A/N: This has been trying to come out of me for a while, so I'm letting it. It's kind of a reflective story. And sad.

I should've known something was wrong when Sage called me asking to stay with him at Mia's. She had went out of the country on research and asked him to keep an eye on the mansion, but it was feeling too big there and he would love to have some company. Of course I said yes, I had nothing major going on to stop me from leaving, I was working freelance jobs for myself and was beginning to get bored. Besides, I hadn't seen anyone else in quite some time, especially the blonde, who I missed the most. It took me a week to pack, finish up work, and book a plane ticket. I know I could've taken a bus, it wasn't that far of a flight, but there was some urgency to his request, something not quite right with how tired his voice sounded. Flying was something that was natural for me anyway.

He was waiting in the terminal when I got off the plane and I was shocked by his appearance. He looked... exhausted. His hair was longer, still wispy, and it hid his face, but what I could see worried me. He seemed pale and had dark circles under his eyes, well, the eye that was visible. And it seemed dull, still alert and aware of his surroundings... but stress and exhaustion was reflected back at me. When he saw me, he lit up instantly, even smiling. A huge grin, a rare Sage moment indeed. I have received hundreds of little smiles, but never a full on grin. And never a hug, which it seemed he was going to squeeze the life out of me. Feeling him close to me flooded me with warmth and a little hope there was more to him requesting my company than I originally assumed. I should've known something was wrong then, but I didn't put a lot of thought into it, he was after all, running a dojo, and had his own life. Stress was something I was all too familiar with.

"Well, greetings to you, too." Rowen smirked, before flinging a bag over his shoulder and throwing the blonde a huge grin. "You could atleast buy a guy dinner first."

Sage rolled his eyes, still smiling. "I've seen you eat, it would kill the mood. Let's get out of here and find a restaurant before we head back to Mia's."

As we entered the parking lot Sage turned towards his blue haired companion suddenly. "Do you think you could drive?"

Rowen almost stopped in his tracks. "Did you just ask me to drive?" Something seemed wrong about that, but Rowen couldn't place his finger on it.

It took me almost a week to catch on to Sage's deliberate movements, he was hiding that he had suddenly become clumsy, and seemed to struggle to grasp things with his left hand, occasionally giving up and using his right. He could be easily confused, as if his thought was cloudy and it sometimes took him a moment to remember what a simple answer was. These moments seem to hit when he got frequent headaches that seem to plague him constantly. He spent a lot of his time with me in the house, even if i was quietly reading I could be assured that Sage was nearby or not far behind in joining me. I was just happy that he wanted to be in my presence and enjoyed every moment I could. It was weirder that he began to pick up my strange sleeping habits, sleeping in longer than me on some days. I realized something was seriously wrong at this point, I wasn't sure if Sage was even aware of how bizarre his behavior had become, but we were about to find out what was wrong with him.

It was slightly warm out, but Rowen found that he still needed to wear a jacket. He sat by the edge of the lake pondering his friend's odd behavior. Sage had slept in that morning and now Rowen was alone. He found he didn't like to be seperated from the blonde at all. He skipped a few rocks across the water before a hand gently touched his shoulder.

"I see your finally up." He commented, amused at his friend's odd behavior.

But there was no response.

Slowly, Rowen turned to look at the blonde. Sage was very pale, face flushed, his hair sweaty and brushed back, showing both of his eyes. What scared Rowen the most was they weren't aligned, and very unfocused. Sage sway in front of him and Rowen grabbed him by the arm steadying him.

"Sage?" It was barely a whisper.

"My head..." Was the only reply from the other, who still hadn't focused on Rowen.

I still remember the day he came to me, looking very sick, it scared me how bad he was. He wouldn't talk to me at all. He just stood there unable to focus on anything. I'm not sure how he even made it out of the house to find me. I rushed him to the hospital that day, I sped the whole way. I don't think I was even concerned about getting pulled over. I was so worried I would lose him before I even had a chance to tell him everything I'd been dying to say.

After some tests and a brief examination, Sage was taken back for some scans on his head. The diagnosis came back as an enlarged tumor on the right side of the brain. They needed to perform emergency surgery to release the pressure or Sage would die. I left long enough to call the others, urging them to come as fast as they could. The doctors told me that the chances of survival were very low. They arrived before Sage's eight hour surgery was over. I remember burning my tongue as I sipped a coffee wondering how much it had cost them to get there or if they would even get to see Sage.

A surgeon that performed the operation came out to talk to us at that point. He instructed us that only half the tumor was able to be removed and they took a sample from it to find out what kind it was and if it would continue to grow. The doctor informed me that his strange behavior and appearance was from the pressure buildup in his skull. They warned us that they had shaved his head and that Sage would look very sick for a few days, he may not even be up to talking with us. I felt my heart sink a little at the news, but I remember taking a deep breath, trying to steady myself for what I was going to see. Yhey allowed us to go into the room to see him and I felt a jolt shoot through me.

Sage was sitting reclined in the bed watching a nurse hook up an iv to his arm. He looked up when the others entered, even giving a small smile. His face was swollen and his eyes were bruised, but he seemed more alert than before. His head was wrapped with a bandage, but you could tell the once golden hair was gone. One by one they all hugged him. Rowen settled next to the bed, slipping his hand next to Sage's, suprised when the other hand grabbed his and tightened.

"There are better ways of getting us to come see you man." Kento grinned and pulled a chair up next to him.

He returned a smile and nodded.

The nurse pushed a syringe into his iv and emptied it, before looking towards Rowen. "He's on a lot of medication right now. He will need help getting to the bathroom. Page us if he needs any help."

"We have it under control. Thank you." They watched as the nurse exited the room.

"Sage how-" Ryo started, but stopped again as Sage's eyes slowly closed and he drifted off to sleep. "I think we should let him rest for now." His sad eyes reflected the worry running through his head and he sighed.

The day the tests results came back Sage was awake and aware, playing chess with me, and Cye, and even having conversations with Ryo and Kento, trying to get caught up on everything that had been happening since we'd grown apart. I remember being terrified when the doctor entered the room with a serious expression on his face, telling us the results were back. It felt like ice water was running through my veins, but I knew that everything would be ok, it to be. Sage would get better, he'd have to. They were going to remove the rest of the tumor and everything would be fine again. Sage never got sick. Never.

The doctor told us the results, and I suddenly felt very cold. I dropped the chess piece I was holding. I don't remember what happened after that.

There you have it! The first chapter is up. Don't you love that cute little cliff hanger? I do.

The baby was kicking me the whole time I was typing. It must be time for me to eat something. Which happens to be my favorite time of day.