Heath was at home, he knew that much. He could tell because the air smelt of sweetgrass, horses and his mother's perfume. The feel of the fabric, the lumpiness of the pillow, they were familiar too. So he was at home, that was good.

The only other thing Heath was certain of was that he could no longer move. His body didn't respond to his commands to open his eyes or lift his head. The only bodily awareness he had was that there was sharp pain slicing through his left leg, as well as the fogginess he often felt when on anesthetics.

Heath couldn't open his eyes, but he could hear. What exactly he was hearing, he couldn't tell. It was something jumbled, like a person who was trying to talk to him while under water. While not able to make out words, Heath could identify certain components of the voice. It was a steady voice, soothing and calm, giving the air that it belonged to someone well educated. The voice sounded like it got closer right as Heath felt a gentle weight on his arm. Someone's hand, no doubt. The hand was smooth, no calluses or roughness one might expect from someone living on a ranch. Slightly pudgy too, but also big enough that it had to belong to an adult. The voice continued, the smoothness of the voice seemed to match the feel of the skin. "Jarrod." Heath thought. "Jarrod's here with me."

The voice and the hand on his arm stayed with Heath for a while, until being replaced by a new one. He still couldn't understand what the person was saying, but he could tell there was emotion behind every syllable. Following the tonation of the voice felt like riding a rollercoaster. The voice came with a physical body as well, one that was strong, almost forceful, but not quite enough that Heath sensed danger. Heath felt the person grab his face, shake his shoulders, then grab his face again. They were attempting to wake him up. "I'm trying Nick." Heath willed his thoughts to somehow reach his brother. "I swear I'm trying."

Heath felt Nick continually trying to shake him awake, gently enough not to hurt, but enough that it was making him dizzy. Heath wished he would stop, but communicating that to Nick was an obstacle he didn't know how to overcome. There was another voice now, which was just adding to Heath's overwhelmed state. Luckily, Nick stopped talking soon after the other voice came in, and Heath was able to focus on the new presence.

It was a serene voice, almost dream-like. Heath observed that they sounded calmer than Nick's voice but not as calm as Jarrod's. He then felt two hands, lithe and youthful, gently prying Nick's hands off of him. Heath was grateful, until hearing what he was absolutely certain was the sound of his brother sobbing. Now he almost wished for the dizziness to return. At least he was comforted by the sound of Audra, who was crooning to Nick and, unbeknownst to her, Heath.

Heath heard Audra lead Nick out of the room, probably to get him some much needed rest, then return back to his side. Heath heard her talking, her voice as sweet as ever, even with the undercurrent of worry that edged through. He felt her hand pressed onto his chest, likely to remind herself that he was still breathing. Heath willed himself again to move, to blink, to let Audra know that he was still there. He thought he felt his lashes flutter, but Audra didn't seem to notice.

After some time, a new person came in and Audra left. Heath could hear the clicking of high heels against the floorboards as the person came into his room. The person didn't talk, instead Heath felt them plant a kiss on his temple, then caress his face with the side of their pointer finger. "Mother," Heath thought. "It has to be Mother." He tried again to wake himself up, this time focusing on shifting his fingers. He didn't hear anything at first, then finally, he felt his mother take the hand that he had just moved. She squeezed it, inviting him to return the gesture. He managed to squeeze back.

Suddenly everything was chaos, the most joyful chaos that Heath had ever experienced. Mother was yelling at everyone to come to his room, a stampede of footsteps followed her command. He moved his fingers some more while working on his eyes. There were four blobs in front of him, blobs that slowly morphed into faces as his eyes adjusted from their recent lack of use.

"Heath, you're awake!" Audra cried out.

Heath nodded, taking in the view in front of him. "So you're the people who were making that racket while I was sleeping." He quipped.