A week and a half had passed. The days felt agonizingly long as I had nothing to do but sit and watch TV while thinking about what I was missing. Lloyd stayed with me during his free time but even he had to go to school eventually. Same with our friends. They weren't here as often as Lloyd was. And I don't blame them. They had other things to do. But I even appreciate their attempts to be here almost daily. I'm relieved to know that I get to leave this stupid hospital soon.

I lay awake, staring at the ceiling. It was probably somewhere around 9 AM when I hear the door creak open. I look over to see Lloyd walking in with a small wave. I smile weakly at him and wave back. Then I notice someone walk in behind him.

"Wu?" My voice cracks as I notice who the figure is.

"Hello, (Y/N). How are you feeling?" He asks.

"I'm... fine. But what are you doing here?" I sit up slightly.

"I came to see how you were doing. Is there something wrong with that?" He asks again.

"Well, no..." I murmur, "but you haven't visited me before so I figured you were here for some kind of reason," I explain myself.

"I train a group of teenage ninja. You wouldn't have a very open schedule either if you had my job," he chuckles.

I shrug and accept the excuse. Then a thought pops into my mind as I look up to Wu. "I haven't really asked the doctor how this could hinder my ability in combat..." I say with a sigh. I'm hoping that I can get back to being a ninja as soon as I can. It's one of the few fulfilling things I have left in my life.

"Ah..." Wu sighs, "I wasn't really expecting you to come back to combat so soon after your recovery. I know you'll be getting out of the hospital soon, but that doesn't mean you'll be back in shape as quickly," he avoids eye contact.

"What are you trying to say..?" I ask hesitantly as I grip the sheets tightly that cover my body.

"Well, (Y/N)..." he struggles to find his words, "a collapsed lung isn't something to brush off so easily. I want you to take your time before returning to your duties as a ninja," he finally says and I cringe at the thought.

I hold my breath as I grit my teeth and hang my head low, making eye contact with no one, just staring down at my own pale hands.

"(Y/N)..." Lloyd reaches out to me and I flinch.

"No," I sharply move away from him and he retracts his arm, "I just..." I sigh. "...How long are we talking? How long do you want me to stay away from being a ninja?" I look up to Wu with desperation.

"After you get out of the hospital... maybe... three to four weeks?" He replies.

"A whole month? What if something serious happens? What if you need my help?" I raise my voice without even realizing it at first.

"(Y/N), I promise we'll work extra hard to cover for you!" Lloyd jumps in, "you can count on that, alright?"

"What if something happens... what if something happens to you and I'm not there to help?" I lean in as my voice shakes.

"I'll be fi-"

"No! What if something like this happens to you and no one knows? You were the only one to see me go down... what if you get hurt and no one is there to help?" I feel my eyes become watered but I refuse to let a tear fall.

"Wha..." Lloyd is taken aback, "(Y/N)... is that why you want to get back to combat so quickly?"

"Not entirely, no," I shake my head, "but I'm worried as to what might happen without me," I sigh.

"(Y/N)..." He sits down beside me, "I promise nothing will go wrong without you," he smiles.

"Promise?"

"Promise," Lloyd smiles as he looks at me. Then he remembers the third presence in the room as he looks up to Wu. The both of us had almost forgotten he was there as we had shared this moment.

"Uh..." Lloyd clears his throat as he looks to me. "Can I... tell him?" He whispers and I nod, knowing exactly what he means.

Lloyd stands up to face his uncle. Wu understands that he has something to say to him so he waits patiently for Lloyd to say whatever it is that's on his mind.

"Wu..." He begins to speak but has trouble finding his own words. "I'm... I'm uh..." He continues to struggle.

Wu sighs and smiles. "Whatever it is you have to tell me, I won't judge," he says. I'm pretty sure he knows what Lloyd is about to say.

"I'm gay," he finally spits out. I smile even though Lloyd isn't looking at me. "And I'm with (Y/N)," he adds on. Even though Wu hasn't said anything yet, I hear Lloyd sniffle slightly as he refuses to open his eyes and his fists clench shut, awaiting a response.

Wu says nothing. He just steps toward Lloyd in a soothing manner and just as Lloyd opens his eyes, Wu brings him in for a hug. Lloyd wraps his arms around his uncle and I hear him giggle slightly.

"No matter what, I'll always be very proud of you," he assures Lloyd.

Small yet noticeable tears of joy escape Lloyd's eye lids as he gently parts from the hug. I can only smile at the sweet moment the two had shared.

Lloyd has told be before that he values Wu almost like a father and that he appreciates him just as much as he does Koko, so I can see why Wu's response was so important to him. And I'm glad it went well.

Wu and Lloyd slowly look back to me as I smile at the both of them.

"Treat him well," Wu says to me and I nod with a laugh.

"Mom doesn't know yet," Lloyd looks up to Wu.

"I know she'll take it well. You know how much she cares for you," Wu says softly.

"I know but it's hard to tell her. Just give me time," he says with a crack in his voice. Wu just nods and directs himself back to the conversation we were having only moments ago with a sigh.

"(Y/N)," he says and I look up at him. "I want you to take as much time off as you may need to recover. I don't want anything bad happening to the one my nephew values so much," he looks to Lloyd, then back to me. "It's not just for your safety. It's for others as well."

I sigh in understanding. "Okay..."

"And as for you Lloyd," he looks to Lloyd once more and Lloyd perks up to look at him, "I don't want to be the only one in your family to know. I know Koko would be so proud of who you are," he smiles.

"Thank you, uncle Wu," Lloyd nods and smiles back.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Just a few more days and I was out of the hospital. I had to stay a couple days after my chest tube was removed so that the doctor could monitor the healing of my incision and he said I was doing better than most. He said a bunch of stuff about not doing anything that could strain the wound like jogging, exercise, stretching. Basically everything that you need to do to be a ninja. He never said when I would be able to get back to doing those types of things but he did say that walking every day could help the process come a long a little better. He even said I needed to do breathing exercises to make sure my lung was able to function at "full capacity," whatever that means.

I'm supposed to go get normal checkups from here on out until I'm fully healed, which I don't have a problem with. My main problem is with the fact that I have to keep a bandage on the incision for a while and I won't be able to get it wet. That means no showers... I guess no showers is fine. I can just take normal baths and make sure not to get the wound wet. And if I skip a bath or two, it'll be fine because it's not like I'm going anywhere. I have to stay home from school for at least a week which would be nice if I didn't worry about Lloyd so much. I know he can handle himself at school without me but I still worry...

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

"You're sure you're fine? You don't need anything?" Koko asked for about the millionth time as I finally got back to Lloyd's apartment and I slowly sat down on the sofa.

"We just got here. If I need anything I promise I'll let you know," I dismiss with a laugh as Lloyd comes and sits next to me.

"Alright. Just call for me if you need anything," she says as she ruffles my hair and walks off, presumably to her own room.

"You know you guys really don't have to let me stay here. It's not like I have any money or anything I can give you in return. I can go back home," I say in a low tone to Lloyd.

"You know that place isn't home," Lloyd says as he placed his hand on mine.

"I know... But you guys are doing so much more for me than I could ever repay you for," I sigh as my head drops onto the back of the sofa as I look up at the ceiling.

"We aren't doing it for payment. You're our family," Lloyd stresses.

"I know but I just feel like you guys are doing too much. Like I'm just leaching off of you," I express my concerns as I look back to Lloyd.

"No. I love you and it would hurt me too much to see you go back to your mother like that. You've done more for me than you could ever imagine. You saved my life," Lloyd says as his grip on my hand tightens.

"That was so long ago. I barely even knew who you were," I groan.

"No, that's not what I'm talking about... There were time where I just thought of... giving up... But then you were there," Lloyd sits in silence for a second before continuing. "You've meant so much to me for so long. You've kept me going. You saved my life on multiple occasions and you didn't even know it."

"Lloyd..." I say in a cracked voice, "I had no idea..."

"No, it's okay! Just know that I'll always be here for you. Like how you were for me," he chimes. "And... my mom knows about all you've done for me... she knows I've been at my worst for the past year or so but since you came into my life I've stopped hurting myself and having such awful thoughts all the time. And she knows it was all because of you. She knows how much you mean to me and becuase of that you mean just as much to her," Lloyd explains.

"...really?" My voice cracks as I whisper.

Lloyd nods and smiles.

"But... I don't want you to think that you owe me anything because of that..." I say before looking down at our locked hands. "Ughh..." I sigh, "sorry... I guess I've always just had this complex that I owe everyone something. That's the way my mom has always taught me," I look back to Lloyd.

"Don't be sorry..." He brings his hand to my face and gently rubs my cheek, "I love you," he says faintly.

"I love you too."

"You should probably go lay down. It's getting late," Lloyd mentions.

"Alright," I agree as I stand up slowly. My side hurts where the chest tube once was but the doctor said it was normal. I walk back to Lloyd's room slowly and steadily, trying to minimize the pain as much as possible.

When I get to Lloyd's bed I sit down on the clean sheets and slowly lie all the way down with a relieving sigh. Even though it's not my room, it's nice to be back in this bed again. The more I stay here the more it actually does feel like my own room. Lloyd soon lays down next to me. I would roll over and look at him but that would hurt too much. Lloyd just gently wraps his arm around me. He's on the opposite side of my healing wound so he doesn't have to worry about hurting me.

I sat there comfortable until the pain reappeared. The presence of my shirt over the bandage was uncomfortable, so I sat up and Lloyd removed his arm from around me. I slowly pulled my shirt off without moving too quickly as to not hurt myself. The air reaching the skin around the bandage was comforting. It felt the same as the bandage that was on the stab wound itself. Which healed surprisingly faster which was unexpected even from the doctor. Both wounds still looked gross, but there's not much I can do about how they look. At least the wound from my chest tube was being covered so Lloyd don't have to look at it. His attention did go to the stab wound, however.

"Does it feel okay?" He asked as he pointed to the stab wound on the lower half of my chest.

"It feels... fine. I guess. It healed pretty quick. It still hurts a little but it's the wound from the chest tube that hurts the most," I say as I trace my fingers over the bandage.

"Then you should probably lay back down," Lloyd says calmly and I do as suggested. I breathe a sigh of relief when my head hits the pillow. Today was tiring so it didn't take long for me to doze off.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

"(Y/N)."

I hear my name being said softly as my eyes slowly open and the light from the window is nearly blinding.

"(Y/N), wake up."

"Huh..." I barely manage to let any sound slip out of my mouth as my eyes adjust to my surroundings.

"You awake?" I finally notice Lloyd standing over me. He's dressed in his normal green jacket that he always wears to school.

"Yeah... what time is it?" I mumble.

"I'm about to go to school. I just... I brought you this," Lloyd says as I notice the tray he's holding in his hands. It has a bowl of cereal and a glass of juice placed neatly on it.

"You didn't have to do that... I could have gotten it myself," I say as I sit up and he places the tray in my lap.

"I know. I just thought you might like to have something to eat... And I wanted an excuse to wake you up and tell you goodbye. So uh... bye," he waves with an awkward smile.

"Thank you..." I smile back, "And goodbye, I love you."

Lloyd just smiles warmly before placing a kiss on my forehead and walking out the door, giving me a little wave before quietly leaving the room.

Lloyd is so sweet. I love him to pieces and this little gesture of breakfast in bed was so cute to me. Eating what he brought for me gave me such a warm feeling. I didn't finish the whole bowl because I really didn't have much of an appetite but it was nice to finally eat something other than hospital food.

I took my dishes out to the kitchen and realize Koko had already left for work leaving me alone in the apartment. The apartment I don't even live in. I still feel bad that I'm staying here instead of my own house. I really don't like taking so much from Lloyd and his mother like this, but like he said; my house isn't home.

My mind trails off as I rinse my bowl and cup off in the sink before washing them and putting them away.

What am I gonna do this entire time before Lloyd gets back from school?

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Yay!

Another chapter. Sorry it's short and that it took so long. I have a lot of books to balance between.

If you see any grammatical errors, as always, let me know. I always proofread but I don't always catch everything. And I enjoy your suggestions for the book as well. So if you have any ideas, let me hear 'em!