For Vanessa: I hope you enjoy it.

This is a flashback not in Autumn in Philadelphia, but by request.

I hope everyone enjoys it, too.

"Audrey, I don't mean to sound cold but your dad is in a hospice surrounded by some of the best doctors and nurses in the state of New York." Jon leaned against the door frame with his hands in his pockets.

The student teacher folded her arms over her stomach. "And Shawn has you."

"Then he's gonna die."

Audrey pressed her lips together trying not to laugh at Jon's dramatics. "You will be fine. He will be fine."

Jon gave his head a slow shake. "Kid's gonna die if you leave."

"Jon."

"I probably will, too."

"Jon."

He straightened up and stepped closer to her. "Please stay. It's Saturday. All the clinics are closed for the day. I can't get him to a doctor until Tuesday because of the holiday Monday."

"Jon," Audrey put her hands on his chest as though to instill confidence in him. "It's a sinus infection. He'll be miserable but he will survive. You both will be fine. I have every confidence in you."

The English teacher stared at her. "You don't know us at all, do you?"

Audrey sighed. She was beginning to worry about leaving. "I did the shopping. I have everything you need to make him and yourself comfortable. You shouldn't need to leave the house."

"Audrey..."

"Don't say it." She poked him in the chest. "You are not going to die. And neither is he."

Jon was silent for a moment then leaned over said in a whisper of desperation in her ear, "Can I go with you?"

She pulled back from him. "You're being ridiculous!"

"I don't do sick, Aud," Jon leaned again the door frame again. "I have a hard enough time taking care of myself when I'm sick. I don't know how to take care of a kid! You remember that cold I had in January?"

"Yes, I do. And I'm very thankful colds only last a week. I was this close..." she put her thumb and forefinger up to his nose. There was little space between her fingers. "To requesting another cooperating teacher to finish my student teaching with."

"And you wanna leave Shawn with me?"

Audrey shook her head in exasperation.

Shawn, who had been listening from his bedroom, struggled to the door. He wasn't thrilled with being left with Jon either. "Audrey, are you really leavin'?"

"I have to, Shawn. It's just for a little while. I'll be back Monday morning."

Shawn stared out into space. "Then I'm gonna die," he whimpered.

"See!" Jon said, shoving his hands in the teen's direction. "You leave, we die."

Shawn walked over to Audrey and leaned into her. "Take me with you. I'm too young to die. Jon can't keep fish alive."

Audrey put her arms around him. "To be fair, the fish are partially your fault. Jon thought you were feeding them and you weren't."

Shawn considered this and panicked even more. "And you're still gonna leave me alone with us? What if I forget to feed me?"

"You can survive without food until I get back if it comes to that." Audrey heard about "man flu" before; she just didn't believe it existed. Apparently, it did. "I cannot believe you two are acting this way. Shawn, I'll give pass to you because you're sick." She looked at Jon. "But you have no excuse."

"All right," Jon mumbled, unhappily. He knew they had to let her leave. "Fine. Go. Please hurry back."

"I will. I just need to make sure my dad is okay. I never know when the next crisis will be his last."

"We understand, Aud," he reassured her. "Tell Richie we said hello and hope he gets better."

Shawn held onto her tighter. "Tell Pops if he passes on to the other side this weekend, I'll see him real soon. I might even beat him there."

Audrey rolled her eyes and told them firmly, "Nobody is dying this weekend, okay?"

Jon gave Shawn a displeased looked as Audrey hugged the boy goodbye and gave Jon a kiss on the cheek.

After she left, Jon and Shawn stood in the living room staring at each other. Shawn sagged against the wall near the door deeply upset that Audrey left him. His head and the right side of his face ached unrelentingly from the sinus infection. He was exhausted from being kept awake for most of the past several weeks from congestion. He wanted nothing more than to curl up on Audrey's lap and let her rub his head until he fell asleep. He could rest with Audrey there.

Jon, on the other hand, was nothing like Audrey. He was likely to throw a blanket and some tissues at him and tell him to sleep it off like he did that morning. Jon did not do comfort. Actually, Jon didn't much of anything even when Audrey was there. He just stood in the kitchen with his hand over his mouth watching them. He only did anything when Audrey asked him to do something.

I am gonna die! He thought as the pounding in his head increased. I want my Audrey!

Jon squinted at him and frowned. "So do I. But we won't have her until Monday. Gotta make due."

Shawn rubbed his temple. He didn't realize he'd said that out loud. Shrugging it off, he went over to the couch and sat down. After a few minutes of sitting, that awful dull ache increased until it was an intense pain running through his head. He stood up abruptly and almost passed out from the equilibrium change. After regaining his balance, he started to walk back to his room. As he moved, the pressure in his head lifted some and brought the pain to a more bearable level. Wondering if it was some sort of fluke, Shawn began to pace his room and the hallway. Yes, he definitely was feeling better. Maybe it was psychological but he didn't care. His wandering took him into the living room where he ended up doing laps around the couch.

Jon was sitting on the couch trying to watch the Rangers game which was very hard to do with a teen endlessly circling in front of the screen. After several frustrating minutes and missing Mark Messier go bardown on Flyers goalie Ron Hextall, Jon said, "Hey, I thought you were dyin'."

"I'm trying to stay to stay alive since you won't help."

"By pacin'?"

"Everything hurts when I sit down."

"You gonna walk all night?"

"If I have to." As soon as he said that Shawn felt light headed and the floor he was standing on seemed to be tilted at an angle.

Jon saw the color drain from the kid's face and his pupils dilated. "Hey, Shawn." When the teen didn't respond, he leaned over and made a grab for him. "Hunter! Sit down."

Surprisingly, Shawn obeyed and dropped heavily onto the sofa. Jon moved over slightly closer and put a hand on his shoulder. "You okay?"

Shawn was fine enough to roll his eyes. "No, I'm not. I'm so congested and my ear hurts," he said tugging at his right ear.

"Blow your nose then."

"What good does that do? Not much comes out."

"Do it anyway," Jon said wondering if that was the right to say. Audrey would know. But he couldn't call her. Her flight hadn't even left yet.

Shawn took the tissue he was handed and blew as hard as he could. Although a gross sticky substance clung to the tissue, the pressure he had to use to extract the mucus made his head hurt worse. Shawn looked down at the tissue and made a face.

"Didn't Audrey say that if my snot is green it's a sinus infection?"

"Yeah, so?"

"So this look green to you?"

Jon jumped back when Shawn shoved the paper in his face. "Gross! I don't wanna see that!"

Shawn pushed out his bottom lip in a pout at Jon's reaction. "Audrey didn't gross out."

"Do I look like Audrey to you?" Jon didn't mean to be so sarcastic. He just didn't do well with stuff that tended to come out of bodies when people were sick. Green mucus was high on the list of things that made him gag.

"Look," he said. He felt guilty that Shawn was feeling so bad and stuck with him. Jon didn't like to be stuck with himself either when he was sick. "Audrey left a whole bunch of stuff here for you to try."

"I think my head is gonna explode."

"Okay, but you can't take anything for that for another hour."

"I'll be dead by then."

"One of us will be," he muttered. "C'mon. Other than your head, what's botherin' you the most?"

"This stupid snot won't come out. I just wanna rip off my skin, take my head off, and wash it all out." The way Shawn was pulling at the skin around his eyes and ears with his fingernails sent a shiver of horror down Jon's spine. The teen looked like he meant it.

Jon stared at everything Audrey had sat on the table. Then he stared at the clock. It would be at least three hours before he could call her. She had left something called a Neti pot that was supposed to get rid of the mucus, but he'd never used one before. So that would have to wait until Audrey could walk him through using it. There were a few medications on the table. One was a nasal spray. Audrey advised him to use it sparingly; if it was overused Shawn would suffer a rebound effect and his congestion would come back worse than before. Jon knew he couldn't handle that.

"When's Audrey coming back?"

"Monday," he sighed heavily.

"I can't make it that long!" His voice was a congested whine. "She's been gone forever already."

Jon glanced at the clock. She left less than an hour ago. Shawn was right; she had been gone forever. He sighed again. Turning his attention back to the counter, he saw Audrey's handwritten notes regarding homeopathic remedies for sinus infections. One involved using steam to relieve congestion. This he could do. He could boil water.

"Shawn, c'mere."

"Ugggngh," was the teen's response.

"This'll help."

Shawn dragged himself into the kitchen. Jon set the pan of boiling water on the counter. Shawn looked at him like he was crazy.

"It's hot water. How's that gonna help?"

"It'll loosen some of that phlegm."

"Am I supposed to drink it?"

"No. You lean over it and inhale the steam."

Shawn didn't think that was a good idea until Jon told him it was Audrey's suggestion. Then he was so enthusiastic about it he nearly burned himself by putting his hands on the pot when he leaned over. Jon tossed some over mitts at him and made him wear them. He left momentarily to grab a towel that Audrey said should be put over Shawn's head so that the steam wouldn't dissipate into the air. He returned to hear Shawn yelping in pain.

"What's wrong now?"

"It burns! I wasn't serious when I said I wanna take my skin off!"

"You're supposed to breathe the steam in, not go for a dive!" Jon put a hand over his mouth when he saw how far the teen was leaning into the pot.

Shawn sat with his head over the steam buried under towels and oven mitts. Jon went back to the hockey game. Just before the Rangers scored again an awful hacking sound came from the kitchen. The steamed worked. Shawn sounded like he was coughing up a lung. Finally, it stopped just as Jon was bringing him the Kleenex box.

"What'd you do? Did you swallow that?"

Shawn took the box and pulled out a handful of tissue. "Nah, spit it out."

Jon frowned and looked around "Spit it out? Where?"

Shawn pointed to the pot.

"Aw, gross!" Jon grimaced and tried not to retch as he figured out what to do with the coughed up mucus and contaminated water. The sounds coming from Shawn as he blew his nose didn't help. By the time they were finished with their respective tasks, Shawn was able to take more Tylenol. Feeling somewhat better, he went back to the couch and was able to watch most of the third period of the game before his ear started to bother him again.

"My ear hurts."

"Sorry."

Shawn gave him a frustrated look. "Audrey would do something to make it better."

Jon glanced at the clock. It would be at least an hour and a half before he could call. "I'm not Audrey."

"No kiddin'."

The mention of Audrey reminded Jon that she had made homemade chicken soup for Shawn with the directions to keep him hydrated. During a commercial break, he got up and heated up some of the soup. Just as the game returned, Jon took the bowl over to Shawn.

"Here, Audrey made you soup. You need to eat and keep drinkin' water."

Shawn took the bowl, blew on the liquid a little, and tried to eat it. He spat it out.

Jon took his attention from the screen just as the Flyers scored. "What's wrong now?"

"Too hot."

"So let it cool off."

"Need food now."

Jon took the bowl and went to the kitchen. He poured the hot soup back into the big pot and put room temperature soup in the bowl. He took it back to Shawn. Just as Niklas Sundström got a breakway and it looked like he was going to score, Shawn shoved the bowl at him.

"Too cold."

Jon gave him a dirty look and went back to the kitchen. He missed seeing the Rangers score but Shawn didn't and gleefully called out a play by play for him. Jon glared at the soup. That kid sure swung back and forth on how he felt. The next bowl he brought to the teen, Shawn was too hot to eat it and needed the soup cooler. The third bowl was fine but Shawn was now cold and need something hot. The fourth time Jon refused to take it back and told Shawn to let it or himself cool off; he wasn't making another trip. He went back to watching the game and listening to Shawn mumble under his breath about how Audrey would have done it right the first time without attitude.

As the post game show ran, Shawn started to get that plugged up pain in his right eye socket and it ran straight to his ear. He clutched the side of his head and pushed as hard as he could. The pressure seemed to help some. But not much.

"Jon, can I take anything for this stuff in my head?"

"It hasn't been two hours since you took the Tylenol."

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Jon sighed as he got up. "It means, I'll go see what Audrey left for you."

Jon stared at the contents of the counter, trying to decided what to do. There were cough drops, menthol vapor rub, a Neti pot, a stack of clean wash clothes, nasal spray, and a book on home remedies. He really didn't know what to do first. The book wasn't very helpful in telling him in what order he should do things in. And he didn't know what the wash clothes were for as neither book nor Audrey told him.

Jon looked at the clock. Ten minutes and Audrey should be at home.

The Neti pot was supposed clean out the sinuses. Jon thought it would make sense to do that first, then use the nasal spray. He opened the book to the section about the Neti Pot and proceeded to make the solution for it. Maybe this was something else he could do on his own.

The Neti pot was not a pleasant experience for either one of them. Apparently, testing the temperature of the solution on one's wrist was not a good indicator for how hot it would feel in one's nasal cavities. Shawn barely got any of the solution in his nose before dropping the pot and shutting himself up in his room. By the time Jon coaxed him out of his room, the solution was cool enough to use.

The solution was ready now, but Jon ran into another problem- how to use it. Shawn tried to pour it up his nose by tilting his head like the directions said. Apparently, it mattered which direction his head was tilted and to the back was the wrong way. Not only did he soak his shirt in saline but it got into his eyes and burned them. Half blind, he tried tilting his head in the direction that Jon pulled it- to the left. This time the solution went in, but didn't come out.

"I dubn't tink ew knog wat ew doig," Shawn was so congested with snot and water he felt and sounded like he was underwater. "I awnt Auby."

Jon folded his arms over his chest. The front of his sweater was drenched in the salt water Shawn sprayed everywhere. He glanced at his watch.

"I gotta make more of this stuff. Don't go anywhere."

Shawn sat on the edge of the tub feeling strangely water-logged.

As the solution heated up, Jon called Audrey and prayed she was home. The phone rang. And rang. And rang. Just as he was about to give up, she picked up.

"Audrey! I need help!" He didn't even give her a chance to say hello.

"You made it three hours," she chuckled. "Congratulations."

"Hold that. I have a problem."

"What's wrong?"

"How much of this Neti Pot stuff is actually suppose to run through Shawn's nose?"

"All of it."

"Should our clothes be soaked at the end of it?"

"Clothes soaked?" she sounded surprised. "No, Jon, no one's clothes should be soaked."

That's what he thought. "Then we're doin' it wrong."

"How on earth..?" Audrey knew there was no point in finishing that sentence, so she went over with him how to properly use the nasal irrigator.

Shawn flat out refused to listen to anything Jon had to say and would not touch the Neti pot until he was on the phone with Audrey who directed him through using it. It worked and Shawn spent a good five minutes clearing his head of mucus. Because of the sound, Jon waited in the living room for him to finish.

After he was done, Shawn wandered into the kitchen and got out the first aid kit. He was still on the phone with Audrey, now complaining about his ear. Jon watched him get a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and disappear into the bathroom again. He was still on the phone when he rejoined his teacher on the couch with tissue stuck in his right ear.

Jon leaned over and tapped him on the shoulder. "Lemme talk to Audrey."

Shawn gave him a dirty look and turned away to continue his conversation. After counting to sixty Jon took the phone from him. Unfortunately, Shawn had already said goodbye to Audrey who on her way to the hospice. The teen was feeling some better and Jon had no problem letting him know how unhappy he was with him.

"I need her more than you do," Shawn told him petulantly.

Jon sunk down into the couch. He and Shawn were both miserable, the Rangers lost in an overtime shoot out, and there was no telling how long it would be before he could get a hold of Audrey again.

Shawn was feeling better and was able to eat without driving Jon crazy in the process. However, after about an hour that feeling returned to his head. This time, his throat also began to feel sore and scratchy. It was strange, though. He'd had sore throats before that hurt all the time especially when he ate or drank anything. What was weird about this was that his throat hurt when he wasn't eating or drinking and actually felt better when he did.

That's not right, he thought. Is this the beginning of rigor mortis? He lay back against the couch, convinced that is was. He'd never felt so horrible in his life.

Jon, sick of hearing about the Ranger's loss, flipped over to the news. Shawn had been oddly quietly for a long time. He glanced at the teen.

"You okay?"

"Not really."

"What are you writin'?"

Shawn looked at him and said seriously with a pencil in his mouth, "My funeral arrangements and will."

"Ha, ha, ha," Jon pursed his lips and frowned. He refrained from saying else anything sarcastic and went back to watching the news.

"Hey, you got insurance for things like death?"

Jon arched an eyebrow and gave him a quizzical look. "Yeah."

"Good. I don't wanna cheap casket."

Jon very seriously considered getting the kid a ticket and putting him on a plane to New York City.

Cory came over around 4 to bring Shawn a get well card he and Topanga made. Jon was thrilled to have someone else entertain Shawn for a while. Or he was until Cory took on Shawn's symptoms and complained about every move he made because that's not how Audrey did it. He'd forgotten about Cory's hypochondria.

One of the things on Audrey's list of things to make for Shawn was a lemon honey ginger tea. Cory insisted on having some too because he swore he could feel a fever coming on. Of course, Jon didn't make it right. He remade the tea three times for both boys before he realized what was going on.

"Okay, Matthews. Out."

Cory looked wounded. "But Mr. Turner, I'm sick."

"No, Shawn's sick. You were fine when you came in."

"Yeah, but my throat's feelin' real scratchy." the boy put his hands around his throat and swallowed hard. "You think you could add just a drop more honey to this?"

"Drink the tea and go home, Matthews!"

Begrudgingly, Cory finished his tea and got up. The he bundled himself up and left. Before he did, Shawn gave him his last will and testament.

Jon sat back on the couch and gave Shawn an deflated look. "Drink the tea."

"I don't like tea. You didn't make it right."

"How do you know? You haven't tasted it. And there's no way I could make it wrong."

Shawn stuck his tongue in the drink and made a face. "You're not British."

"Excuse me?" Jon was absolutely frustrated now and beginning to doubt that Shawn was all that sick to begin with.

"I think that's why you can't make a cup of tea. Audrey's British. She knows how to make it. Otherwise, gross."

Jon knew he should just walk away from this particular argument but he was as stubborn as Shawn. "What does bein' British have to do with anythin'?"

"They know how to make tea. What do we know about what to do with tea other than dump it in a harbor?"

"So you do pay attention in Feeny's class!" Jon acted more shocked that he was. "I'm sure he'll be thrilled to know how you apply his lessons to life."

Shawn gave him a dubious look.

"Audrey's only half-British, anyway," the teacher muttered. Louder he said, "I made it the way she said to. She wants you to drink it, so drink it."

With a uncertain sniff, Shawn drank the tea.

Dinner was uneventful. Shawn was feeling well enough to make his own dinner out of what Audrey left for him. Because it was an odd mix of food, Jon was grateful she'd left a note for Shawn explaining that the soup, pineapple, and a salad full of spicy foods would help his sinuses. Her note also included why he shouldn't eat his favorite things. Shawn wasn't happy about no sugar but because Audrey said so, he left dessert alone.

After dinner, Jon let Shawn go straight to the couch while he cleaned up and got started grading papers.

Jon was quickly tiring and after an hour and a half of grading papers with little thought put into them, he pushed his chair back and rubbed his eyes. Looking over the back of the couch, he was surprised to see Shawn just sitting there staring at an old black and white movie. He shrugged and went back to work.

A few minutes later Shawn called out hoarsely. "Jon, I need some water."

"Yeah, sure." Jon got up and took a glass of water over to the boy only to find he already had a full glass on the coffee table in front of him.

A few minutes later, Shawn asked for tissue, but did nothing with them.

Finally, Jon sat on the couch. "How are you feelin?"

"Worse than ever."

Jon regarded him skeptically. "How?"

"My head's hurts so bad," he said lethargically. "My throat hurts. My ear hurts. Everything hurts. " Tears pricked his eyes.

"Why don't you try to sleep?" Shawn really did seem worse than earlier and it concerned the teacher a great deal.

"I don't feel like walkin' to my room."

"So sleep here."

Jon did the best he could to make Shawn comfortable. He knew it wasn't as good as what Audrey would do but Shawn didn't complain. He watched him for a few minutes before going back to his work. The teen slept hard for about an hour, before he woke up complaining of being unable to breathe.

"All the snot went to the left side, now that side hurts."

Jon remembered that he failed to give Shawn the nasal spray after he used the Neti pot. He retrieved the medication and gave it to the teen. After several minutes, Shawn inhaled deeply then started coughing a deep, rough cough. Jon jumped up at the sound.

"Make sure you spit that in the napkin and not on the floor, okay?"

Shawn responded by sneezing.

Jon disappeared for a moment. When he returned, he had a small waste basket with him.

"Tissues in here."

Shawn nodded grimacing when he moved his head. "Can you turn up the heat? I'm freezing."

"Freezing?" Jon looked at the boy's sweat drenched shirt. "You're sweatin' like a pig."

"I'm cold."

Jon frowned. The kid wasn't playing around. He looked both pale and flushed at the same time. And he was shivering. Fear crept up his spine at this turn in Shawn's health. He didn't know exactly what was going on with him, but he knew it wasn't good. Jon paced the kitchen for awhile and watched as Shawn buried himself under the blankets on the couch. He looked at the clock then picked up the phone.

"Hey. Jon." There was warm, gentle tease in Audrey's voice.

"Hey. Guess you didn't need caller ID to know it's me, huh?"

"Not really. I was getting ready to call you anyway. How's Shawn?"

Jon sighed and looked at the teen who was visibly shaking. "Sweatin' through his shirt. Says he's cold."

"Uh-oh."

Jon didn't like the sound of that. "Uh-oh?"

"It sounds like he's got a fever."

"Uh-oh. How do I know for sure?"

"Put the back of your hand on his forehead."

Jon did as she said and reported back, "Feels like he's got a small furnace in his head!"

"You need to check his temperature."

Jon frowned. "I just did, didn't I?"

"With a thermometer."

"I don't think I have one."

"First aid kit."

Jon was silent. Audrey had great patience, but she must be getting annoyed with him by now. He certainly was annoyed with himself.

"It's by the refrigerator," she told him.

"Oh, nice," he remarked when he saw the large white kit hanging next to the fridge. "When'd you get this?"

"Um," Audrey wasn't sure if he was being serious or not. "I didn't. You did."

"I did?"

"I guess you did. It's was there the first time I came over."

"Oh."

It took a small tussle and holding the phone to Shawn's ear so Audrey could tell him the thermometer was necessary before Jon could get the thermometer into his mouth.

"What is it?" Audrey asked after a minute.

"101. Is that bad?"

"It's not good." Audrey gave him instructions on what to do to break the fever and well as when to go to the emergency clinic.

Jon hung up feeling discouraged and uncertain. At least he now knew what the washcloths were for.

"Jon?" Shawn's voice was weak and strangled by phlegm. "I don't feel good. Everything hurts."

"Yeah, I know, bud. Just a second." Jon filled a bowl full of water and added some ice cubes. He grabbed a bottle of Tylenol and a handful of washcloths before heading to the living room and setting everything on the coffee table. He was about to sit down when Shawn suddenly threw off his covers.

"So hot!"

Jon then remembered Audrey telling him to have Shawn change his shirt. He didn't anticipate that being a fight, but it was.

"I don't want to. It hurts too much."

"Audrey wants you to."

Shawn pushed himself up but did no more.

"Are you really gonna make me do this for you?"

Shawn groaned and pressed his hands against his head as hard as he could. Jon sighed and proceed to change Shawn's shirt like he was five instead of fifteen. The teen immediately flopped back on his pillow and started to shiver. Jon sat in his spot on the couch unsure of what to do.

What would Audrey do?

Shawn reminded him by dropping his pillow in his lap and laying back down. Jon was not comfortable with this. Not at all. But it was what Audrey would do. He leaned over to grab a washcloth and dipped it into the ice water. He rang it out and folded it in half before placing it on the boy's head. Shawn shivered and burrowed down in his blankets. Jon felt grossly inadequate. Somehow Audrey would have done this differently he was sure. Every ten minutes or so a moan or whine of pain would escape from the teen. Jon tried to keep a cold cloth on Shawn but he fought an uphill battle to do it. His student tossed and turned, alternating between hot and cold, in and out of blankets. Jon spent more time picking the cloth up that was tossed to the floor in Shawn's struggle than anything else.

Shawn was in a great deal of pain. This pain seemed worse every time he woke up. His gums ached along with the rest of his body. His ear felt like it was on fire. He was miserably exhausted but the pain and cold were so intense that he couldn't sleep for more than a few minutes at a time. He gritted his teeth against the painful sensations.

He wanted his mom.

Jon was not a caretaker. He did not know how to comfort the sick or grieving. He was convinced people were better off without him; that Shawn would do better own his own until Audrey came back, he was that inept. When Shawn started to cry, he wanted to take a long walk far away from the apartment. Part of the reason for this was that there nothing he could do to help. He hated to see his student in such agony. He got up and began to pace. When Shawn cried for his mother, he felt worse. Whether it was Virna or Audrey he wanted didn't matter. He wasn't crying for dad so he knew Shawn didn't want him. He rubbed his eyes and sighed. He was so tired. Glancing up at the clock, he saw it was a quarter to one. It seemed like it had been days since his student teacher left them. As early as it was he called Audrey anyway. He explained what was going on and she gently talked him through the role of comforter.

With the phone cradled between his ear and shoulder, Jon listened to Audrey's instructions and followed them as best as he could. He went back to the cold compresses and repeated the comforting words she gave him to say. When Shawn sat up, he got him to drink some Gatorade and changed his shirt again as well as the blankets. He even managed to rub his back as Audrey said that would ease the teen's desire for his mom. She claimed Shawn just wanted to know a parent was there; that someone was taking care of him and was close by. Jon didn't really believe her but he appreciated the encouragement.

Shawn was finding rest much harder to grasp as everything felt ten times worse than before. The congestion grew worse ever time he lay down but he couldn't sleep sitting up. As bad as he felt, he recognized that something was different. He didn't feel as alone as he did earlier. Jon seemed to be closer and sounded strangely like Audrey. He complained of the unbearable pain in his head and a strong hand guided him to lay back down on pillows stacked so that his head was elevated. He heard Jon gently chided him not to wait so long to tell him he was sick next time. Then he felt Jon's thumbs on the sinus cavities on his face and head, gently applying pressure to where he had earlier tried to do the same thing. Jon was more effective than he had been and, eventually, Shawn drifted to sleep thinking he must be on death's door if Jon had morphed into Audrey.

"He's finally asleep," Jon told her, letting out a deep breath. He was profoundly grateful for her help and that she didn't mock his lack of ability in this area.

"Good." She sounded relieved as well. "When's the last time you took his temperature?"

Jon froze. He'd forgotten all about that. "Not since the first time you told me to do it."

"Try to take it again. He sounds worse than earlier."

It was almost three now and Audrey was still on the phone. He felt bad about keeping her up but not bad enough to let her go. He managed to get the thermometer under Shawn's tongue without disturbing him much. After a minute had passed he read the reading to Audrey.

"102."

"It's gone up," she replied worriedly.

"I've done everything you told me to do," he said feeling panicked that he'd done something wrong or forgotten something.

"I know you did," she reassured him. "It's nothing you haven't done. You said his ear is worse."

"That's what he'd been complain' about the most."

"It sounds like he has an ear infection, too. He needs antibiotics."

"Where do I go for that? Emergency room?" Jon figured if they went there Shawn would be well on his own by the time they were seen.

"Urgent Care would be better, I think. There's one not too far from you."

"Yeah," Jon said, thankful that she remembered that. "There is."

"Take him in as soon as possible. And keep doing what you're doing- the cold compresses and the Tylenol."

"Okay," he huffed out a breath. "I can do that."

Audrey offered to remain on the phone with him. It was after 4 now and neither of them had been to sleep. He knew he should let her go, but he still couldn't hang up. Jon settled back in his spot on the couch next to Shawn who, although restless, was still asleep. As he talked to Audrey, he found himself unconsciously stroking the boy's hair in the same way his student teacher would. At five, after nearly falling asleep on each other several times, Jon finally said goodbye and hung up.

He woke up at 7 to Shawn whimpering in pain again, cheeks blazing red. Another temperature check confirmed a still 102 temperature. His eyes might have been playing tricks on him but he thought it looked like the temperature was climbing toward 103.

"All right," he said decisively. "We have to go."

"I can't," Shawn weakly protested. "I can't even make it to the bathroom."

"C'mon, Shawn we have to get you to a doctor."

"No!" he protested with a whine. He grabbed his head doubling over in pain. "Just let me die here."

"You're not dyin, Hunter. Audrey would kill me if that happened."

Shawn at first refused to move, then slowly pulled himself up. He felt so lightheaded and dizzy that he knew he wasn't going anywhere on his own.

Jon was tempted to call Audrey, but decided to try to handle things on his own. "C'mon," he said, putting an arm around the teen and letting him lean against him.

They made it to the stairs of the apartment, but Shawn couldn't go down them. Naturally, at a time they needed the elevator most, it was closed for repairs. It took Jon awhile to figure out what to do as the stairs were too steep for him to carry someone of Shawn's height and weight down them. He moved in front of the teen and told him to lean forward on him and put his arms around his neck. He half-carried the teen down on his back, exhausted and weary from lack of sleep. He prayed that they would make down without a fall. Finally, they reached the truck.

Shawn's fear of hospitals and doctors was much stronger than Jon realized. Shawn managed to get himself out of the truck before Jon got out and started toward the Urgent care center on his own. He didn't get far when he realized where Jon had brought him.

"Uh-uh!" As adrenaline surged through his body, Shawn suddenly felt well enough to high tail it back to the truck.

Jon was flabbergasted. "What is your problem?"

"You're not taking me in there! I wasn't serious about wantin' to die!"

"Shawn, we're gonna get you antibiotics. You can't go through another night like last night. I know I can't go through another night like that."

"I am not goin' in there."

In his fevered state and panic, Shawn grabbed hold of the truck's door handle awkwardly and gave it a arduous tug. The door responded by slamming the side of his head. Hard.

Jon turned him around and inspected his face. "Nice job. That's gonna leave a mark."

"It's my face," Shawn winced and tried to push Jon away. "What do you care?"

"Because I'm about to take you into a doctor's office with a red mark on your face. You know what they're gonna think in there?"

Shawn looked at him with a hand over one eye. "That truck doors hate me?"

"That I hit you!"

Shawn grimaced from pain and the absurdity of anyone thinking Jon was capable of that. Shawn had experience with those who did hit kids, but only an idiot would think his teacher was one of them.

"I'll just tell them I ran into the truck door."

"You tell 'em that and they will think I hit you!" Jon stuck his hands in hair and reconsidered taking Shawn inside. Then he reminded himself that neither of them could handle another sleepless night.

"Let's go."

"No, thanks."

Jon made a grab for the teen. Shawn unsteadily dodged him, almost falling onto the hood of the truck. The English Lit teacher swore under his breath as he got hold of the back of Shawn's leather jacket.

"So help me, Hunter, if I have to carry you in there..."

Shawn would have put up a harder fight but between the look Jon was giving him and the way his head suddenly felt like it was no longer attached to his body, he gave up and let himself be pulled along.

Inside the Urgent Care Center, Shawn altered between ready to run and ready to pass out. When he wasn't in pass out mode, he harassed his teacher about anything that came to mind to distract himself from where they were.

As irritating as the kid was, the paperwork was worse. Jon couldn't get pass the first page of the form he was given to fill out.

Relationship to minor: _

He was Shawn's unofficial guardian. That was all. The only paperwork he had to prove this was sitting in his desk drawer at home. He didn't know what to do.

A nurse came over to them just as Jon snapped at Shawn to stop asking for Mom. The teen responded by growling into Jon's shoulder then whimpering that he going to throw up. The nurse smiled in amusement at their back and forth. She reached for the paperwork in Jon's hand and took it before he could protest that it wasn't complete. Glancing over the paperwork, she saw the line that wasn't filled in.

"Hey," Shawn said to her. "Can you call my mom?"

"Why do you want your mom, hun?" She could almost diagnose what was wrong just by looking at him. A lot of teens had been coming through lately.

He glared at Jon. "Because he doesn't know what he's doin'. I shouldn't be here. I should be home sleepin'."

"Where is your mom?"

"In New York with her dad. She'd come back if she knew how sick I am and where he brought me."

"She's the one who told me to bring you here by the way," Jon snapped back. "Be mad at her."

They glared at each other and the nurse chuckled. She clicked her pen open and filled in the missing information.

Relationship to minor: Father

The nurse led them back to the examination room. She could see that the youth was very uncomfortable in a clinical setting so she engaged him talk about his parents and school to distract him. Jon was thankful for this but it also unsettled him. If ever there was a sign for him not to have kids, this was it. Everybody was better with their care than he was.

Once in the room, Shawn sat miserably on the exam table. He was exhausted and hurting and had no patience for anything, especially questions. The doctor asked a lot. Shawn hated doctors and hospitals. Too many bad things happened here. People came here for help and died here. He didn't want to end up a statistic. He hated needles, he hated medication, he hated the hospital smell. Finally, the doctor turned away from him to talk to Jon. Shawn curled up against the table. He was so exhausted that he started to drift to sleep. However, the pain was so intense it made him whimper.

The doctor glanced at the teen. "He's 15 so I'll give you a prescription for Tylenol with codeine to help ease his pain. Should help your pain, too."

Jon smiled a little at that. "You got kids?"

"Three teens."

"Ouch."

The doctor chuckled and began to scribble on his pad.

Shawn opened one eye and frowned.

"That stuff makes me puke."

"What does?"

"Tylenol with that C-stuff. I got that when I was 13 for a broken arm. It made me-" Shawn pushed himself into a sitting position and gestured from his stomach out toward Jon.

Jon looked horrified. "Don't give him that!"

"That's ridiculous," the doctor laughed. "No one's allergic to Codeine."

"Five minutes after I took, it lunch was everywhere."

Jon adamantly shook his head. "His mom is gone and won't be back until Monday. Don't give him that."

The doctor nodded his understanding and prescribed something different. The throat swab came back negative for strep and Shawn left with a diagnosis of a severe sinus infection and ear infection; two prescriptions; one lecture on not waiting three weeks to tell someone he wasn't feeling well. Thankfully, the door did not leave did not a mark on Shawn so there had been no questions about that.

The clinic had an on-site pharmacy and although the wait was long at least they didn't have to go anywhere else. Around two that afternoon, they made it home. An hour after taking the antibiotics and medication, Shawn was able to sleep. So was Jon.

At seven, the door to the apartment opened quietly. Audrey had been able to catch an early flight back and came straight to the apartment. As she closed the door and set her bags down, she smiled at the scene that greeted her.

Jon and Shawn were asleep on the couch. Shawn was stretched out with his head on a pillow in Jon's lap. Jon was stretched out in an upright position with his feet on the coffee table. His head rested on the back on the couch and one hand rested against Shawn's cheek. They were both lightly snoring.

Audrey quietly walked behind the couch. Her heart was full of emotion and affection for them both. She leaned over the couch and lightly put the back of her hand on Shawn's forehead. The teen's brow was cool to the touch. She pulled the blanket up around his shoulders and tucked it under his chin. She watched him for awhile, smiling to herself. Then she turned her attention to the man next to him and found that he was watching her through half-open eyes.

"You're home," he smiled sleepily.

"You're both alive," she gently teased him.

He laughed quietly and buried his nose in the sleeve of her sweater. "Barely."

She kissed his temple and ran her fingers through his hair. To her, there was nothing more attractive than a man who was a good father. And Jon was the absolute best.

"You're a really good dad, you know."

He turned his head to look up at her. He looked pleased. "He's a really good son."

She grinned and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

If Jon got a glimpse of what his future could be like over Christmas, Audrey got a glimpse of hers the following weekend when Jon came down with a fever and sinus infection. Shawn, who had been recovering just fine, suddenly regressed and her weekend resembled an episode of ER as she nursed her men back to health.

Is this what she wanted?

She looked at Shawn and Jon draped dramatically over the couch trying to out complain each other. They were exhausting and ridiculous.

Still, she wanted both of them, dramatics and all.

Feedback is always welcomed. Thanks for reading.