A/N: Yeah…this chapter was giving me a really hard time. I must've started it over and over again at least 4 times before I got to this, and even now I'm still kinda iffy about it. But that's ok. It's basically just a filler anyway. Well, yeah I don't know I just kinda wanted to get something posted. So this is it.
Disclaimer: Riley wishes he was mine. Or is it the other way around…?
Four days. It had been four days since Ben moved a single muscle. Four days since he had gotten a good night sleep and a decent meal. And most of all, four days had gone by without hearing a single sarcastic comment from the man that Ben had fallen in love with. The nurse had told Ben and Abigail that Riley probably wouldn't wake up right away. She told them that the techie had spent almost 3 hours in surgery and was on tons and tons of pain killers. "Poor kid's been through a lot," She had said, and Ben couldn't help the wave of guilt that came crashing down on top of him as he looked down at his friend. When the nurse had left and went to check on one of her other patients, Abigail had given Ben another one of her it's-not-your-fault-Riley's-like-this speeches. The treasure hunter dismissed her quickly, sitting back down in the spot he had been for the latter of the four days.
Abigail, of course, was worried sick about Ben. He hadn't moved or done much of anything since the two of them arrived here some number of days ago. She tried to convince him that Riley was going to be fine, that he was safe here and wasn't going anywhere, and that Ben should probably get some rest and/or eat something. But Ben was stubborn and wasn't moving until the computer geek woke up. Finally though, in the afternoon of the fourth day, Abigail had finally convinced Ben to go down with her to the hospital gift shop to pick up something for Riley when he woke up.
When they returned from their little excursion, Riley still remained in the same condition they had left him in. Not that Ben figured anything was going to happen in 20 minutes anyway, but he couldn't help but keep that small hope in the back of his mind. With a heavy sigh, the treasure hunter plopped back down onto his chair next to Riley's bed.
"Ben," Abigail's voice was gentle as she leaned over the historian's now sitting form. "I'm going to go down to the cafeteria to get some lunch. You look like you could use the time alone with Riley."
Ben nodded without removing his eyes from the patch of oblivion he was starring into.
"Do you want me to get you anything?" Abigail asked, even though she already knew the answer.
"No," was Ben's simple reply. Abigail left the room without another word. The treasure hunter sat, listening to the haunting rhythm of the heart monitor for a few moments, before expelling an exasperated sigh and reaching into the plastic bag that Abigail had hung precariously on the railing of Riley's bed. Ben pulled out his gift for the techie; a book of Sudoku puzzles. They had always been one of Riley's favorite ways to pass the time, other than surfing the internet and going on Ben's dangerous adventures. The treasure hunter figured he had nothing better to do at the moment, and it was something to keep his mind busy for a little while at least. He flipped through the pages, finally settling on one that looked relatively simple. Ben grabbed a pencil from his shirt pocket and began the puzzle.
After a few minutes of playing around with the numbers and not getting the results he wanted, Ben let out a frustrated sigh and glanced up at Riley.
"I don't know what you find so fun about these, Kiddo." The treasure hunter said to the sleeping techie. Ben wrote a 9 in one of the boxes but erased a few seconds later when he realized there was one in the same row.
"I think you're finally better than me at something," Ben said with a chuckle, closing the book and placing it back in the plastic bag. Instead of sitting all the way back in the chair, the treasure hunter leaned his elbows on top of his knees and folded his hands, letting them dangle in between his legs.
"You'd get a kick outta that if you were awake right now," Ben's voice came in an undertone. He sighed once more and ran his fingers over his hair. "I'm so sorry about this, Ri. I really am. I told you that I would protect you and that nothing would happen to you and look where you are now." Ben rose from his chair and turned away from the computer geek's bed, not able to look at him anymore, the guilt was just too much to handle.
Riley was deliberating whether or not to open his eyes. More times than not, whenever he woke up from a deep sleep these past few days, he was either staring down the barrel of a gun or being forcefully dragged into some unknown building to be beaten and then find himself staring down a firearm. But he had a feeling in his aching chest that this time things would be different, but that was mostly because he could hear the faint sound of a beeping heart rate monitor and Ben apologizing over and over again.
"It's not your fault, Ben," Riley found himself saying. The techie opened his eyes and slowly, the hospital room around him came into view. He turned his head on his pillow to face where he had heard Ben's voice.
"Yes it is!" The treasure hunter went on with a frustrated sigh. "I don't care what anybody says Riley, it's my fault that you're—AWAKE!" Ben spun around on his heels, coming face to face with the crystal blue eyes of the computer geek. "Riley, you're awake!"
A/n: See? Riley's ok. I already have the beginning of the next chapter started, so that should be up very soon. Like I said, I think after that chapter, there's only going to be about two more chapters left. So why not make the best of the time you have left and review: )