A/N: Well here it is Ladies and Gentlemen, the last and final chapter of Tears! I have to say that this has been the longest and most difficult chapter that I have ever written, and it�s thanks to you � the readers � that this has survived and continued like it had!

Like to thank Lillehafrue for nagging me to continue this fic and be there for all of the support she has given me through it especially for the song suggestions for chapter five and this chapter, thanks L!

Love to thank my wonderful boyfriend for all of the love and support he has given to me through this entire story, and for helping me find the song lyrics for the songs that I have used as line dividers for the story � just thought that the black lines were wrong and don't work half the time!

Last of all, I love to thank you the readers for the wonderful review you have left me, even though some of them was very few words but thank you regardless! Hope you continue to look out for my future work whenever it comes online!

End A/N

Oceans Apart, day after day

A light splashing could be heard as the young man walked through the tropical jungle towards the white sandy beach, one of many that were scattered around the island. Blinking slightly from the brightness as he stepped on the beach to find that the splashing noise was one of his brothers throwing pebbles into the surf of the ocean.

�Hey bro, thought would find you here� He spoke up as he climbed up onto the rock his brother was sat on as the tide went out.

Gordon turned around slightly to find his younger brother climbing up to sit beside him, �Hey Al got kicked off the computer, huh?� He asked as he moved back and went back to throwing pebbles into the surf.

�Yeah needed a break away and Brains needed to reboot the system to check his work on the new adjustments for the machines� Alan said with a sigh watching Gordon throw the pebbles.

�I thought that the upgrades were done already and the adjustments to Thunderbird Four are working like a charm� Gordon said not looking away from the ocean.

�Thunderbird Three is the same though one or two systems still need some work but�� Alan broke away and joined Gordon in throwing pebbles into the surf of the ocean.

�Thunderbird Five� I know that it�s not made to be run by computers but what can we do? Dad won�t let any of us go up there� Gordon said remembering the talk they all had after their first rescue since their two month break.

�That was two months ago Gordo� I�ve been spending a lot of time with Brains and with Scott and it�s just not going to be the same when he does come back� Alan said with a sigh.

�It won�t but the change will do us good� Gordon said as their watches beeped for their attention and with two deep sighs.

�Let�s head back and find out the situation� Alan said with a slight groan as he got to his feet and jumped off the rock.

�Right let�s get going� Gordon said copying his brother before leading the way back through the jungle to the main complex.

I hear your voice on the line

Taking a long drink from the bottle, the young man sighed before putting it back down on the desk half listening to the radio in the background.

Sighing deeply as he shifted through the papers that were stacked into piles, the young man continued to work through the letters that had managed to find him even though it was up in the Swiss Alps that the cabin was located.

Leaning back in his chair John sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly before looking at the open bottle on his desk to see that the bottle of water was almost empty. �Last one too I expect� He thought as he pushed back and got to his feet.

John turned the radio up a little as he walked and walked through the lounge into the kitchen, he hummed quietly along with the song playing on the radio as he searched around the kitchen for anything he might need before starting the walk down to the village.

The village was a small village that wasn�t afraid of tourists and had no problems with supplies or communications. The villagers themselves are friendly enough but only tend to keep themselves quiet allowing the tourists to see what they want to see.

John had been getting his supplies from the village and one of his old friends ran a private observatory on the other side of the village so he felt that this cabin was his new home and no one in his family know about it. This made the cabin a perfect place for him to hide out away from the hustle and bustle of the cities on the large main lands.

With a sigh John folded the paper containing the list of much needed groceries from the village before checking his pockets for his wallet and keys for the cabin and his jeep. Shopping time again� at least it�s a break away from the mail John thought to himself with a small smile as he slipped his jacket off.

If I see you next to never

Harry hummed as he drove along in his jeep though this jeep was designed for cross country and was perfect for the mountain trails scattered throughout the Swiss Alps. He was happily humming along with the music playing through the audio player as he focused on navigating along the dirt tracks in search of mountain views for any possible calendar shots.

What Harry didn�t realise was that a section of the road had collapsed making part of it weaker one side of the road, the part of the road that came close to the edge of a large ravine.

What Harry did notice was his jeep loosing the stable surface of the road before sliding down into the ravine, he held onto the steering wheel tightly hoping that his vehicle would come to a stop.

The airbag deployed stopping Harry from hitting his head on the steering wheel as the jeep collided into a rock crushing the dashboard into his legs, this caused Harry to yell out before collapsing onto the steering wheel.

Wherever you go

Scott rubbed a layer of chalk dust into his hands before flexing the ready to start his workout on the punching bag; he heard the gym�s door open long enough to let someone in before closing again, �Been kicked out of the silos? Or was it the studio?� He asked before starting light slow punches for warm ups.

�What makes you say I got kicked out of my studio?� Virgil�s voice asked before he got ready for his own workout.

�Grandma kicked you out didn�t she� you�ve been in there longer than Gordon has been down at the beach� Scott said as he remained focused on the targets marked out on the punching bag.

�What about you? Been kicked out of the library?� Virgil asked as he rubbed chalk into his own hands and started on the other punching bag that was set up as the spare.

�Yeah and thought that I should come down here for a workout� don�t want to become like the old man� Scott said increasing his speed a little.

Bit late for that bro! Virgil thought to himself as he started his own punches on the punching bag. �Been thinking�� He said as he flexed his hands slightly before going back to hitting the punching bag.

�About John? Me too� wondering how he is doing myself� Scott said as he started to hit the bag harder and faster, his guard came up subconsciously.

�I keep thinking that maybe he won�t want to come back, he loves us as a family� but does he love us enough to come back� Virgil said as he punched his own bag matching Scott�s speed.

Scott punched the bag hard and jumped to the side. �What are you talking about Virg? Of course John is coming back!� He said ignoring the sweat pouring down the back of his neck.

�He�s been burnt Scott! Think about it would you, what reason does he have to come back aside from our family� Virgil said as he stopped punching his own bag but didn�t take his eyes off it as it swung.

Scott bit back a retort and thought about what Virgil had just said before walking over to retrieve his water bottle and took a long drink from it. His mind was still going over all that had happened leading up to this day, to this situation and the thought of doubt in his, in all of his brothers hearts.

Scott sighed and put the bottle back down and retrieved his towel to wipe away the sweat that had formed when he had worked out on the punching bag before sighing deeply.

�You�re right Virg� he�s just been burnt too much, been stuck up in outer space for far too long or stopped going on rescues for one reason or another� He said leaving the towel around the back of his neck.

�We can say that we are a family but we�re not a team� which should be one and the same� Scott said as he sat down on the exercise bench with a groan and moved the towel away from the back of his neck.

�It is Scott but we just got to wait, if John comes back then it�s by his choice and we got to be ready to see how he will cope with being back� Virgil said from his place at the punching bag.

I will be right here, waiting for you

Whatever it takes

John drove along the well known road he knew that would take him down into the village of Quebar, but he still kept a close eye on the road and around it as he never knew when something would jump out onto the road.

Slowing down John stopped the jeep in time to see that part of the road had crumpled away. That�s odd, wasn�t like that last night He thought to himself, pulling the jeep to a halt and undid his seatbelt before jumping out.

Looking at the road John could see skid marks leading away off the road and into the ravine. Damn He thought before rushing back to the jeep and retrieved the emergency pack that he had assembled before looking down at where the tracks led.

He could make out a jeep half way down the ravine only stopped by a large rock. �Ooh boy� John muttered to himself thinking how he would get down there to rescue the driver and any passengers.

Walking back to his jeep John retrieved the rope from the boot of the jeep and tied it to the pull attached on the jeep. He then locked the breaks on tightly before using the rope to climb down the ravine with the rescue pack on his back.

Just hope that whoever is in there is ok, going to be hard to get back up here John thought to himself as he slipped on a patch of gravel causing him to grip hold of the rope tightly.

Have I really missed this? He thought as he continued to walk down slowly to the jeep hanging on by a large rock sticking out of the side of the cliff.

Or how my heart broke

Rose took the tray from Kyrano, �You just watch the food, need to talk to Jeff� She said with a sigh and wore a small frown. �I wish you luck Mrs Tracy, he has been hiding in his paperwork all day� Kyrano warned Rose as he turned one of the saucepans that were simmering up a little to keep it warm.

�Thank you Kyrano� Rose spoke with a small smile which failed to reach her eyes as she left the kitchen for the main lounge where she knew Jeff would be.

Looking at the desk as Rose balanced the tray she could make out Jeff bent almost double over his desk. �Jeff, coffee� she said as she crossed the room.

Jeff continued to work on the paperwork in front of him; his desk was covered in reports, diagrams and calculations piled up in piles partly hiding him partly.

�Jeff Tracy! Take a break!� Rose said rising her voice up and placed the tray containing Jeff�s coffee down on top of the paperwork.

Jeff looked up and leaned back into the back of his chair. �Mom, I need to get this done� He said putting his pen away and moved the paperwork gently out from under the tray.

�What you need is a break, I haven�t seen you this busy since your return from Seattle� Rose said with a sigh. �Do you need to talk?� She asked moving to lean against the desk.

Jeff sighed and took his glasses off folding them and put them on them on the desk before rubbing his eyes tiredly. �Not really mother, there is nothing to talk about� He said not taking his eyes away from the desk.

Rose frowned and looked at her son carefully for a few minutes as he helped himself to his coffee. �You�ve given up on him haven�t you?� She said with a frown.

Jeff looked up his eyes connecting with his mother�s before looking down into his coffee.

�You have, oh Jeff� John will come back but he�s afraid of things would go back to the way they once were� Rose said moving away from Jeff, who continued to look down into the coffee.

�Just think about this son, John will come back and we will survive this!� She said before leaving the lounge to the kitchen to make something constructive instead of unleashing her temper onto her troubled son.

I took for granted, all the time

John checked the jeep over after tying the rope around his waist, being careful not to get it tangled up around the park on the back.

Looks clear and glad its only one guyJohn thought to himself as he opened the driver�s side door.

�Hello, can you hear me?� John spoke up resting a hand on the driver�s shoulder and shook him slightly earning him a groan from the driver.

�Ok I�m going to need you to stay still for me while I try and get you out of here!� John said glancing at the dashboard before looking over the driver to see that he was pinned by the steering wheel.

Inwardly sighing John backed up and freed his rucksack from his back opening it and dug out his toolkit. �I got to move the steering wheel before I can get you out� He said as he did his rucksack back up and put it down beside him before looking at the steering wheel.

Ok�this should be easy enough John thought to himself as he opened the toolkit and looked to see how he could take the steering wheel.

I hear the laughter, I take the tears

Scott sighed rubbing the back of his neck tiredly as he made his way into the kitchen moving aside to let Kyrano out of the kitchen, Wonder what he�s rushing around for? Scott wondered as he entered the kitchen to hear something being bashed around.

Frowning Scott found his grandma working hard at the desktop cooking something, but something told him that something had upset her. �Grandma, Is everything ok?� He asked cautiously as he got a bottle of water from the fridge.

�Just fine Scott, everything is fine�� Rose said as she moved the now full oven tray into the oven and slammed the door closed making Scott flinch.

�Grandma� Scott said quietly and tried to look worried and innocent as his grandmother turned around to face him.

Rose sighed and looked at her eldest grandson, �It�s your father, we had a fight earlier� She said feeling the adrenaline dying down inside of her as she leaned against the kitchen counter.

Scott sighed and took a long drink from the fresh bottle of water he had just opened, �Do I need to know why?� He asked before rubbing his forehead feeling that there was a headache building up quickly.

�It was about John Scott, he�s given up on him that he�s not going to come back� Rose said rubbing the tiredness, which was building up inside of her.

Scott groaned, �I see Grandma, I should go and talk to him but it�s like what Virgil said� he�s been burnt badly� He said before taking a sip from his bottle. �I know that he will come back to the family but will he come back to the team especially that the commander didn�t treat him like a team member or even a member of his family� Scott continued leading the way out of the kitchen to the large dining area.

�He�ll come back Scott, if we got to make changes to make sure he�s happy then we�ve got to change! Change for this family will be for the best, you�ll see� Rose said with a smile as she sat down at the table with a tired moan.

�Maybe you should go and lay down for a while Grandma, Kyrano can take care of the kitchen� Scott said seeing how tired Rose was and wanted her somewhere where she couldn�t hear the talk he was about to go and have with his father.

�You�re right Scott, just been so busy in the kitchen that I didn�t notice how busy I was or how tired I have become� Rose said before covering a small yawn and got back up onto her feet. �Just lay and keep it down Scott� She told her grandson with a knowing smile before leaving the kitchen heading off to her bedroom.

Scott sighed and left the kitchen for the lounge. Mom, give me the strength to survive this please He prayed silently holding the bottle of water tightly.

Oh, can�t you see it baby

�Stay with me, need you to keep awake for me� John spoke up after freeing the driver from the jeep and tied him against his back. The driver groaned and opened his eyes tiredly. �That�s great; now let�s get back up the ravine!� He said with a smile and started pulling both of them up to where his jeep waited. �Sorry mate� just so tired and ache all over� The man spoke groggily as he fought through the pain in his legs to help his rescuer up the cliff.

�I can guess just glad that you speak English, we�re almost at the top� then just getting you into town� John said feeling the muscles in his arms protest against the strain as he pulled them up seeing the top getting closer and closer.

�That�s great�� The man said as he battled to keep awake and not give into the darkness of unconsciousness.

�What�s your name?� John asked as he tried to increase his pace up the cliff, not happy that the man kept trying to fall back unconscious.

�Harry, Harry Brown� Harry introduced himself and looked at his rescuer�s back, �Who are you?� He asked thinking that he had seen him somewhere before recently.

�John, John Sparrow� John said using his other identity that he used when he preferred not to be a Tracy.

�Nice to meet you John and thanks for the rescue� Harry said with a groan as they pulled up over the top of the ravine, then untied from the rope and led back over to John�s jeep.

�You�re welcome Harry, now let�s get you to the doctor in town� John said slightly out of breath from the difficult chore of climbing up the ravine with someone tried to his back.

Harry groaned in pain as he helped John in getting into the jeep, �Sounds like a good idea� He said with a tired sigh.

John smiled and threw his rucksack into the back of the jeep before gathering the rope up, tangling it from the jeep. He rolled it up carefully to avoid any knots the next time John wanted to use it before turning it to the boot of the jeep.

�Ok, so much for a long boring drive to town for shopping� John said with a smile earning a small chuckle from his passenger before he winced as John climbed into the driver�s seat. �Sorry, not let�s get you checked out� John said as he started his own jeep up and focused on turning it away from the dangerous bit of road then down to the trail that led to the small village.

Wherever you go

Scott rolled his shoulders trying to loosen them up as he entered the main lounge to find Jeff slumped over the desk, Great� He thought to himself with a sigh as he entered the lounge properly and crossed over to the desk.

Looking around the desk Scott searched to find that there was a ring from a glass of some sort, quietly opening the lower draw he found a whisky bottle that he knew that Jeff stored there. Getting the bottle out Scott sighed as he saw that it was empty, Oh dad� He thought as he moved over to the bin nearby to throw the empty bottle away.

The whisky bottle clanged noisily in the bin before it hit the bottom with a muffled clunk making Jeff jump awake before groaning, hiding his face in his hands.

�Serves you right Dad� Scott said with a frown dropping the bin down loudly before retrieving the bottle of water from the desk offering it to his father.

�Sorry son� Jeff muttered as he accepted the bottle of water seeing Scott had crossed his arms tightly across his chest glaring angrily at him.

�You once told me that you can�t find answers at the bottom of the bottle� I talked to Grandma� Scott said not hiding his anger and frustration from his voice or how his body tensed up as he inwardly battled to keep his arms crossed tightly against his chest.

Jeff looked up at Scott leaned back into his chair holding the bottle of water tightly in his hand. �I guess that you know what we talked about earlier� He said with a tired groan and sipped on the water to help with getting over his headache.

�I do and how can you? How can you say that?� Scott asked, his eyes not leaving Jeff who looked tired and emotionally worn down. �He�s been burnt Dad, John was burnt badly and we don�t need Brains to find out who burnt him� He said knowing that it was Jeff�s fault that this had happened the way it had.

�Now hold it son, its John�s fault as much of our own� Jeff said glaring at his eldest son down not wanting to get into another fight with his son.

Scott moved closer to the desk and slammed his hands down hard on the desk. �Damn it Dad! Why blame John? Is it because that he didn�t stand up to you like we did or because he�s like Mom?� He asked leaning against the desk.

�Stop it Scott Carpenter!� Jeff threatened standing up using his height and intimidation to try and get Scott to back down from the quickly heating argument.

�No Dad! You�ve gone too far this time and getting drunk doesn�t help you solve this!� Scott said not intimidated the slightest by his father.

�I will ground you if you don�t back down� Jeff threatened.

Scott half laughed, �You need me and you know it! Why have you given up on him?� He asked his hands clenching tightly into fists as they tried to remain flat on the desk.

�Because Scott he told me that he will be back when he�s ready, I have tried to contact him but he�s disappeared� for two months I�ve been expecting a call or some mail from him to say that he�s ready to come back� Jeff said just as angry at Scott.

�Well maybe he hasn�t come back because of the organization, because that John�s afraid of things going back to the way they once were� he might not stay once he does come back� Scott said his eyes blazing dangerously before moving away from the desk and heard Jeff move away from the desk also.

�Oh and Dad� Scott said and spun around to punch his father hard in the jaw before storming off in the direction of the sundeck.

Jeff had been thrown back and landed on the crowded desk stunned and eventually moved to rub his jaw stiffly.

I will be right here waiting for you

John smiled and left the small doctor surgery before walking across the street to the general store stepping in to hear light singing filling the store.

Or how my heart breaks

Shaking his head he rang the small bell on the desk and a young woman with curly brown hair bounced into view, �Hey Monica, your singing gets better every time I hear it� John said with a smile and leaned against the counter slightly.

Monica smiled her green eyes shining brightly, �Hey John what do you need?� She asked seeing John reach down into his pocket and pulled out the list he had written out.

�All written down here, sorry about the dust� been a long day� John said as he handed the paper over to Monica, who unfolded it and read its contents.

�So I�ve heard, won�t take me too long to get all this together�just go and wash up out back you�re covered in oil� Monica said, a twinkle in her green eyes before going out of to the back of the store.

John grinned and shook his head, he had learnt that Monica had moved here from her home in America after her father had passed away leaving this shore to her so she spoke perfect English even though John could speak the common languages that were used in the area he was in but nearly everyone in the village knew English as their second language.

With a sigh John walked out of the back of the store to the washroom for much needed wash, he would get his shopping before heading to the caf� for something to eat.

Or how my heart breaks

Alan turned up the radio before disappearing back into the open section of Thunderbird Three, back to installing the newest components into her.

I wonder how we can survive

This romance

But in the end, if I�m with you

I�ll take the chance

�Alan, can you come out of there please� A voice called out competing against the radio.

Alan sighed and climbed out of the rocket retrieving his oily cloth as he did so, looking up for the source of the voice as he turned the radio down. �Hey, what�s the matter?� He asked seeing Tin-Tin leaning against the rail slightly.

�Just wanted to see if you were ok, Gordon�s back in the pool while Virgil is lost within his art and Scott is talking to Brains about something to do with jet engines, not sure where Mr Tracy is but I�m sure he�s not too far away� Tin-Tin said as she stayed up on the railing.

�I�m sure that he�s not too far away, don�t worry about him� he can take care of himself� Alan spoke trying to keep his emotions out of his voice as it still stung slightly to talk to or mention their father after the latest argument he had had.

�Why don�t you go and have a shower and I�ll beat you at tennis or a jog around the island� Tin-Tin suggested with a soft smile.

Alan smiled, �Sure, I�m almost done here then we can go� He said nodding back at the rocket form of Thunderbird Three.

�Ok Alan, I�ll meet you up on the sundeck� Tin-Tin replied and left Alan to finish up the work he had been doing to his bird.

Alan sighed softly his smile faded as he turned the radio back up and got work in finishing up quickly before he could go and wash up.

I�ll take the chance

Sighing deeply as he focused on flying his small private plane Lauren that his brother gave him, John could see the tropical island getting closer and closer. It was then that he wondered how his family would react to him being back on the island but not only as a brother but as a member of International Rescue once again. Checking over the instrumentation in front of him John smiled slightly when the radar flickered a little before showing two blips moving quickly towards him. Looks like I�ve got to wait for a while before I can land He thought to himself, slowing his airspeed down a little to give his brothers time to land their precious birds.

�This is International Rescue come in private jet� Virgil�s voice called across the radio.

�Hey Virg, nice welcome� now please unlock my controls� John said with a smile and noticed that his auto pilot had been hacked into.

�Johnny? Sorry bro! Been a long week� Virgil�s voice said before John soon regained control of his plane.

�Great to hear from you, can�t wait to see your butt back on the island� Scott said with a grin in his voice as he pulled Thunderbird One up along side him.

�See Scott! Not a scratch on her though did get a bit hair rising back in Nevada over two months ago!� John said glancing at his right to see the silver streamline jet of Thunderbird fleet close to him.

�Really? Well John boy, you have got a lot to tell us once you�ve landed and we get a much needed shower, and of course something to eat!� Scott said not seeing John poking his tongue out at being called his old nickname.

�Right Scooter, see you in a few minutes!� John said and closed the channel off before changing his flight plan so that he would circle the island a few times, giving them plenty of time to get the thunderbird crafts into their secret hangers.

It had been a month since he had rescued Harry from the ravine and discovered several members of the fire fighting team hard at work on putting out the jeep that had caught on fire, He was just lucky� someone would have found him if I didn�t John thought to himself before shaking his head clear. He had had this argument before and this was his decision that he was going to come back to the island and talk to his family but his heart felt that maybe things that had been said in the past would have left deep scars that might just be opening up again.

Only one way to find out� John thought to himself with a sigh and a stiff roll of his shoulders before watching the large Thunderbird craft over take him and disappear onto the island.

You�ve got me going crazy

Wherever you go

Scott worked his way around the kitchen working around Virgil and Gordon, who walked back and forth from the fridge or various cupboards making their post-mission sandwiches, Alan and himself were on drinks duty.

�Wow guys, are those sandwiches or re-constructions of the Leaning Tower of Pizza?� John asked with a grin seeing the sandwiches and drinks his brothers were busily making. �Grandma does know you�re making a mess in her kitchen, right?� He asked happy to see his brothers once again.

�Johnny! It�s great that you�re back! Welcome home John, hope you brought your appetite with you!� A mixture of voices engulfed him as his brothers rushed up to him and crushed him in a big bear hug.

�It�s great to be home too guys, but it�s getting difficult to breath now!� John gasped from the middle of the group.

�Ok boys, you heard your brother, give him some air� A stern voice broke through the noise of the reunion.

The boys separate and went back to the kitchen, �Thanks Grandma� John said before being engulfed in another crushing bear hug, this time from his grandmother.

�Welcome back John, how are you feeling?� Rose asked her middle grandson, pulling back to look him over. �Have you been eating enough?� She asked again looking up into his blue eyes, inwardly glad to see the shine back in them.

�I�m fine Grandma, tired from the flight back here but I�m fine� and yes I have been eating enough so don�t worry!� John said with a tired smile, hoping that he could fight off the jet lag long enough to talk to his father.

�Still John, I�m going to need to get to the kitchen and work up something special for dinner� Rose said as Alan and Gordon walked by balancing their sandwiches and drinks followed closely by Virgil.

�Knew you were going to say that Grandma but right now all I need is a --�John started to say before being cut off by Scott. �Coffee� He said with a grin and held out a cup of the hot bitter drink.

�Thanks Scott just what I needed� John said with a smile and accepted the cup of coffee from his oldest brother.

�Welcome John, Dad is asleep� he got a migraine from filling out his paperwork earlier� Scott said knowing that John would have wanted to talk to him about being back.

�Oh� I see, gives me time to settle back down into my room� John said with a smile and sipped on his coffee, inwardly frowning feeling that Scott was hiding something from him.

�Sure, I�ll give you a hand� I kept your room clean for you� Scott said with a smile as Rose disappeared into the kitchen.

�I�ll be ok Scott, I know that you still got to unwind from the rescue� thanks for the coffee� John spoke tiredly before leaving the kitchen and into the depths of the complex.

Scott sighed, �I think he�s come back for a visit� just hope that he had made the right decision about coming back� He said as Rose came out carrying his sandwich.

�Just have to wait and see Scott, that�s all we can do� Rose said with a sigh and handed Scott his sandwich.

Whatever you do

�I can�t believe that you changed that, how could you change the system around like that?� John asked as he looked up at the orange rocket.

�Was quite easy actually John, you wouldn�t believe how changing a few circuit boards here and there can change a bird� Alan said with a grin and looked at his older brother, he could see that John had recovered well but still seemed tense about something.

�She�s nearly automatic now, you know�it took a lot of work but we got a smaller version of the control room set up in Brains lab if you want to go and see it�� He said earning a sigh from John before their wristcoms went off.

�Maybe later, that will be Scott calling us� come on, sooner I get this talk done� the better it is for all of us� John said and led the way back upstairs to their father�s office.

Alan followed his older brother in silence wondering what John was going to say, Maybe he�s not staying� just came back to talk to the others and father before taking off again He thought to himself as they emerged into the main lounge to find everyone there waiting for them.

�Ooh boy�� Alan muttered under his breath, the silence and tension was so thickly layered that he wasn�t sure what could break through it. All that was missing was the ever present tumble weed in situations like this, glancing at John he could see that he was focused on what was about to happen.

�I-I decided to come back and not only as a member of this family but as a member of International Rescue� John started and held his hand up for silence seeing that his family was about to speak especially Jeff.

�A two month period is what I ask, two months to see if things have changed� if they haven�t then I will remain a member of this family but I will leave to live my own life away from International Rescue� He carried on thinking that this was just another meeting and that the people in front of him were just people in suits.

Scott looked over at Virgil, who was startled to see this side of John outside of a boardroom meeting or a press conference before looking over to his other brother then his father, who was colder than ice once again.

�Two months doesn�t give you a lot of planet side time John� Jeff said his voice cold of emotion.

�I can�t believe what you�re saying! John�s been away from the island for that reason, because he didn�t want to go back up there� he�s not ready to go back up there, you should know that!� Scott said standing up from the couch.

Virgil jumped up and rested a hand on Scott�s shoulder. �Easy Scott! John�s got this covered� He muttered glancing over at their middle brother, who looked cool as a cucumber.

�I understand that Dad as that was my old life but as you know the rules we set based from the strict medical guidelines of NASA that the life support systems including the hardwarehas to be replaced before any other member can go up there than longer of 24 hours� John said his voice and body expressions the same as Jeff.

�If I remember correctly it takes two months to do that doesn�t it? I�m sure it does as you were going crazy about her being unmanned for that length of time so you have no choice but to have me around now� He added with a hint of a smirk on his face and in his voice.

Jeff sighed, �Fine John� two months it is, if things don�t work out then I�m sure we can come up with something� He said with a deeper sigh.

Whatever it takes

The young man sighed with content, feeling the tropical sunshine shine down on him as he continued to doze in the hammock one of his brothers had set up, he glanced over his shades across to the pool to see Tin-Tin and Gordon playing in the pool while Virgil and Brains were caught up in a complex game of chess, and Scott had dozed off while reading.

There was no sign of their father, �How long can the old man sulk for?� John muttered to himself pushing his sunglasses back up his noise and smiled hearing Tin-Tin dunk Gordon in the pool.

The two months had flew by quickly and when it came to the decision of either John going back up there or leaving them once again Alan and Tin-Tin sprung their surprise by saying that they would be going up there together so that she could learn how to operate a Thunderbird. This gave John another two months planet side which he was thankful for.

Now though John and Scott took turns in flying Thunderbird One or manning mobile control, they all worked together as a happy family and as a big happy team resulting in a better International Rescue.

That�s right we�re back and we�re better than ever as a team and as a family John thought before dozing off under the warm sun with plenty of sun lotion on and a full stomach. Soothed to sleep by the sound of his family knowing that he was home and he was going to stay.

Thanks for looking out for us Mom His last thought was before falling asleep.

I will be right here, waiting for you

The End