It had been a long 6 days, nearly 7 but she finally made it, she was back in Sydney, as the taxi took her across the bridge it finally sank in that she'd made it back to a place that had held so many happy memories for her, but when she'd left to go to the US, all she had felt in her heart had been the pain and suffering of those 4 years, and she didn't feel safe being away from the people she saw as family while she was there. Sure she was exhausted by time she got to the hotel, everyone was, especially seeing as they were dealing with a totally different time zone, but 20 minutes after she'd arrived and checked in, she was back out the door with 2 small overnight bags, her backpack on and had her favourite pillow she travelled with and one of the luxary airline blankets they gave the first class passengers folded up under her arm and was of to the hospital. She already knew what room she needed so she only needed to get buzzed into the ward
"Hey, hey" Jess said softly as she walked into the room and saw her dad sitting beside Zalie's bed, she was cuddled up with her Eevee plush toy and had her eyes half closed
"Baby girl, how are you feeling" Jay asked getting up and walking over to give his only child a big bear hug
"Okay, little tired, hey my little Super Zah" Jess said noticing Zalie had her eyes open and was looking straight at her and remained fixated on every move she made as she sat her belongings down and then took her dads vacated seat next to the bed. Jess had been worried the whole flight how Zalie would react to seeing her in person again after so long, but as soon as Jess reached out and gently brushe her hand against her daughters forehead, a sparkle appeared in her eye as Zalie realised that she finally had her mum sitting there with her
"Mummy, you made it finally" she said as a smile spread across her face
"I did, I come of the plane, dumped my bag at the hotel and came straight here, Eevee been taking good care of you" Jess asked, she wanted Zalie to know that she'd kept her promise and came straight to see her as soon as she had arrived because she was more important to her than anything else in the world. While Zalie had never openly mentioned that she didn't feel like Jess had prioritised her job over spending time with her and that she didn't want her around, the Navy wasn't known for stationing couples together, when they could make their assignments work they'd all live under the same roof, but ultimately it was Luca and Laura who had the custody. As Luca and her were unmarried and they were biologically related, it was easier for him to pursue the single parent adoption, and get her aunt Laura recognised as her legal guardian. Jess acted as Zalie's mum when she was around but had no legal standing. The plan was to get Jess legally apply to adopt Zalie as a second parent adoption after her and Luca married, but obviously it had been postponed 3 times, once when Luca had broken his back, then when Jess had gotten selected for the clearance diver program, and finally when Logan and Samuels broke her, 5 months ago they decided to file the paperwork despite they hadn't yet officially tied the knot, and with a bit of help from their lawyer, they managed to get Jess's part of Zalie's adoption signed of on by the courts and was now listed officially on her adoption certificate along side Luca as her legal parent
"Ah ha, where's everyone else" Zalie asked, she knew Jess hadn't travelled alone
"Your other uncles are still at the hotel, thought we might be best to just have some mummy and Zah Zah time first" Jess said reassuring her that they were here, as she was going to need her uncle Trent so she could fly back to the US with them so soon after surgery, if he wasn't here, the doctor would make her wait, and once her Nonna had told her the good news about Jess finally getting approved by the judge to be her official mum, she wasn't spending anymore time separated from her
"Okay" Zalie said feeling more relaxed knowing that her uncle Trent was here, and her mummy, daddy and Boompa had all told her on more than one occasion, the people who her mum served with now were really good people who don't break promises to people they care about
"Hey Zah, shuffle across this way for a moment, that way you and mummy can both share the bed and cuddle while you sleep" Jay said noticing Jess let a yawn escape, fatigue lowered the immune system and was a trigger for Jess's migraines
"Okay Boompa" Zalie said as she moved across to create the space
"Even brought my pillow and blanket with me. I'm going to be staying here till your discharged, we have some serious mother daughter gaming time to do, look what I found out" Jess said pointing to her belongings, sitting there before pulling her switch gaming console out of her bag
"Yay" Zalie said upon seeing the device, gaming was a passion they both shared, Jess was the one who originally introduced Zalie to it, she wasn't as fully involved with it like Zalie was, she simply didn't have the time now, but she'd found that they were a good way to relax a zone out when she wanted a break from life in general
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"Jay, Alie, how were they last night, I know Jess was worried about how Zalie would react as they reconnected" Eric asked, it had been playing on his mind all night, he had seen more than a few kids act out when they saw there parents for the first time after they'd been separated for so long, and the reason behind Jess's absence was not a typical deployment
"It went fine, the pair of them were completely crashed out by time we left last night, and think Jess being here has already started to help Zah recover, she seems a lot brighter by time we left and she was asking Jess about what it feels like using the feeding tube, does she notice it when she's sleeping, all that stuff" Alie said filling Eric in on what happened last night
"Had she asked about any of that stuff before" Trent asked curiously
"Not once" Jay responded
"Thats a big step in acceptance and recovery then" Trent said as they made their way through a cafeteria
"Jay look over there, someone's out of her room" Alie said suddenly stopping and pointing at a table, sure enough Jess was sitting there with her trademark trackpants and hoodie that were still way to big on her and her hair up in a ponytail talking to a little girl who had dark curly hair that was pulled back in a braid, and was dressed in a similar style, however was wearing shorts instead of track pants, and she had a backpack covered with pokemon characters hung over the back of her chair
"Another thing that hadn't happened yet I take it" Trent asked, he knew from both when he was recovering from his arm and Jess was recovering from her injuries, that first time being out of your room after needing such a big event was daunting, you didn't have that safety net of having all the medical supplies in case something happened, what if you got hurt, you had people looking at you and you couldn't do anything to stop them
"Nope, another first" Jay said with a smile as the group started making their way over to the table, their approach caught Jess's attention and she quickly said something to the girls she had sitting there with her who quickly turned and smiled
"Nonna, Boompa" Zalie called out
"Hey, you're out getting some fresh air, hey baby girl" Jay said greeting the pair with a kiss on the foreheads and a hug
"Hey dad, Alie, Zah, these are your uncles who came with me, uncle Eric, uncle Sonny and uncle Trent" Jess said to her dad as she gave Alie a hello kiss and cuddle before turning her attention back to Zalie and introduced her to her 3 uncles that had travelled with her
"Well how you doing there Miss Zalie, now do you prefer to be called Zah or Zalie" Sonny asked, Jess had said she preferred to be called Zah but Sonny wanted to double check it was okay, as sometimes people prefer to keep their nicknames limited to only certain people as the name was special to those people
"Zah please" Zalie said
"Zah it is then" Eric said officially
"So where have you been this morning" Trent asked
"Playground, I got to try out my new backpack Boompa made, it's like mummy's and its even got a smaller pump like she has as well, so I dont have to be hooked up to the pole all the time now, mummy set it all up for me this morning so we could try it out" Zalie said proudly, she'd loved having the backpack set-up on, the playground was the first place she'd asked to go after Jess set it up to show her how everything worked
"And, what do you think" Alie asked her granddaughter, remembering the first time Jess had used her set-up, it was like a light bulb switched on and she'd realised that she could actually do this, get back to operating, people weren't just going to automatically look at her and say she's sick because she's needing to drag a IV pole around with her"
"Its a lot better than being hooked up to the pole all the time isn't it" Jess said looking at Zalie, she'd recognised a lot of the same emotions she'd experienced herself with her own journey
"Yep" Zalie said without even hesitating in her answer
"Right, now do you want to continue to explore or head back to the room, as you need to flush" Jess asked her daughter, she swiftly pulled out one of the capped syringes she carried that was already filled with water to flush her tube to show Zalie that despite what needed to be done, it didn't mean that they had to just stop what they were doing and go back to the room to do it
"Explore, got my tablet" Zalie said as soon as she realised what was going on and that the syringe her mum held in her hand meant that they could still be out exploring
"Okay let's go see if we can find any pokemon, when I say its time to go back however" Jess said, when the pokemon go app first came out, Zalie had demanded it be on everyone's phones so it didn't matter who she was with she could go hunting. After some smaller arguments over the adult needing the phone her and Luca decided the best course of action had been to get Zalie her own tablet that she could have the app on, and of course her Boompa had came through with a special one of a kind military grade Pikachu protective case for it, she'd made it clear to Jess and Luca when they replaced her tablet that it still had to fit in the same case
"Ah ha, I know" Zalie said as they walked of
"What happened to Eevee" Alie asked when they walked back into Zalie's hospital room, the toy was tucked in under the bed cover like she was sick, none of the boys were surprised to see that Zalie's bed cover and pillow were also pokemon themed as well as a extra blanket she had sitting there, no worries on what to get the kid for her birthday
"I thought that she needed to have a feeding tube in like mummy and I do, mummy done it this morning, she's been recovering from her surgery while we were out" Zalie said explaining what happened and taking the toy out from under the covers to show everyone
"Was she brave about having it done" Jay asked scooping her up so he was holding her on his hip
"Yep, she's still Eevee after all and can beat Pikachu paws down" Zalie told him
"And how do you feel about yours being there my nipotne" Alie asked her granddaughter
"Okay, I guess, mummy has hers and she's still my mummy, and can go out and save the world, and still do all the stuff she use to before she had to have it, I can't wait till it gets changed over to one like mummy's however" Zalie said, it had been a tough week for the little girl, but having her mum there so she could see that she wasn't some totally different person because she'd had been sick and had to have a feeding tube, Jess was still her mummy it hadn't changed her, it wasn't going to change who she was either, and once she had the PEG tube replaced with the button like Jess's, it wouldn't be as visible or get caught on things and pull
"I bet you can't either, but at the moment your body is still working out what's its new normal is because of the big change that happened, and mine is still doing the same thing" Jess said pulling her daughter into a cuddle
"Is it really" Zalie asked surprised
"Yep" Jess responded confidently
"Mummy" Zalie asked looking up to Jess
"Ah ha" Jess asked wondering what the next question was Zalie would ask
"I love you" she said softly
"Love you to my little Super Zah" Jess said pulling her even tighter into the cuddle
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"Hey baby girl, you feeling okay" Jay asked, he'd managed to convince Jess to leave Alie at the hospital with Zalie, so she could go out and have some time at the warehouse with her dad and brothers, he had spotted her coming out of the toilet 3 times in the last hour, her brothers had disappeared as soon as they entered the storage facility and Eric had gone to keep an eye on them, leaving Jess with her dad
"Just a little tired" she admitted
"Trent know you've been vomiting yet" Jay asked looking at her
"No" Jess said, she knew never to try and deny anything to her dad, even when no one else could read her, her dad could when it came to hiding emotions and feelings, and she was feeling tired, her stomach felt like someone was slowly squeezing it in a vice and her body was screaming in protest about being up and moving around. That's why she'd wanted to stay at the hospital, it wouldn't take much to convince Zalie for a quiet day curled up and watch movies or game, and Jess could use the time have her heating pad wrapped under her clothes to help ease the pain and get some sleep
"Look at me and squeeze both my hands, go and lay down in my office" he said detecting that one of her hands was not as strong as the other
"Okay" Jess responded to tired to argue or protest as he took her arm and escorted her to make sure she actually did go there, once she was on the couch he grabbed her a pillow and blanket, drew the blinds and turned the air con on to lower the temperature, turning to check if she needed anything else, Jay found she was already asleep, without saying a single word, he just walked out of the room and latched the door softly
"Trent, need you to give Jess a quick once-over once you get back to the hotel, she's currently laving down in my office, she's heavily fatigued, vomiting and displaying mild hemiplegic weakness" Jay said
"You saying its another migraine thing, thought she wasn't supposed to get them anymore" Sonny said
"The medication may not completely eliminate them, but it should at the very least minimise the intensity, just have to see how this hits her" Trent said
"Think its being at the hospital all the time" Eric asked
"Potentially, may help if we could get Zalie discharged. Keep them both confined to the hotel room" Trent said looking at Jay
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"What do you mean mummy's not coming back to the hospital" Zalie said to Alie as tears started to form in her eyes
"Zah, there's lots and lots of germs in here, and your mummy's body can't handle being exposed to them and its starting to make her sick. So instead, we're going to get you out early and you're going to be staying with us in the hotel, you and your mummy are going to have your own room together" Alie said stroking Zalie's head trying to calm her down before she had an asthma attack
"Promise" Zalie asked looking up at her Nonna
"Promise, want to help get your stuff packed" Alie said with a smile
"Yep" she responded, hopped of her bed and started helping Alie pack up her belongings
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"Here she is Miss Zah, just like we said she was" Trent said with a smile as he walked Zalie into the hotel room where Jess was laying in bed. The hospital had agreed to discharge Zalie into Trent's care seeing as he was going to be her official medical chaperone for her flight back to the states. So after Jess was settled in bed and had hooked her up so she was receiving extra fluids and TPN through the port in her chest he had left her there with Eric and Sonny while he went to pick Zalie up from the hospital
"Super Zah and mummy snuggles" Jess said softly as she opened her eyes to see her daughter standing there with Trent and staring at her not saying a word. Jess had only used the button when she was at the hospital, but just to be safe Trent had decided to do the fluids and TPN as a one off dose while she was going to be sleeping the migraine off, Zalie looked at Trent uncertain about what to do, it was a look of am I allowed to get up there. Trent nodded his head gently trying to assure her that yes it was okay for her to be up there, Zalie then had a smile spread across her face and she nodded her head before going to take her shoes and dressing gown off
"Come on then, let's get you settled in and hooked up" Trent said pulling back the covers of the bed and helped Zalie jump in, she moved right in next to her mum while Trent set her bag and pump up, it would take Zalie time to adapt to a pump speed her body could handle, so at the moment it was slow work and she was hooked up majority of the day. Jess's issue on the otherhand was the insanely high dose of calories she needed to function, for her it was more a case of if she wasn't physically operating or exercising, she was using it so she could get as much extra nourishment in her body as possible
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"Sonny, where's Jess" Eric asked curiously walking past the bedroom door noticing the bed was mysteriously empty, Jess still had about half her fluids and TPN left to run. He and Trent had left to grab tea for the whole group and had just returned
"She wanted a dip in the tub, said she was feeling pretty cold, sore and tired, so she decided to have one before tea" Sonny said
"And Zah" Trent asked noticing the girl was out of sight
"Video call with her dad" Sonny said indicating over to the little rugged up figure sitting outside on the verandah
"Feeling better" Trent ask noticing Jess exit the bathroom, towel wrapped around her obviously wet hair and what looked like fresh pyjamas, hard to tell exactly as she was firmly sticking to her grey ones at the moment, though after trying them themselves, none of them blamed her
"Feeling warmer, thats for sure" Jess said as she squeezed Trent's outstretched hands so he could check her strength
"That's really good Jess, what about the other stuff though" Trent said happy with the response
"Mostly cold and tired" Jess said as she walked past the rest of the team into the bedroom and hooked herself back up
"Trent verdict" Eric asked
"She's easily still deployable in her current condition" Trent responded before going in to help
"That's what I like to hear" Sonny said
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"Ready to fly home with mummy" Jess asked Zalie who was standing on the other side of the bed, bags were packed and waiting downstairs, they just had their carry-on luggage and backpacks sitting there ready to go when they left, this was the moment Zalie had been waiting for, and they were just doing a final check of the room, make sure they hadn't forgotten anything
"Yep, though it feels weird to think of America as home" Zalie said taking a big breath before responding, she had spoken to Jess how it felt weird that Australia wasn't going to be her home anymore
"I know it does, but its not the location that makes it home, its who else is there with us, you, daddy and I, we'll always be Australians" Jess said comforting her
"Home is where we're surrounded by people who love and accept you for being who you are" Zalie said reciting what her mum had told her, they had had a long discussion about what makes a place a home versus somewhere they live
"Exactly" Jess said happy that Zalie finally understood
"Right Miss Zalie, no arguments, we're going to have you travel in a wheelchair while we go through the airport, just to be safe at least, you're still a little tired, don't need you hurting yourself" Trent said walking into the bedroom to help them with luggage while Sonny and Eric were downstairs hopefully helping the taxi driver load the luggage
"Mummy" Zalie asked looking at her mum in horror
"I gave up a long time ago arguing with uncle Trent about this stuff Zah, you won't win, besides you said your hips feel funny to and you've been getting really tired and everything feels weird occasionally, so better to be safe, okay" Jess said siding with Trent for this one, she wanted Zalie arriving in one piece
"Okay" Zalie said as she allowed Trent to help putting her backpack while Jess put hers on, Zalie grabbed her carry-on case in one hand and held her Eevee plush in the other, it had clearly become a security toy for Zalie during this whole situation, her whole gaming collection had been sent ahead, vintage consoles, games, toys, books, collectables, bedding had already left Australia and would be waiting for her when she got there, Clay had been staying at Jess's house to use her study for the translations they had been working on and look after Cerbs, and he had conned the rest of Bravo to help with getting the paining and decorating done for her bedroom and playroom and assemble the new furniture, that way Zalie could unpack herself and set her things up her way, Jess said it was to give Zalie her own control with the new environment and she could be certain it was her own space. Jay had numbered the boxes before he sent them as he was sending new gear for Jess, Cerbs and Pepper as well, even though he was happily retired, you couldn't take the military out of him, there was no putting gear for 2 different people in the same box, or even 2 different rooms, he'd separated his granddaughters belongings between playroom and bedroom, her bedroom boxes were packed so they knew which one had to be opened first based on what she needed. Zalie thought it was funny her Boompa was being so particular on how her belongings were being packed as she would need everything when she got to the states, but once she heard her mum and uncles all agree with her Boompa that it was important to pack her stuff already organised as some things were more important than others, like having a place to sleep was more important for Zalie than having her movies set-up as she had her favourite movies already on her gaming console she could watch
"Dad" Jess said surprised as she exited the hotel with Trent and Zalie, she glanced at the luggage and saw her parents travel bags were sitting with the luggage that was going back to the airport
"Hey baby girl, Alie and I thought that we would head back to the US for a bit of a breather, checkout how everything is going with the new warehouse" Jay said explaining their presence
"I don't fully believe you, something else is going on" Jess said curiously, she always knew in advance of her parents travel plans
"Okay, we want to make sure you adapt okay to being a full-time mum again, especially with Zalie still being sick, you've started to have those migraines again, I don't doubt your ability to look after Zalie, I just need to be sure you're looking after yourself as well" Alie said explaining their real reason for coming along, she was concerned about her daughter, Jess had been quite adamant and stubborn about doing everything for Zalie herself when she first arrived. Jay explained it was Jess feeling subconsciouly guilty about not being there and her need to prove she could be Zalie's mum. Alie explained however that her concern was for Jess and not Zalie, Zalie was originally supposed to travel with her dad, and now she wasn't, so she needed to be sure Jess had that support to go back to duty before Luca arrived and have her know Zalie was safe and she didn't have to worry about her having to stay with someone Zalie wasn't comfortable with yet
"Love both you to" Jess said embracing both of them at once
"You're not mad about us coming" Jay asked cautiously
"No, I'm glad you're going to be there to help us settle in" Jess said, she suspected her brothers had had a few words to them behind her back as she was uncertain how she was going to keep everything together and not fall in a heap. There was no instruction manual available on how to combine parenting, marriage and operating, and a lot of times they didn't mix, however her brothers would promptly remind her that they do mix and she had 2 excellent role models to help guide her through it, and now they were going to be right there to help