[|]

"Hey."

I flinched at the sound of Lucas' voice. I turned away from the floor-length window in the hallway of the hospital and faced him. He was looking stressed out with bags under his eyes, scattered hair, and pale skin. I wouldn't be surprised if I was matching his look.

"How are you?" I asked, walking up to him. I opened my arms for a hug and he came into it and I wrapped my arms around him. He lowered his height and rested his head on my shoulder.

"I'm so tired and I'm sure you are too," he said and hugged me back.

"I'm better now that I know Axel is fine," I said and pulled away from him.

Axel had gone into surgery the moment we arrived at the hospital and it's been hours since we arrived. Barry had not left the door of the operating room. I could see how much they loved Axel.

"You need to sleep. You are stressed from everything," Lucas said and cupped my face.

"I'm kinda hungry though," I said with a smile. "I need a nap but I won't do all these until I'm sure that Axel is fine."

Lucas smiled and came closer. He held my other cheek and caressed them with the pads of his thumbs.

"How do you feel about the death of Maddy?" He asked, seriousness in his eyes.

I looked away, thinking back to how I watched them take Maddy's covered body into another ambulance. We had gotten interrogated by the Redside police, only to find out with all happiness that a new person had taken over the station and that the old officer in charge had been persecuted for his illegal dealings with a few shady businessmen and women of Redside.

"Happy," I said. "Happy that we won't have any more problems. It's a great feeling of relief knowing our enemy is gone. Now, I feel safe and happy that our child will feel safe."

Lucas smiled and came closer. He placed his forehead against mine and tilted my head upward a bit.

"Me too," he whispered. "Now, I have you, our baby, and our future to look out for. After tonight, we open a new chapter of our lives and I hope you'll accept to be in it."

I laughed softly and placed my hands on his chest. I bit my lip and moved my head back so I could look into his blue eyes.

"After everything that has happened, I think I know what I want my future to be like," I said and he gulped.

"Really?" He asked. "How?"

He sounded scared and I couldn't blame him. He had fucked up before and thought I still thought about it and used it as a point of my future judgment.

"I want my future with the father of my baby and my boyfriend," I said and he sighed in relief.

"Fuck, you scared me," he said. "You have no idea how powerful you are."

"Really?" I asked, feeling smug. "I am that powerful that I could break up with you now and you'd feel bad?"

"Not only bad but I could die," he confessed and I laughed.

"Excuse me," a familiar voice said and we turned in its direction.

Barry was standing a few feet away with their hands behind them.

"How's Axel?" I asked, stepping away from Lucas.

Barry smiled. "He's awake."

I grinned. "He's alive?!"

"Yes and he wants to see you two. I already saw him," Barry said and I squealed.

"Show him to us, please?"

[|]

Barry led us into a room and when we walked in, I saw Axel reading a magazine with a smile on his face. When he raised his eyes, he grinned and waved at us.

My eyes watered at the sight of his weak state. His eyes were dull while his chest had some bandages around it. I took some steps toward him and stopped by the bed. It was so hard to believe that he was still with us. I had seen him dead and it was a miracle to see him alive, breathing, and smiling.

"You two look like you've seen a ghost," he said in a hoarse voice.

I chuckled but tears formed in my eyes, saddening me up. He shifted his eyes to me and his smile dropped. He tried to raise his hand but couldn't and groaned in pain. I placed my hand carefully on his and shook my head then wiped my eyes with the other.

"Don't stress yourself," I said and he blinked in response.

"Why's Lucas so quiet. It's unlike him?" Axel asked and shifted his eyes to Lucas who had not moved an inch from the door.

I sighed. "You died, Axel. You were no longer breathing and not moving. So, it's kinda shocking to see you here, alive and talking."

Axel smirked. "It goes to say that I'm God's favorite. He had to bring me back."

Lucas and I couldn't help but laugh. We would not have been laughing if he wasn't alive, we wouldn't have heard his usual jokes and it was refreshing to see him here with us.

"Come on, guys. I need y'all to quit being sappy. I had to tell Barry to quit it when they were teary and shit. Now, tell me how you finished that bitch Maddy," he said, looking from one person to the other.

I smiled. "I love you, Axel."

"Aww, I need to die more often to see this side of you," he said and I showed him my middle finger. "Sorry, I fuck Barry already."

"This is one of the reasons why I hate you," Lucas said and Axel hissed.

"Damn, bro," Axel said and we laughed.

"Nah, I'm just kidding," Lucas said and approached the bed. "If you die on me one more time, I'm going to go after you and beat you to a pulp. You don't die until you're old, got it?"

"Aye, aye, captain," Axel replied, winking at the same time.