Fast as they could Tommy and Jack ran down the hospital corridors, hand in hand, Tommy held himself together as bravely as he could when Jack squeezed his hand as they arrived by; room 318, that's where Henry was.
When they got to the room, Jack started crying, Henry was hooked up to all sorts of machines, his forehead was bandaged up, the doctor explained that he run infront of a car and had been admitted to the hospital two days ago, his condition had not changed. They were ordered to be prepared for the worst: that Henry might not make it.
After hours by Henry's side, Ruby had gone home with Mitchell, they where off to get some clothes for Jack, both Tommy and her asked if they could stay in the hospital, to be near their child, the doctor had assured them that Henry would be alright with them, but Jack was persistent like always, telling the doctor that she didn't want to leave him alone.
So they stayed behind, sitting in the church chapel, it was the only quite place in the entire hospital. Jack was asleep on Tommy's lap, with her head on his jacket, nose pressed against his stomach and her hand clutching onto his. She was scared; he knew she was and god knew Tommy was terrified as well. Her ring finger was baring the engagement ring he had given her, with the lilac stone, it wasn't any fancy ring, but when he saw it, he saw Jack; it was radiant, alive and wild.
Tommy looked down at the sleeping woman on his lap, draping the blanket one of the nurses gave them over Jacks shoulders, she was peaceful, looking like she had never seen sleep before. Soaking it up, not releasing her grip around his fingers, his other hand stroked her hair and her forehead, gently so he wouldn't wake her.
Taking a deep breath then facing his look at the altar: there was a huge mosaic picture of Jesus hanging on the cross with his parents and other disciples around him, on the wall at the end of it.
Tommy was never religious; his mother died a good Catholic woman, she raised him to pray, the only thing he had left of her was a small silver cross, which he wore most days. After her death, Tommy couldn't make himself trust or love God, even if he prayed to him sometimes; the spite against God slipped his mind when he remembered her. –"Ma, you have to take care of Henry, bring him back to us" he whispered looking around the church, -"Just bring me my kid back"
Tommy watched over Jack, seeing over her, making sure she was alright all the way through the night, the peace got disturbed when one of the nurses called a code blue, Tommy knew what that meant. Jack was shaking under his arm as they watched the doctor and nurses put Henry's life back into his body after his heart had stopped working.
The machine's made a non static sound, Jack cried in as she pressed her hands to the glass, hitting the glass, -"Wake up, Henry, Wake up" the cries where desperate, and Tommy had to pull her into him to make her stop. –"It's okay, Jack" Tommy's hand was over her head shielding her from the view of them having to cut Henry open in a last attempt to save his life.
She didn't take her eyes off Henry's body on the table, even as they broke his chest open, retracted a request to operate on him, closing the doors and the blinds to the window Jack and Tommy where standing behind. Tommy didn't know how to behave or react to what had just happened, he didn't leave the spot he was standing in, just resting his hand against the glass, praying to God, to his mother, anyone that would listen to his prayers.
Jack was given a sedative by one of the nurses, lying in a hospital bed just across Henry's room, Tommy came in and Jack made room for him. His body weight moved the bed a little, pushing her up against him on the small bed. Jack's head rested on Tommy's wide chest, his hand over the side of her head, holding her there.
–"My brother, Mitchell's twin, Joshua, got himself killed when I was about Henry's age" Tommy listened in the empty tones of her words, like she was speaking about a stranger. –"Joshua was seven"
Tommy didn't know this, he had never heard Jack say these words before, -"I'm sorry, Jack, if we lose Henry too" Tommy's eyes teared up, Jack nodded her head kissing his cheek softly, then putting her head back on his chest again.
Tommy Conlon's life changed when he was seventeen and he lost his mother to the cancer that eat her lungs away, he would pray to God to ease her mind, he bundled her up at night when the radiator failed and to keep them above ground he would fight on the streets for money.
That's how he ensured his family's well being, by getting the shit beat out of him, then learning how to beat his enemy, going back and hitting them where it hurts. Paddy would tell him to keep it up, don't give up until you get what you want, those words had trained Tommy into something he couldn't give up: being a fighter.
His head in the game, the hot sweat tippling down his forehead biting on his eyes, a body, that's all he saw in his way, someone he could beat and get what he wants out of. Money, honor, win, never lose. Between the swings, and shots turned to his opponent Tommy's father's words would play in his head: "Jab, duck, watch the foot work kid, duck, jab, uppercut, kick"
The judge and some of the assistant coaches would have to tear Tommy away from the limp body on the ground after that was spoken. Tommy's breathing was intense, the sweat drip down his chest, hands tearing him away from the unconscious man on the floor. Nobody would say a word after this was done.
Fighting was all Tommy Conlon knew, it helped with the nightmares, it helped with the anger, the only thing it never helped against was the pain and here he was on the church altar, knees to the floor, hands folded, head bend down, praying the only prayer his mother ever taught him:
"Bless us for today's events, forgive us for our sins as you do others, keep us safe even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we fear no evil, for You are with us, you loved us at our darkest, dear lord!"
No matter how many times Tommy Conlon would repeat the prayer; she never came back, once the light in her died the same one that was dying in Henry.
-"Tommy" Jack whispered calmly as she shook his shoulder, he rolled over on his back, seeing her bloodshot eyes, she'd been crying, Tommy's stomach dropped, he felt the panic that had dragged him through his sleep return, but in reality.
-"Is he gone?" His voice was sharp, Jack didn't answer she just swallowed, sat down on the bed next to him, -"They want us to make a decision, if he's to be taken off life support or not"
Tommy could hear the words out of Jack's mouth, he could even feel them all over his body, he just didn't want to understand them so he shook his head looking at her confused, -"Are you kidding me, he's been on the respirator for a week, they said he was going to be alright, they said he was fine"
Jack started crying again, -"Tommy, his lungs are caving in on him, he's in a lot of pain" Tommy stood up from the bed, shaking his head, -"No, I promised Manny, I said I would keep him safe, they can't do this" Jack's frail body made its way to him, her face changing to his mothers, -"It's alright sweetheart, I'll take care of him, I promise, he's with your dad and me now, in hell"
Tommy grabbed the woman before him by her shoulders, pushing her away. –"You are not real, this isn't real" Tommy hissed, and then awoke back in the hospital bed he had fallen asleep in with Jack.
Except for he woke alone, Jack wasn't there, he looked around in the half lit room, -"Jack" he said in a desperate panic, making his way up to the door, down the hospital hallways to where Henry's room had been before, and like he though seeing Jack sitting by Henry's side, he was awake.
-"Oh dear God" Tommy gasped holding onto the side of the door, looking at Henry like it was a miracle. Jack just smiled at him, -"I didn't want to wake you, he woke this morning"
-"Hi kid" Tommy sat down on the other side of Henry's hospital bed, taking his hand, Henry still looked a bit woozy and out of it, but he smiled at Tommy, his head was bandaged up, but he was off the breathing machines. Henry was alive!