Hailey rubbed his back and whispered, "You're okay. It's okay."

He breathed shakily and shook his head.

"You are though," Hailey said softly, "We're in our house, nothing will hurt us."

He put his head in his hands, "It felt so real."

"I know," Hailey breathed and hugged him tightly, "But it's not real, not at all."

He groaned and leaned into her.

"I've got you," Hailey kissed the top of his head, "I'm not going anywhere."

He was running fast and hard through a field. The grass was whipping at his arms and face as he pushed harder and harder to go forward.

His mom stood at the end of the field on a big rock. She was yelling something, but he couldn't hear her.

He needed to get to her. He needed to. He couldn't give up.

He's been running forever now, though, surely he should be there soon.

He heard a helicopter above and gasped, knowing he needed to get to her soon.

The air started buzzing. He fought past the tears in his eyes to run faster, yelling, "I'm coming! I'm coming!"

Another lady suddenly stepped out from behind a dying tree and stood still. She looked familiar enough for him to slow down to get a better look at her.

He shook his head and turned back to his mom, picking up speed again. He swallowed against his dry throat, "I'm coming."

He tripped over his own shoelaces and stumbled to the ground in a puddle of hot mud. He rubbed his face and tried standing, but quickly fell back down.

He looked up just as the hatch opened on the helicopter and a large missile fell out.

Drew opened his eyes and his stomach felt full. He sighed and pushed the covers off of himself to get out of bed. He grabbed his dinosaur, Rex, and walked to the bathroom.

After washing his hands, he walked out of the bathroom rubbing his eyes. He was going to walk back to bed, but he decided to check his mom and dad's room to make sure they were safe in bed. They probably were, but he would really regret not checking if they weren't.

Drew pushed the door open, but froze. His mom and dad were sitting up in bed whispering to each other. This was new. Usually when Drew walked in their room at night, they were sleeping.

Hailey glanced up and her eyes widened, "Drew."

Jay rubbed his face and turned away from the door.

"What's going on?" Drew asked and walked forward slowly.

"We…are just talking," Hailey said, her hand rubbing small circles on Jay's back.

Drew nodded and leaned against the bed, "Isn't it late though?"

"Yeah, so why are you up?" Hailey asked.

"I needed to go to the bathroom," Drew shrugged, "Dad, are you proud of me? I didn't wet the bed."

"Uh," Jay sniffled and sat up, "Yeah, yeah, very proud."

"Are you sick?" Drew climbed on the bed.

"Sweetheart, how about you go back to bed?" Hailey set a hand on Drew's arm in an effort to hold him off, "Take Rex and go to sleep."

"Dad sounds sick," Drew said.

Jay blinked his eyes quickly and tried to focus on Drew's face, but his mind was still swimming so his vision was a little blurry.

"Are you sick?" Drew repeated and patted Jay's leg.

"No," Jay cleared his throat and turned to Hailey; his hand gripped her thigh as he tried to ground himself.

Drew squinted his eyes, "You don't look okay."

"Honey, back up," Hailey lightly pushed Drew back.

"Dad looks like he's sweating," Drew leaned forward more.

"Bud, I need some space," Jay said quietly.

"Because you're sick?" Drew asked.

"Drew," Hailey finally snapped and pulled him away by his waist.

"Don't touch me," Drew mumbled and winced.

Hailey sighed and got out of bed, "Drew, let me tuck you back in."

"But Dad's not okay," Drew said.

"I know," Hailey picked him up, "Say goodnight."

"I'm too smart for this," Drew tried pulling away, "Put me down."

"No," Hailey carried him back to his room.

Drew sighed as she set him on his bed, "This isn't fair. Dad takes care of me all the time, why can't I take care of him?"

Hailey tucked him in, "Dad's having a rough night."

"I knew it," Drew breathed.

Hailey kissed his forehead, "I promise to take care of him."

"Let me know if you need help," Drew said.

"I will," Hailey smiled slightly. She squeezed the top of the dinosaur's head, "Sleep tight."

"I will," Drew giggled.

Hailey laughed and shook her head as she walked out of the room. As she opened her own door, she noticed Jay was in the bathroom leaning over the sink throwing water into his face. She slowly walked over to him, "Jay."

He jumped up and gasped.

"I'm sorry," Hailey said softly and set a hand on his back, "Deep breaths."

Jay rubbed his face and tried talking.

Hailey grabbed a towel, "Close your eyes for me," she waited for a second before drying his face off, "There you go," she whispered, "Back to bed."

Jay nodded and swallowed hard. He took her hand and walked back their bed.

"You're still shaking," Hailey said and pulled the blanket over their legs.

"Sorry," Jay breathed.

"Hey," Hailey tilted his head to face her, "Don't even start with that."

Jay nodded slightly and laid down.

Hailey fit herself against his side and gripped his hand, "Do you think you can sleep?"

"Yeah," Jay whispered and stared at the ceiling.

"Okay," Hailey propped herself up slightly and brushed her fingers through his hair, "Close your eyes. I'm not going anywhere."

Jay nodded and turned on his side to hold Hailey close.

"I've got you," Hailey breathed, "I'm here. I love you."

Drew woke early in the morning, even for him. The clock said 4:45am. Instead of reading and looking out the window like he usually would, though, he hurried out of bed and down the hall to his mom and dad's room.

He caught his breath outside the door before quietly pushing it open. He snuck in the room and decided it'd be best to crawl. Once he got to the bed, he pushed himself up and stared at his dad's face.

He was breathing quietly and he wasn't sweaty looking anymore.

Drew breathed out in relief and nodded to himself. He lowered himself down to the carpet and crawled back out of the room.

Jay yawned as he woke up and shifted on the bed. He blinked his eyes open and stretched slightly on the mattress.

Hailey was still asleep next to him, but he really wanted to get out of bed and have a change in scenery, so he carefully rolled away and out from under the covers.

He rubbed his face and walked downstairs to start a pot of coffee. He walked into the kitchen, but suddenly paused and backed up.

Drew was laying asleep on the couch using the pillows as blankets and his dinosaur stuffed animal as a pillow for his head.

Jay chuckled and grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch to lay it over him. He watched Drew sleep for a minute until he decided he really did need coffee and went to make some.

Jay stared at the coffee pot waiting for it to brew. He sighed and ran a hand over his head, wincing as he remembered his dream from the night before. He swallowed and went into the living room.

He searched through the shelf until he found the navy photo album. He brought it to the couch and sat at the end near Drew's feet to look through it.

Hailey opened her eyes and quickly sat up when she realized Jay wasn't in bed.

"Jay," Hailey breathed and looked around. She threw the covers off of herself and ran to the bathroom, "Jay." She sighed and hurried downstairs, slowing down when she spotted his head leaning against the back of the couch.

She smiled and walked around. Her eyebrows shot up when she spotted Drew sleeping on the cushions. Jay was asleep as well, but Hailey noticed he had a photo album on his lap.

She bit her lip as she picked it up, finally understanding what Jay's dream was about that night and why he refused to talk about it per usual. Her finger lightly traced the outline of Charlotte Halstead in her wedding dress. Jay never told her exactly what was going on in his recurring dream, but rather told her bits and pieces that she had to put together for herself – his mom, the heat, a helicopter.

She bit her lip and set the album on the coffee table.

Hailey bent down and kissed his forehead and set a hand on Drew's back. She knelt next to the couch and ran her fingers through Drew's hair.

Drew jolted awake and gasped, kicking Jay's side and pushing himself away from her.

Jay groaned and opened his eyes, "What was that?"

"I'm sorry," Hailey whispered, "I'm so sorry."

Drew caught his breath and rubbed his eyes. He sat up and gripped his dinosaur, "Why'd you do that?"

"I…I don't know," Hailey said, "I'm sorry."

Drew nodded slightly and breathed shakily, mumbling, "I'm okay. I'm okay."

"Did you have a nightmare?" Jay asked quietly.

Drew glanced at him, "Just the scary colors."

Jay nodded and put his hand out, "Come here."

Drew hesitated and stared at Jay's hand.

"We both need it," Jay said softly, "Come here."

Drew gave in and leaned against Jay's side, pressing his face into his shirt.

Jay wrapped an arm around him and held him close.

Hailey lightly sat on the edge of the couch, "Do either of you need anything?" she set her hand on the back of Jay's neck.

"Coffee?" he asked with a small smile.

Hailey smiled back, "I can do that. Drew?"

"I'm fine," Drew said without looking up.

"Okay," Hailey whispered and walked in the kitchen.

Jay looked back at her then tilted Drew's head up, "Want to talk about it?"

"Not really," Drew said.

Jay nodded, "I know the feeling."

"Did you have a nightmare last night?" Drew asked.

Jay took a deep breath and leaned his head back to look at the ceiling, "Yeah…I did."

"I'm guessing you don't want to talk about it," Drew said.

Jay laughed softly, "You're right."

"That's fine," Drew shrugged and sat up. He spotted the photo album on the coffee table, "What's that?"

"Uh," Jay reached forward and grabbed it, "These are pictures I found in my dad's apartment after…after he died."

"Can I look?" Drew sat up on his knees.

"Sure," Jay said softly and passed it to him.

Drew flipped through the pages, "So this is your family?"

"Yeah," Jay pointed to a picture, "That's my dad and Will."

Drew smiled, "He looks little like me."

"He probably was about your age," Jay picked up the album to look closer. He spotted the year and did the math under his breath before saying, "Yeah, he's eight here, so just over you."

"Why am I short?" Drew asked.

"You're not short," Jay shook his head and turned the page, "You're just seven."

"No, I'm short," Drew said, "Other boys are taller than me."

Jay shrugged, "I'm really not that tall either compared to other guys. It's just how it works sometimes."

Drew sighed, "Whatever."

Jay smiled and passed the photo album back, "This is me when I was six."

Drew laughed, "You don't have teeth."

"I'm pretty sure Will knocked them out," Jay chuckled, "We can ask him tonight when he comes over for dinner."

"Should I call Doctor Will 'Uncle Will' now?" Drew looked up at Jay.

Jay's eyes widened slightly, "Uh if you want."

Drew nodded, "Would it bother him?"

"Not at all," Jay smiled.

"Good, I'll keep thinking about it," Drew looked back to the pictures and hummed quietly.

Jay stood and left him to walk to the kitchen. He wrapped his arms around Hailey from behind and rested his head on hers, "How're you doing?"

"Me?" Hailey reached up and set a hand on the side of his face, "What about you?"

"I'm fine," Jay said softly.

"Mhmm," Hailey turned from the toaster and held his arms, "You're fine?"

"Drop it, Hails," Jay warned under his breath.

"Okay," she raised her eyebrows, "But Jay-"

"No, Hailey," Jay stepped back.

"Hey," Hailey whispered and took his hand, "No, we're not doing that. If you don't want to tell me, that's fine, but you're not completely blocking me out and putting up extra walls. I won't let you."

Jay bit his lip and paused before admitting, "Fine. I'm sorry."

Hailey nodded and hugged him around his waist tightly.

Jay ran his fingers through her hair and breathed, "Thank you for being here."

"I'm not going anywhere," Hailey said into his shirt.

"Oh, I definitely knocked those out," Will laughed and looked at the picture Drew had handed him, "I was pretty awesome at karate."

"Okay, sure," Jay rolled his eyes.

"I was a purple belt," Will told Drew, "That's legit."

Drew laughed, "That sounds pretty cool."

"Look what you've done," Jay joked, "Now he thinks you're cool."

"Uncle Will's the coolest," Drew blurted.

Will's jaw dropped slightly and he weakly laughed.

Drew blushed and stepped backwards into another kitchen chair, "I-I wasn't supposed to say that yet."

"It's okay," Hailey stood and put her hand on his, "You're okay. Want to come sit with me in the living room?"

Drew nodded and walked with her to the couch.

Jay chuckled and looked back at the photo album.

"Oh my god," Will whispered, "Jay…"

"I know," Jay smirked, "Pretty cool, huh?"

"That feels way better than I thought it would," Will tried looking over to the couch where Hailey was holding out different stress balls for Drew.

Jay nodded, "He told me earlier he was thinking about calling you 'Uncle Will,' but he didn't say he was ready. Clearly he likes you."

Will chuckled, "Well who wouldn't?"

Jay rolled his eyes, "You're so full of yourself."

"Just confident," Will shrugged and stood, "Think it's okay for me to talk to him."

"Yeah," Jay shrugged, "It should help calm him down."

Will nodded and walked into the living room, "Hey, bud, let's talk."

"Are you mad?" Drew asked quietly and squeezed his stress ball tightly.

"Not at all," Will smiled and sat on the coffee table in front of him, "I'm actually super happy. Thank you for saying that."

Drew softened, "Really?"

"Really," Will nodded, "I've never been called 'Uncle Will' before, so this is a huge moment for me."

Drew smiled slightly, "Okay, good."

"Does this mean I can officially call you my nephew?" Will asked.

"Well, I guess," Drew said quietly, "But I'm still not officially a Halstead, so is it lying?"

"No," Hailey butted in, "It's just like with you saying 'Mom' and 'Dad.' Just because we don't have the same last name or share blood doesn't mean we're not family."

Drew nodded, "Okay."

"So what do you say?" Will smiled.

Drew bit his lip over a smile and nodded, "You can say I'm your nephew."

"Perfect," Will put his fist out.

Drew laughed as he tapped his fist to Will's.

"Hey," Jay walked around and sat in the recliner, "What do you say about having two nephews?"

Will's eyes widened and he looked to Hailey, "What?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Hailey said quickly, "I'm not pregnant."

"They're going to adopt a baby," Drew explained.

"So two adoptions?" Will smiled, "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Jay nodded with his own smile, "Drew will probably he a Halstead before the baby's born, but then we'll have another mouth to feed."

"Baby's drink their food, remember?" Drew asked.

"I do," Jay chuckled.

"Congratulations," Will quickly hugged Hailey then moved to hug Jay, "This is amazing news! When will the baby be born?"

"About three months," Hailey said, "She just started her third trimester."

"Wow," Will looked around, "There's a lot to get done before that then."

"You're telling me," Jay leaned back in the recliner, "But Kim's going to throw us a baby shower which will hopefully help."

"Send me your registry then," Will said to Hailey.

"I will," she smiled.

Will nodded, "And what else do you need?"

"Well," Hailey took a deep breath, "We're probably going to need a lot of your help at first."

"I don't know a ton about babies, but I'll definitely help in any way I can," Will said.

"This baby…" Jay glanced toward Drew, "Is going to be…"

"Um…sick," Hailey finished.

Jay nodded, "Yes, he's potentially going to have some problems."

Will raised his eyebrows, "What kind of problems?"

"Honey, how about you go read upstairs?" Hailey asked Drew softly.

He sighed, "Are you serious?"

Hailey nodded, "Yeah."

Drew groaned, "Fine, but I am grown-up enough for adult conversations," he shook his head and walked upstairs.

Will waited until he heard Drew's bedroom door shut, "How'd you meet this mother?"

Jay bit his lip, "From a case."

"You didn't," Will shook his head, "Jay, come on."

"Don't freak out," Jay said, "Please."

Will raked his brain until he shook his head faster, "That girl. That pregnant girl that was not only doing coke herself but her mom was giving it to her too. Come on you two? Really?"

"Stop being dramatic," Jay breathed with a glance to Hailey.

She was chewing her lip and playing with the edge of the pillow.

"That baby's going to be messed up," Will said, "Do you even know what you're getting into?"

"Kind of," Hailey finally spoke up quietly, "We know it's going to be hard which is why we'll need your help."

Jay nodded, "We want this, Will, so much. It feels right. We need it."

Will looked between the two of them before finally sighing, "Fine, I'll support you. I still think it's going to be extremely difficult, but if anyone can do this, it's you two."

Hailey smiled slightly, "Thank you."

Will took a deep breath, "You're still my family, you know? And you both really have some guts to do this. I do think it'll be worth it, not many people can do this, so it's great that you are."

"Now was that really that hard?" Jay asked with a teasing smile.

Will rolled his eyes, "Whatever." He chuckled, "I'm sorry, I guess I kind of did overreact."

"You definitely did," Hailey nodded.

Will chuckled, "I'm sorry."

Drew pushed his door open and whispered, "Shh, shh."

He army crawled across the carpet to the top of the stairs. It really was completely unfair that his mom told him to leave. Does she not understand how smart he is?

"We have something else though," his mom said.

"And what's that?" Uncle Will asked.

"Let me pull it up," his dad answered. Drew scooted forward slightly to see his dad going through his phone. "Okay, here it is," he passed Uncle Will his phone.

Uncle Will read whatever was on the screen, "If I remember correctly, that meeting's to put in place different strategies the teachers will plan on using to help him learn school stuff, but also deal with his behavior."

"So nothing bad?" his dad asked.

"No," Uncle Will shook his head, "This says you can bring someone. Want me to go?"

"Is it normal for someone else to go?" his mom looked to his dad.

"I'm not sure, but it's an option," Uncle Will said, "I am working on Monday, but I could probably get an hour or two off."

"We should be okay," his dad nodded slowly, "Thank you though."

Uncle Will passed the phone back, "You're welcome. Dr. Charles would definitely know more, you could call him."

"I might," his mom said.

"Wouldn't be a bad idea," his dad shrugged.

"Don't be nervous," Uncle Will shook his head, "This is standard for a kid like Drew."

His mom took a deep breath, "I know, I just don't want anyone to think we're bad parents."

"No one will think that," Uncle Will said quickly, "You two are amazing."

"It's still terrifying," his dad mumbled.

Drew bit his lip and decided he heard enough. He crawled back to his room and looked through his drawers for some of his coloring supplies.

Hailey yawned and laid on her pillow, "Need anything?"

"No, I'm okay," Jay smiled a little and got in bed.

"Okay," Hailey turned on her side. There was a soft crunching noise and she sat up, "What's that?"

Jay picked up her pillow and looked under it, "I don't know."

Hailey grabbed her pillow back and stuck her hand in the pillowcase. She pulled out a piece of paper with a crayon drawing of her, Jay, and Drew. Across the top, it said, 'Best Famly Ever.'

She laughed quietly, "Look."

Jay took it from her and smiled, "I love it."

"I wonder," Hailey stuck her hand in Jay's pillowcase, "Yup," she pulled out another drawing, but this time it was of just her and Jay and said, 'My Parents Are Grate.'

Jay chuckled, "This is really cute."

"I guess we know what he was doing when I sent him up here," Hailey smiled and put the drawings on her nightstand.

"Yeah," Jay laid down and pulled Hailey against him, "We're very lucky."

"I completely agree," Hailey whispered and kissed his jaw.

A/N: I liked trying out some new ways to write in this one, so let me know what you think! Thank you to everyone who's still reading…I super appreciate it!

PS – anyone else dying over the new Taylor Swift music?