Richie's point of view

Everything was good. I thought the great times would hold on forever. But I was wrong, so damn wrong.

We had finished the tour and were back at our little apartments which we called home. Mine was cold and dirty, it was just like I had left it. After I had picked up all the dirty clothes from the floor and my suitcase, I brought them downstairs to wash them. In the basement I threw everything in the laundry and studied the different buttons on it. I really didn't know how to wash because, I know it sounds silly, my mom washed everything for me and I never watched her doing it. I leaned against the cool wall and heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "Hey Richie", my neighbor Rosemary greeted me and got to the laundry next to mine. She was carrying a big bag too. "Um, I'm sorry Rosie, but can you show me how this works?", I asked her nervously and embarrassment filled my body at the look she gave me. "Yeah...why not...", she finally said to break the awkward silence which had formed between us. She went to my laundry and showed me step by step what I had to do and let me finally do it by myself. I was pretty easy. Stupid, stupid Richard, I thought to myself and leaned back against the wall again as I got it working. Rosie just stood there beside me and watched the clothes covering with suds and being washed back off with water. We put our clothes into the dryer after a couple of minutes and I glanced over at her a couple of times, watching the smile that had formed on her face. I realized how much I missed my little Jonnyboy. Everything felt so empty without his awful jokes and the way he made me blush all the time. I really decided to ask him if he wanted to move in with me tomorrow. Suddenly Rosie tapped my shoulder and said my full name to get my attention. I hated it to be called Richard, and she knew that. "What?", I said, already pissed. "Your clothes are ready", she replied and got back to her laundry. I finally got my clothes out of the dryer and carried them back to my apartment. Just when I was done with folding them and putting them into my wardrobe, the telephone began to ring. Who would call me now?

I picked it up, a little pissed off because I wanted to rest a little. "Sambora?", I asked bored. "R-richie?", Tico sobbed from the other side. Tico normally never sobbed. "What's up Tic? Why are you crying?", I asked, trying to calm him down. "It's Jon... we're at the hospital right now...hurry up and come over...", was all I could understand. "Which hospital?" "The one in my street", Tic replied and sobbed again. I quickly hung up and ran out of the apartment, filled with confusion and fear. My little angel was in the hospital and I didn't know why. I fumbled with my car keys and finally drove off to the hospital. In the car I cried a little in worry and thought about what could have happened. The more I thought about it, the more worried I was. I finally stormed into the hospital, desperately running to the woman on the counter. "Is everything ok with you mister?", she asked me and I quickly nodded. "Can I have the room access for John Bongiovi?", I asked worried out of my mind. "Second floor, room 15.4", she replied and I ran upstairs. When I arrived on the second floor, I saw Tico sitting on some plastic chair, his face buried in his hands. "Hey Tic, what happened?", I asked him worried and fearful. "J-jon and I were walking down the street and we crossed it. Jon got hit by a car", he sobbed and my eyes widened. "Rich, they don't know if he will make it", he whispered and that was when I started to cry too. Why wasn't I there to protect him? It was my fault, all my fault. "C-can I see him?", was all I could say between my sobs. "Ask the nurse", he replied, still crying in his own world. I nodded and waited for the nurse to come out of Jonny's room. When she was out, I stood up and got over to her. "Hello can I see Jon please?", I begged, tears still streaming down my face. "Only if you are quiet, we got him sleeping. And it's still not clear if he will make it through the night", she replied and I gulped at her last words. I finally opened the door quietly and gasped at the sight.

Jonny's face was extremely pale and his upper arms were connected to many machines, which probably kept him alive. One of his legs was buried in a plaster cast and so was one of his forearms. His eyes were closed and his lips were slightly blue. I tiptoed to the chair which stood next to the bed and sat down. His one hand hadn't got any needles in it, so I carefully took it in mine and looked at his face. His eyes were still closed, what if they'd never open again? Sobs and tears escaped me at the thought. I couldn't live without him. He was the fire in my life and the reason I was alive. I just sat there next to him and cried my eyes out, hoping he would open his. After an hour or something like that I stood up and went to the window, looking at the now dark, quiet street. "R-rich", I suddenly heard from behind me and turned around as fast as I could. Jonny had turned his head towards me, but still his eyes were closed. I sat back down on the chair and took his hand again carefully. Suddenly I noticed, that he squeezed my hand lightly, so he was alive. Thank God! I carefully caressed his soft blonde locks and looked at his face once again. Then I began talking to him. "Hey my little angel, I'll be there for you all the time. I'll never go away from you again, okay? I'll never let something like that happen to you again and protect you forever. I love you babe, til the end of time", I whispered and started to sob again, because I got no response. "Richie...", he suddenly whispered silently and gave my hand a light squeeze again. "I'm right here babe, I'm here", I whispered between my sobs and softly stroked the top of his hand with my thumb. "L-love you...", he whispered and my heart jumped at his words. All I wanted was one hug and one kiss. And I wanted to see his eyes for one last time. Suddenly the door opened quietly and the nurse came in again. "Hello Mr..." "Sambora" "Hello Mr Sambora, I need to tell you, that you have to leave now, only family members are allowed in here now", she said and I gulped. "Is there no way I could stay by him?", I asked desperately and gulped. "If you were his girlfriend, maybe, but friends are not allowed", she replied again. "I'm not his friend, I'm his boyfriend", I whispered and squeezed Jonny's hand a little tighter. "Oh... I'm sorry Mr Sambora, then I'll get a bed for you in here", she said, obviously slightly confused. "Thank you, but you can call me Richie if you want", I said and smiled weakly at her. "Ok Richie, maybe you wanna go and get yourself some clothes?", she suggested and I nodded, carefully placing a kiss on Jonny's hand before I let go of it. The nurse watched me as I said Jonny that I love him and will be back soon. When I turned around to leave, the nurse smiled at me and followed me out. "That was really cute Richie", she said and I blushed a little. Then I saw Tic, still sitting on that plastic chair, but obviously sleeping. I quickly went over to him and shook him til he was awake. "Tic you can go home, I'll sleep in Jonny's room tonight and take care of him", I said and he nodded sleepily, got up and followed me to the exit of the hospital. I hurried home and got a few things, including one T-shirt Jonny gave me the night after the last show in the tourbus. I closed my eyes for a moment, remembering that night full with loving kisses and heated make out sessions. A huge sigh escaped me at the thought of his warm lips on mine and his warm skin touching mine. I finally forced myself to stop dreaming and hurried back to the hospital.

When I arrived in Jonny's room, I noticed a second bed next to Jonny's and a letter laying on it. It said:
Dear Richie,
Here's the bed for you. You can use the bathroom in Jon's room and eat something out of the fridge. If Jon wakes up, please calm him down and try to get him sleeping again. If he acts weard, please call me. My phone number is written down on the back of this sheet. Have a peaceful rest,
Nancy the nurse
I smiled as I read it and glanced over at my angel. He was still sleeping, but his lips were much redder than before. So red, that they got me weaker than weak. I wanted a kiss, so badly that a tear rolled down my cheek. His eyes were still closed but I saw his tounge sliding over his lips, making them glisten. "Jonnybabe, why are you doing this to me?", I sighed and got on my bed next to him. I saw him smirking, so he must have heard what I said. "Jonny, you know what you are doing to me, right?", I whispered and he smirked even more. Bad babe. I kissed his hand and went to the bathroom to get myself ready. As I saw myself in the mirror, my eyes widened a little. My hair was a mess, there were dark circles under my eyes and still there were dried tears on my cheeks. I sighed and washed my face, brushed my teeth and took off my shirt. I then got back to Jon and put on the shirt he gave me in the night after the last show. When I had taken off my pants, I laid down in my bed, facing Jonny. He had turned to me too and I slowly lifted my hand to stroke his cheek. I noticed how he relaxed and suddenly felt his warm hand on top of mine, brushing his thumb over mine. "Are you awake Jon?", I whispered and lifted my head a little. "Yes Rich", he whispered with a weak voice and slowly opened his ocean blue eyes. A stone fell from my heart as I looked into them and butterflies rushed through my body. God, only he could make me feel that way. "How do you feel?", I asked him, starting to caress his locks with my other hand. "Not really good, but if you do me a little favor, I would feel much better", he whispered again. "What can I do for you?", I asked back, ready to get out of the bed and get him a glass of water or something like that. "Kiss me babe", he finally whispered and heat rushed through my body. "If that's what you want...", I replied and leaned over him, placing my hands on the right and left side next to his head and leaning a little in. Now I could see his blue eyes perfectly, they were filled with admiration and lust. I smiled and finally connected his soft lips to mine, seeing him shutting his eyes before I shut mine too. When he started to caress my tounge with his, shivers ran down my spine and I found myself addicted to his warm lips once again. He soon moaned weakly in my mouth and started to mess up my hair with his hand that wasn't on the broken arm. His thumb lightly touched my cheek and my heart started to race even more. We finally parted our lips panting and just looked into each other's eyes. "Thank you Richiebabe, now I'm feeling much better", he whispered and pecked my cheek again. "I'll do everything for you babe", I replied and touched his cheek with my fingertips lovingly. "And I wanna ask you something too", I added, "Do you want to move in with me?" His eyes widened and a blush crept up his cheeks. "Of course Rich, I would love to", he finally whispered and I started to smile widely. "Is this hurting much?", I asked him after a while and pointed at his plaster casts. "It's okay, the headache is the worst", he replied and glared at me in despair. "My poor babe", I whispered and pecked his cheek lovingly. "Um, Rich?" "Yeah Jon?" "Can you take that shirt off for me please?", he whispered and I raised one eyebrow. "Please, I would do it by myself if I could", he added, causing me to chuckle and pull the shirt over my head. The fire lit up in his eyes and they wandered over my chest in desire, aching for touch. His warm fingers finally ran over my skin, causing my whole body to tingle. I closed my eyes and just concentrated on his touch, gripping onto Jonny's pillow. When I opened them again, Jonny looked me right in the eyes, a big smile on his face. "What?", I asked curiously and stroked his cheek. "You're just so cute and adorable when you relax", he whispered, "and I'm hooked on your eyelashes", he added mumbling and quickly looked down. I laid two fingers under his chin and lifted it up, forcing him to look into my eyes. "I'm glad to hear something like this from your mouth", I said and winked extremely exaggerated, making him blush in a deep red. "So babe, I think you need to sleep now", I whispered and kissed him gently for one last time, before laying down on my own bed again. "Goodnight", he whispered and searched my hand with his, finally finding and holding it. "Goodnight babe", I replied and we finally drifted off to sleep, hand in hand.