Everything seemed to move quickly, yet slowly around Johnny. Everywhere he looked, he either saw white, or other animals running around the room. None of them answering his questions at all.

"What's going on?" he asked, as the other animals cut apart his shirt. "Where am I? I want to see my dad."

"Count backwards from ten," a wolf said, putting a mask over his nose and mouth.

Ripping the mask off of his face, Johnny tried to sit up; but pain shot through his chest, and blood filled up his mouth, the doctors shoving him back down onto the bed, and sucking the blood out with a tube before replacing the mask on his face. Tears streaming from Johnny's eyes the entire time, as he started to shake.

"Get off of me!" he shouted, as they tied him down. "Let me go! I want to see my dad!"

"Turn up the dosage," the wolf from earlier said, getting Johnny tied down onto the table.

Hearing a soft squeak, Johnny tried to get out of his restraints, he wanted to see his dad;but his racing heart began slowing down, and beating loudly enough for him to hear it, his breathing becoming deeper, and more labored to say the least, as his eyes struggled to stay open.

"Okay, he's out," one of the doctors said, as he struggled to stay awake; the other doctors taking him off of the anesthesia, and switching him to oxygen. "Give me the scalpel."

Feeling a sharp, yet dull pain in his chest, Johnny laid his head back, and felt more tears spill from his eyes, as his breath hitched in a sob.

~Meanwhile~

"Mike, I think your hands are clean enough," Jewel said, as Mike stood in the bathroom, with the water washing over his hands.

Shutting off the tap, she dried his hands, and gave him a hug.

It had been about two hours since Johnny had gotten rushed to the hospital, and Mike had come home crying. And since then, the gunshot was all over the news, although they didn't give Johnny's name out, and Mike had stopped crying; but now Mike wouldn't stop trembling, and blaming himself. And if he dared stay in Jewel's arms for more than ten seconds, he was back to being a puddle of tears.

"Mike, it's okay," she said, trying to get him to calm down. "It's not your fault. Johnny would have taken a bullet for anyone. Not just you."

"But he didn't take the bullet for me. He got shot because that damn bear didn't want any witnesses," Mike said, his voice breaking again, as Jewel gave him another hug.

"Stop blaming yourself," she said. "I know you feel awful about Johnny getting hurt by those bears. But sitting here, and bawling your eyes out over it, isn't going to fix anything. And I bet if you went to visit Johnny in the hospital, he'd tell you the exact same thing."

"I know," he said, wiping his eyes, and returning the hug; breathing in the scent of her perfume, as Ash kicked his door in. "Oh no."

"You asshole!" she yelled, grabbing Mike, and pinning him to the wall with her hand; pulling her phone out, and showing him a video someone had taken on their phone of Johnny getting hurt.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked.

"Lance sent it to me," she said. "You got Johnny shot."

"I know," he said. "And I'm sorry. I didn't know those bears were going to attack him like that. I told him to run, but-"

"Shut up!" she yelled at him, tears filling up her blue eyes. "This is your fault! If you didn't owe those bears money, none of this wouldn't have happened."

"You don't think I know that?" he said, feeling the tears roll down his face again. "You don't think I feel horrible for what happened to him tonight? For God's sake, at least I tried to help him after he got shot. All your ex-boyfriend did was record the entire thing, and probably put it online; he did nothing to help. So do me a favor and quit putting this on me. I know this is my fault, but sitting around and crying about it isn't going to change anything."

Feeling her let go of him to wipe her eyes, Mike dropped to the floor, and landed on the soft carpet of his room; wiping his eyes, as Jewel came over to see if he was okay.

"I really am sorry this had to happen," he said. "Trust me, if I could change things, I would."

"Come on," Jewel said, pulling him to his feet. "I think Johnny would want to see us when he wakes up. All of us."

~Meanwhile~

Please be okay, Johnny, Rosita begged silently, as she finished putting the last of her piglets to sleep.

She really couldn't see why anyone would want to hurt Johnny. He was so kind, and friendly; and he loved to help her out with her kids: if he had a free moment, he'd personally set aside a few hours just to play with them, and let her have some time to herself and get some extra housework done. Someone as pure, and kind as him didn't deserve to be gunned down like that. And when she saw the video online, she felt sick to her stomach, knowing Johnny was really hurt, and her kids will soon see it too, should it be in the news at any point in the next week.

"Mommy," her son-Casper-said, sitting up on his bed to look at her. "Is Johnny going to 'go away for a little while'?"

Feeling her breath catch in her throat, Rosita knew he must have seen the video too, and tried not to cry in front of her son, as she walked over to him, and sat down next to him; giving him a hug, and a kiss on the head.

"No," she said, half lying because she didn't know whether or not Johnny would make it; but she wanted to stay positive. "Johnny's going to be okay?"

"Then why are you crying?" her daughter-Tess-asked, leaning over the top bunk to look at her mom.

"I'm not," she lied, trying to keep the tears at bay, as she gave her daughter a kiss too. "Both of you go to sleep. You have to be up for school in the morning."

"But it's Friday," Tess said.

"Bedtime," she said, tucking them both back in.

"Okay," Casper said, as Tess got down from her bed; the two of them giving Rosita a hug.

"Love you, Mom," they both said.

"I love you too," she said, trying her best not to let her voice crack, as she tucked them both in, and made sure the night light was on before she turned off the lights and went downstairs into the living room where Norman was fast asleep in his chair; turning on the TV, and still seeing the same news clip from before when they first reported on the gunshot. And like before, they didn't give out the name of the 'Local Talent' that got injured; they kept that part anonymous. But she knew that probably by tomorrow, everyone would have seen the video, and the video would have made it to the news for even more views, and everyone would be crowded outside of Johnny's hospital room wanting to know if he was okay.

"Norman," she whispered, waking up her husband to move him to their room. "You fell asleep on the chair again."

Moving her husband up to their bedroom, she got him changed, and gave him a kiss on the cheek; going back downstairs, and just staying glued to the TV, and her phone. Checking for any changes in the news before she texted Buster:

Everything seemed to move quickly, yet slowly around Johnny. Everywhere he looked, he either saw white, or other animals running around the room. None of them answering his questions at all.

"What's going on?" he asked, as the other animals cut apart his shirt. "Where am I? I want to see my dad."

"Count backwards from ten," a wolf said, putting a mask over his nose and mouth.

Ripping the mask off of his face, Johnny tried to sit up; but pain shot through his chest, and blood filled up his mouth, the doctors shoving him back down onto the bed, and sucking the blood out with a tube before replacing the mask on his face. Tears streaming from Johnny's eyes the entire time, as he started to shake.

"Get off of me!" he shouted, as they tied him down. "Let me go! I want to see my dad!"

"Turn up the dosage," the wolf from earlier said, getting Johnny tied down onto the table.

Hearing a soft squeak, Johnny tried to get out of his restraints, he wanted to see his dad;but his racing heart began slowing down, and beating loudly enough for him to hear it, his breathing becoming deeper, and more labored to say the least, as his eyes struggled to stay open.

"Okay, he's out," one of the doctors said, as he struggled to stay awake; the other doctors taking him off of the anesthesia, and switching him to oxygen. "Give me the scalpel."

Feeling a sharp, yet dull pain in his chest, Johnny laid his head back, and felt more tears spill from his eyes, as his breath hitched in a sob.

~Meanwhile~

"Mike, I think your hands are clean enough," Jewel said, as Mike stood in the bathroom, with the water washing over his hands.

Shutting off the tap, she dried his hands, and gave him a hug.

It had been about two hours since Johnny had gotten rushed to the hospital, and Mike had come home crying. And since then, the gunshot was all over the news, although they didn't give Johnny's name out, and Mike had stopped crying; but now Mike wouldn't stop trembling, and blaming himself. And if he dared stay in Jewel's arms for more than ten seconds, he was back to being a puddle of tears.

"Mike, it's okay," she said, trying to get him to calm down. "It's not your fault. Johnny would have taken a bullet for anyone. Not just you."

"But he didn't take the bullet for me. He got shot because that damn bear didn't want any witnesses," Mike said, his voice breaking again, as Jewel gave him another hug.

"Stop blaming yourself," she said. "I know you feel awful about Johnny getting hurt by those bears. But sitting here, and bawling your eyes out over it, isn't going to fix anything. And I bet if you went to visit Johnny in the hospital, he'd tell you the exact same thing."

"I know," he said, wiping his eyes, and returning the hug; breathing in the scent of her perfume, as Ash kicked his door in. "Oh no."

"You asshole!" she yelled, grabbing Mike, and pinning him to the wall with her hand; pulling her phone out, and showing him a video someone had taken on their phone of Johnny getting hurt.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked.

"Lance sent it to me," she said. "You got Johnny shot."

"I know," he said. "And I'm sorry. I didn't know those bears were going to attack him like that. I told him to run, but-"

"Shut up!" she yelled at him, tears filling up her blue eyes. "This is your fault! If you didn't owe those bears money, none of this wouldn't have happened."

"You don't think I know that?" he said, feeling the tears roll down his face again. "You don't think I feel horrible for what happened to him tonight? For God's sake, at least I tried to help him after he got shot. All your ex-boyfriend did was record the entire thing, and probably put it online; he did nothing to help. So do me a favor and quit putting this on me. I know this is my fault, but sitting around and crying about it isn't going to change anything."

Feeling her let go of him to wipe her eyes, Mike dropped to the floor, and landed on the soft carpet of his room; wiping his eyes, as Jewel came over to see if he was okay.

"I really am sorry this had to happen," he said. "Trust me, if I could change things, I would."

"Come on," Jewel said, pulling him to his feet. "I think Johnny would want to see us when he wakes up. All of us."

~Meanwhile~

Please be okay, Johnny, Rosita begged silently, as she finished putting the last of her piglets to sleep.

She really couldn't see why anyone would want to hurt Johnny. He was so kind, and friendly; and he loved to help her out with her kids: if he had a free moment, he'd personally set aside a few hours just to play with them, and let her have some time to herself and get some extra housework done. Someone as pure, and kind as him didn't deserve to be gunned down like that. And when she saw the video online, she felt sick to her stomach, knowing Johnny was really hurt, and her kids will soon see it too, should it be in the news at any point in the next week.

"Mommy," her son-Casper-said, sitting up on his bed to look at her. "Is Johnny going to 'go away for a little while'?"

Feeling her breath catch in her throat, Rosita knew he must have seen the video too, and tried not to cry in front of her son, as she walked over to him, and sat down next to him; giving him a hug, and a kiss on the head.

"No," she said, half lying because she didn't know whether or not Johnny would make it; but she wanted to stay positive. "Johnny's going to be okay?"

"Then why are you crying?" her daughter-Tess-asked, leaning over the top bunk to look at her mom.

"I'm not," she lied, trying to keep the tears at bay, as she gave her daughter a kiss too. "Both of you go to sleep. You have to be up for school in the morning."

"But it's Friday," Tess said.

"Bedtime," she said, tucking them both back in.

"Okay," Casper said, as Tess got down from her bed; the two of them giving Rosita a hug.

"Love you, Mom," they both said.

"I love you too," she said, trying her best not to let her voice crack, as she tucked them both in, and made sure the night light was on before she turned off the lights and went downstairs into the living room where Norman was fast asleep in his chair; turning on the TV, and still seeing the same news clip from before when they first reported on the gunshot. And like before, they didn't give out the name of the 'Local Talent' that got injured; they kept that part anonymous. But she knew that probably by tomorrow, everyone would have seen the video, and the video would have made it to the news for even more views, and everyone would be crowded outside of Johnny's hospital room wanting to know if he was okay.

"Norman," she whispered, waking up her husband to move him to their room. "You fell asleep on the chair again."

Moving her husband up to their bedroom, she got him changed, and gave him a kiss on the cheek; going back downstairs, and just staying glued to the TV, and her phone. Checking for any changes in the news before she texted Buster:

Rosita: Hey.

Buster: Hi.

Rosita: You hear what happened to Johnny?

Buster: Yes, I was the one that called the police before he got shot. Mike, Ash and I are at the hospital now waiting on him.

Rosita: Is he going to be okay?

Buster: I don't know, he's still in surgery. But I'll keep you posted.

Rosita: Thank you.

Turning away from her phone, Rosita set it down beside her, and just broke down crying. As much as she wanted to be there with Buster, Mike, and Ash to see if Johnny will be okay; she couldn't just leave her kids. Especially when Norman was too heavy a sleeper to really tend to them.

Hearing her phone buzz on the table beside her, she picked it up, and saw another text, but this time from Mike.

Mike: Hey, I could use a pep talk. The anxiety with Johnny's killing me.

Rosita: Yeah, I know. I saw the video. How are you holding up?

Mike: Honestly, not very good. I feel awful for getting him hurt. Those bears were after me.

Rosita: Well, hopefully this teaches you not to make bets with people you can't pay back.

Mike: Oh, trust me. I learned my lesson. I just wish it wasn't this way.

"Mom," Rosita's other daughter-Tina-called from upstairs. "Jacob wet his bed again."

Rosita: I have to go. Keep your chin up, I doubt Johnny's going to be mad at you.

Putting her phone back down, Rosita wiped her eyes, and made sure she didn't look like she had just been crying before she got up to tend to her kids.