For ak47stylegirl and the prompt 'Shaking so badly they spill their drink.'
Alan woke with a start. He wasn't sure what had woken him, and he lay on the rug, listening hard. All he could hear was the night insects from the jungle and the very faint sound of Virgil snoring. (Thank goodness for sound-proofing!)
Something was off, though. He yawned and stretched, got up and made his way to the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of water. It was as he was leaving that he heard a sound. The clink of a glass on a surface told him he wasn't the only one up, and this early in the morning there could really be only one culprit.
And yep, Scott was seated at the desk, ubiquitous glass of scotch in his hand. Alan sighed. His brother must be exhausted, they had had several back-to-back rescues, and as he had gone to bed late last night Scott was at the desk working.
As he watched Scott raised his hand to take a drink, and Alan was shocked to see his brother shaking so much that some of it spilt over the desk. Scott cursed quietly and scrubbed at it with his sleeve, and only succeeded in knocking the glass off the desk completely. He sighed deeply, digging the heels of his hands into his eyes, and Alan knew he had to act.
Tiptoeing back to the kitchen and getting rid of the glass, he made his way back as if he had just come from his room, yawning loudly, and he heard Scott push the chair back.
Suddenly his brother was in front of him, hands on his shoulders. Alan could smell the whisky and fought to not wrinkle his nose. He opened his eyes to see Scott, slightly stooping so that he could stare into Alan's eyes, worry very evident in the red-rimmed eyes.
Perfect.
'Al, what's wrong, you're not usually up.' Trap set.
'I dunno. I woke up suddenly.' The hands tightened ever so slightly.
'Come, Al. Let's get you back to bed.'
Alan was hard pressed not to look triumphant as his big brother led him back to his room. And even more so when, after tucking Alan in, Scott settled himself on the bed, shoulders touching.
'What's on your mind, sprout.' Alan paused. How could he give an honest answer without upsetting his brother? Hmm. Honesty may well be the best policy. Scott was exhausted and Alan was worried.
'I'm a little worried, Scott, and I think it is stopping me from sleeping well.' He was rewarded with an arm around his shoulders, and he rested his head on his big brother's chest. Scott squeezed and began to run his fingers through Alan's hair.
'What's on your mind, then,' Scott prodded gently, but Alan, despite his best intentions, was drifting off, arm flung over Scott's waist and head on his chest. He felt rather than heard Scott chuckle, and was asleep before his brother managed to finish running his hand through the mop.
Laying there, with his youngest brother hugging him, the exhaustion finally caught up with him, and it wasn't much longer before Scott too drifted off to the soft snores and warm body he was holding.