The Boy Who Cried Sapphire Tears

To Meg, thanks, as always, even after such a long stretch of me not writing, for the help in editing this chapter. You do catch a lot of my mistakes and I am thankful for it.

To the reader, yeah, it's been over three years since I last updated and for that, I am really sorry. I finally forced myself to get past my writer's block, and I am sorry if the chapter fills a little lackluster. I am not sure when the next chapter will be out...I have taken on a new position within my company and it will be taking a lot of my time until I can get on a regular schedule. I will do my best to continue writing, but I don't know how long it will take. I hope to God it won't be another three years. My goal is within the next few months. Once I get on a good routine at work, I will be able to devote more time to my writing and hopefully put more chapters out soon after that.

Chapter 18 already has 7 pages written and I hope to add at least 10 more, but we will see what happens.

Again, thanks again for all your patience and I hope you guys will forgive the time gap.

If you are not a member and you are interested, go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/QBWTEE

The Boy who cried Sapphire Tears – Chapter 17

His sleep was shallow, restless. The ICU allowed visitors twenty-four hours a day, every day. Doctors, nurses, monitors and drugs could only go so far: a patient able to be near a loved one kept them tethered in a way that medicine could not. Todd never left Blake's side. He dozed, but his brain was alerted to every sound. He would wake up thinking Blake was trying to get his attention. Every time he opened his eyes, he would see the same scene...Blake, lying motionless, with the tubes coming from his body and the brace securing his neck. The same neck that he had kissed so many times before. The body, once strong and healthy, now battered and broken. He tried not to think about it too hard because it would upset him. He closed his mind and would eventually doze off again.

Not knowing exactly how soon before morning it really was, Todd found himself staring at Blake this time when he woke up, willing Blake to open his eyes, but to no avail. He would stare at Blake breathing...but not natural. The tube in his lungs was attached to a bag next to his bed, raising and lowering, mechanically, rhythmically. The tube from his side kept secreting the amber liquid and it sickened Todd to know that without the tube, Blake wouldn't be able to breathe.

Looking at Blake's bandaged face and head, he couldn't help but cringe every time. The pain that he was sure Blake would be in if he were awake made him thankful that he was able to take the pain from Blake. Todd hoped that Blake never had to feel what he went through, with the pain that he himself felt as Blake was unconscious. Maybe that's why Todd felt it...he was always the stronger of the two. Maybe Todd felt the pain because he could survive it. Maybe Blake wouldn't have been able to survive had he been awake. Just the thought of that brought tears to the forefront of Todd's eyes.

He continued to look at Blake and saw the bruising that the car had left as proof of that terrible accident. The darkened upper half of Blake's face, with its purple, blue and black colors, made Blake almost unrecognizable. The bruises stretched across Blake's swollen face like he spilled ink running down without care.

Scanning down the rest of Blake's body, Todd saw both thighs about as twice as big as normal. The bandages covering the broken legs, the cut skin, the metal rods needed to help him walk again. The mere thought of how broken Blake really was got to him so fast, he couldn't control the tears that soon found his cheeks. He covered his face and sobbed as he muffled the moans and fear falling from his throat...his body shaking with cries that he hadn't cried in a very long time. He would have kept it up for a lot longer had he not been interrupted.

The door to Blake's room opened and Todd dropped his hands and looked at the door to see a male nurse entering the room. He stopped when he saw Todd. As Todd wiped his tears away, trying to hide the fact that he had been crying, the nurse walked in.

"I didn't mean to interrupt." He showed signs of understanding what Todd was going through and said, "I can come back if you need some time..."

"No," Todd said as he finished wiping his eyes. The nurse grabbed a tissue and handed it to him. "Thanks." He wiped his eyes again and blew his nose. The nurse went about his duties, keeping his eyes on Blake so that Todd could do what he needed to do without being scrutinized.

"What time is it," Todd asked.

"Just past seven. How'd you sleep?" the nurse asked.

"Not well," Todd said, stretching.

"So, how do you know Blake here?" The nurse was now getting Blake's temperature.

"Boyfriend," Todd answered, keeping his eyes on the nurse for any nasty faces or mean looks. Instead, he saw a small grin.

"Ahh," the nurse acknowledged. "He's a lucky guy to have you by him when he needs you the most."

"I'm the lucky one. If it wasn't for him, I'd probably still be the jock, living a lie on into college."

"I know what you mean," the nurse agreed. "It took me falling in love to come out to myself and my parents. Sadly, it didn't last but I'm a much better man because I can be who I am without worry."

Silence filled the room for a few moments while the nurse continued his checking of Blake's vitals. He continued checking the monitors and other equipment to make sure they were all in working order. As he watched, Todd asked, "So, how's he doing this morning?"

"Still no change, but his blood pressure is good. Temperature is fine. Better to have no change, than a bad change. His body is healing itself. I heard the doctors talking and they hope to see some improvement soon."

"Any idea how long?" Todd asked.

The nurse looked at Todd, then back at Blake and said, "I'm sorry, but I don't know."

Todd stared back at Blake and looked at his swollen face.

"He can hear you, ya know," the nurse said.

"He can?" Todd asked, again, surprised.

"Yeah. Subconsciously, he knows you're here. Talk to him if you want to," the nurse said, taking off his gloves. "My name's Kevin, if you need anything, by the way," Kevin said, grabbing his tray of supplies and Blake's chart.

"Thanks," Todd said. "I think I'm gonna get something to eat and a shower. I'll be back in an hour or so." Once the words were out of his mouth, he didn't know why he said them. Why would Kevin care what he was about to do? He had his own job and other things to deal with.

"Okay. He'll be fine while you're away. Don't worry," Kevin replied

Todd nodded his appreciation and understanding .

After Kevin left, Todd leaned down and gave a soft kiss to Blake's cheek. "I'll be back soon." The pit of Todd's stomach didn't want him to leave. What if...Just what if something happened while he was gone for one hour? Todd knew he was being pointless in this thought, but the fear of `what if' was always there. He breathed and tried to steady his nerves. He turned and headed out the door.

The next few days were the same routine. The only time Todd left his side was for bathroom breaks, shower and eating, half of which, he would bring the food back to eat in the room. Todd got tired of the TV after a while and switched to magazines and books. A few times, he would read something about some celebrity and tell Blake about it. It's something he would do if Blake were awake, so he figured he would keep doing it. Who knows, maybe Blake will remember some detail of some article when he wakes.

There were many visitors over the next few days as well. Two people at a time were allowed in the room, so Todd would step out every once in a while to allow two other friends to visit. He would normally give updates to everyone that couldn't make it to Montana, just to keep them informed of any new changes. Kelly, who wanted to be there more than anything, thanked Todd of his texts and calls with any news. It was hard for her to keep her mind on her schoolwork, but she was doing the best she could.

Todd tried Mitchell a few times, but his phone has been disconnected and he didn't know any other way to get in touch with Mitchell. He called Grannie Sue and explained what has happening. She wanted to come, but informed Todd that her health was preventing her from being able to travel. He promised that he would keep her updated with any changes and told her to call Blake's cell if she wanted any additional updates.

One of these visits, Todd ended up going to see Bruce. Charles had just walked out of Bruce's room and Todd got to door before it closed. When Bruce looked up, he smiled at Todd.

"Someone told me you were here," Bruce said, adjusting himself in his bed.

"Yeah. Came in on Sunday. I'm sorry I haven't come by earlier...just been worried about Blake," he said, as he crossed to give Bruce a gentle hug.

Releasing Todd, Bruce pushed the apology away with a wave of his hand. "How's he doing? Everyone tells me he's fine, but that's not what I want to hear."

Todd gave him a look of understanding before he started. "He's in a coma for now. His brain's swollen a bit. That nurse, Kevin, told me that hope to see some progress in about a week. Hopefully the swelling goes down soon and the pressure in his brain will lessen. The bruises are healing and the cuts are mending. They've set his legs and say he'll have a lot of physical therapy in his future."

"Same here," Bruce said, looking at and feeling his sore legs. "How's his neck?"

"They said there wasn't any damage to the cord, but right now, I don't know. I wanna believe them, but I don't want to get my hopes up just in case."

There was a silence between them for a moment, then Todd asked about Bruce's injuries.

"Besides a few bumps and bruises, it's just my legs that were injured. I was able to move my upper body out of the way when the car was being crushed. Now, the doctors have fixed my legs, and they said I've got about four months of recovery with about a year of physical therapy to follow."

Todd nodded his head in understanding. Tentativly, he asked, "Do you remember what happened?"

Bruce closed his eyes and Todd immediately regretted the question. As he was about to tell Bruce to forget it, Bruce started telling what he remembered. Todd sat, enraptured, anger filling him at the stupid mistake of the other driver, then pity when his family would no longer have the man to come home to them. As Bruce described Blake's actions, of how scared he was, he remembered his dream and feeing the exact same way. As Bruce described it, he remembered dreaming the exact actions in his sleep.

How is that possible?' Todd thought. How did I see what he went through?'

He didn't think about it too long as Bruce pulled him out of his thoughts. They talked a bit more before Todd excused himself, seeing Dwight walking in the room to his husband.

"How're the horses?" Bruce asked.

"Same as always," Dwight said. "How's the husband?"

"Better, now that you're here."

Todd stopped at the door and saw the two men kiss each other hello. Smiling, he left Bruce and Dwight to catch up for the day.

A week passed and the ventilator was turned off and after a few tense moments, Blake took his first breath without help in 8 days. The doctor, nurse and Mom, Dad and Todd were all there, holding their breath, waiting. Todd had begged them to wait, just a little longer. What if...' he would always ask when someone mentioned it. The doctors assured Todd that if things turned south, they would be right there ready to hook the ventilator back up. Todd's fears turned out to be false and his anxiety about the ventilator being turned off ebbed away. Blake was ready to breath on his own. One hurtle down,' he thought. `One more to go.'

Over the next couple of days, Todd started seeing Blake move his fingers or his toes. The first time it happened, he ran out and saw Angel, the nurse Todd met on his first evening with Blake. He ran to her and Angel looked worried. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. He's moved a finger! His finger moved," Todd said smiling big.

Todd practically ran back to the room and Angel followed at her usual pace. The few people in the waiting room, Mom, Pax, Mama and Papa saw Todd and thought the worst. They hurriedly made their way to Blake's room, only to hear Todd describing what he saw.

"I was just sitting here reading and I saw something twitch. I called his name and his fingers moved again."

Angel pulled a pen light out of her pocket and pulled Blake's eyes open, one by one. As she shown the light in them, they each contracted as they should. She smiled and said, "Things are looking good. The doctor will be by in an hour to do his rounds. He'll do some further tests."

"Because he moved his fingers..., does this mean he's gonna be okay? He's not paralyzed?" Todd asked.

Everyone at the door looked from Todd to Angel, waiting for an answer.

"I think the doctor needs to answer that one," Angel said.

Todd seemed to deflate and Angel noticed. "Look, I'm sorry, but the doctor really needs to look at him. I can't test anything and I don't want to hurt him any further." She watched Todd for another moment and said, "He'll be in in about an hour. Just be patient for a little while longer."

Todd nodded his head. He allowed his hopes to get a little higher with what he had seen. From what he knew, medically, if something moved, then it couldn't be paralyzed. Maybe he didn't know everything, but he hope that he was correct in this thinking, at least. Before Angel left, she said, "Only two of you, please."

The others at the door felt a little lighter as they walked away, but was still left to wonder what the doctor would say when he stopped by. Christine made her way to her son and put her arms around him. "Be patient, Todd. We'll hopefully know something definite in an hour or so."

"I will." Todd put his head on his mom's shoulder and put an arm around her waist and stared at Blake, hoping that the news they would soon hear was good.

After the doctor stopped by, he did a few tests and concluded that Blake's spinal cord survived the break and that he wasn't paralyzed. Todd was soon taking a break from the hospital room to make his calls to everyone to keep inform them of the good news.

About an hour after talking to Granny Sue, Blake's phone rang. Todd looked at the caller ID and saw it was Mark from Los Angeles.

"Hello?' Todd said.

"What the hell has been going on?" Mark asked, irritated. "I just got through talking with Granny Sue and she told me that Blake wasn't paralyzed. I didn't know he was even hurt. What's happened?"

"Mark, with all that's been going on, I completely forgot to tell you about this. I'm sorry," Todd said. He spent the next few minutes explaining what had happened to Blake and when he was done, Mark remained speechless.

"Mark, are you still with me?" Todd asked.

"Yeah. It's just a lot to take in. I can't believe this has happened."

"Neither can anyone else. But, he seems to be getting better in stages. Now, we're just waiting for him to wake up. To communicate with us. Once he does, I'll feel a lot more relieved."

"I can take a few days off and come out if you need me to," Mark suggested.

"If you want to, you can, but right now, we're just waiting. I can keep you informed like I am for everyone else, but if you want to come, then by all means, do so."

"I'll talk to Tripp and let you know tomorrow," Mark said.

They talked for another half hour before Todd told him he needed to make a couple more calls. He promised to keep him informed if they couldn't make it up as well.

Twelve days after the accident, Blake lay as still as he had on the first day. Only his chest rising and falling now on his own accord than with a machine. Every once in a while, Todd would see a twitch of the fingers or toes. Todd left his side only for bathroom breaks, showers and food. Don, Christine, Pax, Tristian and even Mama and Papa have been trying to talk him into going back to the ranch for some proper rest only for him to refuse, saying he wanted to be there when Blake woke up.

"You are exhausted, honey," Pax was saying.

"I know but..." Todd said, looking at Blake.

"You need to get some sleep. If he wakes while you're gone, he'll be here when you get back. One of us will call you as soon as he wakes up," Don said.

"You don't know that," snapped Todd. "What if he wakes up for one minute and I'm not here? What if he does that and he never wakes up again?"

"You can't think like that, Todd," Christine appealed.

"That's all I can think about," Todd said, looking back at Blake, his voice faulting.

Don was about to interject his opinion when he was interrupted by Mama. "I think we need to let him be."

Everyone looked to him and he continued. "I understand he wants to be here when Blake wakes up. I'd want to be here, too, if it was Papa in that bed instead of Blake." He paused and sighed. "Why don't we go to the ranch and I can cook us some dinner. Then after, I can bring you back a plate," he said, looking at Todd.

Todd nodded his head and everyone else, reluctantly, agreed with Mama.

Todd pulled the chair a little closer to Blake as everyone else filed out of the room, leaving the two of them alone. He grabbed Blake's hand and pulled it to his lips. "You gotta wake up soon, baby. I need you with me. I'm not strong enough to be here without you." A lone tear found its way down to his chin. Todd closed his eyes and willed everything he had to Blake...to make him better...to heal faster...to open his eyes...to survive this horrible nightmare

A moment later, Kevin pushed open the door, and Todd turned his head, quickly, to wipe the tear from his chin and to clear the streak from his face. Kevin noticed, but acted as if he didn't. "How are you holding up, Todd?"

Clearing his throat, Todd said, "Okay." Standing up, he asked, "Do you need to get here?"

"I can do what is needed over here," Kevin gave a small smile, standing on the other side of the bed. After a few minutes, Kevin spoke again. "You gotta stay positive, Todd."

Anger rising again, Todd retorted, "I wish people would stop telling me that." A moment later, he felt guilty and turned and said, "I'm sorry. I know you're...hell, everyone is only trying to help, but I feel so helpless just sitting here, watching...waiting for him to wake up."

"You are doing all that you can here. Trust the doctor, trust us nurses. And try to stay positive."

Todd thought that over for a few minutes as Kevin finished up. He sat back down and grabbed Blake's hand again and began to think positive thought, thinking it couldn't hurt to keep trying. He kept telling himself that Blake would be okay...that he would wake up. Over and over he played this in his mind, telling himself that it was true and that Blake had to feel how much he was fighting for him.

After concentrating heavily for ten minutes, Todd opened his eyes to see no change in Blake's predicament. He had hoped that Blake would be staring at him, or about to talk, as if nothing had happened. But the only sound was the beepings and hums of the monitors...the only movement was Blake's chest every time he took a breath.

After a couple more hours, Todd flipped off the TV, stood up to kiss Blake goodnight on the forehead and headed over to the guest chair that turned into a somewhat comfortable twin sized bed. He made up the sleeper and tuned all but the lights out over Blake's bed, then climbed under his covers and tried to sleep.

Pain was the first sense that came to him. He didn't know where he was, or what was going on...all he knew was that he was in agonizing pain. He slowly opened his eyes and felt terrible. The only light that was on was over his bed. He looked up to it and then quickly closed his eyes, realizing that he couldn't move his head. He slowly reached up and felt a large plastic thing hugging his neck. Panic started to course through him, but he forced himself to calm down. Flicking his eyes around, he could only see the ceiling and what looked like TVs all around his bed. He felt around with his hands and there, on the bed, was a remote thing with a thick cord sticking out the end of it. He pulled it up to look at it, but his grip was so weak, it fell over the side of the bed and hit the floor.

Todd was just about to slip into sleep when a sound brought him back to himself. He looked to the direction of the sounds and saw Blake's hands grabbing the railing of the bed. Todd practically ran the four steps it would have taken to walk. "Blake?"

"Todd?" Blake mouthed, but couldn't make any sound. He reached back up to his throat only to feel it wrapped in the hard plastic holding everything in place. "Water," Blake mouthed again.

Todd grabbed the remote and pushed the button to call for the nurse and then filled a small cup with water. Grabbing a straw, he lowered it to Blake's mouth. Blake took a sip and let the straw fall from him mouth. He reached for it again with his lips and Todd placed it back, so that he could take a deeper draw from the water cup.

Blake looked at Todd, but Todd could see Blake's confusion. Blake's eyes started to fill with tears. He was agitated and terrified.

"Hey, now," Todd said, plucking a couple of tissues off the bedside table. "No need to cry. I'm here, honey. You're safe." Todd wiped the tears from Blake's eyes and face.

"What's going on?" Blake asked, his voice finally coming back a little.

Todd reached for and grabbed Blake's hand. The touch of the man he loved finally made him feel whole again. It wasn't like it always was...not yet, but with time, he knew it would be. The pressure of Blake holding his hand again, squeezing it with what little strength he could muster brought a sweet smile to his face. Blake was scared, but when he grabbed Todd's hand, he felt calmer than he had a few minutes ago. Todd started to explain what happened, pausing so that Blake could comprehend. He kept having to wipe the tears away from Blake's face as he did. When Blake asked about the plastic collar around his neck, Todd told him about the break and the surgery to repair it.

"My neck's broken?" Blake asked, crying a little harder than before.

"It was, Blake, but they fixed it. They said there wasn't any cord damage, so you should be good. But you gotta keep your head still so you don't do any damage." Again, Todd cleared the tears away from Blake's face.

After a moment, Blake settled down a bit and Todd asked how he was feeling, physically.

"I hurt all over," Blake answered.

Just as Todd was about to grab the remote again, Betty, the night nurse walked through the door.

"Blake just woke up. He says he's in pain," Todd explained.

"Well, well, look who decided to come back to us."

Blake moved his eyes to the new voice and a moment later, he saw the nurse as she came to him.

"How're feeling, Mr. Moore?" Betty asked.

"I hurt all over. I feel like I just got run over by a truck," he told her.

"It was about time for a new dose of pain meds anyway. I'm going to call the doctor to come and see you before I give them to you. Let him talk to you for a few minutes. You'll be feeling better in a few minutes," she explained.

A few minutes after she left, the doctor walked in, followed by Betty.

"Blake, I'm Dr. Stuart. How are you feeling?" The doctor leaned over the bed rail, looking into Blake's eyes, waiting for an answer.

"Pain," was all that Blake said. He was frustrated that this was the third person he had told and nothing was being done to lessen his pain.

"Where is your pain? Can you give me specific locations?"

Blake closed his eyes and concentrated on the pain he was feeling. He imagined his feet and slowly worked up his body. When he reached his thighs he said, "Legs." He kept on with his mental scan and said,

"Stomach." Another moment he finished. "Neck."

"On a scale from one to ten, can you give me a number?" the doctor asked.

"I don't know what this pain would be. I've never felt it before. A ten, maybe."

Dr. Stuart looked at the nurse and said, "Increase the meds by five milligrams." He looked at Blake and said, "I'm gonna touch a few places on your body. Let me know if it hurts."

Blake tried to nod and realized he couldn't move his head. "Okay." He closed his eyes and let the doctor do his assessment. The doctor started at his feet and Blake didn't feel anything out of the ordinary.

"How's that feel?" the doctor asked.

"Fine," Blake answered.

"Do you feel any pain?"

"No."

The doctor grabbed a couple of leg hair and asked Blake if he could feel him pulling.

"Yeah," Blake said.

Todd was thinking that at least Blake could feel. That was a good sign. He stayed back while the doctor finished up. Blake winced a few times when the doctor touched him, but nothing more or less than what he was expecting.

"Okay, Blake. I'm gonna have nurse Kay give you some medicine for the pain and I'll be back tomorrow after you've slept and give a more in depth evaluation. You seem to be going well, for now. All you need to do is rest. We'll take care of the rest, okay?"

Blake said okay and the doctor left. Betty came back a few moments later and grabbed a small glass vial from the inside of her scrubs pocket and broke the top off of it. Sticking a plastic straw type thing, attached to a syringe, in the small bottle, she sucked up all the medicine.

"What is that?" Todd asked, curious.

"It's Fentanyl. A strong pain reliever," she answered.

"Can glass get in there?" Todd asked, seeing small piece lying in the now empty vial.

"No, this tip," she said, unscrewing it from the syringe, "has a spongy filter to catch any glass." Todd saw her lay that down and moved the syringe to the tube that lead from the IV and screwed it into a small piggyback junction and looked at Blake. "You'll feel a warm sensation flow through your body. Don't fight it. That's the medicine. You might fall asleep soon after, too. Just go with it. You'll feel better in a minute."

She started to slowly push the plunger of medicine into the IV tube and Todd could see the pain disappear from Blake's face by the time she had all of the medicine inside him.

"How are you feeling now?" the nurse asked.

Blake smiled and said, "Way better than I've ever felt before. Nothing hurts anymore and I feel like I'm..." he couldn't think of the word to describe the feeling he was having. Then it came to him, "...having an orgasm that just won't stop." He giggled a little and let his heavy eye lids close.

"Is that normal?" Todd asked, raising an eyebrow, trying to suppress his own laughter.

"Yeah," the nurse said, sighing and smiling at the same time. "He's high and he's enjoying it. At least the pain is gone. He can have another dose in six to eight hours. If you want to talk to him, be quick. He won't stay awake for long."

The nurse cleaned up around her and told Todd to push the button if they needed her. He nodded and she left, closing the door behind her.

"Baby?" Todd asked.

Blake slowly opened his eyes and saw Todd. Todd's head was slowly waving as if heat were in front of his eyes. "Yeah, Puppy?"

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I feel great, but I'm so tired." Blake grabbed Todd's hand again and held it for a moment.

"Go on to sleep, then. We can talk tomorrow," Todd said, giving Blake's hand a gentle squeeze.

"No. We can talk now." There was a pause, then Blake asked, "How long..." Blake's eyes were closed and Todd thought he had fallen asleep. Another second later, Blake finished his sentence. "...have I been here?"

"Almost two weeks, Baby."

"Two weeks?" Blake asked, surprised, but giving a big, theatrical smile as his eyes opened very wide. Todd had to stifle a laugh.

"How long have you been here?" Blake asked of Todd.

"I was here the very next day. Been by your side almost every minute since.

"So good...," Blake said, eyes closed, and lightly slapping the back of Todd's hand.

"What's good," Todd asked, smiling.

"Boyfriend..." Blake said, looking up at Todd, smiling.

Todd smiled and looked at Blake. "Why don't you get some sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, we'll talk some more."

Blake never answered Todd. He had already fallen back to sleep. Todd laid Blake's hand back on the bed and then went back to his own fold out. As he sat down, he smiled back at Blake, resting without pain. He dug in his pocket and grabbed his phone to call everyone to tell them the good news. He insisted they not come back because Blake was asleep, but instead to come back tomorrow. Don thanked Todd for the news, feeling like a few tons of weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

"What's wrong?" Christine said now that Don was off the phone. She had been on the edge of her seat waiting for the news.

"Nothing. Blake woke up," Don said, grabbing Christine and pulling her to him.

"Oh, thank God," she said, heaving a sigh. She wrapped her arms around her husband and started sniffing. Don pulled back just a bit to see her crying.

"What's wrong, baby?"

"I'm glad he's awake, but I kept thinking back to Christopher and what happened after we lost him. I didn't think I could go through that again. Blake's our son, now. Losing another one would have devastated me. Not to mention what it would have done for Todd and you."

"I know, but he's awake and he's fine." He squeezed her a little tighter. "Todd said not to come up now. Blake's back asleep. We'll see him in the morning."

Christine turned over and lay back down as Don pushed up next to her, wrapping his arms around her and putting his nose in her hair.

"I love you, Christine. Don't let this worry you anymore. Blake's gonna be fine."

"I know. And I love you too, Don."

Round about 6:45 in the morning, Todd was still too excited to sleep, and Blake opened his eyes. He called Todd's name and he walked up to the side of the bed.

"How're you feeling?" Todd asked.

"Still tired, but there's not a lot of pain. Can you tell me what happened?"

"You don't remember me telling you last night?" Todd asked, grabbing Blake's hand.

Blake looked at Todd and tried to shake his head, then remembered he couldn't. "Not really."

Todd told him, again, everything that had transpired over the last two weeks and Blake was in shock at hearing the story. The story that Todd was telling was like a movie playing in his head. He couldn't believe he survived the story that Todd was telling. Todd told of everything that he went through, but put it in a third person point of view, as if he was told the story by Mama or Papa or someone.

He explained about the tanker and what happened when it slammed into Bruce's car and what happened when Blake hit the windshield. How he was knocked out and how the car crushed his legs and pierced his side and broke his neck. When Todd finished, Blake look solemn.

"What's wrong, Baby?" Todd asked, seeing the change in Blake's face.

"It's a lot to take in," Blake said. After a short pause, he asked, "I really died?"

"Legally, twice, yes." Todd said, taking Blake's hand. "But you're back. You're a fighter."

Blake still couldn't believe what he was hearing. Tears started to form in his eyes and Todd brought his hand up to Blake's cheek and wiped the tears away with a gently swiping of his thumb. "It's okay, Blake. Everything's fine now," Todd said with a reassuring smile.

Blake put his hand on top of Todd's and gave a small nod as more tears fell from his lids. His tears weren't from pain, but from the thought of almost never seeing Todd again. What if the doctors weren't able to revive him? He wouldn't have had the chance to see Todd again. Blake steadied himself and took a deep breath—he was here, in front of Todd, awake, alive, breathing. He was looking in the deep green eyes that he had fallen in love with. The smile that made his heart melt every time he looked at it. He reached up and grabbed the front of Todd's shirt and pulled him into a gentle kiss. After breaking contact, Blake looked at him and said, "I love you more than anything else in this world."

"I love you, too, Blake. You are the reason I get up in the mornings. You are my life."

Blake gave him another kiss and gently pushed him away. "I'm really tired, Puppy. I need to go back to sleep."

Todd grabbed the covers and pulled them up to Blake's chin and said, "Sleep good, Baby. I'll be here when you get up." He leaned down and gave Blake one more kiss on the forehead.

By nine o'clock, everyone from the ranch turned up. Todd came out and told them what happened and explained that he told Blake everything. They were asking when they could see him, but Todd didn't know what to tell them.

"He's on some strong medication and he's in and out."

Pax walked up to Todd and told him, "Why don't you go back to the ranch and sleep? Let us be here for him now. You know he's okay, you spoke with him. You can see him again after you take care of yourself for a change."

Todd was about to protest, but a yawn escaped him and gave away how he was truly feeling. Finally, giving in to the numerous pleas, he said okay. Thomas overheard and volunteered to drive Todd back to the ranch. A few others went with them so they could get back to work.

"Tell Blake that the rest of us will be back after work," Thomas said.

"Okay," Christine answered.

Once back at the ranch, Todd instinctively went to the building that housed the ranch hands and headed to Blake's room. When he got there, he tried the door, but it was locked. He looked around for someone else, but they were all out on the ranch working. He went to find Thomas and asked if he had a key. He told Todd to follow him and he headed to the main house and grabbed the master keys to the ranch house. He let Todd in and told him that he would wake him when they were heading back to the hospital. Todd thanked him and went in and closed the door.

Inside the room, he looked around and realizing how tired he was, decided to strip and get in the bed. He could do a little snooping later. He shucked his underwear and pulled down the covers and got in bed. He was asleep in minutes. The next thing Todd knew, he was opening his eyes to the sound of knocking on the bedroom door. He felt like he just went to sleep 5 minutes ago.

"Yeah?" he called out.

"Todd, we're gonna head back to the hospital in about half an hour. You wanna come?" Thomas said.

"Yeah. I'll be up in a minute," Todd said, keeping his eyes closed. When he finally got in the bed, it was a little after 10 a.m. He grabbed his phone and saw that it read 5:42 p.m. Todd gave a big sigh and heaved his legs over the side of the bed. A moment later, he straightened himself up and opened his eyes, wide, then scratched his belly as he gave another big yawn.

He grabbed up what he needed and slipped on a pair of jeans to get to the shower. After washing, he walked to the sink mirror to brush his teeth. When he realized he didn't have his toothbrush, he saw a shelf labeled `Blake'. He looked on the shelf and only saw one toothbrush and some toothpaste, along with some shampoo, soap and a bath sponge to bathe with. He looked on the other shelves, just to see if someone had a brand new toothbrush to use that he could steal and replace later. He was out of luck and decided that as much as he and Blake had done over the last few years, brushing his teeth with Blake's toothbrush seemed like a no-brainer. He was just about to grab it when the bathroom door opened and in walked Jackson.

Jackson saw Todd, completely naked, and was about to apologize and back out, but Todd stopped him before he had a chance.

"Do you have an extra toothbrush that I can have? I'll replace it later," he said, oblivious to his lack of modesty.

It took Jackson a few moments to register that he was supposed to answer...his eyes had been concentrating on Todd's body and couldn't remember the question. He shook his head, closed his eyes and said, "Huh?" He felt like an idiot as he did so.

"Toothbrush? Do you have an extra one I can have?" Todd asked, wondering if Jackson was okay.

"Toothbrush?" he said, willing his eyes to keep looking at Todd's face and not his... "Oh, a toothbrush. Yeah, give me a sec."

When Jackson was out in the hallway, the first thing he did was put his hand over his crotch and push down the erection that started to form. I got Buddy. Stop staring at Todd, he thought. Retrieving the toothbrush, he went back to the bathroom, hoping and praying that Todd was covered. When he got inside, Todd was standing in front of the mirror with a shirt on, combing his hair, but still completely naked from the waist down.

Todd turned to Jackson and held out his hand and said, "Thanks." Jackson put the toothbrush in Todd's hand and, not standing it any longer, he looked down as Todd turned his back on Jackson. Todd's firm ass and his massive thighs almost made him climax right where he stood. To get his thoughts off Todd, he walked past Todd to the toilet stall to urinate, seeing as that was the reason he came in in the first place.

Right after he finished, he heard Todd turn off the water and, listening hard, he heard the rustle of clothes. A moment later, he heard the snap of an elastic band, letting Jackson know he was now covered.

Todd saw Jackson come out of the stall and said, "Sorry, man. I'm not very modest and sometimes I don't realize how uncomfortable I can make people when I'm naked."

Jackson shook his head and said, "No worries, but I wasn't uncomfortable. Just surprised, I guess. You really are as beautiful as Blake described." Jackson blushing a little, looked down at the floor, embarrassed.

Smiling, Todd said, "Thanks," then gave Jackson a smile. "How are things with Buddy?"

Smiling, himself now, Jackson said, "He's fine. He'll be back in a couple of weeks. Got a run from California to Maine, then I think he said either New Hampshire or New Jersey back to Idaho."

"You two getting along okay?" Todd asked, genuinely interested.

"Better than I ever imagined two people could," Jackson answered.

"You gotta picture to show me?" Todd asked, putting on his socks.

Jackson reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone. Scrolling through his albums, he found one of the both of them and turned it around to show Todd. "Wow. He's hot...and a cowboy to boot."

"Yeah," Jackson said, turning the phone back to his own eyes to take in his boyfriend.

"You've changed since the last time I saw you," Todd said, standing up to fasten his jeans. "I can really see the happiness in your eyes." He paused for a moment, then finished. "I'm really happy for you, Jackson."

"Thanks," Jackson said, smiling big. "And I'm glad that Blake pulled through. I know these last two weeks must have been hell on you."

"They were," Todd said, slipping his shoes on. "But he's awake. That's what matters right now. He's got a long road ahead of him, but he'll pull through. He's a fighter."

After everyone arrived back at the hospital, Todd didn't want to monopolize all of Blake's time, instead, he held back to let everyone get to visit with Blake. He stayed back and talked to Mama, Papa, his mom and dad and anyone else who was in the waiting room waiting for their time to visit. After everyone but Christine, Don and Todd had visited, they bid the three of them goodnight and headed back to the ranch for dinner.

"You're welcome to come back to stay at the house when you're done visiting," Mama told the three of them.

"Thanks, Oliver," Christine said. "We'll be there in a couple of hours."

Mama kissed Christine on the cheek and they headed out. Todd took his seat again and Christine turned to him. "Are you not going in?"

"I'm gonna let you two visit first. I'll probably stay here tonight, anyway. I've have my time with him," Todd explained.

After about an hour, Christine and Don came back and told Todd that Blake was asking about him. They exchanged their `good-nights' and Don and Christine left to go back to the ranch. Todd stepped toward Blake's room and, as he did so, the smile on his face got bigger with every step. When he slowly pushed open the door, he saw Blake laying on the bed with his eyes closed.

He continued into the room and, silently, sat down in the chair next to the bed. As he did, he heard Blake speak.

"What? No hello kiss?"

Todd looked up and saw that Blake had a large smile on his waiting lips. Todd stood and leaned over the bedrail to touch his lips to Blake's. Breaking the kiss, he said, "Hey, Baby."

"Hi," Blake said in return, sporting the same smile as before.

Todd sat back down and reached up to grab Blake's hand. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. Still sore all over, but the meds are helping." Blake looked at him for a moment and asked, "So, how are you holding up?"

Todd smiled and gave a small sigh. "I'm exhausted, to be honest."

"Then why are you here?" Blake asked. "Go back to the ranch with everyone else?"

"I want to be here. I don't care how tired I am...there's no other place in the world I'd rather be." Todd gave him a reassuring smile and Blake squeezed his hand in return.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments, the air still between them, just staring before Todd spoke again. "Robert came with me."

"I' haven't seen him. Is he still here?" Blake asked.

"No. He went back on Sunday a week ago. He was only here for four days. He didn't want to miss too many classes."

"What about classes for you? Have you done anything since you've been here?" Blake asked.

"No. I wouldn't have been able to concentrate until I knew you were safe. I've got to head back soon, though, so I won't fall too far behind. I'm hoping the professors will understand and let me make up all that I missed."

"Here, take a picture of me on my death bed. I might be more convincing that way," Blake joked.

"Don't do that," Todd chided, bringing his hand back to his lap.

"Do what?" Blake asked, puzzled.

"This isn't your deathbed. Don't joke about that," Todd repeated, lowering his eyes to the floor.

"Puppy," Blake called, reaching for Todd's hand. Todd met his halfway. "I'm fine. I'm in pain but I'm awake. It's okay." Blake tried to reassure him even more with the look in his eyes.

"I know, but...for a while there, we didn't know what was going to happen." Todd tried to swallow the sudden lump in his throat. "I didn't know if I was going to lose you." His voice only a whisper. Todd's eyes burned with tears and he lifted his hand to wipe his eyes and looked at Blake.

"You know I didn't mean to scare you and I'm sorry that I did. I fought like hell to come back to you. I actually think that I heard you somewhere deep in my subconscious."

"I've been talking to you for the last two weeks. I was hoping you would be able to hear me. The nurses said you would, anyway."

"Well," Blake said, smiling. "It must have worked, because here I am."

"Thank, God!" Todd chuckled, smiling and wiping his eyes again.

Blake reached for Todd's hand again and they grabbed it firmly as they stared at each other and smiled, happy to be back together again. After a few moments, Blake told Todd that Bruce was able to visit him today.

"Really?" Todd said, smiling. "How?"

"He wheeled himself in. He told me he was getting bored sitting in his bed all day and talked that cute nurse," Blake looked at Todd, expecting him to provide the name.

"Kevin?" Todd asked.

"Yeah, him. He talked Kevin into letting him roll around for a bit, to get a change of scenery. He looks good. Getting stronger, but his legs are still off limits for now, as are mine."

"Speaking of legs," Todd said and stood. He started to unbutton his jeans and Blake stopped him.

"What are you doing?"

"I wanna show you something. I don't understand it and I don't know if you will either, but I want you to see." Todd lowered his pants down to his knees and Blake stared, dumbfounded.

"What the hell happened?" Blake said, staring at the bruises across Todd's thighs.

"No idea, but if you look at the location," Todd said, pointing, then moving his finger to point to Blake's legs, "they're in the same location as the breaks in your legs."

Instinctively, Blake reached down to touch his own thighs, looking from his legs to Todd's. Pulling his pants back up, Todd also raised his shirt and said, "And these two as well."

Blake felt on his torso to the bandage that covered the wound where a piece of metal punctured his stomach and lung and broke a rib. "How is that possible?" Blake asked in disbelief.

"I keep wondering the same thing," Todd said, returning to his seat. "Remember when I told you that you legally died?"

"Yeah," Blake answered, looking at Todd.

"Well, my heart stopped, too, twice, at the same time. I was in the hospital in the city when it happened."

"Why were you in the hospital?" Blake asked, panicking.

"They took me because of my stomach and legs. They had no idea what was happening to me. I kept trying to tell them that it wasn't me getting hurt. It was you. I don't know how, but I felt the pain that you were in. I felt the car crush your legs...the metal break your rib and puncture your insides." Todd looked down for a moment then back at Blake. He stepped closer and put his hand on Blake's right cheek. "I don't know how or why, but I'm glad I was able to take that pain from you and that you didn't have to go through it."

"I'm sorry you did, though," Blake said, putting his hand on top of Todd. He felt like crying for the pain that Todd had endured, but before he could, Todd leaned back down and kiss him.

Breaking the kiss, Todd put his forehead against Blake's and said, "I love you so much."

"I love you, too, Baby."

They talked for about another hour, trying to get past all the bad things that had happened over the last two weeks. Blake saw how tired Todd was and even though he could go without his pain medicine, he knew that Todd wouldn't sleep until he did. He made an excuse and called the nurse on duty, Greta. When she came in, Blake asked if he could get another dose of pain killers. She was back in ten minutes and after the clear liquid entered his veins; his eyelids were too heavy to keep open. He thanked her and she left. Blake looked into Todd's eyes and told him he loved him again, but he needed to sleep. Todd kissed Blake's cheek and told him goodnight. A few minutes later, Todd transformed the chair into his bed by pulling out the seat and lowering the back. Pushing the ottoman into place, he then used the Velcro straps to hold it at the end. Once he was done, he laid down and was sleeping heavily within minutes.

Blake woke before Todd the following day, and he listened to his heavy breathing. The feelings coursing through him at that moment were unexplainable. Todd had been by his side for a full two weeks and he was still there. Blake couldn't wipe the smile off his face, no matter how hard he tried. After another half hour, Todd began to stir. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling for a moment before he yawned and gave a big stretch. When he was done, he looked up at Blake's bed, only to find Blake staring at the ceiling with a smile.

"Morning, Baby," Todd said, smiling back.

"Hey, Puppy."

"How long have you been up?"

"Not long. Just listening you sleep. I wish I could have watched you, but with this thing on my neck..." He let the words fall away as he reached up and touched the plastic brace. "What were you dreaming about?" Blake asked.

"I don't remember. It wasn't heart-racing, whatever it was. But if you were in it, I'm sure it was an amazing dream," Todd said, standing and going to Blake.

Blake reached for Todd's shirt and pulled him down into a kiss. Todd stopped, saying, "I need to brush my teeth."

"So do I, but I don't care. I need to kiss you...now!" Todd didn't resist any longer and allowed Blake to pull him so that their lips could meet.

When everyone else arrived to visit Blake, Blake talked Todd into going back to the ranch to get a shower and freshen up. Todd didn't want to leave, but did at Blake's insistence. While he was gone, Blake and Pax had a conversation about sending Todd back to school. Blake knew that Todd wouldn't leave on his own, so he decided to push the subject a little with pre-made plans.

When Todd arrived back at the hospital, he headed up to the ICU like always, and found Blake's room empty. His heart sank in his chest as he started to the nurses station. On the way, he ran into Kevin.

"Where's Blake?" Todd asked, panicking.

"He's been moved to another room. He's out of the woods and we need these rooms for other patients," Kevin explained.

Todd put a hand over his heart and took a deep breath. "I was thinking the worse. Do you know where they moved him?"

"Room 539," Kevin said. He gave him directions to get there. When he arrived, he saw his mom and dad, Pax and Tristian, Mama and Papa all gathered around Blake's bed.

"I see you got my message," Christine said.

"What message?" Todd asked, puzzled.

"I sent you a text," she replied.

Todd reached in his pocket and got his phone. Sure enough, there was a text from Christine that he hadn't seen. "I didn't see it. I went to the old room and thought something terrible had happened. Kevin told me he was moved."

"Nothing's gonna happen to me anymore. I'm good now, which brings me to another topic we need to talk about," Blake said, looking at Todd and patting the edge of the bed, beckoning Todd to sit. Todd walked over and took his seat.

"Is everything okay?" Todd asked.

"Yeah, but we've all decided that you need to go back to New York. You have school that you need to catch up on. You've already missed too many days. Too many more and you might get an incomplete and have to repeat the semester," Blake said.

"I'll be okay with my work. I just want to be here for you right now. School can wait," Todd commented.

"Well, it won't. Pax has a plane for you heading back to New York this afternoon at 3. You need to be at the airport at 2:30."

Todd started to feel angry, but tried his best not to show it. "I'll go back this weekend," he said under a controlled voice.

Blake looked at everyone else and asked if they could have some privacy. The others filed out at the request and headed to the waiting area. Once they were gone, Blake looked at Todd and said, "You're leaving today." Todd was about to counter that argument, when Blake cut across him and continued. "Todd, I'm fine. I'm on the mend and it's gonna take a long time for me to recover. The doctors are talking about up to six months just for my legs to heal. After that, I'll have another six months to a year of rehab so I can walk again without any help. My neck should be healed in two or three months."

"And I wanna be here to help you through that," Todd said, cutting across Blake.

"You want to take a year off of school to help me get better?" Blake asked. He couldn't move his neck, but his eyes were telling Todd that the idea was ridiculous. "What about school? You just gonna drop out?"

"I can take a year off," Todd said. "I can go back next year."

"And us be away from each other for another whole year? Like hell you will," Blake said, getting aggravated. "You need to stay on the schedule that you have now so we can finally start our life together back in Atlanta. We only have a year and a half left. I don't want to wait another whole year to be with you. We can have date night every night. You can turn me on the computer and I'll watch you study, talk, eat dinner with you and everything." Blake stared hard to Todd, willing him to comply with the request.

Todd sighed.

Blake continued. "Todd, please," Blake said, reaching for Todd's hand. Todd laid his hand in Blake's and started at him. "I want you to go back to school and keep the time table that we have set...like we've planned. I'm gonna need more help that you can give me. Mom told me that she is talking to the trucking company about the bill that's adding up. She's trying to talk them into paying the bills for both Bruce and myself. If they refuse, she's gonna sue them. I'm gonna have to hire a home nurse to help me. I won't be able to do this by myself, or even with all of your help," Blake continued, seeing Todd about to interrupt. "It'll be more work than any one person can do. I might have to go back home to Atlanta after this. I'm not sure."

"Then you will need more help. If you go home, who's gonna take care of you there?" Todd asked.

"I don't know, but it can't be you," Blake insisted

"Why not?" Todd asked, getting angrier still.

"I would love nothing more for you to be with me every step of my recovery, but I would rather us have our lives started in 2013 like we planned. Just because there's been a little bump in the road..."

"Little bump?" Todd asked. "This isn't a little bump."

"I know, but just because this has happened, doesn't mean we have to derail our entire schedule. I can only hope that when you graduate next year, I'll be fully recovered and we can start our lives together, in the same place."

Todd kept silent, trying to will away his anger. He understood where Blake was coming from and he wanted their lives together as much as Blake did, but he also wanted to be here to help Blake when he needed the help most.

If I left school for just a year, our lives wouldn't start until summer 2014...maybe winter 2014 at the latest. That's almost three years away. Todd was pulled from his thoughts by Blake calling him name.

"Okay, I'll go, but just know that it's against my wishes," Todd said.

"I know and you'll be back in a few months and then you can help me as much as you want. Until then, we'll have the phone and the computer to see each other every day."

"It won't be the same," Todd said.

"It never has, but somehow, we've made it happen for two and a half years," Blake countered. Todd knew he wasn't going to win this argument, no matter how hard he tried. He gave a nod and kept his mouth shut, anger still inside, wanting a way out.

That afternoon, Todd was saying his goodbyes to everyone and saved his last goodbye for Blake. When he was the only person who hasn't wished Todd a happy trip, everyone started to file out of the room. After the door closed, Todd leaned down and kissed Blake. He kept his lips atop Blake's for a few good seconds and Blake put his hand on the back of Todd's head. As he moved his hand to Todd's cheek, Todd broke the kiss.

"I want daily updates about everything," Todd said.

"Yes, sir," Blake said, giving a salute and smiling. "I want them on your end as well. Keep your grades up. I hope your professors will let you make up the work you missed.

"I hope they do, too. I'll talk to them tomorrow, if I can. I'm gonna be swamped for the next week or so."

"I know, but you can do it. I have faith," Blake said, smiling.

Todd leaned down to kiss Blake once again.

"When is your next underwear job?" Blake asked.

"Not sure. They haven't called me yet. I hope they don't call anytime in the next couple weeks, though. I'd have to turn them down until I can get caught up with my schoolwork."

"And you will. Just be patient."

Looking at his watch, Todd realized it was time to leave. "I gotta go," he said.

"I know. Give me another kiss first, though." Blake said

Todd leaned over again and touched his lips to Blake's. When they broke the connection, Blake had one more request of Todd.

"Anything for you, Baby," Todd said, smiling.

"Fondle me for a minute before you leave," Blake said, straight faced.

"What?!" Todd asked, laughing.

"It's gonna be a long time before we'll be together again, and I want you to touch me just once more. It's gonna have to hold me through until summer," Blake said, cracking a smile now.

Todd looked up to the door and didn't see anyone through the window at his angle. He reached over and put his hand on Blake's crotch and gave a slight squeeze.

"No," Blake said, "skin on skin."

"What if we get caught?" Todd asked, looking back at the window.

"So what?"

Todd was nervous of getting caught, but he lifted the covers and reached over and felt Blake's leg through the gown he was wearing. "Lift your gown," Todd said.

Blake reached down and pulled his gown up and Todd felt his way over and grabbed Blake in his hand.

"Oh, yeah," Blake said, exhaling and smiling while closing his eyes. Todd kept it up for a few second, keeping his eye on the door, when Blake asked, "Can you suck it for a second?"

"No," Todd said, serious. "We're gonna get caught if we do this too much longer."

"Just a little longer," Blake said.

Todd smiled and looked back at the door, just as it was being opened by Pax. He snatched his hand back quick, but Pax saw the `I didn't do anything' look on Todd's face and said, "What's going on?"

"Todd was molesting me," Blake said, smiling.

"What?" Todd said, looking at Blake. Looking back at Pax, he said, "It was at his request and I told him we were gonna get caught."

"I didn't say that. You just know that I'm too weak to defend myself," Blake said, starting to laugh.

Todd gave a big exhale and looked at Blake. "Pervert and a liar. I didn't know you could stoop so low."

Pax started to laugh and then said, "C'mon, Baby. We gotta get going."

Blake grabbed a finger of Todd's and pulled him back. "One more kiss."

"I really shouldn't seeing as how you just made me look like an idiot..." Todd smiled for a second and said, "but I want it too." He put his lips on Blake's one more time then turned and left Blake in his hospital bed to heal.

Later on that evening, Blake had Jackson visit him with a gift. Putting the computer bag on the desk, Blake asked Jackson what it was.

"Todd called me on the way to the airport and asked me to bring you your laptop. Said something about Skyping tonight with you."

Blake smiled and asked Jackson to help him set it up. Jackson did, and after it was plugged in and sitting on the tray table, Blake turned it on.

"How's Buddy doin'?," Blake asked.

"He's fine. He was happy to hear you woke up. Told me to tell you hey. He's gonna stop in Colorado tonight."

"What's he hauling this time?" Blake asked, looking to connect to the hospital's WI-FI.

"I think he said lumber, but I can't remember. All the loads get jumbled up. He's going to Maine and then he's gotta load coming back to Idaho."

"When'll he be back?"

"In a couple weeks. And I can't wait. The phone just doesn't cover it anymore," Jackson explained as he adjusted himself.

"I know. That's why Todd and I use video," Blake said, pointing to the computer. "It's not the same, but it does help to have that visual."

"Yeah, but he has limited bandwidth and gigabytes, so we can't do that unless he pays for service at a truck stop. It's not too expensive, but if we get on video, I have a hard time telling him to go to sleep."

They talked for another hour before everyone else wanted to come in to visit with Blake. Since he was in a regular room, he could have as many visitors as he could, as long as it was within visiting hours. He ended up getting a new male nurse named Cedrick. He was working the night shift and had brought his dinner.

"What's on the menu tonight?" Amy asked.

"Steak and potatoes," Blake said.

"Yeah, you wish," Cedrick said, asking Blake to move his laptop. Blake put it on his legs and Cedrick placed the tray of food on the little table. Lifting the lid, he said, "Baked chicken, rice and green beans." He grabbed the remote for the bed and lifted Blake's head up a little farther so he could feed himself without difficulty. Looking at everyone else, Cedrick said, "You guys can stay during dinner, but make sure he eats, please."

Papa assured him that they would and he made his exit to deliver food for the other patients.

The conversation continued as Blake ate his dinner. Some talking to Blake and other talking to each other. After a while, Blake looked at the clock on the wall and saw that Todd should be back in New York and he would be calling any minute. He was hoping to wrap up the conversations with everyone as kindly as possible and was just about to do just that when his phone rang with a text notification. He picked it up and saw it was from Todd.

Hey baby. I'm exhausted and gonna skip the date tonight. That okay with you?

Blake responded:

Sure puppy. I love you and will hopefully talk to you tomorrow.

Todd felt guilty, but he needed to get caught up on his sleep before classes tomorrow. He sighed at the reply message, thankful that Blake wasn't upset.

Thanks babe. I'll definitely be on tomorrow. Get some sleep and I love you more.

Blake smile and responded:

Not possible. :)

Todd plugged his phone in and started to get undressed when Robert walked in.

"Hey, Lucky," Todd said, pulling off his shirt.

"Hey. What're you doing here?" Robert asked.

"Blake woke up, finally. Happened two days ago."

"Oh my, God! That's fantastic. Everything gonna be okay?"

"The doctors said that the swelling in his brain has gone. The surgery on his legs, lungs and neck all took beautifully. He's able to move his fingers and toes so he's not paralyzed," Todd explained, glum, despite the positive news.

"That's great, but why do you look so sad?" Robert asked, sitting on the edge of their bed.

Todd gave a huff and said, "It's mainly me being exhausted. The other thing is, the first thing he does when he wakes up is make a plan with Pax and everyone else about sending me back here. Yeah, I know I needed to get back to school, but I wasn't ready to leave yet."

"Oh," was all Robert could say.

Todd shucked his pants and underwear and told Robert he was getting a shower then head to bed.

"Well, I'll give you some privacy," Robert said, heading toward the door.

"You know I don't need privacy. Stay if you want. That's fine," Todd said.

"I was gonna head to the kitchen to get a drink anyway. You want anything?" Robert asked.

"A water and some pills to get rid of this headache," Todd replied.

"You got it. Back in a few." Robert headed out the door to the kitchen.

On the way, he mentally prepared himself for what he would guess would come when he got back. He expected Todd to end their arrangement and it was crushing Robert. He wasn't ready to stop being with Todd. Todd was the one that pulled him out of his shell, after all, and he was afraid that if it happened, he would cave in on himself with depression. He had to talk himself out of doing that. He knew that if that happened, everything around him would suffer. His grades, his friendships and most of all, his friendship with Todd. If he was telling himself the truth, he would admit to himself that he was in love with Todd, but he wouldn't allow himself to be truthful. He kept lying to himself saying that it was just a way to get through college, doing his studies, having some fun along the way.

If Todd decided to end things, he was going to miss the sex most of all, but a close second would be the tightness that he and Todd shared. If it was over, he didn't know if he would still be able to treat Todd the same as always. Not because of anger or regret, but because he and Todd shared something, with Blake's knowledge, that he wasn't ready to let go of. He also felt guilty of the way he felt after Blake's accident. Of course he wanted Blake to get better, but then, in the back of his mind, he thought that if things went south, he would be there for Todd and that he and Todd would actually be a real couple. Todd was someone that he could and would take home to meet the family. He had, without knowing, already made plans as to how the two of them would be should something happen to Blake.

He would give Todd his time to grieve...however long that took, he was willing to wait. Then when Todd was ready, he would be there for him in whatever way Todd wanted, in the hopes that Todd would look at Robert one day and know that they were a real couple. They would graduate college, move back to Atlanta, find a place together and start a life that Robert had so often dreamed of. Now, he realized, that was never going to happen. His heart was broken, not completely, because he knew that he and Todd were no more than best friends with benefits, but broken because Blake found him first. Broken because he didn't think he was ever going to have what he wanted with someone a great as Todd.

After retrieving the waters and the pills, he headed back to the bedroom. When he opened the door, Todd was just coming out of the bathroom, little drops of water still on his chest and shoulders.

"Here you go, buddy," Robert said, handing him a water and two aspirin.

Todd took them and set them down on the dresser and took Robert in a hug. "Everything okay?" Robert asked.

"Yeah. It's just good to be home," he answered and put his head on Robert's shoulder. Robert wrapped his arms around Todd and gave a small smile while closing his eyes. It may not be all that he hoped for, but it was what he wanted right there, in that moment; Todd in his arms and him in Todd's.

Breaking the hug, Todd asked, "Will you hold me tonight?"

Robert looked a little confused.

"It's not often that I need to be held in bed, but tonight's one of those nights. Would you mind holding me?"

Robert smiled and said, "Of course."

Robert got out of his clothes as Todd went to the bed, taking his aspirin along the way. When he did, he turned his back on Robert as Robert got in and snuggled up close to Todd, putting his left arm around Todd and pulled him close. He moved his feet, legs and hips directly next to Todd and put his nose in Todd's hair, like Todd had always done to him. After getting settled, it didn't take Todd long to fall asleep. Robert had a hard time falling asleep, seeing as how he was pressed into Todd's butt with his hips. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate, he couldn't help himself when his penis lengthened and got erect against the crack of Todd's ass. After struggling for about thirty minutes, he finally found the sleep he was looking for. In the morning, they woke up in the exact same position they fell asleep.

Todd was the first to stir the next morning and when he opened his eyes, he reached for his phone and saw that the time was a little after six in the morning. He placed it back on the table and gently grabbed Robert's arm and moved it to Robert's side. When he did, he got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. When he returned, Robert had turned to lay on his back, still sleeping. Todd got back in the bed as softly as possible and when he succeeded without waking up Robert, he snuggled back up to the warm body and lay his head on Robert's shoulder. He draped his other arm over Robert's torso and closed his eyes.

A few minutes later, Todd felt Robert grab his arm and start rubbing it. Todd opened his eyes and looked up at Robert's face. "Mornin'," Todd said, giving a smile.

"How'd you sleep?" Robert asked.

"Better than I have in a while. It was comforting to be held last night. Thanks."

"Any time, Todd. It was actually nice to switch the rolls for once," Robert said.

"Lucky, any time you wanna switch rolls, I'm all for it. It keeps me from always being the alpha male all the time."

"You like being alpha," Robert reminded him.

"I know, but to be taken care of once in a while, if only being held while sleeping, is a nice change."

"I know what you mean," Robert said.

Todd snuggled closer to Robert and lifted his right leg to rest over Robert's hip. When he did, Todd's leg laid on top of Robert's morning wood. When they touched, Robert sucked air through is teeth. Thinking he hurt Robert, Todd asked, "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just gotta pee. Hold that thought, I'll be back in a second." Robert used the restroom and was back in the same position within two minutes. Todd lifted his leg again and laid it across Robert and snuggled him closer while putting his head on Robert's chest.

Robert put his hands on Todd and pulled him close. This, he thought to himself. This is what I want. He refused to say that he wanted it with Todd. Just having Todd in his arms was enough for now.

After a few minutes' silence, Todd moved again and put his body directly on top of Robert's. Robert went with it and put his arms around Todd and hugged him tight. A moment later, Todd's lips found Robert's and Robert's eyes opened with surprise. Todd's tongue touched Robert's lips and Robert parted his mouth to allow Todd entrance.

Todd didn't know why he was feeling the away he was. He wasn't horny, but instead, just craving affection. He wasn't able to be with Blake like they usually were, and he missed the contact. Yes, he had felt guilty after Blake's accident about being with Robert, but now, Robert was all he had until summer. His guilt was based out of fear of losing Blake. When Blake woke up and the doctors told everyone that we was going to make a recovery, he felt like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He was happy that Blake was going to be okay, and he was excited for the future with Blake, when he graduated and he and Blake moved back to Atlanta, but right now, his need for affection...for comfort was more than his guilt about how he felt about Robert two weeks ago.

They kissed with passion for few moments before Robert found his hands in Todd's hair. He was pulling him closer and closer, wanting to feel the larger man on him...to be a part of him. Todd moved his lips from Robert's and started to trace his tongue down to Robert's chin before following his jaw line up to his ear.

"What time is your class?" Robert asked, breathless.

"9:30. You?" Todd asked, sucking on Robert's ear lobe.

"Ten," Robert said, pulling Todd closer. "What time is it?"

"Before seven. We still have time," Todd explained, putting his lips back on Robert's.

As they kissed, Todd put his knees on either side of Robert's hips and straddled his crotch. Todd finally broke the kiss and slowly sat up, looking at Robert. He wasn't smiling...nor was he mad, he was just starting at Robert, realizing how much he missed being with him. He sat up and put his hands on Robert's chest and started kneading the muscles below the taught skin. Robert was slowly moving his hips to and fro, the underside of his penis against Todd's taint, building the feeling of pleasure in his groin. Todd reached back and cupped Robert's balls in his warm hand and started to softly squeeze them while rolling them around in his fingers.

"That feels so good," Robert groaned.

Todd moved his fingers slowly up the shaft of Robert's muscle and slowly started stroking him. Robert's hand found Todd's hard member and grabbed it, gently. He didn't move his hand...he didn't want this to turn into just a jerk off session. He just wanted to hold Todd in his hand, knowing he could without protest.

Todd started to lift Robert's muscle to stand up and when he did, Robert's head ran across his entrance and Todd gave a shudder. He remembered his promise to Blake, but it just felt so good that he kept it up. He wouldn't allow himself to be penetrated, but the attention that Robert's cock gave to his hole, with his help, felt amazing. He would place Robert's head against his entrance and slowly push back so that he could feel the pressure against his entrance. Within a minute, he could feel the liquid leaking from the tip of Robert's cock, lubing up his hole.

"This isn't fair, Todd. You can't introduce me to your hole and not let me enter. You're driving me crazy," Robert said with his hands on Todd's hips.

"It just feels so good," Todd said, eyes closed with his head back. "I haven't had this much attention on my ass in a long time."

"You need to stop before I start pushing. Remember your promise," Robert cautioned. "I didn't promise, you did."

Todd opened his eyes and lifted himself up and lowered Robert's member back to his belly. After, he moved his knees to between Robert's legs and lifted his hips and lowered himself back down to kiss him again. Robert instinctively wrapped his legs around Todd's back and pulled him down, harder, into his body. Todd enjoyed the feeling just as much as Robert did and was doing all he could to make their bodies complete by becoming one with each other.

Todd's erection was pressed against Robert's lower back and every time Robert would lower his body closer to the bed, he felt Todd graze his hole. It was driving him wild with anticipation and wanted Todd inside him. Todd felt how much he was teasing Robert and actually enjoyed it. The pre-cum that he was leaking was lubing up Robert's hole so that there wasn't any friction at all. He enjoyed putting pressure on Robert's entrance and pulling back just before it slipped in. They kept teasing each other for another ten minutes or so as their kissing continued.

As it so happened, luck was on their side, or at least Robert's. Todd kept his teasing of his cock on Robert's hole and as he rocked Robert down on the bed, his dick was right on the entrance, pressing hard. Robert couldn't help himself and pulled his hips up higher and Todd slipped in. When he did, they both moaned into the other's mouth. Instinctively, Todd pushed all the way in until his hips were right up against Robert's ass. They moaned louder, muffled by the other's mouth. A few seconds later, Todd opened his eyes and pulled himself out of Robert.

"Holy fuck, Lucky."

"Why'd you stop?" Robert asked, frustrated.

"We need a condom," Todd said. He looked down and saw Robert's hole twitching, waiting to be filled again.

"I'm out. I gotta get some more," Robert said, lifting himself up on his elbows, looking at Todd, begging with his eyes to forget about the condoms.

Todd rubbed a hand across his face and exhaled a frustrating sigh. He moved off Robert and fell to the bed with his right leg still across Robert's body. "You know the rules. We have to have a condom."

Robert wanted to punch whatever he could. He was so frustrated and wanted Todd to fuck him with wild abandon and he was out of condoms. He didn't want a condom. He wanted Todd to breed him. He wanted to feel what it was like to have Todd's seed inside him. He fucking wanted Todd as his own, so that this wouldn't have to be an issue. He turned his head and tried to give a not so disappointed look at Todd. "I'll get some this afternoon after classes."

"God, I'm so frustrated and you were so tight, too." Todd looked at Robert and he just smiled. "Tonight might be the last night for a while until I can get all my work caught up...that is if the professors are gonna take pity on me. I'm done at four today. Why don't we get the boys for dinner and then after, we can make an excuse of studying and get back here early."

"Sounds good, babe...I mean, Bud." Robert blushed hard and turned his head away from Todd. Todd lowered his head to the bed and cracked a smile at the slip.

As the day went on, Todd pled his case to his professors and after the full story, they all gave in and told him what he had missed and each gave him a three week deadline to get the work turned in. After the deadline, they would have no choice but to count off his work as late. One professor told him that if his work wasn't in on time, he would give him a zero for it all. There was no guessing which Todd decided to put his work into first.

When he got home from classes, he ran into a Keith and Ricky who were just as surprised to see him home as Robert was the night before. They asked about Blake and expressed their happiness at his recovery. When he told them his plans for dinner, they both agreed. When the final two roommates arrived, they also agreed to dinner. They were only waiting for Robert to arrive before they left. It was after 5:30 when Robert finally showed up, apologizing to everyone for holding them up. He had to drop his books off in his room and was ready to leave a few minutes later.

They headed down and walked two blocks to a favorite pizza joint they had visited a few times before. They had good conversation and shared in some boisterous laughter. The other patrons kept looking over at their table the louder they got. The waiter even had to ask them to keep it down a little, having received some complaints from other customers.

When they were done, they headed back to the apartment to go their separate ways to do their studying. When Todd and Robert got to their room, Todd reached for his bag. As he unloaded his books to the desk, he asked Robert why he was so late getting in.

"I went to the library to do some studying and forgot I had to make a stop at the drugstore before I came home."

"What'd you get at the drugstore?" Todd asked, not thinking.

As an answer, Robert dropped three boxes of condoms on the desk.

"Holy, shit, Lucky. Three boxes?" Todd asked, picking them up.

"Well, I don't ever want to run out again after this morning. You worked me up so fucking much, I could barely concentrate all day."

Smiling, Todd reached over and grabbed the front of Robert's shirt and pulled him into his arms and planted a kiss on him. Breaking the kiss, he grabbed Robert's hand and placed it on his crotch. "You see how hard you've already made me?" Todd asked.

Massaging the muscle beneath Todd's jeans, he said, "And that's the way I like it." He gave a wicked smile and headed to the bathroom. Todd stared after him. A moment later, a shirt flew out of the bathroom and landed on the floor. This was followed by each layer of clothing Robert had on and Todd heard him turn on the sink.

Getting a wicked idea in his head, Todd stripped and unfoiled a condom and slipped it on. He grabbed the lube and worked it around the latex until it was ready for entry. Going to the bathroom, he walked right up to Robert and immediately put his lubed up hand in Robert's crack and started rubbing the hole. Robert was doing his best not to give in to the feelings too fast, but a moment later, he felt Todd push against his ass and he loosened himself and Todd slipped all the way in. Only then did he realize it wasn't Todd's finger.

Todd pushed as far into Robert as he could and held himself steady. Robert tried to finish brushing his teeth, but his toothbrush fell out of his hand as he bent over the sink and closed his eyes. Todd slowly started to pull out and when only the head was left, he slowly moved his hips forward until his dick was buried once again to the hilt.

Robert's head was laying on his arms which were across the front counter of the sink. He just barely was able to turn the water off before Todd started getting faster with his thrusts.

"Oh, God, you feel so fucking good," Robert moaned.

Todd reached his hand up to place on Robert's back and pushed him down a little harder and started to ram his hips into Robert so that you could hear their skin slapping.

"Fuck me, Todd. Fuck me harder."

Todd didn't need telling twice. He placed his hands on Robert's hips and started pulling Robert into him every time he started thrusting in. "Oh, yeah. That's it," Robert moaned.

Todd kept up his assault of Robert for a few more minutes before he pulled himself out and roughly pulled Robert around to face him. When he did, he pushed Robert back against the sink and reached down and grabbed his legs. Once they were up and Robert was laying on the counter, Todd got back in position and didn't take it gently. He rammed himself inside of Robert and Robert's eyes got wide. "Oh, fuck, Todd."

Todd didn't even hear Robert. He kept up his pounding, not knowing if he was doing it to get himself off or if he was doing it for Robert. He put Robert's legs on his shoulders and wrapped his arms around Robert's knees as he kept pounding Robert's ass. His hand found its way down to Robert's erection and he started jerking him furiously. Robert's eyes closed and his mouth opened. He was in heaven, forgetting the frustrating feelings he had that morning. He was hoping it would last a lot longer, but with the pounding that Todd was giving his ass and the attention his hand was giving his dick, he wasn't able to go but another minute before he warned Todd of his impending climax.

Todd pushed his way against Robert's ass and started grinding against his prostate. Once contact was made, Robert's orgasm took over and he came across his chest, stomach and finally falling over Todd's hand. Two more thrusts were all it took for Todd as well. After pulling back and thrusting in, he felt Robert squeeze his ass muscle and Todd pushed in, pushing with his entire mite and exploded. He kept digging his toes into the tile harder and harder, trying to get Robert's ass to swallow him whole.

Once his climax subsided, he lowered Robert's legs to either side of his body and leaned down and grabbed Robert in a kiss. Their tongues fought for a good long time before Robert turned his head to catch his breath. Todd stood up, still buried inside Robert and looked at the mess Robert made with his orgasm. Todd reached down and scooped up some of Robert's cum and brought it back to his lips. When he did, Robert said, "Wow. I didn't know I needed to get fucked that hard. That was amazing."

Todd finally deflated enough to where he slipped out of Robert. When he did, he leaned down and licked up the rest of the mess on Robert's chest and stomach. Leaning back up, he kissed Robert again, this time, slowly. Their lips touched and Todd's tongue ran across Robert's lips with meaning. When he finally opened his eyes, he lifted himself back up and smiled at Robert. "God, that was good."

Todd stepped back and lowered Robert's feet back to the floor. A little disappointed as Todd was removing the condom, he said, "I was kinda hoping it would last a little longer, though."

"Lucky, that was just round one. I've got to get started on all this work, but I had to have you. You don't realize how much dinner was actually killing me. I wanted to take you right there on the table a couple times." He dropped the used condom in the trash and grabbed a towel to wipe himself dry. "We'll go slow tonight. I promise," he said, kissing Robert again.

As he turned to leave, Robert instantly got hard again.

When he got to his desk, he didn't even bother with his clothes. He opened his laptop and dialed Blake. When Blake got on the computer, they talked for a few minutes and Blake asked if Todd was naked. Todd stood up as an answer.

"Why do you tease me like this?" Blake asked, smiling.

"Because I can. Plus I just got done fucking Lucky, now I gotta get some studying done."

A second later, a naked Robert walked out of the bathroom and across the camera's view.

"Robert!" Blake called. Robert backtracked and came over to the screen.

"Hey, Blake. How're you feeling?" Robert asked, leaning down so that Blake could see him.

"Not too bad. Gonna have to get some pain meds tonight. My legs have been bothering me recently."

"Doctor's said you'd make a full recovery, right?" Robert asked.

"Yeah. But I got a long road to go before I'm back to normal."

"When do the doctors think you'll be able to walk again?" Robert asked.

"In a few months. But first, I'll have a lot of physical therapy to deal with before and after I start walking again."

"Well, I'm glad you're okay," Robert said, half lying to himself. "You think you'll still be able to come in October?"

"Probably not, but I don't know yet. That's a long way off and I might be good enough to come for a visit."

"I hope so," Robert said. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, but I'm glad you're there with him. I know he's still angry with me that I made him leave."

"I'm not angry, just disappointed. I wanted to spend more time with you," Todd said.

"I know, Puppy, but your schoolwork was falling behind. Speaking of which, were you able to talk to your professors?"

"Yeah, I have three weeks to get all the work turned in."

"That's good." Flicking his eyes at Robert, he said, "You need to not distract him with your sexy body while he's studying."

Robert blushed and said he wouldn't and was just about to leave when Blake asked, "So, how was it? The sex? Todd told me y'all just got done."

"Amazing, as usual. You're lucky you got this one first. Otherwise, I wouldn't let him leave the apartment," Robert said, putting a hand on Todd's shoulder.

"Don't I know it," Blake said, smiling at Robert.

"Well, I'll let you two get back at it. I need to get some studying done myself." Before Robert left, Todd reached up and pulled him down to give him another quick kiss.

"Talk to you again soon, Blake," Robert said, giving a wave and walking to his desk.

"Any news today from the doctors?" Todd asked after Robert was at his desk.

"No, but I did talk Kevin into showing me his dick," Blake said.

"What?" Todd asked, not believing. "Kevin the nurse? He's so fucking hot."

"Yeah, he is, but no, I just wanted to see your reaction. That didn't happen."

"Damnit, I was gonna ask for details," Todd said, smiling. "Stop teasing me like that."

Smiling, Blake said, "Teasing is half the fun."

"Ass," Todd retorted.

They talked for a while longer before Todd had to get back to his studying. He kept the camera going as he did his work and on Blake's end, he turned on a card game. Just being able to see each other was enough for now. It was like they were in the same room, but not close enough to touch each other. They were both content with their arrangement of just being able to see each other while they did their own thing.

While Todd was studying, Blake had a couple of visitors come by. He muted the microphone as to not disturb Todd, which Todd was thankful for. It was little things like that that made Todd love Blake even more. After his visitors, Blake ended up having dinner while watching TV. He asked Todd if the volume was too loud, which Todd smiled and said it was fine. Todd kept up his studying and finished two papers of the many assignments he had to complete before he told Blake he was gonna call it a night. They told each other they loved them and after Todd mimicked a kiss, he turned off his computer and headed to the bathroom to get his shower.

"You wanna shower with me?" he asked of Robert.

"I'll be in in a minute. Gotta finish up a little bit more," Robert responded.

Halfway through his shower, Robert showed up and grabbed the soap and started washing Todd's back. When his hand found the crack of Todd's ass, he paid a little more attention than he needed to, but Todd was enjoying the sensation, so he didn't complain.

They got in bed and Robert made sure he had two condoms ready, just in case round two went to round three. But with all they had done that afternoon, two rounds were all they needed to be satisfied for the night. Sated, Todd curled around Robert in their usial position before they fell asleep.

To Be Continued. . .