In Breaking News… The city breathes a sigh of relief tonight as Batman delivered the antidote supply to hospitals across the city. Every patient was treated before the supply ran out. The outbreak was traced to tainted food sources and schools will remain closed until all food can be thoroughly examined.
Terry trudged into the hospital, unsure how he even managed to put one foot in front of the other. His brother, was he okay? As if in answer to his question, he heard a voice. "Terry!" His mother appeared, and rushed forward wrapping her arms around him. "Did you hear, the antidote was delivered!"
"So Matt's?"
"He's going to be fine…"
"Good…"
"Terry, are you alright? Terry! I need help here!" Mrs. McGuiness screamed to anyone who could hear her as her son dropped unconscious to the floor.
"Only you would manage to get pneumonia and the virus," Max raised an eyebrow at Terry, who was settled on a couch at home. He had been released from the hospital two days earlier, after over a week there. The doctors told him he had been lucky, his fever had been so high, permanent brain damage could have been done. Terry figured he must have gotten pneumonia while his immune system was so weak.
His mother still hadn't asked exactly how he had been helping get the antidote, she had been too busy fussing over his health, and feeling guilty that she hadn't realized he was sick. She should have forced him to be checked into the hospital.
Actually, she had decided Terry had been having fever induced hallucinations about trying to help his brother, and just let it drop, although she still couldn't figure out why Bruce had been helping him. But did it matter? Both her sons were alive, and soon they'd both be healthy again.
"When you're feeling up to it," Max slapped a pile of books down, "your homework."
"Thanks," Terry croaked. Max still hadn't heard the whole story, Terry was still pretty sick. The antidote, when he had finally received it, barely registered any effect, because the pneumonia was driving up his temperature as well. At first the doctors had just assumed he was sick like all the others, but when Terry still had a dangerously high fever after several days and a second round of the antidote hadn't worked, they had realized that he had become ill with something else. She looked at him, his eyes were still glazed with fever, and he looked out of it. She felt a new respect for him, he had been sicker than this and somehow he had still managed to save Gotham. She was pretty sure that if his mother turned her back for even a moment he'd probably jump out a window and into his plane. This was why he was Batman. He'd probably be out patrolling before he'd be well enough to go back to school. She was dying to ask when he planned to don the cowl again- but his mother was in the other room. What Max also couldn't figure out was why Terry hadn't administered the antidote to himself. Then she realized he probably hadn't even thought of it. He was too busy thinking about everyone else.
"You going to live?" She asked, trying mask her real concern was sarcasm.
"Think so," he smiled drowsily.
"Hi Dana," Mrs. McGuiness smiled when she saw her son's girlfriend, she had been trying to leave the house to run some errands but she was afraid to leave her son alone. He was still so sick.
"Hi, is Terry up for a visit?"
"I was actually hoping I could run out for few errands, but I didn't want to leave him home alone… so I'd actually really appreciate it…"
"No problem," Dana smiled.
"Hey," Terry opened his eyes and smiled when Dana came in, he hadn't seen her yet. He knew she was okay, Max had given him an update, but it still felt good to see her with his own eyes.
"Hey, how are you feeling," She pulled a chair up beside the couch and took his hand, it was cold and clammy.
"Great, think I'll be going back to school in a day or two." She knew he was lying, or wanted to believe it, but they both knew it wasn't true. She brushed the hair away from his sweaty forehead. She had never seen Terry sick before, it was weird. He looked so… vulnerable.
"Any weird dreams?" She asked innocently, "when I was sick, I had the weirdest dreams…"
Terry tensed slightly, he knew what was coming, "Really, like what?"
"You came to me in the hospital, but you were dressed as Batman. I mean, you were Batman, you even put up that hood he wears and flew off into the night. And the strange part was… when I woke up, my window was open."
"That's a weird dream…"
"I had a lot of weird dreams," Dana confessed, "But that one, I was almost sure was real!" She looked into his light blue eyes, but they revealed nothing.
"I love you Dana,"
"I love you too…" His eyes closed and he drifted off to sleep, but he was almost sure he heard Dana whisper, "I love you too, Batman…"
