It had now been 5 months since the kidnapping, by now, doctors that had taken a look at Sato were giving mixed opinions. Some were saying that Sato would most likely not be able to recover from this state anymore. Others were more hopeful and thought that Sato, being able to ingest food from the mouth was a good sign of progress. However, the both opinions came crashing down when Sato started seizing up one night.
Hearing shaking noises, Gray immediately woke up and called in the doctor. After 5 minutes, the seizures finally stopped. Seeing the situation, the doctor advised that Sato was to be sent to the nearest hospital for an MRI. The MRI had revealed a blood clot in Sato's left hemisphere of the brain.
As the location of the blood clot was completely blocking an artery in Sato's brain, the doctor suggested that he should undergo surgery. Sato's parents were also called up to the hospital that night and they decided that the young man should undergo the surgery. Gray agreed with their decision and told the doctors to follow through on their plan.
By 3 am, Sato was in the operating room and underwent the procedure. In less than an hour, the boy was out of the surgery. There wasn't a need to shave the boy's hair as it was minimally invasive. Gray and Sato's parents spent the night in the hospital.
As the morning came quickly, the group was in for a big surprise. When the doctors had come to check on Sato's condition, the young man's eyes seemed to be moving about in a controlled manner. Noticing that this was very much different from his usual behaviour, they immediately called out to the boy.
"Mr. Sato, can you hear me? Blink twice if it is a yes." The neurosurgeon who conducted the surgery snapped his fingers to get the young man's attention.
It took a short moment for Sato to process the doctor's statement, but soon enough, the young man proceeded to blink twice. Sato was finally able to respond!
"Ah! He responded! My son responded didn't he?" Mahiro confirmed with the doctor and nurses that stood beside him. He was ecstatic beyond belief. Geraldine was unable to hold herself back as she started to cry in relief. Gray too stood by the side in shock.
To everyone's surprise, Sato turned his head to Gray. The young man opened his mouth, but no words came out. It seemed that he was trying to say something to Gray.
"There is no need to force yourself, Mr Sato. You had not used your vocal cords for five months. The organ has weakened over time and would require some practice to get used to it again." The doctor explained to Sato and his family.
Yet, Sato continued to try his best. There was something that he needed to say to Gray. If he did not say it now while he could, he was afraid that he may not get the chance tomorrow.
"Ah..Ah..I.." In a soft airy voice, Sato whispered. Gray realised that the young man wanted to say something to him. He came closer to Sato's mouth as he heard the rest of the line. "Lu..Love..Y..You."
When the General heard what Sato had said to him, the grown man could not help, but break down in tears. He was overjoyed and emotional that his lover said 'I love you' to him. It was the simplest of things that touch the young master of the Tobion Family. He could request anything in life, except for the love from his love ones. Only that was something that needed to be earned.
"I love you too." Gray gave a kiss on Sato's forehead. It was then Sato finally smiled for the first time in five months. These past five months truly felt like a recurring nightmare to Sato. It was a nightmare that he could never escape out of. And only after going through with a surgery, was he able to control his body once again.
It was also this that made the doctors realise that probably, the underlying cause of Sato's vegetative state was the blood tumour in his left hemisphere of the brain. It seemed that the last time when Sato was in the hospital, the blood clot had been unnoticed on the MRI. Only after a few months of moving around did the blood clot becoming more evident.
For Sato and the people around him, they were all just thankful that he had recovered from the vegetative state that he was in for five months. This was five months of worry for everyone. Things like post-vegetative state recovery were things for the future. For now, Sato was happy that he had full autonomy of his body.
After a week of staying in the hospital and the removal of his faeces pouch, Sato was finally discharged from the hospital. The young man would now undergo physical therapy at home under the guidances of the Tobion Family's private hires. There were Occupational therapists, Physiotherapists, Speech therapists, Behavioral therapists that came in everyday to help the boy integrate back to society.
Sato gladly accepted the help that was given to him by Gray. The boyfriend of his had been through everything with him and had seen his worse of times. If Sato ever had any doubts on Gray before the kidnapping, he was now clear of all of it now. From the day that he regained autonomy of his body, Sato had felt that this life of his now rightfully belonged to Gray. If he wanted him to jump off a building, the boy would not hesitate to do so. After all that he had done for him, the young man owed everything to him.