Hey you guys...

First off, thank you so much for your reviews.
I felt truly humbled by your kind words.

Secondly, I cannot believe it took me this long to update this story.
That was not how I had it in mind, I can assure you that.
But life got in the way, and I'm sorry for that.

Either way, without further ado, I present to you the next and final chapter of this one-shot.
Enjoy!

Chapter two

And I still hold your hand in mine…
In mine when I'm asleep…

Charley moved her fingers, trying to find his.
Desperately yearning for feeling his soft fur under her fingertips.
For feeling his warmth.
But when she gradually closed her hand, there was nothing.
Nothing but coldness.
Loneliness.
And a breath-taking emptiness.

As if struck by lightning, her green eyes burst open and while desperately gasping for air, Charley flew upright in her bed, sweat trickling down her heated face.
"Jesus, Charley", someone with a husky voice breathed near her head and she looked around her bewildered before her gaze landed on Throttle, who stumbled backward and almost tripped over the chair close to the bed.
He was obviously startled by her waking up so abruptly, but the strangest thing was that his antennas were glowing red, although it now slowly faded as he looked at her with shock written upon his usually calm face.
Perhaps there was even a slight hint of caution, as if he was trying to predict her next move like she was some kind of wild animal.

Breathing heavily, Charley rubbed her wet face, confused to find herself in bed instead of sitting in that horrible red grass and it was then when that agonizing pain washed over her again, for she now suddenly fully realized again what had happened.
A muffled sob escaped her lips as it literally took her breath away and she lowered her trembling hands before she looked at Throttle again, tears blurring her vision.
Without thinking, she reached out to him and in her desperate attempt to feel his fur under her fingers in the hope that would ease the pain, if only a bit, she almost fell out of the bed.

But the tan-furred mouse quickly caught her before she could, thanks to his excellent reflexes and she clung onto him, bursting into tears.
"Oh, God, Throttle, he's gone… He just killed him, right in front of me and there was nothing I could do… I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry…", she cried uncontrollably, crawling even closer to him, as far as that was possible.
As she buried her face into his shirt, she felt two strong arms wrapping around her quivering body, which only made her even more upset, for it wasn't the pair of arms she so desperately yearned for right now.
"Charley… Charley, breathe… There's something you need to know…", Throttle said softly yet a bit compellingly, his warm breath close to her ear, but Charley hardly heard him, taking his shirt in a tight grip as her body shook from crying.
She tried so hard to stop the images from flashing in front of her eyes, but it was as if her brain just wanted to remind her, over and over again, what she had lost.
"He just slit his throat like it was nothing, and I… I just stood t-there… Jesus, there was so much blood… Why would someone do… do such a thing? Why oh why?", she sobbed, completely heartbroken and despite her attempts to snap out of it, still entirely caught up in the traumatizing memory.

The way that knife, that huge and sharp knife, had cut through Vinnie's flesh as if it was nothing…
Even the sound kept echoing through her head, that sickening, somehow smacking sound, soon followed by him gasping for air.
And his eyes…
Oh, God, his eyes.
Wide open, mortal fear shimmering in the red flames of his irises…
Her entire body convulsed against Throttle's and she almost choked in her tears, for the pain was literally unbearable.
She wasn't able to handle this.
She had no idea how to deal with this immense emptiness.
It was merely impossible.
"Throttle, it hurts… it hurts so bad… I just want him back… Please, make him come back…"

She vaguely noticed that Throttle tried to untangle himself from her insanely tight grip, probably to look her in the eye, but she wasn't ready.
She would never be ready to look at him again, for it would only remind her of him and God, the thought alone made her beyond sick.
"Charley, please, calm down and listen to me…"
The fact that his husky voice didn't sound like Vinnie's made her cry even harder, which was actually quite the miracle and saliva dripped out of her mouth on his shirt as another wave of anguish made her almost suffocate, forcing her to close her eyes, although that was the last thing she wanted right now.
As expected, the moment she closed them, the image of Vinnie forced itself upon her.
The very image of him sitting there, held by the two men, with that knife on his throat.
Completely helpless, waiting for death to take him.
Probably praying it wouldn't hurt.
Oh, God… Vinnie…

"Sweetheart…"

Her heart skipped a beat when the sound of his voice caressed her eardrums, but the small glimpse of hope immediately got overshadowed by grief again, her heart knowing that this couldn't be real.
That it was just in her head, and she pressed her face against Throttle's muscular chest, slightly shaking her head while she still cried her eyes out, weighed down under the somehow heavy emptiness of the giant hole in her chest.
She had never, ever been this upset in her entire life, not even when the mouse she loved with her whole heart and soul got brutally murdered right in front of her, which was strange, actually.
Then again, thinking back at that moment, that whole scene had felt somehow… surreal.
As if it wasn't really happening.
But now… now, she was able to feel how it was to be missing a piece of your soul and it was unsustainable.
Truly unsustainable.

But, strangely enough, despite that she was entirely devastated, she still had the presence of mind to feel a hand sliding into her auburn-colored hair.
A hand that couldn't belong to Throttle, for his hands were still resting on her back.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, trying to control her rapid breathing and while she did that, a scent that hadn't been there before suddenly filled her nose.
A scent she would recognize anywhere and she blinked her green eyes almost in slow motion before she slightly turned her head, her heart banging against the inside of her chest.
At first, everything was just one big blur but soon thereafter, her vision became sharp again and the strange white spot turned into a face, a face so familiar yet so estranged.
"Hey, you… Good to see ya…"

Though low and slightly trembling, it was, without a doubt, Vinnie's voice.
Not even her fucked up brain could deny that and a strange sound slipped over her lips, a sound that was a combination between a sob and a moan as her eyes darted up, her body still shaking due to her inconsolable grief.
And there they were.
Ruby-red eyes, looking back at her.
Even more so, they weren't empty.
Nor were they lifeless.
Quite the opposite, actually.
There was like a tornado of emotions whirling in the red flames.
Worry, relief, a hint of fear, a small spark of mischief, but mostly love.
So much love.
How on Earth was this even possible?
Was this a dream?

She drew in a sharp breath, for she suddenly had no idea what was real and what wasn't and it was both terrifying and confusing.
"V-Vinnie… Is that… Is that really y-you?", she stammered, her voice hoarse of crying as she raised a trembling hand before reaching out to him, being beyond scared that her eyes were deceiving her.
Movement below his eyes caught her attention and her gaze wandered over his face, all the way down to his lips, only to see them curled into a most arrogant and charming smile.
A million-dollar smile...
"Have you ever seen such a pretty face like this one? Of course it's me."

For a moment, she just gawked at him with her green eyes wide open, but then a muffled laugh escaped Charley's mouth, although she was still crying as well.
Holy shit, there could only be one person in this entire universe that would come up with this, if she had to say, tasteless response to a crisis situation.
A certain white-furred mouse came to mind.
It was him.
It had to be.
She had no idea how it was even possible, for she had watched him die, the image of it now etched in her brain, but here he was.
Being a smartass, as usual.
As if nothing ever happened.

In one smooth movement, she jumped out of the bed and threw herself in his arms, ignoring the sharp jolt of pain in her head.
The feeling of him wrapping his arms around her and holding her tightly overruled her hearing him moaning in pain and she buried her nose in his neck as the first sparks of relief started to fill the hole that was still in her chest.
"Oh, God, I thought I lost you…", she panted with her eyes closed, sniffing up his scent between sobs.
A scent that no one could duplicate.
Shit, he was really here.
Alive and kicking.
"Hey, I ain't that easy to get rid off, sweetheart", he replied with the usual bravado, but his voice was a bit shaky, telling her that this whole thing had left its traces on him as well.
Whatever this whole thing was.
She still had no idea what the hell was going on here, but for now, holding him, knowing that he was still alive, was enough.
More than enough.

It was as if time slowed down as they stood there, close to her bed and as his hand gently rubbed her back to console her, Charley finally calmed down a bit.
It wasn't much, but it was a start, and she slowly started to realize that the universe was giving her a second chance here.
And considering that second chances were quite rare these days, she knew that the time to let herself be ruled by fear was over.
Never would fear be her guidance, not anymore.
The pain, though decreasing, now suddenly turned into something to draw power from and without further thinking, she partially untangled herself so she was able to look him in the eye.
Her hands slid from his back all the way up to his cheeks and she took his head in a gentle yet firm grip, still sniffing but feeling stronger and more confident than ever.
"I love you. I love you from the moment you showed me your true colors and so help me God, that is the truth and nothing but the truth", she told him determinedly, not even feeling the slightest hint of fear when she unburdened herself.

He stiffened as a blush stained his cheeks under his fur, and his beautiful eyes grew big while she spoke truthfully, which felt awfully like a deja-vu, but before that horrific memory could ruin this moment, she leaned forward and kissed him.
She just kissed him, while Throttle was still in the same room with them, but she simply didn't care.
Not anymore.
He needed to know the truth before it might be too late.
And that was all that mattered right now.

The moment her lips touched his, Vinnie froze entirely, she could literally feel every muscle tense against her body and it was then when she felt a slight pang of fear nonetheless, but soon thereafter, he put out that fire before it had the chance to become more than just the small spark it was now, simply by sliding his fingers into her hair and kissing her back.
Lovingly.
Affectionately.
Another tear rolled down her cheek as she pulled him even closer to her, her entire body warming up by feeling the love he put in the kiss.
She never knew it was possible to feel so much love in a simple kiss, although this probably wasn't just a simple kiss.
No, it was much more than that.
So much more.

Way too soon, he broke it off, but instead of letting her go, he rested his forehead against hers as he gazed into her eyes, his crimson eyes burning with love.
"I love you, too. Even since I laid my eyes on you, I love you, I swear that's true. And I cannot live without you. These past few days made that perfectly clear…", he said softly and as she held in her breath by hearing these words, spoken with love and affection, she felt something wrapping around her leg, something she knew was his tail and the gesture was just so caring and sweet that she started to cry again.
"I still can't believe that you're here… He killed you right in front of me… How is this even possible?", she breathed between her tears, her hand resting on his right cheek, for she needed to feel him to convince herself, over and over again, that he wasn't just a ghost from the past.
That he wasn't just a figment of her imagination.

Vinnie frowned in confusion as he wiped a strand of hair out of her heated face, his teeth buried into his lower lip, giving him a somewhat dark expression.
"What are you talking about, sweetheart?"
When she didn't respond, for she was currently overwhelmed by emotions again, the white-furred mouse turned his head to look at Throttle, who sat on the edge of the bed, where he had been watching them with a somewhat goofy smile on his face, although he grew serious again when his young bro gave him a questionable look.
"What is she talking about?"

The tan-furred leader of the famous trio cleared his throat, and he slid off the bed, gesturing to Vinnie to put Charley there before he answered the question.
"To be honest, I'm not sure. For some reason, her brain has created a totally different version of what happened a few days ago. If I have to guess, the crash triggered something. Something that has to do with her worst fears."
"So we did crash?", Charley sniffed while Vinnie gently put her back on the bed before plopping down next to her without letting go of her hand, much to her joy.
He still had that confused frown between his brows, although there was a hint of anger as well.
"Oh, we crashed, alright. Some asshole thought it was a good idea to throw out a ball for his dog right before we came over the hill. I had to swerve to avoid hitting him, the dog, not the asshole, but I uh… I was driving kind of fast I guess and I… well, I lost control", he added the last part darkly, both corners of his mouth pointing downwards.
Clearly, it was hard for him to admit that even the big Vinnie Van Wham made mistakes.

Charley narrowed her eyes before she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and although this was still all highly confusing, she was now calm enough to notice that he wasn't wearing his sweater.
Instead, he wore a wide shirt and her gaze wandered over the bandages around his brawny arms and neck before it landed on the now stitched wound above his eye.
"But… But something crashed into us… It wasn't a dog, if it was, it must have been made from steel or something… I flew off the bike and then someone grabbed me… and Number One was there, and he slit your throat right in front of me, as payback for messing with Detroit and you couldn't fight back because he had broken your spine…", she rambled quizzically, not understanding a thing about all this.
Only talking about it brought her back to that scene, forcing her to feel that same helplessness again, the very one that took her breath away and she had to stop talking due to her need for air.

As she took a deep breath in, Vinnie merely peered at her with his eyes wide open, his lower jaw practically hanging on his knees.
"What?", he eventually managed to squeeze out, creasing his brow as he slightly shook his head.
"No, sweetheart, that is not what happened. We crashed and my bike managed to send a stress signal to my bro's. When they found us, I was out cold and you were in some sort of shock…"
"We brought you both home and after patching him up, Vinnie soon woke up again, but you… you were out for days", Throttle now meddled in the conversation, sitting in the chair across the room with his legs crossed by the ankle.

Charley bit her lower lip, her brow furrowed as she silently watched the calm mouse, trying very hard to wrap her mind around all this.
When she didn't say anything, Throttle simply continued.
"We waited for a couple of days, but this morning, when Vinnie was taking his mandatory rest, Modo and I decided it was time to do something. Obviously, time wasn't enough to do the trick, as we hoped it would do, so I ah… I took you on a Mind Walk…"
He fell silent again and a shadow flickered across his face as he shifted his weight a bit uncomfortable, uncharacteristically uneased.
"I saw everything. It was… uh… Well, I guess what matters the most here is that it wasn't real, Charley. I'm not sure what exactly went down inside your head, but whatever it was that made your brain work out your worst fear, the most important part is that it wasn't real…"
A tear left her eye as Charley looked at Throttle almost beseeching, for it truly felt as if she had lost her mind here.

"But Number One... "
"He wasn't there, Charley", the tan-furred mouse cut her off somewhat sternly and Charley flinched, although she deep down knew that all he wanted was to get through to her, simply because he cared for her.
"In fact, no one was. The guy with the dog must have fled the scene because when we found you, there was no one there."
Charley lowered her gaze and stared at her and Vinnie's entwined fingers from under her wet lashes, softly gnashing her teeth.
This was most confusing, and much to comprehend.
"But there was so much blood…", she whispered as the image of her hands resting in the red grass flashed before in her eyes.
"I somehow find it hard to believe that I just made that part up…"

"That's because you didn't. There was, indeed, a lot of blood", a heavy voice broke the loaded silence and Charley looked up, straight into Modo's friendly face.
"Welcome back, Charley ma'am. We've missed you. This place just ain't the same without you", he smiled at her warmly, although there was a hint of worry shimmering in his one eye.
"Thanks, Modo. It's good to be back in the land of the living…", she mumbled as her eyes darted over to Vinnie and back to the grey-furred giant.
"Where did the blood come from?"

"Mostly from the wound in my neck. As it turned out, a shard of one of the protection plates from my bike cut my throat, right about here…", Vinnie answered that question as he tapped a finger on a spot close under his right ear, though the wound was carefully hidden under a bandage.
His face was entirely blank as he spoke, so perhaps he tried to look nonchalant, but Charley couldn't help herself but notice that there was something different about him.
He seemed more… down to Earth, or some such.
"It nearly sliced his artery", Modo added, the tone of his voice opposite of Vinnie's, and Charley knew them all long enough to know that it had been a close one.
Which, in turn, explained why Vinnie was acting differently.
They said a near-death experience did that to people.
It changed them.
Why would it be any different with extraterrestrial life?

It also explained her… dream, or whatever it was.
She must have seen him lying there in the grass, with blood streaming out of his throat, although she couldn't remember that, or well, not like that.
Which was… troubling, to say the least.
"You saved him", she breathed as she looked at Modo, and her respect for him grew even bigger, as far as that goes.
Modo chuckled a bit uncomfortable as he scratched the back of his head, as always, not knowing how to deal with a woman giving him positive attention.
"Well, that's one way to put it… I ah… I just did what Stoker taught me about first aid, no biggie…"
He then clapped Vinnie on the shoulder with a wry smile.
"And lucky for us, he's just too stubborn to die."

"Well, duh. I didn't make it this far to die because of some damned dog", Vinnie shivered by the thought alone with his nose slightly wrinkled in disgust.
Knowing him, he was probably picturing his gravestone, written with 'Here lies Vincent van Wham, a brave soldier who died by sacrificing himself for a dog. Bless his poor soul.'.
"No, if I die, it will be in a blaze of glory, as befits the hero as I am."
Charley took a deep but shaky breath before she shared a look with Modo and Throttle, and then burst into laughter, she just couldn't help it.
This, all this, was beyond ridiculous.
She still couldn't fully grasp what had happened, and the whole experience had been beyond terrifying, it had even nearly crushed her, but here she was.
Surrounded by her family, the very one she loved with every fiber in her body.

Better yet, something good had come out of it and she glanced up at Vinnie, somehow a bit shy all of a sudden, but that soon vanished again when she saw him looking back at her with a small smile curling his lips, though it wasn't an arrogant smile.
No, it was a smile of pure happiness, the same happiness she felt rushing through her veins the moment he slung an arm around her shoulders to pull her closer before pressing a kiss on top of her head.
As it turned out, there was, indeed, nothing that was able to defeat love.
Not even fear.
And while the love she felt for him washed away all of the anguish, she let out a relieved sigh and snuggled closer to him.
She had learned her lesson, though.
Never, ever was she going to allow her fear to become the best of her.
As of today, love would be her guidance, and love alone.
For love was plainly invincible.

Those who have overcome their fears will truly be free.
For being brave isn't the absence of fear.
Being brave is having that fear but finding a way through it.

-The End-

No, this time, I didn't kill our beloved white-furred friend.
I figured they deserved a second chance. :)

Well, if you have some time to spare, let me know your thoughts regarding this chapter.
Nonetheless, thanks for reading this little story and till next time, my friends!

Later!