"Where am I?" Wade asked groggily, his throat dry and itchy, looking around the white hospital room in his hazy state. The beeping noise that filled his eardrums was new to him, the sterile smell hitting his nose for the first time had panic sitting firmly in his gut.
"In the hospital," Zoe filled him in, quickly filling a cup with water, getting him to take a drink through the straw, her hand squeezing his gently. "You scared me, you uh went into a coma, the stab wound did more damage than I had previously thought and it got infected on the inside and your body couldn't physically clear up the infection, so it shut down," she filled him in sitting on the bed next to him. "I was able to convince Warden Hayes that you wouldn't get up and run away considering the shape you're in so he left the cuffs off but you can't try anything Wade," she warned him, leaving out the part that if he did escape it was going to be on her. "There are two guards outside the door keeping watch."
"I won't," he promised her, trying to escape the hospital wasn't something that had crossed his mind yet, but he wouldn't do it because he knew who was waiting on him. "How long was I out for?" He asked, cringing slightly when he tried to sit up, horrible pain shooting through his side.
"A week and half," she informed him. "I should get your doctor," she said, getting up. "They wouldn't let me," she filled him in seeing the questioning look in his eyes. He nodded, closing his eyes, feeling his girlfriend's fingers slip from his hand. He couldn't even find it himself to be pissed at his brother for doing what he had done.
"He'll be in shortly," Zoe told him, walking back over to his side, taking his hand in hers. She was still scared of something going wrong and losing him forever, she couldn't deal with that and she tried her hardest to keep from thinking about it, because he was going to be fine, she had to keep believing that.
"Glad you could join us Mr. Kinsella," Dr. Peters announced walking into the room. "How are you feeling?"
"Sore," he told the doctor, letting Zoe's hand fall away to let the doctor look him over. "There's a slight pain when I move but it's bearable," he added on.
"Let's hope the morphine doesn't wear off then," the doctor replied with a small laugh, shining a light on Wade's eyes. "Follow the light, please."
Zoe stood back watching as the doctor looked Wade over, the urge to say things on the tip of her tongue. But she remained quiet as the doctor checked Wade over, asking him questions that ranged from his injury to the current date, which Wade had a bit of trouble with since he wasn't certain of the date when they had brought him in unconscious, but he knew enough current events that he wasn't diagnosed with amnesia.
What felt like a million questions later to Wade and an exam to make sure he was healing properly; he was finally left alone with Zoe. "Does Evie know?" He found himself asking.
"She knows you're hurt and here in the hospital but I haven't brought her by to see you, she wants too but I couldn't bare for her to see you so lifeless," she stated, giving him her full attention. "If you want to see her, I can make it happen," she let him know, walking over to set next to him on the bed.
"I'd like that and I'm sure she would too. I know keeping her away from the truth when I was locked up was necessary and when I go back we can keep it that way but what's the harm in her coming here?" He questioned. He sighed realizing that it might get tricky on why he didn't come home from the hospital but that was something he didn't want to worry about, he missed his little girl and this was going to be the only chance he would be given to see her for quite a while because frankly he had no clue what was going to happen to him when he was discharged.
"She really would, she's been a sulking mess when you never called her during the last week and a half while you were under. And the rest, we will figure that all out when the time comes," she assured him.
"You think this is the right thing to do?" He questioned, tracing patterns on Zoe's knee.
"Frankly I have no idea what to do in a situation like this and I don't know anyone that has been in a predicament like this one, but if we are okay with it then it has to be the right thing to do, Wade," she told him.
"Okay," he agreed, letting a smile cross his lips. Zoe quickly kissed him, going to stand up only for Wade to pull her back down to him, kissing her with love and urgency, not having a care if anyone happened to walk through the door.
"What are you going to say to her when daddy doesn't come home?" Lemon asked in a hiss. "Why can't you think about your daughter this once? Why is that so damn hard?"
"I am thinking about my daughter, Lemon. I'm the one that had to listen to hear cry herself to sleep because she wants her daddy. And the thing is Lemon she's my daughter and I get to decided on how I want to raise her and you don't get a say, I'm her mother and you are just Aunt Lemon," she seethed at her friend, exhausted of hearing how Lemon thought she should raise her own daughter. "I'll worry about what to say to Evie when I know for sure what's going to happen. But I suggest if you want to be the boss and tell other people how to raise their kids, that you become a mom first," Zoe finished, ready to go upstairs and get her little girl.
"That's just wonderful, Zoe," Lemon snapped, stalking to the front door. "I'm trying to help you out in the long run, but forget it Zoe since you obviously know what's best for Evie."
"Ya know, Lemon, I do know what's best for my family. I would really appreciate if you didn't stick your two cents in every time I say I'm going to do something. I will raise my daughter the way I want to and when Wade comes home it'll be how we do things together, got it?" Zoe asked in a very demanding tone.
"Yeah I believe so, Zoe," Lemon stated, storming out of the house.
Zoe sighed, closing her eyes and counted to ten before going upstairs and getting Evie. She hated that she had exploded in sorts at Lemon but she honestly couldn't take it any longer, she valued her friends opinions, asked for advice from time to time but she hated when Lemon would ask her a question about her parenting style, it made her second guess herself and make her think that she was a failure at being a mother.
"We go see Daddy, now?" Evie asked, walking out of her room, to see her mom on the stairs.
"If you're ready we can go," Zoe told her. There was no better feeling than seeing the mega watt smile on her daughter's face.
"Ready," Evie shouted, running past her mom. Zoe laughed lightly at the eagerness the little girl had following behind her daughter. It was something that Zoe had missed seeing in her little girl and for the time being it was good to have her daughter back all the way. Evie couldn't keep quiet on the ride to the hospital, asking question after question and going on about all the things that she was going to share with her daddy.
When they got to his hospital room George was there going over a few things with Wade. That hadn't fazed Evie any when she stormed into the room happy to see her daddy. She carefully crawled onto the bed, snuggling into Wade's good side, suddenly all out of words as she laid there with her daddy.
Zoe seeing that her daughter and boyfriend were content she stepped outside to see what George had to say. Ever since Wade had been taken away and placed behind bars she had always thought the worst when it came to him, she didn't mean for it to happen but it was instinct for her do so. Even before George had said a word to her, she had a feeling that it was going to be bad, that he was going to be tossed back into his cell before he was even discharged from the hospital.
"I'm working as fast as I can on his case to get him out of prison and we're close, Zoe. If he goes back before I can get him out, he will be placed in a protected cell where no one can get to him. I've done everything I can to this point and now it's a waiting game but I promise I'm not going to stop until Wade is free. Both of their statements are the same so I don't see a problem, but it is the law we're dealing with," George filled her in. Zoe nodded her head, relieved that the news was better than she had thought it was going to be.
"Thank you for everything, George," Zoe told him with a small smile. "If you can get him out of prison I don't know how I'm going to repay you," she told him softly.
"No need to repay me for anything, I told you that I would do anything I could to help you out because I wanted to help Wade. You have enough to worry about, without adding the worry of repaying anything to me."
"I have to pay you something George," she pleaded with him.
"Then you go in there and have fun as a family, while I go home and do damage control with Lemon," he smirked.
"I'm not all that sorry about what I said to her, I'm sorry that I snapped at her, but I'm so sick of her thinking she knows what I needed to do for my daughter. I am capable of being a mother and she makes me feel like I'm horrible at doing what's right for Evie," Zoe sighed, walking back to the door. "And I am sorry that you have to deal with her now."
"I'm sure you are," he chuckled. "Only you and Wade know what's right for Evie and Lemon can be a bit opinionated. But I agree that she should be here to see Wade, they both need it. She's a smart girl," George told her walking off.
Zoe smiled happy to hear that someone else thought they were doing the right thing by letting Evie come in and see Wade. Maybe if he did have to go back to prison once they discharged him from the hospital that it would be better if they told Evie the truth and no longer lied to her about things. She walked over to the bed to see that both father and daughter were asleep. She sat down in the chair, her eyes staying on the two most important people in her life.