AN: Sorry it's been a while, but I've been busy spending all of my October and November and all my available spare time studying for tests and working on certifications instead of writing the next chapters. Anyway, the last chapter will instead act as an epilogue and a happy ending for Mateo and a newly paralyzed Lim instead of the start of her resenting Shaun (spoiler). This chapter takes place during "Sons".
Since Shaun and Lea's rehearsal dinner the night before, Dalisay had been crashing at Audrey's place while Danilo was staying with his father in Los Gatos for his own safety, so he wasn't going to be the flower boy at Shaun and Lea's wedding, which was yet again disappointing to him...but his safety was a top priority to Dalisay and Andy.
Moreover, Mateo was also spending the night, still anticipating the results of his application and wondering if they would ask for an interview.
"Cheese, no. Peppers, yes?" Dalisay queried as she cooked omelets in Audrey's favorite skillet, which was a gift from her mother. She figured that if she was going to be staying with a superior, she could at least cook breakfast for her in return.
"Perfect," grinned Audrey as she scrolled through her tablet, pouring coffee for three while she and Mateo sat at the breakfast table when they were suddenly interrupted by Dalisay's phone vibrating and ringing, to which she immediately picked up and declined the calls.
"Is that him?" Audrey asked nervously as she was sort of fearful for her life since she had a victim of domestic violence whose ex was stalking her crashing on her couch.
Dalisay just nodded. "Based on the last three voicemails, he's calling about the restraining order I filed and why I won't tell him where Danilo is," she lamented. "I keep trying to block him, but he just keeps finding different numbers to call from."
"How are you feeling?" Mateo chimed in with concern.
"Like my future is a dark, formless empty void, which makes it full of possibility," chirped Dalisay apprehensively. "I need a fresh start. Like a two-bed, one-bath rental, or maybe just one-bed. I don't know. Andy and I have shared custody, so I might need a two-bed rental."
"You've only been here one day," assuaged Audrey with a chuckle as she took a sip of her French vanilla roast. "Don't worry about it right now. It's not fair that you would have to have it all figured out in one week or even one month."
"Well, I did sort of crash date night for you and Dr. Rendón," sighed Dalisay ruefully as she stirred the eggs around in the pot and then serving them onto Audrey and Mateo's plates. "And I shouldn't be crashing on my boss's couch for more than a week."
"Hey, it's no problem," reassured Mateo with a smile as he opened his laptop and then checked his emails, hoping he was receiving some news from the president of San Jose General about an interview. "Anyone who is a friend of Audrey's is a friend of mine."
"Any luck yet?" Dalisay asked inquisitively as she was aware that Mateo was leaving St. Bonaventure to apply somewhere else closer to St. Bonaventure, and he had an interest in a chief of surgery position.
"Not yet," sighed Mateo with disappointment, staring at his email feed, revealing no replies from San Jose General. "But, it's why I applied to many other different attending positions in the Bay Area. Hopefully, some positive letter of recommendations from Audrey and Dr. Andrews make me more hirable and they'll overlook my arrest."
"Hopefully," Audrey shrugged.
"Thank you, Audrey," expressed Dalisay. "And Mateo."
Before they would drop of Violet at the hotel Pam and Mike were staying at and then head to the hospital for work, Shaun and Lea were using their spare 45 minutes to try a brand new pancake recipe (blueberry banana pancakes with a hint of cinnamon, which was inspired by Violet's breakfast of blueberry-banana puree) as well as testing out the outfit that Violet was going to wear to the wedding (having her crawl around in it for an hour and see how she would likely handle it), which was a gift provided by Donnie yesterday.
The outfit was a robin egg blue floral smock dress with embroidery, a Peter Pan collar, and lace trim, coming with a matching panty set and a bow headband (a tiny, barrette-sized bow, though - not a huge one that would have been half the size of her head). Bought separately, there were a pair of plain white lace cuff socks and a pair of shiny white t-strapped Mary Jane dress shoes.
"Why would Violet need shoes?" Shaun critiqued as he and Lea studied their daughter in her new outfit minus the bow, sitting on her activity mat and teething on one of her silicone toys. In his opinion, the fancy outfit Violet was trying out made her look like a baby-sized doll. She obviously didn't enjoy the headpiece as she ripped it off her head and forcefully resisted when Shaun tried to put it on her head. She was also experimenting with the unfamiliar objects encasing her feet, trying to pull of the velcro straps. "She can't even walk yet and none of the babies at daycare come in wearing shoes. And I think she looks better without a bow."
"I agree with you on the last part, Shaun," concurred Lea as she picked up Violet off the mat, remembering the struggles she and Shaun had even when it came to keeping Violet's socks on. Her teachers at daycare actually almost lost one of Violet's socks because another fellow baby had yanked it off of Violet's foot and hid it in his hand, crawling around and then letting it go to a spot in the room to where it would be hard to find. Lea couldn't imagine the struggle of trying to keep her shoes on her non-walking feet. "But I actually think the shoes look adorable on her...even though they're not functional. I don't know why Donnie would even think getting her fancy shoes was a good idea."
"She looks like a doll," commented Shaun as he examined Violet in Lea's arms. Her outfit reminded him a bit of little girls' clothing from the 1930s.
"Oh, my god," chuckled Lea, bopping Violet in her arms. "She really does...and actually kind of ridiculous considering that she's probably only going to wear this once."
"Exactly," nodded Shaun as he removed the toe-pinching shoes from Violet's feet. "And she'll probably get her drool all over the dress."
"That's true," sighed Lea before she shared her final decision regarding Violet's outfit. "She can just wear the dress and the socks...and the panties if we don't want her taking her diaper off."
Originally, Shaun and Lea thought that the panties over her diaper was unnecessary (as they never put Violet in a bottomless dress since she was born), so they didn't put the panties on her until she kept undoing her diaper and taking it off. Therefore, they slipped on the panties and then decided that Violet taking off her diaper, especially if she had pooped, was not something they wanted to happen at their wedding.
"I like that idea very much," beamed Shaun as he examined his watching, concluding that it was time to change Violet into regular clothes, drop her off, and then go to work.
On an unrelated note, they had hired Sophie to be their wedding photographer and videographer. She had offered to do it for them for free.
In the residents' lounge, Jordan and Claire watched awkwardly with amusement and bewilderment as they glanced at Asher and Jerome dancing to a video that Asher had posted on TikTok (which he just got an account for and he just really desperately wanted to show them the video so bad and demanded that they watch the video; as he has been forcing so many people to watch and even emailed and texted them the video) of him cutting a rug while he made a smoothie...while also watching that video on Asher's phone.
"Okay, why are we watching you make a smoothie?" Jordan scoffed as she observed Asher's terrible dance moves in the video on his phone.
"And why is it so important that everyone at the hospital sees it?" Claire teased. Although she had heard that Asher had started this new hobby of making smoothies, him posting videos of himself making them while dancing (and even posting it to one of the newest social media sites) was new...yet she could only just still picture him dancing topless on the table while high with Park. "It's just you making a smoothie."
"You're watching me dance...while I make a smoothie while I experiment with TikTok," panted Asher, feeling pumped as he moved his hands up and down to the beat of the music.
"I've already told you, it's not a smoothie if it has tequila in it," pointed out Jerome, who immediately stopped dancing, yet also really hated that Asher was probably going to be getting into this stupid TikTok trend...something Asher originally thought had to do with that Kesha song when he first heard a teen patient talk about it. "It's a spinach and flax seed margarita."
"Yeah, and it makes you dance," added Asher bubbly, still dancing to the music while Jordan and Claire were still unimpressed as Asher then started to try twerking.
"Okay, too much butt, babe," Jerome commented as the other two nodded in agreement. "You look like you're squatting to poop."
"Yeah, you look like a constipated dog trying to take a shit," jested Claire, playfully shaking her head.
"Or more like a toddler trying to walk after he just pooped his pants," added Jordan.
"Think about the butt," chirped Asher as he grunted and twerked.
Unfortunately, the excited chatter immediately died down when two people, a man and a woman, walked into the room, calling Asher's name in what sounded like a Yiddish accent. "Asher."
Asher immediately turned around, letting his mouth hang agape in dismay at the couple.
The man, obviously a Hasidic Jew with his side curls, was in a long black coat, a black hat, and a gartel and was carrying a cane. The woman, who was probably his wife, was dressed modestly in dark clothing, a scarf around her head, and a bag over her shoulder.
"What are you doing here?" Asher asked the couple.
The man replied in Hebrew.
"Meet my parents," Asher introduced apathetically with displeasure.
"You did pick up Shaun and Lea's wedding gift, right?" Morgan, while walking side-by-side with her boyfriend down the hospital hall after discussing a surgery with a patient, apprehensively questioned Alex about the last-minute wedding gift personalized wine glasses they were getting for the husband-and-wife-to-be.
She had brought him to consult on her case of a patient, a 35-year-old woman who was paralyzed from the face down (with only residual movement in three fingers) and only able to speak through a computer due to a brainstem stroke she suffered nine years ago. Because she's had four serious bouts of pneumonia due to scar tissue in her lungs, she was desperate for a surgery to remove the tissue no matter what the risk because she was sick of feeling like shit.
Morgan appreciated Steph's snark and also admired the love she and her husband had for each other.
"Yes, I did," nodded Alex before confirming his plans. "So, I'll see you at lunch later."
"Sorry, no can do," sighed Morgan disconcertedly. "I have a job interview with New York Medical Center."
Alex was stunned. They were already living together, and still working out issues over household chores, and it was weird that she was now considering moving to a different state.
"You never told me you were considering positions on the other side of the county," he bleated. "Is that why you suddenly got that haircut this morning?"
"Yes," nodded Morgan.
"And when did you consider this?"
"A few days ago."
"You're seriously deciding to move to New York when we just moved in together last month?" Alex scoffed. "Didn't know you were already so bored of me."
"I'm not. I just want to get multiple offers so I can leverage a better one from St. Bon's. Makes you look in demand," explained Morgan, yet it still confused Alex.
"Uh, I'd rather look like I want the job I have now," Alex rolled his eyes before he took off.
The reason why Asher's parents suddenly dropped in unannounced from New York was because Yosel, his father, was dying of lung cancer (given less than a year to live) and he and his wife were looking for a miracle, thinking their doctor of a son would be their best source.
Well, at least I'm somewhat better of a son than Isaac and Levi for now since I can apparently cure him just because I'm a doctor, he thought sardonically about his two younger brothers that pleased Yosel by following in his footsteps as straight rabbis or just a soon-to-be rabbi while engaged to or dating a Jewish girl.
After admitting his father as a patient, Asher had consulted Shaun, who was now explaining to Yosel and Miriam everything he was reviewing from the patient file.
"The cancer has invaded the chest wall. Six rounds of chemo. The treatment has caused severe anemia and colitis," observed Shaun as he read the file to Mr. and Mrs. Wolke. "We need a CT of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis, CBC, blood cultures, and an EKG. I will review your results with Dr. Andrews, and we will try to find a treatment to help you."
"God bless you, Dr. Murphy," praised Miriam, who didn't notice that Asher rolled his eyes. "Asher mentioned you were getting married tomorrow. Bless you, your wife, and the children you will have."
You're kidding me, right? Asher thought. They've been blessing people with God for hours already.
"Lea and I already have a child," confirmed Shaun. "Her name is Violet. She's seven months old. She'll be 31 weeks old in two days."
"That's wonderful. You're one lucky man," blessed Yosel. "Are you a Catholic?"
"Abba!" Asher scolded, mortified at the fact that his parents were now bringing up Shaun's religious beliefs.
"I'm not Catholic," replied Shaun.
"But your name is Irish," pointed out Miriam. "Sean Murphy is the most Irish name I've heard."
"No, it isn't. Only my last name is. My first name is spelled with a U, not the traditional Irish way," clarified Shaun for the umpteenth time whenever he corrected people about the spelling of his first name while also confused as to why Asher's parents were questioning him about his religious background. "My father was Catholic and my mother was Mormon. She converted to Catholicism when they got married and then raised my brother and I as Catholics. I'm not a Catholic anymore."
"What about your soon-to-be wife, what's her maiden name? Is she Jewish? Leah is a good Hebrew name," said Miriam.
"Her name is not spelled the traditional way," Shaun clarified once again, remembering that Lea told him that her parents meant to spell Lea's name just like Jacob's wife, but the hospital messed up her birth certificate and then Pam and Mike didn't realize it until they enrolled her in preschool and then later just rolled along with the spelling. "And her maiden name is Dilallo."
"That sounds Italian, so I guess she must be Catholic, too?" Yosel guessed.
"No, her family is," confirmed Shaun. "We were both raised Catholic, but we're not religious anymore."
"Wonderful. Again, God bless you," smiled Miriam.
"Thank you," obliged Shaun hesitantly, still not understanding why Asher's parents were trying to connect his and Lea's religious background based off the origins of their names. He didn't even need to mention that if the hospital didn't screw up Lea's birth certificate, she'd have the perfect name for a nun, Sister Leah Abigail.
Once Shaun left the room and was out of the Wolkes' earshot, Asher immediately reproached his parents.
"Can you guys cool it with the blessing people in the name of God?" Asher huffed while also feeling relieved that his parents didn't probe Shaun with even more questions regarding his background, such as asking why he is no longer a Catholic. "This is a secular hospital."
"It's called Saint Bonaventure," justified Yosel.
Before Asher could bite back with an argument, Jerome walked in to introduce himself.
"Mr. and Mrs. Wolke, I'm Jerome," he greeted. "We met briefly this morning. I'm going to draw some blood."
Compared to all of his siblings, they were all straight and were married to, engaged to, or dating another Jewish person while he was gay and dating an atheist who was raised by secular Episcopalians. He was already pretty much the disappointment of the family.
The last thing he needed was to be compared to his rabbi or rabbi-in-training brothers or his sister Talia, who was married to a rabbi and successfully followed in her mother's footsteps.
"Jerome is...a nurse," introduced Asher nervously, to which Jerome looked disappointed at the fact that he had to hide the fact that he and Asher were boyfriends to his parents. "Jerome is your nurse."
As Asher prepared his father for his CT scan, wanting to keep everything between them medical yet also feeling like he wanted to prove like he was a good son, there was nothing but complete silence between the estranged father and son.
"I read your letter a few months ago," Asher finally broke the silence, remembering exactly what that letter said.
Dear Asher,
Greetings bubala, I will let you know that your mother and I are very proud of you and that we hope you are enjoying what is probably your last semester at NYU and are probably now considering going to medical school. The family prays that you become a successful doctor someday. We don't agree with your choices in life, but we still love you and are proud of your path to become a doctor.
I know it's been a few years, but me, Imma, Talia, Naomi, Eliana, Isaac, and Levi have been missing you. Bubbie and Zaydie also miss you. They keep asking about you all the time. Exciting, miraculous things have happened since you left. I'm sure you already know that Talia and David were expecting their first child when you left. Her name is Lila and she is now three. Talia and David are still living in Queens are due to have their second child any moment, a boy whom they will name Malachi. Naomi just got her Massachusetts teaching certification and will be getting married in November. His name is Eli and he's a bank teller and they will be moving to Boston soon after. Eliana moved to Staten Island and has switched her major to nursing. She wants to be a midwife and is in a relationship with this lovely man named Joseph. Isaac just graduated high school and will be going to Fordham in the fall. Levi is a straight A student and will be starting high school next fall. He was very sad that you weren't at his bar mitvah last year.
We love and miss you.
Love, Abba
"I sent it six years ago. A lot more has happened since. You have five nieces and nephews and you're now going to have six," reminded Yosel, appearing hurt that it took his son this long to read a loving letter he sent him. In fact, Asher already knew what had happened in the last 10 years since he would often check up on his siblings' Instagram.
"I wasn't sure I wanted to hear what you had to say, but it was nice," sighed Asher.
"I just wanted to tell you about the family," explained Yosel. "Naomi just had her second baby. It's a boy and his name is Samuel. She has an older boy, Noah. It's a shame that I'm missing my grandson's bris. Hopefully, I'll be there in time for the Aaliyah. Also, Eliana is pregnant. She's 16 weeks. Isaac also just got married. Her name is Rebecca and she is a med student. We wish you came to the wedding."
Asher already knew those facts since he often looked up his siblings on social media and had just learned those things a week ago…but he wasn't sure he wanted to tell his father that he was stalking his siblings on Instagram.
"I'm not a part of the family anymore," restated Asher, once again reminding Yosel of the excommunication. 'You made that very clear when I left."
"You chose to leave. You excommunicated yourself," insisted Yosel. "We wanted you to stay, wanted to help you. You're not the only one who struggles with finding the right path. We all must sometimes deny our flesh."
Asher sighed, finally finishing the injection. "You're right. I did make a choice. I could follow your rules, or I could love and accept who I am. I chose which mattered more. So did you."
Unfortunately, before Yosel could say anything, his breathing sounded like it was strained.
"Are you okay?" Asher questioned, surprisingly concerned for his father, yet Yosel's breathing was still strained as wheezing could be heard. "Take a deep breath. I need some help!"
Alex had inquired with Morgan about how the interview went, to which she said it went great and that she really hit it off with the head of internal medicine. However, Alex didn't seem too happy about that or even the uncertainty of this situation, accusing her of not being willing to commit to their relationship.
And speaking of commitment, Steph's husband was really committed to his wife. While her surgery did go well, she unfortunately lost feeling in her hand and her fingers, one of the few remaining parts of her body she had control over...leaving her with barely any way to communicate with people.
Alex suggested eye tracking, but it didn't work for Steph according to her husband. Fortunately, Morgan had come up with an idea after overhearing Steph watch an old video of herself on her laptop right before the stroke, to where she was acting all excited about the new house she and her husband bought.
Maybe I could give Steph her voice back, thought Morgan.
Yosel's CT had shown some growth of his chest wall tumor and that he was bleeding into his thoracic cavity, collapsing his lung. Therefore, he needed surgery right away, which was exactly what was happening right now as Asher watched the embolization within the OR.
"Advance the catheter to the right fourth intercostal artery," instructed Andrews as the sounds of the monitor beeping and the respirator hissing encompassed the quiet atmosphere of the OR.
As the procedure was being done, the first thing Asher noticed was the permanent scar on his father's arm, bringing back a memory from when he was five. "He got that scar teaching me how to ride a bike," he shared. "I was going too fast. I didn't know how to brake yet. He caught me. We both ended up with stitches."
"Delivering the embolic agent," noted Shaun, doing the duty before Andrews decided to fire up a conversation about his own father given that he was soon about to perform a duty his father sometimes did, officiating a wedding...except he wouldn't be saying any prayers.
"My dad taught me how to tie a tie," he beamed nostalgically, remembering all the prayers, baptisms, and weddings he attended. "He was a minister who wore his Sunday best every day of the week. When he died, I wore his suit jackets every day for a year."
"My dad was my first chemistry teacher," Jordan chimed in with a chuckle. "We baked together every weekend on a quest to find the perfect oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe for all of my classmates and my teachers."
Meanwhile, Claire and Shaun could barely think about any happy memories of their father, yet Claire could think of some. "Before he walked out on us, my dad would take me out for ice cream every time he screwed up," she sighed. "I always chose the rocky road. He wasn't the perfect father or even a good one, but I will say that he tried."
Shaun, however, couldn't think of anything to contribute to the conversation despite being the only one in the room who was actually a father himself right now, but his child didn't walk or talk, and she barely had teeth because she was a baby. Most of all, compared to everyone else's fathers in the room, his father was a violent, abusive jackass, making everyone else's father in the room seem like saints despite their own flaws. He could remember the horrible memories of hunting with his dad and all the loud gunshots and the sight of him carrying dead rabbits. However, Shaun did have fond memories of going fishing, but they weren't with his biological father.
Instead, he just reminisced about that fishing trip with Dr. Glassman. Shaun didn't like it. It was tedious, wet, cold, and very boring, but Glassman told him it would be a good memory...and he was right. At that moment, Shaun really felt like he was having a father-son moment with someone and actually felt love from a parental figure. Glassman may not have been his "real" father, but he was more of a father than his biological father ever was. Heck, Shaun considered him to be Violet's real grandfather, not Ethan. He didn't even want Violet or her possible future sibling to refer to Ethan as "Grandpa"...ever, or even Marcie as "Grandma". Glassman would be "Grandpa" to them. He was their real paternal grandfather.
Despite all of that, Shaun couldn't wait to create happy father-daughter memories with Violet and maybe a potential sibling of hers (again, maybe). He and Lea would take them camping and hiking or to a wildlife refuge. Maybe take them swimming, or just wading, in a creek. He wanted to do more outdoor family activities with Lea and Violet besides take her on walks around the block and take her to the park.
"Fluid is cloudy," Andrews interrupted, snapping Shaun right out of his thoughts. "He has a malignant pleural effusion."
"Can we drain it?" Asher asked.
"It will keep coming back and spread the cancer everywhere in his chest cavity," rejected Shaun, followed by Jordan and Claire sighing in sadness.
"Your father's prognosis was wrong," confirmed Andrews. "He only has a few weeks to live."
"We'll implant electrodes on her sensorimotor cortex, which will decode her brainwaves," Morgan proposed her idea to Dr. Lim in her office with enthusiasm. "All Steph has to do is try to speak, and the receiver relays the signals, which are translated into speech. Since we have recordings of her speaking in her original voice, we can take snippets of it to give to the device."
"It's brand-new technology that's only been done successfully a couple times," contradicted Alex, sighing.
"It's new technology that would give Steph not just a voice, but her voice back," justified Morgan; Lim nodding in agreement as she stared at the paper. "By uploading audio files taken before the stroke, we can..."
"But Steph can't handle another life-threatening surgery," argued Alex. "The eye-tracking device will allow her to communicate..."
"Right now, they've got nothing."
"They love each other. You're pushing false hope because you see Steph as nothing but a burden," accused Alex.
Morgan just scoffed defensively. "I'm trying to give them some quality of life."
"You're risking her life because you can't imagine making that kind of sacrifice for another person," objected Alex brutally.
"Park's right," Lim finally budded in as they both turned to look at her. "It's risky. But it's not false hope. Let's take it to them, without any hint of whatever's going on between you."
Because it was transmitted to Yosel that he only had a few weeks to live, he wanted to spend the evening celebrating the Shabbas, which was very important to him. It was why the TV was disconnected yet the monitors were left plugged in since he still needed to breathe through it. Miriam even brought challah and kiddush wine.
Jerome, Claire, Park, Morgan, Jordan, Shaun, and Lea (Violet was spending time with her maternal grandparents) had come to accompany Asher and his parents, which he was grateful for. However, Asher couldn't quite fathom why Talia, Naomi, Eliana, Isaac, and Levi plus their families couldn't be here over video chat. Sure, Shabbas was supposed to be unplugged...but this was a family thing.
Asher didn't talk that much when everyone was holding casual conversations and he managed to hold his tongue and just play along and listen as his parents hummed and chanted in Hebrew and said their prayers, just being tolerable of it and holding his tongue.
"Asher, will you say the Mischa beruch for Abba? Prayer for the sick, for his father," Miriam instructed.
Everyone in the room just glared at Asher as if they expected him to do it, to which he just scoffed in response and chuckled with disgust. "Do you want me to pray to a God that I don't even believe in?"
Miriam looked hurt and outraged.
"Why can't you honor me in my last days on Earth?" Yosel shook his head.
"If these are your last days, why isn't Talia here? Or Naomi? Or Eliana, Isaac, and Levi? Why didn't they fly in with you, hm? Why didn't you call them to do this? Why aren't they here over video chat?" Asher questioned intensely, almost in tears. "Those are your children obviously the most important to you and you would rather have them here than me. And these aren't your last days."
"You told me…"
"We are finding a surgical solution!"
Yosel inhaled sharply as everyone else silently watched awkwardly, feeling like they really shouldn't be here right now. "I'm dying, bubaleh," Yosel sighed solemnly. "I have accepted that."
"Yosel..." Miriam teared up.
"Miriam," halted Yosel. "And yes, I am sad that the rest of my children aren't here, but at least I have one of my children."
Yeah, your least favorite child. Your disappointment of a son, thought Asher.
"What I want is to go to God at peace. Which is why I want you to come home," yearned Yosel. "Be with me and your mother and your brother and sisters. You know, Eliana really misses you."
Asher thought about Eliana, the only relative he actually talked to once after he left home. As children, she was the sibling he was the closest with. Every special occasion they attended as children – weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, bris, funerals, etc. - they would always hang out together to play with their view masters and potato heads. She was the only sister who let him play with her dolls with her.
"It's sad," chuckled Asher mordantly. "I want to be your son. Almost more than I want to be myself. But I can't."
In an instant, Asher waltzed over towards Jerome to plant a kiss on his lips. "This is who I am. And this is my boyfriend," Asher stated proudly before he walked off; Jerome following after him.
As Asher stomped down the hospital corridors, Jerome just chased him down, trying to catch up with him and talk to him.
"Ash? What was that about?" Jerome inquired, stopping the walking for a few seconds and planting his hands on his hips.
Asher just scoffed, ignoring him and continued walking down the halls. Seriously! I already told you about the relationship with my parents, he thought.
"Asher!" Jerome yelled, which immediately stopped Asher in his tracks and then allowed him to turn around and face Jerome.
"You're really just going to be sulky about this?" Jerome huffed, folding his arms. "I get it that you're an atheist, but it's just one prayer. It's not about you. You're being kind of a dick."
"I have every right to be angry, and it's not about the damn prayer," grumbled Asher, walking closer towards Jerome and sighing. "And I'm the dick? It's just about my relationship with him. They want me to be the godly straight person I never was."
"Okay, I understand not feeling accepted..."
Asher scoffed and rolled his eyes, aware that Jerome's home environment was the exact opposite of his, compared to him being raised religious and conservative. "Easy for you to say, your parents were left-leaning liberals. Of course, they were okay with you being gay."
"True, true," nodded Jerome, slightly agreeing yet remembering how even if the people who loved him most were okay with it, there were other people close to him that completely changed their tune with him when they found out. "But they still had a little bit of prejudice yet tried to work through it and my dad became even more protective of me because he was afraid of me getting bullied. But when I came out to them, they were still shocked. However, my grandfather was very upset and didn't want to be around me when I finally came out to him, thinking it was some kind of lifestyle choice I made. We haven't talked ever since and he doesn't like to speak of me."
"At least your parents knew to stay open-minded," sighed Asher, feeling sad that Jerome's relationship with his grandfather changed just because of his sexuality. "And would you be forgiving of him if he just showed up and asked for forgiveness?"
Jerome exhaled deeply, still not sure what he would do if he was in a similar situation to his boyfriend. To be honest, if his grandfather, who was dead now, would continue to just gay bash and act very homophobic, then yes, the opportunity for forgiveness would be closed. On the other hand, Jerome still hoped that his grandfather would somehow love and accept him again someday...until he died.
"Honestly, if he just wanted to make peace and still accept me, I would probably take it," he answered.
"But my father is only here because he wants me to save his life so he can go back to his real family," sulked Asher.
"But your dad came to make peace with you."
"He would have found a reason to get on that plane if you were a car mechanic," reassured Jerome. "He came to make peace with you, not a miracle cure," he reminded Jerome, calming down and gently placing his hands on Asher's shoulders. "But, it is up to you, though."
After Asher's outburst and the uncomfortableness of watching family drama, everyone in the room decided that it was best if they all just went home. However, tension between Alex and Morgan about the job interview was still going on, given the silence between each other on the ride home.
"Sorry, I was projecting and I overreacted," sighed Alex sweetly, finally deciding to say a word to his girlfriend. "An interview is just an interview."
Morgan bravely exhaled, remembering the euphoria of being offered the position. "They offered me the job."
Alex was still soundless, but this could still mean that she wasn't taking the job. "And what did you say?"
"I told them that I'll have to think about it."
"Okay," nodded Alex as he flipped on the turn signal, feeling a bit of relief and secretly hoping she wouldn't take the job. "Take as much time as you need. No pressure."
After the awkward ending of Shabbos between Asher and his parents, Shaun (feeling a bit sad for Asher) and Lea immediately went to her parents' luxury five-star hotel to pick up Violet, who had already gone to sleep, even sleeping for the entire car ride and only stirring and waking up and fussing when being physically picked up.
As she was being placed in her crib, her eyes were still fluttering, indicating that she was tired and didn't want to be any further disturbed; only wanting to be in dreamland.
"Goodnight, sweetie," whispered Lea as she kissed her daughter on the forehead (Shaun standing beside her while also giving Violet a kiss goodnight) before gently settling her down in her crib. "We have a big day tomorrow. You, me, and Daddy."
The couple to be left the room and then settled into their own bed, switching off their bedside lamps, making sure the baby monitor was on and that Violet was still asleep, and then facing each other, excited about their big, important day tomorrow.
"Tomorrow is the day!" Lea chirped quietly, scooting closer towards Shaun.
"Yes, it is!" Shaun exhaled ecstatically before leaning in to give Lea a kiss. "We're going to be husband and wife tomorrow."
It was officially April 20th, the day of Shaun and Lea's wedding. Sophie had arrived early with her crew to set up the wedding as she was still serving as the wedding photographer and videographer. Dr. Glassman, Pam, and Mike were helping with the wedding set-up as well while Donnie and Raul were babysitting Violet, taking her to the Santa Cruz Main Beach.
Lea and Shaun even received messages from Ms. Kenyana, telling them that Ms. Sarah, Mrs. Natalie, Mrs. Valencia, Ms. Allie, and Mrs. Carol – the entire team infant teachers of both the younger and older infants (a.k.a. Violet's teachers) - had wished them to have a happy wedding. Also, she, Ms. Michele, Mrs. Monica, and Ms. Jodie (the daycare's management team) had already gotten them a wedding gift of a whole month tuition discount and a chocolate cake last week. In fact, he and Lea were going to give each of the infant teachers teacher appreciation gifts next month, putting much effort into them. On an unrelated note, Violet was going to be moving up to the older infant side with Mrs. Valencia and Ms. Allie next month.
"You have been acting differently," observed Shaun as he, Claire, and Asher were sitting at the table in the residents' lounge. "Is it because you think it will make your parents like you more if you act more…more..." Shaun struggled to get the words out.
"Straight?" Asher finished.
"Mm-hm," nodded Shaun.
"I think they'd actually like me more if I was actually straight," groused Asher as he thought about the advice Jerome had given him about his father just wanting peace. "I mean, I know both you and Claire had shitty parents, but mine were 'good' parents by what a good parent is supposed to do, spend time with their children and not physically hurt them."
"Yeah, my parents may have loved me, but they were neglectful," rebutted Claire, who was scrolling through the tablet.
"My parents didn't accept me. They didn't even love me," lamented Shaun. "My parents would have liked me better if I wasn't autistic. And your dad is not like my dad. Lea and I would never let that bastard near Violet." Shaun repeated some words Lea had said about Ethan. "Your dad came to see you. I went to see my dad and he just told me how much he hated me on his death bed. He was a jackass."
Shaun's parents were involved in his and his brother's life, but they didn't love and accept him. Claire's parents loved and accepted her, but they were barely involved in her life. Asher's parents were involved in his life and they loved him, but they didn't accept just one thing about him.
All three of their father's had cancer, and Asher opined that both Claire and Shaun's dads got what they deserved after their diagnoses. Miles wanted to make amends and was now in remission and in good health, repairing his relationship with his daughter and accepting his wrongs. Ethan spewed hateful words hours before his death and his widow was now deservingly estranged from their only living son and his family.
"I mean, all three of us had different parents and I guess if Shaun and I had to choose between my parents, his parents, and your parents, we would have preferred your parents," shared Claire as she handed the tablet off to Shaun for him to examine, to which Asher just responded with a death glare at her. "But still, you don't have to cater to your parents wants. It's your decision. Children don't owe their parents anything regardless of whether they were good parents or bad parents."
"The effusion fluid is re-accumulating faster than we can drain it," blurted Shaun, handing Claire the tablet for her to perceive and examine.
"The tumor is like a faucet," noted Claire as she observed closely.
"We can't turn it off. It's spraying cancer water everywhere," exhaled Asher.
"That is an interesting simile," pondered Shaun as he thought of something - a chest tube to drain the fluid. "We can't turn it off, but we can give it nowhere to go."
Asher eventually decided to talk to his mother about his father's wish to die with dignity when he caught her quietly praying in the hospital chapel in the left pews. He realized that it was really only Miriam who wanted a miraculous cure while Yosel was ready to accept his fate...and it was more of his decision to come to the other side of the country and make amends. In hindsight, as he remembered, it was mostly his mother who had so much outrage when Asher came out.
"Is this where Dr. Murphy is getting married?" Miriam asked curiously once she noticed her son with her peripheral vision.
"No, they're getting married on the hospital rooftop," replied Asher, taking a seat in the pews on the other side of the aisle. "It may be Saint Bonaventure, but this is not a Catholic hospital. This may be San Jose, but Sam Liccardo does not have the city under strict Catholic rule, and neither did the previous mayors."
Miriam didn't say anything. Instead, she just stared off into space at the podium, where most places of worship would have had something like a cross, a crucifix, stars of David, a crescent and star, or a Buddha statue. But since this was a secular hospital, there was no single symbol or statue representing one religion.
"Abba wants to die," justified Asher, getting to the topic of his father.
"He's scared," objected Miriam.
"I-I think he's at peace. He wants to go home and be with God," consoled Asher, getting teary-eyed. "You should let him. It's best if he dies with dignity instead of being put through a lot of pain."
"You want me to take moral advice from you?" Miriam hissed bitterly. "You gave that up when…"
Don't you dare start! He thought, looking at his mother with slight vitriol.
"I lost my morality when I lost my religion and my never-was-there straightness?" Asher took clear offense at that, scoffing.
"Without God, there can be no objective…" Miriam stood up from the pews and continued to speak harsh words.
"My compassion? My decency?" Asher chastised, breathing heavily and getting irate as he turned his head towards his mother. "You don't really believe that."
Miriam, instead of answering, just left the pews, stomped up the aisle, and made her way towards the chapel's exit.
"Samuel 1 31:4," iterated Asher as he sprung out of the pews, which caught Miriam's attention (as it was a passage from the Torah) and stopped her from walking away and then turn around to face him. "'When Saul saw himself losing to the Philistines, he threw himself on his own sword to avoid being captured'," he quoted.
"Your father is not facing torture," she demurred with animosity, throwing her arms up. "He's with his family. He's..."
"He is the one suffering! He gets to decide!" Asher shouted with mercy. "We need to honor his last wishes!"
"It's pikuach nefesh! You do not stand by while your friend bleeds!" Miriam berated, her voice breaking as she pointed her finger as if she was scolding him as her child again. "This is not your friend! This is your father! This is suicide!"
"You know there's a difference between actively taking a life and passively letting it go!" Asher contended, approaching his mother closer.
"And you know that doesn't let us simply give up. The principle..."
Asher scoffed, not in any mood for his mother's religious lectures. "If you cared about principle, you wouldn't put a timer on the lights for Shabbos. If you can find a way to justify this, you can justify this!" He yelled, slamming his fist into his palm with strength and emphasis. "But you don't want to! You don't care about what the Torah says!"
Miriam breathed sharply and then turned around, not wanting to hear anymore from her oldest son.
Okay, using religion to reason with her didn't work, pondered Asher with vexation. But maybe using personal reasons can, I guess.
"People are curious about my life, my old life. At least that's what I thought. They were shocked that I've never seen Shrek or SpongeBob or The Simpsons," Asher brought up, his voice breaking into sobs and remembering all the diversities he came across for almost the very first time when he started college, especially all of the different religions and finding his elective philosophy class to be the most interesting.
Sadly, even though he knew he wasn't really alone, he felt like the only 28-year-old in 2022 that hadn't seen some movies or TV shows that were considered classics by his generation. He saw Shrek and Shrek 2 for the first time on the small screen when he was 22 when his boyfriend at the time made him watch them. The only "shrek" he grew up with was the Yiddish word for fright, a trivia fact he often liked to tell his friends. He never saw one episode of SpongeBob until Jerome recommended they watch some of the first season together. And he never saw one episode of The Simpsons until like six months ago.
"They ask if I learned Western history in school, if I went to public school, if I ever saw a TV, talked to girls, if my parents had an arranged marriage," Asher went on. "They're curious and kind of...appalled by it all. And the truth is...a lot of it appalls me. A lot of it is embarrassing for me. But...the one thing I push back against, the one thing I will always defend...is your marriage."
Asher let his tears fall.
"I always dreamed of finding someone to love me the way you two love each other," he sobbed. "Mom, you don't want him to die because you love him. That's the only reason."
Miriam turned around calmly, sighing and sniffling, as if she was honored by what her son had just told her.
"It's a very good reason," solaced Asher, stepping closer and grabbing Miriam's hand. "You don't want the pain of losing him, but do you love him enough to take away his pain? To make that pain yours?"
Miriam thought about what her eldest son told her for a minute as Asher anticipated a response. She just looked up at him and nodded defeatedly.
Meanwhile, in the break room, Mateo and Audrey were having lunch together and talking to each other about things such as Dalisay, their patients, and Mateo's luck with his job interview.
"So, have you heard back yet, Teo?" Audrey queried, sipping her tea.
Mateo sighed, poking his food around with his fork. "Not yet, guapa."
Audrey nodded and raised her eyebrow at him, subtly reminding him that she specifically asked him not to call her that at work.
"I know, I know," he ribbed. "But we're going to be ex-colegas soon and we're back together now. So, that deal is off."
"Fine," Audrey chuckled joyfully as the two of them noticed Dalisay walk in with a bouquet of purple chrysanthemums and two tickets to something.
Still trying to get his sorry ass back to her, thought Mateo, shaking his head.
"Are those from him?" Audrey asked, even though she was pretty sure that the answer was yes.
"I'm finding them a good home," Dalisay crowed with pride, stepping on the pedal of the trash can and then discarded the flowers into the garbage. "He even gave me a box of chocolates, but I gave them to a Nurse Farrar. He also forgot that my allergies are always at their worst during the spring, so it was a terrible idea for him to wow me with mums."
Audrey and Mateo nodded, feeling happy for their friend.
I'm proud of you! Audrey wanted to say. Shaun and Lea were much more considerate than Owen about the allergies and the comfort of their wedding guests, and it was the reason Lea was having a bouquet of roses.
"Jerk," muttered Mateo, taking a sip of his cappuccino.
"And I found an apartment," Dalisay shared gladly. "I'll be out of your hair in no time."
"Wow," remarked Audrey, who was in no hurry to rush Dalisay out the door. "You only just started calling me Audrey."
"Yes, Dr. Lim," chuckled Dalisay. "You will have your place to yourself within a week."
"That's great," confided Audrey as Dalisay smiled back. "But there is no deadline."
Suddenly, Mateo's phone started vibrating. He pulled it out and then noticed that it was a call he was expecting. Audrey could tell who it was based on Mateo's ecstatic expression.
It was definitely San Jose General.
"I better take this," he declared, getting up from his seat and abandoning his lunch.
"Good luck," simpered Audrey, inviting him in for a kiss. He leaned in and then pecked her before disappearing into the hallway.
As soon as Mateo was gone into the hall, Audrey decided to share a personal anecdote with Dalisay, who was now sitting across from Audrey in the chair Mateo had previously occupied, his lasagna still in front of her.
"I remember, my sophomore year of college, my boyfriend dumped me. He said it was the honorable thing to do because he was sleeping with my roommate," Audrey breathed deeply as Dalisay looked at Audrey with amusement, feeling like she was listening to the script of some soap opera.
"It wrecked me," continued Audrey. "Three weeks later, I thought, 'Wow, I am so over that jerk.' Three months after that, I thought, 'Wow, I can't believe I thought I was okay after three weeks. But now I'm doing okay. I'm going to be fine, back up on my feet.' It took a year. I had similar feelings when I got divorced. Your situation is obviously different. And you're more mature, wiser. So maybe you are ready. But on the other hand...I get used to things, and right now, I've gotten used to your world-class breakfasts," chuckled Audrey. "Maybe you could give me a few more weeks? Mateo surely wouldn't mind."
"I'd be honored to do you that favor," beamed Dalisay. "Also, the apartment I rented is too far away and only has one bedroom. That wasn't what I was looking for."
Asher's parents eventually discussed what Yosel wanted and eventually agreed to not do the surgery and go back home to New York City to let him die in peace surrounded by the rest of his children. Eventually, by 6:00 in the evening, Yosel had recovered enough to be discharged from the hospital so he and Miriam could finally say their goodbyes to Asher, with Jerome joining them.
Standing outside the hospital, Miriam lovingly cupped his face into her hands and ran her fingers through his dark brown hair. "You need a haircut," she commented.
Don't listen to her. You really don't, thought Jerome, who scoffed playfully.
Asher chuckled as he felt the tears leave his eyes before meeting his gaze with his father, who walked towards him, stretching his arms out a little bit, signaling that he wanted a hug.
Asher immediately accepted his father's embrace, allowing Yosel to pull him in for one. "I love you, son," Yosel expressed.
"Ikh hab dikh lib tate," Asher wept as his voice broke, finally speaking Yiddish for the first time since he left home.
Yosel patted his back as they parted before he reached his hand out to Jerome, to which Jerome shook firmly. "Thank you for everything, Jerome. And we send our thanks to Dr. Murphy, Dr. Browne, Dr. Allen, and Dr. Andrews, too."
"Have fun at your friend's wedding," wished Miriam as she gently patted Jerome and Asher's shoulders.
"And we wish you both a lifetime of happiness," blessed Yosel before he and his wife turned around to walk away in sorrow; Jerome gently lanking his arm around Asher as they watched.
He may not have been close with his family anymore, but he was happy that he was finally at peace with his parents and was able to get some closure. He had a new life now, and much more to look forward to.
"Come on, let's go," smiled Jerome. "The wedding is in half an hour. We should get ready."
The bride and groom were getting ready in separate rooms.
Shaun and Dr. Glassman were getting themselves ready in an unoccupied patient room while Lea's parents were getting her ready in Lea's office; Violet and Kellan being with them.
While Shaun already had his tux and his white shirt on, he was having trouble getting the bowtie on, which was why Glassman was helping him, but he seemed to be struggling as well. Before he could finish, Aaron remembered something.
"I got you something," announced Aaron, picking up the box off from the hospital bed. Shaun could hear the clanking of metal in there.
"I would assume so. You are invited to a wedding. It would be rude not to," remarked Shaun. "Management at Violet's daycare got us a gift even though they weren't invited."
"That was nice of them. And, yes, it would be rude not to," insisted Aaron, opening the box and then presenting some golden metal rings to Shaun, pulling one out one at a time to show him. "These were supposed to be for Maddie and her future spouse. I'm glad you and Lea will be wearing them both. It gives me an excuse not to pawn them," joked Aaron before getting serious again. "If Violet ever gets married, you can give these to her," he proffered before putting the rings back in the box and then trying to finish tying Shaun's tie.
Shaun was personally touched by this. He and Lea agreed that they didn't need any wedding bands (despite her nonna's protests), but to be given them by Glassman felt so different because it made Shaun think about fatherhood.
His biological father was terrible, and Glassman made up for all that by being a good surrogate father to him. Now, Shaun was a father to his own child.
"Was your father a good father?" Shaun asked inquisitively.
Aaron was stunned by Shaun's question. He already asked that question when Lea was pregnant. His answer was just a simple, "He was average, I guess, and he did his best, and he made mistakes. But I can say that, yes, he was a good father. Shaun continued to prod, but Aaron just told him that there was no such thing as a perfect parent.
However, Aaron still thought about his own father. A veteran of World War II and a car salesman, Ewan Glassman was pretty strict and authoritarian with his three sons, but he clearly loved his children and tried to find time with them and be involved in their lives despite him being kind of a hard ass. He often didn't talk about his feelings because he thought it wasn't "manly". Aaron figured that he must have still been dealing with trauma from the war.
"He did his best," replied Aaron.
"Was he good?"
"I don't know, Shaun. I-I-I loved him, I guess. Haven't we already talked about this?"
"Okay, but was he good?" Shaun continued to pry.
"Shaun, I'm clearly trying to avoid this question. My father is not around to defend himself. You know?"
Shaun was silent for a bit and then thought back to that memory of them fishing. When Glassman had permanently taken him in after so many failed placements in the foster homes, he had taken him to do many things that parents would do with their children. Shaun hated fishing, but it turned out to be a good memory because at that moment, he finally felt like he had a father that cared about him.
And today, he considered that man as Violet's grandfather.
"My father is a very good father," Shaun proclaimed as Glassman continued to fiddle with Shaun's bowtie.
Aaron was confused when he heard that statement because the first person he thought of was Ethan Murphy, a man that Shaun resented and clearly stated, along with Lea, that they would never want him near their daughter if he was still alive.
"Is?" Aaron questioned.
"I love you, Dr. Glassman," said Shaun, looking Aaron straight in the eyes as he continued to find no luck with getting the bowtie tied together. "You're a good grandfather."
As soon as Shaun said the last part, Aaron then realized that Shaun was not referring to Ethan, but to him, to which he felt honored.
"I love you, too, Shaun," Aaron said back, undoing the useless tie. "Maybe we should go with the clip-on."
Meantime in Lea's office, her parents were helping her get ready to walk her down the aisle while Kellan was just sitting in her desk chair, bopping Violet in his arms and letting her stand on his thighs and grab his fingers, even letting her teethe on them.
As per the original plan, it was Kellan who was going to be carrying Violet down the aisle in a wagon, yet Danilo wouldn't be throwing petals down the aisle since he was safe with his dad.
As for Lea, it was hard for her to believe it. She and Shaun were finally getting married. Sure, they already had a child together, which was a shock on its own, and she had also been married before, but getting married to Shaun felt so surreal since they never thought they would eventually end up as husband and wife when she knocked on his door and asked him to borrow batteries.
While Pam was helping her daughter zip her dress up and Mike was finding a place on the bouquet for the rosary (since Lea didn't want to wear it around her neck), Lea heard her phone vibrating on her desk.
"Can one of you see what it says?" She requested, fiddling with her hands.
Kellan, with Violet in his arms, peered over and then answered. "It's from Shaun. He said that you have wedding bands now. Dr. Glassman is giving his family heirloom to both of you."
Lea smiled nervously, grateful to Glassy that he was giving them his family heirloom that he would have given Maddie. He definitely was Violet's grandfather and Shaun's father.
"Oh, that's wonderful," gushed Pam as she finished getting the dress on her daughter and then ran her fingers through her curls; Violet could be heard cooing. "And Lea, I think you'd look beautiful in a veil…or at least a flower crown. I even offered to let you wear my veil. Your nonna wore it, too."
Okay, maybe elopement wouldn't have been a bad idea, wondered Lea.
"Mom, for the hundredth time, I don't need a veil," sighed Lea, sounding irritated, remembering that she wore that veil at her first wedding. "I already wore that veil, anyway."
Kellan wanted to throw in a joke and say "Is it because you're not a virgin", but figured that it wouldn't be an appropriate thing to say to his dad's co-worker's soon-to-be-wife in front of her parents.
"Yeah, but, it wasn't a wedding that lasted, and you and Shaun already have a child you can give the veil to when she gets married," Mike, who was sitting in another chair, proposed, sounding like he was joking.
"Dad, please, it's too early to be thinking about that," dreaded Lea as she eyed her little girl, still a precious little baby, being bounced in Kellan's lap. She really wasn't ready to imagine Violet as a full grown 30-year-old yet.
"Sorry," sighed Mike, understanding what his daughter meant, trying to hide his tears. "And you really don't have to wear a veil if you don't want to, Lulu. It's your wedding, but your nonna is probably going to be sad."
"Well, sucks for her, considering Shaun also saw the bride before the wedding," snickered Lea, instantly regretting it. "Sorry."
The thing was, Shaun and Lea already had their wedding photos taken that involved Violet in the picture a few minutes ago. They wanted to get that out of the way.
"Don't worry about it," reassured Pam as she wrapped her arm around her daughter. "She'll get over it. You're getting married in a hospital in the middle of a Wednesday and you're being wedded by a doctor instead of the hospital chaplain, which isn't an ideal wedding. But, what matters is that this is a happy day for you and Shaun."
Lea rolled her eyes.
"Oh, please. You look beautiful," complimented Mike. "And don't even listen to weddingquest either."
"It's weddiquette, Dad," groaned Lea before letting herself say a little joke with other superstitions her elderly relatives still believed. Plus, most of the guests that were now at Shaun and Lea's wedding wouldn't really have wanted to sit through a long ceremony full of Catholic prayers. "And I guess Nonna would be happy that I'm not wearing any gold, so that's less bad luck."
"Whatever," scoffed Mike playfully. "But tell Shaun not to take weddiquette so seriously."
The sweet family moment was interrupted by Kellan clearing his throat, getting up from the chair and holding Violet in his arms.
"It's time," he declared, placing Violet in the wagon with a sign that read, "Daddy, here comes Mommy." "Shaun is already at the end of the aisle. Off we go."
"Okay," Pam sniffed, trying not to cry. "Let's go."
Shaun, breathing heavily, stood at the end of the altar, which was a shade with lights strung around it, with Dr. Glassman, Dr. Andrews, and Claire (the maid of honor), fiddling with his thumbs as he stared back at Kellan, Violet, Lea, Pam, and Mike – who were on the very other end, right across from him.
Sophie was standing on one end of the aisle, getting ready to take pictures.
Rows and rows of people sat between them – Asher, Jerome, Jordan, Lim, Rendón, Park, Morgan, Ravi, Hawks, Villanueva, JL, Aoki, Jessica, Jared, Celez, Ezra, Donnie, Raul, both of Lea's grandmothers, a few other doctors and nurses, some of Lea's other colleagues, orderlies, security, etc. Some of them even brought their spouses or their children.
Kellan immediately started pulling Violet in her wagon down the aisle; the little girl – definitely looking like a baby-sized doll – squealing giggly as she reached her arms out towards her father. Everyone was awed at that and melted at it.
Once Kellan got to the end of the row of chairs, he parked the wagon, lifted Violet out and then put her in Donnie's arms before finding a seat next to Alex and Morgan.
Soon after, Lea looped one arm through her father's on one side, and her mother's on the other (at her last wedding, it was just her father who walked down the aisle) while tightly clutching the rosary and bouquet of roses in the crook of her arm.
Everyone stood up, and then the three of them made their way to the altar. Lea accepted kisses on her cheek from both of her parents as they gave her away to Shaun. Both of her parents were smiling at Shaun as they sat down in the front row.
Everyone then seated themselves down as Andrews instructed, "Please be seated."
Shaun and Lea silently looked at each other, face to face, excited yet nervous considering that they were in front of an audience.
"I've been lucky enough to be given the training to save lives. I'm not really a priest, and I'm not even a Catholic like these two once were," Andrews jested apprehensively, hoping he didn't offend any of Lea's relatives. "But I've witnessed many wedding offications by my father as a child and I got trained for it quickly, and I'm honored to do this for a couple of my employees. And I don't think I've ever felt luckier than I do right now. And if anyone else at St. Bonaventure wants me to officiate for them, I'll be happy to."
Andrews finished his opening statement and paused for a few seconds before continuing again.
"Shaun Robert Murphy, do you take Lea Abigail Dilallo..."
"I do," proclaimed Shaun contentedly and eagerly as he just couldn't wait to marry Lea, not letting Andrews finish, as sounds of laughter (and squeals from Violet) echoed the rooftop. Shaun then realized his mistake. "Oh," he chuckled nervously.
"To have and to hold, to honor, to treasure, to be by her side in sorrow and in joy, through good times and the bad, and to love and cherish her always?"
"I do," confirmed Shaun, to which Lea nodded happily.
"Lea Abigail Dilallo, do you take Shaun Robert Murphy, to have and to hold, to honor, to treasure, to stand by his side in sorrow and in joy, through the good times and the bad, and love and cherish him always?" Andrews repeated.
Lea exhaled before she said her part with emphasis. "Oh, yeah, I do."
"Uh, the rings," Andrews directed at Glassman and Claire, who each had one ring in hand, to give to Shaun and Lea.
The best man and the maid of honor then exchanged to rings to the couple, Glassman even touching Shaun's shoulder after he did it.
Shaun and Lea chuckled nervously as they slid the rings on their ring fingers, hearing Violet coo as they did it and looking back at their daughter in her uncle's lap.
"Then by the power vested in me by the State of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife," proclaimed Andrews proudly, as Lea chuckled in happiness followed by applause from everyone. "You may kiss the bride and you may kiss the groom."
Without hesitation, Shaun and Lea immediately kissed each other, hearing the echoes of cheers, applause, and whoops from the audience with squeals from their daughter.
Right after the ceremony was the reception and the speeches while everyone ate catered cafeteria food by the hospital orderlies and cooks and a wedding cake (well, just three plain cakes actually) of chocolate, red velvet, and vanilla. It wasn't ideal wedding food or even an ideal wedding cake, but the most important thing was that the guests were given something to eat.
Shaun and Lea stood together on the left at the front of the altar while Pam, Mike, Claire, and Dr. Glassman all stood across from them as they were the only four people who were giving premediated speeches they had revised and edited repeatedly.
As for Violet, who started to fuss because she was hungry and tired (It was almost 7:00 pm after all; after the last speech, Pam and Mike were going to leave and take her to their hotel so Shaun and Lea, the couple of the hour, could have some post-wedding fun), just sat in her Uncle Donnie's arms as he fed her the 7:00 pm bottle while everyone listened to the speeches.
First, Mike soberly delivered his father-of-the-bride speech with a glass of champagne in his hand.
"Hello, I'm Mike Dilallo, the father of the woman of the hour," he introduced nervously as he raised his glass. "Don't worry, I'm not drunk. I'm completely sober. Anyway, I'll raise my glass."
Everyone raised their glasses and chuckled at the father-of-the-bride's joke.
"As I look at my daughter, I can't help but reflect on all the years I was lucky enough to watch her grow and become the woman she is today. I have watched her go through school, college, jobs, boyfriends, break-ups, husbands…"
Lea blushed a little at the mention of the last word, yet also grateful that her father didn't give a long diatribe about her ex-husband and the rest of her exes.
"And parenthood with the man she would end up marrying," continued Mike. "And now I know that it was all worth it. Today, as I watch her marry a wonderful man in what I guess I have to say an odd choice of wedding venue, I'm filled with pride and am confident that she and Shaun are about to embark on a beautiful journey filled with love and happiness that can only come as husband and wife. May the two of you always treat each other with love, compassion, and kindness."
Lea and Shaun smiled back at Mike.
"And Shaun, I would like to officially welcome you into our family. I ask you all to join me today in congratulating Lea and Shaun…and Violet, too…and wishing them all the best for a long and happy life together. No matter what the challenges," finished Mike before throwing in one final touch that he didn't write down and raising his glass. "Trust me. I've been married for 42 years. To Lea and Shaun!"
Everyone clapped as Mike put his glass down and took a sip from it, allowing his wife to give her mother-of-the-bride speech.
"I'm Pam, Lea's mother. Lea, today is your wedding day. Well, your second wedding day actually," teased Pam, which was followed by another blushing smile from Lea, who really didn't want another mention of Ben, her ex-husband. "But this one feels much more special."
Pam turned her eyes away from her daughter and then met her eyes with Shaun's. "Shaun, I would like to welcome you into the Dilallo family. Well, he's already been welcome since Violet was born, but Mike and I would now like to officially welcome our son-in-law. Shaun, you are a very nice, young man that I have grown to know and love. And it all started with an awkward dinner that you suggested we treat like hemorrhoid surgery."
All of the guests guffawed at the mention of hemorrhoid surgery while also wondering what that had to do with Shaun and Lea's marriage.
"When Lea told me that she had a new boyfriend, I told Mike, 'Uh, oh. I wonder how long this will last. He'll be gone in two months. It's probably another drummer'," she sighed facetiously, followed by suppressed laughs from everyone else, especially Morgan, who grinned at Lea at Pam's mention. "But when we heard what he was like, and that Lea had known him for a couple years by now, and when I met him and got to know him, I told Mike, 'I hope they don't break up. I hope she ends up marrying this one.'"
The guests carried on with their boisterous laughter. And yes, Pam and Mike did have their doubts about Lea and Shaun's relationship at first for a while given Lea's previous relationships and her history of reckless behavior and hot-headedness (even when they announced the pregnancy), but they warmed up to him faster than Lea thought they would.
"And then, on the day that our first grandchild was born, my prediction was right," exulted Pam before she turned back to face Lea again, this time looking solemn and apologetic. "Lea, I'm going to take this opportunity to apologize for being so critical of your previous relationships, even though all those other guys didn't really deserve you."
Thank you, but enough with my exes already, thought Lea as she playfully shook her head and smiled nervously.
"I also apologize for not trusting you in this challenging relationship, but it's a relationship that is meant to last a lifetime," resounded Pam. "You're a smart, strong woman and it's been an honor to watch you grow into a mother and now a wife."
"Thank you," giggled Lea softly, blinking back tears as she raised her glass.
"Congratulations to Lea and Shaun," concluded Pam before deciding to give a throwback to the dinner where she and Mike first met Shaun, elevating her glass up high. "To hemorrhoid surgery!"
"To hemorrhoid surgery," repeated Shaun before he noticed that everyone else minus Mike, Lea, and Sophie were looking confused and befuddled, totally unaware of the context of the last sentence of Pam's speech. He and Lea were going to need to explain this later.
The awkward silence was broken when Claire clinked her glass, announcing that she was ready to give her maid-of-honor speech.
"Hi, I'm Dr. Claire Browne…in case some of you don't know my name. I have worked with Shaun for five years," she chuckled nervously before delivering her short, brief speech. "When I first met both Shaun – well, just Shaun, actually. I didn't meet Lea until a year later when she came back from Hershey."
The guests copied Claire's laughs.
"When I first met them, they were nothing but neighbors who exchanged batteries, ate each other's apples, and then later played hooky," reminisced Claire joyously. "And then they became best friends, then roommates, then boyfriend and girlfriend, and then parents…and now, spouses for life. Anyway, to Shaun and Lea. I wish you a lifetime of love and happiness."
And then finally, Dr. Glassman gave his best man toast.
"Good evening, everyone," he greeted. "I'm the best man, and the father-of-the-groom, I guess."
Glassman chuckled nervously before clearing his throat and continuing his speech.
"16 years ago, a young man walked into my clinic with his brother, cradling a dead rabbit in his arms. He was very young and very sweet, and I thought totally lost," chuckled Glassman while also tearing up at that sad memory, considering that Shaun's abusive biological father killed the poor rabbit. "And here we are, some many years later, and I realize...I was wrong. He was never lost. He always knew who he was. He always knew what he wanted. He always knew exactly what mattered. And he found it. Someone else I may have underestimated just a tad."
Lea smiled at Dr. Glassman, feeling esteemed about how much Glassy had warmed up to her since she became pregnant with Violet.
"You two deserve each other. You deserve love," praised Glassman. "And you deserve all the happiness in the world. To Shaun and Lea."
"To Shaun and Lea!" Everyone cheered, raising and clinking their glasses and then taking sips from them as the in-laws welcomed their new in-laws into the family.
Glassman then walked over to hug Lea and give her a kiss while Shaun just awkwardly accepted the hugs and handshakes from Pam and Mike.
Nurse Villanueva then left for the break room to get more glasses.
A few minutes after the speeches, everyone entered the dance floor and began to dance, drink, and eat. Couples besides Shaun and Lea were slow dancing together – Pam and Mike, Jerome and Asher, Donnie and Raul, Lim and Mateo, Park and Morgan, Claire and Ravi. Violet was falling asleep in Dr. Glassman's arms as he watched everyone dance.
"So, how did it go?" Audrey asked Mateo as they waltzed slowly.
"They offered me the job," chuckled Mateo joyfully. "They want to hire me."
Audrey's mouth dropped open, feeling so exhilarated for Mateo. "That's great. Congratulations Chief Rendón," she purred.
"Do you think we can…" Mateo hesitated to finish his sentence, looking away from Audrey, wondering if it was too soon to ask.
"Do you think we can what?" Audrey's smile slightly faded, hoping this wasn't him calling things off. "Just say it already."
"Can we move in together?"
Audrey was shocked by Mateo's offer. It all felt so sudden and so soon…a bit too soon, actually. Of course, she loved Mateo and she wanted to have a future with him. But she needed more time.
"I'll need to think about it, though," she replied, letting Mateo embrace her tightly. "Let's just enjoy this night."
"I understand," whispered Mateo, giving Audrey a kiss on the lips.
On another area of the dance floor, Morgan and Alex's conversation about Morgan's job offer gave a much more somber tone than a jovial one like Audrey and Mateo's
"I want the job," admitted Morgan remorsefully, finally giving Alex an answer.
Alex just looked at her long and hard, not liking what he just heard, but was willing to accept it as they continued to dance, Morgan leaning her head into his chest. "I understand."
As the reception progressed and it was 7:11, things started to die down quickly due to people (or their kids) getting tired. In fact, Celez left with Ezra and Pam and Mike went back to their hotel room, taking Violet and the diaper bag with them so she could get the sleep she needed, while also spending more time with her maternal grandparents. Lea's grandmothers had left as well.
However, what really worried crept into Audrey's mind was that it had been almost 10 minutes since Dalisay left to go get more glasses and she still wasn't back yet, which was really starting to worry her.
So, she decided to go see what was taking Dalisay so long. However, she also needed to be careful as well. For all she knew, she could have been hurt by her ex-boyfriend.
The closer Audrey got to the break room, she noticed that the lights were oddly off. Once she entered the break room, she noticed something slippery on the floor, noticing that it was blood, which made her start to draw terrifying conclusions.
When she looked down, she saw the most horrifying sight.
It was Dalisay, barely conscious and bleeding out on the linoleum floor; puddles of blood surrounding her and covering her pink formal dress. She had stab wounds to her neck and arms. From the looks of it, she obviously tried to fight back against her attacker.
"Dalisay!" Audrey exclaimed, leaning over to check her friend's vitals. "Can you hear me?"
Dalisay didn't respond. Instead, she gasped for air.
"I've got you," comforted Audrey, taking Dalisay's hand into her own before calling for help in a panic. "Code blue! I need a cart!"
"He's here," whispered Dalisay softly and weakly.
"Please don't talk," urged Lim.
"He's here," repeated Dalisay.
"What? Who's here?" Audrey questioned crucially, although she could probably guess correctly.
"Owen," replied Dalisay, gasping.
Audrey immediately stood up and looked around, and then out of the blue, a man in a hat dressed as a delivery man appeared. Before Audrey could react to defend herself, she felt like she had been punched in the gut twice, later realizing he had stabbed her as she slowly slid to the floor and gasped.
She just lay there as she watched Owen frantically leave the break room. She wanted to wait until he was gone to call for help.
To be continued…
AN: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter after a big hiatus, but the good news is that I only have two more to go. One rewrite of the next episode and one epilogue chapter.