Chuck was sitting propped up on his bed, reading a sci-fi book, when Morgan Grimes entered the room.
"Chuck! I just heard the news, I'm sorry I wasn't here earlier!"
"It's okay buddy."
"So what was like? Getting shot?"
"Painful."
"Oh, come on, even I know that!"
"It was really painful."
Morgan sighs in disappointment.
"So… you're gonna be okay and everything, right?"
"Well they're gonna do another surgery."
Really? Wow, dude this is serious."
"I know."
"Chuck." Ellie entered the room, returning from the café. "Dad's coming."
Chuck sighed in relief. "Good."
Ellie smiled. "Yeah."
"So um… you'll never guess what happened today at school." Morgan said.
Two hours later, Stephen Bartowski entered Chuck's hospital room.
"Chuck. I'm so sorry! This should never have happened."
"Well it did." Chuck said. "The past is the past, it's okay."
"Mr. Bartowski?" Dr. Harper said. "Why don't you come out into the hall so I can explain everything to you?"
"Alright."
After the doctor briefed him, Ellie and Stephen stood vigil at Chuck's bedside until it was time for him to go into surgery.
For a while, they talked like they were a normal family that did normal things. Even though they were a completely abnormal situation, even for them.
When they took Chuck for surgery, Ellie and Stephen sat side beside in waiting room, reading crappy magazines, and trying to ignore the other crying families around them.
After Chuck's surgery, he stayed in the hospital two more days, and was out of school for another week. After that, everything, well most everything went back to normal.
Because after that day, Ellie insisted that Chuck take a phone with him whenever he went downstairs at night.
And Stephen called them every night he was away.
And every anniversary of that day, Ellie insisted Chuck stay with her all day.