Mae wasn't sure what hurt worse, her ribs or her ears. She could distinctly hear someone talking- no, practically shouting- right next to her. While her first instinct was to sit up and slap their mouth shut, her body felt heavy and she was unable to move.

"I can't believe this happened," an angry voice hissed.

"While I admit that I am at fault, it was the human who ran directly in front of me," a second voice stated in a bored tone.

"This is Jasper, Ratchet! Who in this town drives forty miles an hour on an empty street, in a school zone? What on earth were you doing there to begin with?"

The second voice scoffed, "Rafael required a ride home early and I was the only one available. Bulkhead was in charge of the base, for Primus' sake! I had to rush!"

Mae growled in annoyance as the bickering continued. There was a pause in the conversation as she started to feel the tips of her fingers. She wiggled them and winced at how stiff she felt.

"She's waking up," one of the voices whispered, "we will continue this conversation later."

Light invaded her vision as she slowly blinked her eyes open. A groan escaped her lips. The pain was bearable, but Mae figured she was on some sort of pain medicine. It was only going to get worse the more she strained herself.

"How are you feeling, honey?" June asked from beside her.

Mae tried not to show her discomfort at how close the woman but her face morphed into a scowl anyway.

"Like I was hit by an ambulance," she said dryly. "Where am I?"

"The hospital. I was working when they brought you in. Jack is back at the school gathering all of the homework you will need for the next few weeks."

Weeks? Did they think she was dying? Mae had been beaten black and blue and then turned around and attended school the very next day. It wasn't anything new to her.

"I'll be fine-"

"You're hardly fine," a familiar voice spoke up. Mae glanced at the man who had spoken with curiosity. He had black hair with a few grey wispy strands falling in front of his face. His build was rather large, but he looked to be only a few mere inches taller than June.

It was his eyes that caught her by surprise. They were the bluest Mae had ever seen- electric blue, with what looked to be white crackles of electricity shooting away from his pupil.

She forced herself to hold a bored tone as she turned back to June, "Who is he and how is he relevant?"

"I beg your pardon?" the man sputtered.

Mae rolled her eyes. "I mean, why are you here? I doubt-" her eyes suddenly became wide and recognition flashed through them, "It's you! You ran me over!"

June sighed and went to say something, but the man cut her off. "I am well aware of the situation. And running you over seems a bit overdramatic, doesn't it? I simply tapped you with my bumper."

"Ratchet," June hissed in warning towards the man.

Mae chuckled. "Ratchet? What kind of a name is that?"

The man, Ratchet, glared at June before stepping away from the end of the bed and coming closer. His electric blue eyes were hard as he sighed in annoyance. Mae would have scoffed if her ribs hadn't jolted from simply shifting away from him.

"Ratchet is my nickname. I am a doctor."

This, she did vaguely remember. He had told her so when his hand was gently held against her head. The fact that he had been so close to her disgusted Mae beyond belief. She didn't like anyone getting in on her personal space.

June sat down and leaned her elbows onto her knees, rubbing the area between her eyebrows. "It's been one day and you've already almost died," she scowled and sighed deeply, "You were lucky he managed to slam his breaks on so quickly."

"Just tell me the damage, doc," Mae grumbled. This was already dragging on too long. She didn't want to waste her time on pointless introductions and bickering. Right now, all she wanted was some peace and quiet.

"You have several broken ribs, a broken wrist, bruising and swelling in various places-"

Well stuff my muffin and call me a baker.

"You really did a number on me, didn't you doc?"

Ratchet growled in displeasure at her words. "I would ask that you refrain from calling me that."

"What? Doc? You're a doctor. It sounds much better than Ratchet."

June abruptly stood up then, pushing her seat back and nodding once toward Ratchet and again to the door. The man grumbled, eyeing Mae with malice before trudging out into the hallway. June held up a finger to her, letting her know they would be a few minutes, before sliding out with him.

Well this is great. First day of school ended in absolute chaos. Well, she did get to beat the snot out of Vince. That was a plus. It had been boring anyway, and the homework would probably be a breeze. Sure, the pain and the feeling of her head practically splitting with a headache was a little inconvenient, but Mae was happy to have some time to herself.

With June working and Jack at school, she would have all the time in the world to herself. A grin fell upon her face at the thought. Maybe getting hit by an idiot and his ambulance was just what she needed.

Her eyes wandered to the cast on her arm, and then down to her stomach, which was covered by the hospital gown she wore. The feeling of her fingertips on her skin was enough to make her flinch and hiss in pain. After a few minutes of exploring the areas that hurt the most and making mental notes not to move too quickly, she finally relaxed back into the pillows that supported her small frame.

The time passed slowly. It felt like forever before June walked back into the room with Ratchet, who was practically fuming.

"I am not following through with this," he growled out.

June shrugged and placed a hand on one hip. "It looks like you don't have a choice, Ratchet. You hit her, you take care of her. I have work and Jack can't miss any more school due to your activities. You're the next best solution."

Wait, what was that? Oh- just the feeling of freedom slowly slipping out of Mae's fingers. She crossed her arms but immediately jerked at the pain and pulled them back.

"What exactly are we talking about here?" she demanded.

The smile on June's face was anything but genuine. "Ratchet is going to be taking care of you as an apology for hitting you."

"I will be doing no such thing-"

"You will, or I will be telling your boss about his incident," June said knowingly. The reaction on his face was priceless- Mae would have laughed if she wasn't so angry.

"I don't want an apology from him. I can take care of myself, June."

"Oh really?" The woman marched across the room and opened a door Mae hadn't noticed before. It revealed a small bathroom. "If you can take care of yourself so easily, why don't you come walk over here?"

She was challenging her, and Mae didn't like that.

Who did June think she was? Some pansy that flinched every time the wind blew against it? Her hands gripped the blanket lightly covering her and yanked it to one side before throwing her legs over the edge of the bed.

"I would refrain from moving-" Ratchet began, but he shut his mouth at the glare Mae sent his way.

"I would refrain from telling me what to do," she snapped back. With great effort, she forced her bare feet to touch the cold floor beneath her. Moving was excruciating, but the anger she felt toward June in that moment overpowered all other feelings.

The woman watched with calculating eyes as Mae took one step at a time, edging her way closer and closer to the open door. Her breathing was becoming jagged. She tried to focus on June's face- the way her mouth was twisted into a grim line and her nose scrunched in disbelief.

Think again before you tell me I can't do something, she thought to herself as she made another step. But it was getting harder to move. Here she was, halfway across the room, and her eyes were becoming blurred. Gritting her teeth, Mae ignored the pain for as long as she could before finally letting out a gasp that sounded more like a squeak.

She tumbled, her body falling to one side as she lost her balance. Just as she thought she would hit the ground, a large hand suddenly came out of nowhere and caught her. Mae was trembling as she stood there in Ratchet's grasp, suddenly unable to move.

"I believe she's had enough, June," Ratchet stated calmly.

June's face had become significantly softer as she moved to stand in front of Mae. She felt the woman's hands against her cheeks.

"It's okay to let others help you, Mae. You're hurt- do you really expect me to leave you alone when you can barely move?"

Yes, that's exactly what I expect you to do, she thought glumly. It wasn't as if the others cared for her well being. It was hard to tell if June was being genuine. After all of the homes she'd been through in her lifetime, did this woman really expect Mae to accept her with open arms?

It made her skin crawl.

"Come, lay her back down Ratchet," June instructed.

Ratchet moved on her command, gently moving Mae back to her original position on the bed. His eyes glanced up and down her injured body before those electric eyes caught June's eyes.

"I suppose I did cause a great amount of damage," he admitted quietly.

"You think?" Mae grumbled tiredly.

Despite looking like he wanted to argue, Ratchet huffed in exasperation. "I will help take care of the femme- female. Just until she can properly move again."

Mae wanted to argue, but it was obvious she would be unable to stop the two even if she tried. June was dead set on giving her a babysitter and Ratchet didn't look like the type to have his mind changed so easily.

"Fine," she sighed, "I guess I have no other choice."

If she was going to be forced to spend the next few weeks with this man, why not have some fun with it? Ratchet glanced at her curiously as she smirked.

"Guess it's just you and me, doc. I'm sure we'll have lots of fun."