Mickey shifted as an uncomfortable heat, followed by a chill, pulled him back toward reality. He thought back to the last time he was awake. The dream he had about Minnie just before was much more vivid than usual. He'd already been worrying about her whenever his mind was clear enough to think. Whether he was going to make it or not, he at least had to know if she was okay.

Minnie…

Then he felt someone touch his arm, and a soft voice said his name. Sure that his ears were fooling him, Mickey pushed his eyes open. His eyes widened; he blinked to clear his blurred vision, but it didn't change.

"M-Minnie?" His dry throat cracked as he spoke, making him cough. She tightened her hold on his arm, her voice concerned but soothing.

"Don't get up, just relax."

She reached to the side, then held up a cup.

"Here, take slow sips."

Mickey did so, trying not to cough. When Minnie lowered it again, he looked up to see other faces crowding around. Pluto's happy barks filled the room and Oswald and Goofy greeted him with big grins while his mother sat on the bed, tears spilling from her eyes as she smiled and gently cupped his cheek in her hand.

"Oh, thank goodness…" she whispered. "We were so worried."

Mickey felt bad when he saw the obvious exhaustion on Lillian's face; it wasn't hard to imagine what she must have been through. He gave her a weak smile and placed a hand on hers.

"It… it's okay, Mom."

She started to reply, but her voice choked up. Swallowing hard, she squeezed his hand and nodded. Mickey smiled again, then glanced at Oswald. The rabbit read his look. With a slight grin, he nodded and placed a hand on Lillian's shoulder.

"Why don't ya go get some rest? I can go give everyone the update."

Knowing she was going to protest, Mickey gently squeezed his mother's hand and gave her a nod. She bit her lower lip for a moment, then let out a heavy sigh.

"All right," she murmured. "But… don't let me for too long."

She gave Mickey a gentle kiss on his forehead, then let Oswald help her up.

"Glad to have ya back, Mick," the rabbit said. Mickey returned Oswald's grin before he and his mother headed out of the room, Goofy following after. When the door closed, Minnie returned to the bedside and Mickey felt his heart beat faster and faster. He barely noticed Daisy slip out the door.

Minnie sat down beside Mickey, and a tearful but beautiful smile came to her face as she touched his forehead.

"How do you feel?"

Mickey gazed up at her, an almost giddy relief filling him.

"Right now… pretty good," he mumbled, smiling.

Minnie giggled a little, then her face fell.

"Mickey, I… I'm so sorry for all this. If I'd told you about Mortimer, you wouldn't have been there and…"

Her voice broke, and Mickey felt his throat tighten at the look on her face.

"No… d-don't say that. F' I weren't there, then ya might a' gotten hurt, n'…"

His side was starting to throb, but he bit it back and lifted a hand. Minnie's eyes widened as he rested it on her cheek. He felt his own face heat as hers reddened, but he didn't pull away… and neither did she. So he took a deep breath and went on.

"N' I… I don' know what I'd do."

Mickey heard Minnie take a deep, sharp breath. He gulped, fearing that he might have pushed too far. But the thought had barely entered his mind before Minnie slowly lifted her own hand to his, tears brimming in her eyes.

"I was so scared," she whispered, her voice quivering. "But what happened after was even worse. All I could do was sit there, not knowing if you'd be all right… or if…"

Mickey felt his eyes start stinging. He swallowed hard and stroked his thumb across Minnie's cheek, wiping away a tear that escaped her eye.

"Shh… d-don't think like that. I'll be okay..."

He was stunned into silence when Minnie took his hand in both of hers. More tears spilled from her eyes as she pressed it to her lips.

"Mickey…" she whispered, her voice quivering.

A surge of emotion hit Mickey, so strong that his eyes brimmed and he thought his heart would burst. He closed his hand around hers, the pain in his side forgotten. He suddenly felt the need to tell her everything… everything he thought and felt.

"I'm sorry, Minnie… f-for scarin' ya like this. But I'm glad I was there."

Minnie was about to protest, so he shook his head.

"No, I am. Minnie, I've n-never felt th' way I do about ya… you're th' most amazing person I've ever known, n' if somethin' bad happened to ya…"

A sudden fit of coughing cut him off, and he heard Minnie gasp. She let go of his hand and began rubbing his back.

"Just relax, breathe…"

Mickey managed to stop coughing and lay back, trying to catch his breath as his side throbbed. Pluto laid his head on the bed, whimpering, as Minnie hovered over him with a scared look.

"Are you all right? Should I get someone?"

Taking a deep breath, Mickey gave her a small smile as he scratched Pluto's ears.

"No… i-it's okay."

Minnie kept looking him over with concern.

"Does it hurt any worse? Be honest."

Mickey considered his options, but then he saw the firm look on her face.

"A little," he sighed. "But i-it's not too bad, really."

Minnie relaxed a little, but concern was still etched on her face.

"I should at least check… can you sit up?"

Mickey shifted uncomfortably, suddenly very aware that he was shirtless. But he nodded and managed to push himself up, gritting his teeth against the pain and dizziness. He noticed Minnie blushing as she carefully unwrapped the bandages, and his own face heated in response. Her blush quickly faded as she examined his side, replaced by a look of guilt.

"All right, try to hold still."

Mickey did his best to steel himself as she began to apply some kind of ointment, but the stinging pain made him gasp, which prompted more rough coughing. He heard Minnie inhale sharply, her breath quivering. It made Mickey feel sad to see her like that, and a little bad that he was the one making her feel this way.

As she re-bandaged the wound, he gathered his thoughts, wanting to reassure her… and maybe finally manage to tell her how he felt. Taking a deep breath, he reached out and placed a hand on hers.

"Minnie…"

She looked up at him, and the words suddenly vanished. All he could do was gaze at her eyes… those beautiful eyes he'd come to know so well. Minnie looked a little confused, but she only gazed back at him.

All of a sudden a loud commotion came from outside, snapping them out of their reverie just before the door burst open. Luckily, Oswald was in too much of a hurry to notice their red faces.

However, Mickey quickly forgot the embarrassment when he saw the rabbit's face… he had never seen him so serious.

"Os? W-what's goin' on?"

Oswald walked over, his face taut. What he said was as shocking as it was unexpected.

"They caught th' guy who did this to ya. He's bein' shipped over here now."