Twenty-Four Seven

Drew was pretty sure he was dreaming of the ice cream he had convinced Brianna to share with him earlier that night when a sharp jab in the ribs woke him with a start. "Night worker, sleep vital," he mumbled out loud, but when he forced his heavy eyelids open, Rick was leaning over him with a grim expression. "Who died?" he asked sleepily. "You know the rules, three days a week seven a.m. is bedtime for some people."

"Get up," Rick urged and suddenly Drew realized he was clutching his cell phone as delicately as if it might explode. "I just had Topher on the phone; there was a missile attack on the refugee camp in Syria."

"What?" Drew lurched upright, fully alert now, and stared at his husband in horror. He didn't have to ask the question on his mind for an answer to come.

"Apparently a chopper is on the way back to San Antonio Memorial right now. Syd and T.C…they were hit."

"Who else knows?" Drew asked faintly, picturing Jordan's hysterical meltdown a few weeks ago when the hospital's vengeful suicide bomber had felt she didn't know what it was like to lose the people she loved the most.

"Topher said he called up Jordan as soon as the news broke. It sounded really bad."

"What about Syd's ex in D.C? God, I still remember how hard Bri took losing Avery…Riley's the same age. She's such a good girl; it's not fair."

"No, it's not," Rick agreed; "Come here." Drew hadn't even realized he needed the hug until Rick's arms were around him, squeezing firmly. "I love you. If you want to go down there, I can watch Brianna right now. It's so early, but this feels like a night shift family thing. I mean, it's Syd and T.C."

"I told him to be careful," Drew groaned; "Goddamn reckless Irish blood and warring Turks do not mix." He gave his husband a grateful kiss before climbing out of bed. "I'll see you later, babe, I need to find out how bad this business really is."

It felt like an eternity before Drew reached the hospital with the worry gripping his heart. As soon as the E.R doors slid open, Topher looked up from the nurses' station and dragged him inside. "I wasn't sure you'd come," he confessed. "I know this is awful timing since you guys just got Brianna to yourselves, but…"

"War never has good timing, Toph," Drew cut him off. "How are they?"

"T.C's okay," Topher told him. "He left the medical tent right before the missile hit, so we've just got him on a touch of oxygen to clear up the inhalation of dust and smoke. He's going to beat himself up for ages, as he does, but that's the good news."

"Thank God," Drew breathed, but the anxiety hadn't passed yet. "What about Syd? Did you call her ex-husband in D.C? How is she?"

"I had Mollie call him; this felt like something a nurse with her finesse should inform the family of." Topher's hesitant tone told Drew all he needed to know. "It's bad, Drew. The shrapnel from the missile went right for her head. By the time the helicopter got here, there was no brain activity. I'm really sorry." The last time he had seen the younger medic looking this distraught was when Brianna's first lung donor didn't match, the desperation and disbelief was a painful sight. "Her family should be here in a couple of hours. I'll give you a minute."

Before Topher could walk away, Drew's hoarse voice broke the heavy silence. "Where are T.C and Jordan? I feel like she'll get it, you know? Army girlfriend, this feeling would have been a constant, right?"

"Maybe you're right," said Topher slowly. "She's not his girlfriend anymore though."

"She's the one holding his hand right now," said Drew dismissively. "Those two live in denial."

"That they do," the night shift chief agreed and pointed him towards the room where T.C had been taken. "See you later, buddy. I'll let you know when Syd's family gets here, okay?"

"Thanks, Toph," said Drew hastily, then whipped around and headed off in search of his friends. Jordan would understand the hollow desperation in his gut better than anyone else here right now. Elsewhere in the hospital, the oxygen mask strapped to T.C's face was drawing him closer to awareness with every passing minute. Jordan's face came into focus at his bedside, her green eyes damp and wide in fear. He lifted his arm with frustrating difficulty and touched her cheek, desperate to stop her looking so scared. Jordan closed her eyes to revel in the relief of his touch fully and didn't even hear the footsteps behind her until T.C squeezed her fingers, bringing her back to the present. "Hi, guys."

At the misery in Drew's voice, Jordan finally wrenched her gaze from T.C's soot-coated face. "Hi sweetie," she said softly; "I heard about Syd, I…I'm really sorry."

"You still sound like a mother, you know that?" Drew told her, and her sympathetic smile faltered. "Please don't be all soft and gentle right now, if you be nice I'll cry."

"What's wrong with that?" Jordan demanded. "Syd is your friend; you're allowed to be upset."

"Soon I'll have a motherless thirteen-year-old and a widower to deal with, that's what's wrong with it. I don't want to be a mess when Riley gets here. She deserves all the support in the world, that's why I'm here."

"You don't have to be brave all the time, you know," she told him. "That's very noble of you, but speaking as someone who has actually lost a parent, believe me when I tell you it helps sometimes to see how much other people care. Tears are always a part of that."

"That's a little hypocritical, J, you hardly ever cry," Drew pointed out and she shrugged dismissively.

"I never said my way is right; a little vulnerability never hurt anyone. Riley knows you care about her."

They were distracted by the sound of strained breathing, and T.C ignored Jordan's protests when she saw him holding the oxygen mask away from his mouth. Drew noted a very familiar guilty look in his dark eyes. "I'm sorry, Drew," he said simply, every word an obvious struggle. "Syd even told me she never wanted to work with me again; I cause trouble wherever I go. I walked out of the camp just before the missile hit…it should have been me."

"You take that back," Jordan snapped, clamping the plastic oxygen mask back over T.C's mouth. "Take it back, right now!"

He eyed her wearily; unable to say anything else and only looked up when Drew's hand squeezed his. "She's right, T. You remember I told you to damn well come home safely?" He took a deep breath while the dark-haired man nodded reluctantly. "Well nobody said everyone would make it back in one piece. It's a war zone, man, clearly in no way your fault. Understand?"

T.C lifted the mask again, looking ready to use every ounce of his energy to argue his guilt but before he could speak Topher peered into the room. "Hey, Drew? Syd's family just arrived; do you wanna talk to them?"

Drew closed his eyes for a moment to brace himself for the daunting conversation which lay ahead. Jordan slipped the hand not clinging to T.C's into his and squeezed, the gentle pressure bringing him crashing down to the reality of the situation. "I have to," he said resolutely and moved past Topher in the direction of the trauma ward. Mollie was already briefing a burly man who had Riley clinging to his hand on Syd's condition. A blonde woman with the tiniest swell of a baby bump beneath her cotton shirt stood beside the pair, looking sad at whatever Mollie was telling them.

The teenager spotted him first and broke away from her father to lurch into Drew's arms, so suddenly she almost threw him off balance. "Drew!"

"Hey, Riles," he said sadly. "How was your flight?"

"Tell me it's not true," the thirteen-year-old begged, no hint of the usual sparkle visible in her hazel eyes. "Tell me that Mom's okay and this is all a mistake."

"I-I wish I could, sweetheart," Drew stammered, rubbing her back consolingly as the girl continued to cling desperately.

"Riley," the blonde woman said gently, stepping forward to try and pry the girl from Drew's arms. "It's going to be okay, honey."

"Shut up, Lexie!" the girl snapped, strands of bushy hair coming loose when she whipped around to glare at her stepmother. "It's not okay…it's not okay."

"Apologize to Lexie, Riley Ann Jones," her father said sternly, and his daughter crossed her arms defiantly and planted herself next to Drew.

"My name is still Riley Jennings, Dad," she said with a huge scowl. "You blamed Mom for going off to war, but she's still my Mom. She's still my Mom, not Lexie!"

"Sam, do something," said Lexie, eyeing her husband reproachfully when Riley turned and fled towards Syd's room.

Riley's father shrugged helplessly, but he hadn't missed the way Drew was staring after the distraught girl. "Will you try and talk to her?" the balding man asked wearily. "Things with Syd got so ugly; there's no way that I can get through to Riley right now. I care about my ex-wife but we just…haven't had anything but Riley in common in a really long time. The kid obviously trusts you."

"She's a very special girl," said Drew pointedly. "Strong, too, just like her Mom."

"Yes, well…" Sam trailed off awkwardly and motioned after his daughter. "Please do something?"

Drew turned without a word in the direction of Syd's room, suppressing the dread at what he would find. The only sound in the room was the steady beeping of the heart monitor, the one observing her brain activity was a hopeless flat line. He didn't hear it immediately but after some time the muffled sobs coming from behind the closed bathroom sliding door mingled with the beeping machine. He slid it open hesitantly and found Riley sitting hunched over on the floor against the glass wall of the shower cabin. "Can I join you?" he asked softly, and the teenager nodded, attempting to wipe her teary eyes subtly. "Your Dad's trying, Riles," he started carefully, and Riley stiffened.

"He hates Mom for joining the army," she said. "He keeps dissing her, but I was always proud of what she did. I don't wanna lose my Mom, Drew. She's my hero!"

"She knew that, champ," he told her earnestly. "When I served with her all she could talk about was coming home to you. She was so proud of you."

"I couldn't look at her out there," Riley whimpered. "I just panicked seeing all the machines. But I feel like I have to look, you know? Will you come with me? I have something I need to tell her."

"Of course I will." Drew pulled the trembling girl to her feet and pressed her close to him as they left the bathroom and approached the bed where Syd lay. He didn't point out that Syd was brain-dead already, remembering how cathartic it had been for Brianna to say goodbye when her foster mother Avery passed away. "I'll stay right here if you want me to."

"Yes please," Riley whispered, clinging to his hand as she stared at Syd's bandaged head, bruised eyelids the only visible slits in the dressing. "I…I love you, Mom," she said; "Twenty-four…god, I wish you could say it back because I…"

"Seven," Drew interrupted under his breath and Riley turned to stare at him in wonder. "Twenty-four seven, right?"

"You know about our thing?" Riley marveled.

"I heard your Mom on Skype a few times," he confessed. "Hearing you say seven to her twenty-four or vice versa used to keep her going over there. She loved you twenty-four seven, every minute of every day. We all knew it watching her throw herself into the work to make you proud."

"I can't remember the last time I was really paying attention when we talked," said Riley miserably. "I got so caught up with Dad and Lexie's wedding. I can't believe she's really gone."

Her lips quivered pitifully and Drew enveloped her in another strong hug. "She'll always be with you, kid. And you know, if it's okay you'll always have someone who loves you here in Texas."

"Twenty-four seven?" Riley asked shakily, staring up at him with hopeful eyes and Drew touched Syd's burned hand gently before he answered solemnly.

"Twenty-four seven, I promise." This time when the thirteen-year-old burst into tears, he was ready for it and held her with the unfortunate experience Brianna's loss of Avery had given him. When Sam and Lexie eventually found their way to Syd's bedside, Riley was calmer in the knowledge that though her mother was gone, she had a friend who'd cared deeply for Syd, forever.

A / N This has been in progress since the tragic cliffie of the season 3 finale. I loved Syd and Drew's friendship with Riley, so something had to come of it. Enjoy! xx