Thud thud thud swoosh.
Don was pretty sure he was supposed to be somewhere else but for the life of him, he couldn't think of where.
Thud thud thud swoosh.
The house was empty, even though all the lights were on. He wasn't sure how he knew, he just did.
Thud thud thud swoosh.
"I'm glad you got back into sports." The familiar voice caused him to pause, just after he grabbed the ball as it bounced back towards him. He turned around slowly, almost afraid for the confirmation.
"Mom?" He whispered, and the curly blonde haired woman in front of him smiled at him.
"Yes Donnie, it's me" She said gently, slowly approaching her first born son.
"What are you- I mean why…" His voice trailed off, as he realized the absurdity of what he was asking. The look on her face told him that she knew exactly what he was trying to say. He should've known that he wouldn't be able to hide anything from her. He hadn't been able to as a kid either.
"You're my son! Why wouldn't I be here?" Margaret took two more steps closer to him, and he found the orange ball in his hands immensely interesting.
"Donnie look at me." He had never been able to disobey her when she used that tone, and he looked up shyly, unconsciously running his thumbs over the bumps of the ball.
"You've become such a wonderful man Donnie." She whispered, resting her palm against his cheek. "I'm so proud of you." He remained silent and she smiled, albeit sadly. "I know I made mistakes with you." She continued softly.
"You did the best you could." Don whispered, realizing for the first time that he truly believed it. "I turned out all right." She shook her head slightly.
"That's not an excuse." She said, withdrawing her hand. Don found himself yearning for her touch. "I spent so much Charlie that I missed so much of your life." Her hand found it's way back to his cheek.
"Did I matter?" He whispered, regretting the question as soon as he'd asked it. Margaret's expression was a cross between shock and sadness.
"You are my first born son." She said firmly, but gently. "You are a very intelligent man, and have earned all of your successes." She paused. "You gave me such joy, when you were growing up. And I love you so much." She reached out and embraced him. He returned the embrace clumsily, the basketball bouncing on the hardtop.
"It's time for you to go back now sweetie." She whispered in his ear. "Always remember, I love you very much."
"Mom." He whispered, as the petite woman disappeared.
"Donnie?" Don forced his heavy eyelids to open a crack, and blearily looked at his father's worried face.
"Dad?" He mumbled, his tongue still thick from the effects of the morphine. "What are you doing here?"
His father raised an eyebrow. "Well, apparently my son got attacked while at a crime scene. I got a call from his partner telling me that I needed to get to the hospital."
"Dad." Don whispered, closing his eyes again.
"Shhh." Alan whispered, running his hand through Don's thick brown hair. "Rest. We'll be here when you wake up."
Don tried to nod, but wasn't sure if he was able to before he began slipping back into the throes of sleep. Somewhere, he knew, his mother was smiling at him.
