Author note:

This one got a little long. I hope it's not too rambling. Drop me a note if you enjoyed.

Thank God to those Men & Women who gave their all in the cause of Freedom. Happy Memorial Day to those of you in the US.

CH 75-Healing

The next hours were like a time warp. Emma wondered how the minutes could be so fast, yet the hours so long. The night seemed endless. She visited her dad and spent the remainder of the time with Clay. While she was going back and forth between their rooms, Vic alternated with her, making sure that one of them was always nearby in case Clay or Jason needed them.

Finally, about midnight. the nurses in the ICU said she would need to wait until morning to see Jason again. Emma peaked into Clay's room intending to sit in the chair by his side all night. She expected to see him sleeping peacefully, but instead his head was tossing back and forth on his pillow and she could hear him mumbling to himself. She hurried to his side and took his hand.

"Clay, honey, it's me…it's Emma. You're fine. I'm here."

As she was leaning over to place a kiss on his forehead, the nurse came in to see what had him so agitated. She addressed Emma.

"His heart rate is all over the place. Was he like this when you got here?"

"Yes. I think, I think he's having a bad dream."

She could only make out bits and pieces of what he was saying. "Ja-NO! Fine…gon-, have t' be."

"Keep talking to him. See if it helps."

"Clay, babe…you're okay. I'm right here, right here next to you."

He stopped his twitching. "Stay…do-, stay w'me. Stay."

"You're fine. I'm fine I'm right here Clay." She smoothed his hair back from his face and kissed him.

His breathing was returning to normal and his heart decelerated. Clay blinked his eyes several times before focusing on Emma.

"Em," he asked as he glanced around the room and saw the nurse hovering near.

"You were having a bad dream. It worried us a little. Are you okay now?"

"Uh…yea, I uh…I'm fine."

"I'm going to leave you two," the nurse said. She laid her hand on Emma's shoulder as she left. "Try to keep him calm and see if you can get him to sleep some more."

Emma nodded and then focused back on Clay.

"Are you sure you're alright? Whatever you were dreaming about seemed to upset you quite a bit."

"I, uh…I'm okay Em." His voice was still a little rusty, so she handed him some water.

"Why don't you try to close your eyes and go back to sleep?"

He wanted to tell her what happened. He had to tell her. But he wanted to have a clear head before they had that discussion.

"Can you, can you come up here next to me?"

She smiled at his request. "I think I can do that." She slipped off her shoes and cuddled next to him. They were both asleep almost instantly. When the nurse poked her head in thirty minutes later to check on Clay, she shook her head. Technically, this was against the rules, but she didn't have the heart to make Emma move. Besides, she could almost bet that her patient would sleep through the rest of the night with her beside him. She grabbed the extra blanket from across the bottom of the bed and laid it over the two of them.

Emma awoke slowly, feeling Clay's fingers move lightly against the skin of her arm. Blinking owlishly, she fought for consciousness.

He whispered to her. "Em…Em, sweetie."

Once she realized where she was, she stretched and rubbed at her eyes. "I'm awake. Are you okay? Do you need something?"

"Shhh. Relax babe. I'm fine."

And he was. Other than the dull throbbing of his head and some aches and pains scattered around his body, he felt 100% better than he had yesterday. The sleep had done him a world of good.

Emma moved to leave his bed, but he tightened his arm around her. She looked up at him quizzically. He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her firmly. He hadn't been in any shape yesterday to greet her. Before she could question him, he offered up an explanation.

"I missed you Baby."

"I missed you too. I'm so happy you're home."

Now she did sit up and slipped off his mattress. She stepped over and locked the door and closed the blinds. Then she proceeded to change into the clean outfit Naima had brought her. When she was dressed, she unlocked the door and re-opened the blinds.

"I'm going to go check on Dad. If you're okay."

"Of course. Please Em, how is he?"

"As of last night, he still wasn't conscious. He has some broken ribs and a fractured arm. But it's the head injury that has everyone concerned. They won't know what's really going on until he wakes up."

She saw him grit his teeth and his nostrils flare as he blinked his lids quickly. She could tell how hard this was for him.

"I'm sorry honey."

"No, don't be sorry Em. It's me who's sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't bring him back safe to you."

"Hey, it's not your fault. I know you and the guys did everything you could."

"But…" he swallowed hard. "It is my fault. I'm the reason he's injured."

Shaking her head in confusion, she answered him. "That can't be true."

"Em…he pushed me out of the way."

"What?"

"We were, we were searching a small settlement. There were a few buildings, so we split up into pairs. Jace and I were clearing a house." His voice was getting strained, so she gave him another drink of water. "It was empty, but when I stepped into the last room to check it, we both heard a click. It was a split second, not even a second…and he…he pushed me aside. Then the whole room exploded. There was stone and dust and smoke everywhere. I landed out in the hall. But Jace, Jace was right in the doorway when that blast went off."

Both of them were crying now. He swiped the back of his hand across his eyes and drew in a shuddering breath before he continued.

"At first I couldn't wake him. And…and the guys couldn't get to us right away." He took her hand and caressed the palm with his thumb. "It should have been me. I'm so sorry Em."

She would not let his take responsibility for this. He was not to blame.

"You didn't do this. Whoever set that bomb did this."

He shook his head in the negative. "But if he hadn't stepped in and…"

"No. You know that Dad would never let anyone on the team be hurt if he could help it. It was his choice."

She was relieved the decision wasn't hers. She could never have chosen between her father and the man she loved.

"But…"

"No. You're home and you're going to be okay. Dad will too." She got up and began to pace back and forth across the room. "His body just needs to rest, and then he'll wake up."

He was amazed by her strength. If she wouldn't give into despair, neither would he. He reached for her hand again and she sat back down beside him.

"He will Em. He will be okay."

She smiled at him and leaned to rest against his solid chest. C lay kissed the top of her head and held her for a few quiet moments.

"Go see him Em. Go and check on him. I'll be fine."

Emma nodded, kissed him quickly and rose to go see her father. As she stepped out of the room, she could see Sonny heading toward her. She stopped to talk with him.

"Did Vic go home?"

"Yep, I been here a coupla hours."

"How's Dad?"

"Yer Grandma's in with him now." She nodded for him to go on. "Not much change."

She tried to cover the quiver in her voice as she answered him. "Clay's awake. You can go on in." giving him a quick hug, she hurried off to check on Jason.

As she approached the ICU, Emma schooled her features and went to wait in the lounge with Mikey for Linda to emerge from their dad's room. She and Mikey talked in low tones. It was mostly him asking questions, and her doing her best to reassure him. Their Grandma was back out of Jason's room soon and Mikey walked back the hallway to see his dad.

"How was he Grandma?"

"The same, I think. They say he's strong, but he just needs to wake up."

"He will. I'm sure of it." Emma reached for her grandmother's hand and squeezed it.

Linda nodded and sniffed away some tears. "Uh, Em, your school called this morning. They know that your dad is home and injured. They were just asking when they should expect you back in class? I told them that we didn't know that it's up in the air. I wasn't sure what else to say."

"Thanks Grandma. I'll need to get in touch with Hannah later today. I'll see if she can pick up my assignments. I hate to fall behind this close to graduation. But Dad and Clay are more important. If I have to go to Summer school…then that's what I'll have to do."

To tell the truth, school had been the last thing on her mind since she got the news. She was really excited about graduating with her friends and being done with High School. She knew there was probably no way she would be able to keep up and take care of Clay and help with her dad too. In her mind, there was no question. They came first. As these thoughts were running through her head, they all heard a voice behind them.

"No. You're not going to put off school and graduation Emmie," Clay stated emphatically from his wheelchair.

Both their heads turned, and they stared at him, surprised by the emotion behind his words. Evidently, Sonny had helped him dress in the lounge pants and t-shirt that were in his bag and had wheeled him down to see Jason. He maneuvered over to her chair and faced her head-on. He gave Sonny a fleeting glance, and the Texan offered to take Linda to the cafeteria for a coffee, leaving them alone.

"Em, I don't want you to miss out on graduation because of me. And Jason wouldn't want you to either."

"But…you both need…."

"We need you to follow your path and finish school so you can be ready to head to college in the fall."

She lowered her head and shook it back and forth. She started to speak, to try and convince him.

"Look at me, please honey." Emma complied and he took her hands in his. "I couldn't live with myself if I caused you not to finish school. And neither could Jace. I know things are going to be tough for a while. But I'm going to be fine. I can help with Jason; I want to help. All the guys will be there for him. You know that. So, please, Em, do whatever you have to do, work it out with school. But promise me I'll be going to your Graduation in a few weeks."

"Alright. I'll talk to school tomorrow and see what I they are willing to do."

Clay reached out and gathered her into his arms, pressing kisses into her hair.

This was the scene Mikey returned to. He was a little confused, and not sure what to do. Clay spoke up and put him at ease.

"Hey Mike-man. It's good to see you. You doin' ok?"

"Yea, yea. I'm okay, I guess. How are you? I know you got hurt too."

"I'll be fine. I've got a hard head, ya know." Clay smiled at the young boy and then continued. "Are you guys okay if I take a turn and go see Jace? I…I need to talk to him."

Both Emma and Mikey nodded their assent and Clay wheeled himself down the hall. He situated himself next to the bed and sat there for a minute, not really sure how to start. His mind flashed back to the moments after the explosion.

Clay regained consciousness. There was a horrible ringing in his ears, and he couldn't see two feet in front of his face for all the smoke and dust. He was laying on his back against the wall in what he thought was the hallway. Shit! What the fuck had happened? He closed his eyes tight, trying to remember. He and Jason were…Jason! He scrambled to his hands and knees searching through the rubble. Where was Jason? He got on comms and gave a sit rep.

"All call signs, this is Bravo 6. Explosion in dwelling. Bravo 1 unaccounted for. Request assistance. Anyone copy?"

He kept searching until he found Jason farther down the hall, laying under part of the interior wall. He clawed at the stones, moving them off Jason's torso.

"Jace! Jace! Talk to me man!" Clay's head was spinning, and he felt nauseous. He wasn't sure if it was from the explosion, or the sight of his brother lying unconscious and unresponsive.

"Fuck! All call signs. Bravo 1 down. Repeat Bravo 1 down. Do you copy?"

"We copy Six. On our way to you now." Clay heard Ray reply.

He finally heard Jason moaning and coughing on the dust that still hung thick in the air. His hand groped for Clay's as he gagged and gasped for air. Clay wanted to sit him up, but he wasn't sure if he should move him.

"Team's on their way. Trent'll be here soon and take care of you okay? Hang in there."

He could barely make out Jason's strangled words. "Em, promise…take care…"

"You're gonna take care of her yourself. Damnit! Bravo 2, where are you?"

What was taking so long? Jason needed help and he needed it now! Clay felt a tug on his hand again and more gurgling noises from Jason.

"Need promise. Emma…Mikey."

Clay didn't want to acknowledge what Jason was asking. "Don't ask me that, you're gonna be fine!" He could see his boss's eyes fill with panic. "Okay. You know I'll take care of Emma. I love her Jace. She's my life."

Jason quieted a bit and tried to form more words. "Mmmmkk…"

"Mikey's fine, he'll be fine with Linda. But he will always have a home with Emma and me."

He could feel Jason's grip slipping and his breathing grew shallower. "Fuck! Need Trent NOW! Bravo 4, where are you?"

"Bravo 6, this is Bravo 2. The explosion blocked the entrances. Working our way to you now. Need sit rep and location."

"Situation critical. We are in southeast corner of the structure."

Clay looked back down at Jason. He had lost consciousness again. Clay shook him.

"Bravo 1! Jason! Wake up! Stay with me. You need to stay with me. I am NOT going to go home and tell Em you're dead! You got that? Don't you make me tell her that, damn you!"

A noise in the next room brought Clay back to the present. He spoke to his boss and brother.

"Jason…I don't know why you pushed me out of the way, or how you even had time to do it. I would trade places with you if I could." Tears ran unheeded down his cheeks. "You've got to wake up man. Emma and Mikey need you. Your brothers need you." He placed his hand on Jason's shoulder. "I need you to wake up. You have to see Em and Mikey graduate. I need you to be here so I can ask your permission to marry Emma. You need to walk her down the aisle and hold your grandbabies. C'mon man. We need you."

Was that a twitch? Clay could swear Jason's finger moved. "Do it again Jace. Come on," he urged.

Watching closely, he was sure he saw his fingers moving and could feel a change in Jason's breathing. He called out to the nurses.

"Hey! Hey. Someone, anyone. Get in here! We need a doctor in here!"

Personnel came running to see what was wrong "Sir, you need to quiet down, or I'll have to ask you to leave."

"He moved. Check him, he moved. Is he waking up?"

Clay rolled his chair out of the way as the nurses surrounded Jason's bed. "Well…is he?"

Then he heard a moan and some garbled sounds from underneath Jason's oxygen mask. One of the nurses paged the doctor and then turned to address Clay.

"I'm going to need you to leave sir. We need to assess Master Chief Hayes' condition."

"He's waking up, isn't he? Isn't he?"

"It appears that way. I really do need to insist that that you go back to the waiting room."

Clay wheeled himself back out to the lounge where Emma and the rest were waiting. They had heard the commotion and were worried. He looked them all but spoke straight to Emma.

"He's waking up Em. He's waking up."

The journey was far from over. But at least it was a step in the right direction.