A/N: Great reviews! I see a lot of people are concerned for Max's safety. That makes me smile. And remember, criticism and reviews are always welcome!
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When I woke up, the first thing my mind processed was that I was lying on a cold, hard floor. I kept my eyes closed, so as not to warn anyone of my consciousness.
I couldn't smell any anti-septic, but I was positive that I was in the school or some other Itex-sponsored nuthouse. The last thing I remembered of the fight was that we had won…so how did this happen?
I felt a hand on my shoulder. I tried to stay as limp as I possibly could as I was raised to a sitting position.
The rim of a bottle was placed against my bottom lip. Whoever was by me wedged the rim between my lips and began to pour something into my mouth.
The whitecoats were forcing me to drink something.
Immediately, it began to slip down my throat. Involuntarily, I gagged and spat out whatever had been dumped in my mouth. I coughed so hard that my throat began to ache, and I felt a hand thumping against my back.
"Calm down," a gentle voice spoke in my ear. Iggy! "It's just juice."
My eyes shot open and immediately focused on his blue eyes. Concern was etched across his face. "How're you feeling?" he asked when I finally stopped coughing.
Without replying, I looked around to see that I was in the cave. "Where are the others?" I rasped.
"Fang, Nudge, and Angel went after breakfast," Iggy replied. "I think that Gazzy needed some time to think. He's out flying with the hawks." He held out the bottle of juice. "Drink this. You lost a lot of blood in that fight, and although I can't say for sure, I think juice helps with that kind of problem."
I took the juice and downed it in one mouthful. It felt good on my parched throat.
Iggy sighed quietly as he ran a hand through his shaggy, strawberry-blonde hair. "Angel was reading everyone's mind during the battle," he began tentatively. "She…she told me what you were thinking when…when those Erasers had you pinned." He scratched the side of his neck, a sure sign that he was feeling uncomfortable.
"I'm sorry, Max," he continued. "I shouldn't have held it against you. Even though Nudge wasn't the happiest, either, I'm the only one that wouldn't let it go. I feel horrible. I'm…I'm really sorry, Max."
His voice had begun to quiver about halfway through. As I looked closer, I noticed that he was trembling. I tried to say something to comfort him, but he would have none of it.
"You almost died. God, I felt so awful. I was so scared that I'd…that I'd never get the chance to apologize for that. I was scared that you were going to die, Max. I really was."
I thought I saw tears welling up in his pale blue eyes.
"Iggy-"
"Hang on. Just…just let me get this out, okay?" Iggy said. His voice was bordering sobs.
I nodded slowly. "Okay."
Iggy swallowed thickly before going on, "When Angel said that we all loved you too much to leave, she really meant all of us, you know. When you were shouting at us to leave, to leave you behind, I realized just how wrong I was to be mad at you. I…I was going to apologize as soon as the fight was over, but then…but then those Erasers tore you up…god, I don't think that I could've dropped that bomb quick enough. I'm sorry, Max."
The first tear broke through as he finished, "I'm really, really sorry."
For a moment, all I could do was stare. Then, I reached forward, wrapped my arms around him, and pulled him into a hug.
"Don't be," I said, and before I knew it I could feel tears of my own. "For awhile there, I was scared that you hated me, but now I know better."
I heard Iggy sniffle. "I was just mad," he murmured. "I'm not angry anymore. I…I never hated you. I've just been upset because you left us without even a word, thinking that we weren't fully willing to go through all that just to stay with you. It was just like you didn't realize how much we all love you."
I felt the warm tears streak down my face.
"I'm sorry about that, Iggy, I really am. I'm here now, though. I'm here now, and I'm never gonna leave you all again, I swear it."