I loved writing the end of this chapter. More to come!
Jay set the Swiffer back in the closet and exhaled. Cleaning his apartment always made him feel more at peace and centered. Piper certainly wasn't the messiest roommate he'd ever had (cough, Erin, cough) but the additional person in his former bachelor pad meant all the surfaces needed a little extra TLC. After Piper left, Jay knew that he couldn't just sit around and wait, he needed to do something. And so he cleaned, allowing the monotony and repetition to ground him.
He furrowed his brow when Erin's name flashed across his cell phone screen. Piper had been gone less than a half hour, but maybe Erin forgot her wallet at her place. "Hey-" he started to answer, but was cut off by Erin's frantic voice.
"Jay? Jay?"
"I'm here," he said quickly, all the hairs on the back of his neck standing up, "What's going on?"
"I-I don't know what happened, we were walking and she felt dizzy and she passed out in my arms." Erin sounded close to tears, if not already in tears.
"Where are you?" Jay asked, grabbing his keys off the counter and slipping a shoe on, "I'll be right there."
"We're in Stanton park, just by the entrance," Erin rushed out, "Hurry, please."
Jay had never been so thankful to live across the street from the park. After slipping the other shoe on he raced down the steps, unwilling to wait for the elevator to arrive.
"I'm okay," Piper said weakly, coming to as she laid across Erin's lap, her sister frantically calling her former partner, "I just got dizzy."
"You passed out," Erin shook her head, unable to stop the worried tears from trickling down her cheeks, "I'm so sorry."
"Why are you sorry?" The little girl furrowed her brow.
"I'm supposed to be looking out for you," Erin croaked, gently stroking a few stray hairs off Piper's cheek with shaking fingers. "Are you still dizzy?"
"A little," she admitted, "I feel better, down here."
"Okay," Erin nodded, "Jay's going to be here soon, we're going to get you checked out." As luck would have it, Erin saw a familiar muscular detective racing down the sidewalk. Thank god he was so fast.
"Erin!" he shouted as soon as he caught sight of his former partner, "What happened?" Jay sank to his knees in front of Erin and Piper and quickly placed a hand on the little girl's cheek.
"I got really dizzy," Piper informed him as Erin swallowed another round of tears, "I'm okay now."
"She-she went totally limp in my arms," Erin managed, wiping her eyes as Jay gently cupped Piper's pale cheek with his palm and stroked her soft skin with his thumb, "It happened so fast."
"Her heart rate's a little high," Jay said as he felt Piper's pulse, "Hey Pipes?" The little girl's eyes had closed, "Piper?"
"I'm okay," she mumbled tiredly, "But I dropped my ice cream."
"We'll get you another one after we get you checked out at the hospital," Jay assured her, "Do you want to try to stand?"
Piper nodded and accepted Jay's help off Erin's lap. Erin sniffed again, doing her best to compose herself as she stood. "Woah, kiddo," Jay caught Piper's arms as she stumbled into Erin again. He scooped her up and held her close to his chest. "We should get her to med."
Erin nodded, "Give me your keys, I'll drive. You hold her."
Erin glanced into the rearview mirror of the Sierra as she sped toward Chicago Medical Center on auto pilot, "How's she doing?" she asked, her heart in her throat.
"I'm really okay," Piper insisted, "I've gotten dizzy before. It goes away in a few hours."
"This has happened before?" Jay raised his eyebrows, concern for the little girl in his lap ramping up ten-fold.
"A few times. It's usually over pretty quick. I cut my arm once when I fell," Piper shrugged, "I couldn't stand and I was alone so I just hung out on the floor til someone came back. They said I was fine and so I didn't have to go to the hospital."
Jay swallowed, unable to comprehend the fact that there might actually be something seriously wrong with Piper and that nobody who had previously been responsible for her had done anything to help. "Well, we're going to get you checked out, just to be safe okay?" He tried to put on a brave face but after glancing at Erin's tear-streaked cheeks in the rearview mirror, there was little about the situation he felt good about. He was just thankful he was so close by.
"Almost there," Erin cleared her throat as she pulled into the emergency entrance.
"You-you guys are coming in, right?" Piper asked, her tiny heartrate accelerating as she thought about Jay and Erin leaving her alone in the hospital.
"Absolutely," Jay promised, shifting the little girl in his embrace as he prepared to hustle her into the ED, "We're not leaving you."
"Erin too?"
Tears filled Erin's eyes for the umpteenth time that day. "Me too," she promised, "I'm not going anywhere."
"Can you tell me what happened, Piper?" Dr. Natalie Manning asked as she reviewed Piper's chart. After getting her settled in a hospital room, Jay noticed immediately how Piper was struggling to keep her eyes open.
"I turned into a noodle," Piper murmured, "Me and Erin were eating ice cream and I got dizzy and my whole body went," She lifted her arms and dropped them on the hospital bed limply, "Like that."
Dr. Manning nodded, "Have you been extra sleepy at all lately?"
Piper shook her head, "Jay says nine o'clock is bedtime."
"Okay," she offered a kind smile, "I'm just going to talk to Jay and Erin real quick, right outside. You'll see us right through that window there, and we won't be more than a few minutes, sound good?"
"You're not leaving, right?" Piper reached out to grab the hand closest to her, which happened to be Erin's.
"Nope, we'll be right there," Jay pointed to the door and put a gentle hand on Erin's shoulder as she held Piper's tiny hand in her own, "Promise, kiddo."
Piper exhaled and gave a nod. Erin squeezed her hand gently. "Jay and I will be right back, okay?"
As soon as the little girl was out of earshot, Dr. Manning turned back to Erin and Jay. "How has Piper been sleeping? I know she said nine o'clock was bedtime, but-"
"She seems to sleep through the night, for the most part," Jay interjected, "I um, check on her probably two or three times, and she's usually sleeping pretty heavily. I've been trying to make sure she gets a lot of sleep because she always seems kind of tired. But I didn't know if that's just with everything happening." He swallowed nervously, afraid he'd missed something big.
"It's possible," Natalie nodded, "Piper's iron levels are quite low, which makes me think that the fainting spell is due to anemia. It's fairly common and easy to treat with increased iron in the diet and supplements."
Erin and Jay exhaled in the same breath. "She said she'd passed out before. Before I met her," Jay informed her, "Is it possible she's had this for a while?"
Natalie nodded again, "We see this in kids who come out of the system or situations of neglect a lot. They're often not given much nutrient rich foods, which can cause iron levels to get low. In some cases, it can cause fainting. I'd like to start Piper on some supplements, and I can give you some information on iron-dense foods that you'll want to work into her diet."
"She's going to be okay?" Erin asked, speaking for the first time, "Once she gets more iron?"
Natalie gave a kind smile, "She should be. Her blood work didn't indicate anything else was wrong, but of course you should monitor her. You'll especially want to keep a close eye on her the next few days, and make sure she gets her blood drawn in the next few months but hopefully with the added iron she should have a bit more energy. But if she faints again, or feels sick or anything, bring her in right away."
Erin and Jay exhaled again. "Thank god," Jay rubbed his face with one hand and gave a small smile to Erin, who still appeared incredibly troubled. He caught Piper's expectant glance through the window and smiled wider for the little girl's benefit.
"Oh god," Erin glanced down at her buzzing phone, "It-it's Jenna, Piper's social worker, probably wondering where we are. I-I was supposed to be back there with Piper like twenty minutes ago, she's going to think I tried to take her!"
"Hey, hey," Jay shook his head, "It's okay. Just answer it. I'll talk to her, and Nat can as well." Natalie nodded in confirmation.
Erin managed a shaky nod and answered the phone, "Hi, Jenna, I'm so sorry we were walking around the park and Piper fainted and I-I didn't know what to do and we're at the hospital. I called Jay and he's here too I-" she paused when the social worker finally got a word in, "Yes, yes, okay, thank you." She exhaled and put a hand over her eyes.
"What's wrong?" Jay furrowed his brow, "Erin?"
"She um, she has to come here and make sure Piper's okay," she swallowed before bursting into a fresh set of sobs.
"Piper is okay, Er." He put a gentle hand on her shoulder as she wept into her palm, "She just needs a bit more iron in her diet, but we can do that."
Erin shook her head, "She's going to think I'm incompetent. The first time I get trusted to be alone with my sister she winds up in the hospital and I didn't even think to call her and-" She hiccupped, "I don't want them to take her away."
"That's not going to happen," Jay shook his head again, "You were focused on getting Piper help, which was the right call. You called me because you knew I was close by, and anything that caused what happened to your sister happened because of her previous situation, not because of anything you did."
Erin let out a shuddery breath, "You think so?"
Jay nodded confidently. "I know so." He smiled softly as Erin leaned into his arms, basking in the familiarity of holding her close.
"Sorry," she sniffed, "You keep having to talk me down." Erin managed a small smile, "I um, guess I do need you, after all."
"'s what I'm here for," he shrugged and turned back to Natalie, "Nat uh, the social worker's gotta come by but if-"
"I'll be there to give her the whole spiel," Natalie gave a nod, "You two can go back and sit with Piper."
"Thank you," Erin managed, "It's um, good to see you, Nat."
"I'm glad you're back in Chicago," the doctor smiled kindly, "I'll see you two in a few."
"I'm not dying, right?" Piper asked as soon as Erin and Jay came back into her hospital room.
"No, no," Jay assured her, pulling over a chair so Erin could sit beside her sister before he got one for himself, "Not at all, kiddo."
"How come Erin's crying still?" Piper furrowed her brow at her sister's watery gaze.
"I'm sorry," Erin swallowed, "I guess I just got really scared." She gently stroked her sister's tiny fingers, "You're going to be just fine though. This sometimes happens to people when they don't get enough iron, so we're just going to make sure you get more."
"Like a fence?" The little girl wrinkled her nose, "I'm pretty sure you can't eat that."
"Oh, not that kind of iron," Erin chuckled, "It's a vitamin, like calcium or uh," she looked to Jay for back up.
"Vitamin D," Jay offered. He frowned at his choice of vitamin because what nine year old knew what vitamin D was or what it did. He barely knew. "Vitamins are part of what's in food, and we all need a balance of different vitamins to keep our bodies going. And it turns out that you haven't been getting enough iron, which is in things like red meat or spinach. And when people don't have enough iron, they can be really tired, or sometimes faint."
Piper nodded slowly, "It's inside food?"
"That's right," Erin nodded, "So we're just going to have to make sure you're getting enough in your food, but in the meantime, Dr. Manning's going to give you some pills that will help make sure you stay upright and don't go all noodle on us again."
Piper cracked a smile at her sister's humor. "If I'm fine, how come we gotta stay here?"
"Ms. O'Donnell has to come by to make sure you're okay," Jay said slowly, not wanting to spook the little girl, "It won't be long though."
Instantly, panic crossed Piper's face and her small features crumbled. "It's okay," Erin tried, trying her best to keep her own tears at bay at her sister's distress. She placed a tentative hand on her little sister's knee, trying to provide whatever comfort she could.
Piper shook her head, tears gushing down her cheeks at a force Jay hadn't seen before. "I-I don't wanna leave," she sobbed, covering her face with her hands. "She's going to take me away and give me to someone else."
"No, no," Jay jumped in as the same panic to cross Piper's face appeared on Erin's, "That's not what's happening, kiddo. She just needs to make sure you're all good."
The little girl shook her head again, "I know what happens. It's happened to me before. They're going to take me away, I know it."
At that, the tears started streaming down Erin's face again. "We're not going to let that happen." Jay reached a hand out to stroke Piper's tear streaked cheek, "Ms. O'Donnell knows you're safe with me, and with Erin." He placed his other hand on top of Erin's that was still resting on Piper's knee.
"I want to stay," Piper begged with a hiccup, "I don't want to go to anyone else."
"Shh," Jay tried to soothe, but the little girl burst into tears again.
"Detective Halstead?" Jenna O'Donnell knocked on the door to Piper's room, "Hi, Piper."
Piper squeaked and scrambled back on the hospital bed before launching herself into Jay's arms, which caught him by surprise. "Don't take me away," she sobbed, clinging to the detective with all her might, "Please, please."
The case worker looked from the distraught child to Erin, who was rigidly standing beside the bed, tears streaming down her own cheeks. "That's not what this is," Jenna said carefully, "I'm just here to make sure everything's okay with you, Piper. That's my job."
"I know what you do," Piper choked out, "You take kids away."
"Only when they're in a bad situation," she replied gently, "You're safe here, sweetheart. I just had to come by to make sure you were feeling better."
"See, Pipes?" Jay stroked the back of Piper's head as she clung to him, "Ms. O'Donnell knows you're safe."
Erin let out a shaky exhale and wiped her eyes. "I'm so sorry I didn't call, I was so worried and-"
"These things happen," Jenna cut her off, "I'm glad you called Detective Halstead and that Piper is fine. I'll just need to speak with her doctor, but I can tell she's in good hands."
Piper relaxed slightly as Jay continued to stroke the back of her head. "She's not taking me away?" she whispered, "I get to stay with you?"
"That's right," Jay replied and offered a smile to the social worker, "Dr. Manning should be close by-"
"Hi," Natalie quickly entered, "Dr. Natalie Manning, Piper's doctor. We can step outside for a minute."
"Great," Jenna smiled, "Give us a few, and then I'll need to speak with you and Ms. Lindsay as well."
Both Jay and Erin nodded. When the door closed, Piper visibly relaxed further. "You're okay, Pipes," Jay assured her, "You're not going anywhere."
Piper managed a nod and lifted her head from Jay's shoulder. "I'm sorry for crying, I just got so scared that she was going to take me away or say I couldn't see Erin."
Erin felt her heart crack. Piper was worried about not seeing her again. "I promise you that I'll do everything I can to make sure we can see each other, and be together," Erin whispered, more tears making an appearance on her cheeks. She cast a watery glance to Jay, who held gestured for her to come closer.
"You don't need to apologize for being scared, kiddo," Jay murmured, continuing to stroke her hair, "You've been through some scary stuff."
She sniffed and looked up at Erin, "I guess I'm also sorry I freaked you out."
"You don't need to be sorry for that either. I'm just glad you're okay," Erin shook her head, willing herself to get her tears under control, "I was so worried."
"You caught me." Piper reached a hand out to grab Erin's, "I'm glad you were there."
"Detective Halstead? Ms. Lindsay?" Jenna knocked and opened the door, "Do you have a moment?"
"We'll be right out there Pipes," Jay promised, pointing to the door, "And you'll be able to see us through the little window."
"How come grown-ups like to talk about me without me?" Piper mumbled, not releasing her hold around Jay's neck.
"Because we want to protect you," he said slowly, choosing his words carefully, "Sometimes, it's easier for us to find things out so we can tell you in a way that's easier to digest. But I wouldn't lie to you, okay? We'll just be a few minutes."
"Okay," Piper nodded. Jay shifted her back to the hospital bed and Erin gave her tiny hand a squeeze. "C-can you stay by the window again? So I can see you?"
"Of course," Erin confirmed, her heart rate increasing at the prospect of talking to the social worker. There was something about the fact that the woman's recommendation would make or break her relationship with Piper that put her incredibly on edge.
"Is everything okay?" Jay asked after closing the door behind him.
"I wanted to let you know in person," Jenna said slowly, "After Ms. Lindsay was granted visitation with Piper, Barbara Fletcher petitioned and was granted visitation as well."
"What?" Erin shook her head, "No, that can't be right."
"I wish I had better news," the social worker said, "It was against my recommendation, for what it's worth. It will be once a week, starting in the next few days. I wasn't given a date yet, but I'll hopefully be able to give you some warning." She offered a gentle smile, "Foster care isn't predictable."
Jay nodded stoically, "Piper um, she might not be ready. To meet her mother. Biological mother."
"It's out of my hands," Jenna replied, "Ms. Lindsay, I'd advise consulting your lawyer as well, just in case. From my experience, judges do this pretty rarely. I'd say we're still a few weeks away from any type of initial verdict from the judge, but there might be an interim joint custody agreement between Piper's mother and yourself."
Erin swallowed again as Jay set his jaw. No part of him wanted Piper near Bunny – not on a visit, not ever. She didn't need that. "There's nothing you can do?" she asked finally, unable to comprehend why anyone would allow Bunny Fletcher visitation with a child she'd abandoned and neglected to contact for nine years.
Jenna shook her head, "I'll give you both a call tomorrow, as I should have more details then. But do focus on the positives here. For now, Piper is able to stay with Detective Halstead, which is good news. You still have twice weekly visitation scheduled."
Erin nodded and closed her eyes when Jay rested a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you, for checking on her. We can um, fill her in about my mother."
"I'll be in touch," Jenna said before turning down the hospital hallway.
Jay turned to Erin, still in a bit of shock. "I can't believe they'd do this to her," Erin choked out, "I don't want her to have to grow up with Bunny."
"It's going to be okay," Jay said, partially to convince Erin, partially to convince himself, "The judge will come to her senses, she has to. In the meantime, we'll talk to Piper, and just be there for her. It's all you can do."
"Okay," Erin took a deep breath and opened the door to the hospital room, praying she'd keep it together, "How are you feeling Piper?"
"Less noodley," she replied, glancing from Jay to Erin to try to read the situation, "Am I allowed to go yet?"
"We should be getting discharge papers from Dr. Manning any moment," Jay confirmed, sitting back down in the chair on one side of the bed. "You'll be coming home with me, so you don't need to worry."
"How come you guys look worried though?" Piper asked quietly, "Did something bad happen?"
"It's not bad," Erin swallowed the persistent lump in the back of her throat, "You still get to stay with Jay, and I'm able to see you. But um, the judge wants to give uh, Bunny, a chance to get to know you as well."
Piper looked at Erin and then to Jay, "B-but I don't want to. I want to stay with you guys."
"It would only be for an hour or so, and it would only be one time a week," Jay tried to reason, "It might be good. And you'll still come back to stay with me."
Her lower lip quivered but she nodded bravely. "I still get to see Erin twice, right?"
"Twice for what the judge says. But Erin's going to be over as much as we want," Jay gave a gentle smile to his ex-partner, "So you guys can get to know each other."
Piper exhaled, "Okay, good. As long as I get to stay with you."
After being discharged, Jay dropped Erin at her apartment building (which was literally two doors down from his) to give her lawyer a call before coming back to his place for dinner. They stopped at a smoothie shop to grab a midday snack, having had missed lunch. Jay insisted on adding spinach to all of their drinks, citing the need for Piper and all of them to get more iron in their diets.
Erin's lawyer continued to be optimistic, which didn't make Erin feel any better. When she knocked on Jay's apartment door a half hour later, she just wanted to see Piper and if she was being honest with herself, she wanted to see Jay as well.
"Hey, Noodle," Erin wiggled her eyebrows at Piper who flashed a shy grin at her sister's new nickname for her, "How are you feeling?"
"I feel good. But I'm glad you came because Jay is putting spinach in everything," Piper informed her, "Literally everything."
"Is he now?" she looked over at her former partner who had resumed his spot in the kitchen and was busying himself preparing dinner, "Everything?"
"Everything," Piper nodded, "The macaroni is green."
"Jay!" Erin exclaimed, catching sight of the macaroni that was indeed green, "You put spinach in the mac and cheese?"
"Spinach has iron in it," Jay retorted, "Which someone," he gestured to Piper, "needs to grow."
"I already had a smoothie with spinach today," Piper insisted, "I'm gonna turn green."
"Maybe," Jay shrugged as he tossed a spinach salad, "But you'll be strong and green, which is okay in my book."
Erin just shook her head, "There's no reasoning with him when he's like this. Trust me. One time, I got a concussion at work and Jay read on some random website that broccoli and blueberries were good to eat to help heal your head after a concussion and literally everything I ate for two weeks had broccoli or blueberries in it."
Piper's eyes widened, "I'm gonna have to eat nothing but spinach for two whole weeks?"
"That's right," Jay joked and set the chicken breast with creamed spinach on the table.
"He only does it because he loves you," Erin said knowingly.
"W-what?" Piper stuttered, glancing from Erin to Jay. Jay nearly dropped the salad bowl and Erin immediately blanched. "Jay loves me?"
Jay swallowed. Of course he loved Piper. He loved Erin too, from the moment he met her. And every day spent with Piper was just more confirmation of what he knew when he first heard her laugh. He loved her like a little sister, like a daughter, like family. "Of course I do," he said, giving a reassuring smile to Erin, "I love you to pieces, Pipes."
Tears filled Erin's eyes as her little sister regarded her ex-partner and ex-boyfriend in complete shock. "N-nobody's ever told me that," she managed after a moment, absolutely shattering Erin and Jay's hearts.
"Well we're going to change that," Jay swallowed and placed the salad bowl down on the counter before approaching the little girl, "You are an incredible kid and I am so glad we met. I love you, Piper."
At that, Piper wrapped her small arms around Jay's neck and held fast, her tiny heart racing against his chest. Tears leaked out of the corners of her eyes before she could stop them, overwhelmed with what it felt like to be truly loved and cared for.
Erin watched from an arm's length away, tears positively streaming down her own cheeks as she watched Jay hold Piper tightly, his love for her little sister so fierce that she could hardly breathe. She knew that love, she loved that love and she craved that love so badly her heart ached. Jay Halstead was without a doubt the most incredible man she'd ever known. "I love you too," Piper whispered into his ear.
Tears prickled at his eyes as he held the child closely. There was so much he loved about the little girl in his arms, and so much of it reminded him of the woman standing in front of him. "You love Erin too," she murmured, just loud enough for her sister to hear, "That's how come she knew."
Erin sucked in a breath as Jay nodded, his eyes meeting hers. "I'll always love your sister, Pipes. Always."
Piper pulled away slightly from Jay's chest, "I think I love her too."
And that's when Erin crumbled.
She burst into tears as Jay pulled her in close, her face pressed against his chest and her arms around her sister. Erin cried tears of sorrow for the years missed and tears of joy for the love of her little sister. She cried tears of heartache for the man she loved, and tears of happiness for his seemingly unconditional, unwavering love for her.
Some more fun stuff is up next. And I am still updating the other story on my profile - just taking a little longer to get those creative juices flowing. Thank you again to all who are reviewing. I love reading them!