The sun was rising turning the late summer sky a dark shade of pink as Julia, Penny and Kirsty arrived back in Elizabeth. Julia was driving, a half drunk cup of McDonald's coffee clamped between her thighs so that she could take sips of the dark liquid to keep her awake. Penny was in the passenger seat, her head leaning against the window as she dozed while Kirsty was awake in the back, staring blankly out of the window as Rob slept with his head in her lap.
          "Hey, we're here," Julia announced as she pulled up outside Penny's unit. Penny opened her eyes blearily.
          "We're what now?"
          "At your house, idiot," Julia chided and motioned to the front garden.
          "Oh right," Penny yawned and stretched. "I’m so not with it."
          "That much is obvious," Kirsty chided as Penny unclipped her seat belt and opened the door. She stumbled out of the car and took several seconds to get her balance.
          "Later Pen," Julia and Kirsty said together, Julia beeping her horn as she pulled back out of the driveway and headed home.
          It was a further ten minutes before Julia stopped the car in her own driveway and let out a long, laboured yawn. "I’m fucked."
          "Who’s fucked?" Rob mumbled sleepily. "What did I miss?" he added trying to hold his eyes open.
          "A hoard of naked screaming women just fled across my front garden," Julia chided as she killed the engine and unclipped her seat belt. "There were naked breasts and manicured pubes everywhere."
          "Is she lying to me?" Rob asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "She’s lying to me right?"
          "Me lie?" Julia gasped, a hand resting on her chest. "Now I’m offended."
          "I guess you’ll never know Robert," Kirsty mused, patting his shoulder. "Can you live with that?" she added, climbing out of the car.
          "Maybe," Rob shrugged, looking around slyly. "So why are we here? I mean at your place?"
          "Because we want to sleep and I’ve been made to baby sit you," Kirsty replied as the group headed inside.
          "I don’t need babysat," Rob huffed. "I’m not a child."
          "Are you sure," Julia giggled as she headed toward her room. "I reckon it’s a fine line."
          "Can I hurt her?" Rob pouted, glaring after Julia.
          "It’s not worth the time," Kirsty sighed, heading to her own room with Rob in tow. "Ross just wants me to look out for you, I think he’s just a concerned big brother."
          "I don’t think I’m the one he should be concerned about," Rob declared as Kirsty sat on the edge of her bed to pull off her ugg boots. "Does this mean I get to sleep with you?"
          "I hadn’t planned on it."
          "Oh come on, I’m emotionally fragile."
          Kirsty raised an eyebrow. "Ok, but if you touch me I remove your hand with a nail file."
          "I won’t even breathe in your direction," Rob perked as he hurried over to the other side of the bed, pulled off his sneakers and got comfortable.

          Ross lay watching the girls from ‘Aerobics Oz Style’ bouncing about in Lycra and proclaiming how great it was to be tanned, fit and healthy. He soon concluded that if he watched much more, he was going to hurl himself out of a window. Despite being exhausted, his body drained from the shock of the last few hours, he couldn’t bring himself to sleep. His brain was overloading with the realisation of his own stupidity, how easily you can realise your mortality and how much he really missed Kirsty.
          He was beginning to feel claustrophobic and decided to attempt a walk, perhaps find out how Liam and Chris were doing. He threw back the sterile hospital sheets and kicked his legs over the bed. The hospital gown he’d been coaxed into wearing revealed a series of scratches and bruises on his legs. He got to his feet and felt the pain grip his chest, abdomen and plastered wrist. He took several deep breaths to steady himself before shuffling out into the corridor.
          Ross was surprised it was still quite dark and only a few nurses were roaming about looking like they wanted to be there as much as him. He started down the hall, glancing into rooms as he went and being very glad he was still wearing underwear under his gown. He neared the end of the hall when he saw Liam; leg in plaster and looking considerably bruised and battered.
          "Hey Mutt," Liam called and held up a hand.
          "Chocolate Bear," Ross replied and made his way into the room. He looked at the empty chairs and gingerly sat himself in one.
          "How you doing?" Liam asked, averting his attention from ‘Aerobics Oz Style.’
          "Oh you know," Ross shrugged. "Been better."
          "Yeah," Liam agreed, nodding a little.
          "You?"
          "Aside from the broken leg and the overall agony I’m just peachy," Liam breathed at looked bitterly at his leg.
          "Hey, at least you can still masturbate," Ross chided, holding up his plastered wrist.
          "That’s true," Liam laughed. "Have you seen Chris?"
          "Nah, this is as far as I’ve got," Ross replied and looked at his feet. "I feel like shit."
          "Yeah, well," Liam sighed. "Shit happens you know. We can’t go back and change what happened. We can only learn from it."
          Ross gave a small laugh. "Can’t half tell you’re a father."
          "That and I’m in denial about my future as a footballer."
          "Oh," Ross said, his face falling. "I never thought of that."
          "Ah football isn’t everything," Liam declared nonchalantly. "Besides, I’ve broken bones before and always come back."
          "I’m sure you’ll be kicking goals again in no time," Ross agreed. "Man that was cheesy."
          They both looked at each other and laughed, before Liam spoke again. "Besides, I think the biggest problem here is whether you’re going to be able to hold a microphone!"
          Ross looked at his plaster and sighed heavily. "Great way to start a new career huh?"
          "At least the girls don’t hate us," Liam mused. "I mean call me insane but despite the tongue lashing it meant a lot Jools cared enough to be here."
          "Yeah," Ross said quietly and then abruptly got to his feet. "I should probably go."
          "You don’t have to," Liam countered, slightly surprised. "I was enjoying having some company until my family got back."
          "No, no you rest," Ross declared as he headed for the door. "We’ll talk later," he added, heading back into the corridor.

          Penny changed into a pair of jeans, a singlet and her favourite boots before she grabbed her car keys and slid in behind the wheel of her car. She switched on the radio as she headed to Chris’s. His keys were tucked away safely in her pocket as she focused her attention on the road and not how tired and drained she was feeling.
          It took her the best part of half an hour to finally come to a stop at the end of Chris’s long, dirt driveway and she clambered out into the warm early morning air. Penny unlocked the front door, switched off the alarm and headed out back. She pulled back the curtain on the large glass doors that separated the kitchen from the outside world and was sad to see Bear, lying on the patio looking thoroughly depressed. He had obvious noted his master’s no show the previous evening and was in his own doggy way concerned.
          Penny pulled open the glass doors and stepped out onto the patio. Bear looked over and slowly got to his feet. He padded over to her and Penny crouched down to give him a hug. "Don’t worry boy, your daddy’ll be home soon," she cooed as Bear licked her cheek affectionately. Penny giggled as she straightened up and wandered back inside, Bear at her heels. She found his dish and scooped a tin of dog food into it before placing it on the tiled floor. "There you go," she perked and ruffled the scraggy fur on Bear’s head. Bear sniffed at his food and quickly began to gobble it down.
          Satisfied, Penny sauntered back into the living room where she curled up on one of the large plush sofas and within seconds was asleep. Bear padded in from the kitchen, still licking his doggy lips and curled up on the carpet in front of her and nodded off contentedly.

          "Whatcha doing?" Kirsty asked as she arose to find Julia parked on the couch staring blankly at the television.
          "Sitting," Julia replied. "Thinking."
          "Can I sit and think with you?" Kirsty asked, plopping down on the vacant couch to pull on her sandals.
          "No offense but I don’t think thinking is your specialty," Julia chided and had to quickly dodge a cross-stitch magazine that was lobbed at her head. "Hey, watch it blondie you coulda had my eye out!"
          "If only," Kirsty chided. "You gonna go see Liam?"
          "Probably not," Julia shrugged. "I don’t know that he really wants me there."
          "You told me he asked you if you’d be back."
          "That doesn’t mean he wants to see me," Julia frowned. "Maybe he just wants to know when to pretend to be sleeping so I’ll go away and besides he’s got all his family."
          "You’re just making excuses," Kirsty scorned. "If you still care about him, which I know you do, you should be trying to get that point across to him."
          "Like you’re doing with Ross."
          "I’m taking Rob home," Kirsty countered. "Never said I was going to the hospital."
          "But you want to right?" Julia quipped. "I can tell, your more see through than Glad Wrap."
          "I’m just being supportive," Kirsty scorned as Rob appeared having splashed water on his face to wake up properly.
          "What are we talking about?" he asked, running his fingers through his hair.
          "How Kirsty still loves Ross," Julia replied.
          "And Jools loves Liam," Kirsty added.
          "So?" Rob shrugged. "They’re in love with you guys too, they’re just to stupid to realise it."
          "And how would you know?" Kirsty groused, getting to her feet and snatching up her bag.
          "Because Ross tells me and I’ve been drinking with Ross, Liam and Chris and they carry on like a bunch of bloody chicks," Rob declared and looked at Kirsty. "Now that’s cleared up can we go?"
          "Ah sure," Kirsty nodded as they headed out of the door.

          Ross’s breakfast had long gone cold by the time he decided to wander the bustling hospital corridor in the opposite direction and look for Chris. He peered into the various rooms, all occupied by men in various states of ill health. It took several moments for the realisation that a battered young man hooked up the various bleeping machines was Chris and Ross had to lean against the closest wall to stop him self falling over. There was no way in hell he was going to actually go into the room and (a) look any closer at the state Chris was in and (b) face the wrath of Angie. Ross felt sick to his stomach, horribly guilty and angry that he should be the one that had walked away least injured. This whole mess was his fault after all wasn’t it?
          "Are you ok sir?" asked a passing nurse.
          "Just peachy," Ross replied, took one more look at Chris and then headed back in the direction of his room.

          Penny woke to both the sounds of Bear barking and rapid knocking on the door. She rolled off the couch and blearily staggered to the door. She was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes when she opened it and discovered a blonde woman standing there.
          "What are you doing here?" the blonde announced in a voice that was both shocked and disgusted.
          Penny blinked a moment and then frowned when she realised who the blonde actually was. "Sienna."
          "You were expecting someone else?" she groused. "And you haven’t answered my question."
          "I don’t have to answer to you Twiggy," Penny scorned. "But for your information Chris asked me to feed Bear."
          "Why would he do that?" Sienna retorted. "Bear loves me, don’t you boy?" she cooed holding out a hand to Bear. Bear let out a low growl and she quickly pulled her hand back.
          "Yeah, shows," Penny mused.
          "Just tell me where Chris is!"
          "He’s in hospital with a ruptured spleen if you must know. He was involved in a drink driving accident."
          "Oh my god!" Sienna gasped, her hands shooting to her mouth. "Is he going to be all right?"
          "Mostly," Penny nodded. "But he might never Limbo again."
          Sienna’s face fell into a scowl and as she went to say something the door slammed in her face, missing her nose by only millimetres. Penny headed back to the couch as Sienna started banging on the door again.
          "Go away or I let Bear out," Penny yelled and the knocking ceased, followed a few seconds later by Sienna’s car crunching the gravel as is sped from the driveway.

          "I better bring him some clean clothes," Rob declared as he unlocked the door to Ross’s apartment. Kirsty followed him in and wasn’t surprised to see the apartment looking a worse state than it had before she’d started dating Ross.
          "I see he’s kept to my cleaning standards," she half-mused as she scanned the debris.
          "Actually a lot of this is mine," Rob shrugged. "He let me move in."
          "It shows," Kirsty mumbled as they wandered into the main bedroom and Rob set about throwing some clean clothes in a bag for Ross. Kirsty sat on the bed, felt herself start to get nostalgic and jumped up again.
          "Ok jeans, t-shirt, undies, socks," Rob listed aloud. "That’s everything, are you gonna drive or am I?"
          "Actually," Kirsty swallowed. "I might stay back and straighten up a bit for him coming home."
          "Cleaning the bathroom is more important than picking Ross up from the hospital?"
          "I’ll see him when you get back."
          Rob threw his arms in the air. "Fine, but don’t you dare go washing my lucky red undies!"
          "I wouldn’t dream of it," Kirsty mused as Rob flashed her a cheeky smile and then left. She listened for the front door slamming before she climbed back onto the bed.
          She should never have come to Ross’s apartment, it just made things a whole lot harder to deal with. Everything was of course a reminder of him, of happier times of what could have been. She allowed herself a brief moment to breathe in his smell from one of the pillows. It was a mix of cheap aftershave, the awful fudge stuff he used on his hair and chocolate. "Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling into at night. I miss you like hell."

          Julia had been sitting in silence for so long that she literally jumped off the couch when the phone rang in the kitchen. "Jesus," she gasped, and tried to steady her breathing as she hurried into the next room to grab the receiver. "Hello?"
          "Oh good you’re home," came the reply form her sister.
          "You expected me to be somewhere?"
          "We no but…"
          "You know you could have at least paused before replying."
          "Whatever," Lynda groused. "Anyway, I’m going to look at table linen for the wedding and you’re going."
          Julia felt any semblance of enthusiasm drop what it was doing and flee into the road where it was hit by a passing bus. She had no desire to spend all day looking at table linen, especially after the stress of the previous night. "Oh I can’t, I’m busy today."
          "You can’t be busy."
          "Well I am."
          "So cancel."
          "Lynda, I have a life you know."
          "And I have a wedding," Lynda shrieked. "You never care about anything that’s important to me. You’re so fucking selfish!"
          "I have to go to the hospital and see Liam."
          "You broke up with Liam."
          "He had an accident last night and broke his leg. I was there nearly all night."
          "You broke up."
          "I still care about him."
          "You can’t get back with him."
          "Not that it’s any of your business but I never said I was."
          "It’ll just piss the rellies off and ruin my wedding."
          Julia let out an undisguised growl. "Yes, god forbid anything should ruin your fucking wedding."
          "You don’t have to be such a bitch?"
          "Sorry, I’m a little stressed," Julia groused. "The man I love nearly became a statistic and I really should be with him," she added and then slammed the phone down. "Eh, see I can do the hang up too bi-atch!"

          Rob arrived at the hospital to find Ross sitting on his bed looking worse than he had when they’d left.
          "Hey man," Rob perked, dropping the bag on clothes on the bed. "I brought you some clean clothes."
          "Thanks," Ross nodded and slid off the bed to finally rid himself of his hospital gown. "Did you get some sleep?" he asked, trying to unzip the bag but gave up and Rob assisted him without being asked.
          "Yeah, Kirsty let me share her bed," Rob chided and Ross looked at him strangely. "She threatened me with a nail file."
          "That would have been worth seeing."
          "What, the nail file or Kirsty?"
          Ross raised an eyebrow. "Can you help me with my jeans."
          "So long as I don’t have to feel the wombat," Rob mused and fastened Ross’s jeans. "She’s waiting for you at home you know."
          "Is she?" Ross said quickly and then feigned indifference. "Why?"
          "I think she cares," Rob shrugged. "And she got the overwhelming desire to clean our apartment."
          "My apartment."
          "I pay board."
          "Really? Then why haven’t I ever seen it?"
          Rob flustered a moment. "Ok," he huffed as he crouched down to tie Ross’s laces. "But I’m gonna start."
          "Sure."
          "Oh and if a girl called Nina ever turns up, the place is mine and you’re my junkie brother who I’m helping fight his addiction yeah?"
          "You realise hitting you with a plaster will hurt more."
          "Yes actually," Rob nodded as he straightened up. "Right, let’s get you checked out and back to all your creature comforts."
          "Please," Ross said gratefully as Rob snatched up the bag.
          "And the gorgeous blonde who’s currently scrubbing out toilet bowl."
          "I’ll do something nasty to you with my bedpan," Ross scorned. "And it’s full."
          "I’ll sue you for grievous bodily harm with a bedpan," Rob mused as they headed down the corridor. "Every court in the country would condemn ya!" Ross narrowed his eyes at his little brother and it took only a millisecond for Rob to cotton on. "Oh shit, have the police…"
          "Yeah, we have a court date," Ross breathed before falling sullen and silent again.
          Liam was channel surfing and pondering hailing a nurse for more painkillers when Julia arrived. He was relieved to see someone who wasn’t going to fawn over him like his mother or sisters. "Hey."
          "Hey," Julia nodded. "I wasn’t gonna come back but it was either here or table linen viewing with Lynda."
          "There’s some nice linen out there," Liam declared whimsically and beamed at Julia. "Thanks for coming, I was getting sick of my mother grousing at me."
          "Understandable."
          "So, what do you wanna do?"
          "I’m not bothered."
          "We could have a D&M about our failed relationship."
          "Oh god no."
          "Or you could pop to the cafeteria, grab us a couple doughnuts and steal Scrabble from paediatrics."
          "See now that I can do," Julia mused as she headed for the door. "Shall I go ahead and grab us a few other snacks as well."
          "I won’t say no," Liam grinned. "I promise not to go anywhere," he added and waited until Julia left before he called for a nurse.
          "Yes Mr Douglas," the nurse smiled as she started neatening his bed.
          "Yeah I’m gonna need some more painkillers pronto," Liam declared. "It feels like all my bones are about to poke through the skin."
          "Oh, I’ll find Dr Gleeson and see if he can’t get you something stronger," the nurse soothed and disappeared from the room.
          "Much appreciated," Liam smiled and then let his face fall into boredom again as he refocused his attention on the awful midday movie.

          Penny padded into Chris’s bedroom and noticed his bath towel had been abandoned on the floor, which was something he always did. She bent down to pick it up and something beneath the bed caught her eye. She got to her knees and reached her hand under the bed. She pulled it back to reveal a rather tiny red g-string. Her first thought was that it must be Sienna’s and her second was how on earth anyone could leave the house and forget their underwear?
          The truth was, she and Chris were no longer together and it shouldn’t matter who he frolicked with in his own bedroom. But she was still royally pissed. In fact if she’d had a match handy she would have ritually burnt the piece of floss there and then.
          Penny took a couple of calming breaths and decided it would be wrong to bring the subject up with Chris at the moment, he didn’t need to be stressed. She would however be returning said g-string to Sienna first thing Monday morning during an Alpha Team board meeting.

          "I can’t believe you’re not to traumatised to go in a car again," Rob declared as he unlocked the door of the apartment.
          "Yeah, isn’t that handy," Ross scorned and then felt the overwhelming relief of being home. He couldn’t help but be pleased that his apartment was now sparkling clean and smelt like wildflowers.
          "Man, this looks like a different place," Rob grinned, dumping the bag full of Ross’s dirty clothes on the couch. "We so need to make her dinner or something."
          "It’s what she does best," Ross shrugged as he sunk into the couch. "Well what you know of anyway."
          "Where is Kirsty anyway?" Rob asked looking about. "Kitten, where are ya?"
          "Rob," Ross breathed and reached over to the coffee table where he’d noticed a piece of paper.
          "What?"
          "She’s not here mate," Ross sighed and read the note aloud. "Dear Ross and Rob, had to go something came up. Ross I hope you’re feeling better and Rob don’t you dare mess up or I’ll do something nasty with the toilet duck."
          "Ouch," Rob breathed as he removed the bag and sat next to Ross. "Sorry man."
          "For what? I didn’t expect her to be here," Ross shrugged but inside he had, he really had.