A/N

Again, sorry for the late update. Here´s a little recap of the latest chapter, to safe your time and avoid rereading it again:

Myles, Maddie and Julian had flown to New York together to meet Myles and Maddie´s father and discuss with him the possibilities of organ donation and Myles getting tested to see if he was a match. While Myles insisted on going to see his father alone, Julian and Maddie waited in Myles penthouse and have a little talk about Julian´s and Myles' past.

The afternoon is spend with research for the complications when gay men want to donate an organ, in the evening they spend some time at Michael´s club.

Next morning – Dr. Malcolm Hargreaves' office at the Renal Clinic in Queens

Dr. Hargreaves' POV

I entered my office on Monday morning in an exceptionally good mood. A golf tournament on the weekend with some friends in upstate New York had turned out to be very relaxing and the hotel we had stayed in had provided us with excellent food and wine. After working like four weeks in a row to tend to my most critically ill patients, I had needed this escape to reload my tired body and reenergize myself. Joyfully I greeted my secretary Marsha, who always managed to be at the office before me, no matter what time I decided to come in for work. I resolved to one day ask her if she was sleeping in my office so she could always be ready for my inquiries.

I handed her a box of candies which I had purchased at the chocolate shop at the hotel. They assured me that it was a special brand, exclusively manufactured and prepared only for sale

in this particular place. Marsha was blushing a little as she thanked me.

"That wouldn´t have been necessary, Dr. Hargreaves!"

"Don´t complain, Marsha," I said, "Enjoy!"

Then I patiently waited till she had put away the candies and retrieved the list with today´s patients; as she handed it to me, I noticed her looking expectantly at me.

"What?" I said, "Something wrong?"

"I don´t want to destroy your good mood from the past weekend, but look who´s first on the list for today," she said, pointing with her perfectly manicured fingers to the name on the top of the list.

"Oh..," was the only comment I was able to give her for the moment, as I took the list and headed on to my office, closing the door thoughtfully behind me.

The first name on the list, Myles MacAllister II, was one of my oldest patients, having been in my treatment since the first time his disease had been diagnosed. His disease had been discovered at a normal checkup procedure during an ultrasound some 25 years ago. I had talked with him at length regarding all the options available for his disease, telling him that it would progress slowly but that it would lead to renal failure one day. I had also told him that he should inform his son and daughter about it, as it was an inheritable disease which ran in the family. It could be possible that they were affected too. But he steadfastly refused to inform them, and had even forbidden me from talking to them about anything. He was a very strong, stubborn man, trying to deny the disease and live his life without letting his family know.

He refused to accept my help in passing the knowledge onto his family, even though I had offered; nevertheless he came in for checkups on a regular basis. Over the years we had grown fond of each other, even progressing to greeting each other on a first-name basis, though I never could convince him to open up to his family about his disease. Lately his kidneys' condition had worsened; the cysts were growing exorbitantly all over the organ, and his blood work had begun to show signs of renal failure. He had been on a strict diet and had come in for dialysis. But ultimately there was no other option than a kidney transplant, preferably from a next of kin if it would be a match. Though I had arranged for him to be placed on the transplant waiting list, he had finally come to terms with this ultimatum and told his family. His wife and his daughter had gotten tested but were no match for him.

He had told me about his son, that he was gay. I noticed that it was hard for him to acknowledge this fact. Of course, this news took me a bit by surprise and started the wheels in my head to turn and think about what possible complications could arise by organ donation through a gay person, even if it would be for a family member. I discussed all the pros and cons with him. He wasn´t really opposed to the idea, but like me, he had heard of legal complications throughout the process.

Three weeks had passed now and he still hadn´t come back to me with the results of his discussion with his son. He had told me that he would talk to him about everything and ask him to get tested as soon as possible. But I never got the call, not from another doctor´s office, nor from the son.

So I was astonished to see his name on the list for today´s consults. Seems he finally had convinced his son to get tested and see if he was a match. While we were waiting for the son´s test result, Myles and I had gone over the options of accepting organ donations from gay donors. The legal precedent for such an operation was still in its early stages, with many judges refusing to even address or rule on such matters. The issue was constantly going back and forth between the authorities. I was wondering what had taken so long for his son to get tested and show up here with his father and I was eagerly looking forward to their visit.

Myles' III POV

After a relaxing evening at Michael´s club, where even Maddie had enjoyed herself by dancing with a couple of boys, Julian and I had talked in bed until the wee hours of the morning. He convinced me not to give up hope, reminding me that we didn´t even know if I would be a match, as all would depend on the results the next morning at the doctor´s office anyway. Everything else would simply be a speculation. Even though I couldn't prevent the wheels from turning furiously inside my head over all the possibilities, eventually exhaustion overtook my body and I snuggled into Julian´s arms, my head resting on his chest as I finally fell asleep.

It felt like waking up after five minutes when the alarm went off at seven in the morning. Last week Maddie had arranged for an appointment at the doctor´s office this morning to be sure we could see him as soon as possible, even though she didn´t know what my reaction would be. It seems that my sister knew me better than I even knew myself.

As we all were too nervous to have breakfast at home, we just stopped at a coffee shop on the way to the hospital to pick up something to revive our spirits before facing the inevitable. Julian had sorted through the information we had sought out from the web the other day. I was too nervous to even think a coherent thought and was happy to have somebody well-versed in legal issues to support and help me through this ordeal. The meeting with my father yesterday was still nagging at my nerves and if it hadn't been for Julian and Maddie, I think I would have forgotten my head at home. I was pacing through my bedroom, frantically looking for my belt when Julian stopped me and pointed out to me that I had it put on a moment ago. Next thing I was looking for my wallet, which I had already placed in the back pocket of my pants without realizing. I had to thank Maddie then, who noticed it there. So in the end, I was tugged on the sofa in the living room by both of them, told to shut up and relax, while they were going through the papers we had printed out yesterday. I was just sitting there, my elbows placed on my knees and my head supported by my hands, trying to breathe normally and not to think too much about what was waiting for us in the doctor´s office.