Chapterrrrrr 4. =] Enjoy. More to come.
At the sight of Brandon coming back, this time with both Lena and Stef behind him, Callie gently, but quickly nudged Jude in order to get him to wake up.
Stef smiled at the boy who was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, but trying to act as though he didn't just wake up from a nap.
She and Lena took a seat on either side of their children and Brandon stood in front of them, wanting to be there for his siblings and his parents.
"So." Stef said, as she grabbed Callie's hands and held them in her own, while Lena rubbed her hand up and down Jude's back. "Your sister is doing alright. She is going to be really sore for a while and might have some nightmares, but we can all hep her through this." Stef continued as she looked at all of her children.
Callie nodded, not wanting to say anything as she feared if she opened her mouth to speak, the tears would start.
"What about Jesus?" Jude's small voice asked as he leaned into Lena, drawing on her strength.
Both moms sighed and looked at one another. Lena could feel her chest tightening at the thought of her son's condition, so she indicated with her head that Stef should be the one to talk.
"Well, my loves, Jesus has to go back in for another surgery. He has some bleeding in his brain and they need to go in again to make sure that they fix it." She wanted to tell them the truth; she figured they had so many other people lie to them that they deserved the truth. However, she wanted to say it in a way that was clear to all of her children that they had a plan for him and for the moment, he was going to be alright.
Callie felt her eyes prick as the tears began to form. "Is he... uhh" She tried to remain calm, but the memories were flooding back. She had just found her forever family and one of them could end up the way her mother did. It wasn't fair. "Is he going to be..." She continued, but suddenly stood up. "I've gotta go to the bathroom." She said quickly as she got up and all but ran towards the bathrooms.
Stef sighed as she looked at where her daughter was sitting and then over to Lena, who by then had taken Jude into her arms and was whispering in his ear.
She looked from her wife to her sons and wondered how they were all going to make it through this difficult situation with so many of her babies hurting.
"I'm so glad you were able to make it to my performance, Ana."
"I'm just glad I was able to get up and make it there physically. This baby is coming sooner rather than later."
"Ohh! I'm so excited! I can't wait to meet her!"
"You're going to be an amazing big..."
"ANA! WATCH OUT!"
Mariana woke up from the sound of her own screams. As she looked around, it took her a minute to remember where she was and why she was there.
Seconds later, she heard the door open and a nurse appeared. "Are you alright?" She asked with a concerned look on her face.
"Where's Ana? Where's Jesus? Where is my baby sister?" She blurted out, wincing at the sharp pain in her ribs as she moved slightly.
"Woah, woah, woah." The nurse responded as she tried to steady the girl. "Just relax. We need to make sure that you're doing better, ok?"
"No! You don't understand! I need to know if they are ok!" She tried again as she pushed the nurse's hands away and tried to sit up. "Ahhhh" Mariana grabbed her side and fell back down on the bed as the pain from her broken ribs seared through her body. She exhaled deeply and a sob escaped. "I want my moms" She cried, not caring if she sounded pathetic. She knew she could get her moms to tell her what was actually going on. "I want my moms!" She used the little amount of energy she had left to plead to the nurse.
"Ok, sweetie. I'll go find them." She nodded with a sad smile, checked her monitors once more, and slipped out the door.
Minutes later, Mariana heard a soft knock on the door, followed by it opening and both moms quickly entering. They both made their way to their daughter who by then had large tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Oh, my baby." Stef sighed as she pulled a chair next to her daughter on one side of the bed; Lena following suit on the other side.
Mariana's tears seemed to fall harder when each mom took one of her hands. "Where... where... how..." She tried to speak while inhaling deeply, but her sobs kept getting in the way.
"Shhhhh, sweetheart. Take a deep breath." Lena cooed as she put her hand on her daughter's forehead. "That's it. In and out. You're ok, my love."
Mariana waited for the flow of tears to slow before trying again. "Where is Jesus?" She got right to the question that she feared most. The look her mothers gave one another made her immediately think the worst and she felt her stomach turn.
At the sight of her daughter paling, Stef quickly addressed the question. "He's in surgery, baby. He's alright." She didn't think her daughter could handle the entire truth, but she needed to know he was still alive.
Visible relief flashed across her face as the color began to seep back into her skin. She exhaled deeply before continuing. "What about Ana and my baby sister?" She asked in a small voice.
Both moms knew they had to have this talk with both their children at some point, but they hadn't had much time to discuss how they were going to explain to their children that they mother was dead and their baby sister was in surgery, which they had found out themselves only minutes before from one of the nurses.
Lena got up from her chair and sat down on the bed beside her daughter. She scooted down so she was lying parallel to her and used her fingertips to draw random patterns on her arm in the hopes of soothing her already tense daughter.
"Ana didn't make it, baby." Stef said with as much love and compassion as possible. She had no other thoughts as to how to break the news to her daughter. "And your sister is in surgery. We don't know much on her status." She confessed.
Both Lena and Stef were waiting for the much anticipated tears to fall, but were confused when they didn't.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" Lena asked as she tried to capture her daughter's gaze, which had become fixated on the wall in front of her.
When their daughter still did not respond, Stef took her hand and squeezed it gently. "Come on, Mariana. Talk to us." She shot Lena a concerned look before concentrating back on the girl.
The three sat in silence as both Stef and Lena racked their brains with what to do. Their daughter wasn't talking. Lena knew this was a possible coping mechanism, but she was nowhere near certified to know what to do with it and how to approach it.
Finally, after 10 minutes of silence, Lena cleared her throat. "Mom and I are gonna go check on the other kids, ok baby?" Mariana's only response was to squeeze tighter to her mother's shirt, which was right next to her, as Lena was still on the bed.
Lena looked at Stef who bit her lip in a loss as to what to do.
"Mari, love." Lena said as she tilted the girl's face towards her own, only to be met with unfocused eyes that seemed to look right through her. "Baby I'm going to talk to the doctor to see how long you need to be here and mom is going to check on Jesus. Ok? We're going to be right back. I promise." She explained, though she had no idea if the girl even knew what she was saying.
Once again, Lena tried to get off of the bed, but the grip on her shirt tightened, though the girl remained still and silent.
Lena exhaled deeply and looked to Stef before looking back down at her daughter. "Ok, sweetie. I'll stay here with you. Mom is going to go check on your brother and find your doctor. Ok? I'll stay right here with you." Lena said as she pushed the hair away from her daughter's face.
Stef nodded at this and stood up. She leaned down, kissed her wife on the lips and left a lingering kiss on her daughter's forehead. "You're gonna be alright, my baby." She whispered before planting one last kiss on the girl's temple and exiting the room.
"Yes you are. You're gonna be alright." Lena agreed as she scooted further down into the bed and felt Mariana curl up as close as possible to the mother. Lena sighed at this new response, but wrapped her arms as gently around her daughter as possible, hoping to pass some of her strength on to her grieving daughter.
"You're positive?" Stef asked.
"Yes ma'am. She has to stay here overnight for further observation, but if the doctor clears it, you may discharge her tomorrow." The nurse responded as she flipped through some charts.
She sighed and nodded her head. She understood, but it didn't make it any better. She wanted to take her daughter home. She wanted to hold her and talk to her in the privacy of their own house.
"Ok. Uhh and has Dr. Anderson given any sort of update on my son?" She asked, though she had a feeling she knew what the answer was.
"No, sorry ma'am. He is still in surgery." She explained right as the phone began to ring. "Excuse me for a moment." She said as she reached over to pick up the phone.
Stef nodded and stepped away from the nurse's desk before pulling out her phone and dialing her ex's number.
"Hey Mike. Yeah. Oh Brandon told you. Yeah they're alright for the moment." She didn't want to have the entire conversation again, so she got right to the point of her call. "Do you think you could come pick up B, Callie and Jude and bring hem home?" She checked her watch. "They've been here for over 2 hours and I don't want them sitting out in the waiting room alone." She explained. "Oh, oh thank you. Yeah I don't know if Lena had dinner finished before they left, but I'm sure they haven't eaten much here." She explained as she began to walk to the waiting room. "Thank you, Mike. I really appreciate it. Bye." She hung up the phone as she turned the corner.
Stef knew that her kids would want to stay, but she also knew that they needed to eat something and probably get some rest. After Callie ran off, Stef and Lena gave her a few minutes to cool off before Stef followed her. She knocked on the bathroom door and heard sniffling before a quiet "Someone is in here." Stef waited outside the door until she came out; eyes puffy and nose red. Neither of them said anything as they walked back to the chairs. Stef didn't even have a chance to talk to the girl before a nurse called them to Mariana's room.
She hoped that she was making the right decision in sending them home, but she trusted Mike with them and knew he was capable of handling this sort of situation, even if it was with the newest members of her family.
As she turned the corner, she knew she was making the right decision. Both Callie and Jude were curled up in the chairs with their eyes closed, and Brandon was getting there too. She noticed his hand on Jude's back and smiled at her children. She quietly walked over to them and Brandon stood up when he noticed her presence.
"Mom?" He asked with a hint of concern.
"Shhh." Stef whispered as she pulled her son away from the sleeping children.
"What's wrong?" He demanded when they were far enough away to talk in a loud whisper.
"Nothing. I just called your dad to come pick you three up and take you home." She began, and before he could protest, she put her pointer finger up. "No arguments. I need you to help with Callie and Jude, please. They need sleep. You need sleep. And I'm guessing you didn't eat much in the cafeteria, am I right?" She asked as she raised her eyebrows at her son as he shrugged in response.
"Mama and I will be here with the twins. As of now, there is nothing you can be doing here besides worry, and I would rather you be at home and not in this waiting room all night." Stef finished as she turned to look at her other two children, who were in the same positions she had left them in.
"Please, B." Stef looked at her son and bit her lip.
Brandon sighed and nodded. "Of course I'll do what I can." He responded before looking towards the direction of his twin siblings. "They're gonna be ok." He said before turning to wake up his younger siblings and get them home.