After The Storm

Becuase Death is Just so Full and Man so Small

Kim busied herself with a copy of People magazine as she sat in the small break room, she'd been called up to help out in intelligence. Initially she was terrified, she'd run into Adam often the last few weeks but never did they share more than a pained look or a mumbled 'hey' the idea of working so close to him set her on edge.

His absence was hard to miss but she couldn't get a straight answer out of anyone, she had asked Kevin and he dodged the question entirely, Jay wasn't much better but he at least answered her.

He'd taken a personal day, it wasn't like Adam to take a day of work. The man loved his job and if he took a personal day something was up.

Erin finally appeared before her.

Kim closed the magazine. "Erin, what's up with Adam?" she leaned on the table, "Jay said he took a personal day...and 'personal day' isn't in Adam's vocabulary. I'm worried" she almost laughed at the irony, she'd spent the better part of the last six months trampling on the man's heart and now she claimed to be 'worried'.

Erin sighed as she leaned against the counter, "We've all been sworn to secrecy Kim" she folded her arms across her body, "he doesn't want anyone to know.." the dinging of the microwave interrupting her thoughts, carefully she pulled the small Tupperware container out and set it on the table, "if I was you...I'd call him. Soon"

With out another word Kim was left alone again.

The tone of Erin's voice unnerved her almost more than what she said.

Adam sat in the small room, his head in a million different places. He wasn't ready for any of this, he wasn't sure he could do what needed to be done.

This day was always a possibility, he just thought he'd have more time. They knew for a while now that when it reared its head again it would be catastrophic and it would end as quickly as it had come on.

Never did he think he'd have to do it alone.

Kevin told him to tell her, that he shouldn't take this burden on himself...that he needed help and that she'd probably be more than willing. It was bad enough he told his team but he knew he'd be missing work and they needed to know why. He knew his father would be pissed if he knew, as much as he needed Kim he couldn't do it.

It didn't matter anyway, he couldn't deal with that now, this was his only focus. He didn't have time for anything else, his father needed him and he wouldn't let him down.

His father was finally wheeled back into the room, it pained him to see his once strong and vibrant father reduced to a trembling shell of himself.

Adam hopped up and kneeled beside his father's wheelchair, tenderly bringing the cloth to his mouth to wipe the drool from his chin, "Hey pops, you ok?" he cursed himself, what a stupid fucking question. No. He wasn't okay, he was dying.

His father had been diagnosed with stage three brain cancer a massive tumor was discovered in his brain. It was shortly after he had proposed to Kim, his father had started slurring his speech and had awful headaches and he had started having bouts of vertigo.

Bob Ruzek was your typical 'Man's man', and he demanded that no one else be told of the diagnosis he wouldn't even let Adam tell Kim. He went as far as refusing to see her and he wouldn't meet anyone from her family.

It put Adam in one hell of a predicament, he wanted to honor his father's wishes but he also knew he needed to tell Kim. Finally he relented and agreed to his father's terms, he had no other choice, his father had sacrificed everything to make sure Adam had a decent childhood after his mother went MIA and he knew he owed it to his father.