Hey, dudes and dudettes. My other story, Gonna Have a Good Time Again, has come to an end. Which means I'll have more time to focus on this. But if you want to read GHATGA, be my guest. Anyways, it's time for another chapter of JOTN. This is gonna be a causal chapter. No flashbacks, no journal entries, just the guys hanging out together. I hope you're ready for fluff and friendship. There will be ONE intense moment, but you'll understand it if you've read the story up to now.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 8: All Together Again

Whatever Russell's parent had to tell him was taking an eternity. The other boys were starting to wonder what was going on, that they couldn't help but put their ears to the do in order to hear something.

And they did... they heard sobbing... from Russell.

Slowly, the boys started to realize what the case was, "Oh no... you don't think Bill kicked the bucket, do you?" Harold asked.

"Don't let it be so..." Bucky whimpered.

"Hold on, dudes. We won't know for sure unless Russell tells us himself." Albert assured him, "Let's just wait."

And so, the boys went back to their table, and waited patiently for another few minutes, until Russell came back in, his head bowed. But from what Albert could see, there were tears streaming down his cheeks, "Russell... is everything okay...?" He asked.

The small child slowly lifted his head, "I... I have something to tell you..." He sobbed.

The gang gulped, fearing the absolute worse...

"Bill... he... he woke up!" He said with a smile, "He woke up this morning! It's a miracle..."

Bill woke up?

The guys then sighed in relief and made noises of happiness. Albert then hugged Russell, "That's great news, Russell. I knew he'd wake up sooner or later." He told him. Russell just hugged back.

"But if he's okay, how come you're crying?" Donald asked.

"Yeah, we thought he might have died," Harold added.

Albert smiled, "These are tears of joy, dudes. Russell's overwhelmed with happiness that his brother's gonna be okay." He explained as he rubbed the little boys back.

"A-And we can a-all go see him," Russell added.

The boys were definitely okay with that. Seeing their friend would definitely be a good thing to do, especially after everything that's happened. And they were sure Bill could use the visit.

And so, the boys walked down the hall of the hospital, following Barbara who was leading them there. After a few minutes, they ended up on the second floor of the building, as Barbara knocked on the door. Soon, a faint 'come in', was heard.

The door was opened, and the boys walked in to see their friend. Bill was lying down in his bed. No longer did he have countless wires and tubes attached to him, but an IV in his hand. A bandage remained on his head, and one on his left arm. He smiled to see his friends as he sat up a little, "Hey, dudes..." He greeted weakly.

Russell instantly ran up to hug his brother, but gently though as to not irritate his injuries, "I'm so glad you're awake..." He whispered, "I thought I would lose you..."

Bill chuckled as he wrapped his arms around the child, "No way, Rus... I'll always be here for you..."

"We're happy to see you awake, Bill..." Albert said, "How're you feeling?"

"Well, let's see. My head hurts, I'm hopped up on drugs, I'm pretty tired, but other than that, I'm fine, I guess..." Was his response, "I was more worried about you dudes. I had no idea if you were okay."

Harold looked down, "At least you're not in a wheelchair. Those dudes really messed up my leg."

"Yeah, I remember that..."

That's when Bill looked around the room, and noticed something odd, "Hey... where's Rudy?"

The other boys frowned at the mention of the rich boy, as Albert answered that, "Last we heard, he's on suicide watch."

"Suicide watch?" Bill asked in shock.

Harold nodded, "Yeah. He tried to do himself in a few times since we all came here. One time was by trying to swallow some pills. And the other was trying to jump off the roof of the hospital. So they're keeping an eye on him."

The Cosby boy shook his head, "Man... I guess I can't blame him, though. Who would want to live after getting-"

Russell shushed him, "Don't say it. We agreed not to talk about what happened to us until we felt ready."

"We did?"

"You must not remember..."

Albert spoke again, "Yeah. That's why I got the idea of writing in a journal. Since you dudes aren't ready to talk about your experiences out loud, you can write about it. Everyone has written in it, except for you and Rudy..."

Bill nodded, "I see... I guess I can write in it. But I dunno what to write."

"Anything that can help the police find the people who took you."

"Oh..." He shuddered, "They weren't caught?"

"They escaped." Harold replied, "And the police are looking for them."

"You guys will have to be interviewed soon about it, but for now, you can write about what happened while you were captive," Albert added.

"Well, I hope they get caught soon. I'd hate for anything like this to happen again... hey, Fat Albert. Drop that journal by sometime later. I wanna write in it when I get the chance."

Albert smiled as he already had the journal in hand as he set it down on the table next to the bed, "There it is for your writing pleasure. Whatever's on your mind, you can jot it down."

"Thanks, man."

"Hey, Bill. You wanna join us in the kids' room?" Russell asked, "You're probably bored being in this bed for so long..."

"If it's alright with the doctors," Bill replied.

Barbara nodded, "As long as you still have your IV, you can move around. Just be careful and be slow, as to not irritate your head."

"Right..."

Later on, Bill was able to join his friends in the room. It actually did feel good to not be stuck in bed, as he had been for the past few days in a coma. Miraculously, his memories still stayed intact. The trauma to his head didn't leave any signs of amnesia... just headaches and tiredness. He sat at the table, as they all began to wait for Rudy to arrive. Last they heard, he was calm again and should be coming any time now.

And to prepare, "Okay, dudes. When Rudy comes, let's act as normal as possible. Just treat it like a normal day. Don't bring up anything that might upset him..." Albert explained.

The boys nodded in agreement, even Russell, who would normally go against that, but with the situation they were in, he couldn't even attempt to crack a joke or sass. Not while Rudy was clearly still suffering.

As soon as Albert made that clear, they heard the door open, and Rudy was there, with a deep frown on his face, "Hey..." he greeted in an almost monotone voice. The guys were taken aback by his sudden demeanor, but they made no mention of it as Albert smiled, "Hey, hey, hey. How're you feeling, Rudy?"

The rich boy just gave a thumbs up as he slowly joined his friends at the table. That's when a doctor walked in, "Don't worry. We gave Rudolph some medicine to keep him calm. He's gonna feel a bit drugged for a while, but it's only a small dose." He explained.

Well, that explained things.

But still, it was a little unnerving to see Rudy in this state. But as long as he would be okay... then that's all that mattered. The doctor then came over to give the boys some papers, "Here is the menu for the restaurant. We can have someone bring you whatever you boys like."

The boys agreed to that. They could all use something to eat. And it would be nice to eat as a group for once. Soon, they all made their orders, and now all they had to do was wait for the food.

"So... are we still doing out for ice cream sometime?" Bucky asked.

"Ib wishb." Mush added.

"That would be a nice treat. When Bill, Rudy, and Harold are discharged, that it." Albert suggested.

Harold nodded, "Yeah. I can't wait 'til I get outta here. And when I can get out of this wheelchair too. It's cool to move around, but it sucks that I can't walk at the moment."

"At least you don't got no stitches all over ya body..." Donald spoke up, rolling up the sleeves of his sweater, "I don't feel like a freak anymore... but it still sucks."

"It's not so bad..." Russell admitted, "Soon, all of us will be free. And we can go back to the way things used to be... right, Fat Albert?"

The large boy smiled at the child, "Well, it's not gonna be an easy process, but I know things will become normal again, soon. When those people are brought into custody, and everyone will be safe again."

At the mere mention of the kidnappers, Rudy cringed a bit but said nothing. He was mostly staring... at something. But the gang just assumed it was from the medicine he took. The food eventually came, as the boys had ordered a variety of meals. From fries to burgers, to spaghetti, to salad, potatoes, and other stuff.

"This is like a Thanksgiving feast..." Bucky couldn't help but comment.

"Yeah, even though it's summer..." Donald added.

With that, the kids began to dig in. For the first time in a while, they felt happy. They were all together again and having a good time. Or well, it seemed that way. The only one not eating or saying anything... was Rudy... all he did was stare at his food, which Albert soon noticed.

The rich boy seemed to have this deep scowl on his face as if he were disgusted by what was on his plate. He just... sat there... not doing anything but staring. Soon, the other boys started to notice this as well.

"Rudy... are you okay?" Albert asked out of concern.

Rudy didn't answer.

"It must be that medicine..." Bill whispered, "It's making him zone out..."

"Maybe. But he should eat something..." Albert replied, before calling the rich boy again, "Rudy... are you hungry?"

Still no answer... except for Rudy turning his head towards an item on the table. Everyone else followed his movement... and saw that he was staring... at a knife. It was that moment where Albert realized what the deal was... and what was about to happen.

"Rudy, NO!"

Everything from that moment seemed to go by so fast... yet so slow at the same time. Rudy swiftly grabbed the knife and aimed it at his own throat. He would have stabbed himself right then and there... if it weren't for Albert, and some of the other boys, making a grab for the knife. The whole process knocked nearly everyone to the floor, as a struggle to keep Rudy from killing himself was on.

"No! No! Let me go!" The boy snarled as he kept a tight grip on the knife, the others trying to reach for it, "Let me DIE!"

"Don't do this, Rudy! You have so much to live for!" Albert tried telling him.

"I have NOTHING to live for anymore!"

After what felt like an eternity, the boys were able to restrain their friend. Bill and Donald had him pinned to the floor, while Albert was able to pry the knife out of his hands. Rudy struggled violently, screaming and sobbing, "Why won't you dudes just let me DIE?!" He wailed.

"Bucky, get the nurse, doctor, anybody! Russell, put away the utensils so Rudy can't find them." Albert instructed the preteen and child respectively, who nodded and did as told.

"Cool it, Rudy. You ain't gonna solve anything taking your own life." Bill told him.

Rudy growled at him, "Screw you! You have no idea what the hell I've been through! I'm a fucking mess! I'm a pathetic excuse for a human being! I don't deserve to be on this planet!"

"But we do know, Rudy. We were there too, remember...?" Harold reminded him.

"Y-Y-Yeah... but you... you weren't... the one who..."

Rudy wasn't able to finish his sentence as he just broke down into uncontrollable sobbing and wailing, as he ceased his struggling. Bill and Donald released their grip on them (assuming it was okay to do so), and Albert took the broken boy in his arms and hugged him, "It's gonna be okay, Rudy... we're here for you..." He soothes, rubbing his friends back softly.

"T-T-Those b-b-bastards... t-t-those fucking b-bastards..." He heard Rudy curse, though it was muffled as his face was buried into Albert's sweater, "I hate them... I hate them so much..."

"I understand. I don't know too much about what happened to you... but I can tell it was bad..."

The rich boy just continued to cry. Seeing Rudy is such a state was heartbreaking for the boys, even for Russell too. They were kidnapped, went through a lot of Hell, but Rudy got the worst of it. For what it was worth, they didn't blame him for cursing as he did right then.

Bucky soon returned with a nurse, who came in with a syringe, "Rudy... let me give you some more medicine." She offered softly.

But the boy recoiled, pulling away from Albert and curling up into a ball, shaking in fear, "No... no more... I hate that stuff."

"I know, sweetie. But let me give you a dose to calm you down..."

As reluctant as Rudy was, he eventually gave in and allowed the nurse to inject the medicine in his arm. He found that it was a good thing, as later on, he started to feel a little better. Albert offered him to write in the journal about what happened, but he was still uninterested in doing so.

Later that night...

"Bill... what was it like being in a coma...?" Russell asked as he sat on his brother's bed, "I mean, it's like being asleep, right?"

"I guess so..." Bill nodded, "I can't remember what I dreamed about, though. But it's like being in a long sleep."

"Like Sleeping Beauty?"

"Yeah..."

The brothers were getting some alone time before Russell had to go home with their parents. Bill was to stay behind at the hospital to be monitored and to run tests on his head trauma. Russell was still reluctant about his brother, but he knew the doctors knew what they were doing. And soon, he, Harold, and Rudy would be out of the hospital.

Speaking of Rudy... that brought back memories of what happened earlier.

"Bill... you think Rudy will be okay?" The small boy asked, "I mean, after what happened today... I feel bad for him."

"Really? You feel bad for the 'no class' jerk?" Bill asked teasingly, "I mean, I feel bad for him too. But I'm surprised that you do..."

"Let's be real. Rudy may be the most obnoxious boy in the world, but he didn't deserve what happened to him. Those people didn't have any right. And now he's scared for life..."

"You mean scarred for life..."

"Right..."

Bill placed a hand on his little brother's shoulder, "You're right. This is something Rudy isn't gonna get over for a while. But, he has his folks, us, these doctors and nurses to help him out. He'll be fine, with some therapy and reassurance."

"We all could use some therapy after what we went through..."

"I heard one of the doctors talking about setting us up with some sessions with the hospital therapist."

Russell smiled softly, thankful for that. And also thankful to be talking to his brother again, with this time, he can respond, "Bill, I'm glad you're awake. I dunno what I'd do if you were still in a coma."

Bill smiled back, "I'm just happy you're still kicking, Rus. I knew what I was doing pushing you outta the way of that hammer, but I wanted to keep my kid brother safe. That's a promise I made after what happened between you and Rudy last summer."

The small boy shuddered at that memory, "Yeah. Thanks for the reminder of that... but, you'll never leave again... will you?"

"No way, man. I'll always be here for you. Even when I get old and die... I'll always be there for you. Whether in person, in thought, or within your heart... remember that, okay?"

"I will..."

With that, the brothers shared a tender and loving hug. Little did they know, was that their parents were standing in the doorway, watching this moment with smiles.

Aww. Wasn't that sweet? Bill woke up finally and has a moment with his brother. But poor Rudy, though. He's still having issues, but luckily he has his friends for comfort. Next chapter, since Bill's okay, it'll be his turn to write in the journal, since Albert left it with him. All I can say is, his entry will focus on Russell since the little guys' entry was focused on him. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this nice little chapter. I'll see you guys later. And as always, don't forget to review, please. Thank you.