For the second time in less than a week, Eli found himself waking up in a hospital bed. It wasn't what he would consider the best way to wake up. Especially when the person staring down at him from the seat next to his bed was his mother.

It was enough to remind him of several things he would rather were just some particularly vivid nightmare.

"Er, hi Ma." Eli didn't think that was the best thing to say, but he was honestly at a loss.

He probably would have thought of something better if he knew she was going to look at him like she was on the verge of a heart attack and then call the doctor. Eli hated dealing with doctors almost as much as Matthew did.

The doctor was nice enough to explain to him just how lucky he was to not be dead. She said it in a lot nicer way, but that was the gist of it. There were other details Eli missed simply because he was too damn tired to care. As far as he was concerned, he was alive and that was good enough.

Also, he kind of just wanted the doctor to go away.

When she finally did, he changed his mind and wanted her to come back because now it was just him and his mother. Eli was suddenly very aware he had a lot of explaining to do.

"How are you feeling?" his mother asked, looking even paler than usual in the overly bright hospital room. Eli wondered just how many grey hairs he'd given his poor mother in the span of a week.

"I'm alright, don't feel too bad." Whatever they'd given him was amazing because Eli wasn't in excruciating pain. "What about you? Are you okay?" His mother actually laughed at that.

"Honey, you're the one who took a beating," she said, looking better now that she knew Eli wasn't in danger of dying. Some of the tension in her shoulders disappeared and the tight lines around her eyes softened once it was clear Eli would be fine. It was a welcome change.

"Where's Matthew?" Eli asked, suddenly aware that he was nowhere to be seen. Which was weird for the man whose hobby was stalking Eli. That was clearly the wrong thing to say, if his mother's frown was anything to go by.

"He's around," was her vague answer. Understandably, Eli wasn't convinced. Mostly because he knew Matthew well enough to know it wasn't normal for him to not be near Eli when he'd almost died.

"Around where?" Eli asked, and didn't miss the way his mother's lips thinned in displeasure.

"Outside. I thought it would be best for him to stay away for a while."

If Eli weren't feeling absolutely exhausted, he might have facepalmed. At the moment, he was more worried about how miserable Matthew must be at the moment.

"I'd rather he not worry I'm dying," Eli said in the flattest tone he could manage.

"I'll tell him you're fine." He wasn't surprised his mother wasn't budging on that particular issue.

"Or, he could come in."

For a moment, Eli and his mother just stared at each other, both trying to make the other give up with only the power of their glare. In the end—and probably because he got a lot more practice thanks to Matthew—it was Eli who prevailed.

"He almost got you killed!" his mother hissed, trying not to raise her voice.

"No, the asshole who broke in almost got me killed."

"You know what I mean! And why didn't you tell me?" There really was no need for her to elaborate on what she meant. Eli just asked her to because he felt like being a jerk.

"About what, mother?" He thought it was interesting how his mother's face got redder as her anger levels climbed. Eli rolled his eyes, but figured it would be best for his continued health to not annoy her much more. "Sorry I didn't mention Matthew's hobby during our Christmas call. Didn't know whether to tell you after we talked about how I'm horrible for never visiting, or before we reminisced on that time a mall Santa dropped me."

Maybe if Eli weren't so tired and just generally done with everything, he would have been less snarky with his mother. Maybe.

"How can you be with someone who can get you killed?"

"I thought you liked him."

"I take it back! And I was wrong, you have horrible taste in men."

"Well, that's just another thing I inherited from you," Eli pointed out. It was true enough that his mother didn't even bother to argue that particular point. Eli sighed at the look his mother was giving him. Clearly, she wasn't going to drop it so easily. "Ma, I know you mean well, but I don't really care. I'm not leaving the idiot."

Eli would probably hear about his attitude later—most likely when he wasn't lying on a hospital bed—but he really had no choice this time. As much as he could understand his mother's concern, this was one thing he wouldn't be budging on. She seemed to understand that much if the tired sigh she let out was anything to go by.

"I'll tell him to come in," she said, though she definitely didn't sound happy about it. "And I still expect an explanation on how you got into this mess." Eli wasn't surprised to hear that. He was just relieved to see his mother leave the room.

But not nearly as relieved as Matthew looked when he walked in.

To put it simply, he looked like shit. His face was paler than Eli had seen in a while, and the way his messy dark hair hung limply over his brow didn't help. Equally messy, were his clothes. They looked like he'd just thrown on the first thing he could find—which, in all fairness, was probably exactly what Matthew had done. 

Eli didn't even have a chance to say anything before Matthew was rushing over to him. Before he knew what was happening, Matthew was holding him as best as he could manage without moving Eli too much. And so Eli stayed still, doing his best to process things as Matthew was practically half lying on top of him.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Matthew said, breath ghosting over Eli's neck.

"I'm fine," Eli muttered, face warm and some part of him glad that Matthew cared so much. "But I gotta say, getting stabbed sucks. How the fuck did you not quit after the first stabbing?" So far, Eli had gotten shot, stabbed and beaten more often than he'd like. How Matthew kept going when he had it worse was beyond him.

Matthew snorted as he drew back from Eli. Something in his expression seemed lighter, like a weight had been lifted off him. That spark of what Eli always claimed was insanity, back in Matthew's eyes. He still looked like shit.

"You were lucky. The doctor said there wasn't any serious damage and the bleeding was kept to a minimum because the knife wasn't removed." Eli faintly recalled the doctor mentioning something like that. He supposed he really should have been paying more attention. Matthew settled into the seat next to the bed.

"Guess movies taught me something useful after all." Matthew rolled his eyes. "So, when can I go home? And how's Matt? Am I gonna have to avenge him?" Matthew snorted at the last bit.

"He's fine, just cranky and he probably misses you. You can go home in a couple of days. Don't look at me like that," Matthew added as Eli made it clear he didn't want to stick around for days. "It's for the best. The doctors will keep an eye on you so at least you can't get into any more trouble."

"You say that like I ask random crooks to break in and beat the crap outta me."

"What I mean, is that you'll be safer here than at home. Especially with me leaving at night," Matthew said, sighing as he leaned back in his seat.

Obviously, Matthew wasn't happy to leave Eli alone. Honestly, Eli wished he wouldn't. At least not for a while. His whole body ached and just thinking about how close he came to dying made a spike of fear shoot through his body. He didn't want to know what would have happened to him and his mother if Matthew hadn't shown up.

"It's a good thing you got back early," Eli said, wondering about that. "Why did you head back so soon?"

Matthew looked like he'd been dreading the question. His lips thinned, his body tense as he reached into his pocket. A second later, Eli was staring at the small picture of himself on his bus pass—the one he'd lost the night he'd gotten mugged.

The night some unknown person had driven Eli's attacker away.

"I found it in the warehouse while I was looking around. They must have left it just before I showed up." Matthew kept his gaze fixed on Eli, as the redhead grabbed the pass and looked it over. It wasn't damaged in the least, instead looking as if it had just been pulled out of Eli's wallet. "Didn't you lose it when you got mugged?"

"Well, yeah, but the guy who mugged me looked like an idiot." Eli had a hard time believing the guy would be involved. He wasn't even that good of a mugger. And then, he recalled his mysterious saviour. "Oh, but there was someone else there, some guy. They drove the mugger away. . ." Eli trailed off, not liking the look on Matthew's face.

"There was someone else there?" Matthew asked, gaze sharp. Eli was reminded of how intimidating he could look when he wanted to and was suddenly dreading answering. "And you didn't think you should mention it?"

"I had a concussion!"

"A mild concussion."

Wow, fucking rude, Eli thought. Matthew honestly didn't have to point that out.

"I didn't even get a good look at the guy! For all I knew it was some hallucination. I was out of it," Eli huffed, sinking back into his bed. Matthew just sighed, head dropping onto his hands as he probably struggled to find the patience to deal with Eli. "Look, I meant to tell you. There was just a lot going on." Mostly his mother, but also his concussion. Matthew finally looked up at him, lips quirking into a sort of half smile.

"Still would have been nice of you to mention it," he said, but didn't look half as annoyed anymore. For the most part, he just looked tired. Then again, that was kind of his default setting. "Do you remember anything about the guy? Did he say anything?"

"No, just shoved the mugger away. Er, he told the guy to leave, that was it. Oh, he was pretty big. Actually thought it was you for a moment."

"Are you calling me fat?" Eli's glare was enough to shut Matthew up.

"Then he just left." Just recalling that much was hard enough. The fact that Eli had been dealing with a concussion after that probably wasn't of any help. Matthew seemed to understand that, since he stopped complaining and instead took on a more thoughtful look. "Do you really think that was the same stabby guy?"

Matthew snorted at Eli's improvised name for his attacker. Which was good. Better than having him look like he was about to collapse. Granted, what better place to collapse than a hospital?

"Most likely. Probably took that from your wallet before leaving." He motioned to the pass still in Eli's hand.

As Eli glanced down at it, a thought crossed his mind. One that he probably should have considered earlier—although he was still pretty out of it.

"If he knows who I am, does that mean he knows about you?" The thought made dread build inside of him, something that must have shown on his face given Matthew's comforting hand resting over his own.

"It'll be fine," Matthew said, and Eli didn't feel all that reassured. Especially because he just knew that it meant Matthew would be chasing after a particularly murderous enemy.

"What does this guy even want? Didn't he work for Fisk?"

"There's a chance he's still under contract. Fisk does seem like the vengeful type," Matthew said with a shrug. Eli didn't think he looked worried enough. "Or it could just be personal. He did go after you. The warehouse was just a way to get my attention."

"Is that why he tried to kill me?" Eli didn't know how he felt about it just being a ploy to grab Matthew's attention. Mostly, he just thought it was fucking rude.

"I don't think he tried to kill you."

"He stabbed me."

"And missed any vital point that would have actually killed you. The guy knew what he was doing." That wasn't as reassuring as knowing the guy didn't actually mean to kill Eli should have been. Especially when Matthew said it in an unnecessarily murderous tone.

"Oh, well then, thank fuck I was stabbed by a professional." At least that managed to make Matthew snicker. "Seriously though, what are we going to do about it?"

"We aren't doing anything," Matthew said. Eli wasn't really surprised, just mildly pissed. "You're staying here and focusing on resting."

"I mean, not like I have any choice," Eli muttered, very much wishing he could go home. He'd always hated hospitals. The first time he'd woken up in one had probably been the worst night of his life.

"You sure don't," Matthew sounded irritatingly chipper. Of course, Eli threw the best glare he could muster his way. "But, if it makes you feel any better, your friends will be visiting tomorrow."

"That really doesn't help." Eli didn't want to think about what they would be like. As much as he liked his friends, they could be a lot to deal with.

"Well, I tried." He really hadn't. Apparently, he was feeling relieved enough about Eli being alive to annoy the hell out of the redhead.

"Yeah, well, have fun staying in the same apartment as my mother." That was enough to wipe the smile off of Matthew's face. He actually groaned at the reminder. Eli wondered just how bad his mother was being. "That bad, huh?"

"She hates me," Matthew said, a defeated sort of slump to his shoulders. "I think she actually would have killed me with her bare hands if it weren't for us being in a hospital." Eli was only mildly disturbed at how impressed Matthew sounded.

"She doesn't hate you. Well, not you you. Just, you know," Eli didn't really know. He was hoping his poor attempts would help, but was seriously starting to doubt it.

"It's fine," Matthew said, mouth quirking up into a little smile even though his eyes told a completely different story. "I get it. She just worries about you."

"If it helps, I told her I'm not leaving you," Eli would most likely pay for that with a lot of nagging. He figured it was worth it, with the way Matthew seemed to brighten.

"That does help," Matthew said, humor coloring his tone.

Then, he leaned over and before Eli knew it, he could feel Matthew's lips pressing against his own. Their warmth seemed to travel through the redhead's body as the soft, lingering kiss continued. Eli could feel Matthew's messy hair tickling his skin as fingers brushed his face. All too soon, it was over, and Eli suddenly wished the room wasn't so brightly lit because his face was burning.

"I should go, let you rest," Matthew said, sounding very reluctant to do so. "I promise when you get out of here we can go on that date I owe you."

"You owe me several." Seventeen, to be precise, but Eli didn't think that was the right time to mention it.

"Well, then I guess I have a lot of date plans to go over."

Matthew left soon after, and Eli would have probably been more upset if he hadn't been exhausted enough that he fell asleep not long after that. Just as he was on the cusp of sleep, he made a note to ask Matthew to bring him a taser from his collection.

Just in case. 

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Oh look, no one died! Am I not the nicest person ever? ( ˘͈ ᵕ ˘͈♡)

No guarantees on the next chapter though, mostly because I don't remember what I wrote. :'D It'll be a surprise. Anyway, as always, thanks for reading. I love reading your thoughts even when you guys are mean to me because I've emotionally tortured you. As Marie Kondo says, it brings me joy. 

Next chapter will be up on Friday, October 9th. In the meantime, check out my stories maybe? Yes? Or you can now curse my name through twitter and/or instagram(same username as here) and  I also have a DeviantArt account I made seven years ago but just found and am now using and I do art commissions now! So yes, there are many ways to stalk me online. Isn't it neat? :D

Thanks for reading and stay safe everyone!