"I'm sorry that this is the reason why you are able to visit his workplace. You should be here seeing him work and talk with his patients. They love him very much. You shouldn't be seeing him-"

"Asleep..." Emilie murmurs, caressing her son's hand lying limply on his side.

Doctor DC bows her head. It hurt too much to continue watching his mother softly weep as she sits beside her son who has not woken up. She is staying with Doctor DC and Alya at their apartment for the time being. Gabriel had to go back to their hometown for work and to fix papers for Adrien.

The heart monitor beeps stagnant while the blood-oxygen meter continues to bleat above his bed. These are sounds that the doctor is so used to hearing, but why does she feel so nervous when it's the monitor attached to Adrien?

"It's been a week, doctor," Emilie says. She could not take her eyes off Adrien. "Is it normal for him to stay asleep this long?"

"Nurse Adrien suffered from a traumatic head injury during the accident..." The doctor purses her lips and confesses, "We don't know how long he might stay in a coma. It...It..." She could not find it in her to continue. Emilie's face was marred with too much pain. The doctor became scared that if she were to say more, his mother's heart would not be able to take it.

Emilie leans close to Adrien's face, gazing at him with misty eyes. "It's been a week, Adrien," she whispers to the sleeping man. "When will you wake up?"

Yes, this has been the longest week any of them had to go through.

And Marinette thought her longest week was when Adrien left the hospital after helping her.

This is something else because there is no certainty for anyone here, especially Adrien.

She has faced a lot of patients who were in similar situations as Adrien's. They were all in medically-induced comas with one goal: to protect their brains after facing whatever injury they had.

Some woke up after a few days, some after a few weeks or months...a few never woke up at all.

The doctor's mind has been in turmoil ever since she received news from her colleague that Adrien was placed into a medically-induced coma.

It did not help the frail mental condition of his parents when Doctor DC had to break the news to them.

"The doctors placed him in a medically-induced coma," she announces to Adrien's parents in a steady voice. Gabriel has his hands on Emilie's arms to keep her standing despite being wracked by silent sobs. Doctor DC called his parents immediately after her breakdown in the emergency department's break room. They came as soon as they could.

"Is it safe, doctor?" Gabriel asks. His clear voice did not betray the growing doubt in his heart.

"It is the only option now," She repeats the words the neurosurgeon told her hours ago. "This coma would eventually help his brain heal. At the same time, medication is being administered to him through IV injection to make sure that his blood pressure does not go lower than usual."

This time, Emilie looks up at the doctor. Her eyes have gone misty and red from her nonstop crying. "W-When will he wake up, doctor?"

Doctor DC almost broke down at that moment. Whether it could have been because of how his parents are reacting to this life-threatening situation for their son or if it could have been because of this helpless time they are in, the doctor was gradually losing herself and the professionality she has worked hard in obtaining throughout these rigorous years of being a doctor.

She swallowed down a huge and painful lump down her throat and musters to answer to the best of her ability, "I don't know." She hates saying those words. She hates relaying this kind of news. She hates that it's Adrien and his parents who are suffering so much now. "In the case of waking up, it is all up to Adrien."

To the doctor's surprise, Emilie only nodded, unable to reply.

"I don't want anything to dampen my spirits, but, my God, I feel like the world is against me," Emilie confesses in a voice above a whisper. It was as if she did not want to say it at first, but it would continue to eat at her if she never voiced it out.

The doctor continues to watch her caress her son's arm. Emilie still couldn't take her eyes off him.

"I understand..."

For the first time during this visit, Emilie shifts her gaze to the doctor who has been standing beside her this whole time. As they shared a brief silence, she smiles weakly at the doctor.

"I should get going. Visiting hours are almost over and the ICU nurses are strict." She faces Adrien one last time and presses a gentle kiss on his cold forehead. "I'll see you again tomorrow," she whispers before standing to collect her things.

"Alya prepared dinner back at the apartment."

"How nice of her,' Emilie says, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "Thank you. What about you?"

"My shift ends tomorrow morning. I'm staying here for the night."

"You should also find time to get some rest then, my dear."

"I will." Doctor DC throws her an assuring smile. "Thank you for looking out for me."

She softly waves her hand in dismissal. "It's nothing compared to what you have been doing to make sure Adrien is healing. Watch over him while you can, please."

"Of course."

Emilie leaves after that. The door of Adrien's room closes almost silently behind her.

Marinette dislikes this feeling - knowing that she's alone with her thoughts. There is always a way for the human mind to make one slowly begin to think of one's downfall, how it could happen, and the possibility of not stopping it. It could be like an old and unused building built on nothing but neglect and self-destruction.

How ironic, yet it is possible - entirely possible of happening.

She saunters to the chair and takes a seat on it. At least she does not have to care about visiting hours since being a doctor gives her a pass. She stares at Adrien, sleeping peacefully while his head rests on a pillow and the rest of his body is covered by a thin blanket the hospital provides to all patients. Marinette crosses her arms before her and jokes, "You know that this is not a free pass to skip work, right?"

She laughs to herself yet it dies in an instant when she gets nothing on Adrien's end. It's just the same beeps and bleats from the machines attached to him and him merely...lying there on the bed. No movement nor sound from him.

Her expression turns somber in a split second. She purses her lips and slips her fingers through Adrien's to press a kiss on his knuckles. "...For the past month, it's been a hundred percent," she murmurs against his hand, her eyes peering at his face. "To be honest, it could have reached a hundred percent even way before that." She slowly reaches a hand over his head to comb out his hair, the first thing that told her it was him back at the emergency room. "I was scared, Adrien, and yet you stayed patient...as you always are."

She does not want to relive that moment again.

The painful aching of her heart threatening to beat out of her chest when faced with Adrien's vulnerable state was too much for anyone to go through.

He was dying before her and she immediately lost all strength inside.

"My papa was taken away because of an accident...I didn't think it would happen to me again." Tears pooled in her eyes and her voice was becoming shaky. A heavy lump was forming in her throat again, making it hard to speak. "You...you must be in so much pain, Adrien," she cries, "And I don't want to be selfish anymore..." her voice trailed off.

The next words she wants to utter seem too painful to bear and too bewildering to say out loud. She can't even bring it up with Emilie or any of her colleagues.

But this is not about her now, it's about Adrien - it always has been. And he needs to hear this for his own sake of peace.

"If ever by some miracle you're hearing this Adrien," she begins, her heart feeling heavier by the second, "then I want you to know that you have a choice to rest." She suppresses a sob building up in her throat. "There is always the choice to wake up or not. A-And it's not up to us, Adrien, it's all up to you. So, if it's been unbearable," she wraps an arm around his torso, hugging him to her in the best way possible, "you can always pick the other choice. No one won't hate you for that." Tears wouldn't stop streaming down her face. "I wouldn't hate you for that..." She declares softly.

----------

Nine days have passed. In a matter of two hours, it will become 10 days.

Adrien has not shown any signs of waking up. His vitals have been the same all throughout and his neurosurgeon even told Marinette that the anesthesia should have worn off a few days ago.

Marinette knows, though, what this is all about now. It's the waiting game.

Waiting to see which one Adrien will pick.

It's her day off today so she spent the morning and afternoon with Emilie in Adrien's room in the ICU. They were able to bathe him and comb his hair properly so that he would not only look fresh but feel it too. After that they spent the rest of their time talking to each other, sharing stories with the notion that, in some way or another, Adrien was listening.

For dinner, Marinette offered to prepare it and Emilie volunteered to help.

It felt nice to prepare dinner with the help of someone other than Alya. She never made dinner when Adrien was with her, so there is this lingering feeling of whether or not this would be something she would be able to experience with him in the near future.

At least she'll be able to experience this with his mother aside from washing the dishes from when she stayed-no, unexpectedly visited their home.

"When did Alya say she's coming back?" Emilie asked, peeling the carrots before she dices them. Both she and Marinette are working beside each other on the kitchen counter.

"Later tonight," Marinette answers, placing a peeled potato on the cutting board to dice it as well. "She's out with Nurse Nino now. Apparently, it's date night."

Emilie breaks off into a tranquil smile. "How lovely. I remember Adrien's stories about him and Nino in nursing school. Adrien always made Nino sound like one of the nicest and coolest people to be with."

"Nurse Nino is really that kind of person. I think that's why the kids love him very much at pediatrics."

Emilie begins to dice the carrots. "He is also a great roommate for Adrien. Their personalities complement each other."

Marinette stops working to fully face Emilie. "Speaking of roommates, were you...able to go inside their apartment?" There was an edge of hesitancy in her voice. "Nurse Nino told me that you haven't gone in yet even if he gave you the spare key to visit at any time. May I know why?"

Emilie's smile drops ever so slightly, yet she tries to not make her countenance betray her innermost feelings. "It's not needed, my dear." A smile plays about her lips before proceeding to dice more carrots.

Marinette does not return to her task at hand. Patiently, she waits for Emilie to say more. She knows that Adrien's mother wants to utter more words - she just needs that push.

Suddenly, she stops moving the knife through the peeled carrots and lays it down on the cutting board. "It will also make things easier."

"...Easy?"

She tilts her head to look at Marinette. Tears have now welled up in her eyes. "Easy to let go if things go..." she chokes on her words a bit before she continues, "if they go wrong."

Seeing Emilie suddenly weeping, her whole body wracked with sobs, Marinette drops her knife on the chopping board and proceeds to move closer and wrap her arms around her.

"W-Would you think of me as a bad mother if I've thought of Adrien not making it through?" Emilie couldn't help but ask. Her words pierced through Marinette's heart. She didn't know what to say. She thought she was the only one with that thought.

What becomes of us if Adrien does not make it through?

"I mean...life still has to go on, right?" Emilie continues. Her tears are now soaking through Marinette's sleeve. "But why do I feel guilty feeling this way? Is this...does this mean that I'm giving up on Adrien?"

"No," Marinette immediately utters, finding her voice again and shaking her head. "No, it doesn't mean that." She brings a hand to the back of Emilie's head, gently caressing her hair in hopes of comfort.

"Then what does it mean?"

"...It means that you're simply human." Like me. "It is not a sin to have those doubts in your heart." Like mine.

"It hurts to wait...it hurts to wait," Emilie murmurs in their embrace.

Marinette would have said the same, but she chose to stay quiet.

----------

Doctors, aside from Doctor DC, have visited Adrien. Co-nurses also were able to visit too. Even Manon made time to see the nurse from the glass window of the ICU.

"Will Nurse Adrien be okay, doctor?" She asked Doctor DC one day.

"Let's keep hoping, Manon," she replied, forcing a smile. It's hard to tell someone to have hope when hers is slowly diminishing by the minute.

Doctor DC volunteered to take another 36-hour shift so that she could spend some hours of her night time with Adrien in the ICU.

"Nurse," she calls out to one of the nurses standing by their station in the middle of the department. They turn to face the doctor and answer, "Yes, doc?"

"Just to be sure of my count, how long has Patient Agreste been here in the ICU?"

The nurse grabs a list lying on the counter and checks for the patient's name. "14 days, doctor," they answer upon looking up at the doctor.

Doctor DC nods in understanding. She missed her count by a day. Two weeks in the ICU would be relatively considered a long visit. "Thank you," she murmurs and heads inside Adrien's room.

Again, she is greeted by the sounds of the machines, the dim lighting of the room, and the quiet sleeping man on the bed.

The doctor takes her time checking his vitals displayed on the monitor before her. Thankfully, they are stable, but they have been ever since he arrived here.

She had tried different methods of trying to wake Adrien up - first by pinching followed by a gentle shaking of the shoulders then calling out his name multiple times. Never has he reacted to any of her attempts and she has a feeling that his body chooses not to.

That thought hurts a lot.

And she might have to start truly embracing it.

She takes a seat beside his bed and lays her hand on his arm, caressing it up and down, sometimes mindlessly tracing patterns here and there as she continues to look at Adrien's peaceful face as he sleeps.

"Have you been dreaming this whole time, Adrien?" She whispers, "What is in your dreams? Are you dreaming of work?" She chuckles softly. "You shouldn't be thinking about work so much. It will make you grow old faster. And I don't want you to grow old just yet." She leans forward, clasping both hands around his limp hand. "We have our whole lives ahead of us, Adrien...if you want that. I will hold your hand forever...if you want that."

It is only if you want that life.

"Again," she continues, "it is all up to you..."

The silence is something that she has grown accustomed to.

Still, she hopes that somehow he'll finally give her an answer.

She didn't expect an answer now though.

The doctor freezes for a moment when she first mistakes his fingers moving. No, that can't be. She must have accidentally moved his fingers within her hold-

Her breath hitches in her throat.

She felt his fingers twitch. She knows that it isn't her mistake.

They truly moved on their own.

Doctor DC grows frantic, darting her eyes between Adrien's face and the hand she is holding. "A-Adrien?" She breathes out.

His fingers twitch again. This time with more movement. It brings the doctor to her feet. "Adrien?" She calls him out, her voice slightly raised.

And she watched with wide eyes as his eyelids gingerly flutter open for the first time in 14 days.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He's awake♡

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

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