious, taking our relationship one step further, but after last night....I'm not afraid to take the next step anymore. For a few hours there, I was sure that I lost you and the thought of not having you in my life anymore was ...unbearable. It tore me apart," she said, their eyes locked on each other, tears streaming down her cheeks again. "I love you", she whispered passionately, her hand softly stoking his cheek and lips. "I want you in my life." They remained silent for a moment. Sam then took her hand in his good one and gently squeezed it.

"When I was out there, I remember being scared. I didn't know if I was going to make it. And I remember...pain. But there was one thing that made everything...." He hesitated for a moment, trying to find the right words. "I wasn't as scared and the pain wasn't as bad. It was you. I would think of you and I knew I was going to be okay, that I was going to get out of there, because I had to, to be with you. I owe you my life." He took a shuddering breath. "You are my life. Mallory O'Brien, I love you so much." Mallory slowly leaned in and their lips met, softy at first, then suddenly, Sam pulled away slightly. This took Mallory by surprise, and she backed away.

"Hold on," said Sam with a grin. Gently, he removed the nasal cannula from around his ears.

"Sam, I don't think..."

"It's okay. Believe me, it's worth it. Come on this side," he indicated to the right side of the bed. Mallory practically ran over to the other side. She sat on the edge of the bed and gently leaned against his uninjured side. Without saying a word, their lips met again, their longing kiss filled with passion and love. After a moment, Sam winced and Mallory took that as a sign that he might be over overdoing it. She pulled away, much to Sam's discontent.

"Now, now, lover boy. Save some for later. Remember what Josh said, don't overexert yourself," she said with a smile and a giggle, gently replacing the cannula around his ears and under his nose. Sam simply rested his gaze on her as sleep overwhelming him. His eyes fluttered for a moment, becoming too heavy to keep open.

"Sleep now," she simply said. His body relaxed. Just as she thought he had fallen asleep, he grabbed her hand.

"Mallory, stay with me," he asked on the verge of sleep, his voice a soft whisper to her ears. She pulled the chair that was beside his bed closer and sat down, taking his hand in hers and placing it against her cheek.

"I'm not going anywhere," she replied as he drifted off to sleep, a smile on his lips and his heart filled with love.

****

Leo made his way into the Oval Office through the connecting door from his office. The President was receiving his daily Intelligence briefing.

"Excuse me, if I may interrupt for a moment." Leo said, addressing the 2 uniformed officers sitting on the sofa. "Mr. President, could I please have a moment?" Leo asked.

"Of course. Gentlemen, if you'll please excuse me for a moment," the President said as he quickly rose from his chair and followed Leo back into his office.

"Sam?" he asked as soon as the door was closed. Leo nodded.

"Toby and Josh just called. Sam woke up a few hours ago."

"Why didn't they call us right away?" exclaimed the President, a little upset.

"They kinda got caught up in the moment and they do apologize for that," Leo explained, purposely omitting the fact that they had also had a nap. He eyed Leo for a moment.

"How is he? What did they say?" he finally asked, wanting to get to the point.

"They ran a few tests and the doctor said that he's responding to the medication for the pneumonia and they probably won't need to operate on his eye." A huge grin appeared on the President's face, relief running its course through his body. "He's out of ICU. They were talking to him for a few minutes before Mallory kicked them out of his room," Leo said with a grin.

"Your daughter does have her ways, Leo." The President sighed heavily, placing his hand on his best friend's shoulder. "He's going to be okay?" he asked, wanting to be reassured. Leo nodded. The President seemed to be in deep thought for a moment.

"Leo, I need Toby and Josh here, but I don't want to be the person who takes them from Sam's side. I can't give that order. They need him as much as he needs them. And him being in New York and them here, their bodies might be here, but their minds would be with him. So, I want you to look into having Sam transferred to either Georgetown U. or GW as soon as he's able to travel. That way everyone can have access to him and we can all make sure he gets back on his feet. I also think he'd be more comfortable back here."

"I agree, sir. I'll arrange for it." The President smiled again, glad that the whole nightmarish incident was finally coming to an end.

"Good. Now go tell everyone the good news and I'm going to get back to my security briefing," he said, not seeming too thrilled about the fact of having to go back into his meeting.

"Thank you, Mr. President."

"Thank you, Leo," he replied, resting his gaze on his Chief of Staff for a moment, a smile on his lips.

****

4 weeks later

"Is the banner up?" asked Josh, from the back of his desk, going over a report.

"Yes, Josh. The banner's up. The balloons are blown up and the cake is on standby in the mess," announced Donna for the third time in the last hour, exasperation heavy in her voice.

"Great. Any word from the gate?" Donna sighed heavily.

"You tell me Josh. You told them to call you at the first sign of them," she reminded him. He looked up at her, realizing what she just said.

"Oh, right," he simply said, returning to his reading.

"What are you reading?"

"Oh, this report. I want to get it finished before they get here," he answered. Donna stared at her boss with a grin on her face, suddenly realizing why he was acting so strange.

"You're excited," she merely said.

"What?" he asked without lifting his head, obviously not really paying attention to her.

"You're excited, about Sam coming back to work." This caught his attention and he looked up at her and rose from his chair, obviously giving up on the report.

"Yes, I am!" he answered decisively, making his way past her and down the hall.

"Okay. But it's not like you haven't seen him in the last 4 weeks. Actually, come to think of it, I think that you've seen him practically every day since the accident. You were with him in New York, you spent most of your free time with him when he was at GW and when he got home, you would go over there every night after work. After all that, you'd think that you'd both be tired of each other," Donna said with a short giggle, following him down the busy corridor. Josh suddenly stopped, turned around and faced his assistant.

"Donna, I'm not excited to see him. Well, yeah, I am, but ...what I mean is.... I'm excited because he's coming back to work. He's getting better. He's back where he belongs." Donna was a little surprised by Josh's sincerity and seriousness, so used to him downplaying his true inner feelings with sarcastic remarks. "

Looking back at the past 4 weeks, Donna couldn't help but also be excited that Sam was finally well enough to come back to work. After Josh had returned from New York the day after Sam woke up, his mind wasn't really on the job. Donna would constantly remind him that his best friend was going to be okay, but that didn't seem to be enough for him. But 2 days later, when Sam was transferred to GW, Josh slowly started to be Josh again. Donna had gone with her boss greet him back to Washington and the image of Sam's hospital room popped into her mind, actually she couldn't see his room because of the wall to wall assortment of flowers, plants, balloons, stuffed toys and cards. Sam was rarely left alone during his stay in the hospital, if it wasn't Josh, Toby, CJ or Mallory that were with him, it was Cathy, Ginger, Bonnie or herself. Being surrounded by the people that were closest to him made all the difference in the world for Sam, and that, Donna was sure of. After spending 2 weeks in total in the hospital, Sam was finally released with strict orders to take it easy. His head was still a little fuzzy and he still had dizzy spells, and his ribs were still painful, but his pneumonia was a thing of the past. Donna could still hear Toby and Josh speaking to Sam over the phone, teasing him by talking with a pirate accent, referring to the fact that he had to wear a black patch over his healing eye. She knew it was their way of showing their relief.

'The Misadventures of Sam Seaborn on the High Seas' had become a wide spread topic of conversation throughout the White House staff during the few weeks following the incident. With the help of the Coast Guard, they were able to fill in, to a certain extent, the gasps in Sam's memory regarding what had happened that afternoon. The fact that his life jacket and a rope tied around his waist had most probably saved his life made every one thank God for small mercies.

Everyone was relieved when they found out the result of Sam's eye test. There didn't seem to be any long-term effects, but he would have to have the right lens of his glasses adjusted, to compensate for a slight decrease in his vision caused by the acute glaucoma. During Sam's absence, Donna noticed her boss often making his way to the communications bullpen for absolutely no reason. He would pass by Sam's desk, come back to his own, and get on the phone at call him at home. Looking back at all that, Donna realized that Josh had good reason to be excited. Just the fact that he had organized this little surprise welcome back party for his best friend was a sure sign.

"I'm excited too," she finally said to him. Standing not far from her desk, she suddenly heard her phone ring. She gave Josh a smile and quickly walked over to her desk.

"Josh Lyman' s office," she said, picking up the phone. "Thank you!" she replied after a moment, quickly hanging up the phone. "JOSH!" she yelled. Josh came running back down the hall.

"Are they here?"

"They just pulled up to the gate," she answered.

"Call Margaret, tell her to tell Leo and the President. And tell CJ. Okay, everybody. They're on their way in. Let's get ready. This isn't a drill, people," Josh yelled, making his way towards the communications bullpen.

****

"Toby, I'm telling you. You don't have to have to come and pick me up every morning. I can get a cab. Besides, it's out of your way," said Sam, walking down the long corridors of the West Wing towards the Communications Bullpen.

"Sam, I'm picking you up and that's it. So you better have your butt ready at 7:30 sharp for the next 2 weeks." Sam sighed heavily.

"Okay," he said, giving up an already lost battle. "But I'm putting my foot down about driving me to physiotherapy."

"I'm not going to drive you to physio."

"Good," replied Sam with a smile, proud to have won at least one battle.

"Josh is," Toby added.

"Ohhhh, I can't wait for these 2 weeks to be over so I drive myself around again," said Sam, who never felt very comfortable having people doing things for him like this, even if they were his closest friends. According to Sam, they had all gone through enough because of him in the last few weeks.

"Sam, you can complain all you want, but that's the way it's going to be, whether you like it or not, so just shut up about it," said Toby, in his usual dry tone. "And just because your doctor said that you can drive again in 2 weeks, how are you going to do it properly with your arm in a cast and a sling?"

"Well, in 2 weeks, I won't have to use the sling anymore and ....with the cast, I'll manage," he answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"We'll see about that," his boss replied, as they reached the entrance to the bullpen.

"Toby, I'm not...."

"SURPRISE!" everyone in the room yelled, interrupting Sam in his defiant reply to Toby. The look on Sam's face at that moment was priceless. Sam, his plaster-encased arm supported in a sling under his suit, the left side of his face still sporting marks of his encounter with the mast of his ship, including a now healing thin pink scar above his eye and across his temple simply stood there, his mouth open in wonderment. Before him, hanging on the wall, a huge banner with 'Welcome Back, Sam!' written on it in colorful letters, balloons hanging left and right.

"Hey, Buddy!", exclaimed Josh, walking up to shocked Sam. Everyone was still gathered, starring at him, huge grins on all their faces, waiting for his reaction.

"I.... I don't know what to say."

"Well, you can start by promising us that you'll never do that again," declared the President as he made his way into the crowded room with Leo right behind him.

"Mr. President, sir..." Sam managed to articulate, stumbling over his words.

"Sam," he said, shaking his good hand, "it's good to see you, young man. And from what I can see, everyone else here feels the same way," the President said, looking around the room.

"The feeling is very mutual, sir. Thank you." The President gave him a once over and nodded in approval. "We missed you," he added before making his way through the crowd of staffers.

"Hey, there," came a familiar voice from. Suddenly, at his side, was Mallory.

"Well, this is a surprise. What are you doing here?" he asked, pulling her gently against him.

"I just wanted to be here for your first day back, to show my support... and to make sure that you didn't overdo it, which I'm sure you're going to," she said, looking up at him with a smile on her lips and a twinkle in her eye.

"Oh, you know me so well," he replied laughing, holding her even tighter. "So, did you know about this?"

"Me? Noooooo, of course not," she answered sarcastically. Sam simply shook his head and grinned.

"Sam," Leo said, approaching the young man and his daughter.

"Leo," he replied with a smile. Normally, Sam would have let go of Mallory, feeling uncomfortable showing any signs of intimacy with his daughter in from of him, but that was then and this was now, and instead of letting go of her, he held her even closer.

"It's good to finally have you back, son," Leo said, putting his hand on Sam's shoulder, smiling warmly. The fact that Leo had addressed him as 'son' didn't go unnoticed by Sam, nor by Mallory, who discretely squeezed his hand. Obviously the conversation Mallory had had with her father borne fruit.

"It's good to be back. Believe it or not, I actually missed this place."

"Coming from you, Sam, I believe it. Oh, by the way, there's something I've been meaning to tell you. Remember when I told you that the next time you go sailing to hold on to a rope or something," he glanced at Mallory for a moment, then back at Sam, "well, you have no idea how happy I am to know that you listened to me this time." Sam looked down at Mallory, who was smiling back at her father.

"So am I, Leo. So am I," he replied, not taking his eyes off the woman he loved.

"You kids be good now," Leo said before joining the rest of the group.

"Do you think he meant it or did he just say it, well, because...." Sam asked Mallory.

"No, I think he truly meant it. He told me that whatever makes me happy, makes him happy. And, Sam Seaborn, I am very, very, very happy."

"So am I," he replied. Together, they made their way into the crowd of staffers, each waiting to welcome back the Deputy Communications Director.

The End