"Give it to us straight, Doc," Eric stated, crossing his arms. "How much longer is she going to be here?"

It had been almost a week since Rebecca had made it back from her mission. In that time, she'd been steadily getting better, though somehow, the medical staff the government had supplied for her hadn't seemed surprised by it at all.. Eric suspected there was some kind of augmented healing at play there, but he decided not to dig too deeply into it. As far as he was concerned, it didn't matter at this point; she'd officially announced that she was never going back to the military. And truthfully, he didn't doubt her – with her mentor dead, there was no reason for her to go back at this point.

"Well," the doctor said, taking a look at the pad in his hands. Eric shook his thoughts away, instead focusing on the doctor. He watched as the man's brow furrowed. "...Truthfully, her rate of recovery is nothing short of astounding. Even for an Angel, this is remarkable. I don't know what the cause of it is, but I know better than to question it."

"It's really that good?" Rosa asked.

The doctor nodded. "Oh, yes. I don't think either of you understand – she was impaled by a plasma sword. That's generally not the kind of thing someone can just walk off, and yet by all accounts, that's exactly what she did. I'd go so far as to say that her injuries would not be survivable by an ordinary human being. Even for an Angel, it'd be pushing the realm of believability, had I not witnessed it with my own eyes. This was a razor-thin line between life and death."

A chill went down Eric's spine at that. "So… you're saying we almost lost her?"

That earned him another nod. "Very nearly so, yes. Thankfully it didn't come to that, however. And even better, her recovery, like I said, is simply astounding. But to bring it back to your original question… ideally, I'd like to keep her here for a few more days, at the very least. The worst of her wounds have been dealt with, and we have her on a pretty heavy-duty cocktail of medications, so there's really no concern with anything going wrong at this point. Of course, anything is possible, I suppose, but if she's up and talking to you and showing no pain or discomfort while doing it, then I'd say that's a very good sign."

"How soon until we can check her out?" Rosa questioned.

The doctor shrugged. "Honestly? That's mostly up to her at this point. Like I said, I'd prefer to keep her here for at least a few more days, but if she feels she's ready to leave, then there's not much I can do to force her to stay. If you are going to check her out, though, I'd like to make a suggestion – keep the physical activity light, and keep a pair of crutches or a wheelchair nearby, just in case. We didn't detect any neurological damage, but if she even feels slightly uncomfortable, consider that a sign to get her off her feet immediately."

"Will do," Eric said with a nod. "Thanks, Doc."

"And one more thing," the doctor added, "please don't call me Doc. I have a name, and I assure you, it's far more personable."

He motioned to his nametag, which read 'Doctor Adrian Gray'. Eric stared at it for a moment, then let out a slow exhale and brought a hand up to sheepishly rub the back of his head.

"Sorry," he offered, "force of habit."

He gave Eric a small, reassuring grin, then turned, tucking his pad under his arm as he moved towards the door. "Anyway, that's about all I've got for you three. I'm sure you all know the drill by now – if she starts feeling any pain or discomfort-"

"We'll call the nurses," Rosa promised. "Thanks, Doctor Gray."

"Mhm."

With that, he exited the building, leaving the three of them alone. They both stepped over to Rebecca's bedside, and after a moment, she reached out and took them both by the hand.

"...I think I'll be ready to leave in a bit," she said quietly. "Would that be okay?"

"Of course," Eric promised.

"Even if I'm still in a wheelchair?"

"Then I'll build a ramp for you." He gave her a reassuring smile. "We're in this together at this point, Rebecca. I'm not leaving you behind, no matter what. Understand?"

She blinked, taken aback by his words, but surprisingly, she didn't seem shocked by them anymore. If anything, she seemed nothing but reassured by them instead. It was a far cry from how she used to be, when every kind act or word brought about more questions or concerns from her. But not anymore, apparently.

Now, she seemed content to simply take them all at face value.

And that thought only made Eric even happier, his smile widening as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

***

"And here we are," Eric announced as they stepped out from inside the warehouse and into the outside world. "Fresh air, at long last."

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"At long last?" Rebecca echoed. "It was only two weeks."

"Two weeks too long. I hate triage – it's always too damn sterile; even the air somehow tastes stale. And the food was awful, as expected of the military."

"It wasn't bad," Rebecca confessed. "But… not as good as your cooking."

"You sure about that?" Rosa asked, stepping up alongside them. "I've had some of Eric's cooking. And if you ask me, bacon and eggs taste pretty much the same everywhere you go."

"Lies," Eric chastised. "The MREs use powdered eggs. Garbage."

"If you say so." Rosa checked her watch, then adjusted her sunglasses. "Well, shall we? I imagine you're both pretty eager to make it back home."

"You can say that again." Eric began to move, steadily pushing Rebecca's wheelchair through the warehouse parking lot, over to where Rosa's SUV was. "This thing is a pain in the ass, I must say."

"What happened to that speech from a few days ago?" Rosa asked. "The one about you building a ramp?"

"Now, what makes you think I haven't already built it?"

"You did?"

"Yeah? It's a ramp, not a fighter jet. I did it in, like, a night. All it took was some two-by-fours and some nails."

"Bet the neighbors really appreciated hearing you hammer away after dark."

"Yeah, well, fuck 'em," Eric declared. "I'll take the noise complaints if it means making her more comfortable."

Rebecca's brow furrowed. "...You realize I'm only in this temporarily, right? Doctor Gray said it would be for a few days at most…"

"Don't care, already built it."

Rosa sighed, bringing a hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Alright, alright… let's just get home, first."

"What do you mean, home?" Eric asked. "We're going to my house."

"Eric, at this point, I'm over there so much, it might as well be my second home."

"That-" Eric paused. "...That's a fair comment, actually…"

The three of them reached the SUV, and Eric helped Rebecca to her feet while Rosa folded up her wheelchair and placed it in the trunk of the car. Rebecca moved gingerly, being careful not to put too much weight on her legs, Eric helping her the entire time.

"Easy," he urged. "No need to rush."

"I know," she replied. "...Truthfully, I've been through worse-"

"Don't care, I'm here to help anyway."

He opened one of the back doors for her and helped her inside, then moved around to the passenger side. Rosa entered the driver's side seat just as he finished buckling up his seatbelt, and after taking a moment to adjust the rear view mirror, she started the car.

"Alright," she announced. "Let's get the hell out of here. I always hate going to medical appointments – like Eric said, everything is just so sterile and lifeless…"

Eric shook his head, grinning to himself as Rosa pulled out of the parking spot and began to drive them home. As the car moved, he looked into the rear view mirror, and caught sight of Rebecca, the sight of her making him pause.

She was grinning once more, and somehow, the sight of it didn't seem nearly as alien on her face as it once had.

***

"...And that's about where we're at now," Eric stated.

Across from him, Doctor Blanche interlocked his fingers, then leaned forwards. "I must say, it sounds like you're in high spirits."

"I suppose you could say that," Eric admitted. "I just… I've felt good, ever since she's been out of the hospital. Sure, it's only been a few days, but I don't know, I just feel… content. For the first time in a long time."

"Mhm. And what about her? How do you think she feels?"

"Honestly, Doctor, I think she feels as good as I do, if not better," he said. "I can see it on her face – the way her expression just lights up now… it's beautiful."

"Mm. Sounds like she really enjoys living with you."

"Yeah," Eric said quietly. He paused for a moment, then sighed. "...I suppose at some point this arrangement is going to have to end, though."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, she'll have to move out sooner or later – find her own place, hopefully meet someone and start a family or something."

"And what about you?" Blanche asked. "Ever thought of doing that for yourself?"

"One thing at a time, Doctor," Eric said with a chuckle.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's just that I've still got some adjusting to do."

"So does she," Blanche pointed out. "But that hasn't stopped you from thinking about her future."

Eric paused, then reluctantly nodded. "...You might have a point," he conceded. "Still, I just… think that maybe my efforts would be better focused somewhere else."

"Oh, really? Like where?"

"I don't know," Eric confessed. "But, truthfully… I think she might feel the same way. We've got each other, and Rosa too of course, but I still feel like there's something missing."

Blanche was silent for a moment. A few seconds ticked by, but then he opened the drawer to his desk and pulled something out – it was a flier, Eric realized; he didn't get a chance to see what was written on it before Blanche handed it to him.

"That's a flier advertising a local group for veterans," Blanche told him.

Eric looked to him in surprise. "And you think I should attend?"

"I think you both should," he explained. "You've done such a good job helping her, and she's done such a good job adjusting… there are plenty of other soldiers out there who still need help, you know. You feel like you might be missing something?" He tapped the flier in Eric's hands. "You both could really make a difference to those guys."

Eric blinked as he read over the flier. In the past, he would have refused outright, but not anymore.

Now, it felt like there was something calling to him, screaming at him to do it.

He looked back to Blanche, and gave him a slow, emphatic nod.

"...Alright," was the only answer he could give.