10 DAYS AFTER THE BLAST (IN THE HOSPITAL)
Neal started stirring, and Mozzie and Peter jumped up from their respective seats and leaned over the bed. The heart rate monitor sped up a bit, and Neal moaned slightly. His eyes finally flickered open and he saw his two friends standing over him.
Neal's eyes were wide when he came to, alive with fear and uncertainty. No one wondered why.
Peter made sure Neal was looking at him before he spoke. "The doctors wrapped your ears, so you can't hear yet. Don't try to speak either- the bandage is looped around your chin."
Neal brought his hand up and fingered the bandage slightly, then nodded.
"I'll get the doctor," Peter said, and walked out of the room.
Mozzie laid his hand down on Neal's arm. "You're gonna be ok," he said.
Neal eyes closed for a second and he took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. The moment he'd been both dreading and anticipating for the last week was just around the corner.
The doctor walked into Neal's room, with Peter trailing just behind. He approached Neal, smiling slightly to put the nervous man at ease.
"I'm going to take the bandage off now. There's some scar tissue from the surgery, but if it worked you should be able to hear right away."
Neal nodded, and closed his eyes as the doctor started unwinding the bandage from around his head.
When all the bandages were gone and the gauze taken off of his ears, Neal took a deep breath and opened his eyes.
A steady beeping filled his head, and as soon as he recognized it, it sped up considerably. The cold, unfriendly sound of the mechanical beeps became the best sound he'd ever heard, until Peter said, "Neal?"
And then Neal was laughing, his face split into a wide smile that showed each of his pearly white teeth, but it wasn't a con this time, it wasn't hiding the truth, it was the truth.
Neal turned to Mozzie and said, "Hey."
He had always been admired for his silver tongue, but at that moment the dry rasp that left his throat was the best thing he'd ever heard himself say.