Thx everyone for the reviews and for adding the story to your alerts. And all my medical knowledge is from google so if I get anything wrong you know who to blame

GH-Port Charles, NY

"Alan it's me again. Please call me as soon as you get this message." Monica ends the call and looks around the waiting room thinking back to the last time she was there waiting to hear the fate of Jason's life.

It was a little over two years ago when he had almost lost his life in a car accident caused by her other son A.J. It was a mother's worst nightmare. She'd spent weeks sitting by his bedside praying that he would wake up after he'd fell into a coma and was overjoyed when her prayers were finally answered except for the one small glitch of him having amnesia. He didn't recognize her or anyone else for that matter.

The damaged done to his temporal lobe was pretty extensive and irreversible and up until an hour ago her biggest wish was for Jason to remember her and the rest of the family. Now she was just hoping he'll survive memory or no memory.

She was startled out of her thoughts when she felt a hand on her shoulder and look up only to find the sympathetic eyes of her best friend staring back at her.

"Sorry."

Bobbie sits down in the empty chair next to her and puts her arm around her. She'd rushed down to the emergency room as soon as Amy finished telling her what she knew which was only that Jason was shot.

Bobbie looks around and notices that there weren't any other Quartermaines around. She knew Alan was out of town on a medical conference but figured the rest of the family would be there.

"Where's everyone?"

"A.J. went to get some coffee and I called Alan and left him a message but he hasn't called back yet. Ned's out of town on business and Emily is on a school trip."

"What about Edward and Lila?"

"You know Edward still recovering from the heart attack so I don't want to say anything to them yet until I know more."

"So what do know so far?"

"Only that he was shot in the stomach and a passerby found him on pier 51 bleeding and unconscious."

"I didn't know he was back in town."

"Me neither." Bobbie hears the pain in her voice and squeezes her shoulder.

Miami, FL

"So you sure you're just planning on going to bed?"

"Where else would I be going?"

"Oh I don't know, probably the same place you go whenever you pull one of your disappearing acts."

Groaning audibly she says, "Dre I'm freaking exhausted and the only the place I'm going is my bed."

"Yeah, haven't I heard that before."

"Whatever man. Goodnight," she says dismissively.

"Goodnight." He sees her looking at him expectantly. "What?"

"Uh you need to leave so I can lock up and set the alarm."

"I'm not going anywhere." He moves around her and picks up his bag by the door that she'd failed to notice.

Now annoyed she asks, "What do you mean you're not going anywhere?"

"Your brother didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?" she asks knowing that she wasn't going to like whatever he was about to say.

It was now Dre's turn to groan. He'd told Nick to tell her because he knows how difficult and stubborn she can be.

"He and I decided that I should stick closer to you until we find out who's sending you those flowers." He winces when he realizes his choice of word and rush to clarify what he means but it was already too late.

"You and him decided? What the fuck am I child?"

"Carly..." he begins but stops when she holds up her hand.

"I don't wanna hear it."

She walks over to the front door and opens it motioning with her hand for him to leave. Nothing irritates her more than people making decisions for her. And her brother knows this all too well which is probably why he didn't say anything when she spoke to him earlier.

Dre stood in his spot and tries one more time.

"It was the wrong choice of verb Carly but I don't think you realize how serious this is."

"How serious what is. Some guy sends me flowers and that's cause for alarm?"

"First of all, you don't know if it was a guy. And secondly, the flowers were at every stop with the same vague note. Are you telling me you don't find that strange?"

Not willing to concede anything she says "no, and if it wasn't a guy why would some chick send me flowers?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out."

"Well you can figure it out someplace else."

"Carly…"

"No. You're leaving and that's final."

Dre really looks at her and sees she's not going to budge, sighs and heads for the door.

Turning around he asks "will you at least give me a call if you change your mind about going out?"

"I'm not going anywhere," she says for the last time.

He gave her a look of disbelief but knew he was beat so he left hoping she was telling the truth.

GH-PC, NY

It was over two hours since A.J. had found out Jason was shot. As he waits to hear any news about Jason's condition he can't help but feel guilty even though he wasn't the one to pull the trigger. But it was now added to the list of things he would continue to blame himself for until the day he dies. He was brought out of his self pity when Dr. Wilson came out to speak to the family. A.J. had learned his name from the intake nurse but didn't know him personally. He looks to be somewhere around late twenties early thirties with dirty blonde hair. A.J. watches him as he approach them trying to pick up on any clue as to what he might say. He silently prays that it would be good news.

Mark Wilson couldn't remember a time when he didn't want to be a doctor. Ever since he was a kid he was fascinated by how the body works and would always ask his parents questions about it. Mostly they would tell him that it was just something God created. He suspected that they told him that out of lack of knowledge rather than any religious belief as he had never seen either of them go to any religious institution or even pray. Not even when his father was dying and the local pastor had visited and suggested they pray. Mark sr. had closed his eyes out of respect but as soon as the pastor left he told his son not to sit around and hope and pray for anything to happen but to go out and make it happen. And that was exactly what he did. After high school he went full steam ahead into college and then medical school. When he graduated it was the happiest day of his life until his first surgery without supervision. He'd operated on an elderly man who was in a car accident and the high he got from telling the family that the man was going to be alright was the best ever. It was moments like that he lives for and dreads the ones like what he'd currently found himself in. This one was going to be especially difficult considering his patient's parents were his bosses. He sees Monica and Bobbie sitting down and heads in their direction.

They saw him coming and stood up. He acknowledges Bobbie with a nod and turns to Monica.

"Dr. Quartermaine, I'm sorry you had to wait so long."

Monica nods and urges him to continue.

"Jason is out of surgery. He's lost a lot of blood and suffered hemorrhagic shock and we almost lost him twice but were able to resuscitate both times. He's now receiving a transfusion and the next twenty-four hours are going to be very critical."

"But he's going to be okay right?" A.J. asks.

Dr. Wilson turns to the new voice and recognizes A.J. Though he didn't know the young man he'd heard a lot about him from all the hospital gossip since working at G.H.

Not wanting to lie to the family or give them false hope he simply states, "The bullet did a lot of damage Mr. Quartermaine. It went through your brother's stomach, through the major branch of his abdominal aorta, through his pancreas and out his back."

"Oh my God," Monica cries out.

A.J. looks over to his mom and sees Bobbie hugging her. He looks back at the doctor and realizes what the man didn't say. He could feel his hands begin to shake and shove them into his coat pockets. What he wouldn't give for a drink now.

Caught up in their own feelings of despair no one notices the man that was lurking around the corner.

Miami, FL

After Dre left Carly had taken a bath and was about to fall asleep when the phone rang. She reaches out blindly until she found it and answers without looking at the caller ID.

An unfamiliar voice asks, "Uh is this Carly?"

"Who wants to know?"

"This is Johnny, Jason's friend. He gave me your number in case of an emergency."

This instantly woke her up. "What's wrong?"