BUSMAN'S HOLIDAY

Written by Ann Rivers [email protected]

Completed 3 June 2001

Summary: When Jesse is injured in an earthquake, it's up to Steve to save his life…

Spoilers: None for the story, but reference made to Left Handed Murder

Disclaimers: Diagnosis Murder and its characters belong to CBS and Viacom.

No profit has been made from their use here and no infringement of copyright is intended

All comments and suggestions welcome…

"Are we nearly there yet…?"

So help me, Jesse… Steve thought, pointedly ignoring his friend's excited question,

If you ask me that once more, I'm gonna end up feeding you to the fish…

Even so, the detective couldn't help but smile as he glanced across at his friend.

Bolt upright in his seat, almost giving himself whiplash as he tried to take it all in, Jesse Travis was taking in the scenery around him with wide, astonished eyes.

And what incredible scenery it was – forests and fields as far as the eye could see, with the distant Sierra Nevada mountains providing a breathtaking backdrop.

So yes, Steve mused, still watching his friend, he could forgive Jesse his excitement.

He had to remember that, while he'd always enjoyed life in the great outdoors,

Jesse had been denied all those traditional trips that Steve had shared with his father.

A city boy born and bred, Jesse's idea of seeing wildlife was a trip to the nearest zoo.

So when Steve had mentioned this latest trip and seen the yearning on Jesse's face… well, what else was a surrogate big brother to do…?

Another excited yelp broke into his thoughts, almost startling him out of his seat.

"Wow ! Steve, did you see that…? Was that an eagle or something…?"

"More likely a buzzard, Jess… or a condor… maybe a pterodactyl…" Steve replied,

biting his cheeks to keep from laughing as Jesse, too distracted to notice his teasing, just nodded and turned back to absorb as much as his overworked eyes could manage.

They'd gone a clear mile down the road before the penny finally dropped –

the sight of that comically indignant face proving too much for Steve to take.

"Very funny…" Jesse muttered, his turn to wickedly grin as he added eagerly,

"So, Davy Crockett… are we nearly there yet…?"

Needless to say, Steve just groaned while rolling his eyes despairingly heavenward.

"Give me strength…" he muttered – although he was smiling as he said it.

By the time they reached their cabin it was well into a clear and brightly starlit night. Any hopes, though, that Steve may have had for hitting the sack were pretty much dashed as soon as Jesse looked up at the sky.

"Wow, Steve, will you look at those stars…!" he breathed in obvious wonder.

"I – I mean, you could almost touch them, they look so close…!"

"That's because of the air, Jesse… no pollution or tricks of light…" Steve explained,

his own tiredness forgotten as he too enjoyed the stunning beauty of the sky.

Using his arm to guide Jesse's sight, he pointed out the more familiar constellations.

"See that pattern of stars up there, Jess… the one with a kind of belt in the middle…?

That's Orion the hunter. And that one right next to him, that's Taurus the bull.

See how the stars form the shape of horns…? And if you look real hard you'll see…"

"Don't tell me, our friendly pterodactyl…?" Jesse asked with an innocent smile – dodging the friendly swipe which a now laughing Steve had aimed at his head.

"Touché…" Steve chuckled, ruffling Jesse's hair while pointing towards the cabin.

"Come on, let's get inside and get a fire going while we get our stuff unpacked…

then if you're a very good boy I'll teach you how to toast your marshmallows…"

"What's to teach…?" Jesse asked, totally deadpan as he looked up at his friend.

"You take the marshmallows out of the bag and cram them in the toaster, right…?"

All seriousness too, albeit with some difficulty, Steve just sighed and shook his head.

"Jesse…" he said at last, steering his now broadly grinning friend towards the cabin, "Just for this weekend, why don't you let me do the cooking…?"

Steve had hoped that he'd get at least some kind of lie in the next morning.

Those hopes pretty much disappeared the minute the sun came up –

firstly from its light falling across his eyes, secondly from a crash from the kitchen - promptly followed by a familiar if slightly apologetic voice.

"Oops… sorry about that… it's okay, Steve, nothing broken…"

"That could change…" Steve muttered, groaning aloud as he checked his watch.

Six thirty…? A full two hours earlier than he'd set the alarm…

Jeez, had this kid never heard of sleeping in…? Or, he thought wryly, sleep period…?

Before he could complain further, however, Jesse appeared in the doorway with the one thing guaranteed to get him back in his friend's favour. A bright, eager smile.

And, more importantly, a full pot of coffee.

"So, how did you sleep…?" Jesse asked, passing over a brimming, steaming mug before perching himself on the side of Steve's bed.

"I'll let you know when I wake up…" Steve replied dryly, taking a good long swallow before regarding his clearly raring to go friend with a patiently indulging smile.

"And I take it you've been up for a while already…?"

"Since five… force of habit, I guess, with all these early shifts…" Jesse explained,

the smile faded slightly as he guessed the cause of his friend's patiently wry expression.

"I didn't… uh, didn't wake you, did I…?"

"Only when you let yourself loose in the kitchen just then…" Steve grinned,

pausing for effect before adding dryly, "I thought I was doing the cooking…?"

"Only the complicated stuff…" Jesse shot back, adding with a sheepish grin,

"Besides, I think I can just about manage eggs, bacon and coffee…"

"And so that crash would have been…?" Steve asked with a quizzical smile.

The grin tellingly vanished as Jesse found sudden fascination in the state of his boots.

"Well, it was so warm already that I opened the kitchen window…" he said at last.

"Then there was this scrabbling noise and when I looked up there was this raccoon…

I mean, he was just sitting on the sill there, Steve, looking right back at me…

real close, too, like you are now, and… well, it spooked me, is all…" he concluded, dropping his head so that Steve couldn't see the redness that now crept up his face.

Somehow keeping his face straight, Steve nodded and offered him a consoling smile. "Well, Jess, they do tend to home in on the slightest scent of food…" he explained – fondly thinking that food, scavenging racoons and Jesse Travis had a lot in common. Seeing Jesse's blush deepen in realisation of his mistake, Steve gently patted his knee. "I'm sorry, Jess… I really should have warned you about that…"

"No, I should have thought of it myself…" Jesse argued, adding with a slight smile,

"Guess I've got a lot to learn about the great outdoors…"

"You'll be fine…" Steve grinned, taking one last swallow before holding out his mug.

"For a start, you've gotten the coffee just about perfect…"

Accepting both hint and heartening with a grateful smile, Jesse bounced to his feet – adding a bright afterthought over his shoulder as he headed for the door.

"You think that's good…? Wait till you taste the breakfast…!"

"Whatever you say, Jess…" Steve sighed, burrowing back under the bedclothes.

"Just do me a favour and take your time making it, okay…?"

After a hearty and, Steve had to grudgingly admit, perfectly cooked breakfast,

they set out on the short woodland trail that led to their chosen lake.

Some of the terrain was pretty strenuous, more so than Steve wryly remembered,

and he couldn't help but wonder if Jesse had the strength and stamina to cope with it.

But what Jesse may have lacked in height and weight, he made up for in youthful energy.

So much so that, on several occasions, it was Steve who had to play catch up -

which at least settled his dilemma of what to get Jesse for his approaching birthday. An industrial strength dog leash…

Finally they arrived at what Steve already knew was a truly breathtaking site –

a lake of oceanic proportions, fringed on all sides by lush green forests.

Jesse's reaction to it was everything that Steve had hoped and expected to see.

"Oh, my God…!" he said at last, all attempts to catch his breath from that final climb pretty much wasted as he stood next to his knowingly smug friend and simply stared.

"Oh, Steve, this - this is just incredible…! Have you ever seen a view like this…?"

"I am looking, Jess…" Steve grinned, unable to resist teasing his awe struck friend.

"And I've seen all this before, remember…?"

As Jesse nodded, still totally mesmerised, Steve placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, leaning in to give the same amused advice as his father had done, all those years ago.

"Breathe, Jesse… breathe…"

Again the mesmerised nod – followed, eventually, by a comically indignant glare.

Steve had to admit that Jesse's response to his teasing was… well, different…

"Okay, smart guy, just do me a favour, okay…? Go find a nice big hole and stand in it…"

"And I'd do so because…?" Steve asked – against, he knew, all sense and judgement.

"Because then…" Jesse explained, slowly and carefully and increasingly sarcastically,

"You and I would then be roughly eyeball to eyeball and I might stand just the tiniest chance of flattening you…"

He'd tried to look and sound menacing – but just didn't have the eyes or the height for it.

Steve's broad grin, and his own bubbling laughter didn't exactly help either.

By the time they moved off again, Jesse had more or less recovered himself –

enough to get his own back via a barrage of questions as they headed for the lake.

"So how old were you when your dad first brought you here…? And how did…

I mean, how'd you get to come here in the first place…? Was it a friend of yours,

or maybe a friend of your dad…? I mean, you must have had someone show you how to get here where it's so remote, right…? I mean, we're in the middle of nowhere…"

Not sure which of that barrage to answer first, Steve just grinned and shrugged – wisely deciding to settle the two most likely to satisfy that endless curiosity.

"I must have been about ten, maybe a little older and… well, yes, you're right –

it was an ex patient of dad's who invited us up here as… well, a little thank you…"

"A little thank you…?" Jesse echoed, whistling softly as he looked around once more. "Well, if this is a little thank you, I'd sure love to see a big one…!"

"Yeah, for that he took me out sea fishing on his boat…" Steve recalled with a wistful smile – one that widened to a wicked grin as Jesse cringed at a much less welcome memory.

Okay, so lots of people got seasick but… well, Jesse had taken it to a whole new level.

Preston Michaels' boat hadn't even left the jetty before Jesse's lunch had redecorated it – which had given Steve enough teasing credit to last him for several, highly enjoyable weeks.

Not trusting himself to speak (if he did he may never stop laughing at the look on Jesse's face) Steve just pointed to another, hopefully more stable jetty where they could set up their rods - wryly wishing he had that leash as a now recovered Jesse bounded eagerly towards it.

"Heel, boy…" he muttered, fondly shaking his head as he bent to pick up their gear. Ruefully noting that carrying Jesse's bags hadn't exactly been part of the plan,

Steve picked them up anyway and, still shaking his head, hurried to catch him up.

It was going to be no more than a day's fishing, with no guarantee that they'd catch anything.

But that didn't seem to matter to Jesse, who was clearly thrilled with just the scenery –

and who was still wearing the same delighted, ear to ear grin several hours later when, stretched out next to the food hamper, he settled back for some serious sunbathing.

"I'm telling you, Steve, it doesn't get any better than this…!" he enthused,

tilting his head back to catch the full benefit of a now gloriously overhead sun.

"Can't argue with you there…" Steve agreed with the same slightly drowsy tone –

age and experience, however, prompting him to throw a small bottle into Jesse's lap.

"Now, get some of this sun-block rubbed in before you start scaring the lobsters…"

"Yes, mom…" Jesse muttered, smiling though as he dutifully did as told.

All teasing aside, Steve had to admit that his young friend had the right idea.

After almost three hours of watching and waiting, neither of them had caught a thing.

Pulling a face at his still grinning friend, Steve settled back too and closed his eyes.

Half an hour later he opened them again, frowning at a telltale change in the breeze.

"Make the most of it, Jess…" he went on, nodding towards a now cloudy horizon.

"What…? Why…?" Jesse squinted up at him, first in dismay then amused disbelief.

"You mean that little bunch of clouds over there…? Hardly a raindrop in them…"

"I'm not so sure, Jess…" Steve replied, still watching the distant, gathering clouds.

"Believe me, the weather can change on a sixpence up here…"

He'd spoken calmly, but with a seriousness that made Jesse's smile nervously fade.

"You mean, you think we're in for a storm…? From just that…?" he asked,

totally serious himself now as he stared towards an already darkening sky.

"Yes, Jesse, I do…" Steve said quietly, still calm as he started to reel in his line.

"And I think we'd better start heading back, right now…"

This time there was no argument as Jesse nodded and quickly scrambled to his feet.

Carrying their gear between them, Jesse and Steve headed briskly along the pier –

both wishing they'd followed Jesse's earlier advice and not gone right to its distant end.

But it wasn't the approaching storm that hit them but something much, much worse – something that neither of them could ever have prepared for.

At first Steve just thought it was the impact of hurrying feet on protesting wood.

But then the vibrations intensified into an uncontrollable, unmistakable shaking –

telltale signs that Steve was used to, but which was a terrifying first for Jesse.

"Oh, my God, Steve, it – it's a quake…!" Jesse whispered in horrified realisation, fighting to keep his balance as already rickety wood started to buckle beneath him.

At any other time, Steve would have teased him mercilessly for stating the obvious –

but with their lives at stake, the jokes were going to have to wait.

"I know, Jess… come on, we've got to keep moving… get onto the shore…" he urged,

grabbing Jesse's arm for both support and guidance as both fought to stay on their feet. Dumping all but their essential gear, both ran as best they could along the buckling jetty, Steve giving Jesse whatever support he could as his young friend struggled to keep up.

They almost made it. With the relatively safer shore just yards away, the quake hit its peak –

with a ferocity that took both of them, even Steve, totally by surprise.

Already buckling wood finally gave way as the full tremors hit, disintegrating around them.

And while Steve was lucky enough to grab one of the more stable supports as he went down,

Jesse wasn't so fortunate.

As he fought to stay upright, the peaking quake threw him violently onto a splintered plank.

Under his weight the plank gave way completely, sending him into the churning lake below -

his startled cry now joined by Steve's despairing shout as Jesse sank under the water.

"Jesse…!"

Horrified, Steve anchored himself as best he could then leant where Jesse had fallen, his hands scrambling in a frantic search to find him.

"Oh, God…!" Steve's voice rose in panic as his frantic efforts found nothing but water.

"Jesse…!"

Then his hand brushed against something soft, floating among the debris of broken wood.

And Steve held onto that softness as if it were the last lifebelt on the Titanic.

Struggling to keep Jesse's head above water, anchoring himself as best he could,

Steve hauled Jesse's waterlogged body to lie, alive but chillingly lifeless in his arms.

Forcing himself to keep calm, Steve gently lifted and turned Jesse onto his side,

rubbing his back to both try and revive him and to dispel the water he'd swallowed -feeling a chill of fear run through him as his hand came away streaked with blood.

"Oh, God…" he whispered, watching a stain of red grow across Jesse's left shoulder.

Wherever that blood was coming from, it was showing no signs of stopping.

More terrified than he'd been in a very long time, Steve cradled him gently closer – panic then giving way to the calm, clinical instincts for survival.

The quake was finally abating – and, miraculously, the rest of the jetty was still standing.

Those were about the only comforts that a still shaken Steve could allow himself.

Even when the ground finally stilled beneath them, Steve knew they were in serious trouble.

He knew that the rescue services would be stretched enough in the city, let alone way out here.

It would be hours before help reached them – and he doubted that Jesse could wait that long.

He needed to get himself and Jesse into some shelter, out of the still threatening storm - somewhere safe to assess and treat his friend's injuries until the storm passed.

It was too far to carry him to the cabin, especially through terrain that the quake

would have now made close to impossible to get through.

He needed an attainable target, somewhere close… somewhere reachable…

Then he saw it, swimming in the distance through a veil of rain.

A hiker's cabin, set back in the forest a short distance away from the pier.

A low moan broke into his thoughts, steering his attention back to his injured friend.

Jesse was shivering now, too violently to have been entirely from the cold.

As Steve instinctively held him closer Jesse stiffened against him, whimpering in pain,

before his body fell limp once more, his head lolling against Steve's arm.

"Okay, Jess, take it easy… it's okay, you're going to be fine…" Steve soothed him – trying to convince himself of that fact as he gently lifted Jesse into his arms,

hugging him close, both to warm and comfort him as he headed for the cabin.

By the time he reached it, Steve barely had the strength to stand.

Far from taking a rest, though, Steve knew their ordeal was far from over.

Outside, the storm was still raging. And Jesse was still deeply unconscious.

It was hardly Community General, where he knew Jesse desperately needed to be.

But it was going to have to do.

Gently lowering Jesse onto a chair, Steve pretty much collapsed to sit beside him –holding him close as he looked around them with a survivalist's eyes.

First he had to get Jesse out of his soaking wet clothes before hypothermia set in.

Get him dry and warm, and treat what was clearly a severe wound to his shoulder.

Try and get a mayday call out on the radio. Keep Jesse alive until help reached them.

The radio signal was nothing but static – hardly surprising but still so frustrating.

There was no time to dwell on that frustration, though – he had to tend to Jesse.

Spotting a pile of spare sheets and blankets nearby, Steve took the entire lot,

grabbing the godsend of a full size first aid kit at the same time.

Placing those to one side, he then lit the fire, piling on better kindling as he did so.

Next he carefully removed Jesse's clothes, rubbing him gently dry as he went - unable to hide a wince as the extent of Jesse's injured shoulder became all too clear. A deep, ragged gash ran the length of his collarbone. And it was still pouring blood.

Another cut across his temple, while not bleeding so badly, was still heavily bruised –

more stark still against the alarming paleness of Jesse's face.

The only good thing, if Steve could call it that, was that he'd escaped further injury.

Oh yeah, he thought bitterly, a real good thing…

As the warmth of the fire blessedly spread, Steve continued to rub Jesse gently dry.

Leaving his shoulder free for what would undoubtedly need continued attention, Steve then carefully wrapped the rest of Jesse's body in the thickest of the blankets,

trying to preserve and increase whatever remained of his friend's sparse body heat.

With Jesse now cocooned in precious warmth, Steve lifted him onto the couch, kneeling beside him while he gently examined the deep gash across his shoulder.

Steve couldn't remember a time when he was more grateful as he was right now to have a doctor for a father. Or a time when he wished that Mark was there with him,

to reassure him that Jesse was going to be alright… to tell him what do.

But he was on his own, the only other person who could help too badly hurt to do so.

And that person was depending on him to keep him alive until rescue reached them.

Taking a deep breath, Steve opened the medical kit and quickly scanned its contents – instinctively taking out pads, bandages and a thankfully full bottle of antiseptic. Liberally doused pad in hand, he cast his friend a nervous, almost apologetic glance.

If Jesse was anywhere near consciousness, this was going to hurt him like Hell.

If he didn't react… well, then Steve knew he'd really have something to worry about.

Eyes still trained on Jesse's face, Steve braced himself – and pressed the pad down.

Almost immediately he could feel Jesse start to react, stirring beneath his hand.

His eyes were still closed but moving now, tightening in a deepening wince of pain.

A muffled cry of both protest and pain escaped him as the antiseptic started to hit,

and to Steve's startled relief he even tried to kick out in a feeble attempt to escape it.

Then his eyes snapped open, wide and scared as they stared up at his friend with a confusion and agony that tore at Steve's heart.

"Easy, Jesse, take it easy…" he said quickly, trying to restrain his wriggling friend.

"You've got a deep cut across your shoulder here and it's bleeding like crazy…

I'm sorry, buddy, I know how much I'm hurting you, but I've got to try and stop it…" Gritting his teeth against the pain, Jesse nodded and willed himself to stop struggling.

"How – How bad…?" he whispered, the words more gasped than spoken.

"Bad, but slowing down…" Steve replied, using his free hand to squeeze Jesse's arm.

"Just hang in there for me, Jess… attaboy, just hold on, just a little longer…"

He'd tried to sound calm to avoid panicking his friend – not to mention himself.

But in spite of his pain, Jesse could still sense his alarm. Hear a silent plea for help. "You – You're doing just fine, Steve, just keep up the pressure…" he said softly – meeting his friend's startled, astonished eyes with a weakly encouraging smile.

"That's fine… now, put more padding on top, as much as you can afford…

no, don't remove the stuff underneath or you'll disturb the clot as it tries to form… that's it, keep up the pressure… okay, tape it all down, then the pressure bandage…"

As he worked, Steve nodded while casting his friend a proudly grateful smile –

not sure how Jesse was finding the strength to help him, just so grateful that he was.

"Okay, Jess… that's it, all done… the pressure bandage is on…" he said at last,

his smile fading as Jesse failed to answer. "Jesse…?"

Jesse simply nodded, opening his eyes with, to Steve's disquiet, some difficulty.

When he finally spoke, his voice was suddenly and alarmingly fainter than before.

"I've still lost a lot of blood, Steve… I – I think I'm going into shock…"

Seeing his friend's dismay, Jesse then closed his eyes as if gathering his strength.

Without opening them, he weakly nodded back against the cushions behind his head.

"You've got to get my head as low as you can and keep me warm…" he said at last, opening his eyes again, albeit with difficulty as he nodded towards his legs.

"And raise my legs a little to – to keep the blood supply for major and vital organs…"

"Head low… legs raised… okay, Jesse… relax now, I'm on it…" Steve assured him, carefully easing Jesse down the couch until his head lay as low and flat as possible, before lifting his legs to lie over the armrest. Hoping to make him more comfortable, he then took the now redundant pillows and slid them gently under Jesse's knees.

"There you go, buddy, how does that feel…?"

It didn't really surprise him when Jesse failed to answer him this time.

He was astonished that Jesse had managed to hold out for as long as he had.

Now, though, from the pain and shock of his injuries, that strength had given out.

Jesse's eyes were closing again, his head falling back into the crook of Steve's arm.

Instead of the alarm of before, Steve felt an already proud smile grow even wider - reaching to gently brush Jesse's hair back from his eyes until he was fully asleep.

Of course, he wouldn't be completely happy until Jesse was conscious again -

and, for all Jesse's assurances, he'd hated to cause his friend such terrible pain.

But he was out of that pain now, a trace of heat and colour returning to his face.

And, considering the alternative, Steve was more than ready to settle for that.

Seeing to the wound on his head was met with nothing more than a vague mumble,

a twitch of still closed eyes before Jesse grew still again and settled back to sleep.

"Okay, Jess, I'll leave you alone now… promise…" Steve soothed him gently, frowning a little as he realised just how oddly true that statement was.

He'd done all he could to make Jesse as warm and comfortable as possible.

Now there was little else to do, except keep him that way and wait for his recovery.

That recovery was, he knew, hours away yet. He'd be as well waiting in comfort.

Settling carefully in the narrow space between Jesse's head and the couch's armrest,

Steve placed a protective hand on Jesse's shoulder and settled back to watch and wait.

Even then, it was surprising how much his exhausted mind still found him to do.

Keeping track of Jesse's pulse, breathing and temperature, for one thing –

a slow and steady improvement in each lifting much of the worry from his mind.

As evening stretched into a still stormy night, Jesse became increasingly restless,

his temperature now improved enough for Steve to remove some of the blankets.

That left Steve free to maintain the fire, to stretch the stiffness from his legs.

To check the cabin map for the nearest ranger station, and to keep trying the radio.

While the radio still hissed static, the good news was finding a well stocked larder -

a loud growl from his stomach reminding him that he'd not eaten for several hours.

Wryly thinking that Jesse was bound to wake up now that he'd found the food,

Steve could never have imagined how accurate that thought would turn out to be.

True, the voice from behind him was faint, though still enough to startle him.

But that sleepily hopeful voice was music to Steve's ears.

"Hope you – you've made some for me…"

Mentally scraping himself from the ceiling, Steve spun round to face his friend – shock giving way to a delighted smile as Jesse grinned drowsily back at him.

All thought of food very happily forgotten, Steve returned to kneel at Jesse's side,

just in time to catch him and gently hold him still as Jesse tried to sit up.

"Easy now, Jess, it's okay… you're safe now, just take it easy… lie still…"

Not having the strength to argue, Jesse nodded weakly and settled back again,

frowning slightly as he took in his new, unfamiliar surroundings before glancing up

at his friend with confused but, to Steve's relief, relatively clear eyes.

"W – Where are we…?" he asked, wincing with the effort of even this simple question.

"We're in a hiker's cabin… not our own but one beside the lake…" Steve told him, answering Jesse's next question before he could waste precious strength asking it.

"We got caught in that quake, remember…? You were knocked into the lake…"

Again the feeble nod, more distracted this time as Jesse stared down at himself –

taking in his thickly bandaged shoulder and just as thickly blanketed body with wide, astonished eyes.

"You got knocked around pretty badly, Jess…" Steve went on, sensing his alarm.

"And you were only in the water for a couple of minutes before I got you out, but… well, it was still enough to leave you at risk from hypothermia…"

The nod was slightly stronger this time – the blue eyes clearing by the second,

warm with grateful amusement as they looked up at him.

"Nice job, Dr Sloan…" Jesse said softly, managing a weak but appreciative smile.

"Thank you, Dr Travis…" Steve grinned back before he stood and crossed to the fire.

"Soup's just about ready… think you can manage some…?"

To his surprise, Jesse smiled almost sadly back at him and shook his head.

"Still in shock… safer not to…" he replied, the smile widening at Steve's torn expression.

"You go on, though… God knows, you must be ready for it…"

"My stomach thinks my throat's been cut…" Steve admitted with a rueful nod – tucking eagerly into his soup, though careful not to make his enjoyment too obvious.

At Jesse's weary chuckle of laughter, he drained the last of it with a contented sigh, before he returned to sit at Jesse's side, casting his friend a still awkward glance.

"More to the point, Jess, how are you doing…? Is your vision okay…?" he asked, more serious as he rested a hand on Jesse's forehead. "Are you warm enough…?"

Jesse, though, was still smiling as he reassured his anxious friend as only he could.

"Fine to the first and second and… well, as for the third, I'm basting nicely…"

To prove his point, he then juggled a fold of blanket from one foot to the other,

before casting a now appreciatively chuckling Steve a comically rueful grin.

"You know, suddenly I know how a turkey feels on Thanksgiving…"

"Okay, Jess, hint taken…" Steve chuckled, gently removing some of the blankets – watching Jesse curl back into the remaining cocoon with a genuinely relieved smile.

"All basting aside, though… well, you're looking a hell of a lot better for it…"

"Slightest sign of stuffing and I'm outta here…" Jesse shot back with a wicked grin, growing more thoughtful and serious though as he looked up at his friend.

"Speaking of which, when and how are we going to get out of here…?"

"Not for a while yet, Jess… that storm is still pretty rough out there…" Steve replied,

offering his friend a reassuring smile before nodding to the radio beside him.

"Don't worry, though, Jess… as soon as the storm clears enough for it to get through, I'll get a mayday out to the nearest ranger station, they'll find a way out to us and… well, we'll be home before you know it…"

"Sounds good to me…" Jesse agreed, frowning slightly as another thought struck him.

"So, um… what do we do till then…?"

"Well, we could start what would be a pretty limited game of I-Spy…" Steve replied,

feigning great indecision as he shrugged his shoulders, before adding meaningfully, "Or we could both, and you especially, catch up on some sleep…"

As if to illustrate his point, Steve rested his head back and gratefully closed his eyes.

Jesse simply nodded – choosing his moment, before adding with an innocent smile,

"I spy with my little eye…"

"Something that begins with s, ends in g and has tuffin in the middle…" Steve cut in, opening one eye to favour Jesse with a brotherly glare. "Now go to sleep…!"

Giggling, Jesse held his good hand up in good-natured surrender and closed his eyes.

Within moments, and to Steve's amused relief, he was soundly asleep again.

He looked so snug and contented that Steve couldn't help but feel a little envious.

But he knew that he couldn't allow himself to sleep, however strong the temptation.

All welcome improvement aside, Steve knew that Jesse still needed monitoring,

as did the now finally abating storm.

The sooner he could get that mayday out, the sooner they'd both be home.

So it was back to watching Jesse sleep and waiting for a chance to send that signal. Still, he thought wryly, I'm getting used to that…

Movement beside him broke into his thoughts – bringing with it a fondly wry smile.

In trying to get more comfortable, Jesse's head had taken up residence against his side.

And judging by his friend's contented expression, that residence looked set to last.

Not having the heart to deny him his comfort, Steve just sighed and shook his head.

One way or another, it was going to be a long night…

Telling himself not to go to sleep was one thing – managing not to was quite another.

Drained from his own ordeal, his eyes were fighting a losing battle to stay open.

Before long that battle was lost as Steve drifted into an exhausted sleep.

His next awareness was sunlight drifting across his eyes, slowly waking him –

just as it had done the previous morning, one that now seemed so long ago.

Except this time there was no crash of crockery or coffee to clear the cobwebs –

only the sight of Jesse curled up against his side, still sleeping peacefully.

He'd even been granted that lie in – the discovery that it was almost nine prompting another wry shake of his head as Steve enjoyed a long, bone wrenching stretch.

"So much for staying awake and getting us both out of here…" he sighed ruefully, smiling though as he turned to gently check on the hibernating bundle beside him.

Still, no harm looked to have come from that unplanned but reviving sleep.

The dressing across Jesse's shoulder was still clean and reassuringly dry.

His breathing was quiet and steady, not as laboured as it had been the previous night, his face still paler than usual but now healthily warm, peacefully contented.

Leaving him to enjoy his dreams, Steve returned to the task of getting them home.

To his relief, the radio signal was now strong and clear – not to mention loud.

Within minutes, over a static free line, Steve heard the news he'd prayed to hear.

That a helicopter was on its way, and would be with them within half an hour.

To his envious amusement, Jesse remained snugly oblivious throughout –

sleeping soundly through the radio's blare of noise, even the aroma of breakfast,

right up until the downdraft from the chopper's rotors started to rattle the windows.

Only then did he start to stir, frowning sleepily at the unexpected noise.

"It's okay, Jess, it's just the cavalry riding in to get us out of here…" Steve explained, unable to resist teasing his friend as Jesse continued to stare drowsily up at him.

"So, little boy… how'd you like to land in the grounds of Community General in a big, bright, shiny helicopter…?"

He had to admit that Jesse's still sleepy reaction to this thrilling prospect was…

well, not exactly the one that Steve, or the newly arrived rangers, had expected.

"Uh, Steve…? I guess this isn't the best time to tell you that I hate flying…?"

As they walked towards Jesse's hospital room, Mark cast his son a consoling smile.

"So your weekend of fun and fishing became more of a busman's holiday…?"

"Something like that…" Steve agreed – his smile though not quite touching his eyes.

"I tell you though, dad, when that quake hit and Jesse went under the water…"

He broke off, his next words spoken tellingly quiet at a still painfully raw memory.

"I must have aged ten years in ten seconds, dad… I really thought I'd lost him…"

"Yes, I can imagine…" his father nodded, placing a gentle hand on Steve's shoulder.

"But he's safe now, Steve… you both are… Jesse's going to be just fine, and you…"

The smile proudly widened as Mark gave his shoulder another heartening squeeze.

"You did one hell of a good job in taking care of him until the rangers got to you, especially that shoulder wound…"

To his relief, his son's smile came easier this time as Steve looked back at him.

"I had one hell of a good teacher…" he said, pride for his friend clear in his voice.

"I mean, he must have been in agony under that pressure, not to mention scared… God knows I was… but he still managed to try and help, to tell me what to do…

more importantly, what not to…"

"Yes, this boy of ours is something else…" Mark agreed, adding more lightly,

"One of these days we might figure out what…!"

"Think I'll take the fifth on that one, dad…" Steve shot back with a wry smile –

one that widened in anticipation as they entered Jesse's room.

True, he was still rather pale, a still bandaged shoulder now resting in a necksling.

And, to Jesse's constant and continuing complaint, he was still confined to bed.

But the bright smile that returned theirs was one hundred percent Jesse Travis.

Good news for his friends – rather less so for whoever was taking care of him.

Trading that thought with a shared, shrewd smile, both wisely kept that thought silent. Instead Mark took the only available chair while Steve sat by Jesse's sound shoulder.

"Hey, Jess, feeling better…?" Mark asked, sharing another father to son glance.

As if he'd had to ask. Bright blue eyes and that mischievous grin spoke for itself.

"What I'm feeling, Mark, is bored… and I mean B-O-R-E-D…" Jesse complained, thinking for a moment before casting Steve a glance of pure and puzzled disbelief.

"And what kind of masochist are you to actually enjoy hospital food…?"

With Steve now laughing too much to reply, it was left to his father to try instead.

"You know, Jesse, that ranks right up there with the mystery of the universe…"

Judging by Steve's politely sarcastic expression, he needed to try a bit harder…

Jesse, however, had now found another mystery to puzzle over.

"What's that…?" he asked, nodding towards the parcel on the floor at Steve's feet.

Eyes bright with hope, he then added eagerly, "Food…? Real, edible food…?"

"You could try, Jess, but it would really tickle on the way down…" Steve replied, trading an anticipatory wink with his father before placing the parcel in Jesse's lap - wryly shaking his head as strips of wrapping paper instantly flew in all directions.

"Now, I know it's early… I mean, it's not your birthday for another week, but…

well, when I saw this I just knew you'd love it…"

"Why, what is it…?" Jesse then fell silent as he stared at his unexpected present.

Then, to Mark's puzzled surprise, both Jesse and Steve collapsed in fits of laughter.

Mark couldn't begin to imagine why the sight of an admittedly cutefaced cuddly toy –or, more precisely, a garishly coloured dinosaur that faintly resembled a giant bat, would have such an effect on two supposedly full grown adults.

Then again, he thought, wryly shaking his head as he enjoyed the continued hysterics, where these two are concerned, maybe I'm as well not knowing…