It’s been three weeks and next Thursday is my birthday. The five of us have entirely refused to leave this hospital room, not counting Joey because he has two daughters and they need him. We didn’t want to miss when her eyes opened again, moved her hand for the first time after being pretty much comatose or even whacking us. We slept in shifts, two in the room at any time. I’m wide awake, watching her and her body shifts. I can’t talk, I’m in shock and slap JC almost out of his chair. “What, Chris?” I point to her and she slips her hand down her face like she’s always done since we’ve known her and stops when she touches the tube in her mouth. Her eyes fling open in shock and she looks at us, wondering what happened. “Pete,” JC tells her and her face contorts as if to say ‘of course he did this to me, dick’. “I can go get the doc for you,” he offers her. She signals for the red nurse call button, pushing it on her own.

“Is there something I can help you with, guys?” a nurse questions, her eyes glued to her clipboard.

Sam claps loudly and the nurse looks dead at us, both of us pointing at Sam. “She woke up.” She looks at her and looks overjoyed. I still haven’t found my voice.

“Let me get the doctor and see what he’d like to do,” she suggests, Sam nodding and shooing her off to do just that.

Sam has been signing to JC and he’s been answering verbally for the past ten minutes, driving me nuts because I don’t know what she’s saying or what they’re talking about. “I know that now, Oshannie. Nick is better than Pete. He’s related to Trace, the same fucker who gave you X.” She smiles, nodding her head and signing again. “No, he’s gotten engaged to Lauren and they have a date picked out. Erik and Calvin have been asking about you.” She signs something and he shrugs. “Just wanted to check up on you.”

“Ms. Chasez,” the doctor addresses her, “I just heard you’re awake and would like the intubation tube removed.” He checks her vitals and chart, noting her blood pressure and oxygen levels.

She signs ‘yes’, JC quickly translating the rest of it. “She’s asking when it could be done and how long before she can leave. She and I don’t really like hospitals.”

“We can do it in a minute and she can leave in the morning if she’s fine tonight. We have to keep her in observation for the night to monitor her.”

We all look at Jazz, signing away faster than I can even tell what she’s ‘saying’. “She said the sooner the better. She survived a case of major dehydration, anxiety attacks and dancing backup on multiple tours back to back meaning she’ll be fine.” He gives her a bored look. “Oshannie, stop being so overconfident.” She signs something. “You did not learn that from me,” he sternly tells her. She signs away again. “You were like this before you met us and our family adopted you.”

“Ready?” the doctor questions, leaning over her lying flat on the bed with his hand on the tube and she nods. “Blow as hard as you can.” She does as he pulls the tube out and she coughs. “Wait an hour before you start talking and drink lots of fluids.”

She nods and he leaves, JC smiling. “You’re a fighter, just like Vikki.” She proudly smiles, nodding her head in agreement. “I knew you’d be fine.”

An hour and a room switch later, she’s smiling even bigger. “Now I can talk, right, Oshai?”

He chuckles, nodding. “Yes, Baby Chasez.”

“You know I hate that nickname.”

“You’re the baby of us four, so it only makes sense.”

“Always justifying something.”

“Wouldn’t be JC if he didn’t,” Justin comments from the door.

“Justin!” she shouts, her arms outstretched and he strides over for a hug. “How long have you been here?”

“Barely half an hour after your brother got here.”

“Who found me?”

I raise my hand and sheepishly look at her. “After you called and I woke up, I raced over to Trace’s and popped the lock to find you Casper white and the room like this,” I indulge, showing her the picture on my phone.

Her eyes widen, a look of shock taking over her features and she covers her mouth. “I was in bad shape, wasn’t I?”

I nod, confirming it. “You were in a coma for three weeks.”

“I’m just happy you’re alive,” JC tells her.

“Ditto,” Justin agrees.

“Double that,” I add.

“I’m a Charpentier and a Chasez, we don’t give up easily.”

“Obviously,” JC comments.

The three of us spent the night with her, watching her become excited soon after waking up and already having the IVs taken out. She packed her things last night and JC made sure to grab her a clean set of clothes to go home in. She’s bouncing on the bed, thrilled to go home. Lance comes in and she jumps off the bed, his arms wrapping around her body and lifting her off the floor to spin her around. They ramble in Gaelic, Lance’s facial expressions going from happy she’s doing well to very angry. “You better not go back to him.”

“No, I’m not. Justin got my things out of his house and I’ll be staying with Oshai until the doctors tell me I’m able to go back to my house.”

He winces. “About that…”

“What now?”

“It got broken into and it was destroyed. I had the police check it out and they found Pete’s finger prints all over the place and he’s been arrested.”

“Good, he deserves it.”

“They asked if you wanted to press assault charges.”

“What did you tell them?”

“I told them I’d talk to you and have you call,” he informs her, handing her a card.

She looks at it, pulling her cell phone from her pants pocket and rapidly dials a number. She quickly explains she’d like to not only press charges, but would also testify if need be and is willing to file a report. She thanks the officer and hangs up.

Once settled in at JC’s, she makes dinner with us and we have a blast making it while goofing off and chattering. We’re all grateful to have her back. The cops called a couple hours later, informing her that she wouldn’t need to testify due to all the evidence left behind and that I had given them the photo of the room.

A few months later, Pete was found guilty of assault and attempted murder. Trace was found guilty to being an accessory to both charges. Pete is now serving a life without parole sentence while Trace got a year in jail and three years of probation. She’s much happier and hanging out with all of our friends, always laughing and smiling now that she doesn’t have to worry about him coming after her in anyway. Then again, what connections does he really have? How safe is she really? Those are questions that I’ll answer in another story altogether, but I won’t soon tell because it’s just not anything to be worried about because we don’t have the answers as is.