A BROTHER'S CRY

By Grumpymagrat & Magratconvert

Disclaimer: We don't own the Thunderbirds. Not now, not ever.

Chapter Eight – A Brother Gets Help

While Virgil was trying to talk to Gordon, Alan had cornered Scott. He explained his concerns. "…since he won't talk to John, John suggested that I talk to you. What do you think, Scott?"

"Well, I am not sure that it's as bad as you think. I've had rescues that have bothered me for months. It's been what? Two and a half weeks?"

Alan cut him off. "Two weeks and five days. But it's more than feeling bad about a rescue. He's not eating. He seems angry when he is around us which isn't very often if you have noticed."

"Ok, Alan, I'll admit that I have been busy with mission reports and working with Brains and Dad. Maybe I haven't noticed as much as you have. So this is what I am going to do. I will go and talk to Gordon. I will keep in mind your concerns and try to determine if they are valid. Will that be ok?"

"Yeah, I know that once you talk to him, you will understand." Alan said relieved that someone else was finally going to help.

Scott headed to the gym. Working out always helped him think and he wanted to be prepared when he talked to Gordon. When he entered the gym, he was surprised to find that Gordon was there beating on the punching bag with a vengeance.

Scott stood and watched Gordon. He could tell that Gordon's punches were a little off, like he was tired. He was breathing heavily. Scott also noticed that Alan was right about Gordon losing weight. His sweat-covered t-shirt clung to his chest emphasizing his lean frame. Scott decided that his talk could not wait until the morning.

"Hey Gordon," Scott said holding out a bottle of water to his brother. "You look like you could use a break. Why don't we sit down and have a talk?"

"Did Alan talk to you?" Gordon asked sarcastically.

"Well, yeah." But that was as far as Scott got.

"No."

"Excuse me, no? No, what?" Scott asked confused.

Gordon literally began yelling at Scott. "No, I am not going to talk to you. I am not going to talk about the rescue. I am not going to talk about my feelings. I don't need your help. I don't need anybody's help. I just want to be left alone." Gordon punched the wall and then stormed out the door.

Scott stared at the door. He couldn't believe what just happened. He had never seen Gordon that angry. He knew that Alan was right. Something was really wrong with Gordon. He also knew that he would need more help dealing with the situation.

The next morning the family gathered for breakfast.

"Has anyone seen Gordon this morning?" Scott asked.

"He left a note saying that he was going to the lagoon early this morning." Kyrano said.

"He sure has been spending a lot of time at the lagoon. I haven't seen much of him the past week or so." Jeff commented.

"Dad, we need to have a family discussion about Gordon." Scott began. "Maybe this would be the best time since we are all here, but Gordon isn't."

Jeff seemed puzzled. "Ok Scott, is there a problem?"

"Yeah, there is Dad. Alan, why don't you tell Dad what you told me last night?" Scott said as he looked over at Alan.

"Ok, sure," said Alan. "It started with his last rescue. It has really been bothering him, but he won't talk about it. Gordon seems to be taking it personally that the one girl was paralyzed. Since then he hasn't been eating or sleeping well."

"But I've seen him eat at dinner." Jeff interrupted.

"Dad, he only eats a few bites when he thinks people are watching." Alan said. "The rest of the time he just pushes the food around. He is also avoiding us. If you haven't notice, he spends all day down at the lagoon. Then after dinner he goes off to be alone in his room. When I try to talk to him he gets mad. That's not like Gordon."

"He got mad at me too when I tried to talk to him." Virgil added.

"He punched the wall when I tried to talk to him last night." Scott stated. "That is when I decided that we needed to discuss this."

"You mean that he is resorting to violence?" Jeff asked incredulously

"Just against himself, I think." Scott answered. "He didn't act like he was going to come at me. I think he is directing everything at himself."

Alan started in again. "Well, I haven't seen any violence yet, but I knew that it was only a matter of time. He just seems to be getting angrier and angrier. Eventually he is going to really explode. I also know that he has been getting up between three and five in the morning the past week."

"Ok, how do you know that?" Jeff asked Alan while wondering how he could have missed all this.

"My room is next to Gordon's. So I hear him when he is trying to occupy his time until about seven when he leaves to head to the lagoon. I have also noticed the dark circles under his eyes. A sure sign that he isn't sleeping well." Alan paused for a moment. Then he continued in a quieter voice. "There is one more thing that I have noticed and it has me really worried. He hasn't been swimming."

That statement brought a halt to everyone. Alan did not need to expound on that statement. Everyone knew that swimming was Gordon's deepest passion. He had learned to swim about the same time that he had learned to walk. He had even won an Olympic gold medal for swimming. He usually was in the water whenever he had a spare minute. For him to give that up was unthinkable.

After a quiet moment, Jeff cleared his throat. "Alan, are you sure? Maybe he is swimming down at the lagoon."

Alan just shook his head. "If you ask him that is what he will tell you, but I followed him to the lagoon a couple of times. All he does is sit on the beach and stares at the water." Alan's voice cracked with emotion. "Dad, it's like he is becoming a whole different person. I am really scared for him."

Jeff looked at Scott and Virgil. Virgil had his head bowed. Jeff could see that he was struggling with his emotions. Scott met his Dad's gaze. Jeff could see the pain and guilt in them. Jeff was sure that his own face mirrored Scott's. He had been so wrapped up in paperwork that he missed the fact that his son needed help.

"Ok, as soon as you are done with breakfast, we will get Gordon back here and have another family meeting. We will get through this as a family." Jeff stated confidently.

Almost as one, the three brothers pushed back their half-eaten breakfast. "I am done." The trio said.

Jeff had to smile. "Ok boys, go ahead and clean up in here. I want to make one phone call before…" The klaxon interrupted him. There was a moment of hesitation before Jeff said, "Let's go boys. We will deal with this when you get back."

It was nearly seven pm when the boys returned. Jeff decided that the mission debriefing could be done over dinner.

Alan came into the dinning room and sniffed loudly. "Kyrano, dinner smells delicious. Man, you have kept us so well fed that we haven't had a chance to miss Grandma's cooking."

"I am glad you have enjoyed my cooking, Mr. Alan, but I will be pleased to have my daughter and your grandmother back. Two months is a long time to be separated from loved ones." Kyrano replied.

"You are absolutely correct Kyrano." Jeff said. "Mother felt that she had to help her friend recover from hip surgery. I am just glad that Tin-tin was willing to help her with Mrs. Long. I know that mother could not have done it alone even though she would never admit it."

The boys dug in eagerly into their dinner while at the same time discussing the rescue. "It was a pretty straight forward rescue." Scott explained. "Some careless housekeeper at a high-rise hotel dropped her cigarette into a laundry cart. By the time that the fire was discovered, it had spread to the ventilation system. Virgil used Thunderbird 2 to rescue the people from the roof while Alan used the firefly to help put out the fire. Although the fire department seemed to have control of things."

"Any problems that we should discuss?" Asked Jeff.

"Not any that I can think of. I will get you the official report for the files tomorrow barring any complications."

"Thanks, Scott."

Gordon decided that he had had enough. Standing up he said. "Dad, I'm finished. I think that I will head to bed early."

"Wait a minute, Gordon. I need to have a family meeting." Looking around the table, Jeff continued. "Can everyone meet in the lounge in a half hour."

A chorus of "sure, Dad" came from around the table. Jeff turned to Gordon who looked like he wanted to refuse, but finally he just nodded his head.

TBC

Author's note – Well we're back. Here's the next chapter. We hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be up shortly.

AngelMouse5 – We are glad that you liked it. Writing emotions can be daunting. We are also grateful for your faithfulness with your reviews. Thanks a million.

numbah 14 – Oh yes, his fears play a big part over the next few chapters.

Darkangel2005 – Just a few more chapters until the "confrontation." We promise.