Okay everyone, a little challenge for you here. There are actually three reasons why I chose the title SWITCH: the first can be found in this chapter. The second will be revealed later and the third… well, in due time. I hope you enjoy.

What a day it had turned out to be! Bo had fallen into a deep sleep upon arrival at the hospital and though Luke cringed as he watched them insert the long IV needles into Bo's veins not once but twice, Bo never flinched. That in itself told Luke that something was wrong…terribly wrong. Had Bo felt or even seen the needles before today, he would have been turning pale and sweaty. Now there wasn't a twitch, not a murmur or even a blink… and it scared Luke half to death.

Shortly after Bo received the IV's, the orderlies had rushed him down the hall for tests and X-rays, leaving the Duke family in the waiting room, wrought with worry. Luke was wearing a groove in the floor, pacing back and forth nervously while Jesse sat on the hard chair, holding Daisy in his lap as the girl cried softly on his shoulder.

The same unanswered questions weighed on everyone's mind: what had happened to Bo and why?

"For Beauregard Duke?"

Jesse stood up, with Daisy and Luke beside him. "I'm Jesse Duke. How's my boy, Doc?"

The man reached out, shaking Jesse's hand, followed by Luke's and Daisy's. "I'm Dr. Andrews and I'm your nephew's overseeing physician."

Jesse nodded, thinking he'd had it with the formalities. What was wrong with Bo?

"Mr. Duke, I know you're anxious about your nephew," he began directing the three into his office across the hall. "Why not come in here? We can talk more privately and it's a sight more comfortable."

Nodding, Jesse followed Dr. Andrews into a spacious office. Sitting down on the couch in the room, he took hold of Daisy's hand, who sat beside him wiping her eyes. Luke sat furthest from Jesse, closest to the door, wanting to be as close to Bo as he could be, since they had not let him come with them to administer the tests, despite Luke's pleading.

Dr. Andrews looked at the family. This was the part of the job he hated most. "Mr. Duke, your nephew is back in his room now resting."

"Is he alright?" asked Jesse, his voice cracking. Luke looked the doctor in the eyes as if trying to read his answer before it was even given.

"I have the results of most of his tests right here," began the doctor, patting an abundant stack of papers on his desk. "It appears that he is quite a sick young man. Everything here points to the same thing- a seizure disorder."

Daisy cried into her uncle's arms. Jesse shook his head slowly, wondering how this could have happened.

Luke glared at the doctor. "He was fine! We were gonna go to a party… he was fine! Yer wrong! Yer wrong! He ain't never had one in his life… Jesse tell 'em! Tell 'em he's wrong!" pleaded Luke, now standing, leaning onto the doctor's desk, his shoulders shaking with fear.

Jesse stood up and hugged his nephew, before gently leading him back to the couch and sitting down between him and Daisy, now holding onto each. Normally Luke would have pulled his hand away, not wanting to appear weak in any way, but now… now he was scared… more scared than he'd ever been, even when he was in the war, and he welcomed the comfort the tired, calloused hand gave to him.

"That's so Doc," confirmed Jesse. "I've had Bo pre-near since he was born… he had lots of health problems as a youngin' but nothin' like…like this."

"What kind of health problems did he have, Mr. Duke?" asked the doctor, taking out a pen to take notes.

Jesse sighed. "Asthma mostly… and his heart was affected because of his irregular breathin'… but he outgrew all of that."

The doctor nodded. "Any of your family ever had epilepsy or a seizure disorder of any kind before?"

Jesse shook his head. "Not that I know of…"

"Is it possible your nephew consumed any large quantities of alcohol or has he been using any kind of illegal drug?"

"Bo wouldn't do that!" yelled Luke, ready to go punch the doctor for even suggesting such a thing.

Jesse's hand steadied him. "Easy Luke…easy now...the man is just doing his job." He looked at the doctor. "No, sir. Not Bo."

The man nodded. "Well, Bo seems to have suffered from some grand-mal seizures. That's why his hand and legs are so bruised and also why he's sleeping so much."

Daisy looked up, wiping her tears. "I don't understand… "

The doctor smiled at her gently. "There are two basic kinds of seizures. Some are just staring off into space or blinking for a bit… others, like what your cousin went through, are more severe, and affect more of the body. In your cousin's case, his arms and legs thrashed about… that's why they are so bruised. We did put him on oxygen also, because he stopped breathing for a bit during the seizure, though not long enough to do any permanent damage. He has a moderate concussion to the back of his head, where he hit the floor..."

"Why?" interrupted Jesse.

"I don't have an answer for that, Mr. Duke. It's the case of the chicken or the egg here. It's possible that the fall Beauregard had caused the seizure itself. He did hit the floor hard enough to leave quite a nasty concussion. But it's just as likely, if not more so, that the seizure caused the fall."

"But he ain't never had one before… he's only nineteen years old…how…?"

Dr. Andrews nodded in understanding. "Sometimes a seizure disorder like epilepsy can be with a person for years without them knowing it. Then one day, just like someone turning off the light switch, everything changes and it's there full force. That's what I believe happened with your nephew. I think that for some reason, today was Bo's day."

Daisy sobbed into Jesse's overalls as Luke gulped back tears of his own.

Jesse looked at the doctor with tears smarting in his eyes. "Is it curable?"

Dr. Andrews looked at them. "In some cases, yes. The first thing we need to do is start Beauregard on an anticonvulsive medication, and try to stop him from having more. I need to warn you, though. They can be hard and even impossible to control. It takes a long time of trial and error to find the right dosage and medicine. Sometimes, there just isn't one to do the job."

"Will Bo be able to… do what he always did?" asked Jesse. Luke moaned slightly, telling Jesse he wanted to know the same thing.

"Well, providing we find a medication that works for him, yes. He should be able to lead a relatively normal life. Of course, every time he has a seizure, he will be subject to another round of trial and error medications until we find another that seems to work… and Georgia law forbids the use of motor vehicles by anyone who has had a seizure for three months afterwards…."

"Bo can't drive for three months?" interrupted Luke.

The doctor nodded. "At least…and every time he has one, the clock gets reset… still, not driving is better than the worst case scenario...remember that."

"What's that?" asked Jesse, not particularly liking how the doctor's eyes shifted downward as he said that.

"Well, sometimes people who suffer seizures quit breathing, just like your nephew did. There's a possibility, however slight, that Beauregard might have another seizure and quit breathing like this time, but not start breathing again. It isn't a highly probable scenario, but still, far greater given the type of seizure he has and also his health history. I'm sorry."

"Dear God…" muttered Jesse, holding Daisy as she sobbed.

Luke shook his head, blinking back tears. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening! "No!" He raced out of the office.

Jesse stood up, shaking the doctor's hand. "C'mon, Daisy. Let's you and me give Luke a minute… then, we'll go see Bo ourselves," he added well-knowing where Luke was headed. Daisy nodded and leaning on her uncles arm, walked out of the office and to the waiting room to get some coffee.

Now friends, I don't know bout y'all, but this has got my feathers more ruffled than a Tom turkey the day before Thanksgiving… an' it's only just started.

Please review. I value your opinions so much! Thanks! Jordyn