Luke tried not to speed and to focus on getting to the hospital safely. It was only a 15 minute ride, but it felt interminable. He felt a tug in his own chest at each sound of his nephew's strained breaths. He was relieved when they finally pulled up into the circular driveway in front of the emergency department at the local hospital. Jess seemed out of it when Luke tried to wake him, so Luke just ran inside and came back with a wheelchair. He helped Jess down from the truck and into the chair and wheeled him inside the waiting area. It was a quiet night and there were only two people waiting, so Luke was hopeful they wouldn't have a long wait.

He ran back outside and parked the truck. When he returned, Jess was slumped in the wheelchair, seemingly oblivious to his surroundings. He wheeled Jess up to the front desk, "Hi, my name is Luke Danes, this is my nephew, Jess Mariano, he has a high fever that doesn't decrease with medication, a bad cough that's really painful, and he's been wheezing." The receptionist looked at them and called a nurse over.

"Hi, I'm Susan, I'm going to take you back to triage right now, just follow me." She led them through some double doors and down the hall to a small room.

"So, what's going on tonight?" Susan asked as she fixed a blood pressure cuff around Jess arm and clipped a small white device onto his finger.

Jess didn't respond, so Luke answered and the nurse put a thermometer in Jess' mouth. "He started feeling sick yesterday, I picked him up from school early and he had a fever of one hundred and two degrees. Last night it got up to 104 degrees, I took him to the doctor this morning and they said it was the flu and prescribed Tamiflu and some antibiotics. This evening he has been coughing a lot, to the point of throwing up. It seems like coughing is really painful and he just doesn't seem like himself, so I thought I should bring him in."

"How old is he?"

"Seventeen"

"Has he had any fever reducing medications like Tylenol or Advil?"

"Yes, I gave him two Tylenol around 10pm tonight."

"Any other meds?

"Yes, he had some cough syrup with codeine that his Dr prescribed around 10 as well."

Luke looked at the display screen. Jess' temperature was 104.2. Luke didn't know what the other numbers meant, but he felt a knot in his stomach just thinking about it.

"Jess, Jess" the nurse was holding Jess' shoulders trying to get his attention. After a moment he managed to focus his eyes on her. "Do you know where you are?"

Jess looked around "hospital," he whispered.

"Very good. I know you're feeling really sick, but we're going to take good care of you, okay."

Jess nodded.

"I'm going to get you settled in a treatment room, if you'll follow me."

Luke pushed Jess down the hallway through another set of double doors, to an area with a nurses station surrounded by small curtained areas. She led them to one right in front of the desk, and closed the curtains around them. Luke helped Jess up onto the gurney. Susan brought a hospital gown and she helped Luke get Jess changed into it. "Okay, Jess, I'm just going to get an IV started so the doctor can give you medicine that way, okay?"

Jess' eyes were closed but he nodded.

She got the IV cannula set in the back of Jess' left hand and put a blood pressure cuff on his arm and another clip on his finger. "This is going to monitor his blood pressure, pulse, and oxygen levels," she explained to Luke. "I'm going to have someone come in and help you get him registered as a patient and then we're going to take him for a chest x-ray. Once that's done, the doctor will come and take a look at Jess and the x-rays and talk to you about diagnosis and treatment, okay?"

Luke nodded. "Okay, thanks."

She left them alone in the curtained off area. Jess was shivering and Luke draped Jess' hoodie over him, tucking it around his shoulders. Another woman in scrubs came along shortly pushing a computer cart. "Hello, my name's Lilly, I'm going to get you registered."

She asked Luke all the basic questions, and copied down all his insurance information. He realized he didn't know Jess's social security number or have Jess' ID, but Jess mumbled "jacket." And Luke realized that Jess's wallet was in the pocket of his beloved leather jacket. Once all the paperwork was squared away, Lilly printed out an ID bracelet and secured it around Jess' wrist.

"Okay, Jess, someone will be right down to take you up to x-ray, okay?"

"Thank you," said Luke, as she rolled the cart back out to the nurse's station. Luke alternated between watching the screen with Jess' vitals and watching Jess' face. Under the fluorescent hospital lights Jess' pale skin had an almost grayish cast to it. How was it possible that Jess had gotten this sick this fast? He seemed okay when they got back from the doctor's office, he had even eaten something. Maybe the doctor was wrong and it wasn't the flu at all? Maybe he should have taken Jess to a pediatrician instead of his own doctor?

The curtain opened and a young guy in gray scrubs said, "Hello, I'm Ahmad from transport, I'm going to take you up to X-ray."

"Okay," Jess said. His voice was barely a whisper, but Luke was surprised he was awake.

Luke got up to come with them, but Ahmad stopped him. "You stay here, dad, I'll bring him right back. Just a quick spin around the block." He kicked the brake on the wheel of Jess' gurney, popped up the railings, and pushed it out of the curtained area towards the elevators.

Dad. Ha, some dad he was. Barely able to figure out the next move, no idea how to relate to Jess or what he needed. Luke leaned forward, elbows on his knees, and buried his face in his hands. What was he doing? How was he supposed to tell Liz he'd let Jess get so sick? He shouldn't let him work at the diner and Walmart on top of school. He should have made sure Jess actually did quit smoking. Was this because of smoking? This had to be bad. He had never come into an emergency room and been seen right away. Everyone knows you wait and wait at the emergency room.

He should call Liz. And say what? He didn't know anything yet. He would call after the x-rays, after the doctor, when he had something to say. Would she be sober? Would she answer the phone? In the middle of the night on a Friday, probably not. He'd call anyway, though, she should know.

He could call Lorelai. She'd come, certainly. But for what? To keep him company. It certainly wouldn't be for Jess. He sighed. Let her sleep. Find out what the doctor says. You don't have to do anything right now except be here, there's nothing for you to fix. He took a deep breath and sat up straight. Just be here.