A little bit of fluff and some angst... Jeff makes an unexpected trip home and gets grief from his sons. Kyrano offers words of wisdom... Alan loses it... Scott pleads...
Warnings for this chapter: some swearing. Earlier chapters may be found on AO3 here.
Kyrano arrived with dinner. Scott and John actually smelt the wonderful aroma before he arrived at the bedroom door, knocked and entered, carrying a tray with two plates of food and two glasses of juice.
“Master Scott, I am pleased to see you awake, and back here at home,” he said softly as he approached the bed.
“Thank you, Kyrano, but please, just call me Scott,” the invalid replied. He sat up, clutching the sheet to his chest; oh so very self-conscious of the state his body was in as he gave John a glance, who got up, went to a drawer and found him a t-shirt to put on.
Kyrano put the tray down on Scott’s lap, then uncharacteristically placed a hand on the young man’s shoulder.
“Scott,” he began. “I was in the Global Conflict and I saw many sights. You are here on the island with your family and friends and have nothing whatsoever to be ashamed of. We will get you through this. I want you to look within yourself; find that courage that I have seen you exhibit on many occasions and let us help guide you back. You have that strength, even though you doubt yourself at this precise moment. I offer my services to you, should you wish to talk, even if it is only about the weather.” He gave him a kindly smile and their eyes locked.
Moist blue ones looked into green-brown and saw nothing but love and affection. “Thank you, Kyrano,” he mumbled in response. “I will bear that in mind.”
“Good. Now I need you to eat this. I studied your diet plan and I disagree with some of it. You know I have knowledge of many herbs and spices and when they can be used, so I have decided to make your meals more… interesting.”
“It smells lovely, Kyrano,” Scott said giving him a small smile. “And it looks good too.”
“I expect to see an empty plate when I return… or else.”
Now that was a threat that Scott knew he had to take to heart. In all honesty, he hadn’t been feeling particularly hungry because he’d seen the diet plan the hospital had come up with, until the wonderful aroma had assailed his nostrils and he realised he was starving; but there wasn’t a lot of his plate.
Kyrano knew his patient had to have a little and often and gradually build up after the abuse he had suffered.
“Or else, what?” Scott asked, his curiosity piqued.
“No apple pie for dessert,” Kyrano answered smugly; somehow managing not to laugh at the look on Scott’s face. He knew the young man would literally ‘kill’ for his apple pie!
John was grinning broadly as he returned to Scott’s bedside and handed him a t-shirt to put on. “Challenge accepted then?” he asked his brother.
“Yeah… definitely! Kyrano’s apple pie…” His eyes almost glazed off as he imagined a bowl before him.
“Thanks, Kyrano,” John said smirking. “With you feeding him, he’ll soon put the weight back on!”
“I trust, Scott, that you will be starting your physio tomorrow?” It came across slightly more like a statement than a question.
“I… guess,” came the somewhat stuttered response.
“I can assist you in that as well, if you’d permit me. I know Master Gordon has plans, but we must take our time and not rush things. Plus, he is supposed to be leaving for Marineville next week, although he has voiced that he may delay going so he can concentrate on helping you get well.”
“What? No! No, he mustn’t put his career on hold because of me! I won’t have that hanging over me. None of my brothers must put their lives on hold because of me!”
“We’ll do it if we want to, Scotty,” John broke in. “Lord knows; you put your life on hold for us, so if we want to return the favour, you can’t do anything about it but, I think I’ve persuaded Gordon that he should go because, as you said, you don’t want to hold back his career.”
“You have not been physically active for a number of months, so we must take care not to cause further damage, like your little… escapade has done,” Kyrano continued. “That also means not pushing yourself beyond your current limits.” His green eyes locked in what appeared to be a warning. “Getting into the pool would be of great—”
“NO!” The rejection came quick and fast.
Kyrano saw the fear in Scott’s eyes and nodded acquiesce. “Perhaps a little further down the line, then,” he soothed. “As I say, there is no rush. Now, eat your meal or no apple pie.” He gave a slight bow and exited, leaving Scott staring after him.
“Come on Scott, do as you’re told!” John encouraged, smiling as he picked up a fork and took an experimental mouthful of his own food. “Ohhhhh yyyeeessss… Kyrano’s outdone himself. You’ve just got to taste it, Scotty!”
John’s somewhat rather orgasmic sounds brought the eldest back to the present and he tentatively put a forkful into his mouth. It was not too spicy; Kyrano knew what he was doing, but the mildness still assailed his taste buds and without thinking, he was soon inhaling it as his senses went into overload. John did his best not to smirk, but was delighted as Scott cleaned his plate and then eyed John’s.
“Don’t even think about it!” John almost snarled, rescuing his plate from beady blue eyes. “A little and often, not a ‘let’s see how much I can stuff my face with!’”
Scott actually pouted which made John’s heart sing. It was a small thing, but it indicated that the old Scott was still inside him somewhere; they just had to bring it to the fore.
Scott wondered if Kyrano had a hidden camera somewhere, for he reappeared about a minute or so after John had finished his food with the said apple pie and found his mouth watering in anticipation.
“I’m glad you’ve arrived with dessert, Kyrano,” John said. “Scott’s been trying to steal my dinner!”
“That is good to hear. I will bring you your next meal in three hours, Scott. Then you will rest, get a good night’s sleep so you are prepared for tomorrow’s activities.” He smiled as he took the plate from the tray on Scott’s lap and replaced it with a reasonable portion of apple pie with ice cream. This was devoured with gusto, but then made him feel sleepy. Both Kyrano and John assisted him to the bathroom—his little adventure had severely weakened him again— then put him back to bed once he’d finished.
Scott sighed. “I’m sick of lying around,” he said as sleep began to take him once more. “I’m fed up of being tired and useless and a burden…”
Kyrano sat down on the edge of the bed and gently massaged Scott’s head; a technique he was well skilled in. He whispered words that Scott didn’t understand, but that made his eyelids droop and within five minutes, Scott was out for the count.
John went to say something, but Kyrano placed a finger against his lips, so the younger man remained quiet and followed the Malaysian out of the bedroom.
“How did you do that?” John asked quietly as Kyrano closed the door to Scott’s bedroom.
The elder man smiled knowingly. “My people have many techniques for treating those who are ill or need soothing. Come, Scott will sleep for those three hours, as long as it remains quiet.”
“I’ll tell Gordon and Alan to keep away from the bedrooms until later then. Thank you for getting Scott to sleep… Kyrano, will our brother get better? Will we get our Scott back?”
Kyrano sighed. “A lot will depend on Scott himself. He has it within him to recover, we just all need to work to make him recognise that. As you heard him say, he is sick of being a burden, of lying around. We need to use this to get him mobile again, to do his exercises. I will assist in the mental side of things. By tapping into his subconscious and his mental strength, disciplining it, he can take great strides forward, but you know Scott as well as I do. He does nothing slow. We must teach him patience or he is going to become frustrated and either give up or do himself harm. I am just sorry that I wasn’t here when he made his escape attempt.”
“It wasn’t your fault. You can’t be everywhere at once. He’s back, he’s safe. That’s all that matters for now,” John said quietly. He knew there were going to be challenges ahead, but how tough they were going to be he didn’t know.
To everyone’s utmost surprise, the voice of their father requesting permission to land just over an hour later had a few mouths hanging open and ten minutes later he was in the lounge, facing them, a small bag in his hand.
“We didn’t expect you back this soon,” John said in a somewhat neutral voice.
“I wanted to get this to you as soon as possible,” he replied holding up the bag.
“What is it?” Virgil asked.
“Brains—Dr Hackenbacker—developed this with the aid of a dermatology expert. It’s for Scott. A special cream to use on his scars to help them shrink and fade. I figured he’d want to start using it as soon as possible.”
Virgil stepped forward to take it from him, opened it and pulled out one of the jars to read the instructions, then nodded. “Thanks, dad.”
“I also have a message from your grandmother. She’s just finalising arrangements back in Kansas and should be arriving back here in the next day or so.”
Sally had flown out just before Jeff had announced he was leaving the boys to cope on their own, to arrange cover for her absence at the local hospital and find a permanent replacement, and issue instructions to the farm manager regarding the running of the property.
“It’ll be good to have her here,” John said.
“How’s Scotty doing?” Jeff asked.
“He was upset that you left,” John came back with, rather sharply. “I could see it in his face even though he tried to hide it.”
Virgil tried to give him a warning glance which the elder brother promptly ignored.
“He gave us the run around this morning,” Gordon broke in, not seeing the subtle shakes of his older brothers’ heads that were saying ‘shut up Gordon!’ “Knocked Virgil unconscious and did a runner, but we got him back before he killed himself by falling over the cliff.”
Virgil was so tempted to do a face palm, but refrained. John closed his eyes and waited for the expected outburst.
“What!” Jeff exploded. “How did he get the drop on you, Virgil?”
“I checked him, he was asleep, so I decided to finish setting up the supplies in the cupboards. I guess… I guess he wasn’t as asleep as I thought. He jumped me as I was coming out of the stores cupboard, then ran. It was an episode of PTSD. He was totally disorientated.”
“I don’t know how he managed to get all the way up to the cliff path,” Gordon muttered. “I mean, have you seen him? He looks like he couldn’t even get across this lounge, but he did it!”
“You went after him with tranquiliser guns!” Alan broke in.
“What!” Jeff exclaimed again. “You went after your own brother with the intention of shooting him?”
“In case you’ve forgotten, Scott’s been trained to kill. Virgil’s damn lucky he wasn’t seriously injured. We couldn’t take the chance of getting too close to him,” Gordon said matter-of-factly.
“Didn’t need to in the end,” John said. “He backed himself up on the cliff and it um… kinda crumbled under his feet, but Virgil caught him and pulled him to safety, then he collapsed. Virg carried him back.”
“Where is he now? Back in the infirmary?”
“No, he’s in his bedroom,” John replied. “We figured it was more… homely. It’s got his stuff in there, familiar things.”
“So who’s with him at the moment?”
“No one. Kyrano worked some of his magic on him and Scott’s out for the count. I’m going back up there shortly,” John spoke again. “Kyrano said he’d be asleep for three hours, but I’ve decided to play it safe and return after two. Just needed to stretch my legs.”
“Dad, Scott looks awful,” Alan said quietly.
“What did I say to you about keeping that to yourself?” Virgil snapped at him.
“Doesn’t matter! You’re not to say things like that, just in case Scott hears you.”
“Virgil’s right, son. Keep those kind of thoughts to yourself,” Jeff said. “I’m just going to go see him, then I’ve got to leave.”
“But you’ve just got here!” Alan moaned.
“Boys, believe it or not, I’m doing this for all your benefit. I want to ensure you’re looked after for the rest of your lives. Remember when we had almost nothing? When I nearly lost the business, our home? I never want us to be in that position again. Once I know the business can almost take care of itself, then I promise you, I’ll be home a lot more often.”
“But what about Scott, dad? You didn’t hear the disappointment in his voice when he found out you’d gone,” John said.
“He may well understand, dad, but that doesn’t stop him having the feelings he has; that you think more of the business than of him. Your eldest son, who’s been subjected to unspeakable horrors and once again you’re not there for him!”
“John…” Jeff’s voice took on a warning tone.
“No dad. Right now, Scott desperately needs his father; he needs to hear that you’re proud of him, of his bravery and courage. Why can’t you tell him you’re proud of him?”
“Wait… what?” Alan interrupted. “Is this true?”
John turned to him. “Why do you think Scott keeps pushing himself harder and harder? Because he’s looking for approval from our father, but he never gets it. Virgil and I have noticed it time and time again.”
“So have I,” Gordon added. “It’s true. You praise everyone else but never him. It’s not fair.”
“Life isn’t fair, Gordon. I’m preparing Scott to face whatever the world will throw at him,” Jeff retorted.
“So being tortured to within an inch of his life isn’t sufficient? You’re unbelievable!”
“What?” Alan said. “What do you mean tortured to within an inch of his life?”
“It doesn’t matter—” Jeff began replying only to be interrupted again.
“Like hell it doesn’t!” Virgil exclaimed. He looked at Alan. “Turns out, when Spectrum rescued Scott he wasn’t expected to last the day. He stopped breathing and he crashed in the hospital and I thought we were—”
“Virgil! That’s ENOUGH!” Jeff barked. “Alan doesn’t need to know the details, he’s too—”
Alan began to bristle. “I’m not a fucking child anymore, dad! I’m an adult! You shouldn’t keep things like this from me! It’s Scott we’re talking about!”
“I know, and you’ll watch your language when you talk to me!”
They had been so busy arguing, they didn’t notice movement from the stairs until a weak voice spoke.
“S – stop… pl – please st – stop.”
They all turned as one to see a grey-faced Scott, clinging onto the door frame as if his life depended on it, tears coursing down his cheeks at hearing the argument.
“Scotty!” Alan went to rush to his side until Virgil grabbed his arm and stopped him dead in his tracks.
“Slowly, Alan. Slowly. Don’t rush at him.” He looked at his big brother, pale and trembling, let go of the youngest and walked slowly towards him. “Do you need to sit down, bro?” he asked him quietly.
Scott’s face crumbled at his weakness and he nodded jerkily.
“Okay, I’m coming to give you a hand, all right?” He took the feeble nod as a positive and moved carefully to his side. “I’m putting my arms around you, Scott, to support you and then we’re going to move into the lounge properly and get you down on a sofa.”
“I’ll get some water,” Alan offered, disappearing slowly from view.
“And I’ll get the first aid kit. Scott’s arm is bleeding. I guess he pulled the IV out,” Gordon added and went to carry out his task.
Jeff watched as John went down into the lounge and rearranged the cushions on one of the sofas; one with a nice view out to the swimming pool, the beach beyond and the sea. Then helped Virgil get Scott comfortable on the couch, carefully lifting his legs so he was laying across it, his body propped up against the cushions.
“Are you comfortable, Scotty?” John asked softly.
Scott nodded as Virgil grasped his arm and applied pressure to the wound whilst Jeff just continued to stand and watch.
Gordon came back with the first aid kit, set it down on the coffee table and quickly rummaged for the necessary supplies to clean Scott’s arm of the blood that had run down it. Alan returned with the glass of water and put it down on the table whilst his two elder brothers fussed over his hero.
“You shouldn’t be up,” Virgil said gently as he inspected the wound to see if it had stopped bleeding. It had, so Gordon cleaned it and put a plaster over it.
“I – I heard you… arguing. I – I can’t be the… the cause of your disagreements. Maybe it would be better if… if you sent… sent me away.”
“No, Scotty! Never!” All four brothers protested together.
Alan picked up the glass of water and held it out to Scott, who took it with a shaking hand and managed to take a few sips before giving it back.
“I’m sorry we woke you up,” Virgil said, a hand on his big brother’s shoulder. “But you need to know that we would never send you away. This is your home; it’s where you belong; with your family, not with strangers who know nothing about you.” He turned to face his father. “Right, dad?”
Silence seemed to reign a little longer than necessary before Jeff replied. “Of course,” he finally answered and started to move closer. “We brought you home so you could recover by being surrounded by your family, Scott.” He gingerly sat down on the edge of the couch and placed a hand on his son’s thigh, as both of Scott’s hands were currently being held by two brothers, and wondered how much of the ‘discussion’ his eldest had heard. “Son, I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up… I had to go into the office to sort some work out. I haven’t been in since I embarked on the mission to accompany Spectrum in my search for you. I need to… what I’m doing, is to ensure you all have a secure future, I swear to you. It’s not because I don’t care for you; I love every single one of you,” Jeff insisted. He stared at Scott’s face; eyelashes made long and thick by the tears in his eyes, the blue extra bright. Beautiful, expressive eyes that were currently expressing pain, anguish, sorrow and… fear.
The brothers waited; hoping to hear their father say what was desperately needed, but it didn’t come. Instead, Jeff changed the subject.
“I’m sorry this is a flying visit. I have to leave again, but I’ve delivered a special cream, Scott; it should help reduce the scarring. Virgil’s got it and we’ll start the treatment as soon as possible.” He patted his eldest’s leg gently and stood up. “Hopefully I’ll be back at the end of next week to spend some time with you—with all of you.” He looked around at his other sons and felt the displeasure emanating from them, so he bade a hasty retreat once he uttered his final words. “Take care of each other. Love you all.”
“Fucking unbelievable!” Alan muttered half to himself.
“Good job grandma’s not here,” John said looking at him. “You’d be washing your mouth out with soap right about now.”
“Tell me you’re not thinking it, John,” Alan retorted and he raised his eyebrows as his brother made no response. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”
“Guys,” Scott said in almost a whisper. “Dad’s right. You know he is. He’s securing our future, don’t be angry with him.”
Virgil’s shoulders slumped. Time and time again, Scott defended their father’s actions, even though many of them had personally caused him a lot of pain and anguish.
“Scotty, you’re the best brother any of us could ever ask for,” he finally replied as he gently squeezed his shoulder.
“Yeah, we love you bro,” Gordon added, tightening his hold on Scott’s hand.
The tears that were threatening to start falling again, did so. “I love you guys,” he said between sobs and slowly and gently they all gathered close for a group hug.
