Ponch was sitting at the desk the next day, feeling miserable...it was Justin's birthday...he wanted to go out and get some air...he wanted to patrol with him...he wanted to go to the party...he wanted to do anything but sit here at this desk.

"Could life get any worse than this?" he wondered out loud.

"Careful pumpkin last time you made a comment like that you fell and ripped a hole in your uniform pants," Heather said coming in with a cup of coffee for her friend.

"Thanks, Heather," Ponch said taking the coffee.

"No prob...so...besides being bored to death here, how's life?"

"Someone's trying to kill me..." Ponch said.

"Oh...that sucks..." Heather was a little worried now, she thought Ponch had just been sitting there too long and was losing his mind now and making up stories. "I'll be right back.." she said.

She ran into Justin on her way to the sergeant's office. "Oh um...sorry...Justin..."

"It's fine."

"I think Ponch is going crazy...he thinks someone is trying to...to kill him..."

Justin froze. "Someone is..." He said quietly.

"Oh...so...he's not crazy?"

"Sadly, no."

Heather looked down at her feet then clicked them together a few times. "Welp Imma go out on patrol"

"Have fun..."

"I will..." Heather left.

Ponch ran over to Justin. "Hey...um can you do me a favor?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"I gotta go take care of something...will you watch the desk for a minute?"

"Okay?"

Ponch rushed off. They were all on a night shift tonight, because for some reason Watkins thought that was safer...Ponch went outside. He really didn't have anything important to do, he just need some air.

He walked out behind the building for a few minutes so he wouldn't be spotted...it was weird, he felt like a criminal sneaking around like that...but then suddenly a hand came over his mouth.

Ponch tried to get away from this guy that had grabbed him, but was soon flipped over on his back, his body slamming into the cement hard. He took a few seconds to recover, then started to slowly get up, only to be grabbed by the wrist and thrown into the side of the building. Ponch was dazed and confused at the moment after hitting his head, but trying to recover quickly so he could fight back. He stood up, but couldn't stand up straight, he felt the man grabbing him again.

"Sorry did I hurt you?" he asked. Pulling him into a hug. Ponch was super confused now, as the man hugged him he reached in Ponch's pocket and took his ID and all the money in there with it. Then pushed him off. "I don't care," he snarled as Ponch hit his head on the wall. The man started to walk off to his car knowing Ponch would follow. He laughed knowing what he was gonna do next.

Ponch chased the guy, but was slow in doing so because his head hurt so bad and he felt dizzy. He soon reached the car and went up to the window not thinking about it he put a hand on the inside. "Hey, give it back..." he started. But then the car started to move with Ponch holding on, and now being dragged. Ponch wanted to let go, but then the guy would get away. "PLEASE STOP THE CAR!" he cried.

The man laughed and abruptly slammed on the breaks, and Ponch went flying forwards into the side of the building hitting his head hard, this time he was starting to close his eyes not getting back up. The man got out of the car and laughed.

"I told you I'd get you..." he said. "With how hard you hit your head it'd be a miracle you remember who you are. I'm burning your ID so you can't find out either...but you know you're not supposed to live," he said kicking Ponch in the ribs.

"Ahhh," Ponch cried out in pain, spitting out blood.

The man laughed again. "Sweet dreams, Poncherello...and I hope you never wake up," he said watching Ponch's eyes close. He knew that the way Ponch was now if he wasn't found soon he wouldn't make it, so leaving him back here was his best bet. He went to his car to grab something.

Before leaving he took one last look at what he'd just done, smiling at how awful the young officer looked, beaten and dying. He slammed a baseball bat down on Ponch's head a few times, then began to just beat him with that for a while just for the enjoyment. Then he left before he could get caught knowing that his luck would run out soon if he didn't disappear soon he'd for sure be seen.

oOoOo

A few minutes passed, and Ponch still hadn't come back inside. Justin was still at that desk.

"Justin, what are you doing at the desk?" Kyle asked biting back his laugh. He thought Justin was in trouble.

"Just waiting for Ponch... Though he's been a while. Could you stay here while I go look for him? Thanks," He didn't even wait for a response, he just left.

"Yeah...you're welcome," Kyle grumbled sitting down hard.

Justin went in the locker room but he found no one. He searched in a few other places he knew he might be, but found nothing. He finally decided to check outside. When he walked out the door and went around back he saw Ponch laying there.

"Ponch?" He asked walking over quickly. He got on the ground next to him and shook him a little. "Ponch!? Are you okay!?" He got no movement from Ponch. Not even a twitch. "Hang on I'll be right back."

Justin ran back in and headed straight for the Sergeant's office. When he got there he saw Watkins on the phone, but this couldn't wait. "Sarge, I need help. Ponch is in the parking lot beaten and unconscious!"

"What?!" Watkins exclaimed, standing up abruptly which caused his chair to fall over.

"Call for an ambulance and come out, please!" Justin ran back out to Ponch.

Ponch still hadn't moved...but when Justin returned he found blood starting to come out Ponch's mouth...and he was laying in a pool of blood.

"Oh no! No, no, no! Ponch!? Please Ponch... I should've never let you come out here!"

Soon, Watkins came running out. "Ambulance is on the way, Justin," he called, before he saw Ponch. "Oh no. Ponch!"

Kyle came outside because he was wondering what was up. He almost threw up when he saw how bad Ponch looked. "He looks awful! What the heck happened!?"

"I-I don't know! I shouldn't have let him come out here alone!" Justin shouted.

"You shouldn't have let him come out here at all," Watkins replied.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry!"

"Why did you let him?"

"I didn't know this is where he was going. I thought he was just going to the restroom or something. He asked me to watch the desk while he went to 'take care of something'. I didn't know he was coming out here. I'm sorry."

"Justin I trusted you to take care of him! I trusted you to make sure he stayed out of trouble, and kept from getting himself killed!" Watkins yelled.

Soon the ambulance arrived.

"Would you two quit it!? Arguing about this isn't saving him at all," Kyle said. He hated watching people argue.

"Look sarge... I'm really sorry. And I know it's Ponch I should be apologizing to but, I let you down too," Justin looked down at the ground.

Watkins nodded. "And you better be apologizing to Poncherello when he's awake."

Soon the paramedics rushed up and started to take care of him. "Sir we're gonna need you to back off," they told Justin. But Justin wanted to be right with Ponch still...

"Okay... But can I go with you to the hospital?"

"Maybe...depends you mean just following, right?"

"Oh.. Okay."

Ponch started mumbling something...then a few seconds later he was screaming that someone needed to stop...he was still unconscious though....Justin was growing worried and really wanted to be there with him in the ambulance ride.

"Okay. Can I please go with you?"

"Why so you can hold his hand...make him relax? Forget it, he won't even know you're there..." the grumpy paramedic said.

His partner just looked at Justin and wished he could say something but he knew that the other medic would only tell him no.

"Hey. What's your problem? You know, maybe it could help him relax, who knows? I want to be there with him."

"It won't help him, trust me I know! Stop asking." they started getting ready to load Ponch up...when Ponch started screaming even more and it was worse now. The type of thing that might give Justin nightmares.

Justin ran to him, permission or not he was going to be there with him. "I'm going whether you like it or not!"

"No you're not coming."

"You don't have to come... But I will and I am!"

The paramedic got in front of him. "I forbid you to come along with us...you'll only get in the way."

"Victor you're just wasting time...Justin hop in," the other paramedic said.

"Thank you. Finally someone with common sense," Justin said getting in.

Victor glared at him.

oOoOo

When they arrived at the hospital Justin wasn't allowed in the treatment room. He was forced to wait in the waiting room. Watkins walked over to him.

"As you see, I've been forced to wait here and do nothing," Justin complained.

"Oh...I'm sorry...I brought you a taco..."

"Uh... Thanks?"

"Uh...you're welcome...?"

Soon the doctor comes out.

Justin walked over to him. "Is he gonna be okay?" He asked quickly.

"He's in a coma...he was injured pretty badly...based on how badly that head injury was I'm not sure how his memory is going to be."

"Oh.. Okay," Justin said sadly.

"You can visit if you want...but he's not awake...not sure when he will be awake."

"Okay thanks."

"No prob...let me know if he wakes up."

"Sure thing," Justin said walking off to Ponch's room.

Watkins followed him.

Justin ran to Ponch's side and grabbed his hand. "I'm sorry Ponch, I'm so sorry," He was fighting back tears.

Ponch's body was trembling still from the fear he had back at the station even though he was unconscious. The doctors weren't quite sure how to stop it...so they put him in a room in ICU and he was being closely watched anytime he had a major outburst like that in his sleep/coma the doctors would have to come in to do something for him, and make sure he didn't hurt himself. It was pretty bad.

"Ponch, If you don't wake up... I'll never forgive myself. Please wake up soon."

Ponch started shaking his head. "No...no...please stop..."

"Ponch?"

Ponch just started screaming.

"He's not awake...Justin...get the doctor," Watkins said urgency in his voice remembering this from back at the station.

Justin ran out of the room in search for a doctor. In a few minutes he was finally able to get one.

The doctor rushed in and over to Ponch. He shook him slightly to see if maybe he could wake him up this time...but nothing.

"Dang it...I hate to say it...sadly he's having nightmares still about what happened...he thinks it's still going on...we can't do anything to stop this except wait for him to calm down. If he starts freaking out like this we need to make sure that he can't hurt himself."

Justin sat in a nearby chair and put his face in his hands, He hated seeing Ponch like this.

Soon Ponch was silent, the room grew dead silent.

"Well he's quiet now..."

"Yeah."

"I think that's good," Watkins said.

The doctor wasn't doing anything now. "Well just let me know if anything happens...but for now you're pretty much watching him sleep."

"Sarge? I wanna stay but I can't, look at him. Can I just go out on patrol?"

"Yeah...I'll let you know if anything changes," Watkins replied.

"Okay, thanks," Justin walked out of the room, and called Heather.

Heather answered her phone after a few rings. "Hello, what's up this is Heather."

"Hey, it's Justin. I was wondering if you could pick me up at the hospital?"

"What happened!? Are you injured or something?" she asked the tone of her voice changing. She didn't hear about Ponch.

"Uh... Just come pick me up and I'll tell you then... Okay?"

"Okay, but please tell me one thing...you're okay, right?"

"Physically or emotionally?"

"Both."

"Physically, i'm fine... Emotionally, I really don't know."

"Okay...what hospital? I might be close by," Heather replied a little worried.

"Kaiser permanente."

"Alright, I'm actually just a few blocks away. I'll see ya soon, buddy."

"Thanks," He hung up and put the phone in his pocket.

A few minutes later Heather showed up, she rushed up to Justin and hugged him. They always had, had this brother/sister type relationship. "What's going on?" she asked after letting go. She'd been so worried she might've went a bit above the speed limit.

"Ponch... He's in a coma."

"Oh no...what happened?" she asked a gasp escaping her mouth the second she heard.

"Someone, tried to kill him."

"So...that guy he said was trying to kill him actually came?"

Justin nodded.

Heather let out a sigh. "Well...let's go find him."

"Who? The guy who wants him dead? How's that gonna happen?"

"We go back to the station and see if we can find any clues."

"Okay, I hope there's something."

"Me too, let's go."

They walked out and got in the cruiser. When they pulled in the station parking lot they got out and walked around looking. Looking for anything that could link them to this person.

oOoOo

At the hospital, Watkins was trying to stay calm and be with Ponch.

As the night went on Ponch was calming down, and those random outbursts, as the doctor has called them were starting to die down to the point they were almost done with. Watkins was scared for this officer's life, and by the time it hit midnight and the night just had not gotten any better he pulled out his phone to call the sergeant of CHP Central division.

He dialed the number, and waited for an answer.

"Hello?" Came a voice from the other end.

"Joe?"

Getraer recognized to voice immediately. "Bernie?"

"Yeah..." he started for some reason not knowing how to start the conversation with his old friend.

"What are you calling for, so late? Did you need something?"

"Joe...it's horrible what they did to him..." Watkins was able to spit out.

"Did what to who?"

"They tried to, to kill...Poncherello..."

"Who would do that?"

"I'm not sure...but...someone had been threatening him...and now...now...he's in the hospital..." Watkins was silent for a moment just in time to hear another one of Ponch's outbursts, and Getraer could hear it.

Ponch was screaming for help, and just repeating over and over "Stop, please!" and tears were streaming down his cheeks.

Bernie's heart broke for the young Puerto Rican, he wished he could wake him up from this nightmare.

"Hey, what hospital are you at? I'll come down there."

"Kaiser permanente..." Watkins stopped. "You don't have to come...it's so late..."

"No, no. I'm coming. I don't mind."

"Okay..." Watkins was silent after that feeling bad about making that phone call. He didn't expect Getraer to come down to the hospital.

oOoOo

A little while later, Watkins was falling asleep and didn't hear Getraer come in the room.

"Hey, how are you?" Getraer said walking over.

Watkins jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. "Oh...hi...I'm alright..." he said.

"Good, I'm sorry about Poncherello."

"Me too..." Watkins rubbed his tired eyes. "Look at him, it's awful," he said motioning to the severely beaten officer lying motionless in the hospital bed. Covered in bandages, bruises, and dried up blood.

"Yeah," Getraer said sadly. "What kind of sick person, would have the heart to do something like this?"

"I don't know...but believe me I'm gonna find them."

"Do you think they'd come back for him? When they find out he's alive?"

"You betcha, and when they do we'll be ready."

"I sure hope so."