A couple of months before Matthew dies.

Jackson

Jackson is at the hospital as usual when he sees a familiar but unfamiliar at the hospital face. He squints his eyes, thinking he is either so tired that he is hallucinating. Or is staring at his fathers' doppelganger.

There is no way that he would come here. He stares at the man for a little too long for it to be considered appropriate. He decides to look away as the man has noticed him, and Jackson is in no mood to talk to him.

Unfortunately, the doppelganger joins him anyway. Jackson tries to indicate with body language that he does not want to talk, but the man is no body language expert. As he comes closer still. "Hello, Jackson." He greets him, making him freeze.

Jackson wonders if he may be having an out of body experience or dying as he sees the man he never thought he'd see again standing in front of him. In his hospital.

When Jackson doesn't say anything, he carries on talking. "I came to Seattle before Covid hit. I volunteered in hospitals that needed help..."

Jackson walks away before he can yell as he had already attracted unwanted attention. He leaves him standing there.

The whole day, Jackson manages to avoid his father and is glad his mother is not here to see him.

How did he manage to come in without her finding out anyway?

He decides to hide in Webber's office for lunch. "Why are you here?" Webber asks when he sees him making himself comfortable.

He answers, "You know, hiding from my biological father, who I think is stalking me."

Shocked, Webber puts down his food and takes off his glasses, asking him, "he's here? In Catherine's territory, how did he manage that? Does he have a death wish?"

"Well, he is an Avery after all," Jackson responds.

"Yes," Webber agrees, "he is."

He settles back on his chair and eats the rest of his sandwich as he asks, "so why do you think he's stalking you? Is he a patient?"

"No, a volunteer actually," Jackson tells him what happened and how he had to take extra pains to not run into him. And adds Montana to the tale.

Richard listens to his entire narration, thinks his words through for a minute and, finally says. "Since we have decided to have a more truthful relationship, I would like to be honest with you, may I?"

"Why do I feel like I'm not going to like this." Jackson says, letting out a heavy breath and touching his eyes. "I guess it's only fair, go ahead."

"I think that you are right, he is stalking you, and you should let him have his say before your mother comes back and here me out," he says, holding his hands in a motion to stop as Jackson gets ready to object.

"This is not about her, but about you and your dad. You need to hear his side of the story. It seems to me like he didn't tell you for whatever reason the whole truth when you were in Montana."

"But why now? Why here?" He asks, getting agitated.

Jackson gets up to walk up and down the office. His hands-on his waist and now and then talks with one of them. "You won't have the answers to those questions unless you talk to him."

"Think of it this way imagine if, God forbid you and April had never reached a compromise like you did all those years ago. Wouldn't you want your daughter to give you this very chance your dad seems to be asking for?"

Richard speaks, looking at him over his spectacles. "Come on, Jackson, you could either sit here and hide like the little boy you were. The one who is still angry at his dad for never showing up when he needed him to. Or you can stand up like the man you have become."

"A father that knows what it's like, to almost get, separated from his child."

Richard folds his arms and looks up. "Hear him out he may have something new to add, or he may not, but at least hear him out."

Richard gets up to leave. "Who knows, something may happen to him after he leaves this hospital, and you may never know the whole story, and you may be angry now, but once you get older, you may wonder. Think about it."

"Besides to heal the little boy in you, the man in you has to take the initiative to open up those wounds inflicted on him so you can clean up the puss accumulated all those years ago."

Richard says as he leaves him in the office.