AN: Well, here's something I found from almost a year ago. If I remember correctly this was supposed to be part of some sort of AU story I'd come up with last summer, but I never wrote anything past this scene and can't remember what the rest of the story was supposed to be about. But I kind of liked how this turned out, so instead of just letting it rot... here.

~Near Midnight~

The infirmary was dark, quiet, lonely. At this point during the night most of the other Smashers had gone to bed in order to prepare for tomorrow's inevitable grueling fights. All but a few, that was. Mega Man sat in one of the plastic chairs in the waiting room, keeping a paranoid eye on the red LED above the doors that led into the operating room and patient rooms. It had been over two hours. Never a good sign when it came to life-or-death situations.

The LED suddenly went out and Dr. Mario emerged from the operating room, disposing of his bloody gloves in a hazardous bin as he approached Mega Man, a kind smile on his face.

"He's going to make a full recovery." Dr. Mario assured Mega Man in a calm, collected tone, though Mega Man could see from his eyes that he was slightly traumatized. Made sense considering he'd been operating on his best friend. Chances were he wasn't going to get much sleep tonight. "He'll always have a permanent scar on his chest from where the attack made contact... but he's going to survive."

Relief swept through Mega Man. "Thank you, Doctor. Can I go see him?"

Dr. Mario gave a curt nod. "He is conscious if you want to go visit. Stay as long as you want."

Wasting no time Mega Man sprang up from his chair and pushed open the double doors, bounding down the hallway and making a right. He spied that familiar flash of blue fur as soon as he rounded the corner. "Sonic!"

Sonic smiled as he saw Mega Man approaching. "H-Hey Rock..." he weakly greeted, attempting to sit up and motioning for Mega Man to join him on the bed. As he did however the thin hospital sheets slipped away from his chest, revealing the nasty scar to the world. Mega Man froze upon seeing it, his eyes glued to the somewhat jagged line and an overwhelming sense of guilt washing over him. Sonic followed his gaze and frowned briefly, before shaking it off and patting the spot next to him. "C'mon Rock. I could use some company right now."

While Mega Man hesitated for a moment longer, he eventually sat next to Sonic, Sonic pulling him into a tight embrace. "I'm sorry." Mega Man whispered. Sonic cocked his head in curiosity, quirking an eyeridge.

"What for?"

"I'm the reason you're stuck in this hospital bed." Mega Man mumbled in guilt. Sonic shook his head.

"No you're not. Knowin' me I would've ended up in this situation anyway." he smirked and chuckled, trying to lighten the mood, but it was clear that it wasn't working. Sonic frowned. "Hey, it's okay Rock. I'm fine now."

"You shouldn't have taken that attack for me!" Mega Man cried, Sonic mildly startled by the sudden outburst but let Mega Man get his frustration out of his system. "I could've handled it!"

"No, you wouldn't have."

Those words stung more than Mega Man let on. "And how do you know?" he muttered bitterly.

"Rock, you're a robot. The enemy knows that, and developed special weapons to kill you specifically. That blade was one of 'em, an' I wasn't gonna just stand there an' let you die in front of me!"

Mega Man lowered his eyes to the ground. "I didn't realize that," he quietly admitted. "I want to say 'thank you' but you're in a hospital bed because of it so..."

Sonic laughed. "Don't worry 'bout it buddy. Takin' that attack for you was second nature to me. An' Mar says I'll be alright to fight in a couple of days so I can repeat the process all over again!"

Mega Man faintly smiled, and went to stand. He was stopped by Sonic grabbing his arm however. "Are you leavin'?" he asked in curiosity.

Mega Man glanced down at Sonic's gloved hand wrapped around his metallic wrist. "I was..." he began. "I can stay longer if you like though."

"Rock..." Sonic started quietly. "Would you mind stayin' with me tonight? Y'know, just in case somethin' goes wrong?"

Mega Man gazed into Sonic's eyes, and immediately understood the unspoken words in that request. Sonic didn't want to be alone in a hospital bed with his thoughts. He wanted someone there to keep him tethered to reality so his mind wouldn't wander. With that in mind it took Mega Man all of a second to come up with his answer. "Of course I'll stay with you."

Sonic grinned, his eyes falling shut as Mega Man dragged a chair over to the bed. "Thanks Rock..."