Robin was the only person that stayed up the entire night, constantly checking Sean's soft steadily beeping heart monitor to make sure he didn't die while everyone was asleep.

Occasionally Sean would fall in and out of consciousness, always mumbling about how scared and hurt he was or how everyone should just leave him before they get hurt because of him. Whenever he did, Robin was always by his side to console him, assuring him that no one would leave him here in this hell hole.

He could only imagine the pain he felt.

When the first dim rays of light shone through the window, Mark was the first one awake, silently leaving to go get coffee before shortly returning, handing a cup to Robin.

He nodded in appreciation as he blew on the drink before taking a small sip. It tasted kinda gross in his opinion, but it was definitely better than having no coffee at all.

Gradually one by one Tyler, Bob, Ethan, Wade, Signe, and Amy woke up, Mark leading them to where the coffee was while Robin kept watch over Sean.

"Where's Signe?" Sean asked Robin quietly, looking around the room for her.

"She went to go get coffee, she'll be right back." Robin informed him.

"Can I have some?" Sean asked hopefully.

"Sure, I'll go get you some." Robin smiled as he left the room. He knew that while he would be gone getting coffee the others would be back and watching over Sean.

Except they weren't.

When Robin came back, he found Sean vomiting what little food he managed to eat last night out onto the floor. His arms were shaking from the effort of holding himself up, sweat soaking through the back of his shirt even though it was cool.

Robin helped Sean stay upright as he continued dry heaving, comfortingly rubbing his back in small circles.

"T-Thank you." Sean managed to say before starting to dry heave again, the sound making Robin's own insides twist into a knot. Robin knew that if Sean had eaten more last night, it would've ended upon the floor.

"Have you heard anything about rescue?" Sean asked, wiping his mouth off on the edge of his t-shirt sleeve.

"I wish." Robin sighed.

"What happened?" Signe asked Robin as she entered the room with the rest of the group, noticing the chunky orange and cream colored puddle on the floor.

"Sean got sick." Robin explained, laying Sean back down since he seemed to have stopped dry heaving.

"It's okay, I'm fine I-"

Sean broke off as he began dry heaving once more, this time Signe coming to his side and comforting him.

"Okay, maybe I'm not that fine." Sean joked once he finally stopped dry heaving again.

"Here's your coffee, you might want to wait on eating breakfast." Robin advised as he handed Sean the coffee he had gotten for him.

He drank the now lukewarm contents greedily, savoring the familiar taste he missed so much.

"I got you something for when you get better." Signe placed a medium sized plastic wrapped chocolate chip cookie in the counter behind him.

"Thanks Woosh!" A smile lit up Sean's face like an excited child on Christmas.

"Where did you guys go?" Robin asked.

"There was a gift shop not too far from the coffee machine, so we stopped by there to pick up some breakfast." Mark held up little plastic containers that held various kinds of cereal.

"Dibs on the Lucky Charms!" Sean called out.

"Just don't throw it back up." Mark warned Sean as he handed him the container of Lucky Charms. Sean tore into the package and managed to eat a small handful before promptly throwing it back up.

This time, Tyler was prepared and had a trash can placed by Sean.

Ethan cleaned up the mess made earlier with a discarded rag he found on the counter, throwing the rag away afterwards.

The group took turns helping Sean when he started throwing up, making sure he didn't end up falling off of the table by just trying to stay upright.

They were all relieved when Sean slipped into unconsciousness, sparing them from having to listen to Sean gag.

"I'll be back." Mark told the others, walking out the door before anyone could ask where he was going.

"I just want to go home, play with Chica, and forget this ever happened." Amy confessed.

"I'm just glad for once all the survival video games I played got me somewhat prepared for this." Wade chimed in.

Ethan and Bob both agreed with him.

"What do we do if he dies here?" Tyler asked tentatively.

"He's not going to die here." Signe replied fiercely.

"Signe-"

"No, he's not going to die here!" Signe snapped.

"He has a point." Bob admitted.

"I mean, I guess we could find someplace to bury him outside-"

"Will you shut up?!?" Both Signe and Robin yelled at the same time, startling Sean awake.

"Everything okay?" Sean glanced between the group.

"Fine." Signe stated coldly.

"I heard what you guys were talking about...I think Tyler and Bob are right." Sean sighed.

"How can you agree with them? Do you want to die here?!?" Signe yelled at him in exasperation.

"I do!" Sean shouted back.

"I wanted to die here as soon as I heard my friends fighting with each other about what happens to me." Sean continued in a softer tone.

The room fell eerily silent for a moment.

"Where's Mark?" Sean finally broke the tension.

"I don't know, he just said he'd be back." Bob frowned.

"Considering last time I said that I ended up almost dying on the floor, you might want to find Mark soon in case he tries anything...permanent." Sean suggested.

"Amy and Signe stay here and take care of Sean, everyone else go split up and find Mark. Meet back here when the sun's high in the sky." Tyler instructed before going left down the hall, Bob and Wade going forward, and Ethan and Robin going right.

It didn't take long to find him.

Tyler spotted him on the roof, his legs dangling over the edge with his phone in his hands. He was looking at a picture of him with Tyler, Ethan, Amy, and him sitting on a roof similar to the one he was currently sitting on, tears sparkling in his tired, red rimmed chocolate brown eyes.

Silently, Tyler sat down beside him, staring out at the horizon. From up above, Tyler could barely tell the damage that was wrought in the city.

"I figured somebody would probably come find me." Mark spoke first.

"Yeah." Tyler nodded.

"Thanks one word Tyler." Mark teased, a small smile appearing on his face.

"What can I say except you're welcome." Tyler nudged Mark gently in the arm with his elbow.

"How is Sean?" Mark asked.

"Same as when you left him, except for probably really pissed. I brought up something I probably shouldn't of, which ended up starting a fight and getting Sean upset." Tyler explained.

"Did you ask Sean if he was a leprechaun?" Mark joked.

"I asked what we should do with Sean if he dies here." Tyler corrected.

"I mean, you do have a point-"

"Exactly!" Tyler exclaimed, interrupting Mark.

They both sighed as they scooted back off of the edge so they could lie down on the roof, looking up at the few dark clouds peppered through the sky. Soon raindrops were falling on their faces, trailing down their cheeks like tears.

Yet they didn't move.

Instead, Mark laughed as he stuck out his tongue, catching a few drops. Tyler replicated him, laughing when one hit him in the eye, momentarily blinding him.

Together they laid on the roof with their soaking wet clothes, catching raindrops in their mouths.

Until a welcome sight appeared.

A helicopter.

It was hovering around an area of buildings near them.

Mark and Tyler hastily jumped to their feet and began frantically waving at the helicopter, shouting in hopes for it to come get them.

After both of their throats became hoarse from shouting and arms tired from waving, the helicopter finally spotted them and started making its way towards them.

"I'll go get the others." Mark spoke in a rush before running as fast as he could towards the elevator he took to the roof, occasionally slipping and sliding in the puddles of water.

"Rescue's here!" Mark announced as he poked his head into the group's room before running back to the elevator.

Everyone quickly followed behind him, Wade carefully carrying Sean in his arms bridal style.

Mark was relieved to see the helicopter hovering inches above the roof, Tyler already inside waiting for them.

He was also glad to see that there was a different pilot, this one hopefully not as stupid as the last one was.

Wade handed Sean up to Tyler before climbing in, Mark and Bob next, followed by Ethan and Robin, who helped Amy and Signe up.

"Is that everyone?" The pilot turned back to look at them.

Mark counted everyone that was aboard before flashing a thumbs up in affirmation. The pilot nodded, then had the helicopter ride up higher in the air.

"I'm taking you eight to New York, the rest of the survivors are there as well. How's the green haired one?" The pilot asked.

"He's in real bad shape, he started vomiting a lot not too long ago." Signe informed them.

"The disease moves at different paces for different people. It's a miracle your friend still has any brain cells left. For most people those were the first cells that started deteriorating." The pilot shook his head sadly.

"How far away is New York?" Robin asked nervously, fidgeting with his hands.

"One-hundred and eighty-nine miles." The pilot informed them grimly.

"Where am I?" Sean spoke so softly that Signe barely heard him over the sound of the spinning rotors.

"We're on a helicopter to New York." Signe told him.

"Where's Robin?" Sean's eyes widened in panic as he sat up, scanning the crowded helicopter for his friend.

"I'm right here!" Robin assured him.

"Everyone's here." Signe smiled sympathetically as she gently pushed Sean's chest so he would lay back down.

He reluctantly complied, lifting his head up slightly to look out the window.

After I don't die, can we go to the giant Toys R Us store?" Sean asked hopefully with a small pained smile.

"Of course." Signe couldn't help but roll her eyes at him. Even when he was dying, he still somehow managed to keep his childish sense of humor.

"I couldn't help but noticed your hand as a hole through it, and it definitely doesn't look like it rotted away. What happened?" The pilot asked Sean, seeming to be genuinely curious.

Mark stiffened for a moment, guilt etched in his features until he shook his head and took a deep breath.

"Just a misunderstanding." Sean stated simply.

The pilot opened their mouth to press the subject, but then decided to drop it as they promptly closed their mouth again and focused on flying.

"We're almost there!" The pilot shouted over their shoulder after several awkward moments of silence.

"Can I ask you something? I need an honest answer too." Sean asked Mark.

"How bad do I look?" Sean blurted, his voice filled with concern.

"I haven't really looked in a mirror lately since I've been afraid, but....I wanna know." Sean decided with a tone of finality.

Mark helplessly glanced over at Signe, wondering if he should tell the truth. He only had skin on the left side of his face, patches of skin also missing on his back and chest.

"It's not that bad, just a little skin off of the face and that's it." Mark lied, inwardly cringing.

He hated lying, but he hated hurting his friends even more.

"Oh, okay!" Sean seemed to brighten up as he closed his eyes, quickly falling back asleep.

"Why did you lie to him?" Signe hissed.

"How am I supposed to tell him that he looks like Two-Face?" Mark countered snappishly.

"We're here!" The pilot announced as the helicopter touched down on the roof of a much nicer looking hospital.

Medics carefully picked Sean up and placed him on a stretcher, running with him to the elevator to take him to a room.

"Anybody else have any injuries?" A different medic poked their head in, examining everyone briefly for obvious signs of wounds or disease.

They all shook their head no.

With a nod of acknowledgment, the medic quickly disappeared as everyone filed off of the helicopter before it took off.

"Hey guys!"

The group was surprised to see Arin and Suzy standing on the roof waiting for them.

"Welcome to NYC Health." Arin spoke in an announcer voice, earning smiles from the group as they hugged them in greeting before following them to the elevator.

"Ross and Barry are in the lobby, Danny and Brian...I'm not sure where they are." Arin sighed, his mood seeming to drop.

"Brian's probably hiding like the badass ninja he is with Danny so they could make more music." Mark joked, lightening the mood slightly.

They greeted Barry and Ross at the elevator once they arrived in the waiting room of the giant hotel.

Waiting there was also a large group of fans.

Hundreds of people swarmed around the group, giving them flower crowns, drawings, and other miscellaneous gifts they made for them even though they didn't know if they'd ever get to see them again.

Mark felt his eyes water as he hugged each and every person, his heart swelling with love and happiness for the first time since he came to Boston.

"Where's Jack?" A few of them asked.

"He has the disease that's going around in Boston." Mark informed them grimly.

A few people stated to cry, but for the most part they remained hopeful that he would get better so they could see their Irish green bean again.

"Thank god you're okay!" Danny ran up to Arin and hugged him tightly. His curly chocolate brown hair was coated with a thick layer of dirt and dust, as well as his clothes. He thankfully seemed uninjured. Brian had a scrape along his arm that was already bandaged, but had no serious injuries.

"Where are Sean McLoughlin's friends?" A medic asked loudly.

The crowd parted like the Red Sea as Danny, Arin, Barry, Ross, Mark, Signe, Tyler, Ethan, Bob, Wade, Robin, and Amy walked through, following the medic to a room at the far end of the hall.

"It's a good thing he got here when he did. I managed to reverse all the damage done by the serum, so he won't be getting any worse. However, he has to wear synthetic skin until the skin on his face grows back. We put bandages on the other parts since they'll heal faster. The hole in his hand will heal over time as well, but for now we bandaged it up." The medic explained before he opened the door.

Sean was sitting up in bed staring at a small mirror that he held his shaky, uninjured hand.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Sean whispered. Instead of sounding sad, he just sounded...disappointed, like he expected his condition to be as bad as it was.

The synthetic skin thankfully matched his complextion somewhat, but it still stood out enough that people could tell the difference fairly easily.

"Sean-"

"It's fine Mark, drop it." Sean growled, his tone tinged with fury.

Mark swallowed hard as he fell silent, seeming to brace himself for whatever Sean wanted to do next.

He placed the mirror down on his bed face down and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation, releasing a slow sigh that sounded like someone letting air out of a balloon.

"You coulda told me I looked like Two-Face. I didn't know my own face could actually jump scare me." Sean chuckled.

"Sorry." Mark apologized meekly as his face turned a light red hue in embarrassment, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

"Should I flip a coin to decide if I should forgive you or not?" Sean spoke in a not too good impression of Two-Face.

"I say fuck him, he's an asshole." Brian interjected teasingly.

"You don't even know what we're talking about!" Mark protested defensively, a smirk lighting up his face nonetheless.

"True, but either way you're a dick." Bob chimed in.

"Why is everyone turning on me now?!?" Mark yelled at no one in particular.

"Boys play nice." Amy instructed jokingly, rolling her eyes at her pouting boyfriend.

"Whenever you're all ready to go, we have a helicopter transporting everyone home waiting on the roof, or if you live in Boston, you have to stay here."

None of them lived in Boston thankfully.

"Lets go!" Sean exclaimed excitedly, hopping off of the bed and running ahead of the group.

"There's the Sean I know and love." Signe smiled as she chased after him in case he got lost. Together the group ran to get to the roof, barely managing to crowd into the elevator.

"Hey again, glad to see you awake." The pilot grinned at Sean.

"Thanks!" Sean flashed her a thumbs up with a grin of his own as Mark, Amy, Signe, and Sean sat in the very back with Tyler, Ethan, Bob, and Wade in the middle, followed by Robin, Danny, Bryan, and Arin in the front. Since they ran out of seats, Suzy sat on Arin's lap.

"It's a good thing I brought the large helicopter." The pilot remarked before taking off.

The group stared our at the collage of reds, oranges, pinks, and purples in the sky that made the horizon with the glowing gold sun setting, following Tyler's advice.

Smiling always.