Note: I do NOT own Galactik Football!

'Give me an hour Rocket and I'll be able to tell you more,' Simbai said to Rocket after finishing Tia's tests and the lost lover nodded with a thanks before Simbai left to conclude the results whilst Rocket clutched his dying lover's hand. After Rocket's hand bandaged up since he had done some damage when he punched the wall, they had arrived home no more than two hours ago and both Tia and D'Jok had been quickly rushed to proper rooms to be treated. Tia was getting worse so Simbai had ordered the Pirate medic and the others to take an unconscious (and still unconscious last Rocket heard) D'Jok to one room whilst she, Sonny and Rocket took Tia to another where she could do some tests. She had succeeded in bringing Tia's temperature down slightly but it was now jumping and she was continuing to shiver like before. What made her worse than before though was that Tia now couldn't breathe properly and her heartbeat was slipping slowly forcing Simbai to put her on an oxygen mask and life support machine upon the arrival of her parents' who had retreated to mourn in peace over the news and tragic sight of their daughter. Rocket in the meantime was concerned about keeping her alive and it wasn't until now he had time to reflect on the reality of what was going on. Clutching her lifeless hand, he thought and thought when he couldn't take it anymore.

'I don't know if you can hear me...' he began, confessing his feelings to his soul mate even though she probably couldn't hear him. '...but sure... For the past few months in my bedside locker I've had a small box with a ring inside it. I was waiting for the right moment to ask you but when everything happened... I guess I was more worried about your health then asking you to marry me but the thought still didn't leave my head. Then when you started to get better, I was trying to pluck up the courage to ask you and then this. I love you Tia, you mean everything to me and I don't know if you can hear me but if you can, please pull through this! Remember that promise you made me...?'

Lying in the snow on their backs, Rocket and Tia gazed up at the stars when Rocket felt her emerald eyes watching him making him turn to face her angelic face. A smile spread across her face like it did his when she spoke with her gentle voice.

'You know I would do anything for you, right?' she spoke randomly and he took that chance to then on his side towards her and pull her close from around the waist; making her to flip on to her side.

'Yeah but there's only one thing I'll ever ask you to do for me Tia: stay with me...forever,' he almost begged and with that, she placed a soft hand on his cheek.

'I promise.' With that, he pulled her into a passionate kiss...

'I'm not holding it against you but please Tia, if there's any way then please survive. I don't want to lose you, I want to kiss you again, hear you say you love me and marry you. I just want you to be here so please Tia, if there's anyway...survive,' Rocket cried as his heart took in the situation and fell apart. But despite his pleads, Tia never stirred making her broken hearted boyfriend shred tears over the thought he might possibly lose her.

Mei quickly changed the damp cloth on D'Jok's head to a colder one to help bring down his temperature and hopefully stop his shivering. So far, nothing had worked as he still hadn't awoken and he was still shaken up from the excruciating pain he had faced. Mei to was still shaken and was honestly scared half to death right now of what the poison was doing and what it could do to him but she was trying to stay strong for his sake. He needed her now more than ever. Suddenly, the door of the medical room opened and in came Sonny, determined to find out how his son was doing.

'Hi Mei, how is he?' Sonny asked his son's lover as he took the other seat next to Mei by D'Jok's bedside. He couldn't help but notice her sigh and bite the inside of her cheek before she answered.

'Honestly, I don't know. And we probably won't know until he wakes up…if he wakes up.' Mei whispered the last part so quietly that if it weren't for Sonny's Pirate senses, he never would've heard her.

'He will Mei, just give him a chance,' Sonny assured her gently but it was going to take a lot to ease Mei's worries.

'But what if he doesn't Sonny? He wouldn't have gotten himself into this if he wasn't trying to save me…' Mei was quickly cut off by Sonny who knew his future daughter-in-law well enough to know what was going through her head.

'Stop right there Mei. It's not at all your fault; D'Jok didn't have to save you but he decided to because he loves you and he wouldn't want you to blame yourself. What he would want you to do is have faith he'll wake up and will be fine in the end of all this. With your love and support he will.' Mei for a second had to catch her breath. It was rare that Sonny Blackbones, the Sonny Blackbones who was the Pirate's leader, spoke how he felt on such an emotional level. Honestly, it touched Mei deeply especially since he was one of the people she trusted most in this world.

'What's gotten into you? You're going all soft on us,' Mei joked in order to try and loosen up the mood which she succeeded in doing. She could tell Sonny wasn't good at the whole emotional level and she didn't want to pressure him into venturing it further as it would make him feel uncomfortable. Besides, he had made an excellent point that Mei quickly took on board.

'Another time Mei, another time…' Sonny replied jokingly making Mei giggle at her future father-in-law and from there, the two began to really connect on a different level then they had before. They joked and chatted and Mei tended to D'Jok as they waited for him to recover and surprisingly, the shivering died down and his temperature was quickly back to normal. Mei knew the incident would leave him traumatised for sometime but at least his health would be back to more or less normal now. Sonny clearly felt the same way as he seemed less stressed after a while and the two were relaxed. But soon Mei nodded off despite herself which left Sonny to tend to his son and he made sure Mei was warm first by placing a blanket around her as she slept. After sitting down himself to rest or even catch up on some sleep, stirring from his son caught his attention and then suddenly, his eyes fluttered open and he seemed dazed for a second. In order to make sure he didn't have a panic attack or anything, Sonny plopped himself on D'Jok's bed to make his son aware of his presence but quickly hushed him when he opened his mouth and gestured to a sleeping Mei. D'Jok looked and smiled when he saw Mei before turning back to Sonny to find out all he had missed out on and couldn't remember; Sonny soon learned that the second D'Jok had been hit with the poison, all that had happened after was now blank to D'Jok but Sonny filled his son in on all he wanted to know.

D'Jok had to admit that the whole poison thing had him shook up but now that he was awake, Simbai could do tests to discover the extent of the damage which D'Jok didn't want to do until Mei woke up and he knew she was fine. Of course he knew she was; he just wanted some extra reassurance. He had no idea if it was day or night; the whole kidnapping thing had their sleeping schedule flipped way out of line but the relief of everything almost getting back to normal eased off the pressure a bit. Once Sonny had finished filling D'Jok in, he received a phone call from Clamp telling him Simbai wanted to see him about something to do with Tia (whom D'Jok was also worried about since it didn't sound like she was doing too well at all) so his father wished him well before going off leaving D'Jok to think and watch his darling Mei sleep peacefully.

Mei had always been his main priority and this feeling had only become stronger since the kidnapping. He was so scared of losing her; it wasn't until now he realised just how much he cared for her. However, it did make him realise just how much he loved her and wanted to marry her just to prove to her how much he loved him and same vice versa. In thinking of Mei, he suddenly heard a loud gasp and looked to see Mei sitting up in the chair with the blanket on the floor and her breathing rapid.

'Mei?' D'Jok asked worriedly and tried to move but failed miserably since his leg was well wrapped up and was unable to move at all really. He kept his fingers crossed though that it wasn't permanent. Mei for a second seemed confused at the voice that said her name until she registered it and met D'Jok's gaze.

'D'JOK!' she cried out in relief as she hopped on to the bed beside him having almost completely forgotten about the dream she was after having. 'How are you feeling? Are you ok?'

'Stiff but fine. How about you?' D'Jok said and Mei smiled as he said this.

'Better now that you're awake,' Mei assured him as she gently rested her head on his shoulder and pulled him close. D'Jok was unsure as to exactly what she was feeling until he saw small tears leak from her deep blue eyes making him pull her even closer and stroke her hair for reassurance. He gently hushed her as he knew it was probably just the stress of everything that had happened releasing itself when she finally confessed her reasons. 'I thought you'd never wake up.' That had confirmed D'Jok's thoughts of what the dream was about (he guessed it had something to do with what happened) and he instinctively kissed her forehead.

'But I am and I'm fine Mei, I promise you,' he assured his beloved and smiled at her gently. Smiling back at him, Mei gently placed a hand on his soft cheek and stroked it gently with the back of her hand.

'I love you,' she whispered softly.

'I love you to.' With that, the two shared a small kiss before Mei fell into her lover's embrace and the two stayed silent as the events that had previously occurred still swirled in their mind. However, the silence was soon interrupted when a thought suddenly occurred to D'Jok.

'Mei…'

'Yeah?' As she said this, Mei looked up at D'Jok to find him looking at her with a curious expression.

'Why didn't you tell me what happened when you came back the first time…?'

Stroking Tia's hand with his thumb, Rocket thought back to the information he had been given almost an hour ago and the decision he would soon have to make…

'Well? Dame Simbai?' Rocket asked as he jumped off his chair towards the medic who had just entered with Sonny. Soon, his parent's and Tia's parents were around also to discover if there was anyway their loved one could stay alive.

'There's good news and there's bad news. The good news is that there is an antidote that could save her but the bad news is that…the same antidote could kill her instantly. I can't discover what it'll do to her; it all depends on Tia and her state of mind. But if I don't give her the antidote, then she will die. I'm sorry but there's nothing more I can do…'

The room then came to a standstill as they all tried to comprehend the fact that there was a two out of three chance that their beloved Tia would die and Rocket soon found all eyes on him which her parent's explained why by telling him that it was his choice whether or not to give the antidote. Then everyone left him to decide but Simbai gave him a clear warning that he had no more than an hour as she was sure Tia wouldn't last much longer. Needless to say, that sent shivers down Rocket's spine but he was quickly by her bedside anyways and tried to decide what to do.

Then Sonny came by and discussed the matter with Rocket to which everything sunk in with Rocket and he had to try and grasp with his tears. However, what made him calm down and think straight was something powerful that Sonny had said…

'…and losing my wife was the toughest thing I've ever had to deal with. And I still think of her now every day. But what gets me through is knowing that she's not going to suffer because of what I do…'

Rocket knew Tia was suffering and if she died, it would all end but it would painful on her. If he gave the antidote, she could die instantly but wouldn't be in as much pain and it would end quick and fast for them all. And also, if he gave her the antidote, she at least had some chance of survival. If he didn't give her the antidote, she wouldn't have any chance. Rocket considered that intensely for a few minutes before making a decision. He stroked her hair gently as her body trembled before speaking.

'Why didn't you tell me what happened when you came back the first time Tia…?' he muttered before bending down and gently pressing his lips onto hers for what could be the last time. His body sighed in defeat when he received no response from her before he backed away and Simbai entered the room.

'Give her the antidote…'

Rocket, Sonny, Tia's parents and Rocket's parents were gathered round Tia's bedside (but a bit of a distance back to give Simbai room) as Simbai was injecting the needle with the antidote that was either going to save Tia or put her at peace for good. At this point, no one could bear to look at Tia who looked like a zombie but had sweat dripping down her face and her body was trembling so much, Rocket was just waiting for her to fall out of the bed. Suddenly, everyone brought their attention to Simbai who was stroking Tia's arm with a cotton bud and with a nod from Rocket; she pierced Tia's skin with the needle making her jump and injected her with the antidote. As the needle pierced Tia's skin, Rocket felt as if his own heart was being pierced by a million needles and found it too painful to watch. But when a piercing, drowning out noise was suddenly heard; Rocket looked at his lover's heart monitor and soon felt a tear slide down his cheek…

'I hope Tia's going to be ok…' Yuki sighed as she fell into Micro-Ice's embrace after a long day. The two were the only couple that had come out unscathed after the incident but watching how scared and in pain Rocket and Mei looked at their lovers sent shivers down Micro-Ice and Yuki's spine. But they had heard D'Jok was awake and undergoing some tests so Tia was kind of the top priority at the minute since Simbai had informed everyone she won't make it through the night but she was working on something to try and save her. Everyone basically had their fingers crossed that there was some way.

'I hope so to,' Micro-Ice replied as he pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead which made Yuki turn her face round to him. Gently Micro-Ice leaned before pressing his lips on hers as they embraced into a passionate kiss. They continued to kiss passionately as Micro-Ice slowly flipped her around on her bed and she soon found herself fiddling with his shirt. With his help, she removed it before they ran out of breath and Micro-Ice started to lick and suck down his girlfriend's neck before their tongues finally met and started a battle for dominance. But just as Yuki was about to start on her own shirt, Micro-Ice pulled back.

'What's wrong?' she asked worriedly in seeing his confused expression and after a few moments, he found the words to speak.

'Why didn't you tell me what happened when you came back the first time…?'

Happy Christmas Everyone! Hope you all have a good one!

Lauren xxx