Movie Scott 2004 POV
Al was only sixteen years old. Sprawled out on the infirmary bed, he looked younger. Messy hair. Matted with dried blood and not brushed since before the accident. IV-line hooked up with antibiotics. Al was coughing sporadically in his sleep. Breathing sounded a bit strained. Perhaps the pneumonia Virgil talked about was developing. Thank God for antibiotics!
Puffy eyes betraying previous tears, from his heart to heart with his brother. Scott shouldn't have been listening in. At first, he was just waiting to exchange a few words with Gords after the meeting. When the both heart-warming and heart-breaking conversation started, he couldn't help himself. Sneaking away, when he heard their physicians' approaching steps in the hallway. Feeling guilty, Scott volunteered to keep an eye on Al, so that Gords could work on getting them home without worrying.
Alan had a fresh bandage covering the headwound that caused the concussion. Wearing a medical gown. Scott should probably hunt down some real clothes for Al. It was Scott's opinion, that you always felt better in your own real clothes. Wearing a medical gown only made you feel worse. Being sick and injured was bad enough. He sent a chat message to Virgil to hunt some clothes down for Al, and to pretty please bring Scott something from the kitchen, as it was lunchtime. Virgil was a kind soul. He would probably bring Scott something. With brothers you never know for certain.
Scott got some work done. He was helping his father with Tracy enterprises, during times off duty from international rescue. Scott usually prided himself on his laser sharp focus. Growing up with four younger brothers you had to develop the skill to thrive. Something was different this afternoon and he felt his focus drift again and again to Al.
After his angel of a brother brought him some food and clothes for Al, he gave up any pretences of getting any more Tracy enterprises work done. At least he got in a couple of hours. He could catch up later. After all, figuring out Al was kind of IR work, if you squint.
Scott Tracy prided himself on never giving up. He simply reassessed the situation and reprioritised.
Now he wanted to assess the new information on Al. His brother from another mother. Was he? Why are this multiverse stuff so hard to wrap one's head around. There were a lot of thought spinning around in Scott's head.
Al was another version of his youngest brother Alan.
Scott had always had a special relationship with Alan, with their twelve years between them. When they were younger Alan tried to stick to Scott like a band aid. Always following him around. Always wanting to do stuff with his older brother. Just like a band aid, Alan was painful to remove. Leaving a sticky mess, difficult to wash away, when they were separated. Not that Scott minded all that much. He loved the little sprout with all his heart. Scott had a weakness for his cute younger brothers.
Scott and Alans relationship changed after they lost their mother at a young age. Their father lost himself in grief for three years, before he finally pulled himself out of his depression. For those three years he became Alans father figure, even more so than their other brothers.
When dad finally came to his senses, he tried to correct this. Scott thought his father and Alans relationship was fixed.
Scott went back to being a brother and left the nest. On the brink of burning out, stressed out of his mind taking care of his brothers as a teenager. He was glad to be spreading his wings and flying. Scott left and did not look back enough. The years went by and with Alans boarding school and Scott in college and then air force, they drifted apart.
It was only during that fateful spring break, when Alan was fourteen, Scott realised how strained his fathers and Alans relationship was. Alan felt abandoned and bullied by his entire family, and he had a point. Alan was hurt, even if they thought they had the best intentions.
Scott had failed him. He should have realised something sooner. He should have been a better brother, so that Alan could trust him enough to bring this too him. Scott had apologised and made a real effort to improve. Their relationship had improved heaps and bounds after this.
Unfortunately, when some things break, they can never go back to the same way they were before. This was one of them. Alans blind trust in Scott couldn't be repaired.
This was one of the biggest things that intrigued Scott about Al. Al had that blind faith in his brothers. According to Gordon, who was spying on Al when he woke up in Thunderbird two after drowning, his first word was Scott. Even with reassurances from Gords, his next sentence was "Hurts Gordy, I want Scotty!". At least in some universe, Scott did right by Allie. To be the first one to be called for comfort.
The other Scott never left the "Scotty's here, everything is going to be okay" phase only his toddler Alan had. That phrase was usually reserved for loving fathers.
"Scott acting all dad like" was something Al missed from his Scott. That shook Scott to his core, when he was eavesdropping. He started thinking. They had lost their dad nine years ago when Al was seven years old.
Gords had cried on Scott's shoulder, confided in him and told Al that he kind of comforted him like their Scott would. The blind fate in his brother was left in Gords too.
The only logical conclusion is that their Scott is their father figure, and he still had not messed up their relationship yet. For at least nine years. Maybe even more if they lost their mother a couple of years before, as his own family had.
Dear God. Their version of Scott had managed to raise them into fine functional human beings. Al was their world's youngest astronaut. Had to have gotten that title when he was at the most fourteen years old. Because Gords let it slip that Alan had been active in IR for two years already. Scott was impressed as well as terrified.
Al had another coughing fit, but this time it was strong enough to wake him up.
Al looked confused with his eyes glazed over. He sat up in his bed, in an attempt to breathe better through the coughs.
"Hey Al, how are you feeling?" Scott asked.
Al opened his mouth to answer, but a strong coughing fit ended up in him throwing up all over himself and the bed. Scott did unfortunately not react fast enough with something to catch Als breakfasts sudden reappearance.
Scott hurried forward to help Al. His big hand rubbing circles on Als back. "Awful, I see. Just let it out kiddo. Better out than in. There you go.". Al continued to cough, feeling quite hot to Scott's touch.
He only got a pitiful wine in response.
Thankfully, Scott had remembered to call for help with the handy button beside the bed. This was proving to be a bit much to take care of alone.
The physician, Frank, was there in just under a minute. Assessing Al who continued to cough and dry heave, looking like picture-perfect misery.
Frank asked Scott if he could help clean Al up, while he went and prepared some medications that could help. Al had developed a fever. Frank recommended taking him to the shower where the steam could alleviate some of the strain of Als wheezing breathing and hot temperature until he got some pharmaceutical drugs in him. He had to give them intravenously because Al could not currently keep anything down.
Scott, of course, accepted. Prepared to do anything to help the situation. IR-operative mindset activated, as he gently picked up Al. "Come on Al, let's get you cleaned up. I promise you will feel better soon. Virgil managed to find you some fresh clothes." Scott whispered to Al while carrying him, bridal style, to the adjacent shower room.
Scott was careful of not speaking to loud. He did not want to aggravate Als headache. Scott knew what it felt like to have a noise sensitive headache, having had concussion a few times himself. "Let's just say it sucked! Increasing the painful pressure, by throwing up sucked even worse! Poor Al!" Scott thought.
The first thing Scott noticed is that Al was light, in that awkward state between child and adult. The next thing he noticed was how damp and sticky his shirt got. Reminding Scott of when his own Band-aid Alan toddler got a stomach bug, all those years ago. Scott had cared for all his sick brothers at one point or another. Forcing him to quickly get over any fears of bodily fluids.
Now it was just part of the job at IR as they often acted as first responders. Not the best part of the job by any means, but you were desensitised quickly enough.
Scott slowly sat Al down on the closed toilet seat. "I'll be right back! Just preparing the shower.". His paramedic training reminded him of how it was easier to breathe in a seated position. To get some steam going he turned the shower on full blast and turned it to the hottest setting. Frank was hoping that the steam would also help a bit with Als wheezing breathing, at least until he could come back and start a nebuliser treatment.
Scott returned to Al "Hey kid! Is it okay if I help you get clean? Right now, you are too unwell to do it yourself. It can't be comfortable in this dirty medical gown. I promise that it will make you feel a bit better! Afterwards Frank should be done preparing your meds.". Al was slow to respond, but the small nod came eventually. Concussions sucked!
"Let's start with this thing" Scott carefully removed the medical gown. And threw it in the laundry bin. Al removed his underwear with the help of Scott, who grabbed and steadied him when Al started falling. Al got dizzy when he had to stand up to get them off.
Not daring to let Al try to walk when he couldn't even stand, Scott guided him down on the toilet seat again. Giving him a towel to protect his modesty. Not that Scott cared about nudity, but Al might.
The shower room was now covered in steam. Scott turned the showers scalding hot temperature to a medium one. Not too hot and not too cold. He made sure the shower chair stood sturdy on the floor before he picked Al up and deposited him in it.
"Is the temperature okay Allie?" Scott asked while letting some water reach Als hand. At the slow nod Scott started helping Al shower. Telling small silly stories of his brother's childhood antics to distract him, between informing him exactly what he was doing while helping him wash. Al was too sick to help at all.
Scott was fully immersed in his own storytelling while carefully washing blood out of Als hair, when he was finally awarded with a smile. Al was especially amused with Scott's story of how he accidentally got shampoo in Gordon's eyes when he was three years old. Gordon had screamed like he was being murdered and managed to escape the shower, making it all the way outside, completely butt naked, covered in soap. Scott, dressed in a towel, ran after him to try to stop him, but the soap made Gordon even more slippery than usual.
Gordon slipped away like a skilled quarterback on his way to score a touchdown. John and Virgil tried to stop him, when they heard Scott's panicked screams for help. Like a true slippery quarterback Gordon avoided their tackles, reaching his goal of escaping out the front door in the cold Kansas snowclad winter.
Scott finally managed to catch Gordon on the snow-covered driveway. But as Scott picked him up, he slipped on a patch of ice, hidden below the snow. Making him and Gordon fall spectacularly, Scott landed on his butt. Sliding down the inclined driveway much to Gordon's amusement. Coming to a full stop by dad's pick-up truck. By now, Gordon's screams had turned into laughter.
Scott did not have time to ponder why dads Pick-up truck was home, until he heard its front door close, their father stepping out, wearing an incredulous look on his face.
Scott must have looked like a deer caught in headlights. Dressed only in a towel. Holding a hysterically giggling naked Gordon. Virgil and John stood frozen on their porch.
Thirty seconds, that felt like an eternity, passed with the family just looking at each other before everyone joined in with Gordon's hysterical giggles. Dad took Gordon from Scott before helping him up. They all walked back inside still laughing at the absurdity of it all. Dad had apparently just come home and turned off his car, when a naked Gordon flew out the front door.
By the end of the story Al was squeaky clean. Scott had removed his soiled shirt so that he would not accidentally get some on Al again. While Scott helped Al dry off. Leaving only his private area for him to take care of himself.
He looked Alan in the eye with a dead serious look and said, "Thank you Al, for not pulling a Gordon!". Getting an equally serious "You're welcome!" in return, before they both broke out into laughter.
Scott helped Al into some real clothes. They were some of Alans old ones, a green T-shirt and a pair of pyjama pants. They were way too big. There was an even bigger difference between the two Alan's than the two Gordon's. Not strange considering their sprout was well on his way of overtaking them all height wise with his latest growth spurt. Scott made a mental note of picking up some clothes for their guests that actually fit.
Frank was ready and waiting for them, when Scott carried Al out of the shower. Thankfully the whole mess of Als bed and floor was cleaned up, and new sheets with a space theme covered Als bed. Scott suspected that Frank had called in Onaha for help, prioritising getting the medications ready as soon as possible.
Al was exhausted after the shower and was silent as he let Frank hook him up on different medication drips. Not even complaining when he had to have another IV-line inserted, because some of the medicines were not allowed to be inserted in the same IV-line together.
Frank hooked up Al on a saline drip to get some fluids into him. Gave him I.V. Paracetamol for the fever and pain, I.V. Morphine for the pain, I.V. antiemetic for the nausea and the next dose of I.V. antibiotics. Frank also put Al on a nebuliser treatment to help with his breathing.
As soon as Al was done with the nebuliser treatment, he stopped fighting his exhausted body and fell asleep.
Scott contemplated the nagging feeling that he was missing something when it hit him like lightning out of the blue. Gords! His promise to contact him if anything changed. He left Al in Franks very capable hands as he ran towards Brains lab to inform Gords. Hoping that he wouldn't kill him for breaking his promise.