"I'm worried about Johnny; he's been so out of it lately." Susan sighed, looking towards the passage that led to the bedrooms.
"He'll be fine. It's his way of dealing with it I suppose." Reed shrugged. Meanwhile; Johnny was just waking up. He sat up in his bed and gazed over to his clock on his bedside table; it glowed with a red 10:45am. He could've carried on sleeping and not have felt any better. He put his head in his hands and mumbled.
"Hey Herbie, how long has it been?"
"It's been three weeks, two days and 20 hours." Herbie answered, not bothering with any more specifics.
"Thanks, Herbie." Johnny mumbled again, getting up and heading to his bathroom. He stripped down and climbed into the shower, leaning against the wall and letting the water beat down against his back. He watched as the water evaporated off of his body, creating a constant whirl of steam in the shower. He turned off the shower and headed to his cupboard, grabbing the first pair of pants and shirt he saw.
"Johnny, I have a message from Susan, she asks when you're going to join them." Herbie asked quickly.
"When I'm done, ok!?" Johnny snapped back at Herbie, and Herbie didn't bother with any more questions. Johnny got dressed as slowly as he could and then headed through to the lounge. Reed, Susan and Ben were sitting in the lounge, dressed to head out for the day.
"Hey, Johnny. How are you feeling today?" Susan asked, trying her best to sound comforting. Johnny flopped down into the couch and sighed.
"Fine…I guess." He shrugged his shoulders and grabbed the remote, flipping through the channels.
"Well, I might have a little news that might cheer you up, Johnny." Reed said, and Johnny shot upright and turned to Reed expectantly.
"Her brain wave responses peaked for a long period last night. I think she might wake up really soon, although we can't really be sure…" Reed said cautiously as he saw a smile break across Johnny's face.
"I could go up for the day…keep an eye on her." Johnny offered quickly.
"Maybe later. We don't want to unsettle her. Herbie will call you if something happens." Reed finished, and they all stood to leave.
"We're heading to the Fire Fighters Charity Auction. You can join us later if you want, but you don't have to." Susan said, grabbing her brother's shoulder sympathetically before walking to the elevator with Reed and Ben. Johnny watched as the doors closed, and got up again. He headed down the passage to Amera's room and stood in front of the door.
"Herbie, will you please open the doors." Johnny said loudly, and the doors opened for him. He stepped into her room and looked around. It was still the way she'd left it; bed neatly made and her desk tidy. He sat on the edge of her bed and looked at the way she'd decorated her room; he never really took notice of it, but everything in her room made him think of her in some way. He fell backwards onto her bed, smelling her sweet fragrance wafting up around him.
"Johnny, what in the world are you doing?"
Johnny shot upright and right off the bed, looking around her room. Amera was definitely not in her room, and he frowned angrily.
"Herbie, not funny. This doesn't even remotely qualify as a joke." Johnny said loudly but looked around one last time.
"It's not a joke, I'm awake. Now, what are you doing in my room?" She said again, sounding sort of mischievous. Johnny didn't answer her; he bolted straight out her room and to the elevator that went up to Reed's lab. As the doors opened at the top, Amera was sitting up in her hospital bed and looking towards the elevator. His breath froze in his lungs as she smiled at him.
"I said it wasn't a joke." She shrugged, and Johnny walked up to her bedside. He immediately hugged her as tight as he could before leaning back.
"Why didn't Herbie tell me? How long have you been awake?" Johnny said quickly, and Amera shushed him.
"I asked Herbie not to tell. I've only been awake for about half an hour…I wanted to surprise you." She smiled again and placed a light kiss on Johnny's lips.
"Best surprise I've gotten in a while…" Johnny smiled and kissed her again. He pulled back and smiled down at her.
"Try not to do that again, ok?" Johnny sighed, and hugged Amera again, burying his face into her hair.
"I'll try my best to avoid evil masterminds' devices in the future." Amera laughed. Johnny pulled back slightly and pushed her hair over her shoulder.
"I missed you…and that silly laugh."
"Hey! It's not silly…"
"Well, it makes my day, so it's a good thing." Johnny smiled at her and she couldn't help but smile back at him.
"Where did everyone go? I saw you were the only person in the house." Amera asked, referring to the few screens she had around her with footage from the security cameras.
"They went to a charity auction. We were all invited…so would you like to go?"
"Yeah, but let's go flying. I don't feel like being cooped up in a car right now."
"That's my girl. Let's go get you some decent clothes." Johnny said, and helped her out of bed. He draped his arm around her shoulders as he walked her to the elevator and took her down to her room.
