Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews! Read on for the last chapter!

Lawrence Gordon smiled warmly at his patient. "The stitches are holding up pretty well. The only thing we currently have to worry about is the infection that you contracted. Hopefully, the antibiotics will help that. If your fever gets any worse, call me."

Sweat drenching her forehead, Sydney Terrell got to a sitting position. She breathed heavily for a few moments. "God, this hurts." She blew a tuft of burgundy hair from her eyes and looked at Dr. Gordon. "How much longer am I going to have to put up with this?"

Lawrence didn't look up as he signed her prescription. "You were stabbed in the abdomen, Sydney. You're lucky that that the scalpel didn't hit any of the surrounding organs. All I'm really worried about is the possible enzymatic damage to the organs. In fact, you really should've stayed at the hospital."

Sydney shook her head. "Hell no. There's nothing to do there."

"That's kind of the point. Look, just be really careful and make sure to take your meds. Do you need me to prescribe you anything for the pain?"

"No thanks, I got my own ways of dealing with it." she said somewhat darkly. Lawrence glanced at her briefly before ripping out the prescription from the pad.

"I thought you were an oncologist," Sydney commented. "Can you really do this?"

"I can make exceptions. Here you are." Sydney took the prescription, stuffed it into the pockets of her tight pants, and grabbed her crutches. With the intense pain, she needed some kind of support.

"Are you sure you don't want a wheelchair to get you down to the parking lot or-"

"No!" she snapped. She closed her eyes momentarily and looked up, apologetic. "Sorry, I'm...I'm trying."

Lawrence smiled. "No problem."

Sydney limped out of the room and ran into a familiar face on the way. She nodded their way and continued on.

Lawrence grinned when his girlfriend walked into his office. "Taking some time off from work, huh?" Jill Tuck, still in uniform from her job at the clinic, swung her arms around Lawrence's neck and kissed him.

"They don't need me at the moment. Plus, you left your lunch" she laughed, dropping a small brown paper bag on his desk. Lawrence smiled at her and noticed the large scar on her arm. "Need anything for that?"

Jill glanced at her scar and winced internally at the memory. Or at least what she managed to remember.

The last thing she recalled was Hoffman thrusting her inside the room, locking her in to face her inevitable fate. She had fainted when the saw had grazed her arm. Next thing she knew she was at the hospital. The saw had scraped away at the skin and bone. Not a pretty sight at all but a small price to pay she figured, compared to what could've happened.

"Nah. I barely remember its there anymore."

Lawrence forced a smile. He on the other hand, knew the whole truth. Mere seconds after Hoffman left Jill in the room, he had been knocked unconscious by Trish. She had immediately left him incapacitated while she ran to free Jill from the treacherous room. After all, part of her job had been to protect her mentor's ex-wife. And so Jill had been saved, along with some others that Lawrence had come upon in another room. However, not everyone had made it out alive.

"By the way," Jill spoke up. "this came for you this morning. No return address." She handed him a thin envelope with his name scribbled on in rather messy handwriting on the front.

"Thanks." Lawrence murmured.

Jill looked up at him, worry on her face. She ran a hand through his thick blonde hair and sighed. "We're going to get through this you know? We just...we just need a little bit of faith." she whispered.

Lawrence nodded and kissed her forehead gently. "Take-out today?" She glowed and shook her head enthusiastically before leaving his office. Lawrence took a seat, his eye catching the photo of Adam that rested on his desk. He could feel the tears welling up.

Adam hadn't made it. Despite Lawrence's best efforts, he had bled to death in his arms as they waited for help to arrive. He would never forget how the light in his brown eyes had dimmed seconds before his breathing stopped. The only comfort Lawrence could find in the situation was that Adam would finally be reunited with his sister, Ella.

Lawrence hastily wiped the tears from his eyes. His patients couldn't see him this way. Instead, he ripped open the envelope, eager to distract himself.

Dear Lawrence,

I hope things are going well for you. I tuned into the news the other day to check in on things. I'm happy that you, Jill, and the others made it out safely and I'm truly sorry for those that didn't. You must understand that there wasn't anything I could do. It was out of my hands. However, I do appreciate you keeping our little secret, it's made things easier. Especially knowing that I haven't been outted as an apprentice, but rather a missing girl. One that not much anyone cares for. Still, it takes off some of the guilt and for that I thank you. I know that nothing can ever really help you forget, but I hope the money that I have enclosed makes a difference in your life and the others. It's a check for $100,000 to be divided amongst yourselves. Who know maybe one of you might decide to donate your share to a greater cause. Wouldn't that be nice. I honestly don't blame you if you decide to shred the check. I guess I'm just using it as a defense mechanism to shed off some of the guilt. Now don't get me wrong, while I'm not proud of it, I did what I had to do. And for that I have no regrets. If there's one thing that John taught me, its that life's too short and you should do what you can with it. Carpe Diem. Hopefully, this money can perhaps help you enjoy that life.

I'm off to go enjoy that life elsewhere, far away from this place. With any luck we'll both be able to move on and let go. Because Dr. Gordon? At this point, that's all we can really do to keep ourselves moving. Use the money well and take care.

Sincerely, Trish

P.S. Along with the check, I've also enclosed something I think you'll be interested in.

Lawrence put the letter down and dug inside the envelope, pulling out the check and what appeared to be some photo negatives. His breath caught in his throat when he realized what it was. The last pictures that Adam had ever taken. He squinted, trying to see them but it was difficult in this light. He immediately promised himself to go and get them developed later. Lawrence smiled sadly at the picture of Adam. Maybe Trish was right. There was nothing much left for him to do but move on. And so he sat there, trying to not drown under the pressure of his own memories.

Sydney reached her car and almost tripped until an arm gripped hers. She caught a whiff of smoke and instantly knew who it was.

"Thanks, Dan."

The tall figure emerged from the shadows and the shaggy haired young man shrugged. "No problem." He helped her to the car and she leaned back against the hood. "Have any extra?"

Dan pulled out a joint from his jacket and lit it for her. She gratefully took it from him and took a drag while staring at Dan. He was much less jittery now, surprisingly. He still carried on with his drug habit but not as routinely as he used to. She knew he would never admit it to himself, but she was pretty sure that he was trying to slowly quit.

She on the other hand, had just gotten started.

On one of her trips to Dan's crappy apartment, he had offered her a joint and she had accepted reluctantly. She had developed an irrational fear of being captured again if she committed sin. She really was trying to change. Whether it was because she truly wanted to or because the paranoia had gotten to her, she still wasn't sure. Either way, the marijuana helped ease the pain, it relaxed her. She didn't need Dr. Gordon and any of his pain meds. She had all she wanted; Dan and his drugs.

Her head felt dizzy and she placed it against Dan's chest. The strong stench of the drug had faded. He really was trying to quit. Dan patted her back. "We going to see Reyna today?"

"Yeah." she grumbled, not really wishing to go. She didn't want to see her there. He wrapped an arm around her waist and led her inside the car.

"She can be released today?" Lenard asked the nurse.

She nodded curtly, looking at a clipboard. "According to the doctor's orders, everything checks out. She's been undergoing the necessary therapy these past few weeks and he believes that she's made progress. Reyna has begun opening up about both her past and her newer experiences. She's come to a healthy stage of acceptance."

Lenard was tempted to disagree with her. Reyna seemed almost too calm lately...but who was he to disagree? All he wanted was for her to recover.

He returned to her room to find her lying on her bed, speaking animatedly to Corrine.

"Good news, Reyna. The nurse said you're being released today." Lenard announced.

A grin lit her pale face and her dark eyes grew bright. Her messy black hair had been cut to around Corrine's length and the ends had been curled upwards to give her somewhat the appearance of a pixie. Maybe the time she had been spending in the psychiatric ward had done her good. And yet behind the glossy happy smile, Lenard couldn't help but sense something was wrong...it was just a gnawing feeling...

"You better start changing clothes then." Corrine told her kindly.

"Finally, it'll be a nice change from this hospital gown." Reyna sniffed, regarding the clothing with obvious distaste. She headed to the bathroom, the plastic bag with her clothing in hand.

"You sure someone shouldn't..." Lenard began.

Corrine narrowed her eyes. "She's not going to try anything, Lenard."

"Funny, because that's exactly the first thing she did when we got out of that hell hole. Or did you forget how she slit her wrists and had to be rushed to the hospital?" he hissed.

Corrine sighed and opened her mouth to respond but something buzzed from inside her purse. She took out her cell phone and Lenard caught sight of the screen flashing 'Dad'. She grimaced and put the phone on silence.

"What's going on with that?" Lenard questioned, wanting to change the subject to something more light.

"He heard that I dropped out of Harvard and he's been trying to convince me to enroll back in. 'Whatever it takes sweetie! If the coursework is too much I'll talk to some of your professors. If its the kids I'll get someone to knock some sense into them. Whatever you need!'" she rolled her eyes.

"Nice to see you're being more assertive."

"Eh. How about you? How are things going for you?"

Lenard could sense her eyes on the many large scars that riddled his face. He knew she couldn't help it. Everyone did the same. "I'm fine." he grumbled.

The biggest lie known to mankind.

Corrine raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I'm still trying to process things, decide what I'm going to do. I'm not sure whether I should turn myself in or not. It wouldn't leave much room for me to change since I'll surely get the chair but it would make me feel a hell of a lot better." he contemplated grimly.

"I'm sure you'll make the right decision." Corrine smirked. "If there's one thing I'm certain you are Lenard, it's smart."

They shared a little laugh, as if they had been friends for years. And Lenard realized the effect of the games. He really didn't know whether the games had achieved the purpose that John Kramer wanted- having the person change for the better- but he did know that it had brought them closer together. All of these people who had been strangers at first had now been drawn together by the horrific events that they had all experienced.

"Knock, knock." came a laughing voice from behind them. They spun around and came face to face with Dan.

Lenard remembered from his last talk with him that Dan had gotten a new job, was trying to quit the drugs, and was hanging out with Sydney a lot. Lenard was proud. In a way, he reminded him of his son. He had been troubled at first, getting involved in drugs and the such but he had eventually straightened himself up. However unlike his son, Dan would get the chance to fully turn his life around. To make something out of himself.

"Hey dudes, how's Reyna doing?" he questioned, scanning the room for her.

"She's getting ready, the doctor gave the okay for her to be released." Corrine informed him.

Sydney walked in, coffee in hand and didn't bother to disguise the glare she was directing at Corrine. Even though it had been a necessity in a life or death situation, Sydney had never forgiven Corrine for what she had done. It wasn't healthy to hold such a grudge, Lenard knew, but he couldn't tell people what to feel or think. It was up to Sydney.

Corrine cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Um I'm going to go and sign Reyna's paperwork. Be right back." She shifted in between Dan and Sydney and briskly stepped out of the room.

"How long are you going to keep this up?" Dan asked, exasperated.

Sydney glowered at him. "She all but gutted me, Dan. Sorry if I don't enjoy her presence anywhere near me."

Dan shrugged, a loopy smile on his face. "Whatever you say. Now if you two ever decide to work this stuff out in a mud pit somewhere, make sure to let me know."

Ah, same old Dan.

Reyna came out from the bathroom, sporting a plain tee and some jeans. She looked at everyone brightly. "Ready?"

"Corrine is still signing some of your paper work but we could go and visit Dr. Gordon on the third floor if you want." Dan offered.

Reyna shrugged and they all went for the elevators, passing Corrine on the way who assured them that she was almost done. They reached the third floor and spotted Jill near the nurse's station.

"Let's go and say hi."

They all began walking to her, all but Reyna who stayed behind, staring out a long window. Lenard noticed and came to her side. "Are you okay?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah, it's just been a long time. You know they don't have any windows like these in the psych ward. They're afraid of us finding some way to hurt ourselves." she answered quietly.

Lenard felt a chill creeping up his back. "Why did you-"

"Do you think we'll ever change?" she interrupted, still staring out the window, taking in all the outside activity that she had been deprived of for so long.

"Uh what?"

"Change. The whole point of the game was to appreciate your life more wasn't it? Do you think we can ever reach that point? Leave all this behind and just move on with our lives?" her voice was low. It had lost it's previous happy tone.

"Uh yes. Yes, I think we can."

He knew that Reyna sensed the uncertainty in his voice.

"But I killed an innocent man. My parents are dead, I cheated on my girlfriend, and my last boyfriend was apparently the sick fuck who forced us through all this. How can I move on with all that hanging over my head?" Her question was desperate. She need an answer from him. She needed reassurance.

"You just need to hold on a bit longer. We'll all get through this together with time." he told her softly.

Her face fell. "I can't wait anymore." she whispered darkly. Suddenly, her fist smashed against Lenard's face and before he could regain his balance, she dashed towards the window and jumped straight through it.

It shattered violently, sending shards everywhere as her body flew downwards, arms spread out eagerly awaiting her death.

SPLAT

Shrieks and screams filled the hospital wing as Lenard struggled to stand up while surrounded by a throng of people that had crowded the window. He felt blood flowing out of his nose but he didn't care. All he cared about was the young girl that had just jumped to her death moments ago.

John had been wrong.

Sometimes the trials did help, they had made him appreciate his life but other times they just made you realize how shitty your life had been in the first place. Sometimes, they gave you that final push.

Hoffman groaned in pain, not even bothering to try and move anymore. He had lost the strength to do so a long time ago. The darkness taunted him constantly reminding him of his hopeless situation. His throat was dry, aching for a drop of water and his stomach was growling, begging for a small morsel of anything. His wounded shoulder had gone numb as if his body had finally realized that there was really no point in hurting anymore. He was going to die soon anyways.

The cold dirty floor felt nice against his dry skin. He dropped his head and breathed slowly, taking in the disgusting rotting smell that he had already become accustomed to.

So when's your test, Detective?

His head shot up. There it was again, the voice.

"What do you want from me?" Hoffman croaked.

I want to know if you have what it takes to survive.

Another familiar voice. The dehydration had nulled his senses but even in this state he knew that voice anywhere.

"Leave me alone!" he cried. His throat burned.

And then one of the voices began quoting him. Began quoting the letter that he had written in what seemed like an eternity ago.

Amanda, you were with Cecil the night Jill lost Gideon. You killed their child. You know it and I know it, so do exactly as I say. Kill Lynn Denlon or I will tell John what you did.

A gunshot burst through the air and Hoffman almost jumped but was too weak to do so. He could hear desperate strangled breathing. As if someone was choking, choking on blood.

So Mark, you thought that by deceiving Amanda you would get rid of the competition? Did you know that I would die as well? Or was that your intention all along? Either way, you intervened with the games. You didn't follow the rules. You were given second chances and willingly threw them out the window. How did that work out for you?

Hoffman recoiled at the sound of his former mentor's voice berating him.

And then came her voice. Well Detective, now you really are going to have to get used to me because I'm not going anywhere.

The voices were getting closer and closer until he saw them. Their thin silhouettes in the back. John and Amanda.

"NO NO!" Hoffman yelled.

Their arms reached out for him. "LEAVE ME ALONE! NO! NO!"

And then both voices mingled as they spoke, Game over.

Author's Note: And there it is, the end. And so here are the list of the survivors:

Survivors of the game:

Corrine McDowell, Lenard Rodriguez, Sydney Terrell, Dan Miller, and Trish Sinclair.

Anti-Jigsaw survivors:

Lawrence Gordon and Jill Tuck

I hope the ending wasn't too sucky because in all honesty I wasn't feeling all that creative when writing it. Also, not so sure about the Jill and Lawrence couple it just seemed like a good idea at the time. Doctor and clinic nurse? No? Oh well. I meant for Reyna's death to give some insight as to the after effects of the games. People don't always walk out 'appreciating their lives more'. Thank you all for the amazing characters, for faving, and for reading and reviewing! It meant a lot!

News: I will NOT be continuing my 'Scream' story :( I just don't have that 'excitement level' needed to write a good fic and it wouldn't be fair to the readers if I just wrote something that I put no effort into. So sorry to all those who submitted a character. I really am sorry...but I will be finishing up the 'Heroes' story if that's of any consolation and I MIGHT be writing a LOST fanfic in the future.