As you know, the last two chapters were Regan's flashbacks- sparked when Fiona discovered the Cryobank envelope. This is another embarrassing moment he recalls related to the same topic – it's what Dan later referred to as the "Cryobank incident," also includes the last big fight Hallie and Trixie ever had, and it's the same day Joan discovered Regan and Hallie eating dinner in a fancy restaurant. – it takes place about a month after the last flashback - hope it answers many questions!

As soon as the nurse left the room, Bill Regan began pacing beside his nephew's hospital bed.

"Cut it out, Uncle Bill, that's not helping." Dan Mangan said with a weak laugh. He had just vomited as if his insides were falling out, and he still had another couple of hours of chemotherapy to go. Trying to keep things light was his way of coping. Pacing and wringing his hands was Regan's.

"I'm sorry, Dan, I just didn't know how quickly this stuff was going to lay you low. I wish they'd hurry up with today's treatment. It's been the worst, so far." Bill stopped and forced himself to sit down.

"For you or for me?" Dan asked sarcastically, once again trying to calm his uncle. "Man, you sure gave that nurse a hard time."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have yelled at her. It wasn't her fault you got sick. I just wish she would have listened to you when you told her that you couldn't drink that stuff right now. Why can't they just listen? These nurses are such a pain!"

"Relax, okay? I'm fine. I actually feel better now that I got that out of my system. I just can't stand all these lines sticking in my arm and my hand like this. They're really starting to hurt." Dan wriggled in the bed a little, trying to get comfortable without moving his arm.

Regan felt his heart lurch when Dan winced and gripped the sheet.

"Can I help? Here, what if I put another pillow under your back? Would that feel better?" Bill asked.

"No, I'm fine. This is good. Right here." Dan leaned back and closed his eyes. His pallor still appeared greenish to Regan. "Can you ask them for a blanket, though? I am a little cold."

"Hey, I can handle that. No problem. Be right back."

As Bill was headed out to the nurse's station, a familiar face met him in the hall.

"Hallie? What are you doing here? I thought Trixie said you were flying in on Friday." Regan was surprised to see Dan's girlfriend at the hospital, not only because it was two days before she was scheduled to visit from Idaho, but also because she was alone. He didn't understand how she got there without a ride from her cousins or her aunt and uncle.

"Well, there was a really good deal on airfare that I wanted to take advantage of, but it meant that I had to leave out a little earlier than I had planned." Hallie began chatting as if being there and conversing with Bill was completely normal. "That's okay. It's summer, so I'm not missing school or anything. My folks didn't care. I just came on, and I got a good rate on car rental, too. All part of the student auto club my dad talked me into joining. Good thing, huh? So, how's he doing?"

Regan was still trying to process why he was seeing Hallie standing before him without the other Bobwhites; it made him slow to respond to her.

"Um…he's um…feeling sick…right now…wait a minute…do the Beldens know you're here?"

"I called Aunt Helen when I got to the airport. Told her I would stop by here. I thought the others would be here, too. Did they already leave?" Hallie seemed saddened by this.

"Oh…um…yes, they left to go get some dinner. They'd been here earlier with us." Regan suddenly remembered what he had been doing before he spotted the dark haired teen. "I'm going to get Dan a blanket. Why don't you go ahead and go in with him. I'll be there in a minute."

"Sure, I know which room. Got the number at the desk downstairs." She disappeared down the hall, leaving a stunned Bill Regan behind.

She flew all this way, by herself, just to be here for him. Wow! She really loves him, the young man thought to himself.

I wish someone felt that way about me.

He honestly didn't think his girlfriend Joan would drive across the state, much less fly across the country to see him.

After obtaining a blanket, and apologizing to the nurse he had fussed at earlier, Regan began making his way back to Dan's room. He hesitated at the door when he saw Dan and Hallie holding each other in an emotional embrace. He considered not entering, but noticed that the two were already pulling away from each other, so he coughed nervously to announce his presence and moved into the room slowly.

"I have your blanket, Dan. Sorry to…uh…interrupt anything."

"No, it's okay."

"Yeah, no problem."

Both young people were quick to reassure him that he'd not intruded.

Bill helped Hallie spread the blanket over Dan and then slowly began to pace once more.

"Please, Uncle Bill, don't start that up again." Dan's voice was weaker now.

"Sorry…" He mumbled. He wondered if he should leave the two of them alone.

As Hallie was sitting on the edge of Dan's bed and stroking his hand gently, she smiled up at Bill and pointed to the empty chair beside the bed.

"Why don't you sit down and rest a minute. You look stressed out, Regan."

The man found her comment to be a laughable understatement, but complied with her request anyway.

"How's everyone back home? Your brothers are doing alright?" Dan asked Hallie, quietly refocusing everyone's thoughts.

"Oh they're fine. Knut just got an internship at a local publisher, and he's been bitten by the writing bug. He's actually pretty good at it, too. He hopes to make his way into an editing position first and then get his own work published. You'd like his book. Kind of suspenseful. Lots of action and guy stuff. And, Cap's still working with the national park service, you know. Nothing new with him. Cap's just Cap. I just wish he'd hurry up and move out, though. Drives me crazy all the time." She threw her hands up in the air dramatically as she discussed her brother's way of getting on her nerves.

Then, her face grew serious.

"Dan, Cap's really worried about you, too. He wanted to come with me, but he couldn't. He sent you this, though."

With a grin, the raven haired girl reached into her purse and pulled out a leather medicine bag attached to a beaded necklace. She put it in Dan's hand and then covered his fingers with her own.

"It's just symbolic, of course. Nothing crazy. He wishes you well."

Dan seemed very pleased with the gift and he struggled to sit up to put it on. As Hallie helped him, she frowned softly at the nausea the effort to move seemed to cause the boy in the bed. She tried to keep from pulling on him too much.

"I…um…I know we shouldn't take stock in superstition, I mean…we put our faith in God, not…not silly medicine pouches…but…"

"Hallie, I love it. Tell Cap I think it's great. And its symbolic power must be working. I feel better already."

Hallie smiled at her boyfriend and swallowed back tears. Regan could tell it was important to her that Dan appreciated her family's Native American heritage.

The three of them sat for the next half hour, telling funny stories and trying to keep the mood upbeat, while Dan continued to grow more and more uncomfortable. After a while the Bobwhites returned. They were surprised to see Hallie there, laughing loudly as she sat beside Dan on the bed.

"Hey, where did you come from?" Trixie asked upon entering the room.

"Methinks our parental units have neglected to give you 'the talk' if you are lacking such knowledge, dear sister." Mart interjected before Hallie could speak.

"Very funny, Dope, she knows what I meant." Came Trixie's smirking reply.

Hallie repeated the same speech she gave Regan out in the hall and ended with a casual laugh.

"Looks like I was too late for the trip to Bar-B-Que Bay, though." She said pointing at Mart's obviously stained t-shirt.

Her blonde-headed cousin gave a sheepish smile and tried to smooth over the reddish blob with his hands.

"Well, you know. It was all you can eat night. And I certainly did do that!" Mart seemed proud of himself, despite the sauce spilled on his clothes. The goofy smile on his face made Regan shake his own head. He decided Mart's humor was good for his nephew, because it kept Dan from being too serious all the time.

But all the talk about food was not good for the sick young man. Regan suddenly noticed the green color overtaking his face. Jim Frayne had noticed it, too. He stepped forward with concern.

"Hey, Dan, you're looking a little queasy, you okay?"

Dan leaned back and closed his eyes in a vain attempt at regaining homeostasis.

"Just peachy," he mumbled through shaking lips.

Bill thought maybe he should clear the room to save his nephew the embarrassment of becoming ill in front of his friends. But, as he was about to start shooing some of them out, Mart took it upon himself to distract everyone.

"Man, what happened? Did you scare off your roommate already?" He crossed to the far side of the semi-private room and flopped down on the other hospital bed. An earlier occupant had, indeed, been released to leave during the time the other young people had been out for dinner.

"I thought I told you about that snoring." Mart continued. "You nearly blew our cabin down last year when we were working at that summer camp together. Sheesh, maybe it wasn't you that made the poor guy leave from over here, these beds are about as comfortable as sleeping on rocks. Come here, Brian. You try it. You should know what kind of torture you're gonna put your patients through when you become a doctor. "

The older Belden boy waved his brother off as if to say "no thanks," but he understood enough of Mart's ploy to walk closer and play along.

"Aren't those supposed to be adjustable?" He asked seriously. "Look, you can make it feel a little better. Try these settings over here."

The two began playing with the bed's remote control, drawing the others closer to them and into their conversation, while Hallie sat gently rubbing Dan's free arm and fanning him with a piece of paper she found on the table beside him.

"How's that?" She asked quietly. Regan was impressed at her ability to sooth him so quickly. He never would have thought she was the nurturing type.

"Better." Dan's eyes were still shut tight and his mouth was screwed up with the taste of bile.

"Maybe we should go." Diana Lynch said quietly to the others. But, Mart looked as if he was afraid to leave his friend in this state. Regan felt a little sorry for him.

"I'm not going until I get my complimentary bedpan!" Mart feigned petulance to make Dan snicker, and it worked. The nauseated boy let out a chuckle and opened his eyes so he could roll them at his friend.

"You keep talking about food over there and I'll give you something to go with that bedpan." He teased back.

Regan could tell that Mart was about to let another quip fly, but he was suddenly interrupted by the entrance of another nurse.

"Mr. Mangan," she began, "There's a representative here from Cryobank, and he says that he needs to discuss a few things with you." As she spoke, the young woman stepped absentmindedly to the curtain in the middle of the room and drew it closed, separating Mart and the other Bobwhites from Hallie, Regan, and Dan. "If you're comfortable with your wife and your father staying with you, I'll just go ahead and send him on in."

Regan could hear the others giggling from the opposite side of the curtain and realized that the nurse had not only been mistaken about his and Hallie's relationships with Dan, but about the Bobwhite's, as well.

"She thinks you're another patient," He heard Honey whispering to Mart.

"Hey, Ma'am, wait a minute…" Regan tried to catch the young nurse and stop her from letting the visitor in, but she was out the door before he could stop her.

Uh oh! This could get embarrassing.

Within seconds, an older man in a frighteningly ugly brown suit came strolling through the door confidently. He wore snazzy alligator shoes and his thinning hair was annoyingly combed over a balding patch. Immediately, Regan felt repulsed by him. His pushy air and flashy attire made the redhead think of the typical used car salesman. This was not what he would have expected the representative of a medical clinic to look like, even if the clinic was a sperm bank.

"Hi there, Mr. Mangan. We meet at last." The man pushed his way between Bill and the hospital bed and began gabbing a mile a minute. "I understand that you had no difficulties with your initial visit to our clinic. I have with me the results of some of the screenings and tests we have done on your samples, and I needed to ask you some more questions while I was here doing my hospital stops." He leaned over and looked at the machines beside the bed. "Oooh, looks like you're getting the yucky stuff, today, huh?"

Regan didn't give Dan a chance to answer. He wanted to get that man out of there as soon as possible.

"Um…you know, Dan's really having a rough time with this, right now…maybe we could make an appointment and talk with you about this some other time… Mr….uh"

"Mike Colby is the name." The man supplied. He whirled around and gave Regan a friendly slap on the shoulder and then turned back to Dan and Hallie. "This won't take a minute, son. I'm sure your wife will be happy to get this all settled."

"Actually, I'm not…" Hallie started, but the man interrupted her and shoved some papers into her hands.

"Oh, I know what you must be concerned about, but there's nothing to fear as far as the virility of the samples goes. Those swimmers are alive and well, yes ma'am. Also, we saw no STD's or any other items of concern that might be passed along to a fetus. He's clean as a whistle." The sleazy man leaned closer to Dan and gave a slight wink. "No glove, no love, am I right? You kept it covered. Good job, kid."

Regan was about to explode at the audacity of the statement, especially in Hallie's presence, but the man wasn't yet finished with is offenses.

"So, you left a few items blank on your original paperwork, and I have to get them filled in." Mike began thumbing through some more papers. "Let's see…you have most of this part completed…type of illness is here…family history is here…relationship status says monogamous and stable…oh, here we are…you skipped this section about sexual activity history…" He gave Hallie a certain look that made Regan's blood boil, and then he wagged his eyebrows at her knowingly.

"Oh yes, Danny, dear," Hallie said with sarcasm dripping from her words.

She was also growing angry and impatient with the offensive Cryobank rep.

"We should tell him all about our wild exploits. About how we're not even married, but you knocked me up last year, and I had to have an abortion." She narrowed her eyes at the man standing in front of her. "Is that the kind of sexual activity history you want to know about, Mr. Colby?"

"Hallie, stop kidding around." Dan said quietly.

"No, I won't stop!" She hopped up from the edge of the bed and glared at the ugly little man. "It's really none of your business, you impertinent creep! You want the truth? Here's the truth. Nothing's happened between Dan and me in the past, nothing's going on now, and thanks to this cancer, there might not be any activity in the future, either. How dare you insult us like this? I think you need to leave."

"But…but…" Mike sputtered.

Regan grabbed the man by the shoulder and began pushing him roughly toward the door.

"You heard the lady," he said. "Paperwork's done!"

When the man had disappeared down the hallway in a huff, Trixie snatched the dividing curtain back and stomped from the other side of the room toward her cousin.

"Hallie Belden, I cannot believe you just said that!" She said indignantly.

"Don't start with me right now, Trix." Hallie held up her hand and stared at the floor trying to compose herself.

In an attempt to break the rising tension, Honey Wheeler stepped beside her best friend.

"Oh Dan…Hallie…we are so sorry that…we heard…it's none of our business…we couldn't help it…sorry." She said timidly.

"It's okay," Dan said quietly. "Don't worry about it."

"But, Hallie should worry about the kinds of things she says to complete strangers!" Trixie pushed the issue again, angrily. "You know, your reputation is a bigger deal than you realize, dear cousin. Pregnancy and abortion aren't things you just joke about. Someone might have heard you and believed what you said was true! What would your parents think? Your last name is the same as mine, and when you shame yourself, you shame all of us."

"Trixie, don't." Brian said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"Don't what?" Trixie wrenched herself away from her older brother. "Don't try to protect our family from nasty rumors? Come on. You must agree that what she said was uncalled for."

"And your temper tantrum isn't?" Hallie interjected.

Regan felt the situation spiraling out of control. His first priority was to get things calmed down so that Dan could find some peace and comfort, but he also didn't want to see Hallie insulted any more than she had been already.

Why can't Trixie be on her side, just once?

"Maybe we should go." Diana repeated her quiet advice from before. This time, the others seemed to agree.

"Trix, come on." Jim pulled her arm gently. "Dan, buddy, we'll see you later, okay?" He gave his friend a wave as he began ushering his girlfriend out of the room.

"But…" Trixie protested. She looked like she was going to start arguing with Hallie again; she gave up when Honey linked arms with her and gave her a pleading look to keep silent. The three of them took their leave with Brian on their heels.

"Dan…dude…that was…I'm sorry, man…" Mart was uncharacteristically unable to find the right words to use in this situation. He stepped close and lightly punched his friend on the arm.

"I'll see you later." Dan responded.

"Yeah, later." Mart gave Hallie a pat on the shoulder as he took Di's hand and headed for the door.

"I'll call you guys when I leave out of here for Crabapple Farm." Hallie assured her cousin.

"You just get some rest, Dan." Di called softly on the way out.

When the silence that followed the Bobwhites' absence had created a sense of calm, Dan was the first to speak.

"Are you okay?" He asked Hallie. Regan could see that she was trembling and fighting the urge to cry. He'd never seen her cry. She was always so cool. He suddenly felt very proud of the way she had stood up for herself against that Mike Colby.

"I am so sorry, Dan. I didn't mean to…" She bit her lip and fought back the breakdown that was rising up in her.

"Shhh, Babe, it's no big deal. I have a feeling Uncle Bill was just about to show him to the door, anyway. Isn't that right?"

Regan hadn't realized that he'd been clenching his fists, but Dan's question made him immediately conscious of his own nails digging into his palms. He forced himself to relax and felt nervous laughter escaping his tightened lips.

"I guess maybe I was. If Hallie hadn't chewed him out, I might have hit him hard enough to knock those hideous alligator shoes right off his feet."

The three of them laughed, letting the sound of it clear away some of the thickness in the air.

"Hallie, seriously, don't worry about any of that stuff, okay?" Dan crooned, taking her hands and drawing her down beside him once again.

"No, Trixie's right. I never should have said that. I don't know what possessed me to do such a stupid thing."

"Love?" Dan asked hopefully.

"Yeah. Desperate love." She whispered and put her forehead to his.

Regan felt like an intruder in his nephew's life. He started to excuse himself when Dan pulled back from his girlfriend and addressed the older man.

"Uncle Bill, you never had a chance to eat, did you?" He asked.

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine. Really."

"How about you, Babe. Did you eat yet?" Dan asked Hallie.

"Dan, please. Don't make yourself sick talking about food. We're okay…"

"Look, Regan, do me a favor and take Hallie somewhere to get some dinner, alright? I've got some cash in my wallet…" Dan interrupted her.

"I've got money." Hallie and Regan responded with the same words at the same time.

The three of them laughed together again and it felt good.

"Okay, Danny," Regan said in a teasing tone. "I'll take your wildcat off your hands for a short while, so you can rest. But, I'm a little nervous being alone with her. She's mean!"

Dan gave his uncle a strong smile, which made Bill feel confident enough to leave him for a short time.

"Yeah, but she's a keeper."

Regan had to agree with that. Hallie had defended not only her own honor, but Dan's as well. That made her good enough for him in Bill's book. He decided he would take that girl anywhere she wanted to go to eat and discuss anything she wanted to talk about.

He figured she'd earned it.