Stewie awoke in his crib, wrapped in Brian's arms. Daylight had seeped in through the windows, and reflected off of the bars in his crib. The child slowly turned around and snugged against the dog's chest. He was so content. He had finally gotten the one thing he had always wanted. Brian was in love with him. Something he never believed to be possible. But looking at the dog's smile while he slept, he knew it was true.
As much as Stewie was enjoying feeling the gentle rise and fall of Brian's chest. As much as he loved listening to the beating of the dog's heart. Stewie knew he would have to wake Brian before Lois came in.
He shook the dog gently. "Bry? Bry, wake up."
The dog moaned and slowly opened his eyes. When he gazed upon Stewie, he smiled warmly. "Hey, kid." The dog let out a long yawn."How'd you sleep?"
Stewie twirled his small finger around some of the canine's chest fur. "Never better."
Brian grunted and rolled onto his back, wrapping his arm around the tyke as he laid his head on the dog's chest. "Can you believe this is happening right now?"
Stewie shook his head and giggled. "No. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it."
They both remained in that position for another five minutes before Brian moved to get out of bed. Stewie grabbed a hold of the dog's arm. "No." he whined, "Stay here for a little bit longer."
Brian gave a faint smile, "As tempting as that sounds. I better be getting downstairs before Lois wakes up."
Stewie pouted, "Let the bitch walk in. If she has anything to say, I'll put all those threats I've said over the years to action!"
Brian gave the child a disbelieving look. "Stewie, you know it has to be this way. At least for right now until we figure everything out."
Stewie looked down. "I know, I know." The toddler looked up with a playful grin on his face, "At least give me a kiss before you leave."
Brian chucked and lowered his head to give Stewie a quick kiss on the lips. The wrapped his little arms around the dog's neck before they separated. Brian went to leave. "See you in a bit."
Stewie smiled. "I love you, Bry."
"Love you too, kid."
The door closed, leaving Stewie alone. The child fell back onto his bed, thinking about the events that occurred in the past 6 hours.
Everything has just fallen into place. Nothing could make me happier than I am now.Brian was already on the couch watching TV for 15 minutes before Lois emerged from the top of the stairs with Stewie in his arms. Brian forced a yawn and stretched to look like he just woke up. "Morning Lois."
Lois reached the bottom of the stairs. "Good morning, Brian." She replied. "I'm just about to start on breakfast."
"Sounds good to me. I'm starving."
Lois continued to stroll into the kitchen. Stewie looking over her back smiling at the dog. Brian mouthed the words I love you.Brian could see the child's face blush as Stewie quickly turned his head away to try to hide it. Brian slowly slid off of the couch and made his way to the front door to retrieve the daily newspaper. By the time he had arrived in the kitchen, Lois had Stewie strapped into his high chair and was looking in the fridge. Brian took a seat and opened up the newspaper. "So, you and Peter have anything planned for today?"
Lois grabbed a gallon of milk from the refrigerator and began pouring it into some pancake mix. "Well actually, I was hoping to get the kids out of the house for today so Peter and I can get some time alone. We haven't been able to relax all month and it would be really refreshing."
A glimmer of hope sparked in Brian. "Well, if you want, I could take Stewie to the park or something and take him off your hands for a while."
Brian noticed Stewie's eyes light up at the request as Lois turned around to face the dog. She smiled, "Thank you, Brian. I was going to ask Bonnie to take care of him today, but you just made it much easier for me." She turned back to continue cooking. "Now if only I can get the others out of here for a little while."
Brian chucked and went back to reading his newspaper. No one seemed to notice the thumping of his tail continuously whacking the side of the chair.
_
Stewie sat happily in his car seat as Brian drove them both to the park. After a short amount of bickering and complaining, Chris and Meg unwillingly obliged to leaving the house to hang out with friends for the day.
How those two fat slugs have friends, I will never understand.Stewie thought.
But he was happy that they did at that moment. Now, instead of the day consisting of unbearable torture and separation, he could spend it with Brian without those wretched people whom he hated calling his family being in the way. He smiled up at the amazing being sitting next to him. He loved that dog, and he couldn't imagine a life without him.
"Hey, Bry. I'm not really in the mood to go to the park. Wanna go somewhere else?"
The dog looked over at Stewie in confusion. "What? Like where?"
The baby shrugged. "I dunno. Somewhere with less people. Somewhere where we don't have to hide."
Brian sighed and took the child's hand. "As tempting as that sounds, now is not the right time for it, Stewie. I told Lois I was taking you to the park. If she were to come here looking for us and we weren't here. Imagine what would happen."
Disappointment undoubtedly was written across Stewie's face. He understood, though. If they were caught, they would never be able to be together again. So Stewie didn't say anything else on the subject.
When they arrived at the park, Brian unbuckled Stewie and let him get out of the car. Stewie looked around to see a couple of kids playing around the jungle gym. One of them had a large red kickball they were tossing around to each other. The child in Stewie felt an urge to join them; but he was there to spend time with Brian.
He turned to the dog. "So, what do you want to do?"
Brian shrugged. "Well, I need to make a call really quick. My car payment is past due and I need to take care of that. Why don't you go hang out with those kids over there for a minute?"
Stewie glanced over at the two boys who were still running around laughing as they tossed the ball around. "I suppose. Don't be long, though, okay? I'd rather not spend a large amount of time with those simpletons."
Brian chucked loudly. "Okay, kid. I'll do my best. I love you."
Stewie smiled and ran over to hug the dog, "I love you too."
Stewie let go and ran over to the two boys. They both stopped to look at the toddler. Stewie forced a smile. "Mind if I join?"
One boy with red hair and freckles all around his face smiled and tossed the ball towards him. "Sure, but you're it."
Stewie realized they were playing dodge ball. Both boys took off running and Stewie was forced to chase after him. He sights were aimed at the other boy with brown hair and a blue and white striped shirt on. The kid was surprisingly slow for his seemingly built stature. Stewie gained on him quickly. As soon as he got in reach, he hurled the ball at the boy. The kickball hit the kid square in the back and he fell to the ground. Both Stewie and the red haired boy stopped and gasped for breath.
"You're it." Stewie breathed.
The boy stood up and picked the ball up off the ground. "Alright, go!"
Stewie unwillingly began running away from the kid. He looked back and realized the boy was coming for him.
Fat chance. Stewie pushed his legs to run faster as he attempted to outrun the boy. He glanced back again to see the kid holding his arm back, clutching the ball. The boy launched the ball at Stewie. The toddler jumped out of the way as the ball whizzed past his head and landed into the road. It rolled to a stop as all three kids stop at the edge.
"Uh, my mom says not to go on the road." The brown headed boy said uncertainly.
"Yeah," The ginger one said. "It's dangerous."
"Oh for god's sake, I'll get it." Stewie huffed.
Stewie strolled out onto the hot black pavement. Thinking about how mature he was compared to these kids as he approached the ball. He bent down to pick it up. That wasn't so hard, was it?"He thought as he turned to walk back to the two kids. He paused, however, when he noticed both of them had faces that were frozen in horror. Suddenly he heard the sound of screeching tires. He jerked his head to the source of the sound to see a car coming right at him. He could tell right there that it would not stop in time and that his time was over. He closed his eyes and whispered "I'm sorry, Brian. I love you."
He felt a force smash into him. Not from the front where he was expecting it, but from the side. He flew out of the way as he felt the car whiz by before finally screeching to a stop. He laid there on the ground as he felt something wet by his ear. He tried to open his eyes, only to see his world spinning. He fought to clear it, but to no avail. The bright colors of the world he knew slowly became crushed with an overpowering wave of darkness.
_
Voices. I hear voices. My god they're so loud! What are they saying? I can't understand it! Wait...am I dead? The ball...and the car...my god I must be. Those voices...they...sound familiar. Lois? Fat Man? What the deuce is going on here? Blast! Why does my head hurt so much? Wait, I'm not dead. Stewie barely opened his eyes to be blinded by a harsh light. His head felt like it had been split in two. He slowly opened them again as they adjusted. He didn't recognize this room. Where was he? He looked around.
This is a hospital. I'm in a damn hospital. How am I alive? That car had to have crushed me. He slowly turned his head to look around the room. He spotted Lois and the fat man sitting in the corner talking about something he didn't care to listen to. Suddenly his thoughts went to the dog.
"Brian." he moaned quietly.
Lois immediately looked in his direction. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "My baby!" She hurried over to Stewie's bedside and gently wrapped her arms around her son. "Thank god you're okay!"
Stewie squirmed under the woman's touch. "Brian." he repeated.
If Lois had heard him, she did not understand him. She just continued to sob as she kept Stewie in her firm hug.
Goddammit, woman! For once I need you to understand me! Why wasn't Brian there? Was he getting something to eat, or go home? Where was he? Stewie became infuriated by the woman and began thrashing to get her to release him. "Get off me!" he yelled. "Where the devil is Brian, you stupid bitch?!"
The woman continued to ignore him, but did release him. Wiping tears from her eyes, she turned to her husband. "Peter, run and get the nurse."
The fat man sighed as if all of this was an annoyance to him and got up from his chair to walk out the door. Lois took a seat beside his bed. Stewie wanted nothing more than to launch and strangle the woman. His Brian was not here and he wanted to know why! Suddenly the fat man reappeared with a nurse behind him. The nurse smiled warmly at the toddler, "Hi there, young man. Good to see you're finally awake!"
Stewie grimaced as the woman came over and did a check on his vitals, her standard procedure. She turned to Lois, "He's fine. He going to need to rest here a day or two before we can even think about releasing him. His head did suffer some considerable trauma from hitting the pavement like that. He's a fighter though and pulled though. Either way, I want to be safe and make sure he's one hundred percent before making any decisions."
"I understand." Lois paused and looked down. "How's Brian?"
Stewie's heart stopped. The nurse looked at his mother seriously, "He's not doing as good. As I said earlier, he has five broken ribs which resulted in a punctured lung. He has an arm broken in two places and a leg as well. His head also suffered much worse than Stewie here. We still haven't gotten his vitals under control and the punctured lung is resulting is some erratic abnormal breathing. I promise you, ma'am. We're currently doing everything we can and will continue to do everything we can to make sure he comes out of this okay. I'll keep you updated when we get him under control and when you can see him."
Stewie was frozen. No, no, NO! How? How did this happen?! Suddenly, he recalled the force that seemed to push him out of the way of the car. Stewie realized that Brian had shoved him and had to have gotten hit instead. Oh god NO! Brian! Stewie went berserk. He jumped up out of bed, ripping off the IV's as he went. His mother and the nurse yelling after him. He sprinted out into the hallway, desperately searching for the emergency room. He quickly found some double doors with a sign above it.
Emergency Stewie ran for the doors and struggled to push them open. He was almost inside when he was picked up by his mother. He immediately began beating his fists on every part of her that he could reach. "Let go of me, you fucking bitch! He's mine!" Tears began streaming down his face as he screamed, "I need to see him! He's in there because of me! Please! Let me see him!" Lois grabbed his arms to prevent him from striking her any more and turned away from the doors to walk him back to his room. She said something, but Stewie did not care to listen. He reached his hand in the direction of the doors. "No! Please! No! Brian! Brian I'm so sorry!" He broke into sobs as his body went limp.
Lois set him down in the bed and the nurse used some straps to keep him there. Stewie didn't even put up a fight. He just laid there unmoving. Thinking about what he had done. I did this. He thought. This is all my fault. Brian is in there fighting for his life, and it's all because of me.
Then thoughts of Brian somehow not making it began to cross his mind. How would he survive? How could Stewie go through life without the one who meant more to him than himself. If Brian dies. I die too. Stewie decided. I refuse to live without him. With that in mind, Stewie closed his eyes. Tears still draining from his eyes as he fell asleep.
_
Stewie had barely eaten during the days since he had left the hospital. He mostly stayed in his room. Either staring out the window or lying in his bed. He had barely heard any news of Brian. The news that he did hear were not much different than what he heard before. That Brian was still unconscious and was still in bad shape. Nobody had been allowed to see him since the incident; and Stewie was terrified something would go wrong.
Lois had noticed Stewie's behavior and expressed her worry many times to her husband. They had talked about therapy and other solutions, but they had been brushed off as "He's okay. He just misses Brian."
Missed him? He more than missed him. Brian was in the hospital because of Stewie's own stupidity. He might pay with his life for the toddler's mistake. If he did, that would be the end of Stewie as well. Without Brian, he had nothing to live for. Though, since he had heard no news of Brian's condition, all he could do was sit in his room and think about what would happen. It was dangerous to think like that, but the boy couldn't help it.
Stewie had been forced to come downstairs and be with the family. Though he did not acknowledge any of them, they still acted as if everything was okay. Stewie couldn't stand it. How can you pretend that everything is fine when something like this happens? Stewie stared at the TV that was currently featuring the news. He heard the news anchor talking, but he did not make out the words. He simply stared blankly and thought about what Brian must be going through. He could not shake the thoughts or the guilt that plagued his body.
Lois came into the living room and took a seat beside Stewie. The child could feel her eyes boring into him, but he paid no mind to it. He knew how concerned she was, and it angered him even more. Don't worry about me, you moron. Worry about the dog who is fighting for his life for saving mine.
He wanted to voice his thoughts more than anything. He wanted to scream it to every being that lived in that hell hole he called a home. Though, inside, Stewie knew it would be useless. Everyone but Brian couldn't or wouldn't understand what he said. They just viewed him as a simple toddler who supposedly barely even knew one word. They were blind morons, and he resented them all for it.
Stewie felt a hand brush the top of his head. "Oh, Stewie. I'm sorry this happened. I just hope you're okay, baby."
Stewie slapped her hand away. He could hold his anger in no longer. He jumped up from the couch. "Fuck you!" he screamed. He swung his hand which struck the side of her face with surprising force.
Lois simply stared at him in shock. Before she could react, Stewie jumped off of the couch and ran upstairs into his room. He jumped onto his bed and buried his face into the pillow. Tears welled in his eyes as he screamed at the top of his lungs into the pillow. Did they feel nothing? Did they even care that Brian was in his current condition? He wanted to kill them all. More than anything, he just wanted his Brian back.
"Brian, I need you." he sobbed. "Please be okay. I love you."
Stewie continued to cry until sleep finally took him.
_
He was awakened by his mother quickly picking him up out of the bed and rushing him downstairs.
What the devil is going on? he wondered as she raced him out the door. Lois swiftly sat him in his car seat and buckled him into the car. She slammed the door and got into the driver's seat. No one else was with her, so he took that it was morning and the kids were at school; and the fat man was at work. She quickly started the car, backed out of the driveway, and raced down the street.
The car eventually slowed as she turned into a parking lot. Stewie recognized it was the hospital when he saw the building. Both hope and fear rose in his body. This meant one of two things. Either Brian had awakened, or...Brian was dying. As Lois parked the car and stepped out to retrieve her baby, Stewie had begin hyperventilating. She took him out of his car seat, paying no mind to his heavy breathing as she almost ran inside the door. Stewie could not make out the expression on her face as they stepped into the elevator. It scared him even more.
When they finally reached the front desk a nurse that had just gotten off the phone politely looked up at the anxious woman. "Hi. Can I help you?"
"Yes," Lois breathed. "I'm here to see Brian Griffin."
The woman looked down at her paperwork and smiled. "Yes, he's in room 208. Go ahead and see him."
"Thank you."
Lois quickly rushed Stewie down the hall until she arrived at Brian's door. Stewie quickly thought, This is it, Stewie. Please let him be okay. Lois slowly opened the door. She quietly walked into the room. Brian's bed was concealed by a white curtain. A nurse was sitting by it scanning her clipboard. The woman looked up. "Oh hello. Are you Lois Griffin?"
"Yes, that's me. How is he?"
The woman smiled. "He's doing okay, ma'am. He woke up around 5am this morning. His vitals are running normal and he's talking. I think he's going to be just fine."
Stewie let out a long breath he didn't realize he was holding in. Those words were heaven to him. "
The nurse continued. "I'd let him sleep for right now, but he should probably be waking up soon."
The nurse nodded and left the room. Lois slowly reached for the white curtain and opened it. Brian was lying in the bed. Bondage on fifty percent of his body. The top of his head was even wrapped up. The dog was in rough condition but still slept so peacefully. Stewie was overjoyed. He wanted to jump out of his mother's arms and hug the dog tightly and never let go. Stewie heard a sniffle and looked over at Lois who had tears in her eyes. She smiled at the sleeping canine then looked down at her baby. "He's going to be okay, Stewie."
No shit, woman. I love the fact that now you care.Though Stewie still had resentment towards his mother, he didn't dare dwell on the thoughts. The moment was all about his Brian.
Lois had since taken a seat in one of the chairs and fell asleep herself. Stewie however didn't. He sat on her lap and stared at the dog who he still couldn't believe was right in front of him. He's alive. The child thought. And I'll never let anything happen to him again._
Brian slowly rose out of his deep sleep. He opened his eyes to see a child he instantly recognized as Stewie staring back at him. He realized the boy was sitting on the bed. Immediately upon noticing Brian's eyes open. Stewie smiled. Brian was the first to utter a word. "Hey kid."
Brian noticed that tears had begun streaming down the child's face as Stewie took the dog in a tight hug. "Oh Brian." Stewie sobbed. "I thought I lost you."
The dog slowly and painfully returned the hug. No matter how much it hurt, he'd never felt better in his life. They remained in the embrace for what seemed like forever before they separated. Stewie wiped his eyes. "I'm so glad you're alive, Bry! I don't know what I would ever do without you. I love you so much."
Brian gave a weak smile, "Hey now. You can't get rid of me that easily, kid." The dog's expression changed, however, when he noticed the large bruise on the side of the kid's head. "D-did I do that?"
Stewie instinctively placed a hand over the bruise. "Oh I got it when I hit my head on the pavement. It's nothing, Bry."
Brian frowned. "I made you hit your head?"
The baby's expression turned from happy to serious. "Don't even start, dog. It's a fucking bruise. Who cares? Have you see yourself lately? You got hit by a fucking car and you're asking me if I'm okay?"
The dog weakly chuckled as the frustrated child continued. "Speaking of which, why in the hell would you do that to me? Do you have any idea what I've been going through? I thought you were going to die, Brian!" Tears once again began to fill the child's eyes as he paused to try and compose himself. "This is my fault. You're in here because of me. I was so stupid; and I'm sorry, Brian. I'm so sorry."
Stewie broke into sobs as the dog placed a hand on the child's shoulder. "Hey, Stewie. It's okay. I'm fine. I would give my life for you in a heartbeat. Why wouldn't I? You mean everything to me, and I can't imagine life without you, kid. I love you. Nothing will ever change that."
Stewie's cries subsided as he looked Brian in the eyes. Brian could see so much hurt and grief behind the happiness in those eyes. He realized how much he meant to Stewie. The child leaned down and pressed his lips to Brian's. The dog felt unbelievably happy at that moment. He was alive, and so was Stewie. Sure he had went through hell to save the kid; but he would do it 100 times over to make sure his Stewie was okay. Brian looked up at the ceiling. For the first time in his 7 years, he was thankful for being alive.
He smiled. If there somehow happens to be a God. Thank you, for giving me another chance to be happy. As the child laid down and began to snuggle into the dog's chest. Stewie closed his eyes and, like he hadn't slept in ages, instantly fell into a very deep sleep. The dog chuckled and painfully wrapped his healthy arm around the sleeping child. Though he had just survived a near death ordeal, he had never felt more alive.
Well, that was different. Originally, I wanted to save this for a later chapter and use Chapter Four as a filler; but I decided this incident would fit much better in this. Not to mention, fillers can sometimes be boring for both the writer and the reader. Apologies for taking a bit longer with posting this one. I have been busy with life lately and have been experiencing excessive amounts of writer's block for some reason. During my absence, however, I did plan out all up to Chapter Ten. There will be a lot of things happening. Let me tell you that now. Not just this incident, but also upcoming events will be arriving to really test Brian and Stewie's relationship. I promise, all of the 15 to 20 chapters I have planned for this fan-fiction will be full of interesting elements of romance, hurt, tragedy, and heartbreak. Not to mention parts that will keep you at the edge of your seat. I'm really exited to release more to you guys, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I do writing it. Please be sure to favorite and review to let me know what you think of the story and maybe even state things you think I should improve on. I always welcome constructive criticism. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Much more to come! Cheers, Austin
DawnAscendance