A/N: I do not own Code Geass, nor any of the characters.

In Room 224 of the Tokyo General Hospital, one particular patient's cell phone was ringing off the hook. "Popular kid, huh?" his nurse asked the young woman sitting in the chair beside his bed, trying to make her smile.

The smile was fake. "Yeah, the ladies all love Lelou," she murmured, holding back her jealousy at the thought of other women getting ahold of the boy. Though it's probably just Nunnally. Poor thing must be worried sick, especially after hearing all those sirens.

"I don't blame them. He's a cute boy." The nurse giggled as Shirley blushed.

It had been three hours since the student council meeting, and Lelouch still hadn't woke up. The doctors still weren't entirely sure what was wrong with their friend. A few different men, all wearing long white coats, had come in and out of the room with puzzled expressions. "So you say he doesn't get much sleep?" one of them had asked her. "He's probably just exhausted. Shut down his immune system. I wouldn't worry too much." They seemed to be in general consensus that he had a virus, but not what kind or of what severity. "We'll just keep him overnight to make sure he gets stabilized," the nurse had said.

Lelouch lay still in the bed, now donning a white hospital gown that made him look all the paler. An IV was hooked into his left arm, while all sorts of electrodes had been placed on his forehead and beneath the neck of his gown, monitoring his brain and heart activity. The oxygen mask strapped to him covered most of his narrow face. Oh, Lelou, she thought to herself as she surveyed the sleeping boy. Please wake up soon. Please be okay.

After another 10 minutes of waiting, the Black Rebels left headquarters in an angry buzz. There was nothing Kallen could do to convince them otherwise. Zero, she thought to herself as she walked home slowly. I hope you have a good reason for this.

She pulled out her phone and texted Millie, "How's he doing?"

"Still nothing," came the reply. "Will keep you posted."

Satisfied with this answer, Kallen stumbled out of her uniform and fell face first into her bed, where she slept soundly for the next 10 hours.

When she awoke, a few things drifted through her mind hazily. Quickly, she sat up and pulled out her phone, eager for one of two things: an update on Lelouch's condition, and any missed calls from Zero. She only found one of these things, a text from Millie reading, "He's awake now. Just as obstinate as ever. They'll be keeping him tomorrow too if you want to visit."

With a smile, Kallen jumped out of bed and pulled on her school uniform, imagining the poor nurses tasked with keeping Lelouch Lamperouge in bed all day against his will.

And a task it was indeed. Lelouch sat propped up against pillows in his hospital bed, arms across his chest like a glowering child. As Zero, he could bend entire armies to his will, but here, as Lelouch, he could do nothing but wait. His Geass, of course, would provide him with an opportunity, but he didn't want to waste it on any of his friends, or even his nurse, until the situation demanded it. He always tried to keep logic firmly separated from emotions, and right now, he recognized that most of his anger stemmed from helplessness, exhaustion, and boredom.

He'd awoken late the night before, groggy and confused with Shirley at his side. He couldn't talk due to the massive oxygen mask strapped to his face, and Shirley hovered over him, saying something like, "Lelou! You're awake. We've all been so worried."

Though his body protested, he forced himself to sit up with shaking limbs.

"Be careful," Shirley said sternly, wrapping an arm around his shoulders for support. "You need to take it easy for a while."

His arm trembled as he removed the oxygen mask from his face. The girl helped him get it over his head, eyes darting back and forth to look out for nurses. "What happened?" Lelouch asked, fighting back a cough.

Shirley's eyes were watering with concern and pity. He hated that. "Oh, Lelou. You collapsed during our student council meeting and we couldn't wake you.."

Lelouch's eyes narrowed as memories came rushing back to him. Leaving Art History to get sick in the school bathroom; his vision blurring before his eyes as he listened to Millie talk logistics. He'd been hoping to go home and nap before the Black Rebellion-

"Shirley! What time is it?" he asked, sitting up even straighter in his bed.

The girl looked down at her watch. "It's 9:00pm," she said. "Why?"

Moaning in self-hatred, Lelouch slumped back into his pillows, bringing a trembling hand to his forehead. "No reason," he murmured. "Just missed something that was important to me."

Shirley's eyes narrowed this time. Great, he berated himself further. Now she thinks I had a date planned and is upset, though I suppose it's better than her knowing the truth. The girl's expression softened. "How are you feeling, Lelou?"

Lelouch had to think about his answer. He still felt weak, certainly, but nowhere near as bad as he had felt during the student council meeting. His throat was sore from the cold stream of oxygen, and his stomach felt empty, uneasy. "I feel better," he murmured. "I just need to get out of here. Can you help me with that, Shirley?" He looked up at her and mustered his best helpless expression, knowing it was his only defense.

The girl put her hands on her hips. "Mr. Lamperouge. There is no way I'm helping you leave this hospital bed without permission from your doctor. Do you hear me?"

Lelouch sighed.

"We've been waiting by your side for almost six hours now. Don't you think that the least you can do for us is get yourself healthy, so we don't have to go through this again?"

Lelouch pouted.

"We were really worried about you, you know. Seeing you unconscious like that- I was-" Shirley trailed off, and gingerly rubbed her own arm, trying to keep tears from falling from her eyes.

"Don't worry, Shirley," he said, extending an arm to comfort the girl. "I'm not going anywhere." As the girl smiled, he leaned back into his pillows and allowed himself to sink back into sleep.