Chapter 9 A Scary Thing

Jeffrey made his way out to the reception desk and was shown where Bogg was laying on a bed in one of the treatment rooms. He approached and sat down next to his guardian. He could see Bogg's eyes were closed, so he leaned back in the chair and closed his own eyes too.

Four hours later, Bogg woke up and spoke, "hey kid?"

Jeff woke up suddenly and saw Phineas smiling at him from the bed. He stood up and hugged him with his good arm, "how do you feel?"

"A lot better, it's amazing what antibiotics can do. What happened to you?" he moved his head in the direction of Jeff's arm in the sling.

"Just a little break."

"A little break?" Bogg asked slowly in an exaggerated tone of disbelief.

"Yeah, what about you?"

"Pneumonia, concussion, that's all," he answered with a chuckle.

"It's not funny Bogg!" Jeff said and his voice was upset. "Pneumonia can kill you," he continued, "so can hitting your head."

"Relax kid, I'm fine. You took good care of me." The rest had done his headache a world of good, and his lungs felt better every minute. He reached out and touched Jeff's side, careful to avoid his arm, "does it hurt much?" he asked.

Jeff shook his head, and suddenly the enormity of Bogg's injuries hit him. He reached up and wiped his eyes, then leaned forward and rested his head against Phineas' chest.

"Not one of our healthier trips, eh?" Phineas said softly, resting his hand lightly against Jeff's back. As he lay there with Jeff he was again struck by how much Jeffrey needed him. It was a scary thing, to have a child need you so much. He hadn't been lying when he said he couldn't tell Proxenus how much his life would be changed if he took in Aristotle. It would have scared him away. Phineas still felt scared sometimes, though he would never admit that to Jeffrey. And to jump into the responsibility with virtually no preparation, well, he'd also often thought he was nuts.

Still, he could feel Jeff's head resting against his chest now and he knew he wouldn't have it any other way. It wasn't logical, and he never would have predicted it, but it was true.

A short time later, Jeff sat up.

"I didn't plan on coming back to headquarters," Phineas began. Jeff's face fell and he lowered his eyes. He was afraid his partner was going to yell at him for bringing them back, though he really felt he hadn't any choice. "I'm glad I had you to do it for me," Bogg finished. "I just wasn't thinking right."

Jeff looked up at him and smiled, "really?"

"You didn't think I'd be mad, did you?"

"Well, when we first got here you weren't too happy."

"Sorry about that. And I'm sorry I didn't realize you got hurt so badly."

"Yeah, well, pneumonia and a concussion can be a little distracting, not to mention the red light," Jeff told him.

A few minutes later, a man brought in a cot so Jeffrey could stay for the night.

"It really makes you think," Jeff said as he finally settled into the soft bed.

"What do you mean?"

"How much people can be like us, even 2,000 years ago."

Bogg sighed, "history changes, inventions and theories come along, but people are people. Remember when we went through the adoption hearing during Convergence?"

"Yeah."

"I said it then and it's always been true, people are human beings and they all need the same things. All the theories about human interaction are just a way to say the same thing."

"Aristotle spent his whole life thinking about things, do you think he ever figured out what people need, or the meaning of life?" Jeff asked.

"I know what he figured out."

Jeff sat up, "you do?"

"Surprised again?"

"Well, yeah, I guess."

"He studied everything; logic, cause and effect, ethics, biology, astronomy, math, you name it. Know what he figured out?"

"What?"

"Essentially, that some things are more certain than others."

Jeff paused, waiting for more. When it seemed unlikely that Bogg would continue, he asked, "so?"

"Yeah."

"That's it?"

"Fraid so."

"But he spent his whole life thinking about things."

"I know kid. Maybe it's better to spend your life living, doing some good in the world."

Jeff leaned back in the bed, it seemed like there was so much to think about. Finally, he closed his eyes and slept.

They stayed at headquarters for two weeks, recovering from their various maladies. Finally, they stood side by side in the landing area and Bogg set the dial on the omni and pushed the button.