12:02am

Drew slowly opened Jay and Hailey's door. He sniffled and whispered, "Mom? Dad?" There wasn't any movement inside, so he repeated, "Mom? Dad?" He walked to the bed and lightly pushed Jay, "Dad."

"Wha'" Jay mumbled and opened his eyes.

"I had a bad dream," Drew cried.

"Okay," Jay sighed and sat up, "Come on," he picked Drew up while standing.

"W-Wait," Drew said, "I want to sleep in your bed."

"Not tonight," Jay yawned and carried Drew back to bed.

"No, no," Drew cried, "Dad."

"You're okay," Jay kissed the side of Drew's head and tried peeling him off of his shirt, "Drew, it was just a bad dream."

"Please, please," Drew clawed at Jay.

"Drew," Jay groaned and lost his balance, falling onto the bed over Drew.

"Stay here, please," Drew hiccupped.

Jay took a deep breath, "For a little bit."

Drew nodded and curled up under the blankets against Jay.

"What was your dream?" Jay said softly.

Drew shook his head quickly.

"No, no, you need to let me in if I'm gonna hang out here with you," Jay said.

Drew whispered under his breath into the blankets and cried again.

"Bud, it's okay, I'm here," Jay held him closer, "Talk to me."

Drew poked his head up and mumbled, "I was playing soccer with you outside and a giant pterodactyl came and picked me up and forced me to be a baby dinosaur in her nest. I had to eat rabbits."

Jay blinked a few times in disbelief, having fully expected the dream to be about Drew's past, not something made up. He sat up, "Drew, that would never happen."

"It was so scary," Drew cried.

Jay shook his head and breathed out, "Whatever. Okay."

"Are you mad?" Drew asked quietly.

Jay softened and laid back down, "Of course not." He tugged Drew closer to him and hugged him tightly.

Drew pressed his face into Jay's shirt and sniffled.

"Just go to sleep," Jay whispered, "I'll keep you safe from any pterodactyls."

"Pterodactyls are extinct, Dad," Drew yawned.

Jay rolled his eyes, "I know."

"They can't hurt me," Drew breathed.

"Exactly," Jay kissed the top of his head.

Drew quickly fell back asleep, his grip on Jay's shirt finally loosening. Jay gently released Drew's fingers from him and stood to tuck Drew tightly into the blankets before going back to bed.

He yawned while getting under the covers and pulled Hailey against him.

"Thanks for doing that," Hailey breathed.

Jay's eyes widened and he leaned away from her, "You were awake?"

Hailey smirked with her eyes closed, "Goodnight."

"Unbelievable," Jay mumbled and laid back down.

Hailey kissed under his chin, "I love you."

"Sure," Jay shook his head.

Hailey laughed softly and wrapped her arms around him, "Say you love me."

Jay chuckled and slipped his hands under her shirt, "I love you too."

"That's what I thought," Hailey whispered.

Jay took a deep breath and closed his eyes, easily falling back asleep.

8:25am

"I'm going to be late," Drew kicked his legs quickly.

"You're fine, it's fine," Hailey said and reached her hand back, "Take my hand."

"No, I can't," Drew breathed shakily, "Oh my god, I'm going to die. I'm going to die."

"You're not going to die," Hailey waved her hand, "Drew, grab my hand."

"Oh no, oh no," Drew gripped his hair and pulled slightly, "I can't breathe."

"Drew," Hailey spun around in her seat.

Drew's eyes widened, "Mom!"

Hailey looked back to the road and gasped quietly, quickly pulling the car back into her lane.

"You could have killed me!" Drew yelled.

"We're fine," Hailey said quietly, "It's fine. We're fine."

"I am going to die!" Drew whined.

"You are not," Hailey snapped and whipped her car into the school parking lot. She drove toward the shortening carpool lane, slowing down as she entered the line.

Drew's eyes widened, "What are you doing?"

"We don't have time for me to park the car," Hailey said.

"I hate this," Drew angrily threw his seatbelt off of himself.

Hailey looked back at him through the rearview mirror, "Watch your attitude." She stopped the car, "I'll see you after school."

Drew grabbed his backpack and slid out of the car, slamming the door behind him.

Hailey felt angry tears burn her eyes as she watched him run inside the building. She set her jaw, determined not to let his frustration get to her, and drove back home.

8:57am

"Oh, Mommy needed this," Hailey whispered while picking Blake up into her arms. She hugged him to her chest and kissed his head, "I missed you, sweet boy."

Jay smiled sadly and sat in one of the chairs, "Want to talk about it now?"

Hailey sighed, "I know he didn't mean it. He was frustrated and angry and probably tired," she sat in the other chair and gently rocked Blake.

"Did he say something?" Jay asked.

Hailey shook her head, "Not really. Just a lot of anger mostly directed at me. He's the one who was having shoe issues and was the reason we were late getting out of the house."

"Maybe he needs new shoes," Jay suggested, "Those are the same tennis shoes he had when he moved in with us."

Hailey bit her lip and glanced up at him, "I didn't think of that. I feel bad, we should have bought him new shoes before school started."

"He didn't say anything," Jay shook his head, "It's not your fault."

"What mom doesn't buy her kids new shoes before school starts?" Hailey asked.

"Be nice to yourself, Hails," Jay said, "It's okay, really."

Hailey shrugged and gently rocked Blake.

Natalie walked around the divider and said softly, "Hey, you two. How's it going?"

"It's going," Jay nodded.

Natalie smiled, "I have exciting news and I begged the NICU nurses to let me take this over."

Hailey sat up, "Is it good news?"

Natalie nodded quickly, "The best news. Since his umbilical cord fell off last night, we can give him a bath and, maybe even the better part, you can put an outfit on him."

Hailey's eyes widened, "Are you serious?"

Natalie laughed, "Yes! I'll set up the tub for the two of you. Here, let me help you unhook him," she gently peeled the blanket off of Blake and started taking the monitors off of him, only leaving the oxygen tube.

"Do you need our soap or anything?" Hailey asked, "Jay could run home. What about an outfit for him?"

"They probably have soap here," Jay squeezed her arm.

"Of course," Natalie said, "And we have some preemie onesies he can wear. You could always bring one of yours tomorrow to change him into."

Hailey breathed shakily and looked at Jay, "I…we never bought preemie clothes. I didn't even think about that."

"We can buy some," Jay shrugged, "It's really not a big deal."

"It is though, we don't have clothes for him," Hailey chewed her lip.

"Hailey," Natalie said calmly and pulled a stool over to sit in front of her, "It's okay. We have some extra outfits for him right now. You weren't planning on having a preemie, so you couldn't have properly prepared. No one is blaming you or judging you for that. Do you understand?"

Hailey nodded slightly and whispered, "Okay."

Natalie patted her leg and pointed across the room, "I'll be over there. Take a minute," she walked away from them to start setting up the bath.

"Hey," Jay said softly and knelt in front of Hailey, "Relax."

Hailey used her free hand to rub her face, "I'm sorry."

"No, don't do that," Jay set his hands on her knees, "Nothing to apologize for."

Hailey nodded slightly and stood up, "Ready?"

Jay smiled, "Let's go." He helped Hailey bring the oxygen poll over to Natalie.

"All right," Natalie smiled and patted a towel, "Set him here and we'll get him all clean for you."

Hailey set him down and unfolded his blanket before taking his diaper off. Blake squeaked and moved his arms and legs around.

Jay chuckled and leaned over her shoulder, "Look at his belly button."

"He's cute," Hailey smiled.

"Think you can put him in the water?" Natalie asked.

"Um, maybe Jay can do it," Hailey stepped back.

Jay raised an eyebrow, "Maybe Hailey can do it. What if I drop him?"

"Your hands are bigger than mine," Hailey said.

Jay took a deep breath, "Okay, I'll try."

"It's fine, you two," Natalie laughed softly, "The hard part's getting him out. He'll be super slippery."

"Oh god," Jay breathed and gripped Blake tightly while transferring him into the tub.

Hailey smiled, "Look at him. Oh my gosh."

Natalie passed her a washcloth, "I put some soap on it if you want to wipe him down."

Hailey nodded and gently started washing Blake off. He whimpered and his lip stuck out.

"Shh, it's okay," Hailey whispered, "I'll be really quick, it's okay. Mommy just wants you to be a clean boy, yeah, it's okay."

Jay chuckled and watched Hailey in amusement as she made faces and cooed at Blake; he didn't know if he'd ever seen her this attractive before.

"Okay," Hailey breathed out and rinsed the washcloth, "I think he's clean," she stroked her thumb across his damp hair.

Natalie laid out a towel, "Jay, go ahead and put him on here."

"No, I think one of you two can do that," Jay said.

"Please," Hailey glanced up at him.

Jay sighed, "I…what if-"

"You won't," Natalie and Hailey said at the same time.

Jay bit his lip and carefully picked up Blake, but before he could set him on the towel, Blake started shaking in his hands and Jay instinctively brought him close to his chest. "You're safe, Daddy's here," Jay whispered, "You're okay. Everything's going to be okay."

Hailey stepped closer to him and set a hand on Blake's back, "Do you have him?"

"Yeah," Jay nodded and gently bounced Blake, "We're okay, right, buddy? Everything's okay."

Blake stopped trembling after a few minutes and Jay breathed out in relief, holding him for a little longer before laying him on the towel.

"You two are really good at that," Natalie said softly as she carefully dried Blake off.

Hailey smiled at Jay, "It just happens naturally."

Jay nodded, "Instinct."

"And that's perfect," Natalie grabbed a diaper, "You look a little wet though."

Jay laughed and looked down at his soaking wet shirt, "Just a tad."

"Did you want to go home and change?" Hailey asked.

"I have my bag in the truck from work," Jay shrugged, "I'll head out after he's settled."

"What do you think?" Natalie held up two pairs of pajamas, "Blue polka dots or yellow stripes?"

Hailey smiled, "The stripes."

"Sounds great," Natalie passed them to her.

"Wait, you're not going to do it?" Hailey asked.

Natalie laughed, "You don't want to?"

"He's just so small and…breakable," Hailey said quietly.

Natalie shook her head, "You won't break him; he's strong."

Hailey took a deep breath, "Okay then." She hesitated then slowly dressed Blake into the outfit, only struggling with his arms, but Jay was able to jump in and help her sort it out. Hailey finally relaxed and smiled, "How's that, Blake? Are you warm now?" She picked him up and held him to her shoulder, laughing as he made quiet noises, "I'm so happy. And it's soft?" Blake made another noise and Hailey laughed harder, "Good, good."

Jay chuckled and looked at Blake's face, "We've got a talker."

"He's adorable," Natalie smiled and led them back to Blake's section of the NICU. She picked up two of the monitors, "I just need to put these two back on him."

Hailey smiled sadly and laid him in her lap so Natalie could stick the monitors back on him, "Do you happen to know when we'll be able to feed him?"

"Any day now," Natalie nodded, "My guess would be once he gains another ounce or two based on his charts."

"That's good," Jay kissed Hailey's head, "Be back in a few minutes, I'm gonna go change."

Hailey nodded and kept her eyes on Blake as Jay walked out. She smiled at him and poked his nose, laughing softly when he stuck his tongue out, "You really are the cutest," she whispered. Natalie walked away leaving Hailey alone in silence with Blake. She rocked him slowly until he fell asleep.

10:28am

Jay's phone rang as he closed his truck door after changing his shirt in the parking garage of the hospital. He recognized the school phone number and quickly answered it, "Jay Halstead."

"Dad, it's Drew Satterfield."

Jay chuckled, "Hi, buddy, what's going on?"

"I'm sick," Drew sniffled, "I don't feel good."

Jay slowly walked toward the hospital, "What doesn't feel good?"

"My stomach hurts really bad," Drew said.

Jay sighed, "Really? Did you try drinking water?"

"What would that do?" Drew asked.

"Um, settle your stomach?" Jay rubbed his face.

"I want to go home," Drew whined.

"Drew, we've talked about this before, you need to try to wait it out," Jay said.

"But Dad, I'm really sick," Drew sniffled again.

Jay took a deep breath, "It's a stomachache?"

"Mhmm."

Jay groaned and briefly closed his eyes, "Okay. How about you wait it out for another hour or so and if your stomachache doesn't go away, call me again?"

"So you're not going to come get me right now?" Drew whimpered.

"Not right now, we need to work on you staying at school when things get tough," Jay walked through the hospital doors and leaned against the wall.

Drew cried quietly, "Dad, it hurts."

"You're just nervous for that reading quiz," Jay said, "Deep breaths. You've got this. We studied last night. You're an awesome reader and I'm so proud of you."

Drew breathed shakily, "Dad, please."

"Buddy, I've got to go," Jay said softly, "I believe in you, okay? I love you."

"F-Fine," Drew sniffled, "I love you too."

Jay smiled slightly and hung up the call, putting his phone in his pocket.

10:59am

"I kind of like the stripes," Jay said while looking down at Blake.

Hailey laughed, "Yeah? Maybe we should buy him more striped clothing."

"What size do we even get?" Jay asked, "Cause this even looks baggy."

Hailey held him up, "Check the tag."

Jay sat up to gently pull the back of the pajamas from Blake and looked inside, "It just says 'Pr.'"

Hailey sighed, "Well that's not helpful."

Jay shook his head and sat back, "Not at all."

Hailey's phone rang and she breathed, "Crap."

"Not a problem," Jay reached over and grabbed Blake, "It's my turn anyways."

Hailey smirked and answered her phone, "Hello?"

Jay held Blake up and started making faces at him, "Can you laugh? Can you laugh at Daddy?" he stuck his tongue out and blew, crossing his eyes.

"Sorry, what?" Hailey lightly hit Jay's arm and stood up, grabbing her wallet.

Jay lowered Blake back in his arms and watched Hailey slip her coat on.

"Okay, I'll be there soon," Hailey ended the call, "Give me your keys."

"What's going on?" Jay asked, one hand searching his coat pocket. He found the keys and held them out, "Is someone hurt?"

"Drew threw up," Hailey bent down and kissed Blake's head, "Bye, baby boy, Mommy will see you later."

Jay's eyes widened, "He threw up?"

"Yeah, and the secretary said he doesn't want you picking him up," Hailey crossed her arms, "Care to explain?"

Jay bit his lip, "He did call me earlier right after I changed my shirt and said he had a stomachache. I figured he was nervous for his spelling test."

Hailey let out a breath, "Fair." She ran a hand through her hair, "Think Will can take you home?"

"I'm sure he could, if not, I can call someone from work," Jay shrugged.

"See you later," Hailey kissed him lightly before hurrying out.

11:21am

Hailey stepped into the small dark room off of the office and smiled sadly. Drew was curled up on the tiny bed with a trashcan next to him and Hailey could tell it was half filled already.

She lightly sat on the bed, setting a hand on Drew's back, "Hi sweetheart."

Drew blinked his eyes open and groaned in response.

"Not feeling good, are you?" Hailey said softly.

Drew shook his head and gripped his stomach.

"You're sweating so much," Hailey spotted Kleenex on the nearby table and used some to wipe his forehead.

Drew closed his eyes again and panted softly. He whimpered and blindly reached out for the trashcan.

"Here, here," Hailey grabbed it for him and held it under his mouth as he threw up.

Drew cried and shook his head once he was finished.

"Think you can make it home?" Hailey asked.

Drew gagged again and nodded.

"Oh, honey," Hailey breathed. She helped him sit up and walk out of the office. She practically lifted him into the backseat, setting his backpack next to him.

Drew weakly put his seatbelt on then leaned his head against the window.

"I'm so sorry," Hailey said while she started driving, "I didn't know you were so sick. Were you feeling sick for a while?"

Drew nodded and coughed, covering his mouth.

"I'm trying, sweetheart," Hailey said, pushing the gas and heading home as fast as she could.

11:47am

Jay sighed, stuffing his phone back into his pocket. Hailey wasn't picking up. He truly felt awful for blowing Drew off. It hurt him to know that his son asked for help and he denied him.

"Hey," Will said while walking over.

Jay looked up and nodded, "Hey."

Will sat in the chair next to Jay, "I saw Hailey run out a bit ago without you, everything okay?"

Jay shook his head and brushed his fingers over Blake's hair.

"What happened?" Will asked.

"Don't you have work?" Jay mumbled.

Will rolled his eyes, "I'm on lunch. Talk to me."

Jay took a deep breath, "Drew's sick and I ignored him. I'm basically the worst dad in the world."

"That's a bit dramatic," Will chuckled.

"He had this crazy nightmare last night and woke me up," Jay said, "That must have been like a fever dream or something, I don't know."

Will raised an eyebrow, "Did he feel like he had a fever?"

"Not that I remember," Jay bit his lip.

"You would have remembered," Will nodded, "Don't blame yourself."

"He threw up at school," Jay sighed.

"And a stomach bug can come on fast," Will assured him, "Jay, you didn't do anything wrong."

Jay shrugged and hugged Blake to his chest.

Will smiled slightly, "Nat said you guys gave him a bath. How was that?"

Jay finally smiled and nodded, "It was good. He feels more real, if that makes sense. He's clean and wearing actual clothes."

Will laughed softly and nodded, "It does. He looks really good."

"Thanks," Jay carefully turned Blake to look at Will. He whispered, "Say, 'Thanks, Uncle Will.'"

Will reached out and gently took Blake in his arms, "Hi, little guy. You're getting big, soon your mom and dad can give you a bottle, that'll be fun. Maybe I could feed you when I'm on nightshifts."

"You'd do that?" Jay asked.

Will glanced up and smiled, "Of course. I already come visit him all the time. I'll definitely take a feeding."

"You know, you're pretty great," Jay said.

Will laughed, "Thanks. I appreciate that."

Jay smirked and shook his head, "Don't get a big head on me."

"Already happened years ago," Will winked.

Jay laughed and rubbed his face, "Of course it did."

1:00pm

"There you go," Hailey whispered to Drew as he sat back in her lap on the bathroom floor.

He started crying again, "It hurts."

"I bet it does," Hailey said, reaching around him to flush the toilet.

"How do I have this much in my body?" Drew asked through his tears.

Hailey laughed softly and rubbed his back, "I don't know, honey, I'm sorry."

Drew cried quietly into his hands, "Make it stop."

"I wish I could," Hailey kissed the back of his head, "I don't ever want you in pain. I'm so sorry."

Drew shivered and pressed his head into his knees.

"I want to get you back to bed," Hailey said and stood up.

"I can't walk," Drew shook his head.

"I will help you," Hailey bent down to wrap his arms around her neck, lifting him up then carrying him to her bedroom. She gently laid him on the covers, "Okay, I want you to eat something."

Drew's eyes widened, "No, don't make me. I can't do this again."

"Just some crackers," Hailey used her sleeve to wipe his forehead, "You need something in you in case you do get sick again so that you're not throwing up your stomach stuff."

"What's stomach stuff?" Drew asked, pulling at the blankets.

Hailey helped tuck him into bed, "Like the acid that breaks down your food. We want to keep as much of that in you as we can."

"I'm dying," Drew breathed and curled up.

"You are not," Hailey kissed his head, "Stay here, I'll be right back." She quickly walked downstairs to the kitchen to find the saltine crackers she kept in the back of the cabinet for times like this. She was really hoping Drew had a case of food poisoning and not the stomach flu so she and Jay could still visit Blake in the coming days.

She filled a plastic bottle with water, grabbed the crackers, and hurried back upstairs. She was walking through the bedroom door when she heard the distinctive noise of Drew throwing up again. She closed her eyes, having just saw him still laying in the bed. She tried taking deep breaths to calm herself down, not knowing how she was going to rid her bed of vomit while still keeping an eye on Drew.

Drew looked over at her when he heard the floor creak and burst into tears, "I'm so sorry. You said to stay here."

"Yeah," Hailey breathed and set the crackers and water on Jay's side table, "It's okay. Let's get you out of this mess."

3:23pm

Jay walked in the house, surprised to see the TV on and Drew and Hailey on the couch; he expected to find them upstairs in his and Hailey's bed or even Drew's bed.

"How's it going?" Jay asked while setting his wallet on the front table.

Hailey looked over and put a finger to her lips.

Jay smiled and walked over to her. Drew was laying on the couch with his head in Hailey's lap. There was a trashcan at her feet and bottles of water surrounding them.

"Not good, huh?" Jay whispered, sitting on the couch at Drew's feet.

Hailey shook her head, "He threw up in our bed."

Jay scrunched his nose, "No."

Hailey nodded, "Yes."

"Oh no," Jay sighed, "Dammit."

"I know," Hailey rubbed her face, "Jay, he's messed up. He's really sick."

"Dammit," Jay repeated, "Dammit, dammit, dammit."

Hailey reached over and squeezed his arm, "We'll figure it out."

"I should have known the second he woke me up last night," Jay shook his head.

"What about me?" Hailey asked, "I should have noticed when I realized how cranky he was before school."

Jay sighed, "He was just off all morning and now we know why."

"We all ate the same thing last night," Hailey chewed her lip.

Jay squeezed the bridge of his nose, "Yeah."

"We can't get sick," Hailey said.

Jay bit his lip, "I know. We should up our Vitamin C."

Hailey weakly laughed, "Jay, it's too late. I'm sure we already have the germs."

"Could we have given it to Blake?" Jay asked nervously.

"I don't know," Hailey swallowed, "We can't think of that though. We should probably just stay away for a day or two."

Jay groaned, but knew she was right. It was for the best, it just really really sucked.

"He'll be okay," Hailey said and reached over to hold Jay's hand, "Natalie and Will can check in on him and send us updates."

Jay nodded and whispered, "I know."

"This one needs us now," Hailey rubbed Drew's back.

Jay smiled slightly, "Yeah. At least we're off of work."

Hailey laughed softy, "True. Don't have to worry about taking time off."

Jay sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Okay, well, you should go take a break. I'll take care of sicko here while you go shower or something."

Hailey laughed harder and stood, "Thank you," she kissed his head, "Be back in a few."

Jay turned his head to watch her walk upstairs. He smiled then looked down at Drew, sadly accepting his fate that the chances he and Hailey were going to be experiencing the same horrible sickness in the coming days was pretty high. He wasn't ready to balance being a dad to Drew and Blake and a husband to Hailey all while being sick, but he might as well dive head first into it. It was going to be his life for at least the next eighteen years.

A/N: I came up with this idea and format last night as something different, but had a lot of fun with it still. I hope you liked it! And also I hope you're all doing well! Honestly, I miss writing as much as the summer and seeing all your reviews constantly and messages. It was super nice and felt like new friends, so yes I wish you all the best!