Warning: Not beta-ed and I'm very sure there will be grammatical and probably spelling errors in this one, so once again I apologise in advance.
Disclaimer: As much as I would love to own Bo and Luke Duke, I don't and neither do I own any of the other characters in the Dukes of Hazzard. The Song in chapter four is Brotherly Love which was written by Jimmy Stewart and Tim Nichols, and performed by Moe Bandy as well as Keith Whitley and Earl Thomas Conley. It was first recorded in 1989 and therefore not in the Dukes' timeline but I love the lyrics and I think it describes the Duke boys beautifully.
Who are you? Bo had asked Luke. Luke couldn't believe what he was hearing. Bo didn't know who he was, the cousin he had grew up with doesn't remember him.
"I'm your cousin, Luke." Luke picked up the picture that was, previously, hanging on the wall. He was trying to keep calm. The last thing Bo needed right now is to see him panic. "See?"
Bo fingered the picture. "Who's the other guy?" Bo didn't like the way this man was looking at him. He looked angry and scared and confused at the same time. "Did I do something wrong?"
Luke realised he was scaring his cousin. He tried to relax even though his heart was pounding. "No, you didn't do anything wrong. Can you tell me your name?"
Bo frowned, "You called me Bo. Is that my name?" He started panicking. "Why don't I remember my name?" Bo sat up suddenly, not knowing where the strength came from. "You said this is my room. I don't remember it." Bo looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. "What's happeni..." Bo was cut off by a coughing fit. Luke winced at the sound coming from his chest. He grabbed the trash can and placed in under Bo's head. "Cough it out, Bo. It'll make you feel better." Luke was relieved when the phlegm in Bo's lungs came out. Grabbing a tissue, Luke put the trash can down and wiped Bo's mouth. "Lay back down."
Bo shook his head vigorously. "No, I want to know what's happening. Why can't I remember who I am. Is that me?" Bo pointed at the picture on the bed.
"Yeah, that's you, but don't worry about it right now. You're really sick, Bo and you'll feel worse if you get worked up." Luke pushed Bo back down, "The doctor's going to be here in about an hour. Maybe he can tell us why you don't remember anything."
"I'm scared." Bo said in a small voice. Luke put a hand on Bo's cheek and gave a reassuring smile.
"I know you are. I'm scared too, but we'll get through this together. I promise." Luke said to him as he ran his hand through Bo's hair. It wasn't often Luke admitted that he was scared, but if it helped Bo, he would admit to anything.
Bo gave a small smiled, "You always say that, don't you?" He was feeling more relaxed as Luke continued stroking his hair.
"Say what?" Luke smiled as he felt the tension leaving Bo's body. It was a trick his Aunt Lavinia had taught him. Ever since Bo was a baby, he would fight sleep, but Aunt Lavinia would stroke his little blonde curls and he would be asleep within a minute. It still worked, even though Luke very rarely did it, only when Bo was so sick, he wouldn't remember it.
"Promise. You always promise things." Bo said, "It sounds familiar."
Luke nodded. "Yeah, I guess I do promise you a lot of things."
Bo closed his eyes when his eyelids started getting heavy. "You never break your promise." Bo said before he fell into a restful slumber.
"I try." Luke wiped away his tears. He was happy that Bo, at least remembered something. Even though it's only small. Jesse popped his head in.
"Did I hear you talking to Bo?"
"Yeah," Luke looked up at his uncle. "He can't remember me. He doesn't remember anything. He's got amnesia but I don't know how. I don't think he hit his head."
Jesse couldn't believe what he was hearing. Luke looked more scared than he's ever seen him in his life and Jesse couldn't blame him. Jesse was scared too. "It's okay, Luke. It could be just temporary, like last time. We'll let Doc Appleby take another look at him before we start worrying too much."
Luke nodded, he knew his uncle was right, but he couldn't help but be concerned. What could have happened between yesterday and today that would make Bo forget his whole life? Luke picked up Bo's hand. It was warm, too warm. "I should've gone out to find you earlier. I knew it wouldn't be good to leave you alone, not when you were so angry and hurt." Luke turned around when he heard Daisy's voice.
"Bo's back? Oh I knew you guys would get him back!" Luke could hear how excited Daisy was. He could also hear Jesse trying to get a word in edgewise, with no luck. Luke smiled until he realised Daisy was going to barge right in here. He got up, trying to get to the door before Daisy came through it, but he was a second too late. "Bo! I'm so..."
Luke cringed as Bo bolted upright in his bed. He ignored Daisy for now and went to his cousin, who looked scared and confused and very sick. "Bo, it's okay. It's just Daisy." Luke pushed Bo's wet hair back from his forehead. Bo's breathing was laboured and his eyes were not quite focused. "Take it easy, Bo. It's me, Luke. Remember?" Bo took several long seconds to look at Luke before he nodded. Luke smiled. "That's good. Just slow down your breathing." When Luke was satisfied that Bo was calm, he looked over at Daisy and put a hand out to her. Daisy, cautiously took it. She didn't know what was happening and she didn't like how sick her cousin looked.
"Luke, what's going on?" Daisy asked.
"Just sit down." Luke said as he got up to give Daisy his seat while he sat on the edge of the bed. "Bo, this is Daisy. She's your cousin."
Daisy looked at Bo and then at Luke. "Luke, what's..."
"Ssh.." Luke told her. He waited for Bo to make the next move.
"Hi." Bo said quietly as he took her in. He couldn't recognise her, but Luke said she was his cousin and he trusted Luke. She looked nice, even if she did try to scare the daylights out of him.
"Hi, Bo." Daisy played along. She didn't know what was going on, but she knew she had spooked her cousin. She'll wait until she got Luke alone to get a full explanation. "How are you feeling?" Daisy gave Bo a sweet smile, which he returned.
"Don't feel so good. Got this thing in my hand." Bo showed her the IV in his wrist. "Luke says it has to stay for now."
Daisy smiled at him, sympathetically. "Yeah, well, I hate to say this, but he's usually right." She whispered this to Bo, as if she was trying to not let Luke in on the secret. Bo giggled, making the mood so much more lighter. It was disrupted, though, by a coughing fit, reminding them that Bo was still very sick. Luke grabbed a couple of tissues and handed it to Bo, rubbing his back to soothe his cousin. After a couple of long minutes, Bo finally stopped.
"Lay back down, Bo. Doctor's going to be here soon." Bo didn't need to be told twice. He was exhausted after that bout of coughing. "We'll wake you when he gets here." Bo nodded and was asleep once his head hit the pillow. Once, both Daisy and Luke were satisfied that Bo was asleep, they left the room. Daisy waited until they reached the kitchen before spinning around and confronting her older cousin.
"What in the world is going on, Luke?" Daisy demanded, "Bo didn't even recognise me!" She turned to Jesse, "Did you know about this? Why didn't any of you call me at the Boar's Nest?"
Jesse pulled out a chair and sat her down. "Daisy, we didn't call you because there was no point. There was nothing you could do and we don't know why Bo lost his memory."
"I found him at our fishing hole unconscious and feverish. He didn't have any physical injuries so I don't understand why he has amnesia."
"Oh, Uncle Jesse. The last time Bo had amnesia Boss took advantage of him. What happens if..."
"It's different this time, Daisy. J.D ain't goin' to lay a hand on Bo." Jesse still fumed whenever he thought about how Boss Hogg almost got Bo arrested that time.
"I guess so. I'm just so worried about him. He's been having such a hard time these last few days. It's not fair that he should have to go through this now." Daisy fretted. She hated to see Bo sick and hurting.
Luke sat down opposite her. He knew she wasn't going to like what he's about to say but he believed it was true. "Maybe this is a good thing."
"What!" Jesse and Daisy exclaimed.
"Sssh!" Luke frowned at them, "I'm just saying, with the days he's been having and how badly I've hurt him, maybe it's a good thing that he doesn't remember any of it."
Daisy shook her head, "The last few days can't be worse than losing your entire life!"
Luke looked at her, sadly. "You didn't see him, Daisy. Trust me, it is worse. At least now, we're taking care of him and he's smiling. If he still had his memory, he'd be fighting us with all he's got and probably wound up in hospital."
They sat there in silence, thinking about what had happened in the past few days. Daisy only knew what she was told, but she wished that she had been there for her cousin. She couldn't imagine how he would've felt when Jesse and Luke, the two people Bo looked up to in his life, doubted him. "Why didn't y'all believe in him just a little bit more?" Daisy couldn't help herself. She knew it was wrong to blame her uncle and cousin but right now that was all she could think about.
"We can't answer that, Daisy, because we don't even know why.." Jesse sat down between the kids. "But right now, we can't think about that. Bo's our priority, everything else takes a back seat. We can lay blame all we like, but it ain't gonna do noone any good, least of all, Bo."
Daisy nodded, her uncle was right as usual. She looked at Luke, who remained silent. It didn't take a genius to work out that Luke was blaming himself. Today was supposed to be a special day for Luke. It was his birthday, instead he was spending it filled with guilt. Daisy reached over and held his hand in hers. "Uncle Jesse's right. I shouldn't be blaming any of you and you shouldn't be blaming yourself. Not right now, Bo needs you more than any of us."
Luke couldn't stop himself, "If I wasn't such a jerk, me and Bo would be putting in that new carburettor in the General Lee and taking him for a spin. Instead, he's sick and he has amnesia. He doesn't even know today's my birthday, let alone celebrate it with me."
"Luke, don't do this to yourself." Daisy begged, feeling bad for blaming Luke when she knew nobody could do that better than Luke himself.
"Jimmy said he was so happy when he made enough money to buy that carburettor. Remember when you said Bo looked more excited than tired, even when he was doing all that extra work?" Daisy nodded, "He was that excited because he couldn't wait to give me my present. He knew I would love it. Today wasn't supposed to be a great day for me, it was suppose to be a great day for Bo too, but I ruined it all."
Jesse put a hand on Luke's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Bo needs you to be strong, Luke. You can't dwell on what happened yesterday. It's in the past and until Bo gets his memory back, to him, it never even happened." Jesse knew he was as much to blame as any of them, but he was not about to let that get in the way of Bo's recovery. He'll deal with the aftermath of yesterday when the day comes.
Luke nodded, running his hands over his face and taking a deep breath to clear his head. He smiled at them, "For now, Bo's all that matters. Nothing else." He said, determined.
Doc Appleby arrived not long after that, to Luke's relief. Jesse told him about the amnesia, before he went into the room to check on his patient. He let Luke go in first to wake him, so that he wouldn't be shocked by another new face. Luke sat down on the bed and gently shook Bo's shoulder. "Bo?" Bo slowly opened his eyes and focused on Luke. It didn't take him as long to remember him this time. "Doctor's here to check on you and get rid of that." Luke smiled as he looked at the IV.
Bo moved his head a little to get a look at the doctor. He looked friendly enough. The doctor smiled at him, so Bo gave a small smile back. "You gonna stay?" Bo asked Luke, worried that his cousin was going to leave him by himself with the doctor. Luke's heart ached at his cousin's insecurity. This wasn't the Bo he knew, but he is, sure as heck, going to make sure Bo feels as safe as he possibly can.
"Of course I'm gonna stay." Luke reassured him. He turned to the doctor, "Should he sit up?"
The doctor nodded, "That would be good." He watched as Luke helped his cousin to sit up. Doc Appleby always found it amazing how Luke could be so gentle with his cousin and yet be so ruthless when it came to the people who hurt his family. The doctor had always described Luke's personality as two sides of the same coin. The gentleness and fiercely strong-headedness were both results of Luke's protective nature. Doc Appleby had been the family doctor since the boys were babies. He watched them grow up, always having a soft spot for these two boys who were like two peas in a pod. "Okay, Bo. Let's see if we can't make you feel better." The doctor checked Bo's temperature, blood pressure and listened to his chest, just like he did earlier. "Your temperature's gone down to 103, which is good. Your chest still sounds very congested but I'm quite sure it's just a bad cold and shouldn't evolve into pneumonia. You look much better than you did an hour ago." The Doc reached over and took out the IV. Bo winced but didn't complain. The old Bo would have given the Doc hell over it. The doc packed everything away and then sat back down. "Now, your uncle tells me that you can't remember anything." Bo nodded. "Do you have a headache?" Bo shook his head, but the doctor checked around for any noticeable bumps anyway. "What do you remember, Bo?"
Bo looked down at his hands, which were playing with the edge of the blanket. He didn't like the attention he was getting. Luke moved the chair closer to the bed and sat down. With a supportive hand on Bo's, he smiled and gave an encouraging nod. He could feel Bo relax a little. "I remember someone singing and Luke was here when I woke up." Bo shrugged, there wasn't much to tell. "Luke showed me a picture. I don't even remember how I look or my name or that this is my room." Bo started getting worked up causing him to start coughing again. Luke leaned Bo forward to help ease the cough.
"It's okay, Bo. I won't ask you any more questions." The doctor told him when he finally calmed down. "Why don't you rest while I talk to your family for a bit?" Luke helped Bo to lie back down, pulling the blanket up to his shoulders. Everyone left the room, except Luke. They knew he wouldn't leave until Bo was sleeping, so they waited outside for him.
Five minutes later, Luke came out of the room, closing the door, quietly, behind him, before taking a seat on the couch next to Daisy. "So what's wrong with him, Doc?"
"I'm sorry to tell you this, but it's beyond my capabilities. His memory loss is psychological, not physical."
Jesse frowned, "How do you mean?"
"I'm saying, Bo's mind seems to be blocking off his memories. It's like when your body is so badly injured it starts shutting down, leaving only the essential systems working. It's protecting itself from the pain. Well, his mind is doing the same thing. It's shutting down the part of the brain that is causing the pain. I'm guessing y'all would know why Bo's mind needed to do that and it's none of my business and not my place to judge. I can't help Bo with this. You can call in a psychiatrist if you want, but I don't think he could help any more than I can. From what I can see, Bo's in very good hands," He looked at Luke as he said this, "Just keep doing what you're doing. Once Bo feels safe enough, his mind may start functioning properly. Don't push him to remember, it'll come to him."
"That's it?" Jesse asked, not sure what he was being told.
"That's it, Jesse. When he starts feeling better, go about the day as you would, normally. Don't fuss over him, don't coddle him. Just treat him the way you always would. Of course, you have to be more careful when you're not on the farm, but don't create a bubble around him to the point where he can't look after himself. He lost his memory, physically, he's fine. Mentally, he's fine. It's just his memory. Remember that."
They nodded, "Thanks, Doc." Jesse walked him out while Daisy got up to set the table for dinner. She wanted some time alone to think about what the doctor had just told them. Luke sat there in silence. Jesse watched how his kids handle the situation. Daisy would always bury herself in house work. It was Luke he was worried about. The news would be hardest on him. "You gonna sit there all day?"
Luke looked up at him. "I did that to him." Jesse shook his head, but Luke just continued, "I hurt him so badly that the only way his mind could deal with it was to block out everything. All his memories, his entire life is gone because I refused to believe him."
"Not just you, Luke." Jesse wasn't about to let his nephew shoulder the full responsibility. "I didn't believe him either." He sat down next to Luke and put his arm around his shoulders. "Remember what we were saying. Bo comes first. He needs us right now. He doesn't know what we did, he just knows that we're his family and that's the only thing that's important to him right now. We can't dwell on our guilt when Bo needs us to be strong."
Luke nodded, "I know. I'll be here for him for as long as it takes."
In the room, Bo was sleeping soundly when he turned and his hand snaked under his pillow. It came in contact with something. Bo groaned as he pulled it out, frowning as he looked at the piece of paper. It was a picture of a carburettor with the words "Happy Birthday Luke!" written on it. Bo pushed himself up and looked around the room. There was a calendar on the back of the door. He got up and walked up to the door. The 19th of June was circled. "Wonder what date it is today." Bo cleared his throat of the phlegm that was causing his croaky voice. Putting on a pair of jeans, he opened the door.
Luke and Jesse both turned around when the door opened. Bo was standing there, looking very confused. He was looking around the house. "Bo, what are you doing out of bed? Did you need something?" Luke grabbed a shirt from inside the room, while Jesse led him to the couch. Luke helped Bo into the shirt. Bo looked at Jesse, a little shyly. Jesse smiled at him. Bo had seen Jesse a few times since he woke up without his memories but he was never told who he was.
"I'm your Uncle Jesse." Jesse introduced himself, realising that he hadn't actually spoken to Bo since he woke up.
"Sorry, Bo. I forgot that you don't remember Uncle Jesse. He's looked after you since you were a baby." Luke told him, sitting on the arm of the couch.
"I'm sorry I don't remember you." Bo said quietly.
"Don't apologise. It ain't your fault you can't remember us." Jesse reassured him. Daisy came over then and gave Bo a big kiss, sitting down next to him.
"You really should be in bed, Bo." Daisy frowned as she could still feel the heat coming from her cousin.
"I just wanted to know what date it is today." Bo asked them. He was fiddling with a piece of paper.
Luke was a little confused at why Bo found it so important but answered anyway. "It's the 19th."
"Of June?" Bo's eyes widened. Jesse smiled at his nephew's boyish expression.
"That's right. June 19th." Daisy confirmed, "What you got there, Bo?" She asked of the piece of paper in his hand.
"I found it under my pillow." Bo showed it to Daisy. Daisy's face was a mixture of sadness and pride. She took it from him and showed it to Luke. "Do you know what this is, Bo?"
Bo gave her an insulted look. "I've lost my memory, not my brain. That's a carburettor" Luke didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he saw the picture. "Luke, is it your birthday today?"
Luke gave Bo a sad smile, "Yeah, it is, but it's almost over and it ain't really a day for celebrating."
"Because of me?" Bo felt bad, thinking he had spoiled Luke's birthday.
"No, of course not. Things just happen, you can't help what happens any more than we can." Luke put a hand on his shoulder. "Anyway, I still have lots of birthdays to celebrate."
"Did I get you a birthday present?" Bo shrugged, "I don't remember if I bought anything."
Luke was tossing between telling Bo about the carburettor or not. "Of course you did!" Jesse answered for Luke. Luke looked at Jesse as if he was crazy. "You got him exactly what he wanted." Jesse pointed at the piece of paper in Luke's hand. "That carburettor"
Bo gave a big smile, and Luke wanted to hug his uncle for putting it there. "I did?"
"Yeah, you did." Luke said as he pulled his cousin into a hug. "Thanks, Bo. It's the best present I've ever got."
"Did you put it in?" Bo pulled back, looking up at his cousin with so much excitement.
"No, I was hoping we would do that together...someday." Luke suddenly felt very guilty again. If Bo hadn't lost his memory, he wouldn't even be talking to him today, let alone, talking about the carburettor that's the centre of all this mess.
"Why not today?" Bo asked before falling into a coughing fit.
Luke rubbed Bo's back, "Does that answer your question?"
"Bo, you need to get back into bed." Jesse said, "I don't want you getting any sicker."
"But..." Bo couldn't even get a word in between the coughs. Daisy handed him a napkin she got from the kitchen.
"Here you go, Bo. Uncle Jesse's right. You're in no condition to be up and you're definitely in no condition to be working on the General Lee." Daisy winced at the sounds coming from Bo's chest.
"But it's Luke's birthday." Bo complained but was also confused at who General Lee was and why they would be working on him. Luke thought it was funny that Bo couldn't remember them but he still manages to sound like his old self. "We should be celebrating."
"It's okay, Bo. We can celebrate it when you get better. It's not a big deal to celebrate late." Luke told him. "As long as the whole family's together, it doesn't matter what day it is."
Bo smiled, but he still wanted Luke to have a good day on the day of his birthday. He didn't want everything that's happened taint the day. He didn't want Luke to always remember this day when his birthday came around every year. "Can't we start on it today?"
"Bo, it's getting dark. We can start on it tomorrow." Luke compromised.
"But it's your birthday today!" Bo frowned and pouted. Luke laughed, shaking his head. He was always this stubborn when it came to days like birthdays and Christmas and Easter. Special days of the year and Bo always wanted them to be perfect, but Luke knew this was one day that would never be perfect.
"Bo..."
"I won't do anything, I'll just watch." Bo interrupted. Luke looked at Daisy and Jesse. They looked as resigned as he was. Yep, just like Bo on special occasions to always have his way.
"Okay, I'll work on the General for about an hour," Bo's face lit up, "after dinner, but if your fever starts climbing again, you're going straight back to bed." Luke waited for Bo to confirm that he understood. "Okay, let's go have dinner."
Luke smiled as Bo sat on the steps of the porch, wrapped in a blanket, watching him work on the General Lee. Daisy and Jesse left them alone, knowing Bo would've wanted this time to belong to just him and Luke, whether he had amnesia or not. Bo fell in love with the General Lee a second time when he saw it. Luke would never forget the look on his face when Luke drove it up closer to the porch. Bo was in awe as he walked up to him and ran his hand along the hood and then over the roof. "So you're the General Lee. Wow!" He was even more impressed when Luke told him they had built the engine themselves and the whole family plus Cooter was involved in putting him together. It didn't take Luke long to remove the old carburettor It was actually much simpler than people thought. He should be done with installing it within the hour. They can test it and tune up the car tomorrow. "Why'd we name him the General Lee?"
"It was Uncle Jesse's idea. Once we painted that rebel flag on the top, it was the best name for him. I guess it also represents us fighting the system in Hazzard." Luke answered from under the hood.
"We fight the system? Why?" Bo didn't like the thought of him being on the wrong side of the law.
"It's not what you think, Bo. You see, the law in Hazzard County are as crooked as the crooks in Hazzard County. The commissioner, Boss Hogg, has been trying to swindle this farm from under us for as long as I remember and the Sheriff, Rosco P. Coltrane, has been helping him. Not only that, they've been trying to frame us for anything illegal so that they can put us away for breaking our probation." Luke explained, "We ain't on the wrong side of the law, just don't agree with the law in Hazzard."
"We're on probation? What for?" Bo was starting to think his life was too complicated.
Luke stopped working for a bit, leaning against the General as he spoke to Bo. "That's right, Bo. So you need to be real careful whenever we're in town. You've had amnesia before and Boss Hogg got you to run moonshine into Chickasaw County. Almost got you arrested." Bo's eyes widened at this. His life really was complicated. "We got caught running moonshine and Uncle Jesse made a deal with the FBI that he would never make moonshine again if we didn't have to do time and that's what happened. So we can't be found with any kind of firearm, moonshine or leave the state. We break our probation and it's straight to the federal prison." Luke looked Bo straight in the eye. "Promise me that you'll remember that and stick with me whenever we're not on the farm."
Bo nodded vigorously, "I promise." The truth was, he didn't think he would ever feel safe enough to leave Luke's side, especially not after what he was just told. Luke returned back to removing the carburettor He grunted as he reached in and pulled the old part from the engine.
"Okay, now to put in my birthday present." Luke said grinning as Bo beamed back at him. The new carburettor was sitting next to Bo. He walked over there and picked it up. "This really is the best present you could've got me. The General Lee's gonna run real smooth with this. Thanks Bo." He affectionately ruffled Bo's hair before taking the carburettor to the General. "You know, you worked at a garage for two weeks to earn enough money to get me this. That's why it's so special. Not just because I've wanted it for weeks now. It's because it's from you, just you." Luke said quietly as he fitted it into the engine. It was what Bo had told him when he was in jail, I wanted the gift to be from me. Just me. Luke was glad Bo had insisted they did this today, because if Luke hadn't been so stubborn, this is exactly what he and Bo would be doing. Of course, Bo would be getting all greasy as well.
Bo yawned and smiled when Luke told him this. It was nice to hear that he and Luke were close. He felt that they were when he woke up and Luke was right there next to him, but it was good to have the feeling confirmed. He wished he remembered more about their lives. "Do you think we can take him for a drive tomorrow?"
Luke laughed, "I don't think so, Bo. We're lucky Uncle Jesse agreed to this. He definitely ain't going to agree to us racing around the county when you're still recovering."
Bo yawned again and leaned against the post. "I don't see what's the big deal. My coughs already easing and I'll only be sitting in the General."
"You know, if I didn't know better, I would think that you were faking the memory loss. That's something you would say." Luke enjoyed this a lot and he mentally thanked his uncle for telling Bo about the carburettor He looked over to Bo to see that he had fallen asleep against the post. Luke smiled. Bo looked so content that Luke almost forgot all that had happened in the last couple of days. Luke quickly finished off tightening the screws before wiping his hands on a rag. He gently shook Bo's shoulder. "Hey." He whispered as Bo opened his eyes. "I think it's time for you to go to bed. I'm pretty much done, just need to reattach the hoses and fuel lines. I can do it tomorrow." Bo nodded sleepily and let Luke lead him back to their room. Bo got out of his shirt and jeans, and got into the pyjama bottoms Luke handed him. He got under the covers and was asleep straight away. Luke sat on the edge of the bed and put the back of his hand on Bo's forehead. He was still warm. Luke went to get the thermometer from the bathroom as well as a wet towel. Opening up Bo's mouth, he slipped the thermometer under Bo's tongue and placed the towel on Bo's forehead. The thermometer read 102.2, which was much better than when Luke first found him. He was relieved that Bo was looking better.
The relief was short-lived though, because the night air seemed to be aggravating Bo's throat and chest causing coughing fits throughout the night, making it impossible for neither Bo or Luke to sleep. Luke stayed by Bo's side, vigilantly, as he coughed up the congestion in his lungs and throat. Jesse had come into the room at one time to check if Luke needed help, but Luke told him that he could handle it. There's no point in both of them not getting any sleep. He soaked the towel again and wiped at the sweat beading on Bo's forehead. Luke thought this was going to be a long night for both him and Bo, turns out it was a long three days for the entire family. The Doctor was right, this was a very bad cold. Bo was no better in the morning. Jesse had come in in the morning after doing the morning chores and took over Luke's place next to Bo. He ordered Luke to go to his room and sleep while he took care of Bo. "His fever's gone up again, but it's not as high as it was originally." Luke told his uncle before leaving the room. Jesse left the room to get a new bowl of cold water and towels.
"Bo, you're going to make my hair fall out." Jesse grumbled as he folded the towel and place it across Bo's forehead. "You know I thought I could stop worrying about you when your cousin got back from the marines. I figured I could let your cousin take care of you, but no, instead you and he go and fight the system and got me and Daisy fightin' along with ya both." Jesse placed a hand against Bo's flushed cheeks, "Who was I kidding? I knew when you boys came to live with me that I would never stop worrying over you and your cousins." Bo opened his eyes but Jesse could tell that he wasn't really awake. "Hey, Bo baby." Bo opened his mouth, as if to say something but the only sound that came out was a continuous, gruelling set of coughs. Jesse sat Bo up to help him ease the cough and expel the phlegm. He winced at the sound Bo made as the coughing finally died down. Laying back down Bo curled into a foetus position. The constant coughing was causing his abdomen to cramp up.
"Uncle Jesse, I don't feel good." Bo complained softly, sounding very much like himself whenever he was sick.
Jesse brushed back Bo's hair, "I know, son. Here, have some water." He helped Bo back up and held the cup to his lip. Bo took a couple of sips before pulling away. He could already feel the water trying to come back up. Jesse sighed and lowered Bo back to the pillow. "You're not going to get better if we can't get more water into you. Might need to get you the hospital."
"No hospital." Bo whispered softly. Jesse shook his head. Of course, no hospital. Amnesia or not, Bo hates the hospital.
"Fine, but if you're still like this by later today, I'm calling the doctor again." Jesse said adamantly, but Bo didn't even hear him. Jesse and Luke took turns taking care of Bo and when Daisy came home, she was included in the rotation. By evening, Doc Appleby was back again and administered another IV as well as giving Bo an injection to relieve the fever, hoping it will help him rest more easily. He also gave Jesse a vapour rub for his chest to ease the coughing. "Whether he likes it or not, you have to be prepared to get him to the hospital if this gets any worse." The doctor had told him before leaving. Jesse knew it to be the truth, but with Bo's amnesia, he really didn't want Bo in a place where he didn't know anyone. To their relief, the vapour rub worked wonders with Bo's cough and allowed him to get a couple of hours of uninterrupted sleep at a time. Two days later, Bo's fever finally broke.
Luke came into the room to check on Bo in the early afternoon and found Jesse sitting on the edge of Bo's bed. "How is he?" The past three days had been consuming for all of them.
"He's better." Jesse answered as he wiped Bo's face and neck. "His fever's broken." Luke bent over with relief. "I know how you feel." Jesse expressed, he had been so worried about his youngest. The last thing he wanted was for Bo to have to go to the hospital. It was a concern already with Bo's amnesia, but for him to have to spend a night or two in a hospital would be so much more worse. He was glad Luke hadn't taken him to the hospital, as he first thought he should've. Bo needs to be with his family now more than ever.
Luke walked over to Bo's bed just to check on him for himself. "The chores are all done for the day. Cooter came by to check on Bo and to helped me out. I got an update on the car theft situation. I'm gonna go wash up."
Jesse nodded. "Sure, I'll have lunch ready once you're done. What did he say about the car thieves?"
Luke's face went hard with anger, "That they've gone into hiding. Probably because they don't have Bo as their fall guy any more." Jesse looked at his nephew, knowing he was seething at what they tried to do to Bo. "There's no way they've left Hazzard yet. They've stolen too many cars, they can't have pulled them apart and got rid of them so quickly. What I don't get is where they're stashing them. They'll need a really big place to hide it." Luke shook his head. This one's got him stumped. If all this didn't happen with Bo, they would probably be out there in the General Lee, searching all the back roads.
"Don't worry yourself over it, Luke. Let the Sheriff's department do their job for once." Luke raised his eyebrows at his uncle. "Well, Enos, at least." Luke laughed, as he left the room. Jesse turned back to Bo, who still didn't look like he wanted to wake up. He pulled Bo's cover up to his shoulders and gave a gentle kiss on Bo's blonde hair, before getting up and leaving the room as well.
