It was noon the following day when Hutch returned to the hospital. As he walked through the lobby, a doctor approached him. "Officer Hutchinson, do you remember me? I'm Dr. Madison; I operated on your partner."

The two shook hands as Hutch responded, "How is he doing?"

"Much better. In fact, I was just going to my office to call you. He woke up a few moments ago, calling out the name 'Hutch', and I remembered you telling me that's his nickname for you. Would you like to see him?"

"Yes, I would. May I?"

"Certainly. Come with me."

A few moments later, Hutch was sitting next to Starsky's bed. "Hey, buddy. You still awake?" he said quietly.

The curly head turned to look at Hutch. "What the hell happened to me? Why am I in a hospital?"

"You were shot, Starsk. I'm not sure who did this to you, but I'm working on finding out. I wanted to wait and see what you remembered."

"Not a lot. I remember...I remember coming home from Melissa's house and opening my door, but everything after that is just a blur. How are Melissa and Ashley?"

"They're holding up. Do you think you'd feel up to having them for company this afternoon?"

Starsky thought about it for a moment. "What is today?"

"Friday."

"Tomorrow."

Hutch mistook that for another question. "Saturday."

"What?" Starsky asked, not understanding.

"Tomorrow is Saturday."

The two friends looked at each other. "Hutch, I may not remember a whole lot, but I know that Saturday comes after Friday. I was answering your question about seeing Melissa and Ashley. Today the only person I want to see is my best friend."

"You got it. I'm on my lunch break right now, but I can stay another half hour. I'll call Melissa tonight and tell her to come see you tomorrow. All right?"

"Sounds good. You said that you are gonna stay a while, didn't you, Hutch?" Starsky's eyelids were getting heavy.

Hutch nodded. "Yeah. Get some rest, Starsky. I'll be right here."

Starsky fell asleep, and Hutch sat there for thirty minutes, watching his friend rest, and he felt that somehow the universe's natural order had been restored. Before he left, Hutch whispered, "It's good to have you back, pal. Everyone at the office said to tell you that they miss you."

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"I have a surprise for you, young lady." Melissa joined her daughter in the parlor. "How does a visit to the hospital tomorrow sound?"

Ashley flashed a smile at her mother. "He's awake? Oh, please, Mom, can we go see Dave tomorrow? Please?"

"Yes," Melissa laughed. "That was Hutch on the telephone. Dave woke up earlier today, and he has, to quote Hutch, 'requested your presence tomorrow.' We just have a few rules we need to go over. First of all, it's a hospital, so you have to be quiet. Second, I'm sure Dave will be in quite a bit of pain, so if you feel the urge to hug him, don't hug him too tight."

Ashley interrupted. "Third, I want to see him first. I have something important I need to tell him, and you're not allowed to hear. You can sit out in the hall, and I'll let you know when we're done talking."

Melissa smiled. "It's a deal. We'll leave mid-morning, and hopefully he'll be awake."

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"Knock, knock," Dr. Madison quietly called. Starsky turned his head. "Oh good, you're awake. You have a visitor, Sergeant Starsky."

Ashley peeked around the corner and grinned. "Hi, Dave. Can I come in?"

Starsky returned her smile. "Sure." Ashley crossed the room and started to hug him, but he stopped her. "Hold it. Come to the other side."

"Why?"

"Because the side you're on right now is the side that hurts."

The little girl did as she was told. Once she had made herself comfortable on the edge of her friend's bed, she wanted to know, "Does it hurt-where you were shot?"

"It does when the medicine wears off. Why do you ask?"

"Promise you won't tell Mom? It's kind of a secret. I just wanted to tell you that if it hurts so bad that you want to cry, you could cry in front of me, and I wouldn't tell Mom, because if she knew that you had been crying, she might get worried."

Starsky gently rubbed his good hand across Ashley's face. "Well, I'll tell you, I am in a lot of pain, but if it gets to the point where I can't handle it, you'll be the first one I call...right after I call my doctor."

Ashley giggled as she made her way to the door. "Let me tell Mom that it's okay for her to come in now."

A few moments later, Melissa was standing by the bed. "Ashley decided that since she had time alone with you, I should be allowed the same." Bending down and rubbing her fingers through Starsky's curly brown hair, she kissed him.

"Mm...I've missed that. I've missed you," she stated. "What did that daughter of mine have to say to you that was so important?"

"I made a promise not to tell you. And you know how I am about keeping promises."

"Yeah, you and Hutch are exactly alike. You don't break them."

"Right. Melissa, are you feeling all right? You look as if you're half dead."

"Oh, thanks for the compliment, Dave. I appreciate it," she replied sarcastically. "I've actually spent the last few nights worrying about you, and I haven't slept very well."

Starsky smiled. "Well, now you don't have an excuse. I'm gonna be fine, Melissa, and you don't have to worry. I'll be out of here in no time."

The couple chatted for a little while longer, and finally Melissa noticed that Starsky was nodding off. "Dave, I'm going to go now, so that you can get some sleep. I'll check on you soon, all right?" She kissed his cheek and headed for the door. Before exiting, she looked over her shoulder. I hope Hutch catches the creep that did this to him. Dave doesn't deserve to suffer like this. And Hutch doesn't deserve to see his best friend suffer.