That's a Childhood Disease...Right?

Emotional Rollercoaster

Dermott stood at the hob, stirring his mam's chicken soup. He could have simply poured it into a bowl and heated it in the microwave, but that would have been too easy and he needed something to keep his hands busy. His brother's terrified screams still echoed in his mind. He was sure he had never heard something as disturbing and he was just as certain he never wanted to hear anything like that again. For a moment, or two, he just watched the swirling soup as he stirred it, his emotions whirling about in the same manner. His mind then moved from Declan to Ant and he stopped in mid-stir, recalling the sound of Ant's quiet sobs through the bathroom door.
"He needs Lisa," he whispered before reaching into his trouser pocket to pull out his phone. He quickly perused through his contacts then made the call. Several minutes later, there was a quiet knock on the garden gate and Dermott let Lisa into the back garden. He gave her a quick hug before showing her to the patio table.
"I'm sure he'll be down soon and I'll send him out with some of Mam's soup and bread." Dermott then went back into the house and returned to the kitchen. It was just minutes later when a very defeated looking Ant entered the kitchen. Three empty bowls were on the counter and Dermott was standing at the hob, ready to serve up the steamy hot soup. He nodded at Ant, who gave him a sad smile in return as he watched Dermott fill two of the bowls. Once finished, he came over to Ant and cupped his chin in his hand, turning his face so that he could better see his black eye. "Guess it's too late to put anything on it," Dermott said with a small frown.
"Aye. Kerry looked at it and said to take some paracetamol for the swelling and headache then get some rest."
"Let me and Marty sort out Declan tonight. You get some rest and take over in the morning." Ant just shrugged then pointed at the bowls of soup.
"Need me to take these up to Martin and Kerry?" he asked, as Dermott placed both bowls on a tray along with two slices of warm bread, utensils, napkins and two cups of strong tea.
"I'd like you take it outside...there's someone here to see you," Dermott replied with a smile. Ant screwed his face up in confusion then glanced out the window to see that the garden lights were on. He took a step, or two, closer to the patio door and his shoulders suddenly seemed to drop and, without a word, he nodded at Dermott and picked up the tray. The older man quietly opened the door, then closed it as Ant passed through.
Lisa turned at the sound of the door closing and gave her husband a sad smile. "Heard you've had a hard evening, my love," she said, watching as her husband placed the tray on the table, before coming around to stand in front of her, giving a very brief nod in agreement. She reached out to take his hands in her own as he then knelt at her feet and placed his head in her lap. At first, he cried quietly but, the events of the last 24 hours finally seemed to come crashing down upon him and he began to weep bitterly as she rubbed hand through his hair and down his back, all without saying a word.

Upstairs, Martin was sitting with Dec when Dr. Shannon came out of the bathroom with a towel he had wet and wrung out, watching as Martin finished undressing his brother down to his boxers.
"If his fever happens to start going up again, you need to dampen a large bath towel then lay it on him once he's down to his boxers." Martin nodded as he moved so that he was even closer to his brother, knowing full and well that, even though he was essentially nearly unconscious due to the sedative, he would probably react to the chilled towel. Just as soon as the doctor placed it on Dec, he moaned into the oxygen mask, moved his head, and wrinkled his eyebrows in discomfort. In response, Martin grasped his left hand in his, being mindful of the IV port, then gently ran his hand over his heated head.
"Shhhhh, kidlet...I'm here and you're okay...shhhhh." Dec turned his head toward him, murmured then seemed to settle down again. "Just trying to make sure we can cool you down, littlen," Martin reassured his brother. The pair sat and monitored Dec, Dr. Shannon checking his temperature to see if any progress was being made to bring it down.
"Check his temp after about 15 to 20 minutes and you should see some relief. If not, he'll need to get back in the tub again but call me either way." The doctor then removed the towel then hung it up in the bathroom. He reentered the bedroom and helped Martin in redressing Dec, then sat down on the opposite side of the bed as he looked at his watch to see that his shift at the hospital had started some time ago.
"He seems to be resting well...his vitals are good...his temperature is down at about 101," he said staring at Dec. "He needs to stay on the oxygen through the night and the antibiotic drip and IV will be fine until Oliver comes by in a few hours to change it then I'll be back by at about 10 am," he said, looking at his watch to see that it was nearing 10. He had called in a colleague to take his shift and would be returning the favor the next evening.
"Should he be in hospital? I'm more than worried for my brother," Martin said quietly, turning his head to look at the doctor, who was shaking his head. "Decs hates hospitals and will fight tooth and nail not to go but..." Martin couldn't finish his sentence and he looked back down at his brother and carefully took his left hand back in his.
"It was a frightening experience but we were able to very quickly lower his temperature. He's resting, albeit due to the sedative, but he's comfortable...the creams we put on him not too long ago are working...he's going to be okay, Martin. It's just going to be a bit of a rough ride for the next 48 to 72 hours. If admitting him becomes a necessity, it'll be done...no matter the protest. Trust us." With that said, the doctor stood up then gathered his belongings together. Martin looked back down at his brother's hand and slightly frowned...there were bruises. He reached over and picked up Dec's right hand and saw even more bruises encircling his wrists. He slightly groaned and lifted Decs right arm and turned it so that he could carefully wrap his hand around his wrist. "Oh, Ant...bless you," you he whispered.
"What's that?" Dr. Shannon said as he came back around the bed. Martin grasped Dec's forearm and elbow then lifted his arm up for the doctor to see. He turned Dec's limp wrist, taking in the slight swelling and dark bruises. "He put up quite a fight, Martin. Ant was only trying..."
"I'm not upset at all, Kerry," Martin quickly interjected shaking his head. "I'm certain Deccy has bruises on his legs when we were holding him down," he added glancing over his shoulder, as if he could see his brothers legs through the bedcovers, although he hadn't noticed any earlier. "I'm not even worried about how Declan's going to react. I'm more concerned about Ant. They're just as close as you can get and its going to kill him knowing he held his best mate down hard enough to leave marks on him." At that bit of information, the doctor frowned deeply. "There's no quick fix for these," he said, checking Dec's left arm only to find more bruises, although not quite as severe as on his right. "It's going to be about two weeks before they disappear completely."
"Aye...we'll just have to wait things out," Martin replied with a frown.
With that, Dr. Shannon stood and gathered up his medical bag and the extra tank of oxygen. "I'll have this refilled and will be back in the morning. Declan is going to be okay, Martin...trust us."
The pair shook hands then the doctor walked out the bedroom door and headed down the stairs.
"See you in the morning, Dermott." Dermott met the doctor at the bottom of the stairs, shook the doctor's hand. "Declan is resting well and his temperature is down. He's got a rough week ahead of him but he's going to be okay," Dr. Shannon said with a reassuring smile.

"Thank you, Kerry for taking care of Decs," Dermott replied as he showed him to the door, watching as the doctor got into his car and drove away. Dermott took a few minutes to stare at the night sky above, marveling at the Father's creation before turning around and entering the house. He walked back into the kitchen and glanced out the window then went to the patio door and quietly opened it. Lisa immediately looked up then held a finger to her mouth while sadly looking back down at her husband who had fallen asleep while seated on the ground with his head in her lap.
"He's cried himself to sleep," Lisa said, her own voice catching in her throat. "What exactly happened, Dermott? He's never...I've never seen him this upset." Dermott sat down on a nearby chair with a sigh before quietly explaining the evening's harrowing events. Once finished, Dermott went inside then returned, bringing out a jacket to lay over Lisa's shoulders and a small blanket to lay over Ant's sleeping form. "Text me if you need anything," Dermott whispered, rubbing Lisa's shoulder. She nodded in response then turned her attention back to her husband.

It was some time later that Ant shifted his position.
"Are you awake..feeling better, my love?" Lisa asked, moving in a way that indicated she wanted Ant to sit up. He lifted his head and she could see that his eyes were swollen, his black eye nearly swollen shut and that he looked done in. She reached out and cupped his face in her hands and gently wiped off the remaining tears with her thumbs.
"Want to talk about it, Anthony?" she asked quietly, already knowing that what his answer would be and her suspicions were spot on when he slowly shook his head. He was one to bottle things up, mull them over for a while before even considering discussing things over with anyone.
"I love you...I'm here for you," she whispered as they both leaned in and kissed then rested their foreheads against each other.
"Love you, too, pet," he whispered just as quietly. "Thank you for being here." He stood up, albeit slowly, having sat on the ground for so long, causing his knees to be slightly stiff. He offered his hand to his wife and she stood up then drew him in for a long hug before pulling away. They glanced at the bowls of soup, noting that the food had gone cold quite some time ago.
"It'll warm up just fine if you're hungry," Lisa said slightly frowning when Ant rubbed a hand over his stomach. "Nah...not right now...maybe later," he replied, not entirely in the mood to put anything on his stomach.
"Do you need to come home for a bit, dear?" she asked, again already knowing what his answer would be, watching as Ant rubbed his left eye with the heel of his hand while shaking his head.
"Nah...gotta work out a schedule of sorts with the lads. Maybe we can all take a turn coming to ours for a break...some of your good cooking...maybe a shower and a nap on the sofa." Lisa smiled, nodding in agreement.
"Just let me know and I'll be ready," she replied as the pair slowly walked toward the back gate. They briefly hugged then kissed one last time before Ant opened the gate door and watched Lisa walk along the dimly lit path then turn the corner to head toward their home.