Ava didn't think she'd ever seen this group of people so quiet before. They sat in the ER waiting room, since no one else really knew where to go. Claire had been rushed to ER, then to surgery, and that was all they knew.

Ava squeezed her eyes shut, desperately needing a cigarette, or a joint, maybe a shot of tequila. Anything to take the edge off. She just wanted to know that Claire was okay. Then she'd let the rest of the questions (where was Claire? How serious was the surgery? What brought this on?) answer themselves over time.

"You okay?" Seth whispered from beside her.

Ava's eyes snapped open as she remembered where she was and who she was with. There was a time and a place for showing how scared she was, and that was in the privacy and security of her bedroom. "Fine," she murmured. "Just trying to deal with this nasty hangover."

The corner of Seth's lip turned up in an almost smile before diverting his gaze back to his lap. He was freaked too, Ava could tell. His dark eyes gazed down at his lap, where his fingers drummed silently on his khakis.

"I um, will be right back," she announced, but no one looked up. Everyone was too tied up in their own thoughts, which is exactly why Ava wanted to get the hell out of that waiting room.

She wandered down the corridors, looking for the little coffee shop that sold overpriced coffee. She didn't want to run into her parents, who'd apparently given Thomas instructions to stay home. That was just like her parents – selfish and thoughtless. Claire was her godmother, and the coolest adult she knew. She understood Ava in ways that Massie never would, and the thought – the thought of anything happening –

Ava swallowed hard. Claire would be fine. She had to be.

She found the coffee shop, ordered a chai latte, and surveyed the coffee shop. Everyone in it looked tired and haggard, like they were all waiting for bad news over coffee.

"Ava?"

Ava turned around, expecting her father, except it wasn't Landon. It was Carter Hurley.

The few times she'd seen him since that fateful day Thomas had caught them together, it was like a punch to the stomach. This time was no different. He looked handsome as ever, if not a little tired. That was to be expected, since he'd been at her party last night. With that pretty blonde, laughing, and playing with her hair.

"Get the hell away from me," Ava hissed. She looked beyond the bar at the slow as molasses barista. What was taking so long? Couldn't he just make her latte so she could leave?

Carter raised his eyebrows. "Just waiting for my coffee."

"Me too," Ava said, prolonging the conversation. As mad as she was about girl, it was so nice to hear her name come from his lovely mouth. "Why are you here?"

Carter chuckled. "I thought you wanted me to get the hell away from you?"

"We're both just waiting for our coffees. Might as well make small talk."

"You hate small talk. But my grandfather is here. He has pneumonia."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Ava reached for a lid to put on her drink. She absentmindedly put a lid on Carter's too.

"Why are you here?" He picked up his coffee and nodded toward a bench outside. "Do you want to sit for a few minutes?"

Ava hesitated. Of course she wanted to. But she also wanted to hear some news about Claire (some good news preferably). Although the thought of going back to that silent waiting room made her want to slit her wrists…and it was nice to look at Carter; his sharp cheekbones, the sleek nose ring, the tiny scar on his eyebrow from getting an elbow to the face in soccer.

"Sure," Ava followed him into the tiny courtyard, admiring the way his black skinny jeans hugged his long, thin legs. God, she missed him.

"Why are you here? Detox program?" he joked, sitting beside Ava on the bench. She stared at where their thighs pressed together. For a moment she'd forgotten about Claire.

"Uh," she took a sip of her latte. "Claire. She's here."

"What?" Carter's blue eyes clouded over with concern. "For what? Is she alright?"

Was she alright? "I don't know," Ava felt the tears she'd been supressing all day start to resurface. God, crying in front of her ex-boyfriend. This is what it had come to.

"Hey," Carter looked alarmed. "Don't cry."

"I'm scared," Ava whispered, wiping eyes. "I just don't want anything to happen to Claire."

"I know," Carter said soothingly. Ava felt his arms wrap tight around her, rocking side to side gently. "I know. But we gotta keep positive, right? You know Claire would be the first person to kick your ass for sitting out here, crying."

Ava laughed a little, burrowing deeper into his chest. It was so comforting to be here, in Carter's arms. It was so nice to be real with someone. She didn't care about her eyeliner that was surely smudged by now, or the blonde girl who'd been on Carter's lap last night. She just cared that she was here with Carter, and that Claire was going to be alright.

Thomas bounced Poppy up and down on his lap. The four year old looked sleepy but relaxed, unlike her sister. Stella stared blankly at the coffee table in front of them, navy eyes wide and closed off. Her usually glowing skin looked sallow and pale. She looked years younger than she usually did, and she looked scared.

Thomas nearly couldn't bear the sight of it.

"Hey," Thomas nudged her knee with his. "Any word from your dad?"

"He said he'd call when mom was out of surgery," Stella checked her phone, despite it being tightly in her hand since they'd gotten there. "Nothing yet."

"Where's daddy?" Poppy raked her hands through Thomas's curls. "Your hair is so shiny."

"He's with your mom," Thomas told her. "And my hair's not nearly as shiny as yours." Poppy blushed, giggling into her hands and looking away. Like most females on the planet, Poppy was smitten with Thomas, even at the tender age of four.

"Do you want a snack? There's that coffee shop downstairs," he offered, desperate to wipe the lost look off of Stella's pretty face.

"I'm fine," she shook her head.

"What about you, Pops?" Thomas tried to take on a playful tone. Poppy nodded, so Thomas stood up, holding her securely in his arms. "You guys want something?" he asked Seth and Harper, but they both shook their heads. "Just you and me then, Pops," he touched her nose, making her giggle some more.

He transferred Poppy to his back and started walking for the elevators. He could feel her tiny hands twirling his hair around and around her fingers. Thomas didn't much care for children (quite frankly, he found them dirty and germy and had no interest in talking that nonsensical gibberish they all spoke), but he had a very soft spot for Poppy Harrington.

Those Harrington girls would probably be the death of him.

"Thomas?" she breathed in his ear. "Where's my mom? Why are we here? I want to go home."

"Well, Poppy," Thomas chose his words carefully. He wasn't going to lie to the little girl, the way his parents would. "Your mom had…a little accident. And they're doing surgery on her right now. Which is going to make her better." Please, let it make her better.

"Oh," Poppy still sounded confused, so Thomas said "You're going to see her and your dad soon. In the meantime, though, we're going to get some snacks."

"Yay!"

Thomas leaned forward so Poppy could see in the display case of pastries. "Which one do you want? Should we get Stel one too?"

Thomas looked around, wondering if perhaps his parents were here. Surely they weren't in surgery with Claire, so where were they? Maybe in a different waiting room? Outside in the courtyard, two people sat on a tiny bench, the girl swinging her feet, kicking up dead leaves that had gathered on the ground.

Wait a second. Thomas knew those boots – they were Balenciaga and had been the subject of Ava's obsession for nearly two months before Thomas finally bought the motorcycle boots for her for Christmas last year. The girl looked up, pushing a dark brown tendril from her face. Her eyeliner was smudged more than it had been half an hour ago, but it was Ava. And next to her was Carter Hurley.

Un-fucking-believable.

"Thomas?"

"Yeah, Poppy?" Thomas replied after a moment, tearing his gaze from the two. He couldn't believe Ava. Couldn't she let it go? Find someone else? Someone half fucking decent?

"I said I want that one," Poppy reached past him to point at some cupcakes with thick pink frosting. "And I want that one for Stella."

"Sure," he agreed, paying for the cupcakes. He passed the box containing the cupcakes to Poppy to hold on to, then turned to leave without casting a second look at Ava and Carter. He'd deal with that later.

Landon paced back and forth the fluorescent lit corridor, feeling too antsy to sit. He wasn't particularly familiar with cardiac arrest, therefore not knowing the details of the surgery to follow or how long it should take. Derrick, the only one who knew any real information of what had happened, was in the surgery room with Claire, leaving Massie, Josh, Olivia and Landon to anxiously wait for news in the cardiology wing's waiting room.

"Have you spoken with the kids?" Massie asked from her seat beside Olivia.

"Not since I texted Thomas," Landon rubbed his eyes. "It's not as though I've got any more news to share."

"I'm sure they're worried –"

"What do you expect me to tell them then, Massie?" he snapped. He caught Josh raising his eyebrows and Olivia frowning at him. "Sorry," he muttered. "I just would like some news."

"You're not the only one who would," Massie raised her voice. "She's my best friend, Landon."

Landon felt his heart tug at the expression on Massie's face. His beautiful wife who always managed to keep everything under control was facing something that she had absolutely no control over, and he knew it scared her. "You're right," he sat beside her, taking her slightly trembling hand in his. "I'm sorry, love," he kissed the back of her hand, silently apologizing for last night as well.

"It's okay," she squeezed his hand. "We're all a little tense right now."

They waited in silence a few moments longer before an exhausted looking Derrick came out. Josh immediately stood up and enveloped their friend in a tight hug. Landon, despite the close bond between the two, chose to stay back. He was not a hugger.

"So?" Massie pressed, hugging Derrick as well.

"Thanks, guys, for being here," Derrick ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Claire's out of surgery now, but she's out. You guys should go home. I'll call you when she wakes up."

Massie frowned, but held her tongue. Landon put his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him and feeling the warmth of her body. He would never stop thanking the God he didn't believe in that it wasn't him coming out to thank Claire and Derrick for being here while his wife underwent heart surgery. "Would you like me to bring the girls over? Bring you a change of clothes?"

"Stella and Poppy are here," Derrick looked at him oddly. "They're all in the ER waiting room," he held up his iPhone. "Stel just texted me."

"All? Who else is there?"

"Well, everyone. They were all concerned. Do thank them for me, especially Thomas," Derrick shot Massie a small smile. "He's…quite the young man. You know, rounding up the troops, keeping their morale up. Taking care of my girls."

"Is Thomas…here?" Massie crinkled her eyebrows. "Landon, didn't you –"

"I asked him to stay home. I figured five teenagers in a hospital waiting room would be rather disruptive." Landon explained.

"We weren't disruptive, daddy," Harper said, the first off the elevator. Ava, Stella, Seth, and Thomas carrying Poppy trickled out behind her. "I'm so glad Claire's going to be alright," she hugged Derrick quickly. "When can we see her?"

"Soon. She's still out from surgery. But I'll let you know when she comes to."

"Didn't I say see you at home?" Landon asked his son quietly.

"We were just worried, dad," Ava intervened, eyes wide and voice soft. "I couldn't be at home, thinking of Claire being here…" Despite the fact that they'd directly disobeyed his orders, Landon felt himself softening. Ava did have her mother's face, after all, and Landon had always had a problem with staying mad at Massie…

"It was foolish on my part," he sighed. "We should've all been here together." He turned to Derrick, clasping his oldest friend on the shoulder. "You take care of yourself now, okay? Let us know when Claire's awake, and give her our love. We'll be round to visit tomorrow."

"Thanks, man," Derrick said, scooping up Poppy. He took Stella and Poppy to Claire's room, leaving the rest of them in the waiting room. Josh rubbed his eyes tiredly, and Olivia pulled Seth in for a hug.

"I'll call you in the morning, Massie," she smiled wearily at them. Landon watched the three of them leave, Olivia's arm linked with Seth's, and Seth walking close to Josh. They looked like a family for the first time in a long time. He turned his attention to his own family.

"Well? Shall we head home?"

"Could I ride with you guys?" Ava suggested, pulling the sleeves of the oversized sweater she wore as a dress over her hands. Massie shared a surprised look with Landon, but nodded.

"Of course," she smiled, then turned her amber eyes to Harper and Thomas. "We'll meet you two at home?"

"Sounds good," Thomas nodded, pulling his keys from his coat pocket.

The drive home was a quiet one, Ava and Massie both dozing off at one point. Landon didn't blame them – it had been an exhausting and mentally draining day for everyone.

Once home, the house stayed as quiet as the car ride had been. Inez had left a baked ziti in the fridge for their dinner, so Landon began heating it up. Ava and Harper sat at the kitchen island, working on a French assignment, and Thomas read quietly at the breakfast nook. Just as Landon was about to say something about this being the most behaved his children had been in a decade, he saw Massie pouring a rather large glass of wine at the end of the island.

"Massie," he said, causing her to jump. Harper looked up in alarm, and Landon realized he'd sounded a little harsher than he'd intended. "Do you want garlic bread too?"

"I have absolutely no appetite," she sighed, sipping her wine. "I think I'm just going to take a bubble bath and then go to bed," she kissed him on the cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too," he murmured. "All of you," he said a little louder.

"Gross," Ava pretended to gag, which made Harper giggle. Landon smiled at his three beautiful children fondly as Massie slipped away to soak in her tub. It was only when Landon went to grab the baguette on the cutting board that he realized she'd taken the entire bottle with her.

Seth sat in the back of Josh's Lexus, staring blankly out the window. He couldn't wait to get home and shower and then pass out –

In the front seat, Olivia suddenly let out a sob. Seth looked at her in alarm, but before he could say anything, his father reached out and rubbed tiny circles in between Olivia's sharp shoulder blades.

"She's going to be okay, Olivia," Josh said firmly. "Tomorrow we'll go see her, the three of us, and we'll bring some orchids from that florist she likes."

"I know," Olivia said shakily, dabbing at her eyes, careful not to smudge her eye makeup. "I know. But God," she shuddered. "It just…it makes you think, you know?"

"I know," Josh said quietly. "Reminds you what's important."

In the back, Seth dared not breathe. This was the most civil his parents had been in ages. He watched, transfixed, as his father kept one hand on the wheel and used the other to tuck Olivia's platinum blonde hair behind her ear.

"Everything's going to be fine, Liv, you'll see."

Despite the guilt he felt at feeling anything other than sorry for the Harringtons, he couldn't stop the flutter of hope in his stomach. He had to share this with someone. Chat later? he texted Harper. Harper would get it. She lived for happy endings.

Busy, sorry came Harper's reply. Seth frowned, but couldn't bring himself to be truly bothered. He was perfectly fine keeping this moment to himself for now.

Nothing like a tragedy to bring people together.

Stella sat in a hard green armchair, keeping her eyes glued to her mother's sleeping form. In the chair on the other side of Claire's bed, Derrick sat with Poppy curled up in his lap, both sleeping peacefully.

"The worst is over, Stel," Derrick had said, kissing Stella's forehead. "Mom's gonna be okay."

But was she? Stella leaned forward, looming over her mother. Sure enough, Claire's chest rose then fell in even breaths underneath the hospital bed's standard green blanket. Stella sat back down in her chair, but couldn't quite breathe a sigh of relief yet. Her mother always looked stunning, looked so bright and animated. Now she was pale, the fluorescent lights casting shadows under her high cheek bones. She looked kind of…dead.

"Dad," Stella said sharply, causing her father to jerk awake and jostle Poppy.

"What? What is it?" he looked around with wide brown eyes, zeroing in on Claire. He took in the sight of her and relaxed. "What, Stel?"

"Mom's still breathing right? It's not my imagination?"

"Stella, I told you – she's fine. She just underwent heart surgery, now she's resting. She'll be up soon," Derrick glanced down at the Rolex on his wrist. "And if she's not awake by the time visiting hours are up, we'll be here first thing in the morning.

"Wait – we're not leaving her here. They've got cots and stuff. This armchair is comfy, I could sleep in it," Stella lied. She couldn't imagine leaving her mom here. What if Claire woke up and didn't remember anything? She'd be so confused about being in the hospital and being alone –

"I'm up, I'm up," Claire's quiet voice sounded from the bed. Stella felt relief wash over her at the sight of her mother's navy eyes. "You two should keep it down when people are trying to sleep," she smiled faintly.

"I'm so sorry," Derrick immediately said, reaching for Claire's hand. He was careful not to jostle it too much, as there was an IV drip taped to it. "How are you feeling?" he scanned her face anxiously.

"Great," Claire smiled a little bigger, but it was nothing compared to her usual mega-watt grin. "Looking forward to a tasty hospital breakfast tomorrow."

"Mom," Stella intervened. "What happened? How did you…I mean, you're healthy, right? How did you have a heart attack?" Stella couldn't help but channel Harper and allow a thousand worst-case scenarios to run through her mind at light speed.

"Maybe my heart is just too big," her mother joked, closing her eyes for a few moments.

"Claire," Derrick said firmly, and Stella felt her own heart start beating faster. Oh god – was this it? Was this when they were going to say Claire only had a couple weeks left to live? She wouldn't see Stella graduate, and Poppy – little innocent, four year old Poppy – would practically grow up without a mother.

"Darling," Claire reached out for Stella's hand. Stella hesitated, but placed her hand in her mother's. "A few years ago, shortly after Poppy was born, I was finding myself lightheaded and short of breath constantly. I was a new mother and not in my best shape –"

"You looked perfect, nonetheless," Derrick interrupted.

"So I assumed it was from the lack of yoga. It wasn't until I fainted simply standing up from the table that I realized I needed to see a doctor." Stella tried to remember back to when Poppy was a newborn, but she couldn't recall her mother ever seeming…sick. "We found out that my heart had been beating abnormally and a little too fast."

"I don't understand," Stella furrowed her eyebrows. "You don't…smoke, you're not overweight, you drink that kale sludge every morning. How did you get that?"

Claire shrugged her slim shoulders. "Some people are born with an irregular heartbeat, others can develop it spontaneously. It would just happen in episodes, not all the time. I took antiarrhythmic medicine, to keep a handle on it. And then…" Claire trailed off, shrugging again. "Then it stopped working, I suppose. And here we are."

"Why didn't you guys tell me you were sick, mom?"

"I'm not sick, Stella," her mother said gently. "Tons of people live with cardiac arrhythmia. And a lot of them live long, healthy lives."

"Like your mother," Derrick smiled.

"Except not like mom," Stella frowned. "Because mom had a heart attack and nearly died."

"I did not nearly die." It was Claire's turn to frown. "And watch what you say in front of your sister," she said, even though Poppy was still fast asleep and didn't totally understand the severity of the day's events anyway. "And anyway, Stella, I'm fine now. I've got my pacemaker," she placed a manicured hand on her chest. "And I'll stay here a few more days, make sure everything is fine, and then I'll be home," she smiled confidently.

"You will be slowing down on your charity work, though, right?" Derrick asked as a nurse came in to let them know visiting hours were up. "We'll be here first thing in the morning," he bent to kiss his wife's forehead. "I love you."

"I love you," Claire smiled up at him. She squeezed Stella's hand comfortingly. "Really, love, I'm fine. I was fine before, but I'm definitely a hundred percent fine now."

"Good," Stella swallowed the lump that had been lodged in her throat all day. "Love you."

Stella held her dad's hand as they walked to the parkade. "You guys could've told me, you know."

"I know," Derrick squeezed her hand. "It wasn't like we wanted to keep something from you, Stel. We just didn't want you thinking about it all the time. It's the thinking and the 'what ifs' that will drive you insane."

"Could I spend the night at Harper's?" She buckled her seatbelt. The thought of going home to their big house without her mother in it made Stella want to cry. Whenever Claire was in New York working on a charity function, the house seemed way too big and echo-y. Stella didn't want to be there while her mother was lying in a hospital bed alone.

"Sure," Derrick agreed, like he was having the same thoughts. "Do you want me to pick you up before we go see mom? Or will you go over when Harper goes?"

"I'll let you know," Stella sighed. One step at a time.

The Crane's door was locked, but Stella had her own key and new the security password. She expected everyone to be asleep, as it had been a taxing day. She would just crash on one of the couches, and explain in the morning. No doubt Massie and Landon would have a dozen questions about Claire.

In the den, Thomas sat reading. He looked up curiously, smiling a little as Stella walked in. "Hi," he folded the corner of his page, then put the book down on the antique side table.

"Hi," Stella murmured. She'd been hoping to just slip in and lie down, facing everyone in the morning, but suddenly she was so relieved to see Thomas's face. She sat down beside him, curling up into his side. The soft cashmere of his sweater rubbed against her face.

"Long day?"

"Yeah."

Thomas reached for the orange and white Hermes blanket folded neatly along the back of the couch, spreading it nicely around their laps. "Inez is making French toast in the morning."

"Do you have that blueberry syrup I like?"

"Yeah. We just got a raspberry one that Ava really likes," his fingertips traced tiny circles on her lower back. Even though today had been the most exhausting day of her life, Stella felt herself finally relaxing. It was like the breath she'd been holding since her father had called that morning was finally let out. "It's not as good, though."

She knew Thomas was concerned about Claire and probably wanted to know what was up, but he knew her well enough to know that talking about it was the last thing she wanted to do right now. "Tommy," she murmured, feeling her eyelids get heavy. "You're the best."