I sat back against the tree across from 10K, he was drifting in and out of sleep and sweating pretty bad. He had gotten a fever from who knows where earlier that day, and had forced the team to steer clear of progress and put up camp far too early. Poor kid tried to fool us, but he missed a Z that even Murphy could've hit. That was a clear sign something was wrong with him. So, after that and a outbreak of coughing, we had pulled had been in and out of sleep all day and most of the night, leading up till now as he just woke up.

"D-doc?" He called out hoarsely, scaring me slightly as he surprised me. I shuffled over on my knees until i was right next to the kid. i leaned over and took the cloth from his head, moving to go wet it in the stream we had lucked out upon. Not fit for drinking, but wonderful for a cold compact. I inched up slowly, but the kid had snatched up my wrist quick as a snake.

"Gyahh!" I yelped in shock. I looked at him accusingly and wrenched my arm away. "What is it kid? I'm just going to get you a new rag. You're still burning up. We need you healthy, otherwise you're just baggage." 10K just looked at me with slightly glazed eyes, seemingly from the fever. "Have you ever done something really stupid? Something that you laugh about now but were so scared of as it actually happened?" I sighed in exasperation at this. 'This wasn't exactly the best time kid, you need this!'

I held my thoughts inside and with a huff, i sat down ruffly Indian style. "Yeah, ... lots of times I've done stuff like that. Why do you ask?" He smiled small and chuckled. "I was just wondering if i was the only one. If it was wrong to think back and laugh on earlier stuff. Before Z's existed." I ruffled his hair slightly, aware of the sticky sweat that enveloped it.

"Nah kid, that's what most of us out here do, believe it or not. I do it myself quite a bit." 10K

looked at me quizzically. "Can you tell me? One of your stupid stunts?" I looked at him and chuckled, prepared for a question like that. "Sure thing kid, just let me go get something fer' ya and i'll tell ya a real good one." He nodded as he was already sinking back into sleep.

I stood up and made my way to the river, making sure to have a shot gun and a pocket knife strapped firmly to my belt. I then walked the short distance alone to the river, the only sound being my feet crunching on the leaves and the gushing of the river flow. '... kid, he's a real talker when he's out of it, i'll say that laugh...haven't heard a genuine laugh like that in quite the while.'

After i wrung out the water somewhat from the rag, i stood up and trotted back to camp. The warm light from the campfire bringing me some relief to my nervousness. i walked back towards the center of camp to 10k, seeing warren and Murphy asleep in the truck with the "wonder twins' cuddling in the bed of it. I chuckled and shook my head at those two, then finally made my way back to 10K. He was asleep still, so i gently placed the rag back on his forehead and he groaned out and woke up.

"D-Doc...It's cold."

"That's the point, it's suppose to bring down your tempo. Your burning up, kid." He just shuddered and sighed in response. I sat back down now closer to the kid, leaning next to him against the tall and engorged hunk of wood of a tree behind us. The Kid was curled in on himself, the pure embodiment of pity. I sighed as my own sense of pity for the kid came back with a vengeance. "Dang brat..."

I muttered as i laid my jacket, as small as it was, on his shivering frame. I saw an odd looking scar on the back of his neck. It was like one of those cheesy looking Frankenstein scars, stitches and all. Although,these were pinkish white and slightly puckered instead of looking like the black paint from movies.

"Wonder where he got that from.." i heard 10K cough and i turned to see him awake still. He slowly reached his arm out from few blankets and jackets we could spare to him, and traced his fingers on the scar. "It's from when i was 7...i was running through the woods when i got stuck in a barbed wire fence on the forest borders. I didn't know it was of private property. i got the wire caught around my neck and it cut open the back of my neck and hair. My dad sewed it up with some fishing line and a sewing needle."

I looked at him and held in a good loud laugh, cuz' that was rich! "Kid, that is definitely something for the books of childhood mishaps. I ain't forgettin' that one!" He smiled softly and nodded. I then realized i hadn't told him one of my own stories yet, so i decided to give into the kid this once.

"Well, this ain't even close to that, but i messed up big time when i was about 10 or 11. i was being babysat by this snotty teenage girl from down the street, and i mean she was so SNOTTY." i got a small chuckle from the kid at this. " She was a total mess up and spent the whole time on my home phone with her boyfriend. So, when she was asleep on the couch, i had decided to make her boyfriend a surprise. I got a pair of scissors from my room and cut off her ponytail.

it was swinging down past her butt even, so it was perfect for a ...little change. She was so mad!' I was expecting a laugh when i saw the kid was already asleep, a smile on his pale and sweaty face. "That kid...makes me feel old like a grandpa or something'. For him though...i'll let it slide."