Light
The first thing Sam registered when he woke up was a blinding white light. He briefly wondered if he was dead, because the last thing he could remember was the pitch black of his cell and a terrible pressing on his chest.
Slowly, things came into focus, and Sam realized he was in a medical room, one that suspiciously looked like Ratchet's.'
Had the Autobots found him then? Was this some sort of Decepticon trick? Or worse, had he finally lost it? Maybe he was dead.
Sam pushed himself up into a sitting position, his body screaming in protest as he did. Nope, definitely not dead.
Bumblebee suddenly burst into the room, making him jump, and his bright blue optics locked with Sam's. Ratchet followed a mere moment later.
"Bumblebee, Sam needs to rest," the elder bot reprimanded with a softness that was unusual for the normally gruff medic.
Sam sent reassurance over their bond to quell the anxiety he could feel in his guardian, and repeated the action with Optimus when the leader walked in.
"I'm fine," he assured quietly, but the flinching as he tried to shift quickly gave him away.
"No you're not," Ratchet contradicted, "Go back to sleep, Samuel. You can talk to us about what happened later."
Sam lay back against the pillows, but he didn't close his eyes.
Ratchet sighed at him and made to flip the light switch.
"No, don't," Sam stopped him, "Don't turn out the light."