1/2 "How could I forget about you?" He questioned warmly, as though the mere notion were absurd. The words lifted a small part of the weight off her shoulders, and she had to restrain herself from throwing her arms around him again. They'd think she was going mental if she kept on hugging people at random.
"We would've kept searching for you, but..." Abby knew what his next words would be before he spoke them, blue eyes darting to her feet to hide how they'd darkened. "After what happened with Sarah, they shut the whole search down. No expiditions, no more search parties. We were to wait for the anomalies to open and that was it."
"It's all right," The zoologist tried to tell him, hoping that by speaking the words she'd believe them herself - believe that simply becaues they were back, things were going to be all right. But what she did believe - every fibre of her being believed it - was that this, all of this, wasn't Becker's fault. "We're back."
"It was torture waiting around for something to happen."
"I imagine," She answered, because the days and weeks of Connor not wanting to leave the site of the anomaly ... torture was what that had been. She'd wanted to move on, wanted to forget even if that was improbable, impossible. Too late she realised how the words sounded, not as soft as she'd wanted them to be. It sounded all too much like she was being sarcastic, and towards him. Abby tried to convey the other, hidden meaning, the one that she'd meant, with a desperate look that Connor wouldn't catch.
"I'm sorry, I need to get some air."
She called his name at the same time Becker did, ashamed to feel tears watering her eyes again. Hastily, she wiped a hand across them, flicking them away. Why did it have to be so difficult? They were already back, it should be better. It had to be better.
"Should someone go after him?"
Still rubbing at watering eyes, Abby nodded. She took a slow, steadying breath before she saw Becker take those two steps forward and she moved after him without a hesitation.
"Abby...?"
The girl in question placed her hand on his arm, offering a slow, small smile and quick nod in response.
"I'll go," She told him, and let her eyes dart back to Danny, hoping the meaning was understood.
"He needs somewhere to stay, you know." The whisper was quick, maybe just a bit mischeivous, a spark of the Abby that she'd been before being stuck in the Cretaceous for a year.