For the prompt: 'Do you remember all those nights when it was just you and me? John had his own room and the terrible two shared as well? All the times I promised there'd always be a you and me for as long as there was a planet with an earth and sky?'
The breathing is steady, but it is not somehow real. Maybe it's the beeps and whirls and clicks from the machine that are causing that.
Scott watches his brother's chest rise and fall mechanically. There are no sighs, no breaks to indicate a normal breathing pattern. Just the machine and the steady fall and rise of his brother's chest.
And he is sitting beside him, one hand holding on to his brother's limp one while the other brushes soft black hair from his forehead. I ought to gel his hair up like he usually does he thinks. But the style won't hold while his brother is prone, and Scott is content that he can run his fingers through that thick thatch of hair without snagging or messing anything.
'Do you remember all those nights when it was just you and me? John had his own room and the terrible two shared as well? All the times I promised there'd always be a you and me for as long as there was a planet with an earth and sky?'
A tear ran down Scott's cheek, but he ignores it and continues carding his fingers through Virgil's hair.
'We've always been there for each other. You are the counterbalance to my recklessness, my impulsivity.' He gave a small laugh. 'Not sure what I bring to the equation.'
'You bring strength. The desire to improve who we are, to be better than we think we are. You inspire us to be better versions of ourselves.'
And Scott jumps, because the voice doesn't belong to Virgil, it's John's. He turns slightly so that he can see John; and is a little embarrassed because John is smirking. Then he does a double-take. John is here, in person, not a hologram, and a part of Scott wants – needs – to get up and hug him, but the tether to Virgil is too strong.
John sees all this flitting across his eldest brother's face, and he strides over and places a hand on Scott's shoulder. It is enough, Scott feels, and he is grounded by the touch.
And there the two remain, Scott seated and John standing by his side, as they watch over Virgil.
This is how Gordon finds them, however many hours later. He knows it's been hours because the coffee he bought Scott before he left is still there and it is cold. The only addition is John, and he isn't swaying as he usually does when he first returns to Earth. Gordon's sharp eyes don't miss John's hand on Scott's shoulder, nor the way Scott is still clutching Virgil's hand.
He moved to the other side of the bed, standing in front of the machinery that is currently keeping his wingman breathing, and it is his turn to bush Virgil's hair off his forehead. Virgil always did have the unruliest hair. People tend to think that Scott's hair is the worst because of the amount of gel he uses to fix it in place, but the reality is that Virgil's would be curly if he let it, and it always falls across his forehead, like now. That curl is back and Gordon almost laughs at the stubbornness Virgil's hair possesses even when its owner is asleep. Almost, but he can't really.
Gordon looks up and locks eyes with John. His brother's eyes soften and look in the direction of Scott, and Gordon notices for the first time that their eldest brother is asleep, sat slightly slumped onto John's side and clutching Virgil's hand. John daren't move in case he wakes Scott, and Scott asleep, especially now, is a precious, precious thing that will not last long.
Gordon smiles the first genuine smile in the last few days, and it is small and a little sad. But John will take it, and he smiles back.
Scott starts awake, and it is only John's reflexes that prevent him from faceplanting onto Virgil's bed. Neither brother mentions it, and John moves and stretches out while Gordon takes his place beside Scott.
He doesn't touch Scott like John does, he knows when Scott will accept comfort from a younger brother and now is not the time, but it doesn't stop him from standing as close as possible and slightly leaning into Scott. In return Scott slightly nudges him, making Gordon smile.
No one says anything as John leaves the room. He's back five minutes later, arm slung around Alan's shoulders, and Gordon thinks privately that this is the most contact John has physically had with them for a long time. Something of his thoughts must have shown, for John squeezes his bicep as Gordon swaps places with Alan.
Now it's Scott and Alan on one side and John and Gordon on the other. Scott's swapped hands so he can sling his arm around Alan's hips while their baby brother leans heavily into Scott and has his arm around Scott's neck. Scott is still holding Virgil's hand. John has one arm over Gordon's shoulder and is lightly holding him close, and Gordon is relishing the touch.
The four stay like that, waiting.
They wait.
Until Grandma comes and shoos the youngest three away to eat something. Sally doesn't even bother trying with Scott, put she passes him a fresh coffee that she knows he will ignore.
There are signs that Virgil is stirring, but they are subtle and pass over Scott's head. Sally knows, that's why she's taken the others out. No need to overwhelm Virgil when he does stir. She's already spoken to the doctors and they are planning to remove the breathing tube, he doesn't really need it now, it's just a support. They were going to wait until he was alone, but Sally assures them that Scott will not leave so they may as well go ahead.
By the time the three brothers and their grandmother return the tube is removed but Virgil is still asleep. Kayo has slipped into the room at some point, and she has pulled up a chair and is sitting at the foot of the bed, near the exit so she can leave if she needs to.
One hour. That's all the time Sally says her grandchildren can have. One more hour and they need to get some sleep. Still no one talks, they sit around each other and are as tactile as they can be in this room, even John still has the need to, and he is currently resting his hand on Virgil's other arm, out the way of the cannula and drips.
Time's up and they are all leaving Scott and Virgil, and Sally is sure that Virgil will be awake by the time they all return in the morning. At least that is the hope. She bestows a kiss to Scott's head and squeezes his shoulder as she leaves.
It's the middle of the night. Scott's talking again, tired ramblings about their childhood and growing up and always being there. Virgil can hear him, and he uses the voice he has known all his life as an anchor, pulling on the rope to haul himself back to his brother.
Scott's just talking about Virgil being his earth, his grounding, when he feels Virgil squeeze his hand. Glancing up, he watches Virgil battle with his eyelids, reaching across and gently running his thumb over Virgil's cheek in encouragement. They are almost touching foreheads when Virgil wins his battle, and blue eyes meet deep brown ones. There is a smile in those eyes, and relief and concern and love.
Virgil's voice is rough and dry, and he is desperate for some liquid in his mouth and throat, but he needs to say this before the moment is gone.
'I may be your Earth, Scott. But you are my Sky. You keep me flying high.'