I do not own any characters, plots, or anything else pertaining to "Grey's Anatomy". This chapter will be from April's P.O.V. and feature a very important conversation between her and Samuel. Unlike the last chapter, April doesn't know that she's been in a coma for five years because time passes differently where she's at. As always, thanks for following/favoriting and commenting.
Chapter 7
The Ultimate Journey
April grins at her son, as they walk along together. She realizes that this is the first time in her life that she doesn't have a schedule to follow. As a surgeon, she must always keep her surgeries organized, but here she can just be. "Mom, we need to stop right here." April snaps out of her thoughts and comes to a stop. She turns to Samuel who is looking at something past her. April follows his gaze and her eyes land on Jackson. He's sitting in a hospital room looking completely lost. "Dad's been struggling with losing you in his life for a long time." April's heart aches at the thought of Jackson hurting because of her, especially since they've already caused each other enough pain over the years. "I just wanted to stop in and tell you how well Harriet's doing. She's the top speller in her class and won the school Spelling Bee this past week." April feels tears gather within her eyes at his words. She wonders how long she's been in a coma? It seems like it's been years considering their daughter is just over a year old. Her heart clenches at the thought of Harriet growing up without her.
Jackson smirks at her comatose counterpart. "She's so much like you, April. I hate that you're missing so much of her life. You need to wake up because she needs you in her lifeā¦I need you." April's breath catches at his words. After everything they've been through together, he still needs her. The thought causes her tears to start cascading down her cheeks. "See, I told you dad still needs you." April takes a moment to collect herself, before turning to face her son. "How long have I been like that?" The question hangs in the air between them for a few moments before Samuel finally answers her. "It's been five years." She suddenly feels faint and is glad when Samuel wraps his arms around her in a hug. April's sure that if he wasn't here to hold her up, she'd probably be on the floor right now, completely broken.
Samuel holds onto her tightly and the two are quiet for who knows how long. April feels like she's failed her daughter by not being there for her, by not being a mother. "Mom, Harriet still loves you and knows you'd be there for her if you could." April's heart stops, as she pulls back from her son. "How do you know?" Samuel gives her his father's smirk and it makes her feel a little bit better. "I have my ways." He begins walking into the vastness again and April reluctantly follows him. She's afraid of what she's going to be shown next.
The two walk side by side for a while before they stop again. April takes a sharp breath in as her son looks at something past her once again. She slowly turns and sees a little girl playing with her dolls. April knows instantly that it's her beautiful daughter. She watches as Harriet puts her dolls down and grabs onto the locket around her neck. Harriet opens the little heart and two tiny pictures appear on either side. On the left, there's a picture of herself and on the other side, there's a picture of the three of them after she had given birth. Her heart aches for her daughter in this moment. "Mommy, I want to show you my dolls." April feels a fresh batch of tears roll down her face, as Harriet picks up one of her dolls. "This is Kimmy, she's a Doctor just like you." April feels like her heart is breaking inside of her chest, as Harriet picks up her next doll. "And this is her patient Danny." Even though the scene is painful for her to watch she can't stop a smile from appearing on her face. Of course, her daughter has dolls that are portrayed as doctors. She's an Avery, she'd expect nothing less from Katherine. April's sure she's already got Harriet learning medical terms in her spare time. "I want to be just like you, I want to save people. Daddy said you were the best doctor ever." April feels so overwhelmed by the moment, she has to turn away. She wishes more than anything that she could be down there right now playing with her, loving her.
April hears her son clear his throat and she looks over at him. He's standing there with the saddest look she's ever seen on his face. "Harriet always talks to you and sometimes she even talks to me." April's eyes widen at his words. "Did your dad tell her about you?" Samuel gives her a nod. "Yeah, he told her that I'd take care of you, so here I am." Her confusion of the situation intensifies, as he takes a few steps towards her. "I'm trying to help you get back to them. Somehow dad knew that I was the only person that could." With those words, the sound of a hospital monitor echoes through the vast space, creating an instant ache in her heart.
When a prayer for a dying soul is recited, she knows exactly when this is in time. "Mom, you need to turn around and face this day." April closes her eyes and starts sobbing. She can't relive this horrible day again, she won't survive it. She suddenly feels Samuel's hand on her shoulder, but she still refuses to open up her eyes. "You and dad never found your way back from this because you never faced it together." April remembers that day as being the biggest nightmare of her life. They had brought their son into the world, only for him to be taken cruelly away. Her and Jackson had both been excited about the pregnancy. In fact, their marriage had been the best it ever had at that time. The two were on the same page for once and they were looking forward to starting a family together. Then, it took just one day for their dream to crumble, for their lives to be turned upside down.
April hates thinking about this horrible day, but she knows that facing it is the only way for her to get back. She takes another sharp breath in before slowly opening her eyes. "I'm right here, mom." April gives him a nod before turning to see herself cradling baby Samuel in her arms. She watches as Jackson holds her close to him, trying to be there for her. April observes the man she still loves, seeing the pain etched in his features. She knows Jackson has never been big on showing his emotions, but she can see now how much this was killing him. At the time, April had been focused solely on her own pain, thinking that their son's death wouldn't impact him as sharply. However, she had thought wrong, when he had yelled at her in their kitchen about him needing her to get through his grief.
A realization dawns on her now, as she continues to watch the sorrowful scene play out in front of her. The reason why their relationship got derailed was because they had lost sight of the people they had fallen in love with. April had loved everything about Jackson and in turn he had loved her in the same way. In essence, they had both loved who they were at their cores. No one understood them the way that each other did. It was just that simple. Until, their world came crashing down by the death of their son.
Suddenly, it was like they didn't know each other anymore, like they were strangers. The Jackson she had known before she had left to Jordan, the man that she had loved with every fiber of her being, was gone. The light in his eyes had disappeared and it turned out that he was just as empty as her inside. April's sure that Jackson must have felt the same way when she had decided to extend her tour in Jordan. They weren't acting like the same people they were before because of their grief, which made them completely unrecognizable to each other. It created a chasm between them that they couldn't close no matter how hard they had tried. "I want you to visit me with dad, finally say goodbye together." April feels the warm tears continue to fall down her cheeks, as she thinks about how her and Jackson have never visited Samuel's grave together. She usually stops once a month to sit and talk with him, but she's never asked if Jackson visits him.
April feels a pang in her heart, as she gives Samuel a nod. "Do you hear me, when I'm talking to you?" She turns to see her son nod with a smile. "Yeah, I do." April wipes the tears from her eyes, trying to steady herself. "You call me Sammy." She freezes for a moment, trying to wrap her head around his revelation. The thought that he's always been right there with her listening makes her heart warm. April gives him a wide smile feeling the unconditional love only a mother has for their child. "I love you, Sammy." Samuel gives her a smile back. "I love you too, mom. We still have one more stop to make before you can go home, follow me." With that, her son pushes forward, and April watches him for a moment. She wishes more than anything that Jackson could see him like this, happy and healthy. April makes a mental note to tell him everything about their amazing son when she wakes up from her coma because Jackson too deserves to know that their son is okay, that he's safe.
