Earlier:
"He's overworking again."
"I know. I've told him to stop but he's not listening. Again. You try."
"You think he listens to me? Hah."
"I could get Alan to take me up and I could wrestle him down."
"He'd never forgive us."
"What then? We have to do something."
"Yeah, but maybe not us, exactly."
"Ah, I see where you're going. Evil, but I like it."
"I'll have a word with Gordon."
"Bet you ten dollars I get called to help him up from the hanger rather than you."
Later:
"I need you to do something for me."
"What do you need Gordon? Isn't Parker still there, I'm busy."
"No, this needs to be you John."
Gordon saw the slight huff even through the slightly fuzzy holo-image, of a man trying to keep his cool. John hardly ever showed irritation at being interrupted, barely even cracking a frown if he got a call while in the middle of dispatch. He was too professional for that. And only then if it was a particularly complex one or he was running multiple missions.
And Gordon happened to know that there were no missions right now. All Thunderbirds were safely tucked up in their hangers – apart from Four, she was cracked and broken and he wasn't going to think about that – and all the people were home and safe as well. There was no need for John to be busy. Not busy enough to have those black circles under his eyes.
"Fine, what is it?" John almost-snapped.
Gordon shifted slightly, trying to find a more comfortable position, but cracked ribs and a broken leg and surgery and concussion and and and made that difficult.
"I need you to come home." He said.
"What?"
"You heard me. I need you to get in that space elevator and get your ass dirt side."
"Gordon, I can't just up and leave. I'm monitoring here and have a hell of a lot of work to do since EOS is ….." John trailed off. Did he not want to remind Gordon of what happened? As if he could forget?
"Yeah, I know." Gordon hefted the data-pad to which EOS the information he requested. It detailed everything that John had been doing for the last ten days – the calls, the research, the analysis of anything that EOS had found in her search for The Hood. And there were the big gaping voids where the John hadn't been doing the things he should be doing. "She's hunting the Hood. And while she's dedicated to that – which I really do appreciate by the way – you've been burning the candle at both ends."
"You're exaggerating Gordon. Sure, I'm doing more manual dispatch than I have for the last couple years but it's nothing I've not done before. I can handle this."
"Nice try, but I don't believe you. Look me in the eye and tell me that if you weren't in zero-g you'd be able to stand. Because based on how much rest you've been getting, and how much you've been eating – or not, as the this" he waved the tablet at his brother in admonishment "tells me – I sincerely doubt you'd be able to take more than a couple of steps."
John didn't quite look him in the eye, staring off just past Gordon's ear, but neither did he lie again and say he was all right. So that was something.
"Please come home. Eat dinner with us. Get eight hours sleep. Breath some air that hasn't been through the recycler a hundred times."
"I... I need to find him."
"I know, but I need you down here."
"EOS is partitioned off, she can't monitor for emergencies."
"You can divert controls down here, just like we did in the old days before she came along."
"I... I... "
"I need you down here John." Gordon didn't wheedle or plead. He didn't need to. The cold hold facts and a bit of honesty would be more than enough. "I haven't seen you in person since before I came home from the hospital. Please don't work yourself to exhaustion because of me. Or because of him. I want to see you, real flesh and blood you, and we're worried you're killing yourself with work up there."
It could have been a tense moment, waiting for John's answer. But Gordon knew that deep down John didn't like being apart from the rest of the family for any length of time, particularly when one was hurt. Really hurt. Almost didn't make it no don't think about that. Although he could get wrapped up in his work sometimes he would be well aware of how much he was neglecting his own basic health, and not nearly stupid enough to think he could get away with it. John was merely waiting for someone to insist in strong enough terms that he wouldn't be guilt ridden at giving up and have the twisting feeling of breaking a promise no-one had asked for. Today Gordon was that someone and they both knew it.
"Ok, I'm coming down."
"Do I need to get Virgil to meet you at the elevator?" Gordon could see pride waring with tiredness on John's face. "Or I can ask Scott."
"Fine, Virgil. You ass." John said, making his decision quickly with a shake of his head. Gordon would have made the same choice – not that he'd had a choice recently – and taken Virgil's stoic eye rolls over Scott's tongue lashing any day. "I'm rerouting control now, I'll be there in half an hour."
27 minutes later Virgil helped John stagger in to the room and plopped him carefully onto the couch next to Gordon. John let his head drop back and closed his eyes with a sigh. Up close he looked even paler than on the holo-screen and he had clearly also lost weight.
"You good?" Gordon asked, giving him a nudge.
"Dizzy. It's the gravity." John cracked an eye open for just long enough to see Gordon's doubtful look. "I promise it's just the gravity."
Sure. Gravity. Wonky blood pressure could do that. As could sleep deprivation and blood sugar levels so low they might as well have been sucked into a black hole.
Without being asked Virgil shook out a blanket and let it flutter down to cover them both. They didn't need the warmth in their tropical paradise but there was something very comforting about being snugged into a cocoon of fuzziness.
"I'm cooking pizza for dinner tonight, you want to choose toppings?" Virgil asked as he passed Gordon a pillow for his back, and pushed one behind John's head.
Gordon nodded eagerly – he loved Virgil's pizza, he did something to the dough that made it just divine – but there was nothing from John's direction, already asleep. Virgil kicked a foot stool into position and lifted John's legs up to rest on top, saying: "He's going to get a crick in his neck if we let him sleep like this for too long."
"Give him just a couple of hours then, till dinner. Then we'll make him eat and then sleep in a normal bed like a normal person for once, without being strapped down." Gordon took a harder look at his brother and added "Make sure you have a couple of protein shakes ready as well."
"I'll shout when I'm ready to top the pizzas. Good job on getting him down." Virgil gave a nod of approval, and sauntered into the kitchen to start on the pizza dough.
As if John could deny him anything! Gordon adjusted the blanket around them both, making sure they were equally covered and picking up the next book from his to-be-read pile. What good was being a little brother if you couldn't get your own way once in a while?