Chapter 1

"Yes! Finally!" Noah finished building the drone he had been working on for what felt like half of his life. In reality it only took him about 3 months but considering the others took him 3 weeks and he had the patience of a gnat this particular project seemed like an eternity. It was the latest in his collection of handmade drones. He was so excited, he wanted to show everyone but since the only person home was his sister, he started with her. Noah ran into Emma's room, busting through the door without knocking. She was going to be mad she hated when he didn't knock, "Emma! Come look at what I made! It's so cool. I can't wait to show Danny! Do you think they will find him?"

Emma was laying on her bed reading a book trying to ignore the nagging feeling in her stomach that Danny was about to ruin both of their lives for the foreseeable future. If mama and daddy found out what he was up to or that she knew because he asked her to cover for him she was just as dead as him. Ugh.I told him not to do this dumb shit! I'm going to kill him if I can't go to homecoming!

Noah busted into her room. She hated that. She was too preoccupied with her own fate to yell at her little brother though. "Hey squirt. Yeah they will. They may never let him out of his room once they do though!"

"Do you know where he is? You guys are going to be in SO much trouble! Mommy is going to kill you both and I'm going to be an only child!" "Hm" Noah looked around the room "I think I'm going to make this my showroom, we just have to get rid of all this girly stuff!"

"Ugh. How about we get rid of you!" Emma threw her pillow at Noah. He caught it, poked his head out and flashed his million dollar smile! "You can't!" With quick reflexes and sass like his mom, brains and charisma like his dad, Noah Damien Drake was the perfect mix of his parents. A light in the Drake household.

Emma watched her little brother leave. As the eldest she always felt responsible for her little brothers even though it was times like these where they drove her crazy. Danny was her best friend and she adored Noah. The three of them looked out for each other. Emma was the responsible one, Danny the adventurous one and Noah was a wild card. Noah was so smart any trouble he got himself into he was able to talk his way out of. Emma always pointed out the flaws in her brothers' plans or how they were going to get caught, they always did.

Danny was out of his mind but he knew if he could just get into his room past his parents and fall out on his bed he would be okay. Damnit. Getting past his parents was nearly an impossible task. He would never hear the end of it. He wasn't a bad kid and aside from a few experiments that went awry he was a pretty good kid, at least he thought. He never got into too much trouble, at least not like some of the kids at his school. He had never skipped school, done drugs or drank alcohol… until tonight. Just the latter though. Just two stories… I can do it... as long as I don't fall and break my face. Holy Shit! I'm so drunk but falling to my face seems like a better outcome than mommy and daddy catching me like this… yeah definitely better! Okay. I can do this.

Danny climbed onto the air conditioning unit and used the branch of the tree outside his window to pull himself up. Once he balanced himself on the branch he scooted forward to climb onto the small ledge outside his window. Danny took out the pen he used to keep prop the window open just enough so he could get back into his room. He pushed the window open and practically fell into the room. Shit.I hope no one heard that. I can't believe I made it. Danny got up to close his door, the room was spinning in five different directions and he wasn't quite sure how that was possible. He didn't see his little brother hiding under the desk. As Danny's back was turned Noah crawled from out of his brother's desk, ran up and pushed him as he yelled "GOTCHA!"

Danny jumped instinctively, turned and pushed Noah. Before he could register it was his little brother, he had already sent Noah crashing into the corner of the desk where his head hit before hitting the ground.

"OH SHIT! Oh My God!"

Emma heard a loud bang come from the hall and Danny's curse. She got up and ran to see what happened.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god Noah! Can you hear me?"

Noah lay lifeless on the floor of his brother's room.

"What the hell Dan- OMG NOAH! What the fuck happened?"

"He came up behind me, I didn't know, I didn't realize it was him." Danny panicked.

"So you sent him through a wall? Oh my god he's not moving! Call 911 and then call Daddy!"

Danny frantically called 911 while Emma talked to her unconscious baby brother. She knew not to try and move him so she got down and laid with him on the floor. Danny finished his call to 911 and then went to call his dad.

"Danny! Where are you? We've been worried sick about you! Why didn't you call me or mom?" Danny was able to calmly call the paramedics and tell them everything they needed to know but as soon as he heard his dad's voice, his panic rose and suddenly he couldn't think or speak clearly.

"Daddy! I'm so sorry! I didn't know he was in here! I'm so sorry!"

"Danny! What's going on?" Sam was sitting next to Patrick in passenger's seat. She could sense something was amiss. Although she couldn't hear her son's words she could hear the fear in his voice and cadence. Sam mouthed "what's going on?" to Patrick.

"Danny, You have to slow down and tell me what's wrong." Patrick found the speaker button and pressed it so Sam could hear.

Emma took the phone from her distraught brother. "Daddy! It's Noah! There was an accident. We called the paramedics, he's unconscious!"

Patrick gave the phone to Sam as he sped up and weaved through traffic to get home.

Patrick and Sam pulled up to their house with an ambulance sitting outside. Sam practically jumped out the car and ran into the house before Patrick could even put the car in park. Once in park Patrick dashed in after her.

Sam ran into Danny's room as Noah was being placed on a gurney. "Oh my god, baby you're going to be okay, mama's here." Sam whispered as she kissed her beautiful brunette son on the forehead.

"Ma'am we have to go."

"Okay, I'm riding with him." Sam left the room to go to Noah's room and get his squishy. Noah was a little savant and he prided himself on his intelligence. He knew he wasn't like the rest of the kids his age, his interests were more developed and he had that Drake charm to boot. Sam loved that aspect of him but she also loved those moments when he was just her baby boy. She could remember when Noah was just turning two. Lucas brought him a stuffed lion for his birthday. The first time Noah held the stuffed animal he dubbed him "squishy." He took his squishy everywhere and couldn't sleep without it. He would stare at airplane models for hours on end and was content with squishy sitting right next him.

Patrick watched as the paramedics loaded his son into the back of the ambulance. Patrick wiped at the tear that ran down his face.

Sam ran out the house, squishy in tow and hugged Patrick briefly before getting into the back of the ambulance. "I'm going to grab a few things, get the kids and meet you at the hospital. I love you."

"Okay, I love you too."

Emma and Danny watched from the porch as the ambulance took off with their baby brother. Tears stained Emma's face.

Danny felt nausea in the pit of his stomach and turned just in time to pelt the bushes with the contents of his stomach.

Patrick ripped through Noah's room packing a bag for him, his mind was racing a mile a minute but he needed to focus on the task at hand he couldn't let his emotions get to him. He needed to be there for his family. Patrick finished packing a bag for Noah and Sam, he knew she wouldn't leave the hospital for a while. He walked out into the family room and Emma ran straight into his arms. "Daddy!"

Patrick cradled her head to his chest, "It's gonna be okay sweetheart. Noah is going to be just fine. We need to go see mama at the hospital though, okay?" He wiped her tears as she nodded. "Where's your brother?" Danny walked in at that moment. Patrick could see Danny's disheveled appearance but didn't have time to address it. He needed to get to the hospital for Sam and Noah. "If you guys are coming with me then you need to be in the car, like now."

Sam held Noah's hand through the ambulance ride to the hospital and told to him he was going to be okay and she was there. He was still unconscious be she prayed everything she told him was true and he could sense her presence. Patrick and the kids weren't far behind them arriving to the hospital. She stayed with Noah until Patrick asked her to wait with the kids while they performed tests.

Danny approached his mom, "Don't. Daniel if I was you, I wouldn't speak to me right now," she never looked at him and there was an edge to her voice that he'd never heard before, at least not with him. He'd heard that edge before with his dad and grandpa Julian, sometimes even with his daddy, Patrick but never him. She was livid. Danny walked back to the other side of the waiting room, dejected. He could tell she was ready to explode, he rather it not be in the middle of the hospital. The silence was back.

Emma laid across the hospital chairs with her head on Sam's lap, as she stroked her hair, "He's going to be okay right Mama? Daddy is going to make sure he is okay?"

"I hope so, baby." Sam was numb, she couldn't believe her baby boy was fighting for his life. She was angry at the same time. A lot of that anger was directed toward Danny, if she hadn't been looking for him… she couldn't finish the thought, she felt guilty. Danny was drunk out of his mind. She could smell it on him but the reality didn't hit her until she was able to see his bloodshot eyes under the florescent lights of the hospital. He must have gone partying. She was so worried and searching franticly for him, meanwhile he was having a grand time and her baby, her eight year old was lying in the hospital. She couldn't help but think that if she were home it wouldn't have happened. But faced with the same situation, she wouldn't do anything differently. She wouldn't have been any less worried for Danny.

So many thoughts.

Noah was such a sweet kid. Smart like his father and a smart mouth like her. It seemed to get him in trouble almost as much as hers used to get her in trouble. He was adventurous too but clumsy. Sam figured he got that from her too. Both of her boys were adventurous, Danny was always a little more smooth though. Noah, in half Danny's life had raked in at least double the hospital bills.

Patrick came from the back, worry spread across his face, "Sam, come on"

"You guys stay here." Sam ran towards Patrick and they went to see their son.

Emma and Danny watched their parts leave to see their brother, "Why didn't you tell them it was me, that I pushed him down?"

Emma was so angry with her brother but felt for him at the same time.

"Because, I didn't want to lose two brothers in one night." Danny felt the bile in stomach mixed with the copious amounts of alcohol he had consumed start to rise at the implication that they could lose his little brother and it would have been all his fault. He couldn't contain it and he got sick all over the floor.

Emma stood there as her brother emptied the contents of his stomach right next to her. She felt no desire to help him. "I'd suggest you get sober before you see mama and daddy again."

Emma walked away and left her brother, hunched over on the floor.

Danny sat on the cold hospital floor physically sick with himself and what he had done. Would his family ever forgive him? Had he caused any permanent damage to his baby brother? He sat for what seemed like hours but only ten minutes passed. He contemplated everything from the day Noah was brought home and he finally had a baby brother to play with to how a night of promised fun and new experiences could end so horribly. He was so drunk he couldn't stand himself, but he also couldn't leave.

A nurse went over to help Danny and called a custodian to clean up the mess.

"Thank you but I'm okay. I just need to sleep it off"

"Sir, is there someone I can call to come get you?"

"No. I'll be fine, I just need some air" Danny walked outside and closed his eyes trying to feel the cool air on his cheeks. He took a deep breath in hopes of calming his stomach. Nope. That didn't work. He turned towards the bushes just in time to miss the pavement.

Danny was a lucky kid, he always felt like he was blessed to have three parents to turn to. All three provided different perspectives so he could choose which one was the best for the situation. His mom was his rock and she was good for pretty much any situation. Sometimes she felt more like a best friend than a mom but he was very aware when she was in 'mommy mode.' She wasn't like most other moms. She gave very practical and sometimes unorthodox advice. He respected his mom more than anything. His dad was pretty great too. He had an amazing ability to take even the most complex problem and simplify it to a bottom line. He too was practical. Patrick, whom he called 'daddy' because he was the first father he knew, wasn't his biological dad but he felt no different than one just as Emma felt no different than a biological sister, she was certainly no less bossy. His daddy was the person he could go to when he needed a laugh or brutal honesty. He had a way about him to be able to make light of a situation but he could also call people out on their bullshit, including Danny himself.

Right now Danny needed all three of his parents but he would have to settle for his dad. His mom and Patrick needed to focus on his baby brother. Danny pulled out his cell phone and called his dad.

"Morgan."

Danny hadn't realized the emotion he had built, "Dad, I messed up tonight, real bad. Can you come get me?"

Jason was relieved to hear his son's voice. He had been in his car driving all around town looking for him after Sam's distressed call. He was frustrated that he hadn't heard anything back from her yet and he had exhausted all of the places he knew to look.

"Danny, thank god you're okay, where are you? I'm on my way."

"I'm at the hospital."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine dad, it's not me. I'll explain when you get here. I'm just outside the main entrance"

"Okay, I'm five minutes away" Jason hung up the phone.

Sam looked at her precious son hooked up to machines. He looked like such a baby. Noah was tall for his age, height he so clearly inherited from his father. When he was two the family always joked he'd be taller than Sam in six months. That became a running joke, Noah always only had six months before he would be taller than his mother. Sam was almost certain that would be true now. Six months. Would he be the same adventurous kid in six months? Would he still be a happy kid? Sam prayed this night wouldn't have devastating effects six months down the road for Noah.

"He suffered a seizure from the head trauma. He's stable now but we won't know if there was any permanent damage until he wakes up." Patrick walked over to his wife and rubbed the small of her back as he too looked on at his son. His boy.

"He's gonna be fine and ripping through the house again in no time. He's a strong kid" Sam wiped a stray tear and smiled through her heartache. It wasn't a full smile.

Patrick was constantly in awe of his wife. She was the strongest woman he knew. Her determination and persistence was something he loved about her, although it was also aggravating as hell. She was stubborn. She fought for what she wanted and didn't back down until she got it. He was grateful for her determination in this case. As a doctor, he lived by science. Medical facts, scans, tests, etc were the rules that governed his world. As a father, hope was his stronghold, it was a lot less reliable and lacked any kind of factual data. He too hoped to be chasing his son through the house and playing kickball in the backyard with the family.

Danny didn't speak much on the way home. His head was pounding and he just wanted to be alone. He sprinted up the stairs towards his room as soon as he got in the door. "Danny, wait!" Jason called after him and Danny turned around. "Are you going to tell me what happened? And not the part where you decided to get drunk with your friends and have Patrick, your mom and I worried about you. The rest? Why did I just pick you up from the hospital?"

"Dad, can we talk about it in the morning?"

Jason stared at his son.

"Please?" Danny pleaded.

Jason relented, "here," he walked over to the mini fridge and pulled out a bottle of water and some Tylenol from the drawer. "Take some tonight, it'll help you in the morning."

"Thanks dad." Danny went up to his room.

Jason opened his phone and dialed Sam's number, he still wasn't able to reach her. "Sam, it's me. Danny is here with me. He's gonna stay the night. Give me a call when you get this please!"

Jason was concerned that he hadn't heard anything from Sam or Patrick for a while. He sent a quick text to Patrick to let him know when Danny was.

Excited to write this story, I've pretty much got the whole thing outlined! I hope you all enjoy it! FYI: Jason in my head is SBu's Jason. Let's just say he came back, face in tact but things didn't work out between he and Sam. lol Now go tell me what you think! Review! :)

~KJ