A steady beeping sound greeted Ryuji as he came back into the conscious world. One unfocused brown eye stared up at the white ceiling as he tried to collect his thoughts and figure out where he was. Something shifted at his side which grabbed the teen's attention. Ryuji shifted slightly as he caught sight of a bundle of black and white fur. The fur lump slept calmly at his waist, Morgana's ear twitched every now and then before it settled down. Feeling weights on his hands, Ryuji's eye slowly drifted over to where Ann and Akira were both asleep, his hands were clasped in theirs. The blonde had his hand in a light grip while their fuzzy haired leader had his in an unbreakable grip, as if he was afraid that Ryuji would drift away. The vulgar teen felt a tug at his heartstrings at the affection as he glanced around the rest of the room.
Yusuke and Futaba sat nearby on one the couches; the navigator was using the artist as a pillow as the pair slept soundly. The glow from the hacker's laptop illuminated their dozing faces. Haru and Makoto slept curled up against the wall; the blanket that was draped over them rose and fell with each inhale. Akechi was… Akechi was sitting near the window, seeming to stare endlessly into the evening sky as his… uncovered hands clenched at his light brown hair. Ryuji dropped his head back onto the pillow and let out a deep breath, causing Morgana's ears to flicker towards him before bright blue eyes appeared from under black lids.
"Hey, Mona." Ryuji softly said with a small smile as the feline's eyes widened.
"Ryuji! You're awake!" Morgana's yelling startled everyone awake and brought Akechi out of his musings. "Ryuji's awake!"
Akira's head bolted up, causing his glasses to fall off as he looked at Ryuji, who gave him a dozy smile in response. "Ryuji…" The leader hugged him, making sure to be careful of the equipment and his wounds. "You're okay…" His voice hitched as he whispered.
Ryuji wished he could hug back, but his arms felt like lead. Ann quickly hugged him after Akira had let go, her body shook as tears glistened in her eyes. Futaba joined Ryuji on the bed, causing Morgana to leap towards the end of the bed as the long haired teen settled next to him, arms wrapped around his neck. Ann eventually let go and stood beside Akira, giving another one of the thieves a turn to hug the awaken blond. Once everyone had gotten in their hug, tears included, they all settled nearby except for Akechi, who sat rooted to his spot. Ryuji looked past Futaba's hair at the teen; the detective's ruddy colored orbs were bloodshot and there were bags under his eyes, almost as if he hadn't been sleeping.
"You've been asleep for a while." Yusuke stated as he wiped away his own tears.
"I have?" Ryuji blinks, trying to get his eye to focus. "How long?"
"Five days, six hours, thirty-four minutes, and twelve seconds." Futaba spoke into his neck. "I've been counting."
"H-Have you guys been here the entire time?"
They nodded.
"We've been here ever since Akechi told us that he saved you." Akira explained.
'Akechi… saved me?' Ryuji glanced over at the teen, who seemed to flinch at what the ebony haired leader said. 'For real?'
"When we got here, he and your mother were a wreck." Ann added. "He was-"
"My mom?" Ryuji interrupted her. "She's here too?"
"Yeah, she stepped out to get something to drink and-"
The sound of a door clicking open stopped the teen mid-explanation. Mai walked in, holding an coffee cup and looking drained, both emotionally and physically.
"Mom." Ryuji said as loud as he could with an unused voice.
His mother jumped slightly at his voice and dropped her cup as her hands flew up to cover her mouth. Futaba got off the bed as Mai rushed over to her son's side. Ryuji reached up and buried his face in her shirt as she peppered his face and head with kisses.
"You're awake." She sobbed, repeating the same phrase into his hair.
Ryuji clenched at her shirt. "'M sorry I worried ya…" He hiccupped as his tears were soaked up by the clothing.
"Don't apologize. This wasn't your fault." Mai rubbed his back. "This was never your fault."
Ryuji was happy to be here, in his mother's arms and out of the hands of Butcher. He moved his head out of his mom's shirt and turned his eye towards the others. All of them were looking away in order to give the pair some sort of privacy. Akechi and Futaba's eyes were down cast to the ground, Ryuji could see flashes of sadness in their eyes. His mother pulled back and the vulgar teen resisted the urge to follow her.
"I'll go get the nurse." She kissed his forehead and left the room, leaving the phantom thieves alone.
"Your crying face is so not cute." Ann teased in an attempt to lift the mood.
Ryuji gave her an annoyed look and crossed his arms, leaning back into the hospital bed. "I ain't cute."
"What are you talking about?" Akira gave a small smirk. "You're the cutest one here."
"Akira." The blond hid his face in his hands while the rest of the team laughed.
"You beat out Mona-chan in cutest level." Haru added.
Ryuji sank further into the bed, face flushing a bright red as the laughter got louder.
"Sorry, Ryuji." The blond felt a pair of lips on his forehead. "It's good to have you back." Akira softly said. "We were all worried about you."
"Hmm." Ryuji pulled his hands away and yawned.
Morgana took his spot beside Ryuji on the bed as Akechi spoke up.
"I have something that needs to be said." The teen's voice was small and shaky, almost as if he was afraid to speak. "It's about my true intentions."
All eyes were on Akechi as the room grew silent, Ryuji could feel his eyelid growing heavy.
"I was originally going to…"
Ryuji tried to stay awake to hear the rest, but the realm of sleep was calling him. He fell unconscious shortly after feeling Kidd link to someone else.
