"How is your appetite, Stan? Is your mouth too sore for some frozen yogurt?" Sharon asks.

"Ugh, I guess I'll try some froyo. Yeah, I think the mouth pain will start soon. I'm on so much Tylenol my chest pain kinda drowns it out." Stan touches his cheek before his hand goes to his chest once more.

"Froyo?" Kyle asks, interested.

"Yes." Sharon continues. "We usually get some after Stan has an orthodontist appointment. Did you want to come?"

"Yeah, Kyle. Come." Stan hugs him closer. "They have sugar free over there."

"Really? The only place I know of is Yogurt City which only has sugar free vanilla, which can get boring." Kyle keeps an arm around Stan as they walk out of the dental office.

"Blueberries has sugar free vanilla, chocolate, swirl, and flavor of the month. I think it might be cotton candy or something?" Stan says.

Kyle raises an eyebrow. "Cotton candy? That's weird for a sugar free flavor."

Sharon smiles. "So, is that a yes?"

Kyle shrugs. "Yeah, I can miss school. I'm on track in all my classes anyway and turned in extra credit for English last week. I'm good."

Stan stops to catch his breath. "Mom, can you pull the car up, please?"

"Of course, sweetie." Sharon grabs her keys and quickly walks across the parking lot.

Stan sits down on the bench and looks up at Kyle. "Can't wait to go and do things again." He leans back tiredly.

Kyle smiles at him sympathetically. "Same. You're going to kick everyone's ass again in sports like you used to, it's going to be great."

Stan frowned. "The doctor may not let me play sports. I don't know for a while or ever." He crossed his arms. "I don't know how I can be me without playing sports."

Kyle holds back rolling his eyes. "Maybe get back to your guitar? Have you tried picking it up yet since being out? Do you think that would be too strenuous?"

"I'm waiting for the burns on my chest to heal more. Another scary thing." Stan's hand goes to the burn now. "It's why my right arm hurts so much. Also waiting for my ribs to not be so broken. God, you had to see that?" Stan starts to cry hard now. "Sorry."

Kyle holds him close. "Don't apologize dude, it's fine. Let it out if you need to."

Stan leans against Kyle, crying into his jacket again.

Sharon turns up with the car. Kyle carefully gets Stan up and opens the front door.

Stan climbs in and leans over to hug his mom. "I'm sorry you had to see me in the hospital like that. I'll try not to let it happen again." He cries hard and holds onto her shirt.

"Oh baby." Sharon pulls him to her. "It was tough, I'm not going to lie. I'm so happy you're okay. I hate that you're still in pain but at least I have my baby boy back."

"I'm sorry. I'll never ask you to be there for a procedure like that again. I'm sorry you had to see me dead like that." He hugs her and cries. "I hate seeing you like this too."

Sharon feels her eyes sting. "Sweetie, I had to be there for you, and I want to continue to be there for you for any medical procedure or anything. Just like I always have. Why would I suddenly not do that?"

"Because it hurts you so much, and I can't stand seeing you like that. I'm usually passed out during procedures anyways." Stan finally leans back and grabs a handful of tissues from the glove compartment. "Sorry, again."

Sharon tries to smile through her tears and brushes a piece of Stan's dark hair back under his cap. "You'll understand one day when you have kids, Stan."

Stan takes a deep breath. "Let's go get froyo."

Sharon takes off and they arrive at the shop a couple streets over. Stan thinks for a minute. "Should I just leave the heart pillow behind? I don't think I can get hit in the chest in a froyo shop."

Sharon starts to park the car. "Bring it just in case. It couldn't hurt, right?"

"I guess. I don't want to hold it while I get my ice cream and toppings. Or will you or Kyle have to get them for me? Can I lift a cup of ice cream?" Stan grabs the pillow, sighing again. "It was painful to lift a pot of macaroni."

Kyle gets up quickly to help Stan out of the car. "don't stress so much about it dude. I'll help you load your cup if you can't. Dude, you gotta stop stressing about every little thing. That can't be good for, well, your heart."

Stan tears up again. "So, it's bad for me?" He's trying to hold back crying again as he enters the shop. "I'm such a weak loser."

Kyle smirks as he holds the door open to the shop. "We know, dude. Now let's satisfy that sweet tooth of yours."

Stan laughs a bit as he enters and grabs a cup. He can hold it for now with one hand and keep a hold of the heart pillow as well.

"Mom, you're getting froyo too? I know where I get my sweet tooth from." Stan cracks a little grin. "And my eyes, and my smile."

"Baby…" Sharon looks away as tears fill her eyes.

"What?" Stan asks.

Sharon points to hopefully distract her son. "Oh look, Stan! They have a cinnamon roll flavor for the flavor of the month, that sounds good, doesn't it?"

"So, there should be a sugar free version, right?" Kyle asks.

Stan looks over the flavor options. "Hmm they have peanut butter and chocolate. I could mix them together. Since I can't get actual candy on it. Oh yeah here you go, Kyle, sugar free cinnamon roll. Right next to..." Stan moves his hand away. "I'm not going anywhere near the coconut. Fuck it's all my allergy's fault."

Kyle gives Stan a quick hug. "Yeah, fuck your allergy, dude." Kyle goes to the opposite side of the shop and starts to fill his cup with sugar free chocolate. "Coconut is good too, shame what it does to you."

"If you think I wasn't already in the hospital they would've found it? Would I just have died randomly somewhere else?" Stan's hand shakes a bit as he tries to fill peanut butter ice cream in his cup. "What if my heart fucked up while I was at school or home or just hanging out? What if? Fuck." The cup overflows and he puts it down.

Kyle takes his cup away, setting it to the side. "Stan. Snap out of it. Don't play the what if game now. Think of your froyo!"

Stan blinks and looks at him. "Yeah...fuck." He shakes his head a bit. "Can you...help me with toppings?"

"Do you feel up for toppings?" Kyle asks sternly.

Stan rubs his tongue over his teeth. "I just want to look."

"At the toppings?" Kyle looks at him weirdly but cracks a small smile. "Medicine wearing off? Mouth feel sore, Stan?"

"I'm on so much pain medicine I can't tell." Stan follows Kyle over to look. "Aw, they have little rainbow heart sprinkles."

Kyle thinks for a minute. "I think I'm going to get... some kiwi on mine. And- oh! Sugar-free brownie bites? I never see that!"

"You think these little hearts will hurt my teeth too much? I think I need to get them. It's a sign." Stan goes to grab the spoon.

Kyle looks up from the fruit station. "I don't know if you 'need to' get anything, Stan. Don't take that chance. Looks like these little hearts can easily get caught up in your braces and elastics. Get some banana slices, you love bananas and they're soft."

"Haven't hearts caused me enough trouble?" Stan takes a tiny spoonful and sprinkles a few rainbow hearts over his froyo. "Fine, fine." He grabs some bananas to add.

"Are you ready, boys?" Sharon calls out, taking her wallet to go pay.

Stan looks around, putting his hands in his pockets. He's only slightly distracted but what if's keep running through his mind as he looks at the machine for the coconut ice cream. He rocks back and forth on his feet.

Sharon pays and then finds a seat. Kyle nudges Stan. "c'mon, dude."

"Huh? Yeah okay." He takes a seat next to Kyle. He pokes at his froyo with a spoon. It seems like too much.

Sharon notices and hands over napkins to both boys. "Only eat as much as you can, Stan. I understand you might be in pain and might feel a little sick. Don't overdo it."

Stan pushes the sprinkles and bananas to one side and takes a tiny mix of chocolate and peanut butter on his spoon. He licks it. "Please don't stare at me. I'll just eat a little bit. Sorry I overflowed the cup. What a waste."

"We can save the rest for later. I'll just put it in the freezer until you're ready. Maybe an after dinner treat." She gives him a small smile.

"It won't taste as good anymore. Sorry, mom." Stan takes another lick; he can already feel the pressure in his teeth that'll turn to pain in an hour or two. "I'll still eat it." He looks down sadly.

"Poor thing. But it's okay, I don't want you to get sick. But I do want to eat a little more soon. You haven't eaten much since coming home from the hospital." Sharon takes a few bites from her froyo cup of cheesecake with raspberries and dark chocolate chips.

"Don't you see I can't? If I'm too full it pushes against my ribs and it hurts. If I think of anything that happened in the past month, I get so upset I barf." Stan pushes away his cup and covers his eyes. "Fuck."

Sharon frowns in defense. "I'm sorry sweetie. I can't help but worry."

Stan just hugs his pillow and sulks in his chair. He stares at his ice cream, trying to get the nerve up to take another bite.

Kyle is digging in. He's happy to be able to eat a real frozen treat like this. Normally he'd have sugar free ice cream at home or get the one sugar free option at most ice cream shops. But this one had a lot more options for him.

Stan puts his heart pillow on the table and rests his head. He closes his eyes. He keeps a hand securely on his chest, in case it rubs against the side of the table.

Sharon and Kyle quietly finish up their froyo. Sharon gets to her feet. "Kyle, I'm going to pop into the store next door to grab a few things since we're out. Here are the keys. Make yourself and Stan comfortable. I shouldn't be long."

Kyle nods and takes the keys. He shakes Stan's shoulder. "Stan? Dude, wake up."

"Hmm? Did I fall asleep?" Stan lifts his head and blinks his eyes looking at his melted ice cream. "Dammit."

Kyle helps him up. "Your moms at the store. She gave me her keys so we can wait in the car."

Stan picks up his cup. "I feel bad throwing it."

Kyle shrugs. "Just stick it in the freezer."

Stan goes over and grabs a to go lid. "No way. Let's get to the car. This is the saddest froyo trip in history."

"The next one will be better dude. Want help?" Kyle asks.

"Can I be in the backseat with you? I want to lay down, but I'll sit up once we start driving." Stan says, fitting the lid on his melted ice cream.

"Yeah man. Whatever you want." Kyle helps Stan across the parking lot and to the car.

Stan let's Kyle unlock the car and takes his hand to sit in the back seat. He leans over and lays down in the backseat. "I'm so goddamn tired." He says, eyes closing.

"Just close your eyes, your mom will be back soon." Kyle hops into the backseat next to him, letting Stan lay on his lap.

Stan looks up at Kyle, hugging his heart pillow to his chest. "You think being this tired is normal, or did they screw up my surgery somehow?"

Kyle sighs and pats his shoulder. "Well, what's your next appointment? Maybe we can ask your doctor if that's something of concern."

"Umm the day after tomorrow. At noon. Pediatrician. Then Monday I have the cardiologist, the scary one." Stan snuggles against Kyle. "I don't want the heart doctor to put stuff on my chest again. What if he finds something else wrong?" Stan's stomach lurches, he's suddenly happy he didn't eat much.

Kyle frowns but starts to pat Stan on the back. "I'll be there with each appointment, Stan. I want to be in the know just as much as you. Good news or bad."

"I don't want bad news. I don't want to be stuck in the hospital again. I don't want them touching my chest, doing more painful stuff, scaring my mom again." He curls tighter against Kyle.

Kyle hesitates but keeps patting Stan's back. "Stan, remember what I told you just an hour ago? You need to trust the doctors; you need to allow them to do what they need to in order to give you the best help and path to recovery. I know you don't want to do any of this but you kind of have to."

"Can I just sleep for two months and wake up how I was before? I don't deserve this. What did I do that was so wrong?" Stan looks up at Kyle, wiping his eyes.

"Nothing. Just something that happened. Get some sleep if you're tired." Kyle says.

"I don't fucking deserve this." Stan yawns and closes his eyes. He quickly falls asleep.

Stan opened his eyes and was surprised to find himself at home in bed, dressed in pajamas. "How. What the hell?" He sees Kyle sitting at his desk, schoolbooks open.

Kyle looks over and grins. "Hey dude, have a nice sleep?"

"How?" Stan puts a hand to his mouth. "Ow goddammit." He doesn't move from his spot.

"What's wrong Stan?" Kyle asks, concerned.

"Teeth, chest, life." Stan grumbles, closing his eyes again.

"Aw sorry. But hey, possibly some good news."

"What?" Stan opens an eye. "I just want to go back to sleep."

"I spoke to Wendy, and she said she'll be able to stop by after school. Which is another... half hour. Would you like that?" Kyle says.

"Yeah of course. I look like shit though." Stan closes his eyes and snuggles under his blankets.

"Honesty, you've looked worse." Kyle gives a little laugh.

"Thanks..."

"Anytime, what are best friends for?" Kyle gets up now and closes his homework books.

"Seriously? You carry me up the stairs or something?" Stan asks, trying to get out of bed.

"Ha, I'm not that strong. I took hold of your chest and your mom your legs. Carried you up the stairs. Dressed you and put you to bed." Kyle shrugged.

"Oh god. How passed out was I?" Stan sits up and looks down his shirt at his wounds again. "Well thanks for being gentle. Sorry you had to do that."

"Stan, you don't need to apologize for everything you know. We know you need to sleep and get better."

"Yeah, I do. I'm such a pain in the ass." Stan starts to cry again. "I better not cry in front of Wendy. Fuck." He reaches over for more Tylenol on the dresser and some water.

"When was the last time you took your meds Stan?" Kyle asks cautiously.

"This morning when I got up, after you left. Why?"

"I just don't want you to, you know... just take it as prescribed."

"You don't know how much this hurts." Stan looked at Kyle's unchanged expression. "Fine." He puts it back and lays back down. "Last thing I need is to mess myself up more." He puts the covers up to his chin.

"Exactly Stan. It might help for the short term, but long-term dependency can really fuck up your life. Often you hear of people that start abusing after they're prescribed pain pills following surgery. Don't let that be you." Kyle lectures him.

"They didn't give me the good stuff; you think it would help if they did? I can feel like the bones in my chest click when I walk. It's disgusting and painful. Ugh." Stan covers his head now.

"Ask your doctor dude. But just take what you have here until you do, and don't give me any reason to think you'll take more than the prescribed dose."

Stan rolls his eyes. "If I took all those bottles of Tylenol and heart medicine, could it kill me? What a waste. Why are you so convinced I want to kill myself? Don't start being worried over my medicine. I just hurt. Anyone going through this would feel the same."

Kyle turned his back and opened his textbook again.

Stan poked his face out of the blanket, watching Kyle do his homework. "Why would I kill myself if my nightmares have me in a coffin all the time? Would I want to hurt my mom that badly?"

"I'm just saying don't give me a reason to worry more, Stan. If you excuse me, I have to finish up this math homework." Kyle keeps his back turned to Stan, his fingers gripping his pencil so tight his fingertips are white.

Wendy stood on the doorstep of the Marsh house, a large stack of books in her arms, more in her backpack. She shifted her weight before she rang the doorbell.

Sharon answered the door. "Wendy, dear. Hello. Stan and Kyle are up in his room. Stan might be resting still but feel free to say hi."

"Ok I will, thank you Mrs. Marsh." She smiles at her boyfriend's mom and makes her way up the stairs. She knocks softly on Stan's door.

Stan is resting with an arm over his eyes, sitting in bed, tired and sore. "I'm not hungry Mom!" He yells.

"It's Wendy." She called back.

"Oh shit!" Stan scrambles to sit up and yelps in pain. Kyle rolls his eyes.

"Smooth dude." Kyle gets up to answer the door. "Hi, Wendy."

"Hi Kyle. Is Stan okay? Heard him yelling in there. He up for another visitor?" She gave a little smile.

"I think so." Kyle looks back. "Up for a visitor Stan?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm good." Stan sits up and smooths down his blankets and pajamas nervously as Kyle steps aside to allow Wendy in.

"Hi, Stan. I guess it would be redundant to ask how you're feeling." Wendy smiles wider at him as she places the schoolbooks on the dresser table.

Stan finally looks at her. "Hey, Wendy, I feel like shit honestly. How are you?"

"Okay, I guess. Missed you. Is it okay to hug you? I'll understand if you're in pain." Wendy carefully sits at the edge of his bed.

"Yeah, just- be careful of my chest." Stan grabs his heart pillow and hugs it to be sure.

Wendy scoots over and hugs him from the side. She hugs him a bit tighter and longer than she intended to. "I missed you so much. I'm happy you're going to be okay." She lands a kiss on his cheek.

Stan smiles, wanting to kiss her lips but maybe it was too soon after the dentist. "I missed you too. I'm happy you're here."

"Want me to leave, Stan?" Kyle asks.

Stan looks at Wendy.

"Your choice." She carefully sits at the edge of Stan's bed and grabs his hand.

Stan smiles at her. "I'd like to have it be just us. If you don't mind, Kyle."

Kyle smiles, happy for a break. "See ya soon then. I'm going home for a little bit."

Stan waves bye to Kyle and turns back to Wendy, smiling at her. Taking in her beautiful long dark hair and bright eyes. He then grimaces as his mouth flares in pain. "Ah! Damn, sorry. Glad you're here, Wendy." He massages his bottom lip.

"I'm sorry you're in pain again, glad I'm getting to spend some time with you. How's your mouth?" She looks at him concerned. "I have some news that you'll find interesting. I could use some advice."

"Fucking hurts. They put this weird band right here." He points out bottom right. "It's called a power chain or whatever. Pissing me off already. I can't take any more pain pills for another two hours."

"Will something cold help? Popsicle or ice cream? Or you just want me to hold you?" Wendy asks.

Stan sighs heavily now. "I don't think I can stomach anything right now. After the orthodontist we went for froyo, but I only had a few bites."

"I'm sorry. Has Kyle been bugging you to eat?" Wendy takes her shoes off and sits next to Stan, she makes a gesture he can lean back on her.

Stan leans into her side. "Yeah, and my mom. I haven't had an appetite since I left the hospital. It sucks. I'm not sure if I should be worried about it or just wait till my next appointment with my doctor. I miss eating normally."

"Maybe call and ask ahead of time?" She puts a careful arm around him and kisses him on the forehead. "Oh, that's what I wanted to say. My parents made an appointment next week for me to get my first braces put on. I'll know a tiny bit of the tooth pain you're going through."

Stan looms over at her and smiles. "Ha, really? Sucks for you. Sorry, that was mean. I just hate these things so much."

"I won't know heart surgery pain, but we can wallow in misery about braces pain. That's why I wanted tips." She giggles a bit and hugs him tighter.

Smiles as he smells her hair. Like fresh cut flowers. "The brace face couple. Let's see, Tips...tips... oh, for one: stick to the list of no-no foods they give you. As much as you can. It's too late for me but trust me, you don't want to eat something you're not supposed to."

"Why's it too late for you? Follow the rules too, silly. So, you're in less pain." She touches the edge of a curl sticking out of his hat. "I like what you've done with your hair."

"I eat like crap, you know that. One month in I ate some gummy worms and they got caught up in my brackets. It was not fun trying to clean all that out." He closes his eyes, enjoying the feeling of her hand running her fingers through his hair. "Ha, I haven't done anything but let it grow long since the hospital. My mom wants me to cut it but, meh."

"Totally up to you, but I like it long like this." She twists a soft curl around her finger. "How's your surgery recovery going? You're still so goddamn brave." She puts her head gently on his shoulder.

Stan sighs and cuddles close to her. "I don't feel brave at all. It's been tough, honestly. Tired, can't eat much. In pain in one way or another. Bad dreams." Tears well in his eyes, but he wipes them away quickly. Embarrassed. "I'm such an emotional mess right now."

Wendy's eyes grow heavy with tears too. "That's understandable. I am too. I try not to show it at school. Right now, it's just us. Have you tried to talk to someone about your pain and bad dreams?" Wendy wipes her eyes.

A tear rolls down Stan's cheek. "I dunno if it matters. this is just normal shit, and I don't want to sound like a bitch. I'll deal with it. It's not like you can stop bad dreams from happening."

"You're in physical pain and will be for a few months. But you went through something traumatic that doesn't happen often. You talking to someone would help your recovery from the emotional pain. Nightmares like that aren't normal. We were in that place together. It's like a walking nightmare in there, and you were stuck longer. Because you were brave." She plants another kiss on his cheek.

Stan frantically wipes the tears from his face. "What about you though? You were... there. How are you coping?"

"I asked my parents to refer me to therapy." Wendy says quietly. "I haven't brought up the violet place yet, I'd be afraid they think I was crazy, but I talk a lot about stress, sadness, fears in losing you." She hugs him and kisses him again. "I know you suffered the worst. You're in pain and sick but did it to save Kenny. You didn't have to do that. You're incredibly brave." She kisses his tears away.

Stan's heart flutters and more tears fall. He clings to her now. "I've been a blubbering mess since I got out. Once the tears come, I can't seem to stop them. I hate knowing how it's affecting everyone too. My mom is worrying herself sick about me. I feel so bad. She hasn't been able to go back to work yet. I don't want me to be the reason she can't go on and live her life again."

"She told me she saw some bad stuff when you were sick as a baby and hasn't been the same. She needs therapy too. it's not normal for you or her to feel this bad. I want you to sleep well without nightmares and eat normally." She leans him down so he's laying against her chest and carefully wipes his tears. "The crying is normal; your body is adjusting."

"I just want to go back to a normal life. This sucks so much." Stan puts his hand to his neck but quickly puts it down. "Nothing is normal anymore."

"Why do you put your hand to your neck? It's okay if you do." Wendy hugs him again.

"Instinct. I want to make sure I'm... you know, still here. Kyle doesn't like it when I do it." Stan frowns now.

"Kyle's afraid and I think you're reminding him of how close it came. You're very much alive but after all that happened, I'm sure you're making sure nothing else goes wrong." She hugs him again, her long hair falling onto his face. "I'm so happy you're okay. I know how upset Kyle was. He wasn't mad, he was defeated. You didn't give up. You're amazing."

Stan grabs a few tissues from the dresser and hands the box to Wendy before wiping his eyes. "Kyle's been great, don't get me wrong. But I get the feeling he doesn't truly know how he feels. We got into a spat the other day... I just wanted to know how he felt about all this, and he couldn't give me a straight answer. Like he needs to put on this mask to look unbothered by it just because he wants to go to med school one day. But I almost died... two times there. Stop pretending and tell me how you really feel. plus, I think he's a little angry at Kenny for even taking me down there in the first place. It's all fucked up…"

"You're a truly great friend to risk your life to help Kenny. Maybe Kyle wouldn't do that. He could benefit from therapy too. Next to you he got it the worst. We switched off and he watched you crash. You came back by the time I got there. He's thinking if he's a doctor he's going to have to deal with that stuff. He was going off about brain damage. You're so goddamn lucky." Wendy can't help it, and bursts into tears now. She kisses him on the forehead again as she grabs a tissue.

Tears fall from his eyes now. "Aww Wendy don't. Then I won't be able to stop."

"It's okay to cry together. I'd be so crushed. We just got back together if you hadn't survived." She hugs him tight. "But what ifs just aren't good for mental health. You're here and lucky to talk to and cry with me and we can be together. I'll do whatever I can to help you get better."

Stan kisses her on the cheek. "Ahh! Okay, no kissing right now." He winces in pain and holds his cheek. "God kill me now."

"Kill me too then. I'll be okay as long as we're together. You made the violet place a lot brighter, but I'm happy we're here together. Illness and pain aside." She lets him lean back so his head is in her lap. "I can see your surgery cut." She touches the bangs on his forehead.

"I know, I look hideous. Scars and burns and bruises all over and skinny as shit." Stan says sadly.

"Nah, it's fascinating. You'll always have a crazy story to tell. Not many people die and come back...Kenny excluded. The burns and bruises will go away, you'll have a badass scar, you'll gain weight back. You're handsome. I know you won't believe me, but I still thought you were the best-looking guy even if we were broken up." She pokes the dimple in his cheek

"Hey!" He laughs now, flashing a dorky violet and green smile. "I'm delicate, no poking. Fuck I got the worst genres from my parents, all this health shit better be worth it."

"Nah, I know you resemble your dad, but you smile like your mom and have her eyes. Your pretty light blue eyes, your cute smile, your little dimples." She pokes them again. "Oh, I'm so happy to see you smile again. I'm glad the world didn't lose your smile to the violet place." She traces her fingers down the side of his face.

"I'm trying to smile. It's hard but I'm trying. it's not just the braces. Just need to take it each day at a time." Stan takes her hand now and holds it, feeling lighter for the first time in weeks.