Mike is a people person. Even when he's at his lowest, as long as he's surrounded by people he cares about, he feels pretty good. Which was one of the worst parts of the last fifteen months, just feeling so isolated and trapped in his own head. His knee crumbling just when some normalcy was being found again makes things feel so much worse, but he tries to put on a brave face. Stays strong for AJ and the kids, even as he alternates between using the wheelchair John'd designed for him, and hobbling around on crutches.

So it's almost not a surprise when he wakes up to AJ stroking his side, nudging him gently awake, and he grumbles, peering up at her. "What? What is it?"

She smiles down at him, presses a kiss to his lips and murmurs, "Come with me, husband. I've got a surprise for you."

She doesn't take him right to the surprise, she hands him clothes and guides him into the bathroom, where he handles his early morning rituals, then leads him into the kitchen, where she hands over a fresh mug of coffee and a muffin. He's starting to get impatient, tired of being on his feet for this long, even with the crutches, when she looks at him with a knowing smile and rests her hand on his back, turning him towards the foyer.

He doesn't know what's going on, temporarily blinded by the sun that shines right in his eyes as soon as he hobbles outside, but he hears voices, familiar voices, and ... He squints and stares and... "Oh," he breathes.

Ricardo, Alicia, John and Taya are sitting or standing around their lawn, beaming back at him. "Good morning, Mike," Alicia calls out first, the others following suit.

Mike swallows, peers at them all. "Good morning," he says hesitantly. "You- I'm not hallucinating, right? You're all really here?" He turns to AJ. "I told you I might have a weird reaction to those pain killers-"

She laughs, almost sadly, and shifts between the crutches to kiss him. "No, silly, our friends really are here. We figured you could use some cheering up, and we're all vaccinated, so why not?" She rests her hand over his on the nearest crutch and smiles. "C'mon, Mike."

They join their friends, AJ quickly lost in giggling and cooing over Andre with Alicia and Taya. John dutifully takes over and helps Mike settle in to his patiently waiting wheelchair close to Ricardo, the three of them talking wrestling, sports, and everything in between as they catch up. "Man, I've missed you," Mike says randomly to Ricardo, who lights up.

"I've missed you too, mi hermano," he responds with a grin.

Mike looks around, pleased, but still feeling like something's missing. "Hey, sweetheart, did you invite Heath and Maryse?" he calls out to his wife, scratching idly at the garish armrests of his chair as he waits for her response.

"Yeah," she calls back, cradling George in her arms now as Sara Louisa holds Andre, looking like she's totally in her element. "Should be here a little later."

Right. Heath's still recovering too, and had mentioned something about physical therapy. Mike relaxes back in his chair and watches his friends interact with each other, with the kids. He smiles as AJ wanders over, presses a kiss to his jaw, and hands him Andre. He stares down at the little boy, who's dozed off at some point, and strokes his soft skin. Remembers when both Sara and George were this little. "Wow," he breathes. "You have a really adorable kid here, Ricardo."

Ricardo laughs. "I know, he takes after his mother. And I am in trouble when he gets older. My sister already says I spoil her kids too much."

"At least you have Alicia around to keep you in line," AJ teases, brushing her fingers through Andre's thick, dark hair.

"Si," Ricardo says fondly, looking over at her. "I am a very lucky man."

Alicia beams back at him and blows him kisses, too busy with showing Taya her latest designs to come over and respond properly.

Mike looks around and shakes his head, thinking about these people, caring enough for him to take time out of their busy schedules, when things are slowly picking back up and people are getting more stressed and not having as much free time, to come sit out here in the sun with him, just to take his mind off of his injury. "I think I'm the lucky one," he says suddenly, watching as they all twist to stare at him. "To have friends like you who would come just to cheer me up as soon as you could. Thank you, really. It... it means a lot."

"Aw, Mike," Alicia says, handing the designs over to Taya to join them, pressing a quick kiss to Mike's cheek. "Of course we would! You've always been there for us when we've needed you over the years. This is the least we could do."

"She's right," Ricardo says with a small smile. "We'll keep doing it too, for as long as you want or need us to."

"Well," Mike laughs, overwhelmed by their sincerity and the weight of their determination to help him through this. "You're probably going to get sick of my face then."

"Probably not that," Taya says, pressing her foot to the wheel of his chair. '"Maybe this abomination, though."

"Hey!" John protests, pouting at his wife. "That thing took hours of careful crafting and dedication, I'll have you know!"

"Well, maybe you should've asked Alicia for help, then-" Taya teases him further, and Mike just listens and watches as they bicker playfully over his ridiculous chair.

It doesn't matter, really, what happens on Raw- John might win matches, he might lose, people may make bitter comments about Mike and his ability to still entertain even while injured, but this... here, right now, is what really, truly matters, getting to hang out with all of his favorite people, knowing that they're always here for him, no matter what. Truly lucky indeed, he thinks with a small smile, reaching out to curl his fingers around AJ's hand, smiling up at her when she peers down at him.