Chapter 9

Later that day, what most people would refer to the morning, Fallon woke up from a few hours of sleep to find Liam standing over her.

"Liam! Thank god you're here." Fallon exclaimed, trying to get out of bed and reach for Liam.

"No, no, stay in bed, Fal. I'll come to you." Liam rushed, trying to get Fallon to stay in bed. According to what her doctor had said, she was supposed to be on bed rest for at least 24 hours.

"I want to get out of bed, Liam." Fallon whined.

"Baby, the doctor said you have to." Liam sat down in the chair beside her and placed his hand in her's.

"I don't want to be on bed rest. I want to get up, give you a damn hug, and then go see my daughter. What if she's alone, Liam? Beck's parents might be with him and she might be all alone. I want to see her."

"I know you do, and you will soon enough, but now isn't the time. I can help you with the hug, though." Liam stood up again and wrapped his arms around Fallon. It was slightly awkward and difficult, due to the fact that Fallon was only sitting up halfway, but neither one of them really cared.

"Did the doctor talk to you?"

"Yeah, I talked to her when I got here. She told me as much as she could about the accident. She said that you don't have any major injuries, just some cuts and bruises. She said that the babies are ok, but that you have to stay on bed rest. Do you want to tell me anything else?"

"I don't want to, but I probably should."

"Did something happen?"

"Oh, you mean other than the car accident, where a huge truck ran into us. It was so big it flipped our SUV over. Yes, something else happened."

"You know that's not what I meant, Fallon. I meant before the accident. Like at the hotel, or at the reunion."

"Yeah, a lot of things happened."

"Would you care to tell me any of it?"

Fallon took in a deep breath and then let it out in the form of a sigh. She really didn't want to tell Liam what happened, but she supposed she should. Here goes nothing.

"So, yesterday I woke up with morning sickness, you know, because I have every morning for three weeks. While I was throwing up, I guess Paisley heard me and decided to come in. I kind of snapped at her. She told Beck and Beck got mad. He called me a bitch, and started a big, overdramatic fight that was apparently a test. He was testing me and I failed. He said he was going to take Paisley back to New York and tell her how horrible of a person I am so that she'd hate me. Anyway, I went most of the day without seeing or talking to either of them. We drove to the reunion together, and the car ride was very uncomfortable. When we got there, I probably didn't help my case because I got out of the car and put up a front for the paparazzi, while Beck struggled to carry Paisley and protect her face. So when we got in, we found some of our old friends, Cat and Andre. Cat and I went to the library to talk, and Andre and Beck stayed near the entrance."

"Did you tell her who you really are?"

"No. I'm not going to tell anyone, Liam. They knew me as Jade, they know me as Jade, and that's how I'd like it to stay."

"So what happened after your talk with Cat?"

"We went back out to the boys. Unfortunately, they happened to be with the bitch formally known as Tori Vega. When we went up to them, Tori started with the passive aggressive comments. She criticized my life choices and said I was a horrible mother."

"Did you hit her?"

"No, but I seriously considered it. I probably would have if Paisley wasn't there. Anyway, Beck started teaming up with Tori. He started throwing snarky comments at me. And then they became insults, and then they turned in downright attacks. I've never heard things like that come out of his mouth. The guy at the reunion yesterday was not Beck. He started scaring Paisley. And then, after I started fighting back, his comments got more threatening. Cat suggested that I take Paisley back to the hotel. I agreed, but Beck and I started fighting about it. He, um, got so mad. He slapped me."

"He, what?" Fallon could practically see the anger radiating off of Liam.

"I agreed to go back to the hotel with him. I was too scared to argue anymore. I was scared he would do something to Paisley if I didn't go with them. I knew he was under the influence of something, but I didn't know what, and like I said, I was too scared to continue arguing. We were only a few minutes into the drive when we were hit. Beck ran a red light."

"He could've killed all of you! What the hell is his problem?"

"I don't know. He's changed, Liam. He's not the Beck I thought I knew."

Not knowing what else to say, and being too angry to form a cohesive sentence, Liam wrapped his arms around Fallon again, and was severely shocked to feel tears on his arm. Fallon never cried.

"Baby, I'm so sorry all of this happened. I should've been there with you. I should've insisted that I go."

"It's not your fault. The only person who is at fault is Beck, and for all I know, he's already paid the ultimate price."

"You mean, he died?"

"I don't know. When he was brought into the ER, I saw that a doctor was doing CPR on him. I have no clue if he's dead or alive."

"Have his parents come by to see you?"

"No. I doubt they will. I'm sure Beck told them all about me and all of the horrible things I did. They already disliked me when I was dating Beck, and I bet they hate me now. I would like to see them to know how Paisley's doing, but not at the risk of being verbally berated by them."

"Do you think the doctor will let me see Paisley?"

"I doubt it, especially if Beck's parents are there. As far as I know, they don't know who you are. I don't think they'd take well to a stranger going to see their granddaughter. I can have my doctor find out some information, but for right now, I want to go back to sleep. Can you lay next to me and hold me?" Fallon scooted over in the bed to give Liam room to sit next to her.

"Of course." Liam climbed into the bed and put one arm around Fallon's shoulders, and grabbed Fallon's hand with his other arm. Fallon snuggled up into him and quickly closed her eyes. Liam pressed a kiss to Fallon's head, and that was the last thing she remembered before falling asleep.

She woke up again a few hours later. It was around lunch time. The nurse brought in some disgusting looking food that she refused to eat, so Liam agreed to go get her some outside food and smuggle it in. He had only been gone for about 5 minutes when a knock from the door resounded throughout the room.

"Come in." She said, apprehensively, not really sure who could be behind the door.

She realized her apprehension was appropriate when the unwanted visitors walked in. They were none other than George and Grace Oliver, Beck's parents.

"Can I help you? Is there a reason you decided it would be ok to visit me?" Fallon was already not taking any of their bullshit.

"And you talk to your mother with that mouth? Where are you manners, young lady?" Grace said, acting like she was offended by what Fallon said.

"Don't call me young lady. I'm almost 30. And yes, I do talk to my mother with this mouth. Maybe it's because she has the same mouth. I'll ask again. What are you doing here?"

"Can you two please try to act civil for Paisley's sake?" George Oliver, ever the moderator. Fallon actually might've liked him had it not been for his poor choice of wives.

"I suppose. Would you like an update on your daughter?" George knew his wife's agreement to act civil wouldn't last long, but he had learned a long time ago to take what he could get.

"Yes, I would." Fallon responded.

"The doctor said she has a dislocated shoulder, a broken leg, and a broken nose. She also might have a slight concussion from hitting her head on the back of the seat. She was transferred up to the pediatric recovery wing a few hours ago. She's sleepy, and doesn't remember much of what happened, but she's stable. She even asked for you."

"She did? What did you tell her?"

"I told her that you couldn't go see her, but that you would as soon as your doctor would allow you two. I might not like you, but I at least have enough respect for you to recognize you as Paisley's mother. There's no pointing in turning her against you. It'll only hurt her in the long run."

"Thank you, Grace."

"Mhm."

"How is Beck?"

George and Grace both let out a sigh. Was Beck's condition bad?

"When Beck came in, apparently he didn't have a heartbeat. The doctors did CPR on him for like 30 minutes, and luckily they were able to get him back. He's in a medically induced coma right now. The swelling around his brain needs to go down before they can wake him up. He has a few broken vertebrae in his lower back, a broken leg, a broken hand, a broken nose, and a lot of cuts on bruises from going through the windshield. Overall, for going through a windshield, he's doing well." George explained.

"Did they figure out what caused the accident?"

"Yeah, he had cocaine in his bloodstream. Do you have any idea how he got it?"

"Cocaine? What the hell is Beck doing with cocaine?"

"You tell me, Jade. You were with him." Grace said, starting to act like this was an interrogation.

"I don't know. I was away from him at the reunion for 30 minutes. I guess he could've gotten it from somebody. A lot of people from the industry were their last night, and a lot of them do drugs. He was talking to Tori and maybe he got it from her. I know Andre didn't give it to him."

"Tori? Tori Vega? Why would she be giving Beck drugs?"

"I don't know. She has it out for me. Maybe she wanted Beck to hurt me. He did slap me and threaten to kill me. And then he almost killed me, my babies, my daughter, and himself. He ran through a red light and a huge truck plowed into us."

"My son? The one I raised slapped you and threatened to kill you?"

"Yeah. I couldn't believe it either. He's changed. He's not the same person I used to know."

"Well, from what he told us, neither are you. He told us that you lied about your identity for 5 years. It seems both of you are at fault."

"I'm assuming he didn't give you the reasons behind my faking my identity."

"Does it really matter? You lied to him and everyone for 5 years. You made everyone believe you were someone you weren't."

"I know what I did was wrong, and I shouldn't have done it, but it is what it is. It's done and over with. Jade was my life for 5 years, and now I've moved on. I can't go back and change the past, and even if I could, I don't think I would. I have a nice life now. I'd like Paisley to continue to be a part of that life, but when Beck's better and decides to take her away from me, then there's nothing I can do."

"This is why I always said you weren't good enough for my son. You lie and manipulate, and you don't stop until you get what you want? What was your end game with faking your identity?"

"There was no endgame. I needed an escape from my real life, and Jade from LA gave me that. I didn't think it would go on for as long as it did, and that's why I left Beck when I did. I couldn't keep the lie up for much longer, and I was afraid he'd leave me if he ever found out the truth."

"So what if he left you? You deserved it."

"I know I did, but Paisley did nothing wrong. I thought she deserved to have a parent who wouldn't be lying to her for her whole life."

"Then why are you so hellbent on keeping her in your life now?"

"Because I'm not lying to her anymore. Everything's out on the table. The cat's out of the bag. There's no point in keeping her from me now, especially when we're just starting to build a relationship."

"Beck should've kept her away from you. You don't deserve to be her mother."

"Fine, take her away. See what happens when you take a daughter away from her mother."

"Like you would know what that's like."

"Oh, I definitely would. My father forced my mother to leave by paying off a judge so he could get full custody of my brother and I. I was left to believe my mother abandoned us, and I hated her for so long. It turns out, while, no, my mother wasn't a saint, she was less to blame than my father. My parents tore our family apart, and in the end, it only backfired. My brother and I were so badly damaged from a lifetime of fighting, cheating, lying, and money. My brother was in a psychiatric hospital for a year because he had a psychotic break."

"Why would we want our granddaughter to be raised in an environment like that?"

"Because she has protection from my crazy family. She has me, my husband, my brothers, and my sister. She has people that I didn't have. Nobody else in my extended family cared about me and my brother. I would never allow my daughter to be corrupted by my family the way I was."

"Right now, you have no rights to Paisley. Beck told us you never signed the birth certificate, meaning, on paper, you are not her mother. That means that George and I have full guardianship over her. If we have it our way, she will never see you again."

Fallon didn't respond. She knew she couldn't respond without begging, and she wouldn't stoop that low. She remained silent until they got the memo and left. Fallon didn't make a peep or move an inch until Liam came back.

"Hey, I got Chipotle. I figured you'd like it. Is that ok?"

"Sure." Fallon gave, plainly.

"Is there something wrong? Did something happen while I was gone?"

"Beck's parents came to see me."

"Oh?"

"They told me how Beck and Paisley are doing. Paisley's fine, but Beck has serious injuries and is in a medically induced coma. Apparently the doctors found coke in his bloodstream."

"Cocaine? How the hell did he get cocaine?"

"I don't know, and I really don't care."

"Well I'm assuming you're not mad about anything you just told me, so what else happened?"

"Beck's mother, Grace, said she and George are going to take Paisley away from me. They can, too, because I have no legal rights to her. I never signed her birth certificate."

"Can't you take it to court? They can do a DNA test to prove that she's yours."

"Yeah, but the judge is almost for sure going to choose them. They've been there for her since birth. They're the people Beck appointed as her legal guardians in the event he becomes incapacitated or dies. I just came back into her life a month ago, after abandoning for nine years. If you were the judge, who would you pick?"

"Ok, I see your point, but what does Paisley want?"

"I don't know. She probably would rather go with her grandparents. And I don't really know if it matters, because I don't think thejudge will decide solely on what she wants."

"No, but it could help. If you can figure out what she wants, then we can go from there."

"I can't do that until I can get out of this damn bed."

"I can go get the doctor and see if she's willing to let you go visit Paisley."

"Fine. Just go." Fallon was beyond frustrated with the entire situation. She just wanted things to go back to the way they had been for the past month.

Liam walked out of the room to go find the doctor, leaving Fallon all alone again. She didn't exactly want to be alone, but she didn't want to talk about anything anymore, and it seemed Liam did. Luckily for her, she wasn't alone for long. Liam came back within a few minutes, with the doctor in tow.

"Your husband tells me you want to leave?" The doctor asked.

"Yes. I need to go see my daughter. Due to her father being in a coma, his parents have started a custody battle. I need to go talk to them and to my daughter to sort everything out."

"Ma'am, as I've said before, I recommend you stay on bed rest for at least 24 hours. It's only been about 15 hours since the accident. I would advise against you going anywhere, including to visit your daughter."

"You can't keep me here. Isn't there something I can sign to get out of here? You said me and the babies are ok. I don't see why I need to stay here."

"You and the babies are ok, for now, but that could change if you do too much, too soon. Miscarriage after a traumatic accident is very common, especially because you're still in the first trimester. As I said before, there's not much we can do to save the babies if you start having a miscarriage."

"Will my fertility be affected if I have a miscarriage?"

"Fallon, are you seriously suggesting what I think you are?" Liam asked, not liking where the conversation was going.

"I am. Doctor, will my fertility be affected by a miscarriage."

"Not usually, no, but a miscarriage is very traumatic on the body, and with how far along you are, if you were to have a miscarriage, you could require a procedure to extract remaining tissue."

"If my fertility won't be affected, then I can have another baby if I have a miscarriage. I need to see my daughter now." Fallon was done listening to the doctor.

"Fallon, don't do this. Don't make yourself have a miscarriage."

"Liam, I need to see Paisley. I don't want to have a miscarriage, but I have a choice to make, and I choose Paisley."

"Fallon, I'm not gonna let you do this. Please don't do this."

"Liam, the babies and I are fine. I'm sure everything will be fine. Just calm down."

Liam blew out a sigh and trained his attention back to the doctor.

"If you are dead set on leaving, then I can give you a form called an AMA to fill out. By signing it, you are saying you refuse the continuation of medical care. By signing it, the hospital is not liable for anything that might happen after you sign it. Would you like to stop the continuation of medical care?"

"Yes, I would."

"Ok, I'll go get the form for you. I'll be back soon." The doctor quickly left, leaving the couple alone.

"Why are you doing this, Fallon? Don't you care about our babies?" Liam asked, looking back at Fallon.

"Of course I do, Liam, but I have to care about Paisley, too. Right now, she matters more. These babies aren't born yet, but Paisley is here. She's a nine year old kid who had no mother for nine years, has only ever depended on her father. Her father is in a coma, and he might die. I know what it's like to lose a parent, and I can't let that happen to Paisley again. She needs me as much as I need her. I have to do this, Liam."

Liam let out a sigh. He knew he wouldn't be able to change her mind. He just hoped she didn't push herself.

"Ok. Just be careful."

"I will be."

The doctor came back quickly with the forms.

"Just to reiterate this, by signing this form, you are stopping the continuation of medical care. If anything happens after you sign this form, the hospital is not liable. Do you want to stop the continuation of medical care?" The doctor reiterated, as she handed the forms to Fallon.

"Yes, I do."

"Ok. I'll leave you to sign these. A nurse will come in, in a little bit to take out your IV. Good luck with your daughter."

"Thank you, doc." Liam thanked, as the doctor left.

Fallon started to fill out the forms, while Liam sat back down, not feeling like arguing with Fallon any longer. After Fallon was done, Liam signed as her witness, and the nurse came in and took out the IV. She changed into an outfit that Liam brought for her, and then sat back down on the bed to talk to Liam.

"I know you're not happy with this, but I have to do this. Paisley is my daughter and she's probably really scared right now. I'm sure I'll be ok. I feel great. I actually don't have any nausea. I feel better than I've felt since I found out I was pregnant."

"I'm just worried, Fallon. You just had a huge car accident less than 24 hours ago."

"I know that, but the doctor said I'm fine. Our babies are fine. After I figure all of this out, we'll be able to go back to Atlanta and we can focus on preparing to be parents together. For right now, I need to do this for my daughter."

"I don't know if I can do this, Fallon."

"Do what?"

"This. Us. Be in this whole situation with you and a kid who you had with your drug addict ex."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I don't want to raise Paisley with you. I don't want to raise any kids with you."

"You said you were ready to have kids. You told me this is what you wanted."

"I thought it was what I wanted, but it was wrong. I can't do this."

"Then what the fuck are we doing? Why am I pregnant?"

"I don't know."

"You're supposed to be my husband, Liam. We're supposed to raise these babies together. You're supposed to be my life partner. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I don't know. I just realized that there was a reason I never wanted kids. With kids, everything becomes so much more complicated. Nothing will ever be the same, and I don't want to live like that. I want things to stay the same."

"That's not how life works, Liam. Things change."

"Nothing's going to change my mind, Fallon."

"You know what? Just leave. Go back to Atlanta, or do whatever the fuck you want to do. I'm staying here until I get my daughter back. After that, we can have this conversation. Just, please, get out."

Liam didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed his backpack and left the room, leaving a now sobbing Fallon all alone.