The hospital waiting room was almost empty when Hawk got there. Just two of Sensei's friends that were there the night Laura was hurt, and Sensei Brown, still in his uniform.

"Hey, Hawk," Sensei Brown smiled.

"Hi," he mumbled.

"Did you want to go see Laura? It's not visiting hours yet, but I need to talk to Johnny so I'm sure we can get Ms. Diaz to bend the rules," Bobby said, standing up.

Hawk hesitated. He had thought he would have a few minutes to gather his thoughts.

Well, he couldn't back out. That was a pussy move and Cobras weren't pussies.

"Yes, sir."

"You sure?" Bobby sensed his hesitancy.

He nodded, standing up straighter, as Bobby led him past the closed door to the unit. It was still a shock, all the equipment and monitors clicking and beeping, the nurses bustling around. It wasn't quiet and calm like other hospital floors. He forced himself to take a deep breath and calm down. He could handle this. Mac said she was okay.

"Hi, Ms. Diaz," Bobby said, stopping at the desk. "I need to steal Johnny for a little bit so I brought a replace ment for him. Is that okay?"

Carmen looked at Hawk and softened. " Well, not really," she replied. "But if Johnny is okay with it, I didn't see anything, got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied and Hawk just nodded.

Johnny was sitting by Laura's bed, holding her hand, speaking softly to her though she was still asleep. Hawk was glad to see Robby wasn't there. Facing Sensei would be hard enough.

Bobby tapped lightly on the door.

Johnny looked up and nodded.

"Hey, Bobby. Hey, Hawk, shouldn't you be in school?" he asked.

"Um..., no test this hour," he replied. It wasn't completely a lie. "They don't want us there if we're not testing to avoid distractions."

"Oh." He nodded, no longer really listening.

"We need to talk," Bobby said.

"I don't want to leave until she wakes up. I don't want her to wake up alone."

"That's why I brought a replacement," he said, nodding to Hawk.

"Nah, man, Can't it wait?" Johnny asked..

"He got bail," Bobby said. "His son picked him up an hour ago."

"What?" Johnny's eyes turned hard. He stood up. "Hawk, sit here. If she wakes up, come find me. You got that?"

"Yes. Sensei," he replied, taking a seat in the chair Johnny had pointed to. It didn't seem like the time to argue. He didn't really know what to do as the older men went into the hallway. Holding her hand didn't seem right with her asleep and unable to say it was okay. Not now. Not when they were broken up.

Her face was still bruised and her lip swollen and raw. He couldn't say that he didn't know why she hadn't told anyone what was happening. He knew why. He knew what it was like to face bullying every day and turn the effects of it inward on yourself. At first, if you tell anyone, you're told 'they didn't mean that' or 'you should do better' as if you've somehow caused the misery you're facing. Then you stop telling, stop talking, and try to hide out because you start to believe that you deserve what is happening as if there is some part of you so horrible that you don't deserve for anyone to help you.

He hated that she hadn't told him, but he also knew that Ryan was right. He hadn't been a very good boyfriend. He cared about Laura, maybe he even loved her, but he'd gotten so caught up in being popular and having a girlfriend, not to mention suddenly being accepted by the people who had always rejected him, that he forgot to be a good boyfriend or even friend. He had a lot of making up to do.

He looked around the room nervously. He didn't know what all the numbers on the monitors meant and it seemed a bit like an invasion of privacy anyway, but Sensei had seemed concerned but not scared like he had before and Robby wasn't standing guard over her so that must mean she was doing okay, right? It didn't look like Sensei was coming back very soon and he half hoped that she would wake up soon, but also that she waited until Sensei was back or even after he'd gone back to school.

What if she woke up and was mad he was there? What if she was happy that he was?

He quickly answered Miguel's texts asking where he was and was putting his phone away when she began to stir. Quietly at first then thrashing around as much as she could with casts on her left arm and leg.

He went to the doorway and looked out into the hallway for Sensei, but he and Sensei Brown were nowhere in sight. He wondered if he should go get Miss Diaz or go look for Johnny but he was afraid to leave her.

He knew how disorienting anesthesia could be. What if she tried to get up and hurt herself worse? Sensei had said to come to get him if Laura woke up, but he had thought they were just going to be right outside. In his near panic, he forgot that he could just use the nurse call button.

He spun around when he heard a crash, thankful Laura had just kicked her bag off the bed. Racing back to her, he grabbed her free hand, that was blindly swiping at whatever was holding her in place.

"Laura! Laura, wake up. Come on, Lou, wake up," he pleaded. After what seemed like forever, she finally opened her eyes, looking around wildly, before focusing on him. she blinked a few times as if not believing she was awake, then threw her arms around him, burying her face in his neck and sobbing. This was not a situation that Hawk had a lot of experience with.

"It's okay," he mumbled. "It was just a dream."

She nodded but didn't stop sobbing or let him go.

"Want me to get Sensei?" he asked, but she shook her head and held him tighter as he rubbed small circles on her back and murmured what he hoped was comforting words.

After a bit, she stopped sobbing, then sat up and wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he assured her. "That medicine will make you have crazy dreams. I once dreamed that the doctor said I could go home after I drank something. When I woke up, they wouldn't let me have anything to drink right away. So, like my drug-addled eight-year-old brain decided that it was my mother who wouldn't let me drink anything because she didn't want us to go home. I guess I thought she was loving the hospital life or something. I was so mad at her for like three days."

Laura laughed, then winced.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm getting better." she replied, "I still can't breathe deep or laugh or cough or move around too much…, maybe I'm not feeling any better," she smiled. "What are you doing here?"

"I, umm…, I kind of went off on Counsellor Blatt and Mr. Branch told me to go cool off somewhere and more importantly, let her cool off. I have to go back and take my last final in detention, but it was totally worth it. I should go get Sensei. He and Sensei Brown are just out in the waiting room, I think."

"No, please," she protested, holding his hand tighter. "I don't want to be alone…, he'll be back in a minute."

He looked at their hands, then back up at her face. Sensei could kill him, and probably would, but once again, there was no way he was going to let go one second before she did.

"Okay," he smiled. "I'll stay."