"So, what did we see with Gigi today?" Jack asked as the boys sat on the other side of the sectional, away from Amelia. He smiled to himself, even with Amelia sick, he managed to get both boys to take a shower or bath and throw on pajamas and be done by 8:30. Now they had time to sit and talk about the day until bedtime.
"A ginormous bear. That was this tall!", DJ expressed as he raised his arms dramatically to show how tall the bear was. "And I saw lions! And monkeys", DJ added.
"It's cool you saw a bear. I saw a bear up close in the woods once with your mom. I thought he was going to hurt us, but your mom saved us all", Jack remembered
"Where did you see the bear?" Rowan asked, suddenly looking up from his book on snake species.
"In the woods while we were camping with your aunts and uncles" Jack explained
"Were you scared?" DJ asked
Jack thought back to that day in the woods. He didn't know what he was more afraid of, almost being caught with Rigo's wife or being eaten by the bear. "Yes, I was very scared, but your mom helped me be less scared.
"Why were you in the woods?" Rowan asked
"Your Aunt Maya wanted us all to go camping", Jack explained.
"Was it fun?" DJ asked
Jack chuckled to himself remembering the clipboard and all the hostility everyone had towards Maya. He remembered her leaving all the S'mores supplies back at the station and how pissed everyone was, especially Andy. "Kind of. Mommy didn't get along with Aunt Maya then, so it was kind of tough with the two of them fighting"
"Like DJ and I fight?" Rowan asked
Jack smiled at them, "Kind of. Anyways, we went on a walk deep in the woods and there was a bear. I thought for sure he was going to eat us with his big, sharp teeth. Your mom had other plans though. She stood up to the bear and saved us all"
"Mommy's always saving you. Did you ever have to save Mommy?" DJ asked with an innocent expression, not grasping the pain behind that question.
"As a matter of fact, I did, but you two will have to be a little older for that story", Jack answered, unwilling to divulge the details of Robert's death. He did the one thing he figured best to do, change the subject. "What else did you two do today?
"I got to see all the big buildings on the bay and ride the ferry. It was super cool how many people can fit on there. Gigi took us to see where they keep the cars. It's interesting how people can just drive onto the ferry and park", Rowan explained.
"That is interesting Ro. Maybe we'll have to try it sometime", Jack answered
"Maybe you can help me build a Lego ferry boat later?" Rowan asked Jack.
"Sure! That will be a good project for tomorrow night when we're getting ready for your mother to come home. I have to go into work early thou so Lexie will be here with you guys. Okay?" Jack asked
"Ok! I can't wait to show her all of our toys" DJ grinned as Jack checked the time.
"Alright you two, bed", he said, stretching as he got up from the couch. He picked up a seemingly sleepy Amelia and carried her back to the master bedroom where he tucked her back into bed and kissed her forehead before shutting off the light. He went to Rowan's room next and read from a book about the fifty states that he got from the library. After saying goodnight to Rowan, he walked into DJ's room where DJ was laying on the rug playing with his train set.
"What's up Dad?" DJ asked as he looked up from his train set.
"You. Someone's supposed to be in bed. Do you mind if I sleep on the bottom bunk tonight? Your sister's in Mommy and I's room" Jack explained.
"I'll sleep on the top bunk tonight", DJ answered as he climbed up the ladder and into bed, but not before throwing the random toys and clothes that had made their way up there down to the floor below. Jack looked up at him as a checkerboard went whizzing past his head.
"Really dude?" he asked as DJ shrugged his shoulders and settled in under the covers. "You have a desk and a shelf, and not to mention that blue toy box for a reason. What did I get it for my health?"
"I'll clean my room tomorrow. Promise", DJ answered as Jack shook his head and kissed him goodnight.
"As long as it's clean before Mommy gets back. Goodnight DJ" Jack chuckled as he shut off the light and climbed into the bottom bunk, shaking his head as he pulled a slice of pizza out from under the covers. "And how many times do I have to tell you not to eat in your room? This pizza looks like it could be one of Rowan's science experiments. And I'm talking to myself because you're asleep. Terrific"
Jack fell asleep after a few minutes and woke up with a start as he heard the sound of little feet walking down the hallway. He looked at his phone on the nightstand, squinting at the sudden burst of light. It was one in the morning. He knew who the little feet belonged to as they got closer to the door. "Amelia?", he thought to himself
"Amelia?" he called as Amelia carefully opened the door. When she walked in, he got up and turned on the lights. He looked up at DJ, grateful that he could sleep through this. It was when the lights went on that he noticed Amelia was crying.
"Lia bug, its one in the morning. Do you feel sick again?", he asked as she looked at him, little eyes wide with fear.
"My tummy really hurts", she answered at almost a whisper as she tried to hold back tears.
"Come here Lia", he expressed as she took two steps over to him wincing with each step. He went over and picked her up, sitting her on his lap. "What's going on?"
She cried as she pointed to her right side of her stomach. "Crap. Appendicitis. How did I not think of that today?" Jack thought.
"Shit", Jack muttered as Amelia cried. After hearing all the commotion next door, Rowan came in yawning from the other room with his hair a mess.
"Everything okay with Lia?" Rowan asked stretching his arms in the air. It was one in the morning, Amelia was going to the Emergency Room, and Lexie was out of town. Jack didn't even know where do begin. He took a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair as he calmly locked eyes with Rowan.
"No. Listen, buddy, I need you to go downstairs and call your mother or Aunt Maya and tell her that I'm taking Lia to the hospital. Call them until you get an answer. Don't worry that it's late", Jack ordered. "And call Lexie" Jack added forgetting for a minute that Lexie was out of town.
"I can't, Lexie's in Tacoma this week" Rowan answered "But I can call Gigi"
"Yes, sure, call your Gigi. Hand me my phone over there. Now I need you to stay home alone until Gigi comes. I know it's scary. I know you don't like it, but I need you to be brave" Jack told Rowan as Rowan calmly did as asked without even a shred of panic in his eyes. He was impressing the hell out of Jack right now.
"Dad?" Rowan asked barely above a whisper as he handed of the phone.
"Yes Ro?"
"Can I watch TV downstairs until Gigi comes?", Rowan asked
"Great idea buddy. Watch whatever you want. I'll call soon, I promise", Jack answered as he scooped up Amelia and ran downstairs to the Jeep. He thanked God that he had an extra car seat in there. He nearly broke every single speed limit, driving to Grey Sloan. He ran in the emergency room out of breath as Miranda ran over to meet him.
"What in the world? Gibson?" she called as she went over and motioned for someone to bring a gurney.
"Andy's out of town, Amelia's been throwing up all day. She has a really high fever, and I think its appendicitis", Jack strung together almost inaudibly as Miranda calmed him down.
"Alright, Gibson, calm down. How's her pain?" Miranda asked as she picked Amelia up and put her on the gurney.
"I assumed it was from the bug, well not the bug anymore, so I gave her Tylenol this afternoon and tonight. Now that I think of it, she was asking me to carry her a lot today. She didn't want to walk. She must have been in a ton of pain. It was the worst when she woke up tonight, so I took her here", Jack explained as Miranda rubbed his arm and called Jo and Helm over.
"We got her from here Gibson. We'll run some tests to figure out what's going on" Miranda answered as she handed an iPad over to Jo. "Alright, Wilson, Helm, both of you are on this case. Patent is Amelia Herrera-Gibson, age 3, abdominal pain, nausea, and fever. Suspected appendicitis"
"We have three patients ahead of her", Helm started as Miranda cut her off.
"Did I ask you to tell me how many patients you had? No. Now I'll tell you what I want. I want tests run now, and this little girl taken care of now. She's a very important patient to me. I want updates every step of the way. Every step", Miranda yelled as Jo and Taryn took Amelia to CT. All Jack could do was stare at the doors. "Now Gibson, I know you already know this, but you can't go back with her. After they run some tests, get her situated in a room and then you can see her. In the meantime, you and I are going to sit here together and call your wife"
"Ok, we can do that. Let's do that.", Jack answered as he sat in a chair and dialed Andy's number. It seemed like an eternity before she picked up
"Andy? Hi, I need you to not freak out when I tell you this", he started as Andy interjected.
"I already know about Amelia. Rowan told me. Now, my flight leaves in an hour and I want to know, how is she? How are you?" Andy asked, he voice shaking.
"Slow down Andy, they're running tests. They're going to get her in a room in a few. Who's with the boys?" Jack asked
"Marsha's with them. DJ woke up after you left and Marsha just had them go back to bed. She said she'll take them for a few days so we can stay with Lia" Andy answered.
"Thank God she's with them. Rowan's probably scared out of his mind. He was so calm helping me handle the situation. I don't know what I would have done without him", Jack answered as Miranda rubbed his arm. "You have a safe flight okay? I love you"
"Um, I love you too honey, but you still haven't answered my question. How are you?" she responded as the line went dead. "Hello? Jack? Hello?"
In the hotel room, Andy was sitting on the edge of the bed with her head resting in her hands.
"I hate the spotty hospital reception", Andy groaned. "This is bad. Incredibly bad. My husband is with my three-year-old who's having surgery tomorrow and I'm here. I'm in LA, miles away from home. What if I don't get there in time? What if, what if she dies? What if she just dies and I'm not there. What if Jack can't handle the fact that I'm not there and asks for a divorce? Then I have no husband and a dead kid with four that I have to raise on my own? What would the custody arrangements be? Would we split them? Co-parent? Would we-?", Andy rambled as Maya put her hands on her cheeks.
"Andy, Andy, look at me. Eyes on me. You are not getting divorced and nobody's dying. Andy, take a deep breath. I know this is terrifying. I'm not a mom, but I know. Can I get you anything?" Maya asked as Andy stood up and took a shaky breath, wiping away here tears.
"No. No, you can't get me anything. I need to find my phone", Andy answered
"Honey, Jack already told you he'd call you when Lia gets settled in a room", Maya started as Andy shook her head.
"I'm not calling Jack. I'm calling my mom. I need my mom", Andy answered
"We have a flight we need to catch", Maya started as Andy dialed the number and looked up at Maya
"We'll make our flight. I need a minute. I need a minute to call my mom. So, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to do that", Andy snapped as she pressed the green button, waiting for what seemed like forever before Elena picked up.
"Hello?" she answered in a groggy voice "Andy?"
"Mami. Listen I'm sorry for everything that happened at Christmas okay? I'm sorry I didn't call you sooner to patch things up" Andy started as she sat back down on the bed with Maya.
"I'm sorry too Andy honey, but we can talk about this later. It's the middle of the night", Elena answered
"I know. I'm also calling because I need you. Something happened and I need my Mom" Andy answered. Elena was more awake now, sensing the panic in Andy's voice. Andy was doing everything it took not to fall apart on the phone, but it was getting harder and harder.
"Andrea, what's wrong?" Elena asked calmly a million scenarios running through her head.
"First of all, when I tell you what I'm about to tell you I would really apricate it if you didn't judge, or freak out, or hang up. Basically, anything you've done when I gave you very sudden news in the past. Because this is definitely shocking", Andy warned
"Are you pregnant? Is something wrong with the baby?" Elena asked
"Well, I am pregnant but I also kind of already have three kids. We adopted. Well, we were roped into adopting. Our neighbor died and left us her kids in her will. You remember Jenna, right?" Andy asked
"Jenna? With the two boys and the little girl? That Jenna?" Elena asked
"Yes Mami, that Jenna. We adopted her kids. All three of them" Andy answered "Anyways, Amelia's in the hospital and I'm at a conference, and Jack's there alone and I'm freaking out. So, I really need you to be on my side for this"
"You're a mother?" Elena asked, shocked. "How long ago was this? Also, why didn't you tell me?"
"To avoid a reaction like that Mom. Now I really need you, so are you going to be there for me or not?" Andy asked
"I'm here Andy. Now let's think about this one step at a time. Take a deep breath. What did Jack say about Amelia?" Elena asked
"He said that, they're running tests. She was throwing up all day with a high fever. Jack thought it was a 24-hour thing until she walked in DJ's room in the middle of the night and collapsed in his arms from the pain. I'm really freaking out right now because I'm not there. I'm on my way there, but I'm not there and I never had to worry about this before", Andy sobbed as she put her head on Maya's shoulder.
"Oh, Andy honey, It's always rough the first time they're hurt or sick. Speaking from one mother to another. Breathe. I'll go meet Jack at the hospital and sit with him until you get here. What time are you landing? Three? Ok, I'll call you an Uber for 3:30. You won't be thinking about that once you land" Elena calmed
"Thank you. Again, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the kids sooner. We were just getting them situated and with the news of the pregnancy, it took a while" Andy smiled
"No worries sweetheart. You just worry about getting back here, safely. Is Maya with you?" Elena asked
"Yeah, I'm here. We're going back together", Maya answered as Andy took her head off her shoulder and looked at her.
"And miss the conference? You've been looking forward to this for months. You should stay without me", Andy expressed
"And let you fly home alone? Andy, there are other conferences. We'll go to another one" Maya smiled as Andy turned her attention back to her phone.
"I have to go Mami. I'll text Jack that you're coming. Thank you. I'll see you soon" Andy stated as she hung up and turned back to Maya "What happened to keeping your eyes forward?"
"Not this time. Your daughter is about to have surgery. Eyes forward is not for right now. We'll go to another conference. Now we need to move or we're seriously going to miss our flight.
"I love you. You know that?" Andy smiled as she hugged Maya
"Love you too", Maya answered as they gathered the suitcases and left the hotel room.
Back at the hospital, Jack was asleep in a waiting room chair when he felt someone shake his shoulder.
"What? What's going on?" he asked as he opened his eyes slowly to see Elena standing in front of him. "Elena? What are you doing here?"
"Andy called me in a panic, and I told her I'd come wait with you", Elena smiled
Jack ran his fingers through his hair and sighed as Elena handed him a coffee "We didn't want to tell you this way", he said. "But congrats. You're a grandmother"
"It's okay. I'm happy to be one. How's Amelia doing?" Elena asked as Jack spotted Miranda walking towards them.
Jack closed his eyes and rested his head in his hands. "How many tests did they run on that little girl?"
Miranda was surprised when she saw Elena standing there next to Jack.
"It's good to see you again Elena", Miranda smiled as Jack stood up next to his mother-in-law.
"Any word on Lia?" he asked bracing for the worst.
"Yes. She's in a room. It is appendicitis so we have her scheduled for surgery tomorrow morning. She might be more skittish about that than anything. I'll be performing it so everything will be just fine. Would you like to go back to see her?" Miranda asked "You can go too Elena"
"Is that even a question Miranda? Thank you", he answered hugging her
"You're from 19. You share surgeons with me. You are family at this hospital", she answered as they followed her back to Amelia's room on the Peds floor.
"Daddy!", Amelia smiled as Jack walked into the room with Elena.
"Hey kiddo, how are we feeling? Still crummy?", Jack asked as he took a seat in the chair beside her. Elena stood in the doorway looking at the two of them, watching them.
"Jack is already one heck of a dad" she thought as she watched Amelia tap her chin and look at him seriously in response to his question.
"I'm feeling the crummiest", Amelia answered as Jack looked at a text from Andy on his phone "Plane is a half hour away. Maya's going to the station to find covers for us for a few days. Marsha's going to take Ro and DJ to her house for a few days. Ro's insistent on bringing XBOX, can he?"
"Tell Ro yes. I'm extremely proud of him. See you in a few" he texted back as Amelia looked at Elena.
"Who's that? She looks like Mommy" Amelia wondered aloud.
"That is your grandmother. That's Mommy's Mommy" Jack smiled as Elena walked closer to the two.
"She looks nice like Mommy", Amelia smiled. "My name's Lia"
"I know honey. Your Mommy told me all about you. I'm your Abuela Elena", Elena introduced as Amelia looked at her with wide brown eyes.
"What's abwayla?" Amelia asked
"Abuela honey. It's Spanish for grandmother. You know how Mommy speaks Spanish sometimes?", Jack smiled as he smoothed her hair.
"Mommy yelleded in Spanish when she stepped on DJ's Legos", Amelia answered as Elena laughed
"I bet she did Lia. Speaking of Mommy, she's on her way to see you right now"
"She's home?" Amelia asked
"She's on her way bug, the plane has to land before she can come here. I want you to try to sleep until then. You have a very long day tomorrow", Jack explained as she stayed awake.
"I want to see Mommy", Amelia protested as Elena left with the promise of bringing back more coffee.
"How about this, I'll wake you up when she gets here?" Jack asked as Amelia shook her head.
"I want her now. I don't like it here", Amelia answered truthfully.
"She must be scared" Jack thought as he picked her up and sat with her in his lap on the chair.
"Ok, then we'll do it this way. Go to sleep Amelia", he told her as she closed her eyes. He figured that he must have fallen asleep too because he woke up to Andy standing in the room smiling at him an hour later.
"Good morning", Andy smiled as she sat on the edge of the bed next to them. He stood up and put Amelia back to bed, hugging Andy right after.
"You have no idea how happy I am to see you", he stated as Andy glanced over at Amelia.
"How has she been?" Andy asked
"Scared. None of the Gibson kids or even us for that matter like hospitals. I finally got her to go to sleep about an hour ago", Jack answered as Elena walked in.
"I thought I'd get you some coffee. You probably didn't have anything on the plane", Elena answered as Andy hugged her.
"Thank you, Mom. I really needed that" Andy asked as Elena smiled brightly.
"She's adorable you know. Spunky like you. So super smart like you. She's may not be biologically yours, but I can see some Herrera and some Gibson in there. I got a chance to get to know her a little before they fell asleep" Elena smiled as she looked over at Amelia.
"They're like us in so many ways it's scary. All three of them", Jack answered "Now, let's mention the elephant in the room while Amelia is still sleeping"
"I'm so sorry about what happened at Christmas Andy. I should have never rearranged the house like that without asking you or pressured you into thinking about children, even though you're clearly a better mother than I ever was already, and you have three times as many kids as I had. I had you and that was that" Elena sighed
"Thank you", Jack muttered under his breath as Andy gave him a warning look.
"It's water under the bridge Mami. And I don't have three times as many kids as you had, I have five", Andy answered putting a hand on her stomach.
"Twins?" Elena asked as Andy nodded. Elena smiled bittersweetly, but her face fell. "When you have them, go get help. Don't be like me. Postpartum depression runs in the family"
"I know. Which is why I'm planning on going back to therapy when the twins come. I love my family too much to struggle", Andy answered as she ran her fingers through a sleeping Amelia's hair.
Back at the house, DJ was tossing and turning trying desperately to get to sleep. He was awake when everyone thought he was asleep and heard all of the commotion with Amelia, every last word. He laid in bed with his eyes wide open listening to Marsha talk to his mom and dad on the phone. He could tell by Marsha's voice that they were scared. He tried to close his eyes but opened them again after being haunted with images of Jack yelling for Rowan and Amelia crying. Those images then turned into images of the fire and sitting on Jenna's couch to hear that Carl had died. He was scared. He felt tears roll down his cheeks and wiped them away with his pajama sleeve. Unable to sleep, he gathered his blanket and walked next door to Rowan's room. He pushed open the door and stood in the pitch darkness calling out to Rowan. "Ro? Rowan?"
Rowan, having an issue of his own with sleep, turned to face the wall and put a pillow over his ears. "Go away", he groaned as DJ persisted.
"Rowan? Are you up?" DJ asked as Rowan turned over to face him.
"What are you still doing in here DJ? Gigi wants us to sleep. Go back to bed", Rowan muttered as he watched DJ stand still next to the bed. Part of him knew what this was, and he felt bad for his little brother, waking up to find the house in chaos like he did. Rowan sighed as he moved over and lifted the covers on the other side of the bed. "Alright, come on in DJ. You can't sleep either?"
DJ shook his head as he climbed in next to Rowan and snuggled in next to him. "Nope. I'm worried about Lia. All the grown-ups are crying, and Daddy sounded really upset", DJ answered as Rowan put his arms around him as Andy did during one of his nightmares. "Are you scared too Ro?"
"Truth?" Rowan asked unsure of how to explain his very grown up fears to his six-year-old brother.
"Truth" DJ answered affirmatively.
"Yes. I'm scared. I'm scared because I'm supposed to keep us together" Rowan answered. Rowan had been thinking about that before DJ walked in. Even with Jenna and Carl, before Jack and Andy came into their lives, he had taken on the goal of making sure they all stayed together. The one home he was in without them was torture. It was calm and orderly with him as the only child in there, but it was torture being without his brother and sister, especially where Amelia wasn't even a year old and DJ was three. He missed them every day and remembered wishing and praying that they could be together again and happy. He promised himself when Jenna took them all in that he would keep them together at all costs. In his mind, Amelia was dying, and he had failed as a big brother. He didn't even notice her was crying until DJ pointed out that he was sniffling. DJ reached over and wiped a few of the tears away as Andy had done for him before.
"Why are you crying?" DJ asked innocently
"I don't want to talk about it", Rowan grumbled. "Now go to bed"
"But you're sad and Daddy said that we always need to tell someone when we're sad", DJ answered. Rowan rolled his eyes. This kid was not letting up anytime soon. "Why are you crying Ro? Did I do something wrong?"
Rowan sighed as he locked eyes with DJ "No DJ. I did something wrong. I couldn't keep Amelia from getting sick and I feel like a terrible big brother", Rowan answered as DJ looked at him with his blue eyes full of compassion.
"You're not a bad big brother. You're the best in the whole wide world. You taught me how to play Grand Theft Auto, and you Lia, and I love looking at the stars in the treehouse with Daddy. You made me feel better when Jenna and Carl died", DJ assured
"Thanks squirt. You know, we might always fight, but as far as little brothers go, you're not that bad", Rowan smiled as he hugged DJ close. "Now let's go to bed. I heard Gigi say that Aunt Maya's going to take us to see Lia tomorrow"
"Rowan?" DJ asked with his eyes wide with worry, remembering why he couldn't sleep in the first place.
"Yeah DJ?"
"Is Lia going to be okay?" DJ asked
"She has to be. She's our third musketeer. Without her we're nothing", Rowan answered. "She'll be fine. Now go to bed"
"Rowan?"
"What now Dalton James?" Rowan asked more annoyed
"Don't call me Dalton. I just wanted to say I love you" DJ answered
"Well, I love you too. Now seriously, we need to sleep", Rowan answered as both boys drifted off into a peaceful sleep clinging onto each other for support.