Steve stared at Jason with a blankness in his eyes that he had unfortunately gotten used to the past few years. Turning away from his son, he glanced at Mike. "He a friend of yours?"
Quinn winced, even though she too was used to this. Mike was coping better than any of them but he had broken down quite a few times himself. "Yeah, sure. He wants to join the band," he teased.
Quinn smirked and Jason rolled his eyes. "Thanks," he muttered under his breath.
"No problem." Mike winked at him before turning his attention back to Steve.
"And this pretty lady?" Steve questioned, briefly looking up at Quinn.
"This pretty lady is my wife, Quinn," Jason responded, wrapping an arm around her.
"I'm going to join the band too." Quinn wanted to ease the tension vibrating off Jason in waves but as suspected, it didn't seem to help.
Steve sized him up then shrugged. "Eh, I don't see it. Do I know you from somewhere?"
And something inside Jason finally snapped. "I have to go," he muttered, his voice cracking. He turned and fled the room.
"I'll stay here with Steve. Go," Mike urged.
Quinn didn't have to be told twice (or once, really). She turned and went after Jason, fortunately finding him a few feet away from the nurse's station. They had placed Steve in this nursing home a while ago, once his health started to decline and they could no longer take care of him, even with the help of personal care nurses. Tears were pouring down her husband's face and her heart broke for him. "Hey. You want to go?"
He shook his head. "No. I want to say goodbye to him first, see if he even recognizes me at least a little."
"Oh, Jason, sweetheart."
Unable to stay upright, Jason folded into half and began to sob. She started to cry herself and started rubbing circles on his back in an attempt to soothe him. "Don't leave," he pleaded.
"I'm not going anywhere," she vowed. "You're stuck with me, Jason Bedford."
He wheezed out a laugh, even as his whole body continued to shake with sobs. She pulled him in for a hug and let him cry it out. When Mike spotted them a few minutes later, he immediately made his way to their sides. "There's some recognition in his eyes - are ready to go back in or do you want to leave?"
"I'm fine, Uncle Mike. We're going back in." He pulled himself back up and together then wiped the tears off his face with his sleeve. "Do I look presentable?"
Mike and Quinn exchanged a worried look but both nodded. "Yes, you do," she lied.
Jason narrowed his eyes, not buying it, but he didn't have the energy to call either of them out. "Let's do this then." He plastered a fake smile on his face and followed his wife and father-in-law back to his father's room. "Hey, Dad."
"Jason! When did you get here?" Steve beamed at him, and Jason's heart cracked even further.
"Just now but I can't stay long." The four of them chatted for about fifteen minutes before Steve's eyes started to flutter shut, exhaustion catching up to him.
It had been a bad day for Steve and plenty more were in their future but Jason could get through this with Quinn and Mike's help. Their support meant the world to him, and he knew he needed to lean on them more than he already was. He was going to lose his father soon - the countdown to his inevitable death was an echo in his head - but Jason knew he could bear the brunt of the loss and pain with the two of them, his family, by his side. He'd survive this, although the grief wore on him more and more each day. Quinn, Mike, and Jason (and Steve, in his moments of lucidity) were unstoppable.