God Bless NBC, and all of those involved in the creation, production, and airing of this great show that I have nothing to do with but am a loyal viewer of. :^)

[x] sorry about the long wait but things have been crazy crazy crazy!! but OMIGOD! the cast of american dreams is, are you ready for this??, GOING TO BE AT MY MALL ON SATURDAY!!! eeeee!!! screamscreamscream. . lol. so, yeah, i probably wont update tomorrow. . .lol. im soooo happy and excited. oooh. will estes. . ddlkghdskl;vndslk;ngs!!! lol. -ducky [x]

"Meg? Meg, did you hear me?" asked Jack. He put his hands on Meg's shoulders to steady her. Roxanne had her face in her hands crying.

"Meg? J.J.'s at home waiting for us!" repeated Mr. Pryor. Meg felt tears come to her cheeks- this time tears of joy.

"He's home? He's really home?!" she cried. Jack nodded and smiled. Meg hugged him tightly and then hugged Roxanne.

"What are we waiting for!!!??" Meg cried, racing out to the car.

The drive home seemed to take forever. Meg felt like she was a thousand years old by the time she saw the house. She practically leapt out of the window when they pulled into the drieway.

"Come on, Rox!!" she cried, almost dislocating her best friend's arm. Roxanne laughed and followed.

They burst through the kitchen door and stopped abruptly. Meg hadn't seen her older brother in over a year. The last image she had of him was proud and strong. He was in his uniform, his hair in a buzz, and canvas over his shoulder. Now, she stared at the figure on the couch.

J.J.'s once perfect hair lay disheveled and messy and he had a slight beard. His face and arms were scratched. He looked old- older than his father. Meg was speechless and frightened.

Roxanne nudged her gently and said, aloud, "Yes, Meg, J.J.'s really home!" so as to make it seem that Meg's shock was positive. Meg quicly recovered and ran to J.J. and hugged him. Even that seemed strained and awkward.

"Welcome home!" said Roxanne, sitting across from Meg and J.J. in a chair. J.J. smiled and said, "Come on, Rox. You can hug me, too." Roxanne laughed and hugged J.J. Meg noted that for Rox, the small gesture was visably easier.

[x] Later than night at dinner [x]

J.J. ate heartily- much to Helen's joy. She was oblivious- as mothers tend to be- at her son's condition not physically but everywhere else. So was Jack. They seemed not to notice the strained hugs and smiles or the stiff bits of conversation. They only saw their eldest home from war.

Will saw his big brother- the super star, the cool guy, and the hero- sitting across from him eating dinner the way big brothers should.

Patty felt a mixture of things. She was happy that J.J. was home. She was in awe of what he'd been through and done. And she was nervous about what he might do.

Meg was worried. Point blank worried. J.J.'s spirit and fire was gone. He was like a programmed machine that, once given a weapon, could take out an entire platoon without any emotion. But once given a hug, was unable to respond.

[x] After dinner [x]

Will and Patty went up to bed, but not before hugging and kissing J.J. goodnight. J.J. had been good with putting on his facade for Will.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Night J.J." said Will.

"Come here, Thrill." said J.J., scooping up his brother and tossing him into the air. Will laughed and hugged J.J. who returned the gesture.

"See you in the morning." said Will, climbing the stairs.

"Football in the yard tomorrow?" asked J.J. Will's face lit up.

"You got it." he answered and went into his bedroom. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Patty had just said "Good night" and went up the stairs. Now J.J. was lying on the couch in the formal living room. Meg crept into the room and stared at him. He looked tense and nervous.

'I'll wake him and send him to bed in a really bed.' she thought. She walked over to the couch and tapped his shoulder.

Instantly, J.J. sprung awake and grabbed Meg into a choke hold. Meg let out a scream and J.J. instanty let go. He stood and stared at her on the floor. Jack and Helen raced into the living room.

"I'm sorry, Meg." said J.J., his forehead creased with concern. He looked at his parents and then raced up the stairs without another word.

Meg lifted herself to the couch and tried to calm herself. Helen sat next to her and hugged her.

"Mom, I was just trying to wake him up and then he just jumped up and-" started Meg. Helen held her and sighed.

"Things are going to be strange for a while, Meg. You just have to take it slow with J.J." she said kindly. Meg cried harder.

"Mom, what happened to my brother?" she asked, tears streaming down her face.

From the landing, J.J. sat in front of the hall window and cried.