His eyes opened languidly, the tiles on the ceiling blurring and then eventually coming into focus as he blinked to clear his vision.

He wasn't sure where he was, and his mind was muddled and foggy—the last thing he remembered was walking into an enticingly warm, white light, after bidding goodbye to his father.

Am I alive?

"Oh! You're finally awake!" He heard a familiar voice cry out excitedly, Gai's face suddenly obscuring most of his sight.

Kakashi just stared up at him speechlessly with a half lidded gaze, needing a minute to find his bearings and become accustomed to his present reality.

"You don't know how glad I am, Kakashi!"

He felt himself being roughly lifted up from the bed by his shoulders, and getting pulled into a bone crushing hug, too confused to fight against the sudden invasion of his personal space. His forearms hung loosely at his sides as he allowed Gai to embrace him, the sounds of his friend's relieved crying reverberating right next to his ear.

"I was waiting for so long, my rival…I thought I had lost you f-forever…" Gai choked out between sobs, clinging tightly to Kakashi, and feeling afraid to let go, his heart beating so quickly in his chest that he thought it may be in danger of bursting out.

"Gai…" he brought out quietly, looking past the man's heaving back and observing the familiar hospital room, his voice sounding gravelly and unused, "How long have I been asleep?"

It seemed as if it had been a while, given how sore and stiff his back felt, and the distinct heaviness that was enveloping his temples, like the strange feeling one would get in their head after napping for too long. In addition to that, Gai was acting unusual, as if he hadn't seen him in a very long time.

Gai pulled away from him with a series of exaggerated sniffles, wiping his cheeks and smiling brightly as he gazed at Kakashi's face, his hands still resting firmly on his bony shoulders. Although he was grinning from ear to ear, his eyes held an unmistakable sadness, displaying that he'd clearly experienced too much heartbreak as of late.

The weary look in Gai's eyes didn't suit him at all.

"It's been a little bit more than a month since you were last awake, Kakashi…and 2 months since the surgery," he told him quickly, feeling immensely, indescribably grateful that he was finally able to hear his rival's voice, "How do you feel?"

Kakashi processed the question in silence, briefly meeting Gai's misty, overjoyed gaze, before looking down at his lap with parted lips, not really sure what to say. He couldn't exactly lead with "Oh, I saw dead people, and walked into a bright light with the intention of dying, but then woke up in the hospital. Alive".

While he probably should've been happier at the fact that he was finally awake after such a long time, he didn't feel much of anything at all. He was distinctly numb, which, perhaps, was to be expected.

It was confusing to suddenly be thrown back into the world of the living. A part of him wished that he'd died, so that he could finally be reunited with his fallen comrades–deep down, it angered him that he'd woken up.

"I…I don't know, Gai," he told his friend honestly, rubbing his palpating forehead with a deep sigh, and closing his exhausted, sluggish eyes, "I want to go home."

Maito Gai's wide grin faltered as he observed Kakashi's lethargic, halfhearted disposition, wishing he was more excited, but also understanding that he didn't have to be, after going through such a stressfully long ordeal.

"I'm afraid I don't know if you can do that yet, Kakashi…" he told him hesitantly, almost flinching at the dark, dangerous look that the Hatake gave him in response, "You should stay here for a little while. After all, you did just wake up…"

Kakashi almost scoffed out loud, feeling completely done with his stay at the hospital—After being there for almost 3 months without going home, he definitely never wanted to come back again. Just the sight of the white sheets was enough to agitate him.

It was safe to say that his experience at the hospital had been extremely traumatizing.

Exhaling exasperatedly at Gai's innocent, and objectively reasonable remark, he tugged the thick pile of blankets off of himself, momentarily glancing at the fact that he was wearing a hospital gown, before swinging his stiff legs off of the bed with a stifled grunt.

He felt restless, and needed to get up and move—anything was better than remaining still, or even worse, lying back down.

With his limbs hanging loosely from the side of the mattress, he stared at his dangling feet with a zoned out look, not entirely present. His eyes narrowed in scrutiny as he noticed how much his ankles were protruding, and how his pale calves had shrunk, looking notably less muscular than before.

It made sense that he had some degree of atrophy, or muscle degeneration, as it had been months since he'd really walked, or gotten out of bed. However, even if he could see why it had happened, it still made him feel like his body wasn't his own.

He didn't feel like himself.

"Kakashi, where are you going?" Gai asked him cautiously, his brows furrowing as he observed how the man was staring at the ground with a glossed over, unreadable expression on his ashen face, "We should get Lady Tsunade before you try to do anything…"

Gai frowned as he noticed how obviously melancholic his friend looked, and at that moment, he realized that even if he was eventually healed physically, it would still take a while before Kakashi's mental health improved. He wouldn't be surprised if the man was depressed, or had some form of post traumatic stress.

Ignoring his friend's concerned words, Kakashi lowered his bare feet onto the cold tile and attempted to stand, his legs immediately feeling weak and wobbly, as if they weren't used to supporting his weight.

Noticing that he'd gotten up, and catching sight of how unsteady he looked, Gai promptly rushed to his side, a look of worry quickly becoming apparent on his tanned visage.

Kakashi held out a shaky hand to stop him from coming any closer, slowly staggering forward a few inches, with a focused, serious expression painting the visible portion of his clammy face.

He didn't want any more help.

Grimacing in discomfort at the tingling numbness that was readily spreading throughout his rigid, unused limbs, he tried his best to keep walking, but quickly felt himself losing his balance. His eyes widened as his knees buckled, and he lost his footing, starting to fall backwards.

At that moment, he felt immensely frustrated at the fact that it was so hard for him to do something so simple.

Before he could hit the hard tile and worsen his already fragile physical state, Gai leaped forward and caught him from behind, holding up his loose weight, and carefully pulling him back into a sitting position at the edge of the bed. He knew that it was too soon for Kakashi to be walking—the man had just woken up from a coma.

The Hatake averted his disheartened eyes, ashamed at his lack of stability and strength. He just wanted to be able to do basic things on his own, without constantly making it known that he was weak and out of shape.

Observing his discouraged look, Gai knelt down on the ground and tenderly put his hands on his friend's knees, staring up at him sympathetically.

"It'll come back, my rival…You just need to give yourself time to get stronger," he told him intently, "You've been through a lot, so it's okay if you're not 100% right now."

"I want to go home, Gai," Kakashi responded softly, a flash of hidden pain in his gaze as he reluctantly returned the eye contact.

Gai furrowed his thick brows and stood up, his eyes glistening with hurt as he remembered how they'd unplugged Kakashi a mere week ago, and the way he'd lost a heartbeat right in front of everyone.

It seemed insane for him to go back home so soon after such a serious incident had occurred.

"Kakashi…" he began hesitantly, "Just a week ago, your kidneys were failing, and you couldn't even breathe on your own…You would've died, if Shizune hadn't found out what was wrong with you…In fact, you flatlined, right in front of me and your students!"

"Look, Gai," the Hatake started with a sigh, the deflated tone of his voice giving off the vibe that he truly didn't care about what had happened, or how it had affected his comrades, "I'm just going to end up going home anyway, with or without your help. I really can't be here anymore."

While he disapproved of how apathetic Kakashi seemed, Gai processed the statement thoughtfully—the man would just end up escaping if he really wanted to.

He paused for a few moments, before looking at the Hatake and nodding tentatively, understanding how trapped he must feel, as someone who placed great value in freedom and autonomy.

Besides, if Gai had learned anything, it was that he shouldn't force anything on Kakashi. Although he was ultimately very glad that his rival had gone through with the final surgery, as it had saved his life, he wondered if coercing him into it had done irreparable damage to their relationship.

Maybe Kakashi would never fully trust him again.

"Ok, I'll help you get home," Gai said finally, crossing his arms, "But I have some conditions."

Kakashi blinked, feeling surprised at how quickly he'd agreed, silently urging him to continue.

"I'm going to live with you until I think you're well enough to be alone…and you have to get routine check ups at home—whatever Lady Tsunade thinks is necessary," Gai told him with an unbudging tone, completely against the prospect of him living on his own right after waking up from a month long coma.

The copy nin stared at him blankly, before pinching the bridge of his nose, and releasing a heavy exhale. He was tired of people butting into his personal life; independence was extremely important to him, and lately he hadn't had much of it.

Besides, he wasn't sure if he was ready for how closely Gai was going to be surveilling him.

"Fine. But you can only stay for a week. Maybe 2 weeks, max."

"Make that 4 weeks, and we have a deal."

Kakashi's eyebrows leapt up in dismay as he imagined having Gai as a roommate for a whole month. "…3 weeks."

"Four," Gai insisted stubbornly, shaking his head and refusing to back down, "And more if I don't think you're okay."

"Alright," the Hatake agreed finally after a long pause, almost rolling his eyes, but realizing that he probably shouldn't, as Gai had consistently supported him over the past several months, and was genuinely a great friend.

"…We have a deal. Now please, get me out of here."