Hi, I'm back again. How exciting do the previews look for the next couple of episodes?

So the title of this might be a bit of a giveaway for what it's about. Loosely based on spoilers and kind of a continuation of Charlie's Tough Love, but I don't think that you have to read that to understand this. I haven't written any pauses during the times that Emilie speaks - but we all know how she does speak, so hopefully you'll be able to hear her voice when you read.

There won't be any blood test results in this either.

As always, I don't own anyone that you recognise.

The Beach

Ethan's shift had finished over half a hour ago, yet he was still in the hospital, sat by his brothers bedside. Cal had been moved into cubicles until such time that he was ready to be discharged. He had been in a lot of discomfort so he had been given some more pain relief which left him in this restful state. There was no way Ethan was going to wake him - he needed his rest.

The younger doctor kept glancing up at his brothers face, which still bore the hallmarks of the pain and the stress that he had been under lately. Ethan felt a pang of guilt knowing that some of the recent stress had been caused by his actions of the last few weeks. He still couldn't believe himself that he had told Cal that he wasn't his brother anymore. He loved his brother very much, even if he did drive him to distraction sometimes, yet he had completely disowned him for the last few weeks.

He closed his eyes as he dragged in a deep breath and blew it out slowly, "Are you ok?" a voice broke him out of his musings. His eyes snapped open to see the older man looking at him with concern, "I'm not the one with my arm in a sling," Ethan joked.

Cal smiled, "Yeah, but you're the one who looks like he's got the whole world on his shoulders," he told him.

"I'm just thinking..."

"Not a good idea," Cal chuckled, wincing as he straightened up a little, causing Ethan to tense, ready to come to his aid if needed. Cal noticed this but waved him away.

Suddenly, the curtain opened to reveal Charlie, who looked at both of them trying to judge the mood in the cubicle, "It's ok Charlie, we're not going to kill each other," Ethan smiled.

Charlie's mouth turned up slightly, "Glad to hear it. I've managed to find a room for your mum - she's settled at the moment, here are her scans," he handed Ethan the tablet. Cal watched his brother intently as the younger mans brow furrowed, followed by a slight shake of his head, "Ethan..." he ventured.

"It's as we thought..." the young doctor told him, "Pnuemonia."

Cal let his head fall back on the pillow, his eyes filling, "That's not good," he whispered.

"No, it's not good...she probably won't get over this Cal," Ethan told him sadly.

"She's upstairs when you're ready," Charlie told them kindly, and left them to it.

Ethan glanced at the scans in front of him once more, then looked to his brother once again, "We should be with her," Ethan said.

Cal's expression alternated between relief and sadness as he agreed.

Ten minutes later, the two young men stood outside their mother's room. Cal opened the door and stepped inside. Ethan hesitated, still unsure about what was the right thing to do, "Ethan?" he heard. He looked up to see his brother looking at him with confusion. He took a deep breath and walked in, closing the door behind him.

Cal strode right up to his mother's bedside, smiling as her eyes opened, "Hey," he said softly, "Look who's here."

He looked towards the foot of the bed where his younger brother stood, seeming rooted to the spot. Because the head of the bed was already raised, Emilie only had to move her head slightly to see Ethan. Her smile widened when she saw her younger son. Seeing her so happy to see him unlocked Ethan's empathy once more. He moved to her side, choosing the same side as Cal so that she wouldn't have to move much. She held out her hand to him which he took hold of gently, "I am sorry Ethan..."

Ethan shook his head, "Don't be sorry. You've nothing to be sorry for. You were let down badly by someone you thought would help you. Cal told me all about it. I'm so sorry that you had to go through it."

Her eyes filled with tears, "Don't be to hard on your brother. He thought he was protecting you. It's what he always did before you were taken from me," she told him.

Ethan glanced at Cal, "Don't worry Emilie, we've talked it through - we are, and always will be a work in progress," he smiled, hearing Cal chuckle next to him.

Suddenly, the older man began to feel woozy as the adrenaline of the day began to leave his body. He felt himself begin to sway slightly. Ethan somehow picked up on this and guided him to the chair that was near the bed. After making sure his brother was seated, he left the room, arriving back no more than a couple of minutes later with a couple of extra pillows, which he used to rest Cal's arm on. When he was happy that Cal was comfortable, he returned to Emilie's side. She was watching Cal anxiously as he attempted to keep his eyes open, "He was helping me...I couldn't get my balance and we fell - it's my fault," she cried as she began to get agitated. Some of the alarms started blaring, so Ethan grabbed the oxygen mask from behind her bed and gently placed it over her nose and mouth advising her to take deep breaths, while softly stroking the back of her hand in the hope of relaxing her. It seemed to be working as her body began to relax and she drifted off into a restful sleep.

Cal had panicked when he heard the alarms, but one look at how his brother was treating her reassured him and he once again began to drift off to sleep.

Cal woke early the following morning thanks to the throbbing pain in his shoulder. Slowly, he got to his feet so that he could get to his bag for his painkillers. Before that though, he checked on his mother, who was still sleeping soundly. He checked her vitals, even though he knew that they had been checked during the night. Satisfied that she was doing as well as could be expected, Cal turned to look for his bag, only to be surprised at the heartwarming scene that met his gaze. At sometime during the night, another chair had been brought in, which Ethan was currently occupying. But the young doctor was practically perched on the edge of it, his head resting on his left arm which was resting on the bed, fast asleep with his right hand holding Emilies. It made him wish, not for the first time, that he had told Ethan earlier, then they would have had more time to all be together. He spun round to look for his bag, momentarily forgetting about his shoulder until he wrenched it causing him to grunt in pain.

Ethan must have heard him, even in his state of sleep, because his eyes snapped open and he was on his feet in seconds, "Cal, what are you doing?"

"Looking for my painkillers," he hissed.

"Sit back down. I'll get them," he told him firmly as he got the bag and found the tablets, "You need something to eat before you take them," he informed him.

"I know. I think there's a cereal bar in there somewhere. I'll get something more to eat later."

Ethan found it and gave everything to his brother. He then glanced at his watch, "I'm due on shift in a hour - I'd better get some breakfast. Are you staying here?"
Cal nodded, "Ok, I'll be back when my shift is over. Make sure you get a break and something to eat, " he patted his shoulder before taking his leave.

True to his word, the young doctor arrived back to the room later that day. He walked in quietly to find Cal perched on the bed talking quietly to their mother, who seemed agitated. He quickly made his way to the other side of the bed, "Cal?" he questioned.

"She's getting worse..." was all he offered. Ethan took hold of the oxygen mask once more and tied to place it on her face, but she knocked it out of his hand, "Emilie," he said softly, "You need to wear this - it will help you feel more comfortable. Please...for us."

He tried again and this time she let him. As he did so, their eyes locked and he shuddered as he saw the years of heartache and pain flood her eyes in those few precious seconds.

He then glanced at Cal, who looked exhausted and in pain, "Right Emilie, me and Cal are going to get something to eat ok? We'll be back later."

Emilie, who was now much calmer, nodded her head, "You both look tired," she said.

Ethan smiled as he walked round the bed to help steady Cal, "Cal," Emilie gasped, "Will you think about what we discussed?"

Cal patted her hand, "I'll talk to Ethan about it and see what we can come up with," he promised as he let Ethan guide him out of the room.

Almost a hour later, after a delicious steak meal, Ethan finally asked Cal what Emilie had meant.

"She keeps talking about the beach. She remembers a weekend that we spent there - the weekend before we were taken from her. With everything that happened to her after that, it's her strongest memory of the two of us. She wants to go back there - with us."

Ethan thought for a moment, "She's very ill Cal. The beach is not exactly the best place for someone with pnuemonia..."

"Ethan, she's dying. She knows that she is dying. She just wants one more trip with her boys. I know we've not known her long, but I feel... I just feel like we should try."

Ethan didn't miss the emotion in his brother's voice, "Ok. I'm off tomorrow. I'll pack up the car with oxygen and plenty of blankets - we can get fish and chips..."

Cal smiled gratefully, "Thanks Ethan. Thanks for everything. You've been so understanding - again. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Let's hope you never have to find out," the younger man chuckled although the trepidation behind those words was not lost on either of the brothers.

Hope it wasn't to boring. I sped things up half way through because as I was writing it I became a bit bored myself.

Chapter 2 will obviously be the beach. Hopefully I'll get it up in the next few days.

Thank you in advance for reading xx