Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'm glad that so many of you are interested in this story This chapter is where some of the medical stuff starts coming in...and I'm no doctor! hehe...there's a reason why I've never attempted a House M.D fic! So apologies if some of the medical stuff is wrong...I tried my best to do research on the topic to make it kind of realistic!

Had a bit of trouble when I was writing this...I realised halfway through it that I had not only changed the name of their Doctor, but the sex as well! hee. Anyways, I think I fixed it all, but if there's any unfixed mistake that I missed, then you know why! hahahahha...

Anyways, onwards bound to the next chapter!

Brothers – Chapter 2

"Ryan, can you say "ah"?" prompted Doctor Williams, as she investigated Ryan's throat. "Well, his throat looks fine, has he been complaining about pain anywhere in particular?" she asked, turning to Kirsten.

"I...I don't think so..." replied Kirsten, "I've been working overtime for the past few days, so...I haven't been with him."

"Okay, how about I check his breathing" said the doctor, lifting up Ryan's pajama shirt. In her rush to get her baby to the hospital, she had forgotten to change the boys out of their pajamas. Kirsten now gasped when she saw the large dark bruise on Ryan's back.

"Where did that come from?" asked the doctor. "Ryan?" she prompted after seeing Kirsten's surprised face.

"I...I don't know...this morning when I fell...I think," replied Ryan uncertainly, now struggling to turn around and see his own back.

"I'm sorry..." said a small sob from behind Kirsten belonging to Seth, "I didn't mean to be rough."

"Ryan fell over when Seth accidentally pushed him too hard...but it didn't seem that hard of a fall at the time, and Ryan didn't seem too affected by it," put in Kirsten after seeing the Doctor's blank stare.

"Does it hurt anywhere else Ryan? It's okay, you can tell us," she eventually asked, turning back to Ryan. Ryan just looked at the Doctor wearily and pouted. He did not like strangers, and he especially didn't like strangers that poked and plodded at him.

"His leg was hurted," spoke up Seth again, who was still standing behind Kirsten whimpering, eventually poking his head out from behind his mother's legs.

"Ryan said his leg hurted...yesterday..." he said again, this time with more confidence "it was after we played baseball...he...he didn't tell you and Daddy because he didn't want to hurt Daddy's feelings..." he trailed off, stepping out from behind Kirsten to face her.

"Which leg in particular?" asked the Doctor.

"Both of them...he said it hurted like...it was hurted inside..." was Seth's reply, confusion contorting his face as he remembered the exact words his brother had told him yesterday. "I'm sorry I didn't say earlier Mommy...but I thought...like, it was just a little pain...and...and...Ry told me not to tell..."

"Seth, you know to always tell us if either one of you is hurt!" scolded Kirsten, causing Seth to pout and shrink back to his position behind her legs.

"It's not Seth's fault Mommy, I told him not to tell..." spoke up Ryan, breaking his silence in defense of his brother.

"Well, Ryan, you should have known better too."

"Hmm, what do you mean when you said that it hurt inside Ryan?" put in Dr. Williams, halting Kirsten's reprimand.

"I don't know...there was no boo boo on my leg."

"Okay...have you noticed him being tired lately?" asked the Doctor to Kirsten.

"Well, he hasn't been feeling too well lately, we thought it was just another ear infection..."

"Any excessive sweating?"

Kirsten shook that head.

"Not that I've noticed anyways."

"Okay," nodded the Doctor, "Look, I would like to run some tests, get some blood work. I'm hoping it's not what I suspect, but we can't be too sure."

"What...what do you suspect?" asked Kirsten, her heart feeling like it was about to jump out of her skin.

"We'll confirm the diagnosis first and get back to you, now I need you to fill out these forms, and..."

Kirsten phased out as the Doctor continued to ramble off the formalities. All her motherly instincts told her that something was very wrong with her child, yet, she felt so helpless.

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Sandy Cohen rushed down the hospital hall as fast as he could without looking like some hapless sprint runner. His wife had been in tears over the phone, and all he could make out was that they were at the hospital, something was wrong with Ryan, and the doctors and nurses weren't letting on what exactly. He had tried to comfort her, telling her he would make it there as soon as possible. That didn't quite turn out, for as soon as he put down the phone, his boss had walked in with a new case, and a bloody difficult one at that. His client was merely a thirteen year old boy, but was already charged with possession of a gun, and attempted murder. Facing these abused and neglected teenagers often had their toll on Sandy, and he would go home each day and cuddle his sons, reassuring himself that he would never allow the same fate to come upon them. Protecting them from society was one thing, looking after their health was quite another, and as Sandy raced through the halls of the hospital, a feeling of utmost vulnerability came upon him. However, he composed himself enough for his wife before stepping into the room.

"Kirsten?"

"Oh Sandy," she cried, drying her tears onto his shoulder as he pulled her into an embrace. "Sandy, it was so horrible, they had to check his bone marrow or something, and they were holding him down and needling him, and he cried so much, and he begged me to take him home..." she continued to sob. Sandy held her tightly and ran his hand down her back, gently massaging from her neck down to comfort her.

"I'm so sorry sweetie, I should have been here, I'm sorry," he confessed whisperingly into her ear until her sobs softly subsided.

"Did they tell you what was wrong?" he asked her, finally pulling away from the embrace to walk over to his sleeping child's bedside. Kirsten sniffed as she shook her head and ran her hands over her eyes to wipe the tears away.

"They won't let me know anything."

Sandy ran his hand gently through his son's golden blonde hair before bending over to kiss him on the forehead. The movement woke Ryan, and he blinked groggily as he adjusted his eyes to the light.

"Daddy?"

Sandy smiled, "Hey Rhino, you're awake! Mommy tells me you've been a very brave boy!" he exclaimed to the sounds of Ryan's small giggles at his nickname being used.

"I feel yucky!"

"I'm sorry kiddo," commiserated Sandy, running his hand through his son's hair once again, "I'm sure the lovely doctors and nurses will make you feel better," he reassured.

Ryan smiled again, before succumbing to a yawn.

"Daddy...tired..." he muttered, his eyes drooping.

"How about you go back to sleep then kiddo?"

"You, Mommy...Seth...gonna be here...when I wake up?" asked Ryan, his eyes closing for the final time.

"Of course," replied Sandy, kissing Ryan on the forehead again, before staring long and hard at his sleeping son. Ryan was an energetic kid, and besides the mild infection every now and again, he was generally healthy and happy. Nothing much could be wrong right? Of course not, everyone's just overreacting, Sandy thought to himself.

"Mr. and Mrs. Cohen?" a voice inquired at the door.

Kirsten sniffed and wiped her tears away when she saw Dr. Williams was indeed the owner of the voice. Walking towards the doctor and Sandy at the same time, she managed to cling onto her husbands arm before greeting the doctor.

"We have Ryan's results from his tests..." the Doctor started to say whilst Kirsten bit her lip and clung harder onto Sandy.

"And?"

The Doctor hesitated.

"Maybe you would like to take a seat," she finally said, gesturing to the bench in the hall outside of Ryan's room. Kirsten felt her muscles clench up immediately. This could not be a good sign. Sandy however, felt her, and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before leading her to the bench and sitting her down.

After seeing that her charges were seated, Doctor Williams took a deep breath. She hated this part of her job.

"You son Ryan...has Leukemia."

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"Seth?" Sandy called softly, not wanting to disrupt the other children in the playroom. The hospital playroom was a bright sunny place with large murals of cute furry animals painted all around the walls. Toys and games were stacked up in various shelves around the room, making a vibrant colorful atmosphere for the children to enjoy. A television showing cartoons was playing in a corner where an excited crowd of children were gathered. Without further inspection one would've thought this was any normal kindergarten classroom...until you saw that half the kids were in wheelchairs, many with bandaged arms or legs. They were the lucky ones. The less lucky kids were pale, some bald, and generally sick. Sandy hated to picture Ryan looking that that any time soon, but deep inside, he knew this would be a possible reality now. He thought back to the morning and his little banter with Kirsten about the bagels...how far away that seemed. Kirsten had absolutely broken down after hearing Ryan's diagnosis, and Sandy for once did not know how to comfort her. Hell, he felt like doing the same himself! But he had to hold up, and remain strong, if only for Kirsten and Ryan's sake.

Looking around the playroom again, Sandy sighed. Now he had been assigned the even tougher task. Trying to explain the situation to his other four year old son. How do you tell a child that the brother they adore and love is extremely ill...and may even die?

Die...no, he must not think that. Ryan was not going to die; Sandy himself would make sure that he didn't.

"Seth, where are you?" Sandy called again, careful not to break the melancholy air hanging around the false cheery atmosphere. Carefully, he scanned the room: not in the crowd of children near the television, not near the toy cupboards, nor the little tables set up near the window. Walking further into the playroom, Sandy found a connecting room separated through some bright glass panes, within which he could spot a few shelves of books. Walking closer, he saw that beanbags had been strewn around the floor, providing a little reading area for the children. Managing a smile at the idea of a little library within the playroom, Sandy finally managed to locate his son, still dressed on his pajamas, perched on a bean bag in the corner, concentrating hard upon an open book on his lap. "Act normal, act normal..." he begged himself before walking in to face his son.

"Hey kiddo, what's that you're reading there?" Sandy asked cheerily, crouching down to Seth's level. Looking down, Sandy noticed with surprise that the book was merely opened at the front page, and aside from the title, there was not a word or picture in sight.

Seth peeked up, before shakily greeting Sandy, "Hi Daddy."

Seeing Seth's quavering lips even as he spoke, Sandy allowed his knees to kneel down onto the ground to get right down to his son's height.

"Aw, don't I even get a hug?" Sandy asked, holding his arms invitingly. Seth focused his large brown eyes onto Sandy for a moment, as if contemplating, before placing the book onto the floor, wrapping his little arms around Sandy's neck, and snuggling into Sandy's shoulder. Sandy wrapped his arms back around Seth and gave him a gentle squeeze before letting him go, but Seth continued to hold tight. Slightly taken aback, Sandy then understood that his young son may not be as ignorant of his surroundings as he and Kirsten had thought, and knew that something wasn't right. The twins were often very sympathetic to each other's sufferings, and whenever Ryan was sick, Seth had always just seemed to know. Lifting Seth up into his arms, Sandy settled onto a nearby couch, his son on his lap.

"Daddy...is Ryan going to be okay?" Seth finally spoke up after a few seconds of silence. Sandy gently brushed a few curly brown locks out from his son's eyes before hugging him close.

"Sethelah ..." Sandy paused trying to find the right words. "Do you remember when we found a little bird in our backyard back in Berkeley?"

Seth nodded, his large eyes staring back at Sandy, as if anticipating the pain he already knew he was going to feel.

"Well, when we found it, it was very weak, and didn't know how to fly right?"

Seth nodded again, "It died..." he answered Sandy, tears forming in his eyes as he remembered that his Daddy was telling him about Ryan. "Is Ryan dying?" he whimpered, tears dripping down his small cheeks. Sandy used his hands to brush a loose tear away.

"No sweetie, Ryan's not dying...But Ryan is very sick, like that little bird was when we found him."

"Is...is...Ryan going to die?"

Sandy hugged Seth closer, and shook his head.

"No, because we are not going to let him. But Ryan will need to be taken care of very well, like how we needed to help the little bird, so he's going to have to come back here so the doctors and nurses can make him better. We need to be strong for him, and the doctors and nurses are going to do their best to make Ryan well again. We're going to need to be strong for both Ryan and Mommy." he answered, allowing his head to rest slightly onto the mop of curls of his shoulder. Seth paused, as if contemplating the answer.

"I'm so sorry..." he finally whimpered into Sandy's ear, sniffing as more tears began to well up in his large brown eyes.

"There's nothing to be sorry for Seth, this wasn't anyone's fault" Sandy reassured his small child, rubbing Seth's back comfortingly, the same way he did to calm his cries down as an infant.

"But it is my fault..." Seth sniffed, proceeding to tell Sandy of how Ryan had told him about the pain in his legs, but he hadn't told Mommy or Daddy, and how he had pushed Ryan over in the morning, causing the big bruise on his brother's back.

"I'm sorry I made Ryan sick..." he finished, using Sandy's shoulder to soak up the tears drops falling from his eyes when he blinked.

Sandy pulled Seth from his shoulder, and forced his son to look straight at his face.

"Listen to me Sethelah. This wasn't anyone's fault, not Mommy's, not Daddy's…and especially not yours."

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