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Darkness consumed Rye's mind and filled it with a dull but consistent and aching pain. He did not know if he was conscious or even alive. Any memories or thoughts that tried to surface in his mind were pushed out by the pain, leaving only it's ache and the darkness that consumed every one of his senses. He could hear anything other than silence, could not see anything other than darkness, not feel anything other than pain. Time had no concept here.

Rye had no idea how much time had passed but he eventually felt an invading force flood into his darkness, but it came with great relief as it pushed out the pain. That invading force numbed everything, the pain and even the memories and thoughts that had previously tried to push pass it.

Unable to form a thought, unable to recall a memory, Rye was not even able to know if he had left anything that he would miss. Has he even existed before? Is this what existence is? He could not answer those questions, he could not even remember the he had thought of those questions.

Being numb to any form of existence did not cause him to worry because he could not feel that emotion. He did not know what there was to be worried about. Simply endless darkness, no emotions, no thoughts, no memories.

The only notice in the difference of the infinite non-existence was when a dull light broke its way into the dark veil. That light grew strength, but with it brought an uncomfortable sensation. When having been left numb, the slightest bit of pain that the light brought with it was not welcomed at all. Nothing could stop it though, the more light that pushed out the darkness, the more pain flooded in. The more pain that came in made it easier for the light to come in.

Through the light some shapes started to form even though they were incredibly blurry. New sensations started to come as well, the feeling of being heavy, the scent of antiseptic, a dull roar that filled his ears and pounded with each heartbeat. One thought entered the otter's mind: _Where am I? _

In addition to feeling his body being incredibly heavy and impossible to move, Rye was able to feel additional pressure in one of his webbed paws. His vision was still blurred, and his head still ached with pain, he was able to look down at his paw to see what the anomaly was. There next to him was a white furred lump, asleep on the edge of the bed that Rye occupied.

Confused at first, Rye stared at the white furred lump a bit while his vision started to sharpen and the drug in his system started to lose its effect. It took him a few seconds to recognize the white otter next to him and holding his paw. The white otter was sitting in a chair next to the bed, with his head resting on the edge of Rye's mattress, sound asleep.

"Cloud," he tried to speak but only a soft gasp escaped his muzzle. He remembered Cloud, the otter that he loved. Memories started to return as he thought more on Cloud, the feelings he had for him. Cloud was a pillar that was returning all of his memories to him, but one eluded him; what had happened?

Cloud, the otter he met in school. They were quick to become friends, and Rye had struggled with the feelings of affection that quickly grew for this otter. In their friendship, Rye was not able to contain his feelings when they were physically close one night in the pool, and he learned that Cloud had the same affection for him. Rye's friends were quick to pick up on Rye and Cloud's new found happiness and supported him, but that support was not universal.

Diane.

Rye suddenly remembered the trouble that the mare had caused him, when she physically assaulted him at the cafeteria in school one day; that she had tried to drive Cloud away. Rye also had the sinking feeling that she was responsible for his current predicament.

With the majority of his memories and senses returning to him, Rye was now able to see clearly and although his head still ached it did not bother him as much anymore. He glanced toward the light source that had woken him up and it seemed that the sun had breached the horizon only moments ago and it was rising quickly now.

I am in a hospital bed. Rye concluded. _I must have been in a drug-induced coma. How long have I been asleep? Why am I in the hospital? _

Thinking on such questions caused for the pain to shift and prevented Rye from searching his memories any deeper. More sunlight was coming through the window and lit up the entire room. Although it was a bit blinding, Rye turned to watch the sun rise calmly enjoying the new morning that he assumed he was lucky to witness.

The light that flooded the room did not go unnoticed though and moments later Rye felt the otter next to him stir. Taking his gaze away from the sun, and turning his head (which was about the only movement he could do at that point), he turned and watched Cloud wake up. He could feel a smile tug at his lips.

The white otter's paw squeezed Rye's a bit, as if to make sure he was still there but the sleepy otter dozed for several long seconds. Rye could see in his expression that Cloud wore a tired and worried expression. Slowly the otter started to sit up in his chair and took a moment to wake up. Those worried eyes sparkled in the sunlight a beautiful emerald green that Rye loved.

Unable to move Rye could only watch Cloud for a few moments until Cloud finally looked up into Rye's eyes.

"Rye?" he questioned, voice filled with exhaustion and confusion. "You're... You're AWAKE!!" Cloud's movements were so sudden that it startled Rye. One moment Cloud was exhausted and waking up from a deep sleep, the next he had jumped in the air and threw the chair back away from him. It crashed loudly into the wall, and that expression of worry instantly changed into one of relief and excitement.

Cloud let out a squeal that Rye was not sure if it was a laugh or a sob but he did not have time to figure out which as the otter practically dived down on him and embraced him in a painfully tight hug.

Rye grunted at the sudden hug and all the pain that came from it, but Cloud instantly loosened his grip and back up from Rye a bit so that they were nose to nose. Staring into his eyes Rye was able to see those emerald green eyes were now glossed over, full with tears. Overcoming all the pain and the numbness was the affection that Rye felt once again for Cloud as they both stared into each other's eyes.

"How do you feel?" Cloud asked, now trying to give Rye some space by standing back at the side of his bed and no hovering over the injured otter.

"Thir..." Rye's voice cracked as he felt how dry his throat was. With greater effort he managed to say what he needed to. "Thirsty."

"Right," Cloud said with a large grin spread across his muzzle. The white otter glanced around looking for something before he found a cup on the nearby nightstand, with a pitcher of water. He poured a small cup and carefully held it out for Rye.

Still incredibly weak, it took great effort for Rye to lift his arm to take the cup in his paw. His paw was shaking slight, so Cloud did not let go and helped guide the precious liquid to Rye's lips. The cool liquid brought instant relief to Rye's throat but it was still difficult to drink. Once he had emptied the cup, Cloud took it back and placed it on the nightstand.

"Thank you Cloud," Rye said but his voice was still very hoarse. He glanced at the otter and managed a smile. He had a lot of questions but he did not know yet if he had the strength to ask them. Instead he simply asked: "Can you help me sit up?"

"Of course," Cloud said without any hesitation. He leaned down next to Rye and put and arm underneath his shoulder blades, which caused pain to flare up from one of his shoulders Rye threw one of his arms around Cloud for better support and he was lifted up slightly which allowed Cloud to put the pillows behind him for extra support so that he was now sitting up. Once Rye was settled, Cloud turned around and picked up the chair that he had knocked over just a minute before, and placed it as close to the bed as possible before he sat down in it.

"I am so happy to see you awake Rye," Cloud admitted, grabbing Rye's paw and holding it tightly. Rye could not help but to smile affectionately at the white otter. "I was so worried. Is there anything I can do for you? Anything at all? Just let me know."

Cloud was obviously excited and Rye found it endearing. He could feel the grin across his muzzle caused his sore cheeks to ache a bit but he could not remove it. "I'm fine Cloud," he finally answered. "I am happy that you are here."

"I wasn't going to leave your side," Cloud stated confidently. The tears in those green eyes were lessened now but it seemed most had fallen and now soaked the fur beneath Cloud's eyes. "The others were here too but they didn't find the idea of sleeping on the hospital floor too appealing. Some went home but Ariel and Nate are still here, somewhere."

Rye could not helped but be touched by his friends. They were here worried about him too and he had no doubt that they helped support Cloud for... however long he had been asleep. He would have to thank them next time he saw them.

"Are you sure you're feeling all right?" Cloud asked again with concern. He had noticed Rye's eyes tear up slightly with the thoughts of his friends' support.

Rye focused his gaze on Cloud once and nodded slightly. "With you here, of course I am. I could not be better."

Cloud giggled, thinking that Rye's statement was a bit ignorant to the fact that they are in a hospital at that moment.

"What happened?" Rye suddenly asked the question that has been on his mind since had woken up.

The giddy expression that Cloud had disappeared to one of surprise. "You don't remember?" Rye shook his head slightly. "It was Diane and a bunch of thugs. That crazy bitch ambushed us when we were going home. I never thought she'd go so far; she has lost her mind! I always thought her a bit crazy but she is completely nuts." Cloud's expression changed once again, this time to anger as he recalled the events, and then again turned into affection as he looked up at Rye. "You... you protected me. I don't know what they were trying to do and I don't want to think about it but your protected me. When we were leaving, Diane somehow got a gun and tried to kill us. You were shot twice in the back."

"That explains why it's so sore," Rye said trying to lighten Cloud's mood a bit. "It does sound familiar now that you tell me but it seemed like that happened years ago... How long have I been out?"

Cloud smiled, understanding Rye's concern. "Only a couple days."

"Good," Rye said with relief. "Still two days is a long time. Was it that serious?"

"One hit your shoulder blade and broke it," Cloud answered truthfully but he didn't seem to enjoy thinking about the details of Rye's injuries. "The other shot went just right through your ribs and... into your lung. There was a lot of internal bleeding and every time you tried to breathe you coughed out... blood. I was so worried!"

Cloud's gaze fell as he thought about it and his expression fell jut as much. Rye could not help but to pity the otter and he used what little strength to bring his paw up and caress Cloud's cheek. The white otter glanced up at him and gave him a weak smile.

"I'm sorry to worry you." Rye said plainly.

Both otters stared into each other's eyes for a few moment until a familiar voice interrupted them.

"Nate, he's awake!" echo the voice from behind the door of the hopital room. A moment later the door opened and came in a familiar lynx and wolf. "Rye, it's about time you woke up. You can be so lazy!"

Rye chuckled at the lynx. "Hi Ariel. Good morning Nate."

"How you feeling buddy?" the tall wolf asked.

"I'm fine," Rye answered. "I get the feeling that I might be answering that question a lot."

"Of course," Nate responded, stepping closer to the bed. "You have everyone worried sick about you. Cloud has been an emotional wreck."

"Nate, not now," Cloud groaned by he could help but to smile a little bit. He knew it was true but he didn't want Rye to hear about that and become worried about him.

Rye smiled at Nate and Ariel, who were grinning back at him. "Thank you both," he said. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes. "Thank you for taking care of Cloud."

"You and Cloud are our friends," Ariel said honestly. The tone she said it held a strong meaning and she didn't say it lightly. "You are too. We were worried about you and we certainly could not leave Cloud here alone."

"Thank you," Rye said. He was happy to have such great friends in his life.

A few moments of silence passed between them all before Nate decided to break that silence. "Wait till you try the food here Rye! The pudding is incredible!"

"That was for Rye!" Cloud rebuked him but the wolf only laughed in response.

Rye forgot all about the pain, even as the pain killers wore off as he and his friends hung out in the room for a bit. It didn't take long for a nurse to come around and do their rounds in which they were surprised to find Rye awake as well. With a quick check up, Rye was promised that he would likely be able to go home soon. His friends helped bring food to him, help him stand and walk to the bathroom when needed and kept him entertained for the whole day. Even though sometimes they left the room, one always stayed behind to keep him company, and for that Rye was very appreciative.

Late in the afternoon after a final check up, Rye was released from the hospital. Wheeled out in a wheelchair, Rye was able to get in Ariel's vehicle without too much discomfort and she drove Cloud and him home with Nate in tow.

After they were almost to Rye's apartment, a question came to his mind that he hadn't thought of while he was in the hospital. The others had avoided the subject too but Rye was curious. "What happened to Diane?"

"Oh they caught her," Ariel did not hesitate to respond. "She admitted it and sold out her thug buddies, even though you left plenty of them unconscious in the alleyway that it wasn't difficult to find them. We're haven't heard much yet but it seems she's going to be transported across the planet to get some mental therapy in some secluded facility. About time if you ask me."

Rye cracked a smile; he knew Ariel never did like the mare and it seemed her instincts was already spot on.

"Don't worry about her Rye," Nate input. He was in the passenger seat and turned to look back at the two otters in the back of the vehicle. "She won't be coming back. I doubt you'll ever see her again."

The vehicle came to a slow and turned into the apartment complex that Rye lived at. Slowing down to a halt, Ariel parked the vehicle and they all got out of the vehicle. Cloud came over to Rye's side and allowed the otter to put an arm around him while he put his paw around Rye's waist for support. Slowly and carefully they walked toward Rye's front door.

Opening the door, Rye was surprised that there were so many in his apartment.

"Rye!!" many of them exclaimed. All of his friends were there, from school, from Beach Lagoon.

"What are you all doing here?" Rye asked, staring at them all with shock.

"We heard you woke up," Shasta said, the small squirrel approaching the otter. "We wanted to make sure that you had everything you needed. We cleaned your place, and filled your fridge and pantry with food so you can have plenty of rest and get well."

"We wanted to see you too," Aaron spoke up. "Not many of us were able to do that when you were in the hospital."

Rye looked around the his apartment, seeing all those that came to see him. He had never felt so loved and appreciated before; it brought tears to his eyes.

"Thank you everyone," Rye said. A warm wet presence on Rye's cheek distracted him and he turned to see Cloud staring back at him with affection. "I love you Cloud."

Cloud grinned at those words.

The rest of the evening went by with Rye and Cloud receiving full support from their friends but eventually they left one by one, deciding to give Rye and Cloud privacy. The otter's felt that their affection each other has grown stronger, along with their friendships with all their friends. There would be no need for the otters to worry again, as long as they have their friends, and each other.