"Can’t I just take my future sister-in-law out to lunch?" Frank replied a little too defensively.

"You could." Vanessa agreed sitting back and taking a sip of water. "And I would appreciate it very much. But that’s not why you asked to meet me."

"Am I that transparent?" He asked dejectedly.

"Only when it comes to Joe." She reassured him.

Frank sighed heavily and gazed out the window for a moment, concern marring his handsome features.

"I’m worried about him, Van." Frank said turning back to her.

"Why? He’s doing fine." Vanessa replied.

"Is he? Really? No more nightmares about Rashman? About having to go back to Chicago and testify?" Frank pressed her.

"Sometimes." Vanessa told him honestly. "But nothing like when we first got home. Honestly, Frank, he’s doing great."

"I’m not so sure." Frank told her nervously, playing with the discarded paper from his straw. "I…I saw something. The first time it was easy to tell myself it was nothing, but it’s happened two more times and I can’t ignore it anymore."

"Have you talked to Joe about it?"

Frank looked at her almost guiltily. "I can’t. That’s why I came to you. I need to know if you’ve seen it too."

Vanessa pursed her lips in thought as she stared at Frank. She could see he was extremely concerned about his younger brother. She tried never to come between Frank and Joe, feeling it was best they work out their rare differences without interference. Then again, they’d had more differences this year than they had in their whole lives. This year had been anything but normal.

"Ok." She replied. "What’s the problem?"

"I saw him taking pills." Frank told her, a touch of fear in his voice. Immediately after it had happened, and after much soul searching, Frank had decided to tell Vanessa about Joe’s request for morphine as a way to escape the mounting emotional pain he’d been in. Frank had confided in Vanessa that he was afraid if Joe started feeling overwhelmed, he might become dependent on the prescription painkillers he’d been given once he was released from the hospital. Since Vanessa would be with Joe constantly upon their return to Bayport, she would be in the best position to notice should Frank’s fears come true. "Three different times, Van. He promised me in Chicago that he wouldn’t touch drugs again – ever – no matter how overwhelmed he felt."

"Frank…" Vanessa tried to interrupt, but Frank apparently didn’t hear.

"Things seem to be going fine. We haven’t really worked on anything but this stolen jewelry case since he was cleared to come back to work. I guess everything that happened with Rashman is finally getting to him. A delayed reaction, you know?" Frank looked out the window again, a heavy weight filling his heart.

"Frank…" Vanessa tried again and was ignored a second time as Frank continued to voice his disturbing thoughts.

"He swore he wouldn’t use drugs! He promised he’d come to me if things got really bad." Frank cried out, looking at Vanessa, anguished. "But I saw him, Van. I saw him taking those pills – three different times!"

"Frank!" Vanessa said forcefully, reaching across the table and grabbing his hand to make sure she had his full attention. "They’re vitamins!"

Frank stared at her open-mouthed and momentarily speechless. "They’re…vitamins?" He repeated as if she had spoken a foreign language.

"Vitamins." She confirmed with a smile. "Just vitamins. The doctor said to ensure the burns heal with a minimal amount of scarring, Joe needs to eat a healthy, well-balanced, nutritious diet."

Frank stared at her a moment longer. "A healthy, well-balanced, nutritious diet?! JOE??" He exclaimed in disbelief.

Vanessa nodded, amused at Frank’s reaction.

Frank shook his head, chuckling quietly. "Joe and healthy food is like oil and water. The two will never mix."

"Exactly." Vanessa grinned at him.

"Hence the need for vitamins."

"Right again." Vanessa replied. "I’ve been making sure he’s eating a good dinner, much to his dismay, but a lot of times he’s on his own for breakfast and lunch. In his defense, he really is trying. The vitamins are sort of a compromise."

Frank shook his head with a grin. "Well, that makes me feel a lot better…" He stopped never finishing his thought, his eyes growing huge with worry. "Van, please, you can’t tell him I thought he was using drugs. He would never, ever trust me again. He’d never forgive me for doubting him again."

Vanessa held up a hand. "I won’t say a word. I see how you could have made that assumption. And I understand completely why you couldn’t come right out and ask him about it. Don’t worry, Frank." She patted his hand reassuringly. "This stays between you and me."

"Thank you." Frank exhaled in relief. "But…what will you tell him if he asks why we had lunch today? It’s not exactly a common occurrence." He asked, concerned.

"I’ll tell him the truth." Vanessa said with a wink, as a waitress appeared with their orders. "My future brother-in-law asked me out to a nice lunch. And who am I to turn down a free meal?"

*****

Vanessa inserted the key in the lock and pushed the door open. Walking into the apartment she stopped and stared at the couch, smiling sadly. Joe was stretched out with his right arm thrown across his eyes, apparently napping, as he often did when he returned from therapy. She knew the time he spent working in therapy was uncomfortable at best, although Joe would never admit it, and often left him exhausted. Vanessa quietly shut the door and walked past the couch towards the counter that separated the kitchen from the living/dining room.

"Hey, where ya goin’?" Joe asked lazily as she walked by.

"I thought you were sleeping." Vanessa said, a little startled.

"Nah, just resting my eyes." He joked. "C’mere and sit down."

Vanessa put her things down on the counter and started to turn back towards him, stopping when she noticed the red light blinking on the answering machine. "Did you listen to the messages?"

"Don’t have to." Joe replied with sarcastic affection. "The first one is from Mom and the second one is from Frank."

Pressing the play button, Vanessa returned to the couch where Joe shifted just enough for her to sit down, then rested his head in her lap contentedly. She noticed he cradled his left arm against his chest protectively and knew today’s therapy session had been particularly grueling. Vanessa intertwined her left hand in his right and leaned down, kissing him softly as the first message played.

"Hi, sweetie" Laura’s voice floated through the room. "I just wanted to see how therapy went today and make sure you’re feeling ok. Call me tonight. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom." Joe returned the greeting as Vanessa giggled at him.

"Like clockwork." Joe grinned looking up at Vanessa. "You could set your watch by them."

"Just make sure you call them back, ok? They worry about you." Vanessa requested.

"Yes, Mom." Joe teased, reaching up and pulling Vanessa toward him for a kiss. As their lips parted, a third message began.

"Hi, Vanessa. This is Millie in Dr. Jackson’s office." Vanessa could feel Joe flinch at the mention of her doctor’s name. Sighing inwardly, Vanessa ran her fingers through his hair comfortingly. While Joe was obviously surprised to hear the receptionist’s voice, Vanessa wasn’t, and knew exactly why she was calling. She had been watching the calendar for almost three months, both dreading and anticipating this call. "I just wanted to remind you you’re due for your next blood test at the end of the month. Call me at 555-8631 and we’ll schedule an appointment for you to come into the lab. Thank you."

Glancing down, she saw Joe was staring out the window, a gamut of swiftly changing emotions passing over his face, the most prominent of which was fear.

"The last one was negative." She reminded him softly. "That means there’s a good chance this one will be too."

"Yeah, I know." Joe replied, his voice shaking slightly. He continued to stare out the window, not wanting to meet her eyes, afraid she would see how terrified he was at the possibility of losing her.

Laying her head back against the couch, Vanessa wondered if their lives would ever truly be normal again.