Over in the booth, Cory and Tara sit together. Everyone can't help but smile at the sight that Cory is home permanently.

"I can't believe you're here! Like, for real, are you here to stay? Or are you just trying to fool us again?" Tara asks, refusing to let go.

Cory, still nearly out of breath from the embrace that sent them crashing onto the floor, replies, "No, I am home for good. My body is still healing, and I hurt like something awful."

That's when Tara sees she left him in pain at the expense of instant gratification. First, she slightly hunkers in the seat. Then, she tilts her head to relax on Cory's shoulder.

"Who cares? You are home! I was lost for days when I heard what had happened. Rick here barely slept and didn't leave for the longest time," says as Rick blushes.

"Yeah, I mean, yeah, we um, had our differences back in the day. But, that being left back then, you are still like my brother. I love ya like one, Core. These people here didn't give up on me. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them and Kay's parents." Rick says as he wipes away a tear in the corner of his eye.

Their server gives them a few more minutes to catch up before he makes himself known. Then, when he makes his way over to the table, he flips his notepad open.

"Hello again, my name is Gabriel. I'll be your server, gentlemen. Another round, ladies? Gentlemen, what can I get for you?" The African American male asks with his light blue-colored eyes locked on Cory.

"I'll have a Pepsi," Rick orders.

"I'll take the same, thank you, sir," Cory says.

"Done, now do we know what we would like to eat, or are we just enjoying drinks this evening?"

"Give us a few moments, please. My son just arrived home from the service," Lorrie announces, thrilled about her son being home.

Signaled with a nod, Gabriel walks away with a smirk.

"Nice guy, but a little weird if you ask me," Olivia mentions, then sip her drink.

Out of nowhere, Tara gives Cory another tight squeeze, and he cries out in pain all over again. Finally, she releases her grip, and Cory falls to his side, holding his ribs.

"Cory! I am so sorry!" Tara cries out a hand over her mouth.

"It's okay, Tara. I'm going outside to get some air. I'm not mad, I promise, but I need some air."

Rick helps Cory from his seat and accompanies him outside. When the door shuts behind them, Cory leans against the wall trying to get in a deep breath.

"Are you okay?" Rick asks.

"It hurts like a son of a bitch. I know that Tara didn't mean to do it, but my body is thrashed."

Cory checks to make sure the coast is clear and lifts his shirt, and Rick is shocked to see the bandages around Cory's torso. Unfortunately, Cory can't keep his shirt up for long, thanks to the pain pulsing through his body, and drops his shirt.

Back inside, Tara feels terrible, and it shows on her face.

"Sweetheart, you didn't mean to hurt him. Cory's going to be hurting for a little while. So maybe it's best if you try to contain yourself for a bit. We're all excited he's home, but Cory needs time to heal and figure things out. He went through Hell, and I'm sure of that much," Olivia says.

After wiping away a few tears, Tara nearly curls her knees to her chest when Cory and Rick return to the table.

"Are you okay?" Lorraine asks.

"I'm fine, mom; I just needed some air. Tara, I'm not angry. Since surgery, my body has been aching; add in the travel on a plane that makes it easy to rattle me," Cory says to make Tara feel better.

Cory takes his place beside Tara while Rick gets back in his chair with a smirk on his face.

With everyone settled in and food finally ordered, the reunion continues with laughs and smiles until the end, which is when things take an unexpected turn.

"Well, I guess we've had about as much fun as can be expected. But, mom, if you wouldn't mind running me home so I can have the sitter bring CJ back to Cory and me," Tara says with a slight slur to her words from all the alcohol.

Cory stops dead in his tracks and waits for Tara to turn around before saying, "I'm not going back with you tonight. I'm staying with Rick tonight. I have things that need to be done and lined out, and right now, I don't think CJ would understand why I can't play or romp around like I should be able to do with him."

Stunned by his decision to stay with his best friend, Tara dips her head.

"I understand. Don't shut us out, though, especially our son. Cory Junior needs you, and one of these days, you need to sign his birth certificate."

Cory tugs on Tara to bring her close and wraps his arms around her shoulders as they embrace in a kiss. Everyone coos and awes, but the love birds pay them no attention as they try to forge a new bond.

Free from the kiss, Cory looks into Tara's eyes and sees a new universe beginning to form. The relief that Tara feels shows in her eyes. The instant she saw Cory, everything else other than their son melted away at that moment. The sound of the HVAC system fades away, and the smells of alcohol and deep-fried foods don't exist; as reality settles in for Tara, she feels the deepest depths of her heart come back to life as she stares into Cory's eyes.

The party splits into two vehicles. Cory and Rick return to a small one-bedroom apartment in RiverCreek while Tara heads to get CJ. Once she's home and puts her son to bed, Tara goes to her bedroom and hits her knees to pray as she cries with joy in her prayer.

In RiverCreek, Cory stretches out on Rick's couch. As he sinks into the musky cushions, Rick comes over with two beers in his hand.

"Welcome home, my brother. You had us all worried when that attack happened."

Cory sits up to drink the beer and makes something known only to Rick, "I thought I was going to die. I was on that floor, bleeding out. There was a point that I was beginning to blackout, but then I heard Sabrina whisper to me, and I knew I had to fight. That's when I heard the intruders come over to us and take Sabrina into another room, and she started screaming and begging for her life. I tried to move, but my body felt like it weighed about a thousand pounds."

Rick looks over to see Cory express a somber stare in his eyes. Unsure of what to say, he sits there, giving Cory time to replay the scene in his mind.

Silence fills the room until Rick's phone rings, "Hello."

"Hey, it's Mrs. Dubois. I wanted to let you and Cory know that I made it home. How are things so far? Is everything okay?"

"Oh yeah. We're chillin' and catchin' up. I popped a couple of bottles, and now it's chill and chat. Need to talk to Core?" Rick says.

The look on Cory's face says it all. His mouth is slightly open, with his eyes as big as a barn owl.

"Nah. I'm happy you boys are able to connect. Go have fun, but call me if either of you needs anything."

"Will do, Mrs. Dubois. Have a good night."

Rick hangs up his phone and gets to his feet to turn on the radio and keeps the volume low. Cory doesn't waste time drinking his beer and places the bottle on the end table.

The guys sit around, allowing the music to be their conversation. So it goes on until around two in the morning. When Rick starts yawning and takes their empty bottles to the trashcan in the kitchen. Rick sees that Cory is lying down on the couch, and that's when he turns off the radio.

"I'm going to hit the hay. I'll see you in the morning. I'll take the day so we can get you set up. If you need to stay with your mom for a more comfortable place to crash, I totally get it," Rick says while he stands at the end of the couch.

"I'll wait and see. Right now, I want to rest and heal. Then, after I feel like I can move without blinding pain, that's when I'll figure out my next move, but good night brother."

Cory pulls a throw blanket off the top of the couch and lies with an arm over his eyes. Finally, Rick takes the hint and walks back to his bedroom. It doesn't take long for the light to go out, and Rick quickly falls asleep.

A few hours later, Cory begins to toss and turn on the couch. Moments from the day he was nearly killed begin to bounce in his mind.

"Tell me now, American swine, or I will kill you!" He continues to yell with an AK-47 pointed between her eyes.

"I-I-I-I don't know what you're saying. I'm sorry, I-I-I don't speak your language. Please don't kill me!" She begs with her eyes closed.

He continues to scream in Arabic, unable to speak a single word of English. Finally, when out of nowhere, Cory tackles the gunman and struggles to get the weapon. The scuffle is intense, but Cory uses his position to push the weapon straight into the assailant's chest, getting it from his grip.

Able to hold one of the Taliban fighters, Cory has him get to his feet and turn around to head out where more of them have gathered the hospital staff. When Cory has the man step out, he calls out to get his cohort's attention.

"Weapons down, or I will shoot him!" Cory orders trying to keep himself hidden behind the man.

Within seconds they open fire, spraying their own man with bullets. Cory leaps backward to get out of the line of fire and tries to fire back, but the clip attached to the AK-47 doesn't have much ammo. After the shooting stops, Cory rushes the men hoping the other soldiers will assist in resistance.

"Cory, stop!" One of the doctors calls out and then has his face hit with the butt of an AK-47. Cory is shot a couple of times and left lying on the floor, beginning to gasp for air.

"Cory, hey Cory, it's Sabrina. Please say you're alive." She whispers while nudging his shoulder.

She listens as he groans just enough to be heard.

"Hang in there; I'm going to sneak to the other room and get some bandages to stop the bleeding. Don't die on me!" She says while he struggles to breathe.

As she darts from the room, Sabrina quickly gets pressure gauze and bandages. Before the men holding them hostage return from the front of the hospital. She treats Cory, but they find out what she's doing and stop her dead in her tracks before finishing.

"Please let me help my friend! He doesn't deserve to die; he has a little boy back home. Cory needs to be with his son." Sabrina pleads in English.

The plea goes unheard as they point the barrel of their weapons and motion for her to head into the other room.

"Don't you hurt her, or I'll kill you!" One of the doctors calls out as he gets to his feet.

The men laugh as the one leading them opens fire, killing the doctor and unloading the entire clip into his torso.

"Dumb American fool!" The hostage leader says, "Take the woman into that room there and have your way with her after I have her first. Stupid infidels, not having armed guards here. How stupid can they be?" He mumbles as his men laugh and escort Sabrina into the other room.

Cory begins to cry out enough that Rick, wearing a pair of basketball shorts and a gray muscle shirt, rushes into the living room.

"Cory! Cory! Wake up, bruh! It's only a dream!" Rick screams as he shakes Cory gently, holding Cory by the shoulders.

It takes a few moments to gain his whereabouts, but Cory, pale all over and covered in sweat, forces himself to sit up, breaks away from Rick, and shakes from head to toe.

"Dear God. I'm sorry I woke you up," Cory says with his hands clasped over his nose and mouth, trying to control the erratic breathing.

"It's all good; you're home. You're here, safe with me. I still got your back. So, relax, Core, you're not in danger anymore," Rick says to reassure Cory's panicked state of mind.

As his heart rate begins to settle back to normal, Cory keeps his eyes shut.

"I'm okay, I promise. Go back to bed, Rick. I'll watch a movie or something," Cory tells Rick, but Rick refuses to move at first.

"No way in Hell. I'm going to sit in my chair and watch a movie with you. I can't understand what you saw or felt over there, but I ain't about to abandon my best friend, who is also my brother. If you need to watch a movie, then I need to watch it too. You're not going to suffer through this alone."

Rick hands over the remote control to Cory, and within a few minutes, they find a comedy movie and watch it until the sun comes up. Cory finally falls asleep, and Rick sits there trying to figure out a way to help Cory and prays in silence.