Hello, everybody! This is a Cars humanized fan fiction I wrote. It takes place during the third movie, not long after Lightning wrecks. After coming home from the hospital, he learns he has some tough challenges ahead on his long road to recovery after the wreck, but Sally, as always, is there to help him along the way. I hope you enjoy the story!

Lightning McQueen was finished.

He couldn't believe it. His, long, illustrious career as a seven-time Piston Cup champion was over, and after just one disastrous, fiery crash.

Or so he knew the tabloids and media would like to claim, and with the way he was feeling, he was already starting to believe them wouldn't blame them them when they did, because he knew they would. It was only a matter of time. He was sure there were some people who were already talking about him making a grand comeback, of course, although he hadn't even made it out of the hospital, yet. He hoped such a wonderful thing was possible, but if it ever did happen, it would be a miracle.

After he had learned about Doc's crash, he had always been afraid something like this would happen and that he would wreck, too, but he just hadn't thought it would happen so fast, and that his career would end so quickly. He thought it would happen gradually, over time, the way Doc had talked, but that hadn't been the way it had happened.

He didn't remember much about what happened after the wreck itself, and what little did know about he got from the news the next morning. He could only remember the crash, and what happened just minutes before, Storm riding along behind his bumper and breathing down his neck. The memory was dim, but he could also recall his car flying through the air and landing in the grassy field nearby in the middle of the track. He only had a very dim memory of it happening, but he could only vaguely recall that they had had to cut his clothes off in order to get him out of the vehicle, which had crushed his ribs, back, and legs, and when he had looked over and seen his helmet lying on the ground not far from where his body lay on the grass, he saw it had been full of blood.

He shook his head, trying to clear his troubled mind, looking around at all of the equipment surrounding him. He grimaced, seeing he was hooked up a bunch of tubes and wires. When he looked over his shoulder, he saw an IV line running down his arm, and when he opened his mouth to take a deep, long, breath, he discovered it was a little hard to breathe, and even hurt a little.

"Stickers, honey, you're awake!"

Sally McQueen was kneeling by his bedside, clutching at his arm, her fingers brushing the IV line.

Lightning stared down at her. "I'm all right now, honey," he said, trying to give her a reassuring smile, and brushed a lock of hair that had fallen across her forehead, surprised to see how much his hand shook.

Sally burst into tears. "Oh, thank goodness! I'm so relieved!" she exclaimed, and gently leaned over him to plant a kiss on his cheek, being careful not to press herself too hard against him, knowing he would still be sore. "I was just so scared last night, not knowing if you were going to wake up or not. I stayed up all night."

Lightning reached a hand up to her cheek, and cupped her face in his hands. "You don't have to be scared anymore, honey," he said, pulling her face down toward his in order to give her a light kiss on the cheek, still not having the strength to rise. "I'm all right."

Sally sniffed. "I hope so…it's just that…you look so pitiful and helpless with all of these wires hooked up to you," she said, and rubbed her arm across her eyes, furiously wiping the tears out of them. "I hate seeing you like this." Her voice began to crack. "It breaks my heart."

Lightning just rubbed her back and shoulders, not knowing what else to say or do to comfort her, staring wordlessly over her shoulder. "When do they think I'll be out of here?" he asked, after a few moments, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen over them.

Sally shook her head. "I don't know," she said, giving him a sympathetic look. "They said you had a few broken ribs, a couple of leg fractures, and a concussion. They said you also a few third degree burns where the car caught fire."

Lighting grimaced. "Looks like I'm going to be in here for a while then," he said, rubbing his creased forehead. "I guess I won't be racing again anytime soon." He rubbed his chest, and gingerly ran his hands over his ribs, feeling the badges wrapped heavily around his stomach. "The broken ribs also explain why I've been having a little trouble breathing."

"Stickers, honey-"Sally began, but Lightning ignored her, looking away from her.

"I'll just go and leave in you in peace for a while then," Sally said, and Lightning felt a twinge of guilt when he heard the door shut. He hadn't meant to run her off the way he had. He had wanted her to stay. He just hadn't wanted her pity. He didn't want anybody's pity. He just wanted to be able to race again.

"Look, Lightning, honey, we're home!"

Disturbed from his fretful sleep by the familiar sound of the voice, Lightning slowly lifted his head off the pillow he had pressed up against the car door, and looked in the direction the voice was coming from.

He saw Sally sitting in the driver's seat. He stared at the back of her head, easily recognizing her by her lengthy, curly, auburn hair, which she kept pent-up in a bun at the top of her head. Sally used to be a lawyer working in LA before she had moved to Radiator Springs and met him, and she was all business. She looked all business, too, with the way she wore her hair and the glasses she always kept perched on her nose.

"We are?" Lightning blinked the blurriness out of his groggy gaze, and peered out of the window, seeing at once what Sally was talking about.

He could see the familiar, welcoming sight of the immense, rocky canyon surrounding Radiator Springs looming ahead of him, and couldn't help but sigh with relief. He really was glad to get out of that hospital and back home. He had missed the place.

Lightning snorted, knowing the old Lightning would've never thought that and probably would've laughed if he knew what he was thinking that now. He couldn't believe how much he had changed over the years, and it was all thanks to the citizens of this small, little town out in the middle of nowhere. If it hadn't been for them, he would've been the same, arrogant, hotshot rookie racer he had been all those years ago, back when he had first started out racing.

Sally drove on down the road for a few more minutes until they came to a stop at the Cozy Cone, the hotel she ran all by herself, with some help, every now and then, from him and the rest of the Radiator Springs gang.

"Come on, I'll help you out," Sally said, once she had parked the car in the parking lot and got out of it, going over to his side of the door and opening it.

Lightning peered out the door, scanning his weary gaze across the parking lot, surprised to see the rest of the Radiator Springs gang were there to welcome him back home.

Seeing him stick his head out of the car, a short, stocky, bearded man wearing overalls strolled up to him. "Oh, Lightning ol' buddy, am I sure am glad to see you!" His southern accent was thick. "We thought you were a goner for sure, buddy." He gripped the straps of his overalls and rocking back and forth on his heels, and grinned, revealing his mouth full of front buckteeth. "I'm glad your back home and all right!"

Lightning looked up at the man, who was a dear, old friend, and gave him a wane, feeble smile. "Hello, Mater," he said, gripping Sally's hand, and allowed her to help him out of the vehicle. "It sure is nice to see you again."

"There you go," Sally said, putting one of hers around him, and leaned up against his side in order to help hold him up, reaching behind him to grab his cane out of the car. "Easy does it."

Lightning gave her a grateful look. "Thanks, Sally," he said, taking the cane out of her hand, and crouched over the cane, feeling like an old man.

"Slow and steady wins the race, kid."

Lightning recognized the soothing, southern accent at once, and looked up at the sound of it, surprised, but pleasantly so, to hear it, glad to see the tall, slender man in the cowboy hat and shades strolling up to him. "Strip," he said, smiling at him. "It's great to see you, and I'm glad you came, but you didn't have to come all of this way."

"Yes, I did, kid," Strip said, tilting the cowboy hat down toward him, a wide, shark-like smile full of bright, shiny teeth, teeth that were almost too bright for a man his age, stretched across his lined, weathered face, lifting the dark mustache above his upper lip. "You had us scared out there the other day. You had us scared real bad, and you still look pretty banged up. What did the doctors say?"

Lightning shrugged his shoulders, wincing at the pain that even this small movement caused him, regretting it at once. "Oh, nothing much, just that I had a few broken ribs, and that I would probably never race again."

Strip grimaced. "I'm sorry, kid," he said, giving him a look of pity and remorse, sympathy Lightning didn't really want at the moment, especially from him. "I really am. I've been there before. Trust me. It's not easy. I've raced with broken ribs." He rubbed his sides, as if they still pained him. "It's the hardest thing I've ever done."

Lightning gaped at Strip in disbelief, admiring his bravery and toughness, wishing he had them. "You're telling me," he said, shaking his head. "It's hard enough walking with them. I can't imagine what it would be like driving with them. It hurts to breathe, too."

"I think you should go lie down now, Lightning, honey," Sally said, "You're not looking so good."

"The Missus is right, kid," Strip said, sounding as if he knew what he was talking about. "You should always listen to the Missus."

Lighting had noticed Strip's own, Missus, Lynda, was also missing, but thought now wasn't the time to ask the old man with everybody being there and everything else going on. "Yeah, you're right," he said, wanting to stay and talk with Strip a little longer, but too tired and hurting too much to really argue with her. "Well, bye, Strip. It was nice seeing you again." He threw his hand up at Strip and followed Sally into their cone.

Waking up the next morning, Lightning groaned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, glancing over to his side.

Seeing Sally was still asleep, he smiled down at her, wanting to kiss her but afraid he would wake her if he did. If she knew what he was planning on doing, she would never let him leave the cone. Shaking his head, but still smiling, he slowly sat up in bed and threw his legs over the edge of the mattress, planting his feet on the floor. Being as quiet as he could, he stretched his arms above his head, and slowly stood up. With one last, longing look at Sally, he grabbed his cane, and limped out of the room.

Standing in the parking lot, he took a few minutes to breathe in the warm, morning air, and to relish the refreshing sensation of the early, yet still sweltering sunlight beating down on his body and bathing him in a healthy, orange glow, probably giving him a much-needed tan.

When he felt as if he was ready, Lightning limped toward Doc's garage, every inch of his worn and battered body aching, and hobbled inside when the doors opened at his approach.

Lightning stared mournfully at his car, now all decked out in primer, wondering if he would ever drive the famous 95 car ever again. "Boy, I sure do miss you, Doc." He leaned heavily on his cane, and peered around the empty, desolate place, even more saddened by the absence of Doc.

Feeling his legs getting shaky, he leaned against the side of the garage door for support, groaning, and rubbed his hands across his heavy-lidded eyes.

Once he had recovered little bit of his strength, he lurched forward, making his slow, painful way toward the car. His creaking joints popped and cracked in protest of every small movement he made, making him feel old and tired.

Putting more weight on one foot than the other, his limp more pronounced than ever, it took him longer to get to the car than he thought it would. He collapsed against the side of the old, beat-up stock car when he somehow managed to reach it at last, surprised by how winded he was by the time he got to the vehicle, and gasped for breath. His hand went to his heaving chest, and he grasped at it, wiping the sweat pouring down his face with his other hand.

"Looks like we're still not back, yet, Lightening, old boy," Lightning said, and flung his leg over the door, ignoring the screaming pain traveling up the limb as he lifted it, and awkwardly climbed inside. Performing the feat without the grace he used to be able to, he fell into the seat, feeling as if all of the air had left him. "You might like to think you are, but you're not, no matter how much you wish to be." He fell into the seat, feeling as if all of the air had just left him. "I might get to drive you again one day, old red, hopefully." He gripped the steering wheel, and lovingly rubbed his hands over it, caressing it with great gentleness and care. "It's not looking like it, though." He rested his head on the steering wheel and was quite appalled when he began to sob.

He must've fallen asleep, because he woke up sometime later to the sound of the garage doors opening, and looked up from the steering wheel. Dreading climbing back out of the vehicle, he took a deep, shuddering breath, mustering up what little courage he had left, and rose up from the seat with great reluctance. Letting out a pained grunt, he gripped the door with his hands and hauled himself over it, his back and leg muscles flaring up in agony. He landed, less-than-gracefully, in a crumpled heap on the floor.

"Are you okay?"

Groaning, he pushed himself up, his hand scrambling for his cane. When he found it, at last, right where he had left it propped up against the car, he gripped it in his fingers and pulled himself up, whimpering. "I think that was too much too soon, Lightning, old boy," he said, staggering back to the garage door. "If you're not careful, you'll wind up putting yourself back in hospital again sooner than you would like."

Lightning glanced over to his side, toward the sound of the other voice he had heard, seeing Sally running up toward his side. She had stuck by his side, ever since the wreck, and he was grateful for her undying love and support. She was always there for him, even when he was being a jerk. He didn't know what he had done to deserve her, but he really didn't know what he would do without her.

"Are you all right?"

Lightning suppressed a yawn by covering his mouth with his hand, not wanting Sally to see how tired he was, knowing she was worried enough about him already and not wanting to worry him further. "Yeah," he said, running his long fingers through his fair, shoulder-length, shaggy hair. "I just hurt and I'm still sore from the wreck." He was a little suspired to feel tears running down his gaunt checks, and buried his long, drawn face in his hands, his narrow shoulders beginning to shake from the force his sobs. He had lost some weight since his time in the hospital. A little too much weight, perhaps, and he hadn't been a very big man to big with. He must've looked like a walking skeleton. He was afraid to think what other people thought of him when they saw him.

"I'm so sorry for what happened to you," Sally said, stretching one of her arms lovingly around his shoulders, and brushed a tear off his cheek with a trembling finger. "I was so scared." She gave him a light, yet heartfelt kiss. "It was the scariest thing I've ever had to go through in my life." Her lips began to tremble, and Lightning gaped at her, his eyes widening in horror when he saw tears streaming down her own cheeks. "I thought I had lost you."

Lightning extended his hands out toward her and enfolded her in his arms, his slim hands swallowing even her tiny waist, pulling him to his chest. She had lost some weight while he had been in the hospital, too. Weight she hadn't been able to afford to loose. His wreck and his time in the hospital had taken as much of a toll on her as it had him. "Hey, none of that now," he said, and leaned his head on her shoulder, beginning to whisper in her ear. "That's all in the past. It's noticing to worry about. I'm here now. Everything's all right."

Sniffing, Sally slowly lifted his head off his chest and peered up at him, a worried expression on her face. "For some reason, I'm still not so sure about that," she said, gazing up at him with pure love and adoration in her eyes. She ran her hands down his weather-beaten face, feeling the lines running down it that hadn't been there a few years ago "You've gotten old." She let out a soft chuckle. "I never thought I would see Lightning McQueen get old." She reached up and plucked a strand of white hair she had seen sticking up out of the top of his head, and smiled at him, snickering a little. "You're even starting to get white hairs."

Lightning snorted. "Tell me about it," he said, grimacing at a sudden, paralyzing pain shooting up his spine, and groped at the small of his back, arching it. "Ouch. That hurt."

A look of concern flickered across Sally's wrinkled face, which had become as lined and withered as his. They had both gotten old. "Are you sure all right, honey?" she asked, "Do you need to go lie back down?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Lightning said, beginning to grow a little irritated, but more from the pain than anything else. "I'll get over it. Stop fussing over me."

Sally looked away, and Lightning felt deep regret and guilt over the hurt look he saw on her face before she turned away from him. "I'm sorry," she said, shaking her head, and began to walk away.

"No, Sally, wait!" Lightning called out to her, wanting to run after her but not having the energy after the little stunt he had just pulled.

Not knowing what else to do, he took a deep breath, and limped after her.

By the time he got back to the Cozy Cone, he was crawling on his hands knees, gasping for breath. Sally came running out of the cone, rushing out to meet him. "Lightning honey, you shouldn't have done that!" she cried, kneeling down beside him, and gripped him by the arm. "Oh, I shouldn't have left you, either." She peered worryingly into his face. "I'm going to try to help you back up, okay?"

Lightning gulped, not really wanting to move at all, afraid of the pain he knew it would bring him. "All right," he said, nodding, and braced himself for the agony he knew was coming. "Do it. I can't lie here in the parking lot for the rest of my life, as much as I would like to."

Sally let out a weak chuckle. "You're right about that," she said, and tightened the grip on his arm. "On the count of the three, I'll help you up, all right?"

"All right," Lightning said, hating how his voice cracked. "Do it."

"One…" Sally said, beginning the countdown, and finished it. "Two…three!"

She yanked on his arm, hard, and pulled him up with a surprising amount of strength for a woman so little, and Lightning's scream was loud enough to be heard all across Radiator Springs.

"There we go," Sally said, once Lightning had staggered to his feet, sobbing. "It'll be all right." She rubbed his back, pressing him against his chest, very much the same way he had her earlier, providing him with some much needed comfort. "You have a long road to recovery ahead of you, and I know it doesn't look like it now, but you'll make it there." She pulled him back from her chest, and cupped his chin in her hand, tilting his head to look up at her. "I know you can. I have faith in you. You're a McQueen."

Lightning sniffed. "Oh, Sally," he said, his lips beginning to tremble, and furiously blinked the tears out of his eyes. "I really don't know what I did to deserve you, but I'm lucky I found you."

Sally held his head in her hand. "Oh, Stickers, honey," she said, and gave him a full, lengthy kiss on the mouth. "I feel lucky to have you, too." She pressed his face back to her chest, and leaned her head on his shoulder, running her fingers through his hair. "I love you, too."

"And I love you," Lightning said, whispering the words in her ear, and smiled when he looked back up from her chest and looked up at face, relived to see the big grin she was wearing.

With Sally always by his side, he really did feel like he could accomplish anything he set out to do, and that truly was a wonderful feeling to have.

The End