Author's Note: This has been sitting for a while in my documents and maybe this will bring this fandom back to life. Enjoy!

Climax

He closes his laptop once he realizes how late it is and his eyes fixate on a picture of her that he refuses to remove from his desk. He still wears the ring too. He stubbornly figures that when the time is right, he'll take it off. Truthfully, he'll probably never do it because he doesn't want to accept the fact that their relationship is over and they're headed for divorce.

He moved out today, packing with him some of his favorite memories in the form of pictures. He's positive she won't miss them at all. She'll be surprised to find all his things gone when she gets back to their—her apartment. They never discussed him moving out; it was just something he felt he had to because he couldn't take it anymore. The distance between them was unfathomable to him and all they've been doing for the past year is argue. They argue about everything from the magazine to the color of his toothbrush. He's not stupid, though, he knows that there are deeper issues and arguments as inane as a toothbrush color is just to cover up those issues that look larger than life.

She hasn't taken off her ring either because she loves him like she's never loved anyone before. He's seen her through her many trials and triumphs and never left her side. This year has been different and a lot has changed. Their relationship has shifted and he's changed. She used to be the only one who could understand him and now she can't. As she walks into their apartment and sets down the heavy cargo on the coffee table she has a fleeting thought that maybe it's the reason why. She berates herself for it less than two seconds later and despises herself for ever thinking such a thought. While their son was far from planned and it took her a while to come to terms with the prospect of having a baby at this point in her life, he was welcomed with open arms.

She sits down on the sofa directly in front of the car seat housing her baby boy and watches him sleep. It takes her a while to realize that something is wrong. She's so captivated by her son that she fails to notice that her husband's jacket that is usually strewn across the back of the sofa isn't there. Her eyes dart over to the end table where he sets his keys after returning home and find them missing. Secretly, she's terrified because this is her worst fear. . . The baby's crying. She picks him up and holds him to her chest, her hand supporting his head. With the crying baby in her arms, she speed walks to their bedroom and her heart stops. All his things are gone. Baby still in tow, she checks his drawers, his closet, his side of the bathroom. Everything is gone.

Everything is gone and she can feel her heart beating faster, can feel the air rush out of her lungs, can feel the tears cloud her eyes. They fought last night and she told him to leave if he wanted to leave, but he didn't. She never meant it. It was something she said in the heat of the moment. She was angry and hurt and tired. He didn't leave. But his things are gone now and her heart is pounding out of her chest.

He can't help but think that some time apart is what she needs. He's constantly trying but he can't take being in the relationship on his own anymore. After all, it takes two to tango. Their communication skills are non-existent or maybe they're too existent considering the fact that they always fight. He's out of energy. He's tired of trying, of pushing, of giving. There's only so much he can do and he needs her help. The help that she won't give.

The parking garage is dim and his car is the only one inside it from his vantage point. With a loud chirp, chirp his car door is unlocked and he's soon to be on his way to his new place of residence. It won't be home for a while.

Chirp, chirp.

Daniel turns around at the sound of a car locking and door closing. He thought he was the only one in here. The car is familiar; he recognizes it as Wilhelmina's Ranger Rover which she stands on the side of looking as exposed as ever.

He has a sudden urge to run to her and hold her, but he doesn't. They're not in that place. He hasn't held her in forever. He takes her in from nude, platform heels to her long, dark hair. Her makeup is flawless, as usual. She is flawless. But her face says it all. The sound of her heels clicking against the pavement echoes throughout the parking garage—click, click, click—and she's standing in front of her car fidgeting with her hands. Her eyes are brimmed with unshed tears and they flick from her hands to Daniel's expressionless face. He can practically feel her slipping out of his fingertips.

Her eyes burn and when she blinks, the tears finally fall and her breathing is ragged. She came here because she can't lose Daniel. She wants them to work it out. Their problems are big, but nothing that can't be fixed. She wants him to know that. She's been trying to keep herself from bursting into tears. It doesn't work because they're falling like raindrops and with the blink of an eye, without her permission, she's running to him. His arms open like it's second nature.

And they know that they'll be okay.

The End

Disclaimer: I own nothing but myself . . . I think.