Disclaimer: I don't own them, I'm not lucky enough.

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Gordon looked over at Scott and their father and asked, "I heard something about my birthday present, care to share?"

Scott just shook his head. "He mentioned that he had an idea, but I don't know any details."

"He did tell me," Jeff admitted. "But I'm not going to spoil the surprise by saying anything."

"Anyway, he's getting better," Alan said softly. "You'll get your present…just might be a little late."

Gordon laughed a bit and placed a hand on Alan's shoulder. "But I want to know now."

"Patience may be a virtue," John said, looking over at Gordon. "But it certainly isn't one of yours."

"Never said it was," Gordon grinned. "Anyway, now that it's been brought up, I'm curious to know what it is."

"You'll find out soon enough," Jeff replied.

It wasn't much later when Virgil was brought back to his sterile room and the family plus Penelope followed. Jeff stood in front of the window with Penelope right next to him, her arm around his. The next few hours passed without incident, and the four brothers managed to convince Penelope and Jeff that they needed some rest as well.

John, who had been sitting in the chairs outside of the sterile room, stood suddenly and marched over to the window. There, he saw Virgil lying in bed, not looking much different from when he'd first arrived. The sudden movement got Scott's attention, and joined John in front of the window.

"What is it?" Scott asked, placing a gentle hand on John's arm.

"Waiting…wondering…remembering…"

"Remembering what?"

"Things," John answered, and Scott saw that John wasn't going to elaborate.

It was a quiet few hours when Jeff and Penelope returned. They found John and Gordon in front of the window while Scott and Alan were sitting in the chairs. It was another couple hours before Jeff managed to get Scott and Gordon back to the hotel, and then when they returned six hours later, it was John and Alan's turn.

All six were gathered when the doctor, who had just gone in to look at Virgil, came out to address them.

"He's progressing well," the doctor said. "Soon we'll be moving him into a regular ICU room."

Smiles of relief were exchanged among the family members. Then the brothers went over to tell Penelope while Jeff had some questions for the doctor.

"When will he be moved?" Jeff asked.

"I don't have an exact timetable yet," the doctor answered. "Either myself or a nurse will tell you when and where he's being moved."

"What do you think his chances of a complete recovery are?"

"I can't say for sure. He is making progress, albeit a little slower than I'd like. There appears to be no brain damage, though we won't know for sure until he wakes."

Jeff nodded slowly. He never thought of the possibility of brain damage or any other long-term sufferings. He thought that Virgil would either die or make a complete recovery.

"And his arm?" Jeff had to ask. "He's an artist and a pianist."

"He'll need therapy once it's healed. I can't say for sure exactly how it will heal though."

Again, Jeff nodded slowly. For the first time, Jeff was afraid of what Virgil's future might be even if he made it out of the hospital.

The doctor excused himself and Jeff went to rejoin his sons and Penelope. After telling them what he'd been told, all were naturally concerned.

"He'll be so upset if he can't play the piano like he used to," John noted sadly.

"And paint…draw…" Gordon added.

"He's primarily right-handed," Scott pointed out. "I think we only need to worry about the piano…when we get there."

And everyone noticed Scott's hopeful choice of words…'when' and not 'if.'

No one would move until Virgil was brought to his new room and they were able to sit with him for a little while. And it was to Jeff's great relief when the move came sooner rather than later as his sons all looked like they were either of the verge of collapse or falling asleep on their feet.

It wasn't much later when the doctor and two orderlies came down. The family plus Penelope were allowed to follow as Virgil was moved into his own room. It wasn't a long walk, though it felt so for the Tracys. Though they were miffed that they had to stay out of the room for a few minutes, just so that the hospital staff could get Virgil set up properly, there was a sense of anticipation. They watched as the orderlies left first, then two nurses, and finally the doctor.

"I know you all want some time in there," the doctor told everyone. "And I will allow it for the time being. Though I want to be notified immediately should anything happen. It may be advantageous if you would talk to him as well."

Everyone filed inside, except for Penelope, who went to spread the news to the island's occupants and to check in with Parker. She also wanted to give the family some time alone with Virgil.

Jeff was the first in the room with his four other sons right behind him. There were two chairs, one on each side of Virgil. Jeff took the far one as Scott took the closest. And they immediately went for Virgil's hands. John stood by his father while Alan was next to Scott and Gordon stood at the foot of the bed.

The room remained silent for a while since no one knew what to say. They all had words, but they were for Virgil. And no one wanted to say them with the others present. Jeff soon convinced his sons to spend some time at the hotel, after promising to call if anything happened.

While his sons were away, Jeff used the time to say his piece to his middle son. "Virgil Grissom Tracy, what on Earth am I going to do with you? I'm thinking about locking you in your room."

Then Jeff shook his head. "No, scratch that. I'll just make sure you never leave the island again. That way you can be artistic and work on your craft and I keep an eye on you."

After a sigh, Jeff continued, "I know, I know, that won't work. You won't be kept on the island when your brothers leave for work. You'll just go right with them, no matter what I say. But Scott may leash you for quite a while too, even off the island. First you worry us with the trip to the mainland, and now this. You were never an attention-seeker Virgil. You always deflected attention to one of your brothers…much to John's chagrin since he's the same as you in that respect. But you've got our attentions…100."

"I know you're fighting, Virgil. I know you're fighting hard. Just keep at it, that's all we ask. And we know it's a lot. But there isn't a person here who can stand the thought of losing you. I didn't need any of them to tell me just how hard they took all of this. I could see that both Scott and John blamed themselves, you need to tell them that they're not to blame for anything. They won't listen to the rest of us."

"We all know the risks of our work…we all know that something could happen. It doesn't make this any easier. Virgil, whatever happens, we'll get through it. We'll help you. But you have to make it back to us first."

Jeff continued by giving Virgil a list of things he could look forward to if he woke up. And unbeknownst to Jeff, Penelope was watching him through the window. She may not have been able to make out what he was saying, but she could see that the words were difficult. Then she saw Jeff's head in his hands, and his shoulders bobbing up and down erratically. She entered the room and went over to Jeff, wrapping him in her arms.