Jeff, Scott, Gordon and Alan all rushed outside. As he came out the front door Jeff immediately looked in the direction that he had last seen his two sons. Neither was in sight. Jeff hurried down the steps to the pool level with his other three sons close behind him. As he skipped the last two steps the sight before him made his breath catch.

Virgil was kneeling down on the cement, the still form of his older brother cradled in his arms. Virgil looked up at the sound of his family's footsteps.

"Dad, I don't know what happened," Virgil told him before Jeff could even asked. "We were going to come inside and then when John stood up his face went pale and then he fainted."

Jeff Tracy knelt down beside them and reached out to take John's one wrist checking his pulse. He was relieved to find it strong and steady. He notice John's eyelids start to flutter.

"John," Jeff said silently praying that he would get some response from his second eldest son. "Can you hear me son?"

John heard his father's voice but it still sounded distant. He tried to open his eyes but his eyelids felt heavy. He didn't know if he had the strength to fight the darkness that seemed to surround him. Then he heard another voice.

"John, come on wake up."

He recognized Virgil's tear filled voice. Even in his semiconscious state John could hear the fear in his brother's voice. He had to fight. He had to do it for Virgil.

John forced his eyes open. He became aware of arms holding him tightly. He didn't need to see to know it was Virgil. He became aware of faces and he tried to focus on them.

Jeff heard the desperation in his middle son's voice as he urged his brother to wake up. Jeff knew how he felt. The desperation mirrored what he felt inside. And then he saw John's eyes open but he also noticed a vacant look to them.

"John?" Jeff said again hoping the familiar voice would help John focus. He could sense his three other sons hovering closely behind him.

"Dad?" John whispered his eyes finally starting to focus.

"How do you feel, son?"

"I don't know," John said not sure how to describe the disorientation he was still feeling. He wasn't quite sure what had happened. He had been talking with Virgil. They had decided to go back inside to join the others. When he had stood up he remembered feeling light headed all of the sudden and the next thing he was aware of was his father's voice calling to him. He must have fainted he reasoned.

John tried to sit up. His body still felt weak. He felt his father reach out and take his arm.

"Take it easy," Jeff told him as he moved to help his son stand up.

John felt light headed as he stood up and his knees felt weak. He knew the only thing that was keeping him standing was his father on one side of him and Virgil on the other side.

John closed his eyes as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He had a feeling that the past week of restless sleep was starting to catch up to him.

"Scott, Gordon, keep an eye on Alan. I'm taking your brother to a hospital to get checked out just to be on the safe side," Jeff said making a decision. The fainting spell could have been brought on by exhaustion and that was probably the case but he wasn't taking the chance.

"Dad, I'm fine," John protested trying to pull away from Virgil and stand on his own to prove his point. As he did so another wave of dizziness came over him. He felt Virgil put a supporting arm around him again.

"You're getting checked out," Jeff told him firmly but gently. "I'll keep in touch with you Scott," Jeff said to his eldest son.

"Yes sir," Scott said as Jeff moved to the opposite side of John and then the three of them headed down to the dock and the waiting boat.

Scott stood there and watched them walk away until he couldn't see them even more. Even after they were out of sight he didn't move. It wasn't until the sound of the boat faded into the distance that Scott was able to move himself from the spot he was in.

"Come on guys, lets go back inside," Scott said resting a hand on each of his brother's shoulder. Silently, Gordon and Alan followed their brother inside both worried about their older brother.

Jeff Tracy found himself watching the clock in the emergency room waiting room. It seemed as if they had been waiting forever even though it had only been forty minutes since they had checked in.

He took his eyes off the clock and glanced over at his two sons sitting on a nearby couch. John had fallen asleep with his head resting on Virgil's shoulder. Virgil still had one arm around John and sat as still as possible trying not to disturb his sleeping brother.

Virgil looked up and met his father's glance. Their eyes mirrored each other. Each saw the fear and worry that they were feeling in the other's eyes.

After a few minutes Jeff looked back to the clock and watched the second hand move slowly across the numbers.

Footsteps brought Scott out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Alan coming down the steps.

"I thought you were sleeping," Scott commented softly trying not to wake up Gordon who had drifted off to sleep on the couch across from Scott.

Alan had gone upstairs shortly after the three of them had come back inside. Gordon had gone up to check on him shortly after that and had said he was sleeping.

"I tried," Alan told him as he came to a stop at the bottom of the steps. He saw Scott hold an arm out to him and he gladly went over and sat down on the couch next to him. Scott put his arm protectively around his baby brother's shoulders pulling him close. As much as he was trying to comfort Alan, Scott had to admit that he found having Alan nearby a comfort to himself.

He soon realized that Alan was crying though.

"Alan, what's wrong?" Scott asked softly.

"I'm a terrible person," Alan said through his tears.

Scott tried to figure out what his brother meant. Sure Alan tended to get into trouble but he never set out to intentionally cause trouble. Even when he had caused the explosion at the school Alan hadn't set out to do it. The youngest Tracy just seemed to have a knack for finding trouble.

"Alan what are you talking about?"

It took Alan a little while to respond as he searched for the right words.

"I keep wishing that it was somebody else this was happening to. You or Gordon or Virgil or even myself," Alan said crying harder.

Scott hugged his brother tighter. He knew exactly how Alan felt because he had found himself wishing the same thing.

While he was protective of all his brothers, Scott knew that he was more protective of John than any of the others despite the fact that John was the closest to him in age. It had always been that way. The fact that all of this was happening to John was killing him. As much as he hated himself for it, he had wished it was one of his other brothers than John. Alan's admission made him wonder if the thought hadn't crossed all of their minds at some point over the last day.

"It's okay Squirt," Scott told him softly. "The same thought has crossed my mind more than once."

"Really," Alan said looking up at him.

"Really," Scott told him.

"Mine too," Gordon softly admitted from his place on the couch. He hadn't moved but his eyes were now opened. "John has always put us before himself. He puts everyone before himself. I just keep thinking that this isn't fair. This shouldn't be happening to him. He doesn't deserve it."

Before anyone could say anything else the phone on the end table next to Scott rang. Scott quickly answered it hoping that it wasn't more bad news.