"Slept Right Through the Dawn"

By: singyourmelody

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. If I did, Eli Stone would not be cancelled and Jonny Lee Miller would sing and dance for me every day. Title belongs to The Weepies and their incredible song, "The World Spins Madly On." Seriously amazing. Listen to it. Love it.

A/N: Spoilers up through 2.10, "Sonoma." I haven't seen any of the remaining episodes beyond that one, although I know many people have. So, my apologies if this goes against anything that happens next to these characters.

"Let the World Spin Madly On"

Her eyes met his. "Hey."

"Maggie." He said finally, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. They stood there for a moment.

"So, can I come in?" Maggie finally asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry, of course. Please do." Eli replied, opening the door a little farther so that she could enter.

"I, um, got your message," she said, as he shut the door behind her.

"Which one?" he asked, laughing.

"The one on my answering machine."

His eyes widened. "Oh, that one."

"Yes, that one," she said, staring at the ground, her face breaking into a smile. "You are very persistent, Eli Stone."

"I've heard that before. I prefer to think of it as a good quality, although I've known several people who, well . . . don't."

They sat down on his couch.

"Well I would say it worked this time. I'm here, aren't I?" she replied.

"Yes, you are."

That sat for a few moments in silence.

"Eli, I feel like I need to apologize. I was being overly sensitive and a bit judgmental of you. I just, I just didn't want to get hurt again," Maggie said, finally.

"And you thought I would hurt you?" he questioned.

"Well, every other time we've ever gotten close to anything resembling a relationship, you've pulled back, breaking me a little bit each time."

He stared at her.

Finally, he cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, Maggie. I didn't realize what I was doing and it wasn't fair to you."

"Well, it's in the past now, right?"

Neither one said anything.

"I meant what I said, Maggie. I want you in my life." He reached out and took her hand. "I just am worried. I can't promise you forever."

Now it was her turn to stare. "Eli, aren't you jumping the gun here a little bit?" she questioned. She was definitely surprised. Sure, when she had first starting working at WPK, she had had momentary fantasies about their lives together. Married. Three children. A dog perhaps. Family trips to visit exotic locations like the Grand Canyon. But it only took a few choice words from Eli to make her daydreams about their future come crashing down. And she was the wiser for it.

"No, that's just it, Maggie!" Eli said, his voice rising with every word. "I want to be able to offer you the future. I want to be able to give you my life. I want to give you everything! But I can't. I have no idea what tomorrow brings or if I will even be here."

Maggie focused on the ceiling tiles above Eli's head. She sighed. "I know this, Eli. I do. But, but what about your vision? The one of us together? In the future. You said. . ."

"I know what I said, Maggie. But I've also learned that my visions can be altered."

"Altered."

"Changed. That things I do today can affect what I've seen. Transform it into something else."

She thought about this for a moment.

"So you think that the vision you had about you and me is not going to come true. . ." she stood and turned towards the door.

"That's not what I said, Maggie."

"Oh, really? Because I'm getting some pretty crossed signals from you here, Eli. One minute you are refusing to let me let you go and the next you're telling me that we can't be together now because you may die tomorrow."

He recoiled a bit when she said "die."

She saw this and said, "Yes, I said it, Eli. I know this already. I know you may die tomorrow, but you know what? So might I! I might get hit by a taxi on my way to work or get smashed by a falling file cabinet or, or, I might die of a brain aneurysm. You never know. We can't know these things." Now she was the one yelling. "I don't even know why I came over here. I was right; I need to just let you go."

She turned once again to the door. "Why can't I just let you go?" she whispered.

"Because you're not supposed to," he replied.

She paused with her hand on the door. "What, so I'm just supposed to follow you around like a lost puppy, as you go off saving the world, even though you still don't want me? Even I know I deserve better than that."

"No, Maggie. That's not what I mean. Ugh, none of this is coming out right. What I meant before was that I can't promise you forever. Not that I don't want to, because I do. But I want to be with you. Right now. And tomorrow, if I'm here. And forty years from now, if I'm here and you're here and you still want to be with me. But I needed you to know all the facts before you decide. I couldn't live with myself if I felt like I wasn't completely realistic and honest with you about what this relationship may mean."

"What it may mean?" she said, taking a step closer to him.

"Yeah, hospital visits. And me sometimes randomly bursting into song. And confusion. And probably some yelling. Lord knows you and I can yell at each other. And maybe some genuine craziness. I can't promise I'm not going crazy." He smiled.

"Eli, how long have you and I been friends?"

"I don't know, about two years."

"Mmhmm. And how long have you had hospital visits and given concerts in the halls of WPK?"

"About two years."

"And how many times have we yelled at each other and been confused at the other's actions and thought the other one was crazy?"

"Well, I've never thought you were crazy. . ."

She gave him a pointed look.

"Okay, maybe once or twice. I get your point. We've always been good friends."

"That's just it, Eli. We've always been good friends. I've always known all of those things about you. That's nothing new to me. And you've always known how I can be slightly neurotic and maybe a tiny bit overeager. . ."

"A tiny bit?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Hey now, don't push it." She nudged his shoulder.

They stood there in silence.

"Maggie, are you sure you want to do this? In case you haven't noticed, I'm slightly damaged goods," he said finally.

She took a step closer to him and looked directly into his eyes. "And in case you haven't noticed, I like a challenge," she said as she reached up and kissed him.

0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0

October 16, 2018

The large square lights cast a slightly yellow glow on the young woman and the child she was holding. The man standing next to her, hand placed on the small of her back, leaned forward and gave the baby a kiss, before climbing the stairs that led to the massive stage. The roar of the applause was overwhelming and the young woman smiled, as chants of "Live Brave! Live Brave!" echoed through the streets.

A/N: Finished! Thanks for taking the time to read and review. I have not yet seen the final three episodes of Eli Stone, but I am looking forward to seeing how they wrap it all up. Love to all of the Eli Stone fans still out there.