dcheight

�hhheyy babby� ssure flad yer still heer�� Damn, he couldn�t get his mouth to work right.

Faith took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze and he smiled at her, trying to return the hand hug, but his arm hurt.

�Now, go humm��

Faith�s mouth dropped open� �HOME?�. What the hell�

�Go HOME?! Where?� My home? I�ve spent the last week cryin� and praying, holding your hand, whipping your head while you cried, screamed, moaned�. HOME!�

He didn�t remember anything like that. Man� Demerol WAS a good thing�

�Now you�re just dismissing ME! What the hell is that about?�

Mike opened his mouth but she slapped his shoulder and he closed his eyes and grit his teeth, trying not to make a sound as the pain shot through his arm.

�Who do you think you are� What do you think I am?��

Mona just stood there, eyes wide open� so� little Faith had some spunk after all� heehee, gonna keep that man in line� good girl. Kate tried to move in and stop Faith from getting too physical, but Mona blocked her, ignoring the look that Kate shot in her direction she motioned for Katherine to keep quiet for a minute and smiled. Kate stood back, fuming, but letting the scene unfold. If Joe were here, he had left to phone the kids. To tell them the good news, Mike was awake� she needed him, he wouldn�t let that little tramp push Mike around and Mona wouldn�t stop HIM either. Kate looked over at Mike, pleading with her eyes, but Mike had recovered from the push and was looking up at Faith, waiting�

�I can�t believe that after everything that has happened these past few weeks, you�re just telling me to leave. What makes you think you have the right to treat me that way? I can�t believe you�d treat me like that� how could you�?� She stopped to wipe her eyes, horrified at the thought of being pushed away. Locked out. Abandoned. �Why would you just send me away? I have been here waiting for you to wake up� and all you can say is, �Glad you stayed, now leave�� What in the world were you thinking?� She heaved in another breath, ready to start off again, then stopped, and looked down at him. God if she didn�t know better, she�d think he was laughing at her, not out loud, but his eyes were positively sparkling with laughter.

�I was thinking� If I may continue� are you finished?� he looked up at her, waiting for a response, not wanting to get cut off again. She nodded, dumbfounded. �I was thinking, I would like you to go home� and get my computer.� He paused, waited for her to say something, but she just stood there, silently, suddenly very embarrassed. �It looks, or rather feels like I might be here awhile, I thought, maybe, you wouldn�t mind running back to the house and getting my lap-top so I could have something to do� besides sleep and watch TV� never needed too much sleep� I think I�ve had enough of that for a few days� and I�m not too much for TV either. Would you mind, please, if I asked you nicely, going HOME and bringing back a few things?� He managed to give her hand a small squeeze and smiled, and then against his will, found himself drifting off again� �I�m not TIRED�.� He couldn�t get the words out, he wanted so badly to stay awake for a few more minutes� to see her, talk to her, tell her how much he really loved her� For the last five days he had drifted in and out of a dreamy sleep-like state and obviously had been in pain. He only remembered bits and pieces of the painful awake periods, usually, thankfully, followed quickly by the appearance of a beautiful, white creature who would plunge a needle into his rear and disappear� along with the pain� But the one thing he did remember as a constant vision in his mind was the thoughts of the beautiful blonde haired, blue-eyed, long, tan legged woman standing in front of him now� and how much he loved her. How she had touched his life in the few short weeks he had known her, and how much he wanted to share with her� He wanted to tell her that, and more, he wanted to stay awake long enough to ease her fears� tell her that he loved her� but his eyes were heavy and his mind began to fog up again and the room was beginning to get blurry� Damn Demerol.

Faith put the key into the lock of the large oak door and began to cry. She had made it back to the house, driving in a state of shock, on autopilot� she hadn�t allowed herself time to think about the things she had said, how stupid she had looked, the scene she had made� If she had she would have had a nervous breakdown while driving down the streets of Los Angeles. So now she stood in front of the huge oak doors and began to cry. Now it was safe to break down.

As she walked through the house, she felt his presence as if he were in the very room with her. It was eerie, and uncomfortable. Maybe, under some other circumstances, it would have been a comforting feeling, to know he was with her in spirit� in his thoughts while he was miles away� but right now the house seemed big, empty, cold� and spooky. This was the first time she had ever been in the house alone. She walked into the kitchen and turned on the light, memories of their first night in the house filled her mind, but instead of comfort, it brought more tears� He was going to be fine, the doctor�s had assured them, just some broken bones and bruises, he would need time to heal, but nothing permanent. That had been such a relief, still the week had been a long one� it had hurt her to see him hurting so bad� the when he woke up and said, �Go home.� Man she had gone off on him like a rocket. Now she felt so foolish, as she got his laptop off the counter in the kitchen where he had left it that Sunday after the phone call.

Laying the computer down on the top of the desk where her purse was, she headed up the stairs to the bedroom to get some things for him� pajamas, funny, she hadn�t even known he owned a pair, she�d never once seen him in them, preferring to sleep naked, or if he were really tired, the clothes he had worn the day before, she smiled at the memories of him dragging himself in after a long day of interviews or spending the night in a studio while they had been on the road those first weeks� it hadn�t been very often, but several days she had spent in the room alone while he kept appointments, or tagging along feeling a bit like a fifth wheel, completely unnecessary, only to come back to whatever hotel they were staying at to have him collapse in a heap on the bed, clothes on, covers under him� snoring before he hit the mattress. His toothbrush, shaving kit� she loved to watch him shave, run the sharp blade across his skin� the very though chased away the creepy feeling that had been surrounding her and replaced it with a warm fuzzy feeling� his memory, his thoughts� she opened the drawer Mona had directed her to to find his pj�s and pulled out two pair, and smiled. Shit, he had a whole drawer of pajama�s he never wore� she picked a blue pair and a tan pair and shoved them in the over-night bag she had pulled from the closet, then throwing the rest of the things he had requested in with them, she headed back down the stairs. Grabbing the computer and her purse, she walked back outside and slammed the big oak door, and it suddenly felt natural� like home, she was just leaving to take some things up to her man� running some errands and she�d be back, home� Faith stopped and turned, looking back on the large Tudor styled ranch house. It was grand� magnificent with it�s perfectly landscaped beds surrounding large windows and the brick walls�. The pathway leading to the back where the amusement park stood now, silent and dark� Suddenly it lost it�s eerie feeling and was HOME.

Faith walked into the hospital room to find it filled once again with people� as crowded as that first day after the attack. Wall-to-wall family members stood around, talked, laughed� all there to comfort Mike who lay there sleeping.

�Has he woke up at all, since I�ve been gone?� Faith asked Mona quietly, aware of the roomful of eyes suddenly on her. She was pretty sure she knew what they all were thinking. She was an intruder. They didn�t say it. They didn�t really have to; they just looked at her and kept talking amongst themselves� Of them all, Jermaine was he worst, he didn�t hide his distain for her, actually leered at her. She kept her distance and waited� waited for them all to leave. Mona kept her company most of the time. Yes, he had been awake off and on but he never stayed awake long, the painkillers still working overtime, she supposed.

One by one, the family started to disperse as the night wore on until soon it was just the four of them again; Mona, Faith, Joe and Katherine. A silence had fallen on the room but it wasn�t uncomfortable� they had spent far too much time together during the past days to be uncomfortable by the silences that filled the time between caring for Mike when he woke and nurses and doctors filing in and out. Faith had just begun to nod off once again in the corner chair when a nurse walked into the room.

�I�m sorry, but visiting hours are almost over.� She informed them and began to turn to leave the room.

�But, we�ve been here for the past five days. We need to stay with him.� Katherine stood her ground, prepared to fight with the little wisp of a woman clothed in white and thinking she could even begin to tell her she couldn�t stay with her son any longer.

�I�m sorry, ma�am. But immediate family only��

Someone had told on her, Faith was fairly certain it had been Jermaine. He didn�t like her there� so, he had told them.

�I assume you�re his parent�s?� The nurse looked at Joe and Katherine, who nodded in unison. �Then you can stay. And you?� she looked over at Mona.

�She�s his grandmother.� Katherine blurted out quickly, without thinking. Mona nodded with a blank look on her face, she wasn�t sure if she should be flattered, or not, she certainly wasn�t old enough to be Michael�s grandmother, mother maybe, but not grandmother.

�Oh, I�m sorry. I suppose that�s okay.� Then she turned her glare on Faith who stood there, her lower lip trembling. So that was it, everyone here got to stay but her, back to the big, empty house alone.

�She�s his wife.�

Everyone stood in silence with a stunned look on their faces, everyone except Joseph who had made the unexpected statement. He looked defiantly and the nurse, daring her to challenge his statement, then sternly at his wife� warning her with his eyes not to contradict him now. Faith just stood there, not acknowledging the comment, certainly not denying it, simply stunned by it, and incredibly grateful.

The nurse gave Faith a quick look that showed plainly that she didn�t believe it for a moment, but wasn�t in the mood to argue the point� after all if the man�s father wanted to make such a statement, who was she to argue it� but nobody better find out different or she�d catch hell for letting them stay.

�Joseph!� Katherine gave him a look of disapproval. �How could you do that? Now you know the press is gonna pick that up� that�s all that boy needs is more bad press.�

�What�s so bad about Faith here being his wife?� Joe smiled at the young woman standing by the chair that had been her �bed� for the past five nights. �I think she�s been through enough this week� and certainly has proven herself to be deserving of some respect.�

Faith wanted so badly to run and hug this big, brick of a man. To thank him for such an unexpected display of loyalty to someone he had just meant. He must have known what the press would do if they caught wind of this� actually there were probably a couple of options, none of them particularly good, but then again, in Michael�s case, when it came to press coverage, it was never particularly good.

�Thank you so much, Joe.� Faith was sure in a few minutes she would have to give this man a hug, but Katherine�s angry stare kept her glued to her spot by the chair. �I really appreciate it� you know I want to stay and be with Mike, and I definitely don�t want to go back to that big, empty house.�

�You need to stay. Mike would certainly want you to, but we have to go.�

Katherine almost lost control of her sense right at that moment. What in heaven�s name did he mean, she needed to stay, and he expected her to leave her son here alone in the hospital with a virtual stranger. What about Mona? He hadn�t mentioned her, but did he expect her to leave the girl here alone with Mike, to be his only comfort? Then as if in answer to Kate�s own question, Mona reached over and grabbed her sweater from the table by the bed.

�Yes, it�s getting late. They must feel he�s well enough. They haven�t bothered us for the last five days, I think they may have been just as worried as we were, in spite of the doctor�s words. But now, if they are ready to kick us out, he must be out of danger� I have work to do at home. Don�t worry you two, I�ll let Debbie know how he is, Lisa too.� Mona knew there was no way either of them would call either one of their ex-daughter-in-laws, so it would fall to her to fill them in on Mike�s condition. If she didn�t call them, they�d call her, so she might as well get it over with when she got home. She didn�t mind calling Lisa, Mona knew Lisa would be worried and want to know how Mike was, but she and Mona had always got along well enough. Mona didn�t like her as Mike�s wife, but as a woman, she liked her well enough. The one she dreaded talking to was Debbie� Mona knew she would have to take a deep breath and take control of the conversation before Debbie walked all over her� Debbie had a way of doing that to people, looking at them like they were dirt and making them feel like so much garbage. Mona never gave her the chance to get the upper hand, but it was a constant battle, one that she occasionally felt herself holding on to the upper hand by a thread. Debbie was a strong willed woman, that was for sure� an absolute bitch as far as Mona was concerned, she was glad Mike had finally seen that side of his ex-wife, it�s just too bad that the kids got dragged in-between their verbal fisticuffs so often.

�Morning sweet-heart.� Mike opened his eyes and saw Faith, her head lying on the bed next to him, having dragged the chair over from the corner to sit next to him and hold his hand, she had fallen asleep somewhere in the middle of the night. �It is morning, isn�t it?� He looked up and the lights were still on, but they were dim compared to the light coming from the window. Mike squinted as he looked toward the glass and saw the blue sky and the clouds outside� �Hey, sleepy head.� He gently shook Faith�s shoulder that rose and fell gently with her breathing, next to his hand. �Wake up babe. Faith?�

Slowly she opened her eyes, feeling his hand on her shoulder felt wonderful, she wanted to stay just like that in a dream state with him slowly, gently waking her. A smile spread across her face� Damn, dead give away, can�t fake being asleep if I�m smiling. She giggled and covered her mouth to try to block the sound. Too late, he was smiling back at her�

�Come on, wake up.�

He sounded so bright, not the groggy, sleepy man he had been the night before. He sounded like Mike again.

�Bring that computer over here, I want to show you some things.�

In the few weeks they had been together, she had known him to spend hours playing around with that thing on his lap. In the back of the limousine as they drove somewhere, in the plane as they flew somewhere, sitting on the balcony of a hotel, with his feet propped up on the railing surrounding the balcony� but never once had he offered to share,