"Has he been asleep all day?"
Don heard voices as if from very far off. "He's going to have a crick in his neck from sleeping like that."
"I know, but I didn't want to wake him."
Finally Don forced his eyes open to see his Dad and Charlie. "Did you hear him snoring?" Alan asked. "It sounded like a chainsaw."
"Really? He doesn't usually snore."
"You know I'm right here?" Don croaked, sitting up and groaning; he did have a crick in his neck.
"Hey, he lives!" Charlie teased.
"For the moment anyway," Don said, rubbing his neck. "Do we have any food around here?"
"Well, we already ate Don, but I'll go heat up some soup for you," Alan said.
"You guys already ate?" Don asked, confused. "What time is it?"
"Nearly two," Charlie said.
Don looked up shocked. "I've been asleep all day?"
"Well, not all day Donnie, just most of it," Alan said moving to the kitchen.
Charlie sat next to his brother on the couch. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm all right," Don said. "Better now than yesterday, right?"
"Did you really throw up in the bushes at that house where the girl was being kept?" Charlie asked.
Don glared at him. "Colby told me," Charlie said, his eyes gleaming. "Called it, contamination of a crime scene."
"Yeah, I'll give him contamination of a crime scene," Don muttered.
"Don, why didn't you go home when you weren't feeling well?" Charlie asked after a long pause.
"Same reason you don't come home when you're sick," Don said. "Work is too important."
Charlie looked into his brother's eyes with complete understanding. "I gotta tell you Don, it scared the crap out of me when Megan called," Charlie told him. "Personally, I almost prefer you getting shot at. At least I'm used to it. I know what to expect."
Yeah, believe it or not, me too. At least then I've got something to fire back with," Don agreed.
"Soup's on!" Alan announced, coming in with a tray. "Charlie, did you just say you like it when Don gets shot at?"
Charlie rolled his eyes. "Never mind, Dad."
"You know, it's only been a day and I'm really sick of this liquid diet thing," Don complained.
"Eat your soup," Alan ordered. "This is your own fault."
"Dad," Don sighed in exasperation, "there was no way I could leave. This was a major kidnapping case. I couldn't leave my team hanging."
"You know what your problem is?" Charlie asked. "It's not your naturally stubborn nature."
Don raised his eyebrows. "My naturally stubborn nature?"
"No, it's your inability to ask for help," Charlie informed him.
"Now if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black," Alan muttered.
"What?" Charlie asked.
"When was the last time you asked for help, Charlie?" Don asked.
"I ask Amita and Larry for help all the time."
"No, you tell them what to do. It's not the same," Alan interjected.
"And when was that last time you asked someone for help, Dad?" Don asked pointedly.
"I ask Charlie to do stuff around here all the time," Alan replied.
"And you do it before I can get to it!" Charlie cried.
"Well that's because you take too long," Alan said simply.
"Is this a bad time?" Amita asked, entering the room.
Charlie rose and went to kiss her. "Perfect timing actually," he said. "We were just discussing who the worst at asking for help is."
Amita's eyebrows rose. "You're all bad at asking for help. It's an Eppes family trait."
"Thanks a lot," Charlie said sarcastically.
"Instead of arguing about it why don't you all just try harder? You should make a bet or something," Amita suggested.
"What kind of bet?" Don asked.
"All three of you have to ask someone for help at least once a day for a week."
The Eppes men exchanged looks. "It's just a suggestion," Amita said, holding up her hands.
"No, no, I like it," Alan said. "We could do that. One week, that's nothing."
"It has to be legitimate, Dad," Don said. "You can't ask with the intention of doing it yourself later."
"Are you saying I would cheat?" Alan asked indignantly.
"Wouldn't be the first time," Charlie muttered.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Don intervened, holding up his hands as Alan opened his mouth to make an angry retort, "I don't know about this."
"Well, if you guys don't think you can handle it…"Amita suggested.
"Who said we couldn't handle it?" Charlie asked.
"Well, you said-"
"The Eppes men, never back down from a challenge," Alan told her. "I'm in."
"Me too," Charlie agreed. "Don?"
"Well, I'm not gonna let you guys have all the fun," Don said. "Whoever loses pays for pizza and beer on Friday?"
"You're on," Alan told him.
"Sounds good to me," Charlie said. "Well, now that that's settled, Amita, I could really use some help with something in the kitchen…"
Amita giggled embarrassed as Charlie pulled her along. "That doesn't count Charlie!" Don called after them. "So, how long 'til the wedding?"
Alan laughed. "Every time I ask Charlie, he sort of chokes and then remembers he left something very important at CalSci."
Don grinned. "Well, it's always good to know he's not good at everything."
Don walked into the bull pen on Monday morning and inhaled deeply. It had only been three days, but he had missed this place. "Look who it is," Megan said when she spotted him. "There's coffee here for you. Are you going to drink it this time?"
Don accepted the cup and sipped. "I don't know what we'd do without you, Megan."
"You'd have a lot less coffee and a whole lot more paperwork," she said with a grin.
"Well look what the cat dragged in," Colby said as he and David approached. "Glad you're up and about again."
"I'm just glad to be back here with normal people. My dad and Charlie are driving me nuts," Don said honestly.
"That's what family does best," David said with a smile. "You sure you're ready to be back? Don't need a little more vacation?"
Don shook his head. "Nah, somebody's gotta keep you guys in line. What do you have Megan?"
"How about a car theft?" Megan said handing him a folder. "We just got this in from LAPD. Three cars taken this week, and we've got a body at the most recent one."
"Well, what are we standing around for then?" Don asked.
His team smiled; their leader was back. As they turned to go, he caught Megan's arm. "Hey, do you think you could help me file the report on that double homicide last week?" he asked.
"Sure, no problem, I'll go grab the files right now," Megan said with a smile.
Don smirked at her retreating form. Being stubborn might run in the family, but so did being a sore loser. And this time, it would not be him.
A/N: Well, that's all for now. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks to everyone who's been reading, and any final reviews would be much appreciated!