Caroline knew it was illegal in California to drive and talk and the phone.  JC knew it, too.  But that didn't stop him from calling her every five minutes when she was out running errands.

"Did you get the cufflinks?" was the first thing Caroline heard when she picked up the phone on the first Tuesday in May.  She shifted the phone in between her shoulder and ear as she came up on a right turn. 

"Hello to you, too."

"Hi.  Cufflinks?"

"Yes.  Monogrammed and everything."

"What?  I didn't want them monogrammed."

"I was kidding."  Caroline rolled her eyes even though JC couldn't see her.  "I have them right here."

"Did you mail off that contract?" was JC's next demand.  "That needs to get to New York by Thursday."

"I expedited it," Caroline assured him.  "Now can you please calm down?  I'm five minutes away."

"Actually.  I need you to pick up some milk," JC said.  "Can you stop by that CVS on North Cahuenga?"

Caroline glanced in the rearview mirror.  She'd just passed the CVS.

"I'll get some.  Now stop calling me, I'm going to get a ticket."

"You won't-"  Caroline hung up before JC could finish his sentence, and turned her phone off to avoid any further interruptions to her driving. 

She adjusted her route a little to hit the Ralph's on Hollywood Boulevard, and picked up JC's milk, along with a loaf of bread and a jumbo sized jar of chunky peanut butter.  She knew he'd be spending even more time in the studio later that month, and he tended to neglect his eating habits until he looked emaciated.  At least if he had something edible in the kitchen, maybe he was more likely to actually nourish himself in some way.

JC was on the house phone in the kitchen when Caroline returned.  She could tell from his side of the conversation that he was talking to his mom.

"No, you don't need to come here," he was insisting.  "I'm fine.  Yes, I'm eating.  Caroline's bringing home groceries right now."  He took the Ralph's bags from her and pulled out the loaf of bread.  Caroline watched, eyebrow raised, as he pulled out a slice and began eating it plain.  "Um, yeah...I had some vegetables a couple days ago."

JC motioned at Caroline to supply her with the name of a vegetable.  "Green beans?" she whispered.

"Yeah, green beans.  I had green beans.  Look, I really gotta go, Mom.  Okay.  Love you.  Yeah, I love dad, too.  Bye."

JC set the phone down on the kitchen island, holding out his hand to Caroline.  She set the black velvet box in his palm, waiting for him to pop the lid and examine the white gold cufflinks inside.  She'd literally gone on a wild goose chase for the better part of the afternoon, all because JC had lost his best pair of cufflinks on his most recent trip to Chicago to produce a song with Adam Lambert.

"Acceptable?" she asked, and JC nodded slowly. 

"Yeah, these will work."  JC pulled one out of the box and held it in his palm, as if testing the weight.  "Where'd you get them?"

"Cartier," Caroline lied.  She'd gone to the Zales at the Hollywood and Highland Center and asked for the most expensive looking pair they had.  "Nice, huh?"

"Yeah, actually."  Sufficiently fooled, JC placed the cufflink back in the box and set it aside.  "Oh, Kevin wants you to call him."

The coffee had gone cold at this point, but Caroline poured a cup anyway and heated it in the microwave before heading back into the office.  It was only 3:00, and she was going to need the caffeine to get through the next two hours.

Caroline had just finished her call with Kevin when JC poked his head in. 

"I'm thinking about getting a dog," he announced, and Caroline turned to her computer screen.  JC was having one of those days where no one could keep up with him, let alone her.  "What do you think?"

"I think dogs require a lot of attention that you don't have the patience to give," Caroline replied, pulling up the phone number for the private airline that JC had requested for his upcoming trip to New York for ABDC auditions.  "How about a hamster?  Or better yet, a goldfish?"

JC scowled.  "I'm not five.  And you'll be around to take care of it when I'm gone."

"I'm your assistant, not a dog walker," she reminded.  "And I don't even like dogs."

"I thought you had a dog.  Don't you have a dog?"

"No, we have a cat."

JC wrinkled his nose.  "I don't like cats."

"Well, I do," Caroline said as she flipped through a file folder to find the itinerary for JC's trip.  "And so does Brandon, so it works for us."

"How domestic."  JC leaned against the doorframe, apparently not done bothering her yet.  "How is Brandon these days?"

"He's out of town," Caroline said, distracted as she dialed the phone number for the airline.  "Can you get out of here so I can do some actual work?"

"Out of town for what?" JC prompted, ignoring her request completely. 

"His band has a couple shows in the Bay Area this week.  He'll be up there until Saturday night."  Caroline motioned for JC to shush when the customer service agent picked up on the other end.  She continued confirming JC's flight plans for Thursday, making sure to get the name of the rep she spoke to should any problems arise between now and then. 

By the time she hung up, JC was out of the office, and Caroline was relieved; that was the only good thing about days like this - he got bored easily and tended to only bother her for brief periods of time.

There was just too much to do in preparation for JC's short trip, so Caroline ended up staying late without realizing it.  In fact, she didn't even glance at the time until her empty stomach began to grumble in protest.  It was 5:30, and Caroline rested her head in her hands with a yawn.  She didn't much look forward to returning home to an empty apartment, but at least there was food there.

She'd shut down her computer and picked up her purse when she remembered that she'd never turned her cell phone back on.

Six missed calls popped up right away, two from an unlisted number, one from her dad, and three from her brother Cameron.  Caroline's heart dropped into her stomach.  Her brothers hardly ever called her, and never three times in a row.  This was inarguably an emergency. 

Still sitting at her desk, she called Cameron back.  He answered on the second ring.

"What the hell, Care?  We've been trying to get a hold of you all afternoon," was his only greeting.  "I called your apartment, too.  Where are you?"

"I'm at work.  I turned my cell off earlier and forgot to turn it back on," she explained, staring down at her trembling fingers as she spread her palm out on the desktop.  "What's wrong, Cam?"

Cameron sighed heavily on the other end, and Caroline could easily picture him squeezing his eyes shut and pinching the bridge of his nose.  "It's Mom.  She had a heart attack."

This was the very last thing Caroline could have ever expected to hear.  "She had a what?"

"A heart attack.  I know.  We were all...pretty shocked," Cameron admitted.

Caroline stared at the wall across from her desk, unseeing.  Her mother was quite possibly the healthiest person she knew, or had ever known.  At 55, she ate nothing but raw fruits, vegetables, and grains.  She alternated tai chi and yoga, six days a week.  She meditated four hours a day and had never touched any kind of medication, drugs, or alcohol.  If anything, Caroline was convinced that her mother had the potential to outlive even her own children.

"Is she..." Caroline swallowed hard against the unexpected lump in her throat.  "I mean, is she...okay?"

"She's...hanging on," Cameron replied.  "They had to do an emergency operation to put a stent in, and she just got out of that a little while ago.  She's still unconscious, and they're not letting me in to see her yet.  No one's told me much of anything besides the fact that she's alive."

Caroline nodded slowly.  "What hospital?"

"St. Johns in Santa Monica."

"Is Dad there?"

"Not yet.  I've been keeping him updated by phone.  Seth stopped by earlier, but he had to go to court until around seven tonight."

"Okay.  I'll be there as soon as I can," Caroline assured him.  "I'm sorry you couldn't get a hold of me earlier."

"It's okay, Care," Cameron replied.  "Hey, I'll see you soon, alright?  Drive safe."

Caroline hung up the phone and set it down on her desk carefully.  She knew that she should be hurrying out to her car, but a certain numbness had settled over her, gluing her to her seat.  She hadn't started crying yet, but her eyes burned with a strange dryness that made it difficult to blink.

She was still sitting, staring blankly, when JC appeared in the doorway.

"You're still here?  Hey, when you talked to Kevin earlier, did he say anything about..."  JC trailed off when he fully took in Caroline's expression.  "What's wrong?"

Caroline shook her head slowly and tried to speak, but nothing came out. 

"Caroline," JC prompted, stepping further into the room and tossing the notebook he held down onto the desk.  "You're freaking me out.  What happened?"

"It's...it's my mom," Caroline managed to say.  "She, um...she's in the hospital."

"What?"  JC braced his hands on her desk and leaned down to her level so that she would look him in the eyes.  "Is she okay?"

"She had a heart attack," Caroline said, the words sounding foreign to her ears.  "I've gotta go.  My brother's waiting for me."

She managed to stand up and pick up her purse, testing her own steadiness carefully before moving towards the door.  JC followed closely behind her.

"Which hospital?  I'll drive you."

"No, that's not necessary," Caroline insisted.  "I can drive."

"Caroline."  JC caught her elbow just outside the office and turned her to face him.  "You're as white as a sheet.  You look like you're about to pass out any second.  You're not okay to drive."

"I'll call a cab, then," she said, waving him away.  "You don't need to drive all the way down to Santa Monica for me."

"Hey."  JC snapped his fingers in front of her face as she attempted to move away, causing her to freeze.  "You're not getting a cab, I'm driving you.  Okay?  Come on."

JC got Caroline settled into his Jeep, even leaning across the console to buckle the seatbelt for her when she failed to do it herself.  She stared straight ahead on the entire drive to the hospital, still not sure what to think or how to react.  She'd been caught so incredibly off guard by the incident that her brain was having a hard time catching up with her heart.

Cameron was in the waiting room when they arrived.  If growing up with two older brothers had done anything to Caroline, it had definitely toughened her up.  They'd pulled her hair, sat on her, locked her out of the house, even tried to bury her in the backyard once, but Caroline wouldn't have traded either of them for the world.  Cameron was the eldest of the three siblings, and he'd matured from a bossy, obnoxious kid into a confident, levelheaded man.  He was the advice giver, the practical decision maker, and the sight of him calmed Caroline considerably.

He pulled her into a tight hug, kissing the top of her head.  "You okay?" he asked, and she nodded against his shoulder.

"Are you?"

"I'm good."  Cameron pulled back and smiled at her, squeezing her shoulders before his gaze shifted over her head.  Caroline glanced back to see JC standing awkwardly in the waiting room doorway.

"Cameron, this is JC, my boss.  JC, this is my brother, Cameron."

JC and Cameron shook hands.  "Nice to meet you," JC said politely, and Cameron nodded.

"You too."  Cameron glanced over his shoulder towards the nurse's station with a sigh.  "Well, she's still out, but they said that they can start letting visitors in within the hour."

Caroline let out a breath.  "Good.  That's good."

"Yeah.  But, I need to take off," Cameron started, and Caroline clutched at his arm. 

"What?  Cameron, you can't, you have to stay," she pleaded.  Cameron furrowed his eyebrows.

"Care, I've been here all day.  I've gotta get home to Megan and the kids," he pointed out, speaking of his wife of five years and Caroline's two nephews.  "Seth will be here as soon as he gets out of court.  Dad's showing a house in Malibu all day, but he promised to stop by as soon as he can."

The last thing Caroline wanted was to be alone at the hospital, but she spotted JC out of the corner of her eye, taking a seat on one of the plastic padded chairs.  She couldn't ask Cameron to stay when he had his own family to get home to.

"Alright.  Will you be back tomorrow?"

"Yeah."  Cameron squeezed her hand.  "Don't stay all night, okay?  Go home and get some rest when you can."  He glanced at JC again, whose attention was focused on a baseball game playing on the mounted television in the corner.  "Where's Brandon?"

Brandon.  Caroline made a mental note to call his hotel in San Francisco later.  "He's up north for a few days, playing a couple shows."

Cameron nodded and glanced at his watch.  "I gotta go.  You're okay?"

Caroline wasn't sure yet, but she nodded anyway.  "Give my love to Meg and the boys."

"I will."  He pulled her into another strong hug before heading for the exit.  "Good meeting you," he called to JC, who nodded.

Caroline stopped by the nurse's station to announce herself, but was told that she would have to wait a bit longer before getting to see her mother.  She spent the majority of her time either sitting, standing, or pacing slowly around the waiting room.  JC alternated between the baseball game and an old copy of Woman's Day that seemed to be the only magazine in the room.  They didn't speak.

Finally, a nurse in dark green scrubs appeared.  "Ms. Reed?"

"Yes."  Caroline crossed the room towards him, her hands clasped together. 

"Janice Sawyer is your mother?" the nurse confirmed, and she nodded.  "Well, she's recovering from an emergency coronary stent operation in order to clear a fairly severe blockage in her left circumflex artery.  She hasn't quite come around yet, but I'll let you in to see her in just a moment."  He glanced over Caroline's shoulder towards JC.  "If your husband doesn't mind waiting out here, I'd rather regulate the visitors to one at a time."

"He's not..." Caroline shrugged it off.  "That's fine."

The nurse led her to the correct room, and left her at the door to continue inside in privacy.  Caroline held onto the doorknob for a few seconds before pulling it open slowly. 

Seeing her mother lying in a hospital bed, her skin a pale white to match the starched sheets beneath her, was more than startling for Caroline.  She closed the door carefully and crossed the room in a tiptoe to stand next to the bed.  An IV and a heart monitor both were hooked up, and the rhythmic beeping of the machines somehow calmed Caroline as she looked down on her mother.

Janice's hair laid limp and loose against the pillow, the dark length interspersed with gray.  Caroline reached out to touch it carefully, smoothing it over her mother's shoulders.  She most always wore it pulled back in a braid, Caroline couldn't even remember the last time she'd seen it down.  The woman lying unconscious on the bed looked weak and frail, the delicate framework of her veins showing easily through translucent skin.  Caroline held onto the side of the bed for support, overwhelmed with emotion.  This was not the way she wanted to see her mother, ever, let alone for the first time in months.

There was a lone chair in the corner of the room, and Caroline took a seat, if nothing else just so she wouldn't fall over.  She tried to remember the last time she'd seen Janice, the last time she'd made an effort to connect with her mom.  It had been months ago, before she'd even gotten her new job.  Had she even called her mom to tell her when she'd been hired?  Caroline couldn't remember, and shame welled up from within her.

She watched the form of her sleeping mother for a while longer, guilt and fear turning over in her stomach until she felt sick.  Finally, she stood, pausing next to the bed for just a moment.

"I'm sorry, Mom," Caroline murmured, stroking the back of Janice's hand carefully, afraid that she might break should her touch linger too long.  But her mom didn't even stir, and Caroline moved towards the door.

Tears started to spill down her cheeks on her way back down the hallway, and by the time she reached the waiting room, she was on the verge of a breakdown.  JC looked up at her when she entered, and stood from his chair. 

Not completely sure of what she was doing, but knowing that it was the only option, Caroline stepped into JC's embrace as her sobs spilled forth.  He held her close, his hand rubbing slow patterns in her back as she buried her face in his sweater and cried.

She didn't know how long they stood there like that, but afterwards, Caroline was drained.  She let JC lead her to a nearby chair and glanced at him through swollen eyes as he sat next to her.  He held her hand in his own and rubbed his thumb over the back of it gently. 

"Was she awake?" he asked, and Caroline shook her head, using her free hand to wipe her eyes. 

"No, not yet." She spied the wet spot she'd left on his undoubtedly cashmere sweater and sighed.  "Sorry."

JC ignored her apology and somehow materialized a small package of travel tissues.  Caroline raised her eyebrow at him as she took it. 

"I bought them from the vending machine," he admitted.  "I thought I'd try to be prepared."

"You can't even get free tissues in a hospital anymore?"  Caroline pulled one out and dabbed at her eyes with it.  "What is this world coming to?"

"Your tax dollars at work," JC replied softly, and Caroline managed a half-smile.  "I know this is a dumb question, but are you okay?"

"I don't know," Caroline admitted.  "It's just...hard to see her like that.  I never thought...I mean, she's always been so healthy."

JC didn't say anything, just kept rubbing the back of her hand.  Oddly enough, the motion comforted Caroline, and she realized that she was thankful JC was there.  If nothing else, so that she wasn't alone.

"One time, when I was eight," he began suddenly, and Caroline glanced up at him, "my dad took me to the Museum of Industry, in Baltimore.  It was pretty cool, there were lots of planes and stuff you could climb around in.  I hit my head pretty good on the door of a helicopter, and I wouldn't stop crying, so my dad took me home.  I guess I fell asleep in the car, and my mom freaked out when my dad got me home, so they took me to the ER to make sure everything was okay.  I woke up in a hospital bed, all alone.  It was terrifying."  He sighed.  "I've hated hospitals ever since."

Caroline nodded; she wasn't the biggest fan, either.

"Anyway, I woke up screaming for my mom, and she came in and held my hand and she didn't ever leave me," JC said.  "She was by my side until they released me, and she held me in the car, and carried me up to bed at home.  She knew I was scared, and she stayed with me for as long as it took."  JC paused to shrug.  "She's always been there for me, she still is."

A moment of silence passed and he nudged Caroline's shoulder with his own.  "Come on.  You must have a good story about your mom."

Caroline thought it over, chewing on her bottom lip.  She had plenty of fond memories of growing up with her brothers, her dad...but most of what she recalled about her mother was shrouded with frustration and disappointment.  Because JC was watching her expectantly, she forced herself to dig deep.

"I guess...there was the time she took me to the beach for the first time," Caroline said finally.  "The first time I remember, anyway.  My mom's big into nature, and she loves the ocean.  She studied marine biology in college, actually, but she never got her degree.  Said the ‘industrial empire' was too cutthroat for someone like her.  Anyway, I was young...probably five or six.  And it was just me and her, my brothers were at school.  She took me early in the morning and we stayed there almost all day, walking around on the beach and picking up shells and just staring out at the waves." 

The memory had been buried so deep that Caroline was surprised by the vividness of it; she could still feel the sun on her skin and smell the salt in the air.  She could see the bright colors of her mom's flowing skirt, hear her voice as she sang.

"It was perfect," Caroline admitted.  "It was my favorite day."

JC squeezed her hand.  "That sounds nice."

Caroline looked at him, realizing that she'd never even told Brandon that story.  Brandon knew that she didn't get along with her mom, and they'd only ever met in person two or three times.  He didn't pry, he didn't ask about her more than was necessary.  Until this moment, Caroline had been thankful for that fact.

JC told a couple more stories about his childhood, including a humorous tale about his brother Tyler getting his belt loop stuck on a swing chain in their backyard.  "I let him hang there until my dad got home," JC admitted.  He even managed to get Caroline laughing.

"Are you hungry?" JC asked suddenly, glancing at his watch.  "It's 7:45."

Caroline shook her head, but knew she needed to eat something.  "Well.  Maybe just coffee, and some fruit if they have any."

She hadn't realized they'd been holding hands the entire time they'd been sitting there talking, and when JC stood up, her own hand felt cold resting against her knee.  "Okay.  You want to wait here?"

Caroline nodded, and watched JC leave the room.  She leaned back in the chair with a sigh, staring blankly up at the TV on the wall.  The game was over and the local news was on.

She'd only been alone for a minute when Seth appeared in the waiting room door, still wearing a suit and looking harried.

"Hey, finally."  She crossed the room towards him and Seth hugged her, kissing the top of her head much the same way Cameron had.  "Where've you been?  Cam said you would be here by seven."

"My case got called last," Seth replied, setting his briefcase down on a nearby chair.  "Any news?"

Caroline caught him up on their mother's condition, and Seth listened, his eyes darting around the room as she spoke.  She didn't take it personally, that was just the way Seth was.  He was always going, going, going, and he'd always been that way.  He had the same energy level at age 28 that he'd had when he was a hyper little kid.  In many ways, he was the opposite of calm, collected Cameron.

"So she's not even awake yet?" he asked, and Caroline shook her head. 

"Well, she wasn't when I went in there an hour ago."

"How did she look?"

Caroline felt her eyes cloud over again, out of nowhere.  "She, um...she didn't look good."

Seth sighed, resting his hand on his sister's shoulder.  "Shit.  Have you heard from Dad?"

"No, but Cameron said he would get over here as soon as he could."

JC returned then, juggling two cups of coffee and a few other things.  Caroline crossed the room to help him. 

"This is my brother Seth.  Seth, this is JC, my boss."

They shook hands and JC handed Caroline a shiny red apple.  "This was all they had for fruit.  It's kind of slim pickings down there.  I got you some crackers, too...I was trying to play it safe."

"Thank you," Caroline said, well aware of the way Seth watched them closely. 

"Sorry, I didn't know you would be here, or..." JC started, but Seth waved him off.

"Naw, I'm good.  I'm gonna see if I can find someone."  Seth headed for the nurse's station, and Caroline sat back down to drink her coffee.  It tasted relatively foul compared to the expensive brands she'd grown used to at JC's (she'd even started buying the same pricey roast to have at her own apartment, much to Brandon's disdain), but she choked it down anyway.  She took a bite of the apple, but it was mealy. 

JC sat down next to her.  "This brother looks more like you than the other one did."

"Cameron takes after my dad," Caroline replied.  "He's broad and wide.  My mom is tall and lanky, that's where Seth got it.  I'm kind of...in-between."

JC raised his eyebrows.  "You're not gonna go off on how fat you think you are, are you?  I thought you were better than that, Caroline."

"I don't think I'm fat," she said.  "Why, should I?"

"Definitely not," JC replied, glancing over at her indiscreetly.  Caroline shook her head. 

"Are you seriously hitting on me in the hospital waiting room?"

"Maybe," JC replied innocently, and Caroline knew she should be offended, but all she could manage was a quick eye roll before she had to turn her face away to hide her blush. 

Seth made his way back over to them.  "They said she's awake now, if we want to go in."

Caroline stood.  "Both of us?"

"Yeah."  Seth glanced at JC.  "Well, relatives only."

JC held up his hands.  "That's cool.  I'll wait here."

Seth nodded and headed for the hallway, but Caroline hung back.  "JC, if you want to take off, that's totally fine.  I'll just get a ride home from Seth."

"Your car's at my house," JC pointed out, crossing his ankles as he leaned back in the chair.  "I'm fine waiting."

"It could be awhile," Caroline pointed out.  "I really appreciate you driving me and...being here, but...it's really not necessary for you to stay any longer."

"I know," JC said simply.  "Go see your mom, okay?"

Caroline gave up and followed Seth down the hall.  If JC wanted to stay, she couldn't make him leave.  The real question in her mind was whether or not she wanted him to go at all.

A nurse was in the room with Janice when Seth and Caroline walked in.  She looked relatively better than before, probably because she was awake, but still tired and pale.  The nurse finished propping Janice up with some extra pillows before checking the various monitors and leaving the room.

Janice smiled at her children weakly.  "Hi, kids."

"Hey, Mom."  Seth bent down to kiss her cheek, and moved aside for Caroline.  Janice reached out towards her daughter, and Caroline returned her embrace obligingly, trying to remember the last time she'd hugged her mother.

"My darlings," she murmured, tucking Caroline's hair behind her ear.  She sounded as weak as she looked.  Seth sat down on the chair near the bed and Caroline stayed standing, crossing her arms over her waist.

"How are you feeling?" Seth asked, and Janice's eyelashes fluttered as she shrugged one bony shoulder.

"Oh, I've had better days."  She smiled up at them.  "I'm so glad you're both here."

"Cameron was here earlier," Caroline said.  "He had to leave, but he said he'd be by tomorrow."

Janice's smile faltered.  "Won't I be going home soon?"

Seth and Caroline exchanged a glance.  "You just had a heart attack, and a major surgery," Seth said slowly.  "I'm thinking they'll want to keep you for at least another 24 hours."

Janice closed her eyes with a sigh, and Caroline sat on the edge of the bed gingerly. 

"Mom, is there anything we can get you from home to make you more comfortable?" she asked.  Janice shook her head, her eyes still closed, and Caroline pressed her lips together, mentally praying for strength.

"I just can't bear to stay here," Janice lamented, reaching out for Seth's hand.  "Please, Seth.  Can you get me out of here?"

Seth sighed and Caroline pinched the bridge of her nose.  Here it went.

"Mom, I don't really have any control over that."

"Can't you go find a doctor?  Tell them I'm fine," Janice suggested, squeezing Seth's hand imploringly.

"It's better for you to stay here, Mom," Caroline said carefully.  "They need to observe you for a little while, make sure your heart is working correctly again."

"It's working fine," Janice insisted.  "I'm alive, aren't I?"

She threw her hands up and let them fall to her sides in abandon.  "All these machines, all this beeping.  And what is this they're pumping into me?"  Janice picked at the IV drip with disgust, and Caroline grabbed her hand.

"Mom, please.  We just want you to get better, okay?  So you can go home."

"Well, I'm not going to get ‘better' here," Janice shot back, "in this hellhole of chemicals and machinery."

"Why don't you make a list for Caroline?" Seth suggested.  "She can go pick up some stuff for you from home.  That will make you feel more comfortable."

Janice bemoaned her situation a bit longer, practically throwing a fit when the nurse came back in and asked if she'd like anything to eat or drink.  Caroline explained to the nurse that her mother was on a very careful diet, but the damage had been done.  The drama was out full force, and Caroline felt her head begin to ache.

Finally, a little before 9, Janice's doctor came in and asked Caroline and Seth to leave, as visiting hours were over.

"We'll be back tomorrow, Mom," Seth assured a sorrowful Janice as they left.  "With Cameron, too."

Caroline leaned against the wall once they were out in the hallway.  "I guess she's feeling better after all."

"Same old Mom, just a little more tired than usual."  Seth slung his arm around Caroline's shoulders as they started back towards the waiting room.  "At least we get to leave.  Poor hospital staff."

"Speaking of leaving, can I crash with you tonight?" Caroline asked.  "I left my car at JC's, and I don't want to have to go all the way back home and then drive out here tomorrow."

"Yeah, that's fine," Seth said.  "I have an early meeting with a bail bondsman tomorrow, but you can get a cab here and I'll meet you later."

They neared the waiting room and spotted JC inside, picking at a vending machine sandwich and back to flipping through the Woman's Day.  Seth caught Caroline's arm before she walked in.

"What's the story here?" he asked softly.  "Your boss takes you to the hospital and then waits around for three hours?"

Caroline shrugged.  "I was working when Cameron called, and JC didn't want me to drive.  He was just trying to be nice."

Seth's eyebrow quirked.  "Guess I've never had a boss that nice."

"It's not like that, Seth," Caroline insisted, keeping a close watch on JC, lest he look up and see them whispering outside the room.  "Don't make assumptions."

"Where's Brandon, anyway?" Seth asked.  "Shouldn't he be here with you?"

Caroline sighed, reaching up to rub her forehead.  Again, she'd forgotten to call Brandon.

"He's up north for a few days.  I need to call him."

Seth's eyes widened.  "He doesn't know yet?"

"Well, I've been kind of busy here," Caroline snapped, her voice carrying into the waiting room.  JC looked up, and Caroline shot her brother a quick dirty look before walking inside.

"Everything okay?" JC asked, setting his sandwich down and standing up.

"Yeah.  She's awake and...mostly back to normal."  Caroline paused to stifle a yawn.  "Look, I'm gonna go back to Seth's place in Culver City so I don't have to come all the way out here again tomorrow.  But I really do appreciate the ride, and you being here."

"Yeah, no problem."  JC picked up his jacket.  "Don't worry about coming in tomorrow, obviously."

Caroline had almost completely forgotten about work, and she cringed as she thought about how much more needed to be done before he left on Thursday.  "I'll see what I can get done from here, I'm sure I can find a business center somewhere in this place."

"Don't worry about it," JC repeated, holding up his hand.  "I'll make it work.  I did, at one point, exist without an assistant."

Caroline couldn't help but smirk.  "What a disaster that must have been."

JC clutched his heart.  "Ouch."

Mindful that Seth was probably watching their exchange, Caroline took a half-step  back.  "Thanks again, JC.  For everything."

"Yep."  JC paused, and a slight awkward moment passed where he possibly might have hugged her, but both of them were aware of Seth's presence in the room.  "I'll, uh...see you soon.  Have a nice night."

With that, JC waved politely at Seth and made his way out of the room.  Caroline watched him go, feeling inexplicably alone once he was gone.