Not A Day Goes By
Chapter 3
AN: I'm sorry this took so long. Major writer's block. But, it's done – good or bad – and now I can move on!! =)
Monica ran into the emergency room of the hospital – Chandler on her heels - frantically searching for a familiar face. A face that would tell her that they had found Connor and he was happily sitting beside Judy's bed drawing pictures as they spoke.
She felt Chandler leave her side, and saw him head toward the nurse's station to ask for information. But before he could ask the question, a cry from behind them stopped them both in their tracks.
"Mommy!"
For a split second, she hoped it was Connor, safe and sound and grinning about his adventure. But she knew before she turned around, kneeling on the floor and holding out her arms for her son, that the voice calling her belonged to Caleb. He hugged her fiercely, and she could feel the tenseness and fear in his young body. Instinct took over – no matter how afraid she was for Connor, this child needed comfort too.
"Hi sweetie," she whispered into his hair, just as Chandler reached them and embraced them both. Monica trembled slightly, very aware that she was missing one pair of familiar arms around her neck. Her eyes met Chandler's over Caleb's head, then spotted her father standing worriedly in front of them.
"Dad, what - ?"
Jack shook his head, and Monica felt her heart sink. Chandler's arms tightened around them, and Monica knew without looking at him that he was experiencing the same feelings of panic and surrealism that she was. She composed herself as well as she could, and stood up with Caleb in her arms. She pulled back to look at her son, wondering what was going through his mind.
"You okay, Cae?"
He just nodded, and the look on his face broke her heart. She wondered if he fully comprehended what was going on, or if he was just picking up on the emotions of the adults around him. It didn't matter – whatever he was thinking, he knew that Connor wasn't there.
She knew she probably shouldn't discuss it in front of Caleb, but she couldn't wait any longer. She had to know what was happening. Her son was missing. It couldn't get much worse.
"What happened, Dad? Where could he be?"
Chandler put a hand on her back in silent support, and Monica realized suddenly that he hadn't said a word since they entered the hospital. She wanted to reach out and squeeze his hand in some kind of assurance, but both arms were full with Caleb. Instead, she leaned against him, hoping he would feel her love and support as strongly as she felt his.
"They're searching the hospital now, honey. Every floor. I – I'm so sorry. I thought they would be okay with the nurse. She said there was a Day Care…and I didn't want them to see their grandmother…"
"It's not your fault, Jack," Chandler said quickly, dismissing the statement. "You were worried about Judy."
Monica nodded her agreement. Thoughts of blame had not even crossed her mind. But Connor wasn't one to wander off. And if Caleb had been with him…
"Caleb, did the nurse take you and your brother to the Day Care?"
Caleb shook his head against her neck, then pulled away just far enough to mumble, "She had a 'mergency."
"Did you see your brother walk away, honey? Did you see which way he went?"
Caleb shook his head again, his eyes filling up with tears. "I was trying to see Grandma."
Monica closed her eyes and hugged Caleb tighter. After a moment of silence, Jack spoke softly.
"I called Ross. He should be here in a few minutes. The police will want to talk to you."
They both nodded, understanding that Ross would take Caleb home and put him to bed while they dealt with other things. Monica was sure they would find Connor somewhere in the hospital, and they would be following Ross back to the apartment shortly. Still, it would be better to remove Caleb from the scene. He would see his brother in the morning.
"Mommy…"
"Yeah, Cae?"
"Are you mad that I wasn't holding his hand?"
Monica tried to smile reassuringly and rubbed Caleb's back.
"No sweetie, of course I'm not mad. Neither is Daddy."
"No, I'm not," Chandler reiterated firmly, kissing Caleb's forehead and running his hand over the top of his head. Who would ever expect a five-year-old to keep track of his little brother?
Caleb didn't look convinced. But the conversation was cut short when a uniformed officer walked over to them, looking somber.
"Are you Mr. and Mrs. Bing?"
"Yes," Chandler answered quickly, his face tensing up. "Have you found Connor?"
"No, we haven't. We've searched the hospital, and he's not here."
"Then where is he?" Chandler questioned sharply, prompting Monica to lay a calming hand on his arm. The officer ignored Chandler's tone, frowning slightly before he answered.
"We're not sure."
Chandler hesitated, glancing apprehensively at Caleb and pulling the officer away from Monica and Caleb before he asked the burning question.
"Do you think…somebody – took him?"
Jonathan Bradley closed his eyes, finding it hard to look at the father standing in front of him, desperate to find his son. When he opened them, he saw that Chandler already knew what his answer would be.
"That's the possibility we're pursuing right now, Mr. Bing."
"Jamie?"
She turned around at the small voice calling her name, and knelt down to look the child in the eyes. Dylan – er, Connor…well, he was still Dylan for the time-being – scrunched up his face, confusion evident.
"Yeah, Dylan?"
"Where are we going again?"
Jamie gave him a smile, hoping to put him at ease. Dylan was nervous, confused, and apprehensive – and she didn't blame him for any of it. His whole life was about to change. In spite of the circumstances and the joy that was awaiting them at the other end of their journey, all she could feel was sorrow on Dylan's behalf. She hoped Jonathan was preparing the Bings for reality. This was not going to be a happy reunion on all sides.
"New York, sweetie. There are some people there that are very anxious to see you."
"Oh." Dylan looked down at the floor, then back at Jamie, his eyes wide. "I wish Eric was coming…"
Jamie chose to ignore the statement. They had told Dylan that his brother couldn't miss school to make the trip, but Dylan was still perplexed as to why he was making the trip and his brother was not. Luckily, the attendants chose just that moment to make the boarding call. She checked to make sure Dylan had his backpack on, then handed him his ticket so he could hand it to the attendant himself. He did so with a big grin, then slowly followed Jamie down the corridor to the plane.
"I've never been on a plane before," he told her solemnly, nervously playing with the straps of his backpack. Jamie smiled down at him, noticing that he hesitated before stepping over the threshold and onto the plane.
"I think you'll like it. I brought you some gum to keep your ears from popping."
"Will you hold my hand?" Dylan requested in a small voice. If Jamie had known Chandler Bing, she would have marveled at how similar his expression was to the one Chandler had worn many times when he was insecure. She just nodded and squeezed his hand, fighting the urge to lift him into her arms and try to protect him from all the uncertainty the small child was about to experience. But from everything Greg and Jonathan had told her about the Bings, they were great parents who would do everything they could to soften the blows.
"Do you want the window seat so you can look outside? Or would you rather sit on the other side of me?"
Dylan considered the possibilities, glancing out the small window at the other planes parked around them. He finally looked up at Jamie and nodded shyly.
"The window," he pronounced bravely, with just the trace of a tremor in his voice. Jamie felt a wave of motherly pride at his courage…but she just shook her head with a smile and helped him fasten his seat belt. They'd be in New York in a few hours, but she would let Dylan enjoy the flight for a little while before she began the necessary – and delicate - task of preparing him for what lay ahead.
"Where is he?" was the first question out of Monica's mouth after she and Chandler had welcomed the two officers into their apartment.
"En route to New York," Greg answered immediately, having expected the question. "They should land in a couple of hours. Jamie Caldwell – my fiancé, she found Connor – is flying with him. They'll meet us at the station."
"How is he?" Chandler asked more quietly, gesturing for the gentlemen to take seats.
"He's…fine," Jonathan answered slowly, his pause causing Monica and Chandler to exchange worried looks.
"What? What's wrong?"
"We, uh…we need to talk to you about some things. Jamie wanted us to prepare you before you see Connor."
"What?" Monica asked softly, unsure of what to expect from them. Chandler reached over to take her hand, leaning forward as he waited for one of them to elaborate.
"Well – let's just start from the beginning," Greg started, knowing he was going to be the storyteller since he had gotten most of the detail firsthand from Jamie. "A few weeks ago, Jamie – she's a social worker – got word that two children had lost both of their…parents…in an accident. She was already looking into counseling and foster homes when she met the children – and she thought one of them looked familiar."
"Connor…" Chandler breathed. Greg nodded, studying the floor for a second before he continued.
"Yes. She thought the boy looked like the pictures Jonathan and I had everywhere when Connor first disappeared. Jamie still lived in New York back then, so she saw those pictures a hundred times a day. Anyway, she e-mailed us some pictures of the boy – and there was no doubt in our minds it was Connor. Jamie took him for a DNA test - and it matched the DNA we took from you, Mrs. Bing, right after Connor disappeared."
Greg paused to let them absorb this, and Jonathan took a deep breath as he took over the narrative.
"Connor was adopted by Alex and Lauren Buchanan two years ago – almost a year after he disappeared. The adoption papers all look legal – except of course that Connor wasn't legally available for adoption. The authorities have no reason to be the Buchanans were the ones who kidnapped Connor – but they were the ones that ended up with him. They named him Dylan…"
Jonathan stopped, studying the faces of the parents in front of him and wondering what they were thinking. After a moment of silence, he continued, trying to be as gentle as possible and hoping they would understand.
"When Connor arrives, he is going to be very confused and very scared. The life he remembers is the life of Dylan Buchanan. He doesn't remember living in New York, and he probably won't remember you. I think you need to prepare yourselves for that."
"We already have," Monica said softly, tears running down her cheeks. "Connor was two years old when he was kidnapped. We admitted to ourselves a long time ago that if we ever found him, he would have no idea who we were."
"Dylan, I need to talk to you about a few things before we get to New York."
Dylan, who was studiously drawing a picture of something Jamie couldn't quite make out, turned his head and stared up at her solemnly.
"Okay," he said agreeably, his eyes conveying his complete trust in her. Jamie smiled, and reached into her bag to retrieve the folder of Dylan-related items.
"Well, remember how I told you that there are some people in New York that are very excited about seeing you?"
Dylan nodded, not questioning the fact as older children might have. Jamie took a deep breath and pulled a picture out of the folder.
"I want to tell you about them. Okay?"
Dylan just nodded again, glancing curiously at the picture in her hand.
"Well, a long time ago, before you went to live with your mom and dad and they adopted you, you lived with another family. They love you very much, and they were very sad and missed you very much when you went to live with your mom and dad. That's why we're going to New York to visit them. They can't wait to see you again."
Jamie held out the picture Greg had e-mailed her so that Dylan could look at it. "This is a picture of you with this other family. See? That's you right there in the middle."
Dylan looked a little perplexed. When had he lived with anyone besides his parents? He took the picture and stared at it, trying to sort it all out in his mind.
"Who is that?" he asked, pointing to Caleb.
"His name is Caleb. Those are his parents, Chandler and Monica. They are who we're going to see."
"And that's me?" Dylan asked quietly, looking at the grinning toddler in the picture.
"Yes. Back then your name was Connor Bing. That's what Chandler and Monica called you, so I don't want you to be confused if they call you Connor when we meet them."
Dylan remained silent, still studying the picture. "If they missed me so much, why didn't they come to visit me?"
Jamie paused, wondering what she should tell him.
"They didn't come visit you because – well, they weren't sure where you were. If they had known, they would have done everything they could to come and see you."
Dylan silently handed the picture back to her, and turned his attention to the window.
"Do you
have any questions, Dylan?"
He shook his head. Jamie watched him for a minute, worried
about his reaction. She decided it
would be best to leave him alone with his thoughts for now. He'd just received a lot of information that
would be difficult to absorb. He knew
what he needed to know for now. She
would wait for the Bings to help her tell him the rest.
Monica and Chandler were sitting alone in Jonathan's office at the police station, waiting for word that Connor had arrived. They both looked up as Jonathan walked into the office, a small smile on his face.
"They're here," he announced, hoping to put them at ease. They stood up quickly - Monica battling her weak knees - and turned toward him. Seeing their need for reassurance, Jonathan smiled again and put a hand on Chandler's shoulder.
"You'll be fine. Jamie has told him a little bit about you, and he knows that you're the "good guys" – but he is a little nervous. Just try to relax. This is a happy occasion, remember?"
They nodded and tried to smile. Monica wondered if Chandler's stomach was churning as wildly as hers was. He reached for her hand and she clung to it, looking up at him for reassurance. He gave her a wide smile and leaned over to kiss her on the temple.
"It's over, Monica. He's back now. Let's go live the dream we've been dreaming for three years."
Monica smiled too, squeezing his hand as he led her out the door. The paused outside the door to the room Connor was in, composing themselves one last time. Jonathan smiled reassuringly, giving no indication that he could hear their thundering heartbeats, then reached down to turn the knob.
To Be Continued…
I'm not trying to be mean – honest! I just wanted to get this chapter finished and I didn't want to get into the reunion yet. That'll take some thought…and sitting in a football stadium in the rain all day left me too tired and waterlogged to think. But hey – we WON, so it was worth it!! ;-)