**************Written quickly, totally unedited and raw. Not to mention, I wasn't sure where to put it I've never tried to write a story about a show with actual people in it before. I do not mean any disrespect or anything to any of the actors. Just something that was for some reason going through my mind today, so I hastily wrote it down.*********

The entire cast stayed late that Friday night taping, something they did every so often just to relax and hang out together.
Colin and Ryan were the first to leave well after midnight, deciding to walk the short distance to the hotel in which they both had a room.

"Let's cut through the alley Ry, it'll cut off a good 15 minutes". Both men were tired and ready to call it a night, Colin was beginning to wonder why they just didn't get a ride back to the hotel. But, it was too late now he thought wearily as he glanced toward his friend, who just nodded and took the lead through the narrow and long alleyway.

After walking five minutes into the sheer darkness, Colin felt a trickle of doubt race through his body.
"Maybe this was a bad idea. You want to go back?"

The tall thin man in front of him spoke without slowing his pace. "No, Col. It's alright, we're probably halfway through already, we'll be okay. We'll just stay together and quicken the pace."

Colin agreed with his friend, but still had his doubts. They were alone, in the center of a long, dark, alley, and nobody knew they were there.

Just as these thoughts were going through his mind and just as he begin to pick up the pace even more, almost pushing Ryan through the alley before him, he saw the large group of men coming towards them, he knew this couldn't be good. It was too dark too make out much more than shadows but he knew there were several of them and the closer they got the more details he was able to make out, including the fact that a few carried baseball bats. Several people had been mugged and beaten in the city this way recently.

Ryan stopped in his tracks, speaking quietly to his friend behind him. "Turn around and start walking the other way, maybe they haven't seen us yet or maybe they don't care". Colin nodded and reached up to his taller friend's shoulder, turning him around with him, and they started to quickly walk back the way they had come.

Before they had gotten ten steps they heard a murmur of voices and then the sound of pounding feet as they had been spotted. Both men's first instinct was to run and that is what they did, but then Colin stopped,
grimacing as Ryan slammed into him. "We have to stop Ry, they probably have guns. Let's just give them what they want and we'll be okay."

They turned around, standing side by side as the gang of thugs reached them. Colin could feel the tension in Ryan beside him and whispered one more time to just give them whatever they wanted.

The first three men to reach them first grabbed Ryan and threw him against the wall, wielding a knife to his throat, giving the warning that they would use it if Colin moved. Colin stood still as he watched his friend crash against the cement wall, thinking of the agony that must be shooting through his back. He was next, also shoved brutally against the wall where they were held until the rest of the gang arrived seconds later. Neither man tried to fight off this assault, hanging on to their hopes that if they cooperated they would then be left alone.

There were seven men in all, one stepped out from the new crowd and walked up to his captives,
instructing that they be turned around. "Not to smart are you? You make our work easy tonight,
we don't have to go out looking for fool's money, you brought it to us, right to our favorite alley.". Ryan spoke first "Just tell your pals to let go of us and we'll give you our wallets and clean out our pockets. We don't want any trouble and are willing to cooperate." The man grinned, happy to see how easy this was going to be, then he looked at Ryan again.

"Wait a minute guys. I know this guy, he's a celebrity!. I seen him on that show with the heavy chick with the make-up! We hit the jackpot boys, got us a rich one!".

With this, Ryan's heart sank and a chill ran through his body. He knew the thugs would be expecting a large loot, but all he kept in his wallet while on the road was about $50 cash and his driver's license. He kept his credit cards in the safe at the hotel desk. He knew Colin did the same.

Before he had another second to think or before he could catch a glimpse of his best friend, the men holding him were given orders to retrieve his wallet. They dug it out of his back pocket and threw it to their boss who preceded to go through it. He angrily threw out the driver's license and photos,
desperately digging for credit cards and cash. When his search was over he threw down the wallet in fury and demanded Colin's wallet be given to him. He went through the same procedure and then turned towards Ryan.

The man was large and muscular and Ryan could do nothing but try to stare him down while not showing the fear that now overwhelmed him. Without speaking the man suddenly threw a punch into Ryan's gut which sent him instantly to the cold cement below. He was still on his knees trying to catch his breath when another furious blow hit him towards his upper back.
This sent him the rest of the way to the cold hard surface below, nearly unconscious. From there the kicks and blows from the bats continued while Ryan lay helpless to defend himself.

Colin watched the scene play out before him in panic. He pulled against his assailants arms furiously,
but could not free himself to help his friend. His need to get to Ryan was tremendous and he tried everything in his power to overcome the two men holding him against the wall. He received a few blows himself in the process but in his worry and fear for his friend, he didn't even acknowledge the pain to his own body. The situations had quickly gotten out of control and Colin didn't know what to do to help his friend. The ruthless beating continued to play out before him.

Then he remembered his cell phone which he kept in the pocket hidden in the inside of his jacket.

All of his friends and castmates of Whose Line numbers were set to speed dial on his cell, if he could just free one hand long enough to reach inside and dial one of the numbers, he may be able to get the help he and Ryan so desperately needed.

Without thinking further, the comedian fell to the ground as though he had fainted, slipping free of the hands that held him. While laying flat on the cement he reached inside his jacket,
felt the phone there and quickly pushed the first digit he came to and then the dial button.
All he could do now was hope that whichever of his friends he had called would not hang up immediately.

After doing this he shook his head as though he had regained consciousness and did not fight the hands that were already roughly pulling him back to his feet. This act earned him another punch to the midsection and the groan he released was louder then necessary. He had to get the signal across to the person who was hopefully on the other end of the cell. He spoke loudly and quickly "Please just stop this, we have money at our hotel and will give it to you. Please just stop hurting Ryan. You're going to kill him and then you will get nothing out of this. Our hotel is at the end of this alley right across the street and to the left, we went this way because it is a shorter walk, so it isn't far. Please just follow me there and leave him alone."

Greg had arrived at his hotel room shortly after parting ways with Colin and Ryan. Though all of the guys were staying in the same hotel, Greg got to his room quicker because he opted on a cab instead of walking. He was nearly asleep when his cell rang on the dresser beside him, he picked it up and saw it was Colin. He answered, figuring his two friends were going to grab a midnight snack and were asking if he wanted to tag along. "Hey Col, what's up?". There was no answer on the other end and Greg was on the verge of hanging up assuming Colin had called by accident.
Then he heard a mixture of voices and sounds through the line and he held the phone a second longer,
wondering what his two buddies were up to. Suddenly, he heard a moan and a second later Colin began to talk loudly, he was clearly afraid and in a panic. The voice was strained and cracking.

Greg listened, the panic rising in him as the words came racing through to him.
He didn't know what was going on, but he knew his friends were in trouble and he felt that Colin was giving him hints as to where they were. Greg knew immediately which alley they were down and jumped out of the bed, out of the room, and down the hall to Drew's room while never taking his cell from his ear.

Drew was just getting out of the shower and climbing into bed for the night when the consistent banging started on his door. *You gotta be kidding me*...he got up and dragged his tired body to the door, looking through the peephole. "Greg, what in the hell do you want? I am done for the night man, I can't keep my eyes open any longer". He watched as Greg took the cell in his hand away from his ear and place his other hand over the mouth piece. "Open the damn door Drew, hurry!". Greg's voice and face caused his immediate response. "Okay, okay, what's wrong man?"
"Colin just called me, he didn't answer when I picked up, but something is wrong. I think he and Ryan are being attacked in the alley across the street. He left the phone on and I could hear him and others talking. We have to go now.".

Without a moment's hesitation Drew responded his agreement and he and Greg bolted out the door.
Drew used his own cell to first call the police to the scene and then to call Wayne who assured them he would catch up with them. He kept his promise and met them outside the hotel.

The three men were nearly to the head of the alley, going in a dead run, before Greg came to a stop and spoke. Breathless he questioned their motive "What are we going to do guys,it sounds like we are outnumbed here?". Wayne reached into his pocket and returned with a small pistol. "I'll shoot in the air and hopefully frighten them off.". Drew swallowed but nodded his affirmation as Greg did the same. "Okay, let's go".

Ten minutes later, they saw the scene playing out before them. In what seemed like slow motion the large man lingering above Ryan's still form reached into his own pocket and pulled out a gun, aiming it at Ryan's head. Colin screamed and fought against the men still holding him prone.

The three friends were close enough to see this but were yet unseen by the gang attacking their friends.
Wayne aimed his pistol upwards and fired three shots, praying that this would deter the thugs from their plan.

The leader turned as the others jumped and spun in all directions. This gave Colin time to reach and grab the gun from the other man's grasp. The scene was then cleared as the gang fled back into the darkness.

Still holding the gun, Colin fell next to Ryan, immediately checking his pulse, relieved when he felt it beating strongly under his fingertips. He heard the footsteps behind him and turned rapidly with the gun in his hand, pointing at what he assumed was the gang back for revenge.

"Calm down Col, it's just us." Colin almost cried with relief at the sound of Greg's voice.
He felt even more relief when he was Wayne and Drew with him.

"Thank God, he needs help guys. They beat him with a baseball bat. I don't think we should move him, but I'm scared those bastards will come back with backup if we stay here.". He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Wayne..."I've got a gun and you've got a gun, we'll be okay now pal."

Greg and Drew had knelt down next to Ryan by this point, trying to stop the bleeding at the base of his hairline and talking softly to him, in hopes that he would awaken. They noticed blood also seeping out of a deep wound on the back of his head. Greg pushed down on this spot with his hand, desperately trying to stop the flow of life blood leaking from one of his best friends and at the same time he looked into the sky and prayed for the first time in quite a while. *God, please help us.
Don't take Ryan from us or from his family, we need him here, Please God*. Up until this point he was afraid, though, not terribly afraid, but now, with Ryan's blood covering his hand, he was terrified that he was watching the man in front of him die. While still applying pressure he looked over at Drew doing the same thing to the gash on Ryan's forehead, he noticed the tears that threatened to escape Drew's eyes, and mumbled him "We need something to stop the blood, Drew...Dammit, he going to bleed to death. We have to do something".

Wayne watched all of this in horror and knelt down next to the fallen man as well. He listened for sirens hoping that Drew's call had brought help, but he heard nothing. In Drew's panic he probably sent them to the wrong hotel and now it would take to long for an ambulance to get to them. He had thought about one of them going for help but that seemed to dangerous. Wayne touched the cool and scarily still arm below him and stood up. He looked at the blood that was now running down Greg's shaking hand and then over to Drew where he was met with the same sight. He could only imagine what the rest of Ryan's body looked like as he could see stains coming through some of the clothing. Not to mention the damage that may be unseen on the inside of the thin body. "We have to move him guys, I can carry him to hotel parking lot and we can bring him to the hospital.". This caused Colin to jump to his feet and began pacing and talking frantically. "We can't move him Wayne, they kicked him and beat him with a bat. They beat him up and down his back and all over his stomach, he could be bleeding internally or have spinal damage. We have to wait here until help comes.".

Drew looked up with tears in his eyes and nodded..."I called 911 Wayne, we should hear sirens anytime now.". Wayne put his hands on Drew's shoulders "We should have heard them by now, man,
they must have got the address wrong and we don't have time to wait for another ambulance.
If he is bleeding internally, that is all the more reason to go now and not wait, look at the blood on you! That came out of him, he can't afford to lose more!. Come on guys, we have to take him the to hospital and we have to do it now!".

Colin spoke up again "What about his back? We may cripple him for life".

Drew just shook his head, in a soft and sad voice..."That's a chance we'll have to take col, I'd rather him alive and paralyzed then gone, and I'm sure you all feel the same. I also think he'd prefer it that way as well".

Greg was staring down at the blood on his hands and then over at the face he had known so long,
usually a face that was full of life and mischief dancing in bright eyes. Now that face, beloved by so many was paling as the minutes passed by. He looked up and nodded his head in agreement.
"Wayne is right, we have to get him to a hospital and we can't wait".

Colin coming to realize that the others were right, decided they'd deal with any future issues as they came. If Ryan was paralyzed, they would cross that bridge when they came to it. Right now,
saving his life was the main priority and it was becoming more and more clear that help was not coming. Colin knelt beside the man who had been his friend their entire adult life and took the larger hand into his own before looking up at the others. "Okay, let's go".

Wayne jumped into action, and with the help of the others gently lifted the tall but slight man into his muscular arms. They did the best they could not to jostle Ryan's body while still rushing out of the alley and into the parking lot of the hotel. Drew's car was closest and they took little time to gently deposit Ryan into the back seat, noting that he was still out cold.

Drew grabbed some towels from the trunk, throwing them to Colin who had situated himself into the backseat with Ryan, keeping pressure to the visible wounds as best he could. Drew then jumped into the driver's seat, Wayne took the passenger seat and Greg ran to his own car vowing to meet the others at the emergency room.

They reached the hospital not long after and Wayne ran in and returned with help. Doctors and nurses came out and stabalized Ryan's back and neck, then they moved him to a flat board stretcher and preceded to rush him into an examining room.

The other three men could only set in the ER waiting room and await news on their friend.
Police came and questioned them all, particularly Colin, who gave the best description of the attackers that he could. After the initial shock had worn off and Colin began to really think about what he and Ryan had just been through, he became even more upset. The others watched him pace constantly, trying to comfort and calm him down, but nothing helped.

Hours later, after the blood had been washed off their hands and Colin had all but walked a hole in the floor, a nurse came and told them Ryan needed to be taken into emergency surgery and someone had to sign the papers. Colin had authority to do this and did so since they could not get in touch with Ryan's wife. They were then brought to another waiting room. Hours later,
another nurse introduced herself and asked the group to follow her to ICU. They were immediately led to Ryan's side, his long body stretched onto the hospital bed. A brace still held his head immobile and though he was covered Colin was sure there was also a brace on the already fragile back. Oxygen was attached and several IVS were present. Bandages were covering the wounds on Ryan's head. Drew was the first to Ryan's side and he picked up the pale hand, noticing how cool it was to the touch.
Colin took the other hand, Greg and Wayne standing near the foot of the bed, each rubbing a foot through the covering. Moments later an older Doctor walked into the room, introducing himself and shaking hands with each man and then leading them into another private room.

"I am happy to say that your friend is now stabalized,
though it was touch and go for a while. The surgery was an invasive one and it will take some time for Mr Stiles to return to his normal life. He was bleeding internally from several different injuries. We have removed his spleen as well as a small portion of liver. His colon was also sliced and we had to remove a large portion, but were able to leave enough that he will not need a colostomy bag.
He has several broken ribs and one punctured a lung.

He lost a large amount of blood but he is now stable in that regard.

His right arm is broken in two places and will require surgery when he is strong enough. His left arm is broken at the elbow and the shoulder was pulled out of the socket. His collar bone is also broken. his will require a nearly complete body cast.

Mr Stiles left ankle is also broken, this break has been set and should heal without further intervention.
His legs are severely bruised and muscles have been damaged.

All of this will require a near complete body cast.

The wounds in his head required a total of 400 stitches inside and out. There was slight bleeding in the brain but right now we are just going to watch it and see if it resolves itself, which I believe it will.
We won't be able to tell if there is any other damage to the brain until Ryan is awake.
I am sure there will be some form of a concussion. As for other damage to the brain, this can vary in seriousness and effect. Mr Stiles could experience long or short term seizures, massive headaches,
memory loss of varying degree, speaking problems, the list could go on and on, or he could have no problems at all. Any problems he develops could last a day or for the rest of his life. With injury to the head, no amount of test can foretell the outcome.
We just have to wait and see.

I understand that the patient had previous serious issues with his spine. His back took a number of licks, some with feet, some with baseball bats. There is very severe bruising covering his back. And I am sorry to say that there is a fracture to his spine, but one which we can repair with surgery which we will do as soon as he is sufficiently stable. Ryan Will be able to walk again if all goes well with the operation. Of course, there is a chance of problems with any surgery, but I do not foresee a problem occurring. This will not be an instant fix,
it will be some time before Mr. Stiles is able to walk by himself again, but with patience, help,
and perserverence, he will be walking as he was before this incident. He will need the help of his family and his friends. I hope you are up for it."

Drew, Greg, and Wayne started in a setting position but all ended standing by the window, trying to take in all the injuries Ryan sustained and to imagine the long road ahead of him.

Colin set in a chair, head in his hands. He was split in being relieved that Ryan would not be paralyzed and saddened that he would have to endure so much pain. He'd already been through more pain than a person deserved, striving to get through his days without taking pain medicine for his back. Life wasn't fair sometimes.

Neither of the three thought about walking out on Ryan for an instant, but it took a minute for all the new information to sink in before they were able to speak.

Finally Drew remembered the Doctors insinuated question and spoke up. "Of course we will be here for him through the entire recovery process, whatever we need to do, and I think I can speak for my friends here as well as others that haven't made it yet. We have also yet to get in touch with his wife, they are currently going through a separation, so I cannot say how she will respond to all of this. But, I can assure you that Ryan will have all the support that he needs."

The other three men nodded their agreement.

"I am glad to hear that he has such loyal friends who are willing to go through this with him. He is going to need all the help and support he can get. Hopefully he will be waking up within the next few hours, you guys should go get something to eat and maybe check back here before retiring for the night. He should be coming around by then and I'm sure familiar faces will help to calm and relax him. This moment will also give us our first glimpse of any brain damage"

Colin got up and shakily shook the Doctors hand, thanking him for everything he had done. "We will be back after we eat and clean up a bit.".