"How was your test, Joe?" Vanessa asked after kissing him.

"I think I passed. I hate literature. I don’t see what good knowing all that stuff does!"

The others laughed, all but Frank. He was too busy thinking about how he was going to tell his friends that it was back. Chet and Phil had been with him the first time. Tony too. But he hadn’t really gotten to know Biff until afterwards.

"Earth to Frank!" Tony repeated, waving his hand in front of Frank’s eyes.

Frank blinked several times. "What?" he asked, looking around.

"You zoned out there, buddy," Phil told him. "Something wrong?"

Frank started to shake his head, but stopped as a wave of dizziness washed over him. "No, I’m fine." Frank gripped the underside of the table so hard he was sure his knuckles were turning white and the room finally stopped spinning.

"Anyway," Tony continued. "You guys coming over to Mr. Pizza after school? We’ve got some new combinations on the specials menu and need some guinea pigs."

Joe and Chet exchanged mournful glances, then together answered, "No."

Chet sighed heavily, his disappointment showing on his face. "After that stunt Friday, I’m grounded indefinitely."

"My parents haven’t decided what they’re gonna do to me yet." Joe finished off his lunch and glanced at Frank. Joe could see that he was already tired. "I better not push my luck, Tony." He would never tell anyone the real reason for his reluctance though.

Just then the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. The group split up and headed for the next test.

Joe laid a hand on Frank’s arm as they walked down the hall. "You didn’t look too good back there, bro."

"I got dizzy." Frank stopped at the doorway of his next class. "I’ll be OK, Joe. I promise I’ll go straight to bed when we get home." With that, Frank disappeared.

True to his word, Frank went straight to bed on arriving home. He’d seriously considered letting Joe drive home, but then abandoned that idea when he realized he’d get in trouble too. Once in his room, he’d dropped his backpack on the floor, pulled his shoes off and was sound asleep in minutes.

Joe stopped in the kitchen to get something to eat. There was a note on the fridge from their mother saying she was at the grocery store, so Joe knew pickins would be slim. He managed to find a nice-sized apple, then grabbed a package of graham crackers and went up to his room to study.

Fenton heard the boys come in, followed by much cabinet slamming and the refrigerator opening and closing half a dozen times. He just shook his head, knowing it was Joe, then went upstairs.

He checked on Joe first. He was at his desk with his headphones on, his head bobbing in time with the sound of Third Day. Then he checked on Frank. He was curled up around one of his pillows, still in his school clothes. Fenton took the blanket off the back of the chair in the corner and spread it over his son. In his mind, he could see Frank at the age of eleven. He’d been so excited about starting sixth grade in the fall. But he’d ended up having to wait a year. He had tried to stay caught up, but he just couldn’t do it. He was too sick and too tired.

Fenton gently felt Frank’s face. He was running fever. Fenton sighed. He knew what would be happening over the next few months, and he wasn’t sure that he could go through it again.

Then he noticed that Frank’s eyes were open. "I’m scared, Dad," he whispered. "Really scared."

Fenton lay down on the bed with Frank and pulled him close, tucking the blanket around him. It wasn’t long before Fenton felt moisture soaking through his shirt.

Frank was slightly disgusted with himself, but he just couldn’t help it. The first time his tears had been from shock. This time they were from fear. Fear of leaving his family behind, fear of what would happen to Joe if he died, fear of what would happen to his parents. He’d seen marriages break up over things lesser than losing a child.

Then he felt a head rest on his back and another pair of arms went around him. He knew instinctively that it was Joe. Frank took Joe’s hand and held it tightly. There was no way Frank would let anyone keep them apart this time.

An hour later when Laura returned home, the house was silent. She momentarily forgot about the groceries, and went looking for her men.

She checked Fenton’s office first. She found it empty and the message light was blinking on his answering machine. "That’s odd," she remarked to herself. Then she went upstairs and saw Frank’s door was slightly open. She opened it the rest of the way as quietly as she could, and on the bed she found Fenton, Frank and Joe.

Fenton looked up and saw Laura standing there. He smiled tiredly at her. The last few days had been exhausting. Laura walked over and kissed him, then sat down on the edge of the bed. Both boys were asleep. "How is he?" she asked softly so she wouldn’t wake them.

"Scared." He glanced down as Frank sighed, but didn’t wake up. "Joe is too. But he won’t admit it. Not in front of Frank anyway."

Laura reached over Fenton and brushed a strand of hair from Frank’s forehead. She would never forget his excitement when it had finally started growing back. Or how he had cried when the last of it fell out. He hated being stared at, and some of the neighborhood kids had been vicious in their teasing.

She smiled as she remembered the many times Joe had come home with torn clothes or a bloody nose, or both, from defending Frank. She’d only thought they’d been close before, but when Frank was first diagnosed, Joe had become fiercely protective of his big brother. After Frank went into remission the two brothers had become even closer, often putting themselves in danger and risking their lives to protect each other. Rarely did a day go by that she didn’t thank God that they were so close.

Joe opened his eyes and saw the sad smiled on his mother’s face. He pulled away from Frank and hugged her. "Don’t worry, Mom," he whispered. "Everything will be OK."

Laura smiled as she pulled back. "Come help me with the groceries and dinner." She stood, took Joe’s hand and went to the kitchen. After unloading the car, she faced him, her arms crossed. "Talk to me, Joe.

Joe sighed as he began putting things away. "I’m mad at God."

"I thought so. Why?"

Joe stopped what he was doing and tried to get a grip on his emotions. "I want to know why." He faced his mother. "It’s been seven years, Mom! It’s not supposed to come back. Not now, not ever!"

"Asking why accomplishes nothing, honey." As she waited for Joe to continue, she started dinner.

"I know," he finally said. "But I can’t seem to help it. Frank’s supposed to be invincible because he’s my big brother. I’m mad at him and mad at myself for being mad at him." He looked at his mother’s eyes, searching for an answer.

Laura knew what he wanted to hear, but it just wasn’t true. Seeing Joe like this hurt almost as much as Frank being sick again. "Frank isn’t invincible, baby."

"I know," he whispered. "It just hurts so much seeing him like this again. He’s not going to be there to back me up if I get myself in trouble."

Laura ruffled his hair. "There’s a simple solution to that."

Joe rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. Don’t get in trouble. Well, I’m not off to a very good start here, am I?"

"No, you’re not." She smiled at him, then turned back to dinner.

Joe finished putting the groceries away. Then a thought hit him. Vanessa. He turned to Laura again. "Any suggestions as to how I should tell Vanessa?"

Laura shook her head. "Not a one, Joe. You’re on your own."

"Thanks, Mom. I think I’ll go ask Dad." With that, he left in search of his father.

Joe found him in the office on the phone. He sat down on the leather sofa and watched Fenton. He didn’t look very happy. He was frowning fiercely. When Fenton hung up the phone, Joe almost regretted coming in.

Fenton saw his son sitting there and took a deep breath to calm himself down. "What do you need to ask me, Joe?"

Joe fidgeted a little and looked down at his bare feet. "It’s not that important, Dad."

Fenton moved over to the sofa. "Joe, for you to come in here and sit quietly for more than ten minutes waiting for me to get off the phone, I know that it’s important to you."

Joe smiled. His parents had a knack for making him feel better. "I need some help figuring out how to tell Vanessa. She doesn’t know about the first time and I really don’t want to scare her off."

"I don’t think you have to worry about that, son. She really cares for you and she knows how much you love Frank. However, I can’t help you on telling her."

"That’s what I thought," Joe said as he stood up. "I’ll think of something."

Over dinner, Laura asked Fenton who the message had been from. His eyes clouded. "That case I had in North Carolina in February has gone to trial and they want me to come testify."

"Dad-" Frank started.

Fenton held up a hand. "I’ll only be gone a couple of days, Frank. I’ll be back here before you know it."

Frank’s shoulders drooped and he nodded. Deep down he knew that if there had been any way for Fenton to get out of it, he would have. But that didn’t lessen his disappointment.

The next day after school, Joe told Vanessa everything. They sat on the Hardys patio as Joe talked. He told her about when they first found out Frank had leukemia, how sick Frank had been. Joe told her that he was scared, that he couldn’t imagine life without Frank.

Vanessa cupped his face in her hands and looked deep into his blue eyes. "Joe, Frank is strong and he has you. And you have me. I am not going anywhere. I’ll be here for you, Joe. And you’ll be there for Frank."

Joe smiled, then kissed her. Somehow, he knew that with Vanessa beside him, and him beside Frank, everything would be OK.

When the boys arrived home on Wednesday from school, they found their mother waiting for them. And she was not happy. She made them sit down at the kitchen table. Frank scooped Piper up and Joe wondered if he’d gotten himself into more trouble.

Laura sat down and laid the purple and gold bandannas on the table. Piper reached out from Frank’s arms and started swiping at it. "I found Piper playing with this earlier. Would either of you care to explain how it got in this house?" She looked at her sons. Joe was staring at the braid and Frank was staring at Joe.

"Yeah, Joe. Where did it come from?" Frank asked his brother.

"I found it in my locker Monday," Joe said.

"Why didn’t you tell me?" Frank demanded.

"I didn’t want you worrying about it." Joe traced an invisible pattern on the table with his finger. "I stuffed in my backpack and forgot about it."

Laura leaned forward. "Would the two of you mind telling me what this conversation is about?"

Frank took a deep breath and launched into the story. "We tangled with this gang, the Tigers, when we were undercover in New York City for Chief Peterson last fall." He pointed at the braid. "That’s their colors."

The boys took turns telling Laura about what had happened. Joe finished the tale. "We got into this big fight with them, and the leader, PJ, pulled a gun. I started fighting with him for it, and it went off. He died, and his little brother vowed revenge because he thinks I killed him. But I didn’t." Joe looked up at his mother. She was calm.

"We’re telling your father when he gets home."

Both boys nodded, then went their separate ways. Frank went upstairs with Piper to think and play some chess. Joe took the cordless phone out back and called Vanessa.