Jessica opened the door with a soft click.

She still had a key to his apartment, and this wasn't the first time she had made use of it.

It was just after sundown when she entered her former lover's, but still her love's, apartment and she was there to do one thing. To correct a mistake that had been made about a month and a half ago now.

She had seen him kill enough... Jessica had seen too much blood shed by him. She couldn't bear it any longer. Although she had not created him a vampire, she felt fully responsible. If she had only been able to do what she wanted to to begin with... If only Chris hadn't interrupted... The older vampire had said... Had said that it was his choice. But it wasn't. It wasn't his choice when he didn't know what being a vampire really was... When he was blinded by love.

She clutched the wooden stake in her hand tightly, a pained look on her face as she made her way to his room. The tip was a sharpened silver, like a knife, to help it go in easier. It would hurt her far more than it would hurt him...

But the way she figured, he had about another fifteen minutes before he could wake up... There was still a trace of light in the sky.

As Jessica entered his room, tears began to trickle slowly down her face. "I'm so sorry Dan..." She whispered as she slid down to the bed, sitting next to him. She had to do this... It was for his own good. She would do this... Leave the note for Christian that she had written, and then kill herself. It was the only way they could be free. Didn't he see by now how horrible it was? How much pain everything caused now?

"I love you so much... Please... Forgive me..." She murmured as she kissed his forehead softly, then his lips. "I don't want you to suffer..." Standing, Jessica clutched the stake tight, raising it with a trembling hand. She looked down just one more time... His face seemed so peaceful... If only there was another way...

Taking a moment to wipe away her tears, she hesitated, wishing she could just spend one last night with him before she did this... But she knew she couldn't. She knew she had to finish it off here and now, which was why with a swift, strong motion she began to bring the stake down, right to the side of his breastbone, praying it would hit cleanly, kill him quickly, painlessly.

It had been rough for Dan. The people who he had killed weighed heavily on his eart, but he did his best to save others. It wasn't like he meant to hurt Jess, but he wanted to be there for her. He wanted to live with her as long as they could.

Dan had slept soundly throughout the daylight hours, and as the sun set he could hear something through his sleep, but he didn't know what it was.

As Jess was whispering to him Dan could move a little, but he didn't understand who it was or what she was saying. Then his instincts kicked in as Jess went to stab him with the stake. His body moved almost without his control as he blocked the arm swinging the stake down. He wrapped the arm up as he sat up grabbing a hold of the person's throat and forcing their back to the bed.

Taking a second to wake up Dan's eyes adjusted easily to the darkness, and he was looking into the face of his lover. "Jess!" He looked from her face to the stake the she had in her hand. "Jess..." He let go of her, but easily removed the stake from her hand and tossed it off to the side. "What were you trying to do?" Dan wasn't one to ruthlessly hurt someone, but he had grown accustomed to the vampire lifestyle. "Please tell me you didn't come here to kill me then yourself." He said sitting with his back facing her. Slouching he felt pain knowing that she was trying to kill him again. This was his decision why couldn't she see that? Dan was alright with this life. He was alright being like her.

He was a little slower than she was, but she didn't think he would wake up this early. A scream escaped her and was choked out as he grabbed her throat. "Dan! No!"

She heard the wood clatter against something. But as he looked down at her, her the tears fell faster. She didn't want to answer his question... She didn't , but... "Yes... I had to Dan. I have to kill you before you become a monster, before you lose your soul!" Jessica sobbed painfully.

"I... I was going to die with you Dan... I was. I don't want to be without you.... Can't you see this is the only way? The only way we can be free!" Didn't he understand? Couldn't he see like she did?

Dan looked up at Jess as she spoke and shook his head. "I haven't become a monster Jess...I've been doing my best to keep them alive..." He understood why Jess wanted to kill him and herself. It was because she had someone like Jason for a sire. If Christian had been her sire maybe she would've come out differently. "I won't give my soul up without a fight Jess...I'm not like Jason." He said with a sigh.

"I don't want you to die Jess!" He yelled and turned around glaring at her. "Don't just think about your own experiences. I made my decision to become like this...Even after seeing the Tarepha and Ishak...I made the decision to live with you!" It had truly been a terrifying experience for him, but he knew that neither she nor Christian were like that.

"We can be free in other ways Jess..." Dan stood up and wrapped his arms around her comfortingly. "We can live...we're strong enough to stay the way we are." He said kissing her head gently.

"No! I can't!!" She nearly sobbed. "I can't do this Dan! Every time I wake up... I remember what happened... remember what he did to me, what he was! I can't live with it anymore. I can't Daniel!"

She wasn't as strong as him. She wasn't a fighter like he was.

"No Dan... for me..." She murmured as she pulled away from his arms. "For me there isn't another way. This is the only way... I can't forget what I've done... What I've become..." She swallowed hard, shaking her head as she moved away.

Quick as she could, she darted to where Dan had dropped the stake. If he wanted to live like this- if he was strong enough... Then who was she to argue.... She loved him so mush that it hurt her deeply to watch him in this life... To watch him feed and kill...

"I'm sorry Dan... I... I wish things had gone like I had planned earlier... You wouldn't have had to suffer." She said shakily. But she didn't move to try and stake him again, instead she raised her arms above her head. If he wanted to live... That was his choice... If she wanted to die... That was hers.

"I love you so much... I never wanted to hurt you... Please forgive me..." She whispered beforeshe moved to drive the stake right below her ribs. She only prayed that it would kill her quickly.

Dan listened to what Jess had to say and he shook his head. "Let me help you Jess!" He came close to yelling again. It was hard to keep himself from yelling at her.

Dan watched her as she moved away from him, and picked up the stake. "Jess!" He acted as she brought it down on herself. He moved his body in between her and the stake. He grunted as the stake penetrated his body, but he made sure it wouldn't pierce anything vital. "Jess...what do you think you're doing?"

He embraced Jess. "You fool...What're you thinking..." He acted as if he didn't feel a thing. "I love you too Jessica...I know I'm being selfish, but I want to live with you Jess." Dan wanted to stay with her, he wanted to help her.

She gasped, pulling out the stake as it went into his shoulder. She'd been able to stop it when she noticed his movement, but apparently he wasn't allergic to silver too much...

"No! Dan... Why! Why won't you let me?!" She said, pulling away from his grasp again. "If it's your choice to live, why can't I chose to die! Why!" She was nearly hysterical.

"NO! I can't! I won't Daniel!!" She sobbed as she sank down against the wall. "When you were human there was hope! There was some hope that I would be happy because I could forget! But... But now... How can I even pretend to be human!" He had been her last connection to humanity, to life itself. And now that he had given it up...

What else did she have?

"Please... Don't ask me to live Dan... It hurts too much." Crimson tears had begun to streak down her face... To her it was only a cruel reminder of the loss of her humanity.

It sucked as Jess pulled the stake out, but he knew that it would heal. "You don't need to die! Nothing has changed for us!' His body would heal soon.

"Jess...I want to help you! I'm still me. I can be there for you if you'll give me a chance!" Dan knew that he could help her. "You can forget if you try Jess. I'll help you forget!" He said pleading with her.

"I..." Tears streamed down his face as he sat down on the bed. "Just knowing that you're alive is enough to get me through each night Jess. Without you I don't think I'd be able to keep my humanity." Dan said looking down at the floor not bothering to wipe his tears away.

She couldn't look at him... She didn't want to....

He was asking her to live... To suffer through life, knowing what a monster she was... Suffer through just so he could have hope...

"How would my suffering make you happy? Dan... You... You have no clue how much pain I'm in like this. I've quit working at the hospital... The one thing I loved to do, because I couldn't be around the blood anymore. I have nothing left in life, but to watch you become a monster.

"And I can't forget! Every night... Every day, he's still in my mind Dan! He's still there with that cruel smile and cold words. How... How can you make me go through that?" Wouldn't he be happier knowing she was at peace? Knowing that she wasn't suffering any more?

"I love you so much Dan... I do. If I knew I could live, even slightly for you I would. But... I don't know how to anymore. I feel like just an empty shell now... I can't feel anything but misery... Sorrow... When I held you in my arms... Waiting for you die... I was happy... Because we would be together at last with out any fear, pain... Or anything Dan... I would follow you into death... I would..."

"Let me help you Jessica! I don't want you to suffer, but if you keep on trying to kill me and yourself I won't be able to help!" He said almost defeated. He hated how she wouldn't believe that he could help her. Dan wanted to help her, to make her feel better but she couldn't believe in him.

"Use me to let you get through him!" Dan felt helpless yet again. "I heal quickly so you can take it out on me." He said with a sigh. "I don't mind you hurting me if it means you getting over this."

"I love you too Jessica, but we need to find a way through this. I can do my best to help you if you let me!" He knew that Jess wanted to die, but he was being selfish. He knew it was partly him being selfish, but he knew if they tried he could help her.

Jessica slumped against the wall, sliding down to the floor without a sound. Defeated, she shook her head. "Whatever you want Dan..." She murmured. She didn't want to... She didn't want to live anymore, live this half life... This life of a monster.

Curling up on the floor, she simply lay there, her eyes open but glazed over and not really seeing anything.

She didn't know what do to anymore... She had been so sure that he would understand. That he would agree to death in order to save them both. Or at least understand why she had to die, why she wanted death so badly. But he didn't. He didn't understand that death would be so much better... That she couldn't live like this anymore. She didn't want to live...

But he wanted her to. He wanted her to live for him... And though she couldn't truly live any longer... She would leave herself alive simply for him... She would keep her body alive so he would be happy...

Her soul was already dead.... Her heart had died as he asked her to live... But her body could live on...

The vampiress was so out of touch with what was going on around her, that she didn't even react when the phone rang.