I can't guarantee updates at any regular interval due to life being in control but this story will be finished in two or three chapters.
It had been a couple of weeks since the accident, John had been laid up and spent the whole fortnight either in his room or on the semi-circular sofa in the Tracy's main house. For the first week or so his brothers had made a point of spending time between rescue missions with him but as the second week drew to a close they rarely saw him. John had become almost reclusive not wanting to see anyone and when his brothers were around, he would snap and become unpleasant until they would leave.
"You just need to h hold still for fifteen minutes."
"Brains it isn't working, I don't see the point in me being here."
"Y yes… Your brothers told me you would be co-operative."
John sighed and turned away from the engineer closing his eyes, he didn't mean to be so unpleasant but every word or gesture made his guts twist with annoyance and he just wanted to leave. Brains had John lying on his latest creation, a machine that would help knit his bones back together much quicker than they would naturally and in the right position. John had been going through this therapy each day since the accident but couldn't feel it working at least not at any great speed.
"Virgil told me you had been trying to walk yesterday, that w won't help your bones you know." Brains said trying to mask his annoyance with the Tracy brother with a layer of compassion.
"I just want to be back on Thunderbird 5, I tried to get to the elevator and fell… Virgil had been following me and insisting I don't… He ended up fireman carrying me back to my room."
"I k know it's f f frustrating but if you don't rest now you'll never recover, it'll only be another week or two."
"But I don't feel any better, it still hurts and I can't walk."
"No but you will in a w week's time you just have to rest, the crutches mean you can get around the house at least?"
John huffed but remained still as instructed and let the machine work, it wasn't like he had anything better to do, Brains monitored the readings on a screen across the room watching the laser move over John's thigh In an ark and back again, by all accounts inspite of John's bid for freedom his leg was much better but he was becoming concerned for his wellbeing John was usually quiet but also amenable and well mannered he was becoming another person the longer he was laid up.
John could feel warmth as the scanner moved back and forth, he didn't really understand what it was doing other than knitting the bone back together but beneath it all he was thankful his recovery wouldn't be prolonged and certainly not as long as other normal citizens would have to go through. The machine was inside one of the vehicle hangers and being dressed only in shorts and a vest shirt he was feeling cold but his recently inflated pride wouldn't let him admit this, Brains would have lent him a jacket or gone and got him something of his own if he'd have known. Brains missed John in a sense that they never had their usual long conversations that left the other brothers mute and confused, now if he mentioned anything technical John brushed him off or became so difficult to talk to even Brains gave up.
"Y you know you never r really told anyone w what happened. That's made it harder to treat you, you can tell me I won't let it go any further."
"I'm sorry Brains, I'd just rather not talk about it, it was a silly accident."
"Silly or not we can put things in place to stop it happening to someone else, G Gordon is up there at the moment how will you f feel if he does the same?" Brains tapped away logging some scan results he wanted to study in further detail later.
"It's meant I've been trapped down here, I can't go back to TB5 until I'm healed, gravity is killing my back… The painkillers are making me so drowsy but I can't sleep… Gordon will be fine."
"Your brothers tell me you won't let them see you, maybe if you spent some time-"
"Please Brains can we do this in silence?"
Brains honoured his request breaking his word only to give John instructions and finally to tell him the therapy was complete, the laser finally disappeared and the whirring noise ceased leaving them in silence. John shrugged off Brains as he reached out to help John down off the table, instead taking the force of the drop on his good leg, even Brains cringed.
"Y You know if you ever want to talk shop, I'm around."
"I know, thanks Brains."
John slowly clicked his way back to his room where he closed the door locking everyone out including his Grandma who was growing concerned, she checked on him a little later and found him asleep quietly pushing the door open and sitting next to him for a moment she felt a maternal pride and concern throb through her heart, placing a kiss on his forehead she resolved to speak to him the next day and get to the bottom of what really was bothering him.