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Elon was the first person to meet them when they were finally released from Parkview. They had heard he was kicking up a lot of fuss on the outside, even going so far as to push Walter Peck to try and speak up for their release. He had come to visit as much as he could and was eventually banned when he was caught trying to slip Egon something he could use to break out of his straitjacket.
Egon’s twin practically pounced on his brother in the lobby of the hospital, refusing to let Egon take another step. “Raise your arms,” he commanded, pushing them up without waiting.
“Elon…” Egon sighed.
“You lost weight in there,” Elon muttered, frowning as he ran his hands over his brother’s arms, over his chest, and down his sides. “Roll your shoulders. Bend your arms, Egie. I promise if there’s even a hint of a mark of red on you I will burn this place to the fucking ground!” he snarled.
Egon sighed but couldn’t help but listen to his brother. He bent his arms at the wrists and elbows, showing Elon that the joints had no pain or damage to them. He allowed Elon to check him for any damage or signs of abuse, biting the inside of his cheek as he heard Elon start to cry. “Why are you crying?” he finally asked.
“They had no right to do this!” Elon said, unable to fight the tears that fell down his cheeks. “They put my baby brother in a straitjacket! Look at you! If you weren’t released from there soon I was going to use some of my Wastebuster equipment and smash this place to the ground to get to you!”
“Please don’t openly talk about such things,” Walter whispered with a sigh, running a hand over his face. “I cannot afford to bail you out again.”
Egon could feel his eyes start to burn with tears as Elon ran his fingers through his hair, trying to fix and smooth it out. He told himself he would not cry, fighting back the tears as Elon continued to cry about his treatment at the hospital. He focused his attention on the ground, unable to meet Elon’s gaze.
Then Elon placed a warm hand on his cheek. Tears started to fall in anticipation of what was to come as Elon cupped his face between both palms, tilting his head up to lock eyes with him. Their foreheads were pressed together and finally all of the stress and worries of the past week or so in this place came out as Egon burst into tears.
The Spengler twins comforted each other with soft words and promises of being more careful. Elon wiped Egon’s face as best as he could, sniffling as they both tried to get under control. He looked up when he heard someone clear their throat, blinking over at Ray.
The Ghostbuster was blushing, shifting from one foot to the other as he wrung his hands. “I was wondering…” he softly said.
“What is it?” Elon asked.
“…can I have one too?” Ray asked.
Elon and Egon shared a look. Egon smiled and Elon could only laugh through his tears, nodding as he reached out and pulled Ray over to gently bump their foreheads together. “Who else?”
Winston was the next to receive a gentle pressing of the foreheads, chuckling as he shook his head. “A headbutt never felt so good!” he said.
Peter tried to look uncaring, refusing to look at everyone around him. “I’m not five,” he insisted. He was grabbed by the others, protesting as each one took turns pressing their foreheads to his. By the end of it his eyes were wet, tears he had been refusing to shed finally falling now that he had permission.
“Come on,” Egon said, being the first to pull himself together. “We’ve got some work to do.”
“You were just kidding about vandalizing the hospital, right?” Walter asked as they headed for their car. Elon smiled at him and Walter wasn’t sure he liked that for an answer.