Dreaming


"Hey, buddy." Punk smiled, crouching down after Chase ran over to him, "Hey, can you do me a big favour?"

"What?" Chase grinned.

"Aunt Thea is over there by the door." Punk pointed as Chase spotted Thea, "Can you go get her? I just wanna talk to your mommy for a minute." He said as Chase nodded.

"Ok." Chase said, running on over to get his aunt as Thea waited by the door, lifting him up once he reached her and taking him inside the hospital whilst Punk turned back to Cassie who was sitting anxiously on the edge of the bench, waiting for him to reach her.

"He's dead." Cassie nodded as her father reached the bench. Somehow she could feel it. Sitting with Chase as the night gone cold, she could just feel the disconnect. Like she knew it was just the two of them now.

Punk sat down on the bench beside her as she watched him turn to her.

"He's awake." Punk nodded as she looked at him, puzzled.

"What?" Cassie squeaked.

"He's awake, Cassie." Punk said with emphasis, "Still in pretty bad shape but he… he moved. Opened his eyes." He nodded.

"N-No…" She shook her head in disbelief, getting up from the bench and running away to the hospital entrance, rushing by some people waiting in a line behind the front desk. She figured she had to be daydreaming. Was she hallucinating? Was she so tired and sleep deprived that she just hallucinated her father coming out and telling her what she wanted to hear?

She ran as fast as she could to the elevator, then pacing inside as it took her up to the ICU, running out again towards Theo's room, opening it up and pausing at the doorway.

"Theo?" Cassie whispered, looking on at her husband's eyes, opened and looking at her. He didn't say anything. He barely moved besides lifting two fingers, shaking them in a waving motion.

Cassie looked on at the nurse who had taken Theo's tubes out, adjusting the monitors. She felt like she was in a dream. She had to be. She was preparing to lose him. To never see his eyes opened again. She hadn't even let herself think about the possibility of him waking up because she didn't want to be devastated when he didn't. But here he was. Awake. Looking at her.

"We've upped his morphine now he's awake." The nurse announced whilst Cassie stared at Theo in disbelief, not registering anything the nurse was saying, "And he's gonna be… in and out of it for a while, until the morning at least." She nodded, turning to Cassie who she could see was not listening to anything she was saying.

"You're awake?" Cassie cried, placing her hand over her mouth, walking towards the bed, "You're awake?" She laughed through her tears, seeing the nurse at the corner of her eye leave the room, reaching over and cupping Theo's face, "I really hope I'm not dreaming." She whispered, leaning her head against his, watching him close his eyes tiredly. It felt just like a dream, and she was waiting any moment to wake up, but he was there, awake in front of her.


"What are the doctors saying?" AJ asked, sitting on a bench outside as Punk joined her, noticing she was eating a cookie from the cafeteria which they were all very accustomed to now.

"He's not out of the woods yet but it's… it's good." Punk nodded to her, "I don't think they were bargaining on him waking up." He said, "Thea certainly wasn't, and I trust her when it comes to… medical things." He said.

"He's tough." AJ nodded, extending some of her cookie to him as he took it gratefully.

"I really thought she was gonna lose him." Punk shook his head, feeling the world slightly lift from his shoulders gradually, "I started thinking about… how awful it was really going to be. Thinking about the funeral. About Chase." He shook his head.

"Well don't." AJ patted his thigh, "He's gonna pull through."

"We shouldn't be outliving any of them." Punk shook his head as AJ nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure a lot of parents who lose children feel the same." AJ nodded, "But he's gonna make a full recovery. And live to tell the tale." She smiled as Punk nodded, sighing with relief as he leaned back on the bench.

"He'll be in hospital for a while I reckon." Punk said as AJ nodded, brushing the crumbs from her lap from her cookie, "When he gets out we can be there to help. With anything. I'll cut my days down at work." He insisted.

"Oh, so when I need my husband to cut down his days at work he doesn't want to but when Theo needs you it's done as soon as possible." She teased as he smiled.

"I like him better than you." Punk nodded as she nudged his side, "No, I just mean if they need anyone to look after Chase. Stuff like that." He said as AJ nodded.

"I know, I'm just teasing." AJ smiled, "But you know Cassie, she'll have it all under control." She nodded.

"So she'll tell us." Punk nodded, "What the hell do I do about Sean?" He sighed as AJ turned to him.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well I can't decide if I wanna beat the guy again or… help him?" Punk questioned, "Is that weird?"

"I don't think it's weird." AJ shook her head, "We'll probably never forgive him for hurting Jude but… we know he's not a bad person." She nodded, "And I think he's really trying with Jude, trying to prove to her how sorry he is… which is difficult to do when you've fucked up so bad." AJ nodded.

"I think for now we just gotta stay out of it." Punk nodded to her, "Let them figure it out. It's their relationship at the end of the day."

"I think before all of this happened they were trying to figure it out a little." AJ nodded positively, "But it's hard. It's hard to trust someone after they hurt you." She said as he nodded, looking at her, "Yes, I'm talking about you." She clarified as he nodded.

"But you did. Eventually." He nodded.

"I did." AJ said, leaning her hand over and playing with the back of his hair sweetly.


"Hey, how are things?" Thea asked quietly, walking into Theo's room later that night where Cassie was sitting. They were all elated by the news that Theo had woken and shown some movement. For a while they were really all preparing for the worst.

"He's just been sleeping." Cassie nodded, holding Theo's hand, feeling it a little heavier now that she knew he was really still with her, still fighting.

"He's gonna be exhausted… and weak." Thea said, sitting down next to her, "But I can't tell you how good this is." She nodded.

"Yeah?" Cassie nodded to her.

"I don't see things like this often. Once every now and then maybe." Thea said, "He's gonna pull through." She nodded, now with more confidence than ever.

"I just gave up on him." Cassie shook her head with anger, "I just gave up." She shook her head, drying her tears.

"No, that's not what you did." Thea placed her hand on her shoulder, "You were scared and… upset. Preparing yourself. We all were." Thea nodded, "And you didn't want him to be suffering."

"They've upped his morphine." Cassie nodded, drying her tears, "So… even if he was awake, he'd be seeing five of us probably." She smiled a little.

"Cassie." Thea said as Cassie turned to her. Her face was puffy from crying, and the bruises from the beaten she'd gotten were still just as black, "This is good." She nodded to her sister seriously, "Better than good." She said as Cassie nodded.

"I just didn't think he'd wake up." Cassie shook her head, turning back to Theo, "I was thinking about all the things I was gonna have to face. And go through. Sitting out there with Chase, I really felt like it was just… me and him now." She said, "And it was horrible." She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Look at me." Thea told her as she turned to her, "He's gonna get better. And he's gonna come home with you and with Chase. You don't have to say goodbye." She shook her head as Cassie nodded, letting out a loud sigh of relief as she placed her hands over her face.

Somehow she was still convinced none of this was real. She had shocked herself emotionally by thinking she was going to lose her husband, that it felt impossible now to believe he was going to be ok. He was going to get better and come home with her.