The nurse returned a few minutes later to find the pair sitting in silence. "Okay she said, first things first, let's take some blood and then get these meds going so we can get you on the mend." She used the cannula the first nurse had placed to take three vials of blood. She then hung two bags of fluid and connected them to the needle in Jess' hand. She also had two syringes to inject through the cannula as well.

Jess felt his stomach flip flop watching the needle in his hand and feeling the cool liquid enter his veins. He closed his eyes and swallowed against the wave of nausea that threatened to overtake him. And then, the coughing started again, deep and rattling. He couldn't catch his breath between coughs and his heart was pounding. He held his side and felt like he was trying to keep himself from breaking apart as he coughed.

Luke watched on the monitor as Jess's heart rate shot up from 120 to over 140 beats per minute, then started to slow a bit as Jess began to catch his breath. Jess sat clutching his painful right side, panting and wheezing.

"Can you give him anything for the pain?" Luke asked. "It seems like he's really hurting."

"I'll check with the doctor before we send you upstairs," Lexi gave him a sympathetic smile. She adjusted to oxygen settings and propped Jess up with some pillows, putting an ice pack behind his neck and another on his head.

Lexi pulled the curtain closed behind her. Luke couldn't see Jess's eyes, but he saw tears running down Jess' cheeks. He took his nephew's hand, and this time Jess didn't pull away.

The nurse came back a few minutes later, and gave Jess another shot in his IV. "That should help with the pain. Transport is going to come and take you up to your room on the 5th floor."

"Thank you," said Luke.

"You're welcome," she said to Luke. "You get to feeling better, sugar," she said to Jess as she left.

Ahmad came back a few minutes later and got everything ready to move Jess upstairs. Luke felt strange walking down the hall next to the gurney. These last two days didn't even feel real. He knew things had been tough for Jess growing up, but now he knew it was worse than he could have imagined and he felt like he still didn't even know the half of it. He thought Jess hated the world, but he had no idea that his nephew hated himself so much. He squeezed Jess' hand as they rode the elevator up.

"Probably not what either of you had planned for a Friday night," said the orderly.

Luke gave a choked laugh. "Definitely not."

"Dr. Liu is great, she's going to fix you right up."

Luke managed a grim smile. Of all the times for small talk.

A kind nurse with short cropped hair and glasses who introduced herself as Maria met them at the elevator and walked them to a room right off the nurses' station. She and Ahmad transferred Jess from the gurney to the bed and she got the monitors and oxygen and IVs all situated and replaced the ice packs for Jess, who barely seemed to notice what was going on. She gestured Luke to a recliner next to the bed. "A nice comfy chair so you can try to get some shut-eye, dad."

"Oh, I'm not, uh, I'm his uncle. Luke Danes." He finished awkwardly, stretching out his hand.

"Well it's good thing he has you. Our patients always do better when they have a support system."

He nodded. "Hey, is there a pay phone on this floor?"

"Sure, just make a right out of the room and then a left at the end of the hall. You'll find the waiting room, family room, and vending machines and pay phones down there. If you need anything the nurses' station is right outside."

"Thanks."

She left and he sat for a few minutes just holding Jess' warm hand and listening to his nephew's quick, shallow breaths. He wanted to call Liz, but he didn't want to leave Jess alone. He finally decided a few minutes would be okay since Jess seemed to be asleep. As he left the room he stopped at the nurses's station. "I'm just going to make a couple of calls, I'll be right back."

"No problem, Mr. Danes. I'll keep an eye on him."

Luke walked down towards the pay phones. It was after one a.m. and he wasn't in the best frame of mind, but it was time to call his sister. Liz had always been the squeaky wheel, always pushing boundaries, doing what she wanted no matter the consequences. It had gotten worse after their mom passed away and by the time their dad got sick she was so out of control Luke had nearly given up on her. He thought maybe when Jess was born she would settle down a bit, but nothing ever seemed to change her.

He dialed the last number he had for her. It rang a few times and he was expecting to leave a voicemail when she picked up.

"Hello?" Her scratchy voice was the same as always.

"Hey Liz, it's Luke."

"Oh hey big brother, what's up? I would expect you to be fast asleep right now."

"Well, I would be, but Jess is sick."

"What do you mean 'Jess is sick'? He's a seventeen-year-old, he's healthy as a horse."

"Liz, he has pneumonia, I'm calling from the hospital, they just admitted him. You need to come."

"Is he okay? I mean is he going to be okay?"

"I don't know, Liz, I think so, but he's really sick right now. I'm going to drive up and get you."

"Don't you fucking dare, Luke. You stay right there. Don't leave him alone, that's my baby."

Luke couldn't hold back an ironic laugh. "Was he your baby when you kicked him out after your boyfriend beat the shit out of him?"

There was a long pause. He worried she was going to hang up on him. "Luke, I know I'm a shit parent, but I couldn't let him stay and get himself killed or waste his whole life trying to take care of me. I love him more than anything. He would never have left if I told him it was for his own protection. He's just like you, big brother, always looking out for me. It kills me that I hurt him, but I didn't know how else to get him out of here. I want him to have a shot at a happy life."

Luke rubbed his eyes, "He thinks you abandoned him," he said much more softly. "Can you come?"

"I'll figure something out. I'll get there. You stay with him, though. Promise me you won't leave him alone.."

"I'll stay with him. I promise. We're in room 517, Woodbury Memorial."

"Okay brother. I'll try to get a bus out of the city in the morning."

She hung up. Luke closed his eyes and sighed.

He dialed again.

"It's one a.m. this better be good," she snapped as she picked up.

"Lorelai."

"Luke, what's up?" Her voice was full of concern.

"I'm, I…I had to bring Jess to the hospital. He has double pneumonia."

"Luke, what? I just saw you this afternoon, you said the doctor said it was the flu."

"I know, but he just got sicker and sicker for the rest of the day, and he was having trouble breathing, so I.."

"So, is he okay? What's going on?"

"No, they admitted him. He's on heavy duty antibiotics and some other stuff I don't remember. They said he'll be here for at least a couple of days, maybe longer. He broke a rib just by coughing."

"Oh Luke, that's awful."

"Yeah," he let out a shaky breath. "It's scary."

"Do you want me to come up there? For moral support? Or comic relief?

"No, that's okay, Jess is sleeping, and I doubt he'd want anyone to see him right now. I do have a favor to ask, though, kind of a big one…"