Prodigal Son

Chapter 16

Graham fiddled with the duffle bag's zipper, as Boulder made his way downtown.
"Got everything?"
"Hopefully."
Graham gazed out the window, his mind wandering.
"Good call, by the way, on picking up essential items for Cody."
"Actually, it was Chase's idea."
"Oh, then, I'll have to thank him too."
Boulder sighed, turning down a street.
"Good luck finding him... He's been running patrols every spare moment he gets. He's been clocking in every hour because of protocol, but that's really the only time I can talk to him. I... I haven't seen him like this since.... Since the Chief's accident."
Graham sighed, nodding as he rubbed the console.
"... Yeah.... I can understand that..."
"I think I saw him reading the safety regulations on fire hydrants. I should sit him down before he tries filling in for Heatwave. I hear Woodrow's giving interventions!"
Graham shook his head, Sighing sadly.
"I kinda understand him. It's.... Hard to figure out what comes next."
".... Yeah... Blurr's just been running laps in the training course over and over, Salvage has been running all over and preforming random maintenance.... I think everybody just feels.... Lost."
Graham nodded, checking the bag again.
"We've been staying at the Hospital in shifts. Well... Except Kade.... Kade... I don't even know...."
"... Blades said he hasn't left Heatwave's side. He's even slept at the mainland facility. He's.... Struggling. Just... Give him time."
"Time... Yeah.... That's the one thing we do have..."
The two went quiet for a moment, then Boulder asked,
"So... What all did you pack?"
"Oh. Uh, just the essentials. Clothes, toothbrush, that kind of thing."
Graham opened the bag, and chuckled.
"Well, not completely essential..."
He pulled out Dani's old, worn stuffed elephant.
"I had some "help" making the care package, heh."
Boulder chuckled, then looked a bit guilty.
"Well.... Blades found out what we were doing, and... He had some ideas...."
The glove compartment clicked open, and Graham sighed, but laughed as he did so.
"Really, guys?"
Graham reached inside the compartment, and pulled out four familiar looking replicas.
The Bot-Day souvenirs, four tiny, perfect replicas of the original four rescue bots awaited him.
Graham chuckled, testing out the transformation effect on Boulder's replica.
It shifted, and Graham rolled his eyes as the voice effect went off.
"Re-elect Mayor Lusky! Re-elect Mayor Lusky!"
Both laughed lightly at that, and Graham pulled the four replicas into the bag.
"Okay, okay, I'll add them. But remember, .... If... When.... Cody wakes up, he's going to be in a.... Fragile state. We don't want to overwhelm him."
"I know, we'll be gentle."
".... Any notes on Heatwave?"
".... Nothing in terms of him waking up. But... it should be any day now, with all hope. Blades and Ratchet have notes for his physical recovery. They had to prioritize the internal damage, but they're planning on dealing with the superficial damage now that he's stable."
Graham focused on Heatwave's replica, grasping it gently.
"Superficial damage, you mean his window?"
"And his paint. Unfortunately, it looks like he'll be left with some scars in his hull."
Graham cradled the toy gently in his hands.
Even though it was just cheap plastic, it was a perfect physical replica.
He could just picture the cannon piercing the chest.
He could hear Kade's scream echoing in his ears.
He shook it off, jolted back to reality as Boulder suddenly parked.
"Here we are!"
Graham unbuckled himself, smiling greatfully at Boulder's console.
"Thanks, buddy. I'm on shift for the next couple hours. Dani definitely needs to get some rest, I'll be taking over for her."
"Oh, tell her I'll give her a ride!"
"Heh, will do!"
Graham hopped out, the duffle bag slung over his shoulder.
He marched inside the hospital entrance, already knowing where he was headed.
Slowly, he came to a stop in the hallway, needing a moment to brace himself.
The door was right there.
He just... Needed a moment.
He needed a moment, then he could-
"Graham!"
Dani and Frankie poked their heads out of the room, coming out to greet him.
Graham waved, then patted the bag.
"Got the supplies!"
"Good, good."
Dani glanced at the room, and Graham felt himself tense a bit.
"... How... How is...."
Frankie clutched the necklace.
".... He came out of surgery a few hours ago. He had a lot of damage on his neck, they're worried about nerve damage. His legs got some pretty nasty burns, and Dani was right about a concussion. We.... Don't know much else."
Dani sighed, her eyes meeting the floor.
"... There's nothing conclusive yet on how his brain patterns are recovering. It does look like any link he had to the Moor-Bot is permanently severed, but they can't conclude anything else."
Graham gently grasped both their shoulders.
"... Go home, go get some rest, food, anything. Boulder's outside, he said he'd take you home."
Dani pulled him in for a quick hug, before she and Frankie began walking off.
"Thank you, good luck."
Graham watched them go off, before taking a deep breath.
Then, he pushed in.
Cody was laying still on the bed, the only movement being the weak breath rising from his chest.
As Graham got closer, his grip tightened on the duffle bag's strap.
An oxygen mask was strapped over Cody's mouth.
Dark bruises along his forehead dotted out from thick bandages.
More bandages were visible along his neck, completely covering the skin.
His legs were covered by a blanket, but Graham suspected those were bandaged as well. 
He just looked so... Frail.
Graham sat down in a chair next to the bed, sighing as he lay the bag in his lap.
"... Hey buddy...."
He opened the zipper again, but paused before taking anything out.
".... We're worried about you... Really worried... I miss you...."
He stood up, pulling out Dani's stuffed elephant first, and placed it on the edge of the bed.
"... I know Kade wants to be here. But... He's scared. Not that I blame him. None of us can. He hasn't left Heatwave's side. I know Dani is mad, she thinks it's messed up that he can be around Heatwave, but not you. I... I think I sorta understand."
Graham pulled out a framed picture of the team, placing it on the nightstand.
"... We all feel like we failed you, bud. But I think it hit him hardest. I think that's why he can't bring himself here. He hates himself for failing you."
Graham picked up the toy bots, gently raising Heatwave's replica again.
".. Heatwave's still out, too. But he should be okay. Hopefully... But... Wherever he is right now, wherever his mind is, I'm sure he's trying to get back to us."
Graham set the replica on the nightstand.
"... And I know you are too..."
He sorted through the bag, setting up the other bots.
"We don't know what you'll be like, when you wake up. But .. I'm not giving up on you. I promise. You'd never give up on any of us."
Graham stood up, coming closer to the bed, right to Cody's side.
He reached out, and gently tousled his bangs, causing them to drape over the bandages.
"... I promise. I promise you, whatever help you need, you'll get it. I'll never give up on you. Just... Please..."
He leaned over, his eyes squeezing shut.
"... Please.... Don't give up on yourself... I don't know if you can hear me. But... I.... I know you have to be in there somewhere."
He sat back down, and leaned over, burying his head in his hands.
"... We'll be waiting for you, bud. When you're ready... We'll be here."
Graham's eyes burned.
"We'll be here...."
-
Heatwave blinked.
His head felt fuzzy, everything just seemed... Off-kilter, in a way he couldn't explain.
He turned around, scanning the area.
He was in the forest. But... something was... different. It couldn't be autumn already, could it?
Something was off here, but he just couldn't figure it out...
It was like there was a gap in his memory.
Like he was forgetting something...
Something important...
The leaves were all shades of orange, yellow, and red. So much red.
Instinctively, he held out his palm.
A large red leaf floated down into it, almost exactly his color.
His optics narrowed.
How did he get here...
"Everything okay?"
Heatwave turned. His gaze instinctively dropped to the ground, and he had to stile a laugh.
"What're you doing down there?"
Laying down on the forest floor, was Cody.
His arms were tucked behind his head, his legs casually stretched out as a relaxed look overtook his face.
The only thing that really seemed to stick out, was the bright red scarf around his neck.
"Just taking it all in. Looks really pretty, doesn't it?"
Boulder had always been the nature fan, but he had to admit. It was pretty peaceful.
He'd never realized how much red was in nature.
"Yeah.. I guess it is."
Cody smiled.
"C'mon, join me! Just... Take a minute."
Heatwave hesitated.
No... Something was... Off...
But Cody's smile beconed.
Slowly, Heatwave walked over, and sat down, until he was laying on the ground next to Cody.
Suddenly, Cody laughed, as Heatwave's hand stretched out, roughing out his hair.
"Hey, stop!! What's that for?!"
Heatwave chuckled, then sighed, a smile taking his face. 
The odd feeling faded from his mind.
"Sorry, kid. Suddenly, I'm.... I'm just... really happy to see you."
"What, like I'm going somewhere?"
Heatwave chuckled, melting back.
"Yeah, yeah... "
Yeah, he was being ridiculous. Just paranoid, he supposed.
After all,
Where else did he need to be?
-
Blades carefully leaned over the table, gently easing the welding tool across Heatwave's chest.
"Annnddddddd.... Done."
Ratchet nodded in approval, scanning the area.
"Excellent, the procedure looks flawless."
The new window looked secure, perfectly anchored into place on Heatwave's chest.
With the windshield replaced, that just left the scratched paint, and scars gouged deep into his metal.
"How... How is he?"
Blades glanced over, where Kade was standing anxiously.
"Physically, he's doing much better! We have most of the repair work done! But... I don't really.... understand..."
Ratchet nodded.
"His processor activity looks relatively solid. From a technical standpoint.... He should be fully functional."
Blades added,
"He's active... Just... Not on the surface."
Kade sighed, rubbing his head.
He looked back up at Heatwave's inert body.
"Heatwave... Where.... are you?"