On the twenty-first day the kids just stare out the window, Emily stands next to Elijah which has little red-haired Lia sitting on his shoulders. She's too short and can't see out the window by just standing against it so her bigger cousin helps her.
For a moment Nathan thinks that maybe it's better if they see nothing, but once again Nathan doesn't think much anymore. These days are all the same, the same waiting, the same withe walls, and the same two bodies lying on beds doing nothing... This is so like Sam's and yet he keeps thinking, praying really, it can't be like Sam's because they are Sophie and Parker and they both have been through too many shitty situations to die like that...
That was neither a simple nor a safe job; still they all decided to take it for some silly reason... They needed two grifters and Parker was actually pretty good this time, playing her part smoothly... until they were abducted, taken to some placed and tortured like hell; their coms were still on and after the first fifteen minutes Hardison got sick, run for the toilet and didn't come back. The mastermind would have seen it all if a sleepy voice hadn't interrupted him.
He turned around to see his boy standing on the hallway entrance rubbing his eyes.
-Is that mom screaming? What's going on? - He walked forwards, more alert now, worried...
He spent the rest of the night lying to his son, trying to calm him down, off course; it didn't work - That was Sophie's son, he could see right through his daddy's eyes...
After three they finally found them, Parker was conscientious only for a moment "Sophie... Lia..." and they saw the light vanish from her yes. Sophie was kept inside another room, one where he wasn't allowed ago, her heart stopped the moment they got to the van.
Now, on the twenty-first day the kids just stare through the windows, Nathan doesn't think much and Hardison himself seems absent, like he is in a coma too, except for the part where he is awake and there are tears falling from his face.
Eliot isn't around much, he is too busy tying all the loose ends, making sure none of that will do more damage than what already has; however, whenever he has free time, he comes to see them all, he brings them some real food, soup for the children and natural juices for all. He even tries to take the three of them home, distract them, give them a bath and change their clothes; they just won't leave their places and Eliot gets to a point where he just thinks if their dads aren't making them who is he to do it?
On the twenty-third day Hardison wakes up after finally giving in on sleeping and the kids aren't there, he gets up from his seat and goes to look for them.
He finds Emily and Lia sneaking inside another patient's room.
-Please sir, pretty please. - Emily says, head with long brown curls and wide blue eyes. - We are so hungry...
-No! - The man states. - Why won't you ask your parents to feed you, hu? - Emily starts to pout and her expression is so convincing, she definitely comes after her mother...
-They called home and daddy won't tell us what's going on. He's in a room alone would mom, but Lia sneaked in and she says mom is totally covered by a sheet. - She looks down at her feet, Lia just stares at her and he can tell she's a bit confused by that entire act. - I don't think she's asleep...
The man is now starting to cry.
-Well, I don't have any money with me... I guess I can give you my jelly...
Elijah is at the snack machine waiting with a small soda and cookies. He opens the soda and gives it to his little sister as well as the cookies.
-Eat, you need it.
-Where did you get the money? - Emily asks suddenly. Elijah shrugs.
-I lifted a wallet.
-Mom and daddy told us not to do that! - She's mad at him; Lia isn't; right now she only cares about her jelly.
-Look, I had to! - His hands are curled into fists, the kid has some attitude.
-Why? Why did you have to?
-Because you're hungry and I have to take care of you! I'm the older one! - He rubs the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes. - Just eat, Okay? - She hands him half the cookies.
-I want you to eat too. - Her voice is lower now, calmer. - Daddy's older... - And he knows exactly what she means.
-Daddy can't even take her of himself...
That's the moment Hardison decides to show, those kids have enough on their plates already.
-Hey, there you are. - And he fakes a very big smile. - Who's hungry? I'll take you to the bar.
They walk just a few feet until Emily stops him by standing on his way.
-There's something weird about you! -She's scrutinizing him, she says it so matter-of-factly accusing he feels intimidated, even though she's only five.
-What do you mean? - Elijah asks, now, he's standing on his way too.
-It's odd: his smiling, but his eyes are sad... - Yep, she definitely has her mother's reading skills.
-That's just because he's faking the smile now, come on, I want to eat something. - The boy shrugs and starts walking again, his sister follows him "What do you mean, faking?"
Lia squeezes one of his fingers with her tiny hand.
-Daddy, don't let go of me… - She seems so lost his heart cracks.
On the twenty-fifth day the women are stable enough to leave the ICU and they're finally allowed to receive visitors, Hardison and Nathan doesn't even approach them; instead they let the kids took over their moms, took over their despair...
Emily and Elijah stand next to Sophie and the girl starts to tell her about a dream she had while the boy softly strokes her dark hair. Nathan stares at them, it almost looks like she's just a sleep; it's almost looks like they're a happy family except they aren't because his beloved wife is in a coma...
Lia reacts differently, she grabs her mother's arm with all the strength her small limbs allow her to and starts whispering "Please wake up, please wake up, please wake up". As she speaks her tone gets louder and louder until she's screaming and crying at the same time. When Alec finally grabs her she's holding the grip on Parker's arm so tight he thinks she might hurt the thief.
He pulls her into his lap and seats on the floor, enclosing her on his arms, pushing her closer to his chest, trying to calm her down.
-It's Okay sweetie. - He says it, but he doesn't know exactly what part of it all is okay.
-No! I already lost a mom; I don't want to lose another one... - Once again Alec's heart cracks.
Only six months ago when Hardison and Parker decided to have child she stated there was no way in hell she was getting pregnant since there were so many children in the world who needed her love, Lia was the chosen one, an orphan just like them. She had just started to trust them when all of that happened... He wishes he could shelter from all of that, he wishes he could keep her as safe as she needs, but he can't...
On the next day a nurse finds out there are three small children hanging with Nathan and Hardison on the waiting room, she decides to be nice and brings them some toys and a drawing book with a set of crayons from the pediatric wing.
Lia got back to staring through the window that allows her to look inside the room and watch her mom; the three year-old is on her tiptoes with her head leaned up in order to see something.
Emily grabs a brunette doll and starts rocking like a baby, she says she's going to heal her and Hardison thinks his niece is unconsciously projecting her mom on that doll.
Elijah doesn't play with any of the cars the nurse brought; instead he grabs the drawing pad and starts drawing whatever is on his mind.
Nathan only notices what it is when it's almost done, it shocks him the boy is being so cold, it infuriates him, his boy is facing a truth he's so afraid of, a truth they all fear... It's a picture of two graves, one has Sam's name on it; the other just says mom.
-What's that? - He asks and his tone his aggressive, the boy gets up from his knees and shows him the drawing, he rips it in little pieces not noticing Emily is staring at him. -Why would you draw that? - He doesn't answer. - Why would you draw that, hu? - He's still silent. Everything is. Nathan grabs him by his holders and starts shoving him back and forward. -Answer me!
When Elijah doesn't his motions take over him and he hits the boy, when the boy still doesn't answer he hits him again and again and again, he doesn't see anything anyone, he doesn't feel anymore, only the anger and the anger is killing him, suffocating him.
Nathan stops when a heavy body takes him to the ground, keeping him there, and he finally starts to see again.
He sees the target of his anger is a seven-year old boy, a scared little boy who has his mother's dark eyes and it hurts so much... He looks around, Lia is still staring out the window as if nothing happened and Hardison is trying to consulate his daughter.
Emily somehow managed to fit her tiny body under a coffee table, she's trembling a lot, she's crying and by the way she sobs he knows she's hyperventilating. Hardison pulls her from under the table embracing her the same way he hugged Lia the day before.
The wait lifts above him letting him free. It's Eliot who walked into the scene.
-Control yourself Nathan! He's just a kid; he's suffering as much as you are! - That's all he says before he walks to the boy to check on his blooding lip.
Nate approaches Emily, her daughter his still crying on her uncle's protecting arms. He kneels on the floor next to her.
-Come here, girl. Come here sweetheart. It's okay... - His attempts to comfort her are vain, she hugs Hardison harder, hiding her face on his chest.
-Don't touch me! Go away! - He does...
On the thirty day Parker wakes up, she panics and tries to pull the tub on her throat as well as the IV. A doctor comes and tries to calm her down; he takes the tube on her throat away and tries to explain where she is. It doesn't work, the thief is out of her mind, panicking and trying to flee away. There are two doctors and three nurses trying to immobilize her when Lia escapes from Uncle Eliot's grip and enters the room.
-Mommy! - She says so loud the words actually spread on the walls, on the ceiling; it fills the air. Parker stops, the doctors and the nurses stop, the girl is the one moving.
Seconds later the girl is hugging a very confused Parker, she's still confused, but as the memories of her child start to form in her mind, overshadowing the scary blur that's everything else, she relaxes and holds the girl back.
During the next two days Hardison and Lia just seem jubilant while Elijah and Emily fall into much darker places, not even Eliot is able to make them eat now. They stare at Parker with envy and hate in their faces, is not they don't like her; however, they are children and they'd rather see their mom awake then their aunt...
Parker on the other hand feels bad too, she feels guilty and the worst part; when Nathan asks her what happened she doesn't know how to answer.
-What have they done to her? - She shakes her head in confusion, the corners of her mouth down in embarrassment.
-I don't know... They were going to take me and she conned them into taking her instead. I never saw her again after that...
Happily Sophie also wakes up, two and half weeks later. Parker was moved to another room so Hardison and Lia are not there. Nathan is fallen on the couch and the children are sleeping against her bed when she opens her eyes.
She reacts pretty much the way Parker did, but when's she's told she's in a Hospital she calms down and the doctors don't have to hold her still.
The hard moment comes when Nathan tries to touch her and she curls up on a ball under the sheets screaming at him no touch her, there's a moment when he feels she's not even talking to him, a moment when he knows her mind went backwards and she's going through the torture all over again.
Once again the children are the ones that do the good deed; they climb on top of the bed and push the sheets away so she can see them. Emily strokes her harm and Elijah starts singing a nursery rhyme she used to sing for him whenever he had nightmares. Surprisingly, it works...
Three months passed by and everything is better now. Eliot is downstairs cleaning the kitchen, he made Pizza because the kids asked them to and when it comes to children Eliot's is not as harsh as he wants to show.
Hardison is in the kitchen with him, he's not doing anything, but he knows Eliot likes the company so he stays with him until all the cleaning is done.
Nathan crosses the hallway and opens the door that leads to Parker's and Hardison's room. She's lying with bed with Lia spread across her lap and Emily and Elijah lying one at each side. She's telling them when of her thief stories, it's not exactly a fairy tale and most of the time Nathan is sure that those stories are not good influences on the kids, but once again, they were never normal so why should they now?
His room is the last on the left, he opens the door silently not to startle Sophie still, when he grabs her from behind, by the waist she gets a little bit scared, her muscles completely relaxing after he says "It's just me".
He kisses her gently on the neck, earning a soft moan from her. Even though they are not totally okay now, he knows they're going to be. They all are...
This is it, I'd love some feedback. Did you love it, hated it? Tell me anyway…