Deep down, Luke knew that most likely everything would be fine. He and Bo had been in worse situations before and had come out okay. He couldn't pinpoint what exactly had him so frigtened. But since his time in Nam, it was all Luke could do to relinquish control over to someone whenever it involved himself. Truth be told, the only person he really trusted with himself was Bo...and that was soley because Bo had been his constant anchor, even when he was away.

Bo sighe softly as he just lay with Luke, offering as much support to his older cousin without words. He knew to Luke that actions meant a lot more than words could ever say and so he would keep quiet and just keep Luke close to him protectivly.

Luke remained quiet, thankful for the stillness in the room. Some people hated quiet...it made them uneasy. But Luke had never been one to talk much. So the silence in the room coupled with Bo's reassuring arm around him calmed him, like nothing else could.

For a long while the silence hung in the air, not an uncomfortable one but a peaceful, relaxing one which was very unusal with the two boys around. Very rare was it that Luke and Bo ever got a quiet moment to themselves and so they were glad for the times that they did get.

It was soon broken however by Luke's anethetist and surgeon entering the room to talk with Luke.

Luke swallowed looking up. "Is it time already?"

The surgeon shook his head a little, seeing how nervous Luke looked.

"No not yet...you've got another hour or so but we need to prep you for the surgery in around half an hour...I just need to talk with you about what's going to happen and answer any questions you've got first..."

Luke nodded. "So...what exactly...is going to happen?"

Bo squirmed a little, not really wanting to hear the details of the operation and looked to Luke, asking quietly.

"uh...you mind if I go...get a drink or something for a little bit..."

Luke nodded knowing Bo didn't do so well with bloody details. "Go ahead," he answered.

Bo nodded with a smile and hopped off the bed, heading out the door and down to find Uncle Jesse, wondering where the older man had gotten to.

The surgeon waited until Bo had left before answering Luke's question and headed over to the -rays.

"What we're going to do, is make an incision in your foot here..." He pointed to the x-ray "...then once we're inside we'll set about putting the bones back in the right place, put a couple of small pins in there to help the bones have something stable to repair against then close you up..."

Luke nodded his understanding. "How long...til I'm back on my feet?"

Jesse was on the phone, talking with Daisy.

Bo finally spotted him and headed over, leaning against the wall to wait until Jesse had finished his conversation with Daisy on the phone.

The surgeon sighed and looked to him.

"To be honest, it will take anywhere from 4-6 months for the bone to set properly...then after that you'll have to have therapy on your foot to help you walk on it again....that could take another couple of months..."

So Bo had been right. The news wasn't good for Luke who just looked down and nodded.

"Alright Daisy girl...we'll see you later then...bye..." said Jesse hanging up and turning to Bo. "That girl sure can talk," he said rubbing his ear.

Bo chuckled and nodded, having been on the recieving end of a phone conversation with Daisy before.

"You're tellin' me.."

The surgeon smiled a little and patted his shoulder.

"Look at it this way...it could have been much worse...the mule could have stepped hard enough to permanantly damage your foot beyong repair...i've seen that happen in a few cases..."

Luke nodded though the thought was anything but comforting.

Jesse looked at Bo. "So what's going on?"

Bo shrugged with his one shoulder.

"Luke's having his operation in about an hour, but he's being prepped for it in half an hour...the surgeon and anethatist is with him explainin' stuff..."

The anethatist then stepped forward.

"Now Luke i've looked over your records and apparently you don't react too well to anestethics?"

Luke squirmed a little. "No sir. I sure don't."

Jesse nodded. "Well, I guess all we gotta do now is wait. You doing alright?"

Bo nodded with a smile

"Just fine..."

The anethatist nodded.

"can you describe the reactions you get?"

"Well...I've stopped breathing before..I guess I've had a convulsion before...I don't really remember...I was out of it when it happened...all I know is what I was told," explained Luke.

"Good...good," said Jesse patting his good shoulder.

The anethatist nodded with a small frown.

"That sounds like an allergic reaction which means there;s something in the anesthetic that you are allergic to...I want to run a blood test and find out what that is to make the surgery as safe for you as possible under the anesthetic..."

Luke sighed a little nodding. "Do whatcha gotta do."

The anethatist nodded and asked for the doctor to perform the blood test while he went to talk to another patient and to inform him of the results before heading out the room.

Luke wasn't afraid of needles like Bo was, but he hated blood work still. Setting his jaw, he held out his arm and waited for the inevitable.

The doctor arranged the things he needed and swiftly had the blood sample drawn from Luke's arm before Luke even knew what had happened.

Luke set back in the bed breathing a sigh of relief. It was some comfort that these doctors seemed to know what they were doing. Still, he wished Bo was here.