Breaking The Habit (Chester Bennington fanfic)

And Time Stood Still.

-Chester-

I woke up alone again, like I had every day for the last two months.

I shifted uncomfortably, groaning at the stiffness in my neck.

The clock on the wall told me that it was nearly 11am.

It had been two weeks since Michelle fell back into a coma, and I'd spent all of my time by her side during the day, and attempting to sleep at night.

Dr. Sampson walked in, "Good morning, are we ready to get those casts off?" He asked.

"I guess being mobile would make me must a smidge less miserable." I shrugged.

"I just left Michelle's room. We checked in on the baby, who is growing perfectly, and has a strong fast heartbeat." He said.

"That's good. You guys taking her casts off too?" I asked.

"Yes, they're taking them off now. I came to see if you were awake yet, so I could have them go ahead and come take yours off while they had the saw."

"Yeah, any news on her brainwaves?" I asked.

"No change, still. But don't give up hope. We do know that the original brain injury has completely healed, and, while the brain wave activity hasn't changed, she did start breathing on her own again this morning."

I looked up, "What?!"

"That's right. She's breathing on her own again, and she did it on her own. We're hoping that the next step is new activity, and then eventually, waking up."

The door opened, and the orthopedic surgeon walked in, "You ready to be plaster-free?"

I nodded, "Am I ever? I'm ready to go see my fiance again."

Ten minutes and a little itching later, I was free of my casts and my neck brace.

I stood up and stretched, "This is a weird feeling." I wiggled my fingers.

"I know that you're eager to go see Michelle, so I'll leave you to it, but I'll be by later to talk to you and schedule your physical therapy. Now, go on."

He waved me out the door, and after throwing on a clean shirt and shorts, I darted down the hall.

Behind me I heard, "Hey!"

I stopped and turned around.

Mike, Kayla, Rob, Brad, and another guy I didn't recognize were walking toward me.

"Look who's mobile again!" Mike hugged me.

"It's great, being able to walk and run again." I smiled.

"Headed to see her? How's she doing?" He walked beside me.

"She doing great, actually. I mean, she isn't awake, but she started breathing all on her own this morning, which is a sign of progress in the right direction."

"That's great to hear. How's the peanut?" He opened the door to Michelle's room.

"Doc said it's growing perfectly, and has a strong heartbeat, so all appears well." I smiled.

Michelle looked normal again, like she was just sleeping peacefully, with a feeding tube in her mouth.

I'd take what I could get at this point.

I walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and kissed her forehead, "Hello my angel. I'm mobile again, which means I won't leave your side, and I'll be here waiting for you to wake up. Not a minute will go by that I'm not worried about you and our sweet little baby. I'm so proud of you, breathing on your own again, now we just need you to wake up." I pressed my forehead to hers, looking at her emotionless face.