AUTHOR: trista groulx
DISCLAIMER: kim, jimmy, alex (taylor), faith, bosco, carlos, holly, doc, ty, sully, emily, kylie, joey, charlie and anyone else who pops up from the TV series are not mine, they belong to NBC, their creator, and the actors and actresses who portray them. the idea for third watch is so not mine, but anyone who i've created for this story are mine so ask if you want to use them.
RATING: PG-13 for language
SUMMARY: It's Emily again, want to know what got my family talking again? Just read this part of my story.
AUTHORS NOTES: holy freaking plot twists batman! i got this idea in my head, what you will read below, and i just had to do it, did some research so my medical info is right, a big thanx must go out to my bro for all his help... i will leave you hanging at the end of this one kids, you've been warned... dylan's piece is almost done so the more reviews i get the quicker my wee little cliffhanger is resolved!
also i have the timeline a bit wonky from the orignal show i hadn't seen all the eps just read summaries, so bear with any really big plot holes, buti mean it was to expected right, i changed the age of a couple of orignals to make it fit! laugh anywho tell me if you're still digging waht i'm doing here
I wasn't teasing Alex about the firefighter's exam because I was jealous of her or anything like that, if anything I envied her. She was able to actually go for it, nothing was holding her back. I had thought about it, before Angela came along. But I could not live with the idea of risking life and limb leaving my daughter motherless. Since she had been born I had to stop being so crazy in the field. I, once upon a time, would have done the kinds of things I now saw my partner doing. But I could not risk my daughter losing her mother when she didn't even know her father.
Maybe the story would be slightly different if she had had anyone but me to be rely on, but I was all she had. My mother and Bosco were great with her, and I appreciated all their help, in a way I don't think I could reciprocate. But their job was not to raise my child because I wanted to go running head first into danger.
So instead of being totally supportive of my friend, I teased her mercilessly. Bugging her about being a smelly fireboy and other taunts like that. I think she knew deep down inside I wasn't entirely serious. But I couldn't tell her the truth, which also pissed me off.
She was a great friend, she told me just about everything. I liked to say that we were really good friends, but as much as I knew about her, she knew little about me.
Part of the reason I was so closed up was because of Dylan. I had trusted him immediately, and all he ever did was hurt me. I knew I was stupid for always going back, but he made it so easy to trust him. He made it so easy to talk to him. Then would thing would lead to another, and I would think it was something more the it really was.
I knew I was just a booty call, or something, but I liked to make myself believe that I could be something more. Every time he called I fell for the same old tricks. He would get me talking, get me alone, and I would walk right into the trap, again and again.
Maybe part of the reason I kept running back was that he had given me the best thing in my life, my daughter. But mostly it was because he knew exactly what to tell me, and knew exactly when I needed to hear it. In the end I'd always end up hating myself, but as it happened I honestly believed that it would be different that time. How stupid can one person be? When I got to that point though, I couldn't help but think of the stories Alex told me about her mother. She had stuck it out with her guy, and got him in the end, so why couldn't I? It wasn't stupid to hold out hope, it could all work out in the end, it had for other people.
"Mommy!" Angela cried.
It was time for me to start another exciting day, of chastising my partner, and good friend for no real reason. I went into Angela's room, and took her out of her crib. I realized that she was probably old enough for a big girl bed, and then she'd be able to play when she woke up instead of just standing there waiting for me, until she was bored.
"Angela, how about we get you a big girl bed soon?" I asked her.
She giggled. "Yeah! I want a big gurl bed!"
"We'll go on Mommy's next day off, okay?"
"'Kay!"
I got her dressed as I did every morning. Then we had breakfast, that morning we decided on cereal. I didn't want to admit that she had grown out her crib, but she had. She was still my baby, but she was growing up, and before long she wouldn't be a baby anymore. She was even mostly potty trained, except for at night.
It was a nice day so I decided to walk to my mother's. She fussed when I went to put her in her carriage, but if I let her walk I'd end up late for work, or I wouldn't be able to visit with my mom and Bosco. I rang the doorbell, and Bosco answered it, like always, we had all accepted the fact that I never came right in in the morning.
"Baco!" Angela exclaimed, jumping up and down in her carriage.
He took her out of the carriage, and picked her up. "Hey Angie, what's new?" he laughed.
"Imma get a big gurl bed!"
"Really? Wow! Can I sleep in it?"
She laughed. "No!"
"Why not?"
"You're a boy! And imma get a big GURL bed."
I couldn't help but laugh. "She has a point."
"Just for that, I'm gonna have to find the tickle monster!" Bosco exclaimed, she began to run away.
"No tickle monster!" she giggled.
He started chasing after her, and soon caught her, and began to tickle her. He never went overboard when he tickled her, like some people did. He always made sure she could catch her breath, and she was having fun. I went into the kitchen.
"A big girl bed, huh?" Mom asked.
"I figure it's about time. Plus this way I can get a few more minutes of sleep, cause she won't be wanting out of the crib."
"It's hard to admit she needs it, isn't it?"
I nodded. "Yeah."
"I'm really starting to understand you Mom, everything you did when I was younger. You weren't crazed, you cared."
She nodded. "I just wish I could have spent more time with you."
"You had to do what you had to do to keep food on the table, and a roof over our heads."
She hugged me. "I'm glad you see it that way Em."
"I wish I could make Charlie see."
She shrugged. "One day, he might. How did the exam go for your partner?"
I looked at the floor. "She passed," I replied, quiet unenthusiastically.
"Don't be like that, Em."
"Like what?"
"You're pretending you're pissed off because you're envious."
I couldn't get much past my mother. "Maybe a little."
"I bet if you asked her, she'd tell you she understands that you don't do it because of Angela, just like her mother didn't do it because of her son."
I smiled. "I know, but-"
"They'll always be a part of you that wants what she has, but that's not the way your cards fell. You should be proud of what you have achieved, instead of being down when you look at what you haven't."
"Like what?"
"You are still doing your, more or less, dream job, while being a mother to your daughter. You are coping very well with all of your responsibilities, even when her father doesn't want anything to do with either of you."
That wasn't exactly true, Dylan wanted something to do with me, but it had nothing to do with our family. It had to do with his needs when he was down. It ended up making me feel worse, while he could feel better. I couldn't tell my mother the truth, so I simply nodded.
"I know," I said, "but-"
She interrupted me. "The grass is always greener on the other side."
I nodded. "I understand, completely, Mom, really, it's just hard some days."
"That's life, Em."
I needed to change the subject. "Are you getting excited about your cruise?"
Mom smiled. "Very, excited. You found someone to look after Angela while we're gone?"
"Yes, I'm just glad I don't have to pay for childcare on a regular basis!"
She laughed. "That bad?"
"Yeah. Anyway, I should get going, work awaits."
She smiled, and gave me a big hug. "Love you," she said.
"Love you too, Mom," I whispered, glad to have been able to get her opinion.
Bosco was now reading Angela a book. She looked up and waved. I blew her a kiss.
"Love you, Angela."
She blew me a kiss. "Love you Mommy, bye-bye!"
It never got any easier to leave that house in the morning. Everyday I just wanted to spend with her. She was my entire world, and I hated leaving her for any reason. I knew that I had to.
As much as I liked my partner, I was in a foul mood with her since she had told me she had passed the test. I think what infuriated me the most was she was not planning on doing anything with her new qualification. Of course I'd be pissed off if I had to work with someone else, so it was really a lose, lose situation for her.
I was jealous, there was no denying it. I was mad that she got to do something I would only ever wish to do. I got to work, and she was talking with a couple of the fireboys. They all liked her a lot, and treated her like one of the guys. That got to me too, sometimes. They all looked at me differently because I had a kid.
She was one of my best friends, and I loved her as my friend, I really did, she just got my blood boiling some days. Even without this firefighter thing, I had been jealous of her, ever since she had moved in with Tyrone. I thought I had my hot cop, but as soon as it looked like it could get serious he bailed.
There was no comparison between Dylan and Tyrone, of course, but it still made me mad. She got what she had wanted, and lived a fairytale with him, while I had to fight to get my daughter's father to acknowledge her. It wasn't her fault or anything, it just got me down some days.
I had grown up with Tyrone, he had been best friends with my brother for a very long time. So even though he was good looking I never really had any interest in him. Dating him would be like dating my little brother. I was happy that he found someone good, he was a great guy he deserved a girl that didn't take advantage of him.
The group was laughing, I missed the joke as always. I went upstairs to change. When I got back downstairs, Alex was gone. I went outside and she was at the bus, doing prep for the day.
"Good morning!" she exclaimed, cheerily.
"Good morning yourself," I replied. "Any particular reason you're in such a good mood this morning?"
She shrugged. "I'm always in a good mood when it's this nice out."
After everything was ready, we set out for the day. I spent most of the day bugging her about being a fireboy. But even that didn't seem to damper her good mood. --
I was glad that my mother and Bosco would be back from their cruise soon. Angela seemed more irritable since she was with the sitter. I asked if she had noticed anything out of the ordinary, and she assured me that it was probably just because she was not used to being taken care of by a stranger.
When I noticed some bruises on her, I really began to worry, and didn't want to bring her back at all. I wasn't sure where else I could take her the next day. If I had to I'd take the day off, just to be sure she would be safe.
Another thing that alarmed me was that Angela was pretty much potty trained, accept for needing a pull-up at night. But of late she had been having accidents more often. When I asked her about it, she said that she couldn't get to the bathroom quick enough.
I just couldn't seem to sleep I was so worried that something was happening at the sitter's. I knew I didn't want to have her go back there. She just wasn't acting like herself, and she still wasn't very good at telling me when she wasn't feeling right. I began to worry that something might be seriously wrong with her. I was looking through some of my medical books to see if was able to find anything that could cause the symptoms.
"Mommy!" I heard her shout, and then begin to cry.
I was really worried, she may be in her terrible twos but she certainly wasn't one to just start crying to get my attention. I ran into her room, and she was screaming and crying like she was in pain.
"Mommy!" she exclaimed running into my arms. "Owie!"
"Where?"
"Owie!" she screamed.
Normally she would just point to where was hurting, but she didn't. I tried asking her again, and she just kept saying the same thing. She was in pain, and I didn't know what to do to stop it. I knew I had to get her to the hospital, whatever was wrong was beyond my training.
I called for a cab, one that came equipped with a car seat. I didn't think it was necessary for an ambulance. I bundled her up, it was a cool night, and I didn't want to make her any worse. She didn't want to stop crying, even while I bounced her around in my arms. This was much to stressful. What could possibly be wrong with her so suddenly?
I ran to the cab as soon as it pulled up in front of my building. I fumbled to get her strapped into her car seat. The cabbie looked put off with the screaming child fare. Like I even gave a shit, he'd just have to deal with it. She was sick and I needed to get her to a hospital.
"Look, I'm sorry, can you drive us to Mercy hospital?" I asked.
"This is not an ambulance," he stated.
"I drive one for a living, and I don't think this is case that warrants my calling one. The quicker you start driving, the sooner you'll have her out of your taxi."
He went silent, and drove us over to Mercy. I don't even know how much I gave him, but I knew it was much more then I owed him. I ran into the emergency room.
It was something I had done so many times before, but it was different running in with my daughter in my arms. The feeling was so different from bringing in a stranger on a gurney. I went to reception, I was really not used to that. I wondered why Nurse Trudell was still on duty, she had to have been there all day.
"I wasn't expecting to see you tonight, Emily," she said.
"I didn't want to be back. There's something wrong with my daughter," I explained.
"You must be Angela," she went to pick her up and she began to scream. "Is she usually like this?"
"No!"
"What's wrong with her?"
"Mommy! Owie!" she screamed again.
"Where hurts honey?" Nurse White asked her.
"Owie!" she sobbed.
"I don't know where hurts, but she's been bruising really quickly, and missing the bathroom. I just hope it wasn't her new sitter," I explained
I looked at the waiting room, there were some people there that looked like they had colds, and most of the rooms seemed to be full.
"All right, Emily, how about you go to Trauma two, and I'll get a doctor in there as soon as I can?"
"Thank you."
A few minutes later a doctor came in, I had never worked with him before. I knew all of the emergency room doctors, so I wondered why he had been called down. Angela was still crying in my arms. This was not her, she must really be hurting I tried to calm her before she made herself sick.
"Hi, I'm Doctor Larson, Nurse Trudell requested I come down here to look at your daughter. I'm a pediatric surgeon."
My face when white, I knew it, I wanted to know why it was she had felt the need to call a specialist for her. At that point I didn't really care to know all the details.
"Yes, her name is Angela Mathews, I'm Emily Yokas," I explained. "I don't know what's wrong, she just says she's sore, and won't point to where hurts."
"All right, have you noticed any differences in her of late?"
I nodded. "Yeah, she has a few bruises, I think from the new sitter, and she's not been peeing as much, but usually doesn't make it to the bathroom in time when she does."
"Anything else?"
"Not really. She just woke up like this. Normally she'll point at where hurts, but she can't, as you can tell she's in a lot of pain right now."
Angela was still in my arms screaming bloody murder. How had she gotten so bad so fast? She had been fine when I put her to bed. I was even more surprised when Nurse Trudell appeared in the doorway with a hospital crib. They obviously suspected something that I did not.
"I'm going to have to talk Angela for some tests. I'm going to ask you to wait in the waiting room," Doctor Larson explained I nodded, knowing better then to really protest. It I made a big scene then so would Angela. There was no point in arguing for the sake of arguing. Angela was usally well behaved so I didn't see any reason to stay with her through everything. I put her in the crib, and kissed her on the forhead.
"The doctor is going to look at you so you can feel better. Mommy can't go with you, so be a big girl, okay?"
She sniffled, and looked at me, her eyes wide, I knew she was scared. "Big gurl?"
"Yeah, be brave like Daddy at work, kay?"
"Kay."
I knew she was probably terrified, but there was not much I could do to help her, even if I followed her. I went into the waiting room, and fell onto a chair. What could possibly be wrong with her? I kept asking myself. My brain started listing all kinds of cancers that had those kinds of symptoms. I couldn't make myself stop, and I couldn't just think that is was something on a smaller scale.
She would not have been seen so quickly, if something wasn't very wrong. She wouldn't need a bunch of testing if it was nothing serious. It had be serious. Nurse Trudell was not the kind of nurse who over reacted, she had known right away that something was wrong with Angela, and had not only called in a pediatric surgeon she had also know to bring in the crib. What did they know that I didn't?
As I sat helplessly, I knew they were doing something to her, and my mind was racing. I needed to call someone, so that I'd have someone to sit with, while I waited. The person I wanted most, my mother, was on vacation, and I couldn't get in touch with her. I thought about calling my dad, but I really didn't want to. He's just not good in emergencies, and I really wasn't in any mood to deal with him. I also didn't want to call my brother, though I knew his wife would probably be a huge help though.
The thought of calling Dylan crossed my mind for about half a second, then I ruled him out. Even though she was his daughter, he would want nothing to do with her being sick. I just sat there, alone for a long time. Then it hit me, I could call Alex!
I felt a bit bad calling her, as I had been teasing her mercilessly since she had passed her firefighter's exam. Even so, she was my friend, and she would probably come if I called, and told her I needed her.
I hoped that she would understand why it was I was calling so late. I knew that I'd also wake Tyrone, but I really needed someone to talk to, and to be there when they told me what was wrong. I just knew it was going to be something major. I'm a paramedic for Pete's sake, it takes a lot for me to rush my kid off to the emergency room! I was glad in a way that I would be calling Alex, she had proven time and time again that she could keep her head on in an emergency. I can too, as a general rule, but she had proven that she was able to keep her head on when someone she cared about was the one in trouble.
I admired her more then she would ever know for being able to work on Tyrone after he had been shot. I had had enough trouble dealing with Dylan's shock that day. But she stayed calm, and just did what she had to do, things probably would have been much worse had she not done that.
It amazed me that she was able to work on the man she loved just like she would have worked on any other call we would have gotten. That was the kind of person you liked to have around in an emergency situation, I knew she would help calm me.
I knew that they would both understand my calling in the middle of the night, but it didn't make me not feel much better. It's one thing to call family in an emergency, it's quiet another when you have to call your friends. But there was no way around it, I would go nuts if I had to sit in that waiting room too long alone.
I went over to a phone, to make the call. It rang a couple of times.
"Hello?" I heard a very groggy Tyrone grumble into the phone.
"I need to talk to Alex," I replied.
I knew I sounded rude, but the shorter the conversation the more likely it was that he'd at least be able to fall back to sleep. I heard rustling around on their end.
"Hello?" Alex mumbled into the phone.
"Hi Alex, it's me. Angela's in the hospital, I didn't know who else to call," I began to cry.
"Calm down, Em, I'll be right there."
"I'm in one of the waiting rooms, at Mercy."
The phone went dead, and I knew she was on her way. I could hardly believe it, she didn't question it, even my family, except my mother, would have asked more questions before rushing out in the middle of the night. Not that I had any answers. All I knew was that there was something seriously wrong with Angela, and they were still running tests on her.
I wanted so much to be in there with her, holding her hand, but I knew I'd just be in the way. I felt so helpless, not knowing what was wrong, and not being able to do anything to help her. Part of me was hoping I had over-reacted, and it really was just a cold or something, but they were not symptoms I had ever seen before.
You'd think with my emergency medical training I'd be able to figure out what the hell was wrong with my infant daughter! Most of the time I did, and the doctor's hated me for telling them what I thought was wrong, but this simply was not one of those cases.
When I saw Alex come into the waiting room, I couldn't believe it. She was still in her pajamas! They were nice ones, dark pink satin, full pants and blouse. Before I could even say hello, she had given me a hug.
"How are you doing?" she asked.
"Could be better. I'll be better once I know what's going on, they're still running tests."
"She'll be all right," she assured me. "You'll get through this."
It actually helped to hear those words. "You could have gotten dressed, you know?"
"I'm wearing a bra." She stated plainly.
"So?"
She shrugged. "These cover more then some of my clothes!"
I couldn't help but laugh. "You're a strange one, you know that?"
"So I've been told. I've never had a problem running around in my jammies, my brother and I go for late night coffee dressed like this all the time."
I simply shook my head. "You're brave to frequent a New York City ER dressed like that."
"You should try it sometime. I bet it'd be a good way to pick up a doctor, or one of those yummy male nurses."
I shook my head, and couldn't help but smile. I was glad she was there, having her there was a nice break from all the worst case scenarios that were running through my head. There were just so many things that could be wrong with her. I didn't want to think of them, but they just kept running through my mind.
I was glad that my friend was there, her presence had calmed me considerably. The door to the room opened, and the doctor from before entered the room.
"Miss Yokas," he started.
"Please call me Emily," I whispered, Alex had taken my hand.
"Emily, I'd like to talk to you about Angela's condition."
"I'd like my friend to stay with me, please."
"Of course. From the tests I've preformed we've determined that Angela has had acute kidney failure."
Alex squeezed my hand harder. She was so strong. I couldn't believe what he had just told me, my baby had kidney failure. That thought never crossed my mind. How in the world does a child so young have kidney failure?
"So what does this mean?" I whispered.
"Right now Angela's going to need dialysis on a regular basis, until we are able to find her a suitable donor. In children so young we generally prefer to keep them hospitalized until a donor is found. It's a safety precaution of course, so that we can monitor any changes, and keep her from the trauma of being rushed back and forth from the hospital."
I fell silent, I was only half listing. My baby needed a kidney transplant? I began to cry. Alex pulled me close, and hugged me, comforting me until I was able to compose myself. How was she being so calm? The world was falling apart! My two and half year old needed major surgery! I was glad in a way that Alex was so calm, cause I needed someone who had her head on her shoulders.
As great as she was being I really needed my mother. Who was going to be back the next day. I wasn't sure if I could hold out that long. Alex smoothed my hair, and I began to calm down. I looked up at the doctor.
"What caused this?" I asked.
"From what I can tell there was a blood clot behind one of the kidneys, she was probably born with it. The blood clot probably seemed harmless, or even went unnoticed because of where it was. It's far from common but there are cases of this happening. Unfortunately when the clot began to grow, it did serious damage to the first kidney. Since Angela's so young she was unable to tell you that something wasn't right, until the second kidney was affected, and her muscles started to ache. That's why she couldn't show you where it hurt, everywhere hurt."
I nodded. "Can I see her?"
"Of course."
"Can my friend come with me?"
"Yes, follow me," he started. "I have put Angela on the national registry, of course, but that takes months to get a match. With the birthrates what they are most of the time it's impossible to get a child a matching organ. We have found, however, that even in children this young parents and family members are able to donate, with a high rate of success. There are always risks involved with organ transplantation of course, however live transplants have a much higher success rates. Especially when blood relative is able to make the donation, as long as the organ is not too large we'll be able to transplant it into even a child as young as your daughter."
I nodded. "I understand, how soon can I be tested?"
"I'll book you in first thing in the morning. I would also suggest that you ask the father to come in as well, you both are of course the best bets. If you have any siblings, I would urge you to ask them as well, your parents, and even your friends if they're willing. My advise is always to get everyone you know to get tested."
I really didn't know that many people who I could ask to do that. Dylan was out of the question he had never wanted Angela and I knew he wouldn't step up when he was needed. I didn't want to, but felt I had to ask my Dad and brother to at least do the tests. I knew that my mother would, no questions asked, as would Bosco.
He opened the door to the room for us. Angela was sleeping, she looked so tiny, even the hospital crib seemed huge for her. She had a breathing tube in her nose, a heart rate monitor beeping, and an IV tube in her arm. I couldn't believe I was seeing her life that. I gasped, glad she was asleep and had not heard my reaction.
Alex, who had been holding my hand the entire time, wrapped her arm around my shoulder. I laid my head on her shoulder, and began to cry. The doctor left us alone, we were both silent, accept for my sniffles, the only other sound I could hear was the beeping of the monitor.
"She'll make it, she's strong like her mother," Alex whispered.
Somehow that comforted me. My rock was telling me I was being strong. I could hardly believe it. I wanted to believe that she'd be all right, but she had such a battle ahead of her. I just hoped that I, or someone in my family, would be a match. I just couldn't trust that Dylan would do the right thing, and sacrifice a few years of his own life so his daughter could have one --
I was so glad when my mother had showed up at the hospital. I had left her a message on where to meet when she got back with Bosco. I started to cry as soon as I saw her, she gave me a big hug, and assured me everything was going to be all right. We were lucky that Angela had gotten a private room, and so they didn't really care how many people visited at once. Angela brightened right up upon seeing Basco. I smiled, so glad she had one positive influence in her life.
"Baco!" she exclaimed.
"Angie, I missed you, I have so many presents for you!" he said, kissing her on the forehead.
"Up?"
"Sorry, Angie, you have to stay on those machines."
She pouted, she had no idea what was going on. She couldn't understand why she couldn't just go home. So far the dialysis didn't seem to dampen her spirit, I just hoped we found a match for her soon, to get it all over with.
"Have you called your father?" Mom asked.
"No."
"What about Charlie?"
"No."
"You have to call them, Emily."
"You're hear now, and I want you to stay."
She shrugged. "You still have to ask them to get tested."
"Like their kidneys are in much better shape then their livers."
"Emily!" she snapped.
"Fine, fine."
"What about Dylan?"
I looked at the ground. "I'll see what happens with all of us first."
"He is her father."
"Why would he start doing anything for her now?"
"You still have to try."
"Let me deal with Dad and Charlie first, please?"
I went to find a phone to call them both from. When I got a hold of them, I just told them that Angela was sick, and I'd like it if they came to the hospital to visit her. Neither of them really asked what, exactly was wrong, so I decided it would be better to wait till they got there to tell them what, exactly what going on.
I went back into the room, dreading when they arrived. I didn't want to know what they'd do if they all ended up in the same room together. Both of them hated my mother for marrying Bosco. I think that Charlie actually believed that my mother had been with Bosco before they got the divorce, which was totally untrue. Bosco didn't see my mother like that till a while after she divorced my dad.
She had told me that it had all started out as two friends just needing someone to listen to when they were going through a rough patch. She wasn't even sure how things got to the point where they changed, but they had. Before they knew it not only were they dating, but they were engaged.
"Look, Emily," Bosco said. "I'll leave before they get here."
"Baco! No!" Angela protested.
"I think Angela wants you to stay. Besides, if they can't get past their own stupidity for my daughter, then I really don't need them in my life."
"Emily, don't say that!" Mom snapped.
"It's true Mom, I'm sorry."
Even when Mom was just engaged to Bosco she was so much happier then I had seen her in a very long time. My mother deserved to be happy, she had been through so much shit in her life. Charlie had no problem with Dad being re-married, so I knew what he was mad about was who she had decided to marry the second time. So I concluded that he believed all the lies my dad had told him about Bosco.
It was after the wedding that what was left of the family truly split. I took Mom's side, and went to the wedding, making my dad think that I had betrayed him. Charlie didn't go to the wedding, and that made my mom feel like he had betrayed her. I just knew that Charlie actually believed that my mother had been sleeping with him the entire time they worked together.
It broke my mother's heart, but she deserved to be happy with the man she loved, just like my dad deserved to be happy with the person he chose. Charlie simply could not see that it was the same things. He could not see past his own bitterness, and one day he'd see how wrong he was. I guess I really was the pot calling the kettle black, though, cause I was mad at my father for believing that my mother would actually cheat on him.
It was sad that my daughter's major surgery, may be the thing that made us all be able to pretend to get along, for a little while anyway. How horrible was that though? I mean that it would be something that drastic that would maybe force us all to just get along.
Not long after they showed up, almost together. I could tell that my dad was mad as soon as he saw Basco there. At least if they hurt each other it was quick trip the emergency room. I knew he was wondering why they were both so tanned, and both were wondering what was going on.
"Bosco, this isn't your family," my dad started.
"Faith is my wife now, so this is my business."
"What are you doing here?" Charlie asked. "You just leave us all alone, Bosco."
"Baco no go!" Angela screamed, putting her hands on her hips for extra emphasis.
"That's the reason I'm here."
"Don't you wanna see Grampy?" my dad asked, going to hug her.
She started to scream. "No!"
"No what?"
"She can't have hugs because of all the machines, Dad," I explained.
He kissed her on the forehead. "So why did you ask us to come here, while he's here?"
"Can we just, pretend for a moment, that we're all grown ups, and that you're here for my daughter, who you're setting a very bad example for."
"All right, Emily, get off your high horse all right?" Charlie snapped at me.
"I should have just told you over the phone, and asked you not to visit."
"Then why didn't you?"
"Cause telling the rest of your so called family that your two and half year old needs a kidney transplant is generally something to say in person."
"She needs a kidney transplant? Why?" asked Dad.
"Because she has acute kidney failure," I replied.
"What other diseases does this Dylan guy have?"
"It's not hereditary. She was born with a blood clot that grew, and infected her kidneys."
"I still blame that little piece of shit."
"Can you watch what you say around her, please?"
I hadn't realized till that moment just how little I actually knew about Dylan. Had it been hereditary I would not have known that it ran on the paternal side. I had a child with this man, and I basically knew he was a cop, a womanizer and an only child. Otherwise I knew next to nothing about him. I also knew of course that he was an asshole who really didn't want a child, he just didn't want a stranger raising his kid.
"Look, the doctors have said that since the donor lists are so long, that I should ask just about everyone I know to see if they're a match."
"Shouldn't you and Dylan be tested first?" Charlie asked.
"Ideally, but I can't seem to get a hold of him. I've left him messages, that I needed him to call, and that it was important. But he hasn't called back yet. If I have to I'll go to his door and make him come down. I don't even care if he visits, as long as they test him," I replied.
"So you're gonna make us do it, but you'll wimp out with him?" Charlie asked.
"When I get to talk to him, I'm not going to get him to weasel out of it. I know that if I'm not a match, chances are he will be."
"Then why isn't he here?"
"I explained that already."
"Like you can get him to do that, he hasn't been there for her."
I wanted to hit my brother, and make it hurt. I knew it was not a good example for my daughter. We used to be a lot closer, and I missed those times. I hoped that somehow we'd be able to get along again. I heard the door open.
I was surprised when I realized it was Alex and Tyrone who had come in. I was glad they had though some kind of gift for Angela hidden behind their backs. Alex surveyed the room, and realized there were a lot of people there.
"We can come back later," Alex said.
"No, stay, there's lots of room in here," I assured her.
"You must be Alex," my mother said, looking at her.
"What gave it away?" she asked, with a laugh.
"You look exactly like your mother."
She smiled. "Nice to meet you, finally, Mrs. Yo- uh."
"Just call me Faith." She smiled, and shook her hand. "How are you Tyrone?"
"Great Detective," he answered.
She shook her head. "You never grew out of that did you?"
"Nope."
Tyrone didn't know what to call my mother after she re-married, so he got into the habit of just calling her "Detective" cause she wasn't an officer. It was something that always stuck, and made us all laugh when he said it.
"I'm Bosco," said Bosco, shaking her hand.
"Hi."
"Fred," said my father.
"Nice to meet you."
"Charlie," said my brother.
She shook his hand. "Hello."
I could see that Charlie was checking her out, even though he was supposed to be happily married. Tyrone wrapped his arm around her, warning his friend to back away. I could tell now that it was a teddy bear that she was holding.
" When you to came in I thought we had got into a time machine, you look so much like Davis and Kim," Bosco commented. "Emily told me you liked like your mother, but wow. You are her double!"
"They may as well have cloned her when I was made!" Alex laughed.
"Put the two of you in uniforms and I'd start having flashbacks to my younger days!"
Tyrone laughed. "I think we should say hi to Angela, then we'll leave."
They walked over to her crib, and Alex took the bear she was holding behind her back out, to show her.
"Bear!" Angela exclaimed.
"Yes, Angela, but this is a very special bear."
"Special bear?"
"Yes, he used to be mine, and he always made me feel better when I was sick. I'm sure you have lotsa toys at home, but none of them are as special as Bear here, okay?"
"Kay!"
"So whenever you're feeling yucky, and no one's here, you just tell Bear all about it, and he'll make it better."
"Really?"
"He did for me, so I can't see why he won't do the same for you." She kissed her on the forehead.
It was funny before that moment I had never seen Alex as the mothering type. I finally understood that even though I may be envious that I couldn't do stuff because of my daughter, she really did respect me for being a mother. Angela was already cuddling the bear, I was glad she had brought it for her.
I had not even thought about brining anything of Angela's from home, because she loved all of her toys, and she'd want them all. I assumed that she had noticed that when she was admitted, and had sacrificed her own childhood toy so that she wouldn't be lonely, eventually she would have to spend the nights alone.
"And remember, be brave like your Mommy, kay?"
I was shocked that she had told her to be brave like me. I always told her to be brave like her daddy. It made me feel good that she actually did respect me, and I couldn't help but realize that I had to start to let my guard down around her.
"Kay!" She then realized who was with Alex. Her face light up. "Ty!"
"One day you're gonna call me that, and my daddy's gonna get mad you," he told her, kissing her on the cheek.
"No!"
"My Daddy's named Ty, I'm Tyrone."
She stuck her tongue out him. "Ty!"
He smiled, I never realized how bad of a little flirt she was, but she was flirting with him almost as much as she flirted with Bosco, and she hardly ever saw him. Though, she did see him more then she saw her father. Still, I'd have to try to keep that behavior in check before she started pre-school, I realized.
I was glad she really didn't understand why she was in the hospital. I was also glad that she was not in as much pain as when I had brought her in. That was why I had decided to just keep her there, I couldn't deal with having to see her like that. I just hoped that all the testing would be done soon, and we'd be able to get everything started. "Have you gotten in touch with Dylan yet?" Alex asked me, as Tyrone paid attention to Angela.
"No, I've left him messages, but I haven't got an answer."
"He won't respond," Tyrone stated.
"Why do you say that?" my mom asked him.
"The last time you left him a message saying that something was important, he found he was going to be a Daddy, since then he decided to ignore any messages from anyone of the female persuasion say it's important, or an emergency," Tyrone replied.
"How would you know that?" my father asked.
"I work with him, he's my partner."
"Oh."
"If you want, Emily, we'll stop by his place, and drag him over here."
"You wouldn't mind?"
"I wouldn't have offered if I didn't want to. It'll be no problem.."
I couldn't' believe that I was going to have to get my friends to go to his place so that he would actually come to see her. I just hoped that when he got here he'd be willing to at least take the tests. I wasn't sure that he would actually reduce his life expectancy even slightly so that his daughter might have a life.
Angela didn't understand what was going on, and I was glad that she didn't. How do you explain to a two and half year old that they need an organ or they could die? I just told her that the doctors needed her to stay here to make her feel better. "So, how about we get going, and we'll go talk to Dylan?" Tyrone suggested. "Maybe stop by the house and see if anyone would be willing to see if they're matches for Angela while we're at."
"You really wouldn't mind?"
"Not at all."
"What are friends for Em? It's really crowded in here, we should get going," Alex agreed.
"Thank you so much, both of," I said, giving them each a hug.
"Bye, it was nice meeting all of you," Alex said.
"See you soon," Tyrone said.
"Bye, bye Ty!" Angela said.
"Bye Angela, be good."
Not long after they left my brother and father went to get the tests done to see if they were matches. Angela fell asleep, and my mother and Bosco left before she woke up and wouldn't let them leave at all. I wanted to stay with her, but I knew I'd have to get back to work eventually.
I watched her sleeping, she seemed so much smaller in that crib. I was having so much trouble accepting what was going on. I was angry with the world, why did the fates decide that my daughter was the one to get sick? She was all I really had, and she might be taken away from me.
I wished that I could take her place, and I be the one who was sick, needing a kidney transplant. She had not even had a chance to live, and now if she did make it her life would be changed forever. If she got the surgery she would end up having to take pills for the rest of her life. I would always have to worry that her body could reject the organ at any time.
She had no idea what was going on, and that was a saving grace. At least she was still young enough that her pill regime would just become a habit for her, like getting dressed, and doing her hair. I sat down on a chair that was right next to her, and must have fallen asleep.
The next thing I remember was hearing Angela yelling, "Daddy!"
I opened my eyes to see Dylan, Alex and Tyrone coming into the room. They had actually got him to come down to visit her, I wondered what they had done, I didn't really care at that point.
"Dylan," I said.
"Hi, Emily," he replied.
"You came?"
"I didn't really have a choice in the matter."
"Daddy!" Angela exclaimed, bouncing up and down.
"Hi, Angela," he said, unsure of what to say.
"Daddy, look at Bear!" She held up the bear Alex had given her.
"That's a nice bear."
"A special bear!"
Alex laughed, when she heard her call it the special bear. I knew that it was awkward for him to be there, he hadn't seen her in months. But I was glad he was. I was also glad that Tyrone and Alex seemed to be staying.
"Have you already gone to get the tests done?" I asked them.
"Yeah, we've all done it, they say they should have all the results in by this evening," Alex replied.
"That soon?"
"I was surprised too."
Dylan had decided to stay the rest of the day. I asked Tyrone and Alex to stay as well. Alex had been with me in the beginning, and I wanted her to be there through the whole thing.
After the sun went down I was really starting to get nervous. Angela had fallen asleep, and despite I all, everyone said she was doing very well. When I saw Doctor Larson come in, I was relieved. I knew I might have an answer soon.
"Angela seems to have a big circles of support," he commented. "Emily, would you like everyone to stay?"
"Yes, please."
"I know Alex already, you are?" he asked Tyrone.
"Tyrone Davis, I'm friends with Emily," he replied.
"And you?" he asked Dylan.
"Dylan Mathews, Angela's father," he replied.
"Nice to meet you at long last." He looked through his chart. "I'm not going to stall this very long, there is only one match from who has been tested so far."
I hoped that it was going to be me. There wasn't even a question, I would have the surgery that day if it meant giving her a full life. I was so worried that Dylan would not feel the same, and I'd have to wait for another match.
"The only matching donor, who seems almost perfect, is you, Mr. Mathews."
"Me?" asked Dylan.
"Yes, you can have some time to think about everything, I'll give you all the information you'll need."
"How many have been tested?" I asked.
"About twenty five, and we have a few we'll have to do tomorrow."
"Twenty five?"
"Mostly NYPD and FDNY, you must have a lot of friends at work, both of you. Mr. Mathews if you'd like to come with me so I can explain all that the donation could entail."
"Of course."
The two of them left. I looked at Alex who was giving me a lopsided grin. I knew she had something to do with having so many people come down to see if they were matches. She hugged me.
"He'll do the right thing," she whispered in my ear.
"I hope so. Now how the hell did you two get so many people down here?"
Tyrone shrugged. "We just asked Carter and Kylie to work their magic."
I shook my head. "This is unbelievable."
"Despite everyone being afraid of you, Em, they all like you," Alex explained.
I laughed. "I'm nothing to fear."
"As my mother told me, child birth will make even the raunchiest firefighter fear you."
I shook my head. "I guess so."
"I think you should think about heading home while she's sleeping."
"It would probably be the least stressful for her huh?"
"Most probably."
"I'll give you a drive home," Tyrone offered.
"Thanks, I'd like that."
I had not left the hospital in two days. I needed to eat, and I needed to sleep. I hated to leave her while she slept. But she'd know what was going on. If she didn't calm the worst that would happen would be I'd get a call saying I needed to come back.
We were silent on the car ride to my place. I got out, and went into my apartment. It felt so empty with Angela not being there. I made myself a microwave dinner, and then got into the shower quickly. I barely made it into my bed before I was asleep. I was worried about her, but somehow I knew that it would all work out. I just hoped Dylan would surprise me and do the right thing.
end
end note: now you see why the parts have been mixed up on this run through, since obviously we have to know what happens to angela, soooo dylan is up next stay tuned!