Amber didn't know what was going on, and yet she held me tightly and rocked me like a baby, her lips to the back of my head and her hands stroking everywhere,

The next thing I knew, I was standing before my front door, my arm draped around Amber's shoulders while she alternately rang the doorbell and dug through my pockets to try and fish out my keys.

After three attempts on the doorbell and two attempts with the wrong key, the door swung open. Both Cherys and Danielle were standing there, Cherys with one hand over her mouth in surprise and Danielle glancing back and forth between me and Amber.

“amber? Danielle said in surprise.

"David?" My world was a grey haze. I couldn't focus and I really didn't care. At this moment, all I really wanted was to be asleep and make the rest of the world go away.

Cherys was asking, “David? Are you okay?"

Amber by now had shifted her balance to better support me, “He's in shock. Can we get him inside?"

A minute later I was laying flat on the couch and a blanket was thrown over me. Someone slid a pillow beneath my legs. This was better. Much more comfortable and I was feeling warmer.

“He's catatonic," Cherys asked in grave concern, passing her hand over my eyes slowly. My gaze was straight up and I didn't really look around.

“Do you think he can hear us?"

Amber sighed. responding." m pretty sure he can hear and see us. He's just not

I felt a warmth near my face and then Cherys was kissing my cheek.

"I love you, David."

Danielle's hands were on my arm.

“His skin is clammy. And his pulse is weak."

Amber replied, “Normal signs of shock. Just give it time, he'll come around as long as we keep him warm." Amber's voice quivered at the end of that, and then I heard her quietly begin to cry as the immediate medical emergency faded and her emotions settled in.

“Amber? Are you okay?" Danielle asked.

Amber let out a shivering sigh and then said, "Yeah, I'll be fine. I knew he'd be surprised to see me, just not THIS surprised."

Danielle said quietly, “It's been kind of an intense morning. Your arrival was probably just the final blow." She exhaled loudly and then looked up.

“What ARE you doing here?"

There was a quiet pause as Amber gathered herself.

“I had to come home. I had to see him, I never planned for THIS to happen to him."

“What happened out there?" Danielle asked, accusing anger creeping into her voice.

“We went for a walk. One minute we were trying to figure out what to say to each other and the next he was kissing me." Amber paused to take a breath, "The next moment he was holding his head and screaming without restraint. Then he went into shock."

Everyone went quiet for a few seconds, and then Cherys piped up, "Remind me never to kiss you,"