"Fuck Ker, open your eyes!" V's voice sounded strained, with the weight of worry.

"C'mon Ker!" He felt a swift slap across the face and Kerry opened his eyes. V was carrying him in his arms. Trauma team was descending, the flashing lights were so bright, and the wind whipped around them.

"LANDING, STAND CLEAR! INITIATING SAFETY PROTOCOL. FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS." A loud announcement rang from the AV. Trauma team landed and four men left the vehicle, they were all pointing a gun at V. One of the trauma team soldiers approached him and placed a collapsible gurney on the pavement.

"Place the patient on the ground." He ordered. V looked down at Kerry.

"Hey, it's gonna be alright. I'll have Del wait for you, just call me. Kay?" V kissed Kerry on the forehead, and he nodded. He kneeled down and placed Ker on the stretcher.

"Five steps back. Now!" Another soldier ordered and gave V a shove. Kerry was injected with something that instantly made him pass out.

"TT-1874 to control. Patient NC451116 secured." Two of the soldiers lifted Kerry into the vehicle.

"Stimulants being administered…" The other soldiers swarmed back inside.

"Five milligrams Midazolam, seventy milligrams Dopamine one hundred ten Fibrinogen…" Was the last V heard as they flew to the best medical center in night city.

Sometime later, Judy, V, and Dino were all at Kerry's house. V had already heard from Ker, he was fine and was on his way back. Asked about the girls, but Ker was the only one shot at, he was the clear target. V had run the braindance with Judy, but they could only pick up so much. Judy figured out it was handmade tech, some of the toughest to crack. Whoever did this wrote their own code. Judy was actually quite impressed.

"Sorry I couldn't be of more help V, let me know if you need anything. Okay?" She placed a hand on V's shoulder, then turned, and headed for the door.

"Thanks Judy." V called.

"Anytime V." She waved back. It took another ten minutes until Ker would arrive. Dino and V helped themselves to Kerry's bar. V grabbed a bottle of tequila.

"Shots?" He shot a glance at D.

"Hell yeah." The fixer took a seat in front of V who was now behind the bar. They both continuously pour shots not keeping count. Ker finally arrived, Del gave off a couple of beeps, and V took off downstairs. He rode down the handrail of the staircase, to get to his input faster. Ker stepped out of the vehicle and V was right there, pulling him into a deep embrace.

"Mmm… someone missed me." Ker purred into V's ear.

"I was worried…" He squeezed tighter, not wanting to let go.

"I have platinum, no worries. Not even a scratch. This is gonna make a good headline… 'Sides, my BD for this concert will break record sales." Ker broke the hug and snatched his input's hand.

"Come on, I need a drink…" He spoke softly as he led V into the house. At the bar, Dino had already poured two shots for Ker, which he delightfully took down swiftly.

"Glad you're okay, Ker." Dino planted a quick kiss to his cheek.

"Me too." V chimed in, pouring himself another drink. The three sat around the bar getting hammered. Pouring one drink after another until V was standing on top of Kerry's table singing Escape by Rupert Holmes. He was using a wine bottle as a microphone.

"If you like pina coladas! And getting caught in the rain!" He was basically yelling it at this point. Dino and Ker watching from the upstairs railing. Dino had a bottle of whisky in his hand. They stopped pouring shots and the two passed the bottle back and forth, taking swigs.

"V, that song is older than me!" Kerry called but V was too into his karaoke session to even hear him.

"Pfft, fuckin gonk." Ker rolled his eyes. He turned around on the railing, facing his back to V, in a hopeful attempt to drown out his unpleasant opera. He leaned against the rail with his elbows and turned his attention to Dino. Scanning the fixer, checking him out. The veins on his arms, running down like tiny streams, Kerry wanted to trace them with his tongue to see how far they went. He was starting to feel heated from the alcohol, a stir of warmth between his thighs. Kerry took a swig and passed it to the fixer.

"Where did you find this kid?" Dino turned, amused by V's performance. He met Ker's gaze taking a few gulps himself and passed the bottle back.

"Ha…" He took another drink. "Funny thing… He found me…" Kerry couldn't help but to turn around and watch his input stumble around, still on the table. The moment his eyes laid on V, Dino could tell this one was different. The way Kerry was looking at V, it was like he was looking at the most precious thing in the world. There was definitely something deep he was feeling, almost like there was a hint of sadness, but there was hope too. Warmth grew across Kerry's chest, he was so grateful for V. No, beyond grateful, he saved his life tonight. If he were being honest, V saved his life in multiple ways. That goofy merc dancing on the table meant so much to him. He was everything. Dino leaned over and placed his hand on Kerry's hip.

"Come on, let's go get this gonk brain to bed before he tries to go streaking. Again." The fixer laughed. As they headed downstairs, V already had his shirt off.

"V… No." Kerry commanded like he was a dog or something.

"Aww come on!" V whined like a ten-year-old. Drunk V loved to be nude, flailing his junk around carelessly. Kerry knew he had limited time before the merc would be pantsless. Kerry offered his hand to the merc, helping him down from the table. He wrapped his arms around him and leaned into his ear.

"Let's get you to bed, kid." Kerry lifted his hands to V's face and gave him three kisses.

"Mmm, shower first?"