5 - The Long Road

"He's suffered damage to his neck and spinal cord. Thankfully, there wasn't any serious head trauma. Now, you can thank God for our helmets. Your kid is lucky to be alive. He has a lot of stitches, and a few broken bones as well. He'll have a long recovery, and…"

"…and his racing career? Will he ever be able to get back out there?" Smokey interrupted.

"…guarded," the doctor said shortly, throwing back an attitude at Smokey's interruption. He flipped the pieces of paper back over to the top of his clipboard and clicked his pen during the awkward silence between the mentor and him.

Smokey nodded and headed back into the room where Hudson was staying. He was lying limp in bed, arms at his side, and one of them cast into a certain position. He was bandaged, stiff, and pale. Smokey hated to see him in such bad condition, but according to the doctors, Hudson was doing everything they wanted him doing at the moment in time. That was a good thing, which would apparently promote healing. Smokey and his friends didn't understand that yet.

"He's in pain," Lou said softly, running her hand through Hudson's hair.

"How do you know?" Junior asked, looking up at Lou from the opposite side of the bed. River stood next to him, arms crossed, eyes fixated on Hudson.

"I can tell," Lou said softly. "He just looks uneasy."

Lou bent down and placed a kiss on Hudson's forehead. She held his weak hand in hers, running her thumb across the top of his hand to soothe him.

Smokey ran a hand across his own forehead and sighed. "It's going to be a long road."

"Yeah, but Hud has never had a problem with long roads before," Junior flipped what Smokey said out of context and flashed a smile. Smokey smiled in reply, looking down at Hudson. "That's true. He's tough. He'll pull through this."

The friends were there every day as soon as visitor hours were open. Smokey never left Hudson's side. He didn't want anything to happen to Hudson without him around. Lou came in, bringing food for the rest of her friends. Hudson hadn't been awake while they were there. He had been in a lot of pain, which was the only reason he occasionally started to stir. They sat around quietly, trying to be there for him and comfort him. He was unconscious, but they knew he could sense they were there.

Lou sighed, twisting a piece of Hudson's hair as she leaned over next to him. "Oh, wake up..." She whispered. "Come on, Hudson..." She tapped at his forehead and then tapped at his chin.

Hudson flinched, which made Lou raise an eyebrow. The young racer's eyes started to flutter, and he stirred in bed. It had only been a few days since the accident, but Hudson was strong. Lou smiled at him and ran a hand through his messy hair.

"Hey Hud," she said, as his eyes finally fluttered awake. He squinted, under the soft sunlight coming through the room that blinded his eyes. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth when he saw all his friends.

Smokey squeezed his other hand and laughed a little. "Good morning. You're in bad shape. I'm sure you know that. Don't move, just relax."

"You always tell me that," Hudson said softly.

"I do huh?"

"Mmh," Hud nodded a little, imitating Smokey, "relax, just slow down, why are you in a rush…"

Everyone in the room laughed, including the nurse who was changing out a saline bag for the racer.

"Even after all of what you've been through," Lou started, "you're still here making joking remarks." She gave him another kiss on the forehead, which made him smile a little more. But his smile faded after a little while.

"What do you need, kid?" Smokey asked, giving him that big-brother protective gaze. He wanted to make sure Hudson was as comfortable as possible.

"Just in a bit of pain."

"I know, kid, they're trying to get some stronger medication for you."

Hudson nodded, "So I took a little flip and dip or somethin'…?" He asked. Smokey and the crew laughed again.

"You could call it that," Smokey said softly. "We'll talk about it later…Okay…? You went through a lot. It's time to get some more rest now, alright? I promise we'll catch you up to speed…"

"…make sure the public knows I'm okay."

"….okay," Smokey replied.

"And make sure they know I'll be back…"

"Alright, Hud," Smokey pulled the blanket up to Hudson's chest. "Now, time to rest…"

"And make sure you tell Glenn that too," Hudson said, before closing his eyes. "Thank you."

Only a day after the accident the newspapers had filled with information about the crash. The whole world seemed to know what had happened by now. There were so many headlines, Smokey couldn't even keep track of them.

"CRASH! HUDSON HORNET OUT FOR THE SEASON,"

"Season Ender Fender Bender Puts Young Hornet In Garage." Over the next two weeks, Smokey brought the papers to Hudson as he recovered in the hospital. He always laughed at the rhyme, "Season Ender Fender Bender," and then showed it to anyone who was in his room at the time.

Hudson was in good spirits, and he was starting to walk and move around more as the weeks passed on. He was as confident and cocky as ever. He used the hospital to his advantage, obtaining as much ice cream as he could. The doctors were now confident that the young man would be making a full recovery and assured him that he would be able to race again, as long as he took his recovery nice and slow. Hudson agreed to that. He couldn't wait to get back out there, feeling the dirt and gravel beneath his shoes, and smelling the sweet scent of oil and grit all around. That was home. That was where he belonged. That was where he grew up. That's what he grew up to be.

Lou sometimes came in by herself, just to talk with him. He only had a few days left in the hospital before they were releasing him home. She stood at the frame of the door, watching him as he packed his bag of things to go home. He dropped a sock on the floor and struggled to bend down to get it. Louise stepped in, grabbing the sock and handing it to Hudson.

"You ready to go home, sock monster?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," he said, taking the sock and putting it away. "I'm still in a good amount of pain but there's not much I can do at this point. I just gotta play it safe like they said I should be doin'.'"

"I know, and that's what I always tell yah," Louise moved in closer, looking up at him with those emerald green eyes. Hudson grinned. He was amused by her schoolgirl crush she had for him. She tried to hide it but it was easy to tell she liked him. Hud played along with it. He sorta liked it… He just never said anything about it. He tried to play it cool, as Louise wrapped her arms around him, and pulled him close.

"I'm so proud that you're not afraid to get back out there and start racing again," she said soothingly.

"Afraid? Haven't heard that word before, huh."

"Huh," Louise tapped his chin. "Doesn't surprise me. You walked right out of your wreck and then tried to get back to Smokey before you collapsed."

"Collapsed? I was just taking a little nap in the sand. It was warm," he said, smirking, as he squinted his bright blue eyes.

Louise laughed and blushed a little red. "I'm glad you're okay, Hudson. You scared us."

"Oh I know," he said softly, taking it down to a more serious tone. "I know." He looked down at his pockets in his loose hospital jacket and sighed. "You're probably glad I'm alive, yeah?"

Louise nodded, arms still wrapped around him, holding him gently. She didn't want to let him go or let anything happen to him again. "I am very thankful to still have you here," she gave him a kiss on his nose and then stepped back.

Hudson pulled her back in for a quick embrace, which made her blush. "I see that blush," he tapped her red cheeks.

"No, you d-don't!" She covered her cheeks with her hands and sighed.

"Alright Hud, I came here to help you pack, mister, so let's actually help you pack."

Hudson smiled and shook his head. "Alrighty then," he said, following her lead. He watched her, smiling as she started to help. He did like her after all. She was beginning to grow on him.

It was a few hours later, and Smokey stopped by to check on Hudson. He knocked lightly on the frame of the door. The young racer turned around and smiled warmly.

"Hey Smokey," Hudson greeted him. "If you came to help me pack, well, Lou already did," he smirked.

Smokey came in slowly, with a small brown package under his arm. He sat on the edge of the bed next to Hudson and exhaled. Hudson looked at him.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked quietly.

Smokey shook his head. "No, no kid, you're fine," he said softly, handing the young man the brown package. "I saved these newspapers. That way you can show them to your family and tell 'em about this big wreck of yours," he laughed.

Hudson chuckled and took the package gently. "Thanks, Smokey, I definitely will."

Smokey and Hudson stayed quiet for a few moments before the mentor reached out and put a hand on the young man's shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Hudson. This is a long recovery, I know, but you're pulling through this and you're in good spirits. You're helping the rest of the racers feel better too because they see you're doing alright after such a bad accident."

"Thanks, Smokey," Hudson replied, "it was hard at first, but I feel like I'm getting better now. Give me a few weeks and I'll be out racin-"

"-Nah-ah!" Smokey barked. "They said a month or two."

"Fine."

Smokey bumped Hudson and chuckled. "I'll be by tomorrow morning to pick you up. About ten. Is that good?"

"That's perfect. I'll be ready to go."

Smokey gave the young man a pat on the shoulder and stood. "Alright now, get some sleep." He waved goodbye and closed the door behind him as he headed out. Hudson felt at peace. He was going to be okay. He made it through this. He was finally going home tomorrow, and he had such a wonderful group of supportive friends to go back to. He slid into bed and pulled the covers over himself, drifting off to sleep. It would be smooth sailing from here on.