"What do you mean he's alive, Hotch? He was pronounced dead!" Shouted Morgan.

"I don't know. The hospital just called me. They didn't give me a lot of information other than he's alive and we need to get down there." Hotch says as he sprints to the SUV, signaling everyone to come along.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Dr. Vincent is about halfway through the surgery process. He successfully removed the bullet and removed the air from inside of Spencer's lungs. He checked for internal bleeding, which by a miracle was avoided. Spencer was moved to the ICU after the emergency surgery. Now it's a waiting game of if/when he wakes.

The team arrives at the hospital within 10 minutes after the phone call. They sit to wait for Dr. Vincent. When Dr. Vincent walks up to them, everyone stands. They're all visibly nervous.

"Doctor, what happened? You pronounced him dead earlier!" Said JJ.

"He was. Not for long, though. We think a delayed reaction from the defibrillator restarted his heart. I was able to remove the bullet without any issues. I ordered a CT scan to check for further damages we didn't catch. Spencer is currently in the ICU, we're waiting for him to wake. You can come to see him now if you'd like."

Everyone nods. JJ is almost shaking, just from complete disbelief. Thank God no one called Spencer's mom yet, that'd be difficult to explain. When they finally get to the ICU, they are just now informed that only one person is allowed in the room with him. Morgan suggests he goes first.

The first thing Morgan sees is the tube sticking down Reid's throat. So many wires are attached to his body, he's almost unrecognizable. "Why is he on a ventilator?"

"Spencer is currently unable to breathe by himself. He's in a coma. See, when he went into cardiac arrest his brain was cut from oxygen. It was deprived of oxygen for a solid 4 minutes or less. Cerebral anoxia is our main concern. The next few days are critical."

"When will he wake up?" Morgan asked, looking at Reid. He didn't even look alive.

"Only time can tell." Dr. Vincent then leaves the room to give Morgan some privacy.

Morgan pulls a chair close to Reid's bed, hardly able to process all this information at once. "I'm so sorry, kid. It should've been me. I messed up and you're suffering the consequences I should have gotten." He grabs Reid's hand, careful not to move the IV in his hand. The room is almost completely silent, other than the machine noises. It's depressing, he couldn't help but feel so horrible but so grateful at the same time. Spencer was revived. What if something happens like this again if he wakes up? The team barely goes a day without witnessing or experiencing a near-death experience. Either there really is a God, or Spencer got incredibly lucky.

Outside of the ICU stood the rest of the team, impatiently waiting to see their little genius. Everyone hears the familiar sound of high heels on the floor. Turning around, Garcia is almost sprinting to everyone. She's holding maybe 3 crumpled tissues in her hand, wiping away her tears with her other hand. Prentiss is the first to give her a hug, and then everyone else. They all know how she can get when something happens to one of them. Sniffling, Garcia pulls something out of her bag.

"I brought some Jello, maybe when he wakes up he'll want it?" Garcia says with the obvious distress in her voice. She's still holding back tears. They all giggle a little. For the first time all day, actually. Morgan walks out, giving Garcia the big hug she really needed.

"We aren't sure when he'll wake babygirl." Looking back at everyone, he repeats everything the doctor told him.

"So you mean he has brain damage?!" Says JJ, almost shouting.

"They don't know. No one will be able to tell until he wakes up."

Hotch rubs the temples of his forehead, sighing. Everyone knows this is going to be a long, long road of recovery. But they also know how they'll be with Reid every step of the way.

The first night in the ICU was the hardest. Prentiss wanted to be the one to stay the night. She slept on an uncomfortable couch not far from Reid's bed. She hardly could stay asleep, nurses were checking in every hour. Around 3 in the morning though, she was woken up by a nurse once again. This time though, the nurse was doing something to Spencer. Prentiss stood up to get a better view of what she was doing and saw a small white tube pushed into Spencer's nostril.

"Why are you putting a feeding tube in him? He didn't need one earlier." She asked.

"His body needs nutrition. He can't eat while he's in a coma." The nurse replied.

God, Prentiss hated seeing him like this. Completely helpless. Everyone feels like they should be doing something, but there is nothing they can do. Though she is upset, she is grateful that the team isn't burying him right now. How could the BAU function without Reid?

The following morning, Prentiss is awoken by the familar sounds of the machines surrounding the young man, keeping him alive. Other than that, the room was dead silent. Leaving Emily with nothing but her thoughts. What if he never wakes up? But if he does wake, will he remember any of us, his own name, or how to walk? She's been around cases with a victim being in the same conditon that Reid is currently in without any issues. She'd learned to block out certain emotions when it comes to her work life. But this is different. This time, it's her own friend. Someone she's become very close to in just a short amount of time.

Prentiss was about to drive herself crazy with these horrible thoughts, so she leaft the room and headed towards the exit. She hated leaving Reid alone, but then again she can always call someone to sit there with him. Emily just couldn't take seeing Spencer like that. Not knowing if in the future, the team will be mourning his loss rather than celebrating his recovery.

Meanwhile back at the BAU, Morgan was drowning in his guilt. Though this isn't his fault, he felt as if he could've done so much more. Hotch walked up to Morgan, putting his hand on Morgans shoulder.

"He's going to be okay, Morgan. There's nothing we can do as of right now, so there is no use dwelling on it." Hotch reassured Morgan.

"I know. Or at least I hope. He's in really bad condition, Hotch."

"He's going to get through it. Spencer is tough. Come on, we need to finish this paperwork."

Hotch walked away leaving Morgan to stand there and just think. To think about his own best friend laying in a hospital bed, with tubes down his throat and needles in his arm. There must be something he can do.

"Get out of it, Derek!" He whispered to himself, shaking his head. Now is time to snap back into reality and let the doctors do their thing.


Ahh I'm so sorry I've been gone so long but I'm back now I promise:)) Thanks so much for the reviews, they truly warm my heart!