Title: Three Hundred And Sixty Five
Ship: begins Guy/Caroline. I haven't decided whether it'll end up CarMac.
Summary: set one year exactly after Episode 8, hence the title. Mac left without saying goodbye to anyone, and Caroline and Guy are still engaged (it hurts my poor CarMac soul to think of them married :cry ).
Disclaimer: Unfortunately for me, I own nothing. [Except the season 1 DVDs].
Warning: This is result of revision. Or rather, avoiding revision. Well, avoiding revision and listening to music that demands my imagination run riot. Its also my first GW fanfic. And to begin with, I'll be focussing on the Caroline/Guy/Mac triangle. Bear with me, I'll move onto other characters soon enough. Anyway...

~Prologue~
...you may hate me, but I'll remember to love you...

It had been thee hundred and sixty five long days since Mac had found out that his days were numbered. A routine check up following the 'accident' had told him that yes, he could go away with Dr Todd that weekend, and yes, she could move in with him, but he he had weeks, months if he was lucky, to live.
He had driven back to his apartment, knowing that she would be at the station waiting for him, he had packed his bag full of essentials, before getting back on his motorbike and driving the long, open road. He took no notice of where he was going, until he realised where he had arrived. He was home.
From his childhood bedroom, he viedwed the world in a new, unfamiliar light: every breath could be his last, every meal could be his last, every sunrise could be his last.
After wallowing in his misfortune for two days, he set about making a lis of things to do before he died. Number one was to read Harry Potter, purely to see what the fuss was about. Number thirty, the final task, the one he would only attempt if he was still alive a year later: make Caroline understand.
Tasks one through twenty-nine had been completed, changed and re-completed numerous times; task thirty had remained sacred. But now, it was time.

~Chapter One~
...I can’t face this world that’s keeping us apart...

For Caroline Todd, it had been a long year. Every day, she she missed Mac a little bit more; and she soon found herself wishing that Guy was a different man, a more ginger man.
Theirs' was a long engagement, and if she were honest, she wasn't sure she really wanted to marry him. As cruel as it was, she had accepted his proposal expecting Mac to show up and take her away on his motorbike. But he never did.
She was close, extremely close, to giving up on him ever coming back to her. After all, it had been a whole year since he took leave of her life.
Often, she found herself drifting into a daydream: Mac the central character, she his leading lady. But somewhere, Guy would interrupt the moments of innocent ecstasy, bringing her back to reality with a shudder.
Tonight, she promised herself, she would let go of her childish crush on a man who was as good as dead. Tonight, she would accept the life she had created for herself in a few moments of sanity. Tonight, she decided, she would start to love Guy as he loved her, let only him occupy her fantasies, plan their wedding a little and imagine their children. Finally, she would accept the truth, even though it broke her heart to do so.

As evening arrived, Guy, her lovely Guy, set about making dinner, always a lavish affair. Tonight, though, was different. He banished her from their kitchen, demanding she relax somewhere else.
She traipsed upstairs, to their bedroom, lay on their soft, comfy bed and set about releasing her thoughts one final time. She didn't noticed how the time passed, and she found herself disturbed by Guy, as usual.
"Dinner, ma cherie, will be in five minutes," he whispered. She nodded her hear in acknowlegdement. She rose slowly and shuffled out of their room and down the stairs. She had just passed the front door on the way to the kitched, towards the smell of food, when the shrill door bell rang.
"I'll get it," she called out to Guy, though she knew he would come to the door to see who it was, anyway.
Pulling back the latch, she prepared to be greeted by a salesman wanting to sell her dusters, or a Jehovah's Witness trying to convert her, but it was neither of these. Before she could rub her eyes and sense replaced the mirage that stood before her, he spoke.
"Miss me?"

~Chapter Two~
...and you begin to wonder why you came...

"Ginger nuts?"
"Nice to see you, too, Guy," Mac smirked. "Still living in Dr Todd's spare room, I see."
"Actually, no. I sleep in a different room," Guy began before being cut off.
"We were about to sit down for dinner, actually. Do you want to join us? We could...catch up. You've been gone for... well, it must be a year or so? I'm sorry, wait, why are you here?"
"No, thank you. A year, yes. I just came to say hi, introduce myself as your new consultant. I considered calling, but I thought perhaps you might not remember the name, so stopped over so you had both audio and visual memory cues."
"You're the new consultant? You're back for good?" Guy couldn't help but hide his dismay.
"Oh, well done, you! It'll be... great having you back, Mac. Theatre isn't the same without the competitions you two used to have. Its quite boring, really."
"Back for as long as I'm living, yes, Guy. But we might have to stop the messing around, I have actual responsibilites now, as well as the pay rise." He smiled and turned to go. "I'll let you two have your meal in peace."
"No, no. Wait. You have to come in and tell us exactly how you managed to leave one day without giving noticed, leaving nothing but a legacy of quite inappropriate behaviour such as motorbikes in lifts, then come back the next year, with a promotion and a payrise!"
"Caroline, its obvious. Sue White!" Guy spoke quickly, hoping Mac would agree and leave.
"Surprisingly not. It had nothing to do with Sue. Apparently she's taken maternity leave again, having my second lion cub."
"Ahahahahahahahahaha!" Caroline let out a shrill, nervous laugh, as a response to both Mac's reference to his apparent lovechildren, and the sudden feeling of Guy's arm snaking its way around her shoulder.
Noticing the glare coming from the taller man, Mac added, "It's a long story that I'll bore you with another day. Whilst I've thought about it, Dr Todd, I need your professional help tomorrow. Do you have a spare hour or two?"
"Um, actually, Caroline has the whole weekend off, Mac," Guy answered, feeling oddly threatened.
"Yeah, I know. I'd just... like her help with getting to know what's going on at the hospital. Y'know, so that I don't look completely incompetent."
"Well, I don't have anything planned, so yeah, that'll be... good."
"Great, great," Mac paused for a moment before speaking again. "Want to come 'round my gaff, then? Don't worry, Guy, its not rude," he winked at Caroline.
"I'm not coming if it's..." Caroline began to reply, before stopping herself. "No, Caroline. You do not flirt with Mac whilst Guy is present. In fact, you do not firt with Mac at all."
"Okay, great. If you come... sometime before lunch, that'd be...nice." His piercing baby blue eyes shone at her, hinting that it would actually br better than nice. "Anyway, sorry for interrupting your meal, good to see you both."
"Yeah? It's actually a little late for apologies, Mac," Guy muttered. "Caroline, fo inside, start eating, I need to speak to Mac quickly."
"Oh...kay. Be nice, Guy," she warned him, moving past him to retreat to the kitchen. As she did, Guy pulled her back, kissing her lips lightly before releasing her.

Mac watched as Guy took a step towards him, their faces suddenly a mere inch apart.
"Now then, Ginger Nuts, Caroline is officially mine. So no no funny stuff tomorrow, okay? Not that she'd actually let you try anything. She moved on pretty quickly after you left her at the train station. Took her about... ten minutes to agree to marry me, actually," Guy smirked.
"So, you're worried that you might be the rebound guy?"
Guy glared, "No. I'm just saying, don't try anything. She's mine now."
"See, Guy, some of us have these things called morals. I know the concept is pretty new to you, but I do, luckily, have morals. Otherwise, you might be in trouble."
"Hah, yeah, you wish. She is absolutely devoted to me, I'l telling you."
"So there was no reason to warn me not to try anything, then, was there? Because obviously, she'd put me in my place straight away."
"Yeah, well, I was actually looking to save your feelings. Just trying to be a good friend."
"Sure you were. Anyway, have a nice evening, it was very good to see you again."
"You too."
"See you Monday, then."
"Yeah. Monday." Guy responded, disappointed that his meant-to-be threatening talk had left him feeling even more worried about his and Caroline's future.
Mac turned to leave, then realised he had one thing left to say, "Guy? Happy anniversary."
"Thanks, Mac," he responded, before wondering how Mac had known.
Mac walked the pavement to his motorbike, his heart heavier than it had been a few minutes earlier. He knew that Guy had just been trying to scare him, and he could see from Caroline's face that she had been happier to see him than she should've been, as an engaged woman. But still, he couldn't help but feel the dismay enclose him. He repeated a single word as he took each step, trying desperately to release some of the doomed feeling.
"F*ck."

:unsure:

this is so good. Keep going - I need more :D

please o please o please keep this going! :wub:

you must!
he is fit!!!

It is very very good!

:D :D :D

But poor little unloved Guy... :(

:heart it!!!!!! but poor guy..........

wow. this is really good :)
poor mac :(

wow...

his is brilliant.

ooooooooooooooooooooooh love it!!! yay!

x

WRITE MORE!!!

This is excellent.....

WHERE IS THE NEXT BIT??

keep going

i love the angle

XX

Viggly, post on ur fanfic!
i want to know what happens!
:cry

aww i love it.... but the m&c shippers make guy so unloved... poor guy lol

but great ficcin im loving it!

right. i have neglected this for too long. real life has been busy. <_< damn that school thing. >.<
I'm writing some more, i'll post later. =]

yehh I thought this fic was fantatic! ;)

yeah! yeah! more!

Elledoll, i cannot BELEIVE you've changed your thiny again. looks brilliant though!

~Chapter Three~
..trying to be so perfect, because I know you're worth it...

Caroline walked through the kitchen door and stopped, stunned at what lay before her. The lights were dimmed, two red candles stood, lit, on the table. Propped between her pate and wine glass was an envelope, he name scrawled on the front. She hurried to it, immediately tearing it open.
“Happy Birthday!” the front screamed at her.
“Bollocking shitbags!” Caroline whispered, as it dawned on her that not only was it exactly a year since Mac let, but it was also exactly a year since she agreed to marry Guy.
She didn’t hear the door open behind her, or Guy’s footsteps as he entered the dulled room.
“You forgot, didn’t you?”
“No, no. I didn’t.”
“Caro, it’s okay,” he told her, trying not to mind. Caroline winced as he called her ‘Caro’, a name she’d always hated, but he still insisted on calling her by it, anyway.
“If I asked you what was special about today, you’d say that it’s a year since Mac left, wouldn’t you?” he accused, though he knew the answer already.
“No, I wouldn’t think anything was special about today,” she lied, avoiding eye contact.
“You can’t lie to me, Caroline. I know you too well. You’re still… in love with him, aren’t you?”
“I’m not in love with Mac, silly. I love you, Guy. If I didn’t love you, I wouldn’t have agreed to marry you, would I?” she lied to him further, this time succeeding.
“Good. Now… dinner.” He gestured to the table where food lay before them. Caroline sat down and began to eat, avoiding conversation as much as possible. But it took Guy just fifteen short minutes to bring up the topic of Mac again.
“So, why do you think Ginger Nuts has simply got to see you tomorrow?”
“Well, if I were returning to the hospital after a year of unexplained absence, I’d probably want to know if the people I used to know were still there. He doesn’t know about Joanna and Dr Statham, remember,” Caroline stifled a laugh at the thought of the some-what sordid affair’s abrupt end.
“I guess. But… you don’t think he’ll… y’know…” Guy started, trailing off.
“He’ll what? You’re not still worried about me being alone with him, are you?”
“I suppose so. Just a little,” he admitted.
“Guy, you have got to trust me!”
“It’s not you that I don’t trust, Caro. It’s him. Mac,” he clarified.
“That’s ridiculous, Guy. He’s your best friend; I’m your fiancé. We wouldn’t do anything to hurt you.”
Guy smiled, “Okay. And if he does try anything, hit him for me, okay? Remember he’s very girly, you’re slightly masculine, you could take him easily.”
Caroline rolled her eyes. “And now that you’ve complimented me so charmingly, let’s finish eating, okay?”
Guy grunted, unable to process an apology. “Ah, well… I’ll just make it up to her later…” he decided.

Mac spent the evening in his apartment, pacing back and forth. Caroline was engaged to Guy. His Caroline was engaged to Guy. His Caroline was going to be at his home for hours tomorrow and it would just be the two of them.
Mac panicked. He looked around at the dust-covered furniture and floor; trying to remember how it had looked last time she had been there. Last time she had been there, when Holly had been there. And Caroline had been wearing the infamously attractive blue dress-nightie.
He went to his kitchen cupboard and found his Hoover, hoping it still worked. It did, surprisingly well. After two hours of meticulous cleaning, the flat was spotless, and he hoped worthy of Caroline’s presence. He laughed at himself, knowing that after his vanishing act, she probably wouldn’t notice the cleanliness – or lack of it – of his home. But still, he wanted to impress her. Despite her new attachment to Guy, which he hoped he had practically forced her into; after all, he was the yes. Guy was just second-best. Wasn’t he?

yay... that was worth the wait Ophelia- it was excellent! :heart it

looking forward to things getting better for Mac!!!

oooooooo I love this, please update soon ;)

Oh this is lovely. I really enjoy reading prose fanfics, and this is really well written. Kep going! :D

OOO wow... dont make us wait as long please :cry

hehe

i love it

L
O
V
E

so carmacy...

ace

XX

Ohhh Mac and a hoover :) Please write more soon. Just skip to the bit where Caroline turns up at Mac's ;)

awww more

Mac and a hoover?

love it ophelia!

:notworthy

AND its Caromac. what more could a girl ask for?

BRILL!
loving it like mad!

i like it.

woohoo! i just upgraded to Martin's prozzie! :D

I'm looking forward to things getting better for Guy! :(
But it's extremely well written!

No, skip to the bit where Guy 'makes it up to her later...' ;) Only joking!

It's great and I can't wait to read more soon. This could get very interesting, indeed.

more :) and quicker than last time ;)

~Chapter Four~
…and never will I give up trying, cause you’re everything to me…

When Caroline woke, the world seemed like a brighter place. Her breakfast tasted nicer, her coffee smelt more refreshing than usual. For once, she found a perfect water temperature when she showered, and she knew that all these little things were due to one much larger, more ginger thing. Mac.

When Mac rose from his bed after a night of poor sleep, he found he had butterflies that nothing could settle. Nothing in his flat looked right, and no matter how hard he tried, nothing could be put back in its place. He paced up and down whilst eating, completely restless. It didn’t take a genius to realise the cause. Caroline.

“Five to ten” the wall clock told Caroline. Five to ten: time to leave. She crept up the stairs, back into the bedroom she shared with Guy. She kissed him lightly on the forehead and whispered a goodbye.
“Caro, tell him I say hi, and that I’ll beat the crap out of him if he tries anything,” Guy called out as Caroline turned away, causing her to giggle.
“Will do, Guy. You have nothing to worry about, you know. I’ll be back some time after lunch.”

Mac had been pacing for ten minutes. He had checked and rechecked that he had hidden all signs that he hadn’t been in his flat for a year, bought new food for lunch, sat on his brown leather sofa, and then he began his pacing. “Ten strides one way, about turn, ten strides the other way. Repeat as necessary,” he murmured to himself, though he knew this action would make him more anxious. He glanced at his watch. Ten-fifteen. She should be here soon, he decided. After all, Caroline was never late.

Caroline saw his white door as soon as the lift doors opened. For a moment, she considered turning around and going back home, back to Guy. She realised how foolish she was being. From Monday, she had to work with Mac, if she panicked at the very thought of seeing him, she would need to get over it, and there was no time like the present. Holding her head high, a false sense of confidence surged into her. She strode to the door and knocked three times. Then, she waited.

Mac heard the knocks, and a sense of dread filled him. It was, he was sure, a typical knock for Guy. But Caroline would have used a more timid tap. He shuffled to the door, and plastered on a smile, prepared to greet both Guy and Caroline. Then, when he was sure his façade was foolproof, he pulled bag the latch and felt his plastic smile melt away.

Caroline laughed when she saw Mac’s face, as she saw the oh-so-perfectly formed fake smile that matched hers perfectly.
“Come in, Dr Todd,” Mac instructed, a mock-serious expression now occupying his face.
“Certainly, Dr Macartney,” she spoke, as she moved past him, into his flat. “What a lovely office you have,” she commented.
“Thanks. It’s a bit far from the rest of the building, but bigger than most of the boardrooms, so I can’t really complain.”
“Maybe they’ve given you an office far away from the hospital to make you more… comfortable, as you haven’t been there for a year,” she said, glaring at him.
He sighed, not knowing how to start the story of his self-imposed banishment. Instead of speaking, he merely shrugged, enraging Caroline.
“You don’t even care what you put me through, do you? I left you dozens of messages, none of which you returned, and then you think you can show up, out of the blue, and not even explain where you’ve been, or why you couldn’t at least call me to tell me that you weren’t going to be at the train station when you told me to be there! And I don’t know why you asked me here today, but given our history, I don’t think it’s as innocent as I’ve persuaded Guy it is…”
Mac moved towards her, so fast she didn’t have time to notice. He placed his palm over her mouth, silencing Caroline.
“The reason I shrugged was because I didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t because I don’t think you deserve an explanation or apology, because you do. And I’m sorry I didn’t return your messages, I didn’t have a chance to listen to them yet,” he pointed to the answering machine, where red lights displayed the number of new messages he had. It read 46.
“I don’t understand. You’ve had a whole year to sit in your flat and do nothing, but you haven’t listened to your messages once?”
“I haven’t been here, I went back to live with my parents for a year. I moved back in yesterday, I managed to sort out all my bills being forwarded to my parents’ house, so everything still works,” he explained. Caroline was stunned at the thought of a 37 year old living with his parents. In her silence, Mac decided to carry on talking. “I need your advice on something, though.”
“Which is what?”
“Should I apologise verbally or physically?” He smiled, hoping that the question would make her smile at least a little bit.
“Mac, no matter how good you are at apologising physically, it’s not going to be good enough. I need an explanation, not a simple sorry,” she stated, frowning.
“So that would be verbally. Okay,” Mac paused, both for dramatic effect and to organise his thoughts. “Before I was going to leave the hospital to go to meet you at the station, I had an appointment with Jeff. I was getting test results, a routine test, following the ambulance and cliff accident. We were expecting normal test results, more confirmation that I was absolutely okay. But that’s not what was found. The long and short of it was that these tests had shown that it was game over for me, I literally only had a few weeks to live. I thought about it, and I realised that it would be easier for you to lose me if I just disappeared, and you hated me for that, rather than we had an amazing couple of weeks and then I was gone,” he paused, to let it sink in.
“If you only had a few weeks to live, why are you still alive?” Caroline asked quickly.
“I haven’t quite worked that out yet,” he admitted.
“I’m sorry to seem… untrusting, but could you prove this or something, because it seems… unlikely.”
“Certainly. We’re going to the hospital, anyway, you can see my file when we’re there,” he told her, leaving her confused. “Oh, yeah, we’re going to the hospital so that you can re-do my tests. I need to know how long I’m going to be around. Plus the hospital demanded I get tests done again, seeing as they don’t really want me to drop dead after me working there for a week. I’m currently just a temp,” he explained, smiling.
“You want me to do the tests? Why not get a neurologist to do them?”
“I left you in the dark last time. I don’t want to do that this time,” he said, blushing.
Caroline rolled her eyes. “Fine. Let’s go. However, this does not mean you’re anywhere near forgiven.”

Mac grabbed his keys, and his motorbike helmets. He threw one to her, which she caught then stared at, petrified. He laughed at her expression, remembering how much she had screamed last time she had been on his bike. He walked to the front door, and opened it, signalling for her to go before him into the corridor.

Caroline stood in silence in the lift. Mac took this cue, and remained silent, also. Upon seeing Mac’s Ducatti, Caroline walked in its direction, and placed her helmet over her head. She waited for Mac to get on before she did herself, then, she wrapped her arms around his waist, putting her head as close to resting on his back as she could. Then she realised that this was the most comfortable she had been in a year.

Mac felt Caroline’s arms grasp him, clinging onto him for dear life. He smiled, this closeness was exactly what he had craved ever since meeting Doctor Todd. Simultaneously, he wanted to kick himself, for misplacing her and now quite possibly losing her altogether. But for now, he concentrated on the feeling of her so close to him.

Mac, try anything and you're a dead man! :angry:

It's excellent, v. v. well written and fluent! :D Poor little Guy though, I sense this trip won't be too great for his relationship with Caroline. :unsure:

its really good i want to know what happens!!! whatever you do, dont break poor little Guy's heart :cry

but the fic is great, keep going!

LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! :wub: LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!! LOVE IT!!!

GET CAROLINE AND MAC TOGETHER... ITS THE WAY ITS MEANT TO BE!!!!

Me likes :D Mac if you don't go for it - you're a dead man :ph43r:

as sweet and properly integral to the story that they should work things out....but only to the extent of being able to be in each others company........and if your going to make them be together,..dont make it one of thoughs guy tells her to go to him..they just dont feel right i would rather he was built back to where he was with time and then find someone else

:wub:

so cute!

you know theyre meant to be.

go for it Caroline! you know mac can take him. with a wooden clog if necessary.

whoa I LOVE IT!!! bring on the carmacness :wub:

Awww this is excellent!!!! I love it! GO MAC!

GO MAC, WIN HER BACK, GO MAC, WIN HER BACK....(sorry, chanting, symptom of too mch football)

WOOOOOO!
:wub:
MAC AND CAROLINE!
MORE PERFECT THAN CAROLINE AND DONKEY BOY!!!

HE DOESNT LOOK LIKE A DONKEY....OHH AND I SUPOSE GINGER NUTS/KING CHARLES SPANEL DESERVES HER!!! :angry: :unsure: :) :angel

WELL....
YES!
:wub:
plus, HE DOSNT LOOK LIKE A KING CHARLES SPANIEL!
:phwoar