Chapter 5- The Flight to Florence

Hello everyone! Think of this as part two. It was foretold that this could happen and as this story has gone…. After this one things will calm down and we'll really start getting into things. If you really, really hate me at this point…I'm right there with you. ;P Are you ready?! Let's do this.

"Hey. No, that would require me sleeping to begin with. Okay, we'll be down in a bit. Thanks, Mouse." She was on her side, had been that way for the duration of her attempts to sleep. Shortly after Will broke down a nurse came in, saying visitation was over. A promise of being able to see Jay later in the day being what finally got him out of there. It was so strange leaving Jay behind, borderline feeling wrong. He needed them and they weren't able to stay with him the entire time. The fear of him waking up realizing he was alone would've made her burst into tears, but her supply of that was well past the reserves. Maybe at some point down the recovery process they'd all get to be together, but for now they were visitors in a strange place. There was nothing for them to do but abide by the rules, regardless how much they hated them.

Opening the hotel room door had both of them laughing, a foreign yet welcomed sensation. Despite being in this an immaculate, grand, extravert place, whoever made the travel arrangements managed to find the one hotel in the city that had one bed in a massive space. Will joked it was Mouse, but Hailey was beyond tired to nit-pick things. She saw a bed, she literally ran to it and face planted. Cotton, plush, warmth were tiny comforts that meant everything. Sleep was going to be her saving grace, the thing that allowed her to wrap her head around things and come to terms with reality. The eyelids were fluttering in seconds, but holding her off enough to see that Will was gathering pillows for the floor.

"Hey, I can move over. It's fine.."

"-No. You take the bed. I'm fine on the floor or I'll push the chairs together. Get some sleep." She wanted to protest, but instead thanked him in the sleepiest voice ever. If only things were that easy. Throughout the night she kept tossing and turning, mentally telling herself to sleep or do deep breathing exercises. But nothing worked, just the sounds, visions, and news of the day keeping her wide awake. The rustling from somewhere in the room told her Will was in the same boat, neither were getting quality sleep at this stage of things. So now, as she saw him rise from the floor, the moment came to accept the new day. It was time to see her partner, no matter how frightened and nervous she was.

"You too?" Will looked away from the cleaning up of his bed space to her, rolling his eyes and nodding.

"If I got two hours then I'm lucky." She nodded, sitting further up and beginning the stretching process.

"He squeezed my hand."

"What?!"

"I mean, it was probably one of monitoring systems on him sending out a reflex, but I swear it was him." Pity was the look she gave. Knowing all the stuff Jay was on, there wasn't an opportunity for him to be alert long enough to know that Will was there. But she enjoyed his hopefulness, eventually nodding before moving things along.

"Who was on the phone?"

"Mouse. He said they lifted the sedation and want to extubate in a couple hours."

"That's good, right?"

"Yeah, means he's stable enough to not keep him under. Don't get me wrong, I'd love for him to be awake but.."

"-You don't want to tell him." Will eventually shook his head.

"I just hate that he doesn't know about any of this."

"Yeah. I just hate that I chickened out last night."

"Hailey, don't feel bad. We're all going through this in stride. Whenever you're ready, you're ready. It's really fine." She didn't agree, but nodded anyway.

"Do you need to shower?"

"Honestly I'd love to have a change of clothing."

"Ditto," Will joked. Hailey took him up on his showering offer, doing her best to speed things along in order for him to come in behind her. It was in the brushing out of the knots that she readied herself for the day. No matter what, she was going to make herself see him. It was still the same Jay, just a different form for right now. After some time they'd be acclimated, but today it all freaked her out. She had to get over it, she told herself. So much easier said then done.

…

"What is with the Halsteads and sleeping in," Mouse greeted them in the lobby, a coffee carrier of cups in hand. Once again it was Starbucks, Hailey raised her eyebrows that the company stretched to the other side of the world.

"Oh trust me, it's like on every other corner here," Mouse commented, picking up her surprised realization.

"What are on the other corners?"

"Tea houses," he shot back, sipping with pride over his winning of the round.

"Mouse, this is Hailey Upton. Jay's partner."

"And emergency contact." She nodded, extending a hand as she spoke.

"Yeah, nice to finally meet you. And again, sorry about last night."

"Don't worry about it. Nice to finally get this out of the way."

"Alright, enough of the pleasantries. Have you see him? How's he doing."

"I did for a couple seconds. They're doing tests or something and so I figured it was a good time to grab you guys. He's looking a little better. Color is getting there. He needs a couple more transfusions. The pain meds seem to be working for now because for most of the morning his heart rate was constant, which is really good apparently." Will nodded, pointing to the van.

"Walk and talk?" The group of three marched to the van, the two newbies taking a moment to stare in wide eyed wonder at the world in front of them. The front of the hotel faced a panorama shot of the whole city, the world's tallest building, literally, in the middle of it all. In the sunlight it was all that much more spectacular, each agreeing it was going to be fun staying in this place for a bit. Oh what they didn't know, but that will come before long.

"Ready to go see him?" Mouse chuckled as they sprinted into the van, practically body slamming the seats as the doors closed behind them. Along the way they talked normal things, like the weather and estimates on when Jay would ask to leave the hospital. While the moment was short, this normal conversing and joking was the antidote they needed for all that was surrounding. It was incredible to have other people to lean on, someone that vaguely knew the area and how things were working. But perhaps the best part of all was that there was a doctor in their midst, able to answer the odd question when no one else was around. They were the A team, Jay's A team that was there to rescue and help him.

"So how are you getting all the updates and we aren't," Will inquired as the van stopped at the hospital's back entrance?

"I have no clue. I'm guessing in the scramble of yesterday they were under the impression I was cleared to get information. We can get that fixed today."

"No, I don't care at all and I don't think Jay does either, just wondering who they think we are." Mouse shrugged, leading the way to Jay.

"Maybe they didn't know you were coming. Again, we can get it fixed today." The life of the place was a stark contrast from the last time Will and Hailey walked through the place. Unlike the wee hours of the night, people were smiling, talking to them as they came by. All were beyond kind, giving out offers of assistance and directions if they needed them. Perhaps someone had alerted of who they were and who their person was, but their gestures were morale boosters, the thing they didn't know they needed but loved.

The three of them held up at the ICU door again, puzzled that a green curtain was wrapped around Jay's bed. The darkness of the night allowed for that to be hidden, but seeing it now wasn't helping things in the least. Will was the first to bypass the closed door, stepping in before waiting for the others to follow. The roommates from the night before were still there, the exception of one being awake and visited by people. Will smiled and waved and they returned the favor. He motioned to Jay's area and they shrugged, whispering that it had been that way for a couple of minutes.

"Oh okay," Will spoke out loud, immediately turning to shield the rest from the unpleasant surprise. He was used to seeing incisions and damaged skin but the rest weren't. Hailey gave him a pissed look and he shook his head.

"They're changing the wrap on the residual limb." Everyone get used to that term, it shall be brought up a million more times. It's a much better name then stump. Either name works, but the first sounds much kinder and more civilized then the second. Hailey blinked long, nodding as she took a step back to Mouse

"I'm going to go in. I'll let you guys know when it's done." Both didn't say a word, just nodded as Will disappeared.

"How are things looking," Will asked as he took a seat in the chair on Jay's right? It was the surgical team from the night before, all of them more enamored with what was happening on the leg then Will's question. The nurse who was holding the fresh wraps looked up from her gaze of things.

"They're testing reflexes and sensation." Will nodded, turning his attention to the rest of Jay. This was still all so weird and something to adjust to, but Mouse was right in that Jay's skin looked better. Jay was very much still out of it, nothing reacting to the series of gloved hands touching a now highly sensitive part of his body. Will concluded that the pain drugs truly were working, because under any other situation Jay would be really feeling and reacting to things. There was just so much on him, all doing important things, but it was so much. Despite having the most damage on the bottom half of him, there was a lot going on on top. A feeding tube had been inserted since last night, not to mention a fresh bag of blood was dripping into the central line. Will did a once over of the IVs before rolling his eyes. Jay was going to freak out when he finally woke up to that. Will wished that was the worst part of things.

"Sorry, you are.." one of the surgeons trailed off.

"The brother. Will Halstead. I'm a doctor back home in Chicago."

"Ah, we'll that explains how you're so calm." It dawned on Will that everything was back in place. The limb was back under wraps and the covers pulled up to Jay's waist.

"So is he now getting the breathing tube out?"

"Yeah, he breathed over the vent before we got started. He's ready to go on his own." Will turned to face his brother, silently celebrating the small yet awesome progression. It was here that Will noticed there was still sand in Jay's hair. That was a bit of a somber note. Instead of dwelling on things Will got up, pulled the curtain back to alert those outside they could enter. Hailey nodded and breathed deep while Mouse kept sipping coffee, they were a humorous duo.

"Ta-da," Will joked as Jay was revealed to them. He was doing his best to ease Hailey into things. She made it the end of the bed and just looked. It was and wasn't him. The person under everything was the same, but it was all the extra stuff that made her still not believe it all. But there weren't any tears or collapses onto the ground. She was certainly shocked but alright for now.

"You take the right," Will encouraged, Hailey inching closer as the plastic holder and velcro strap were removed from Jay's face. She took her seat in the chair, watching with a blank expression as the syringe for the breathing tube was unscrewed from its' place.

"He might wake up from this," they announced, which got Hailey's attention. On the count of three the tube began making its' ascent to earth, sure enough Jay opening his eyes and gagging as the device fell onto his chest.

"Jay?! Can you hear me." The eyes were blank, not moving in the direction of Will or Hailey's voices. He didn't react to the current situation of things nor did he feel that things were rather different. All he did was cough, clear his throat, and stay awake long enough to hear the doctor's instruction to open his mouth. A few seconds of suctioning out the mouth happened before the oxygen line was placed under his nose. It was a glimpse into things, but Hailey greatly appreciated the effort on Jay's part. She saw him move, somewhat alive, things were beginning to normalize.

"So is he awake," she asked as the room dwindled down.

"No, it was just a reaction to things. He's still unconscious. When he's more stable and had more time to recover he'll wake up. But that was a good sign of things." He was really trying to boost her spirits, help her see that it was him no matter what. But he saw what the doctors saw, noted their expressions over certain things. So he wasn't surprised when they asked to speak to him away from the others. He realized this day was just the eye of the hurricane. The nightmare wasn't over just yet.

"Stay with him, guys." Mouse took Will's seat as he got up.

"You doing alright?" Hailey went back and forth between the limb and Jay's face. Over and over and over again till she lost count of how many times she did this.

"It's so weird," she eventually announced. Mouse nodded, fully understanding her mild disbelief. No one anticipates a person going through what Jay did, especially as violent and sudden as it all happened. He'd be more concerned if she was fine with it all. Hailey was both surprised and proud she wasn't balling by now.

"So what's going on?" The surgeon gave the nurse a look, one that told her do what he'd instructed. Will watched her jog down the hall to the nurse's station, the fact she was jogging was odd, but the pace was more troubling. She was being quick, seeming to be doing her best to keep up with something. Will was about to inquire again but the doctor asked him to leave the main ICU area and follow him to a private waiting room, because that is where all positive and progressing talks play out. Will took a seat with the knowledge that whatever happened in that examination was not remotely close to what these skilled surgeons were expecting. Cue the suspenseful atmosphere.

"An hour after the surgery last night we performed reflex and sensation tests to determine if the entire residual limb was still alive essentially. As you may know, on top of having viable skin, an amputee needs reflexes and sensation the whole way down in order for a prosthetic to be helpful. It's equivalent to having a numb foot. If you can't feel it, then it will not help you walk." The word 'amputee' was still a rather raw and uncomfortable word for Will at this point, especially in its' relation to Jay. It was at that word he inhaled and held a blink, but otherwise he was following. While he was appreciative for the doctor's thorough explanation of things, at this point the bad just needed to spit out.

"And I'm guessing the sensation and reflexes are still not there after today's observation." His face was mute, borderline regretful, but the doctor nodded. Will ran a hand over his face and through his hair. Indeed, the nightmare wasn't over just yet.

"So what happens? Do we wait and see if it comes back or do we keep going…you know."

"Well, that's the decision you have to make, unfortunately. As I'm sure you're aware, waiting poses the threat of things spreading. Essentially whatever part of his limb that is limp is dead. When that happens the body can keep that process going until.." Will nodded, he didn't need to hear the rest.

"How much are we talking about?" Using his own leg, the doctor made a line with his finger four inches above the knee. Above. That was a game changer, a whole new set of challenges, not to mention having to re-learn to walk on a knee that wasn't his own. But before all of that would come, there's having to deal with the pain. Above the knee amputations required breaking the femur, the strongest bone in the human body. It's an incredible amount of pain to handle, Will also remembering that in a reconstruction for an artificial limb they had to shape the bone and move muscle around. Will mentally joked that he wanted to know where in this series of events he could tap out.

"When do you want to do it?"

"I'd be far more comfortable sending him to a specialist. There's an incredible surgeon in Florence, renewed for this entire region, the world really. We've sent him a lot of patients out of here and Afghanistan and his work is brilliant. A good amount of his patients go on to be Olympians, triathletes, and thrive with prosthetics. He's very Italian but he's extremely good." Numb wasn't the proper word, sorrowful, morbid, ill were probably better options to describe Will. This was some freak dream that he needed to wake up from. It was just lunacy, discussing removing more of his brother's body all awhile he's still totally unaware of what was going on; at this point against his will. He wanted to scream, punch a wall, but instead he nodded in silent agreement. It was keeping things below the knee or saving Jay's life. As grotesque and crippling as this latest setback was, it had to be done.

"So another plane ride to Florence?"

"Yes. I have someone getting in contact with the facility now. I'd love to have him on a plane tomorrow morning so they can perform the operation in the evening." Ah, thus the jogging nurse, she was putting things into action before they were even signed off.

"Is he stable enough for all of this. He'd have to be re-sedated, re-intubated, not to mention come off of a flight and straight into the OR again. It's a lot."

"Thus the reason we're going to use today to prepare him. He needs one more transfusion and we've got him on the strongest blood pressure medications out there. He's resting and we need to keep him that way. I don't normally suggest this but I think he'll do well if someone is with him. Even if he's unaware that you're there, just having the presence of another body will help things. We can allow one of you to stay with him tonight."

"Yeah, that would be great. Thanks." The doctor nodded, leaning over to pat Will's shoulder before the two of them got up and headed for the door. Nearly shoving the door into the messenger, she told them news of the following day. By sheer luck, or evil minded plans, there was an opening with this wizard tomorrow evening at six. Looking down at his phone told him that Jay had twenty-eight hours left with his left knee, hating himself for knowing all of this. Will returned to the ICU room full of depression and resentment for things. He noted Hailey and Mouse talking, their faces uplifting and somewhat positive. They weren't jovial and laughing, but their mood was far batter then Will's. He tried his best to mask the knowledge of bad things off his face, but neither of them were buying it.

"What," Mouse trailed off. Will zeroed in on Jay's left leg, cupping a hand over his choked tears at the sight of what soon wouldn't be. Hailey got up to hug him and he accepted, Mouse slowly figuring things out.

"I'm sorry. I promised I wouldn't cry in front of him and so far I'm two for two on that." Hailey smirked, doing to her best to make him feel better. She returned to her seat while Will took a place on the left end of Jay's bed. Gosh life sucked sometimes.

"So tomorrow Jay is leaving…"

"What?"

"For Florence."

"Why?" Will bit his lip, trying to quell the emotions that wanted to bubble over.

"How much," Mouse whispered after a moment? Will repeated the example that the doctor showed him. Hailey gasped before her mouth hung open.

"The skin was viable but the blast caused nerve damage up to this point. We can either wait and see if this improves or just get this done and over with. But the risk of waiting is that things get worse and then that could mean even more later on."

"Well isn't this just a wonderful set of circumstances." That one fell out before she realized, her eyes wide with shock at herself. It was so not like her but yet, it was the thing that made the switch go off. Mouse started laughing first, followed by Will through streaming tears and then Hailey at some point. Even if he wasn't awake for it, it genuinely felt so good to be laughing in Jay's presence. He made it all better, crazy enough.

"We'll get him through it. No matter what. As long as he's breathing on this earth, we have to and will get him to the other side."

"Aren't you being so positive today," Will teased. Hailey shrugged in response.

"Seeing him helps," to which Will glanced over at a completely passed out, unfazed Jay resting peacefully in unconsciousness. Oh how Will dreaded the time of his awakening.

"I'm going to stay with him tonight. They're letting me sleep here and then he flies out sometime in the morning. It has dawned on me that none of us have clothing for this. Is there anything nearby that we can grab stuff?" Mouse rolled his eyes at that obviously ridiculous question.

"I'm pretty sure you can have a personal shopper for every store in this town. Whatever you need they've got."

"And where are his clothes? On behalf of both of us neither he nor I want him getting on a plane and traveling to another continent in a hospital gown."

"They're torn up somewhere in Baghdad."

"And the bag?"

"Still in the back of the Hum-Vee wherever it is now."

"I don't want to throw the job at you guys.."

"-No, it's totally fine. We'll go shopping for everyone," Hailey jumped in, looking forward to finally doing something productive.

"Thanks." The three of them stayed in their places for the next hour, talking the mission that wasn't supposed to be discussed and how everyone was going to rest tonight. It was rather enjoyable for all, just time to put things in neutral and hash out potential issues before things got going. It was like knowing a monster was right around the corner but still you found time to ready yourself. The sound for visitation being over was spoken too soon for everyone's liking. Mouse was the first to head to the exit, Hailey lingering just a bit to snag those last few seconds with both Halsteads.

"What should we get him," Hailey asked?

"I'd say something loose. Shorts, shirt maybe. It's got to be able to compensate for the IVs and monitors and chest tube and stuff. Mouse will know sizes and stuff. Oh here.." Will reached for his wallet and pulled out the credit card.

"Just put everything on here."

"Will.."

"-Hailey. It's fine. Don't worry about it." She thumbed the card in her hand, smirked, and then reluctantly left like some heart broken teenager. Will watched them disappear from his site before pulling the curtains around the bed. Rummaging through drawers granted him the Sharpie he was looking for. Will pulled the blankets down, moved the hospital gown up just a bit, measured and marked where the surgery would take place the following day. It was a lot, a blow to the scene of things. At some point it would all become normal, but in this stage it was an adjustment to say the least.

"I really wish you were here for all this," Will thought aloud. He looked away from the black line and towards Jay's face, begging for some kind of acknowledge. More then anything Will wanted to shake his brother awake and just get the terrible news report over with.

…

As is the case with awful things, it arrived much quicker then anyone really wanted. It's so strange how when one truly wants something it takes a lifetime to arrive, yet the thing one doesn't want to have never happen sneaks up in lightning speed. Now of course time does not speed up or slow down, it's just our minds messing with us. But still, there are certain circumstances where one wishes this could be a legitimate, doable thing; Jay's series of events a perfect example of this.

Oddly enough, everyone had a great night's sleep that night. Perhaps it was the exhaustion of the prior days or the fact they weren't totally adjusted to things, but all had a full eight hours of sleep that night. After the shopping excursion Hailey and Mouse returned to the hotel, the same sleeping arrangements as the night before with Will. She was so not used to this level of gentlemen and proper behavior. It's not that people back home didn't treat her with respect or dignity, but this level of things was new for her. Between Mouse and Will just about everything was done for her, complete with them checking on her mental well-being almost hourly. At first she didn't get why they considered her fragile, but before long she actually liked it. It was nice knowing that on top of everything going on around, they were looking out for her as well. The two hotel dwellers enjoyed an evening of room service before turning in for the night. With the emotional marathon in the distance, a moment of normal living was almost required. The two of them needed that time of just being people, not subjects in an overarching story that was dragging them all over the world. The two of them laughed, told stories, were in that development stage of a great friendship. She wasn't sure if Mouse felt the same, but in a way she felt Jay was there with them. She got why Jay got along with Mouse so well, they were so similar in many ways. Certainly their appearance and builds were different, but just the way they spoke or did certain things was practically identical. Obviously she hated the events that thrusted them into meeting each other, but strangely enough Hailey was glad to have come across Mouse.

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, things weren't as uplifting and amazing as those out in the world. Will too got some quality shut eye, but it didn't come easy. In the beginning it was him who was keeping him up. The newfound guilt of being the decision maker was weighing on him. He knew he made the right call, fully accepted it was the best course of treatment for Jay's wellbeing, but on the other hand he knew Jay would be furious. It was adding insult to injury, making his life as an amputee that much harder on him. He was going to be pissed that he wasn't aware or awake for any of this, argue that they should've fought harder for things. But there was no going back or repairing the damage. It was what it was, Jay would have to find that process of coming to terms with his new reality. The 10pm hour was when that final thought slipped into Will's mind, agreeing with things as he drifted off. Then midnight arrived.

The new day began with a flat line tune, the unexpectedness of that having Will fall out of bed with shock, literally. In reality it wasn't a flat line, but an alarm telling that something had fallen off. Will figured all sounds were universal, but apparently they weren't. By the time the nursing staff arrived at the bed Will had managed to pull the entire upper half of the hospital gown down and found nothing out of place. He moved to the IVs, central line, before coming to the pulseoximeter missing from the right index finger. With a face of florescent red, Will clipped the device back on the finger and all was well.

Until Jay slipped it off an hour later, and then an hour after that; each time Will making the journey from the chair to bed and putting things back in place. By the fourth rotation Will requested things get switched out with a velcro band that looped around the finger. Will smirked in victory as he watched Jay unconsciously brush his middle finger against the new device with nothing changing, smacking himself for not thinking about it sooner. He wasn't sure if this was Jay trying to communicate or just a tick he had developed in the passed out world, but regardless it was the first hint of stabilization on Jay's part. However not all was pretty and happy that night.

Will wasn't sure what the time was, but it was well into the night, quite possibly in the opening hours of the day. He was sound asleep, Jay perpetually breathing with small exhales spitting out in the room. All was well and quiet and then the heart monitor kicked things up a gear. It wasn't dangerously fast, but warned of things beginning to go that way. Will sat up, making sure it was a real concern and not more things falling off. That was when the whimper of pain blurted out of Jay.

"Hey, can you hear me?" The eyelids fluttered as another slip of pain sounds came out, dawning on Will that this was probably an episode of phantom pain. We'll get into this in more detail down the road, but for the time being it's a bout of pain that happens when the brain tries to connect with a limb that's no longer then. When this happens the brain sends out a signal that things are wrong, thus the pain. While the amputee understands what's going, the brain does not. Sometimes the pain is mild, other times its' worse then the trauma of the operation. As Will pressed the button for the nurse, it further dawned on Will that this was probably Jay's first occurrence of things. With this being the most coherent he'd been thus far, it was understandable that this was the brain's first attempt as signaling trouble.

"He needs another dose of pain meds," Will whispered when he nurse arrived. She went to secure the drugs while Will made his way to the upper thigh, hip region on Jay; a trick he'd learned that helped with sensation. With soft knuckles he massaged a circle on the residual limb, repeating to Jay that all was well and things would go away. It was in the insertion of meds that Jay opened his eyes briefly, not making contact but just trying to grasp his surroundings. Will smiled and spoke, Jay slipped back into unconsciousness. Ten minutes later the drugs kicked in, all things resuming their normal speed of things. It was a different moment on many fronts, but Will took comfort in the fact that Jay got through things. It was a step compared to the Everest of things still to come, but that visual confirmation of a belief did wonders. Sleep from there out was welcomed and consumed in large quantities.

All this was playing out in Will's mind as he sat up in the chair, watching Jay get prepped for the flight to Florence. It was a strange sight on a very odd, glum day. Mouse had just texted asking how Jay did, Will chuckling to himself on how to properly respond.

"He's the most difficult unconscious patient I've ever had to deal with," was Will's response, to which Mouse replied with a few dozen '?s.' A promise to elaborate was texted out along with a questioned ETA of the two of them. Will still needed to squeeze in changing and showering and the flight crew wanted to get moving ahead of schedule, something to do with approaching weather. The conversation ended and Will resumed glueing his eyes on Jay. He couldn't shake that however he looked right now, it was all about to change by day's end. This is never a situation one expects or plans ahead to be in, but somehow Will was doing okay. It was a plan, it was necessary, it was the final hurdle to getting Jay awake and towards a life outside the walls of a hospital. As if reading his mind, Jay resumed his scratching of the cord on his index with the middle finger.

…

An hour later the four of them were ready to roll. Getting Jay dressed and ready was the hardest part of all, but nevertheless he was in street clothing for the first time in a couple days, hair brushed and teeth cleaned and ready for his flight to Italy. Getting Jay ready began as a struggle and ended as a comedy show. Will and Mouse were the two preparers, sincerely having a difficult time getting a still passed out Jay to maneuver the way one does when preparing for the day. Hailey would've helped but she was too busy giggling and recording a video of the whole thing. Some may call her filming action as rude, but she knew Jay would get a kick out of it at some point. He wasn't going to believe he was this out of things, the video going to make his face blossom red.

Normally people are beyond thrilled to visit a stunning, historical, and monumental as Northern Italy, but the truth bomb of what was happening when they touched down put a damper on things. The slow march to the ambulance bay was serious, quiet, and overall strange. People waved or offered their congratulations, obviously not in the know of what was happening. The three helpers took it all as just a part of the process, acknowledging things with a smile and nod. The ambulance impressed Will and Hailey as they climbed into the back. For starters, they were amazed three people and a gurney were able to fit in the back, something that would be a rather tight squeeze back in the states. The other thing was how quiet and smooth the ride was. Now that could've had something to do the condition of the roads, but the half hour ride from the hospital didn't include a single bump or jostle of Jay. The guys were in deep conversation for the back half of the trip, Hailey lost out of the window for the whole thing. The city was magical, the tallness and decadence like something in a fairytale. Like the city of Oz, this place dangled only the finest and grandest offerings for weary travelers. If you wanted to make a name for yourself, the opportunity was right there. She somewhat hated they were leaving so soon, the true exploring having never taken place. But then again she wondered if she'd ever be able to come out here again, the memories and vibes too powerful to allow her a good time. It was in the pulling up to the airstrip that she realized her hand was on the gurney the entire time, hand resting where Jay's heal should've been. Her hand flew back liked she'd touched something hot, massaging the hand in her other as she felt Will rest a hand on her back. She swore she was fine, but honestly that wasn't the case.

Pulling up to the airstrip was feeling very James Bond, Mission Impossible style. The plane they'd soon board was about the length of a football field away from where the ambulance parked, all of them finding that odd because that meant they'd have to walk that far to the plane. Once the rig came to a halt the doors immediately flew open, a flight crew and medic greeting them with bright faces and a clipboard of papers for Will to sign. From there a medical band for the flight was handed off to Hailey who clipped it on Jay's left wrist, his collection now at a total of three.

"Ready to go," the medic asked once the papers were inked and returned. They wanted to say no, but against all good will climbed out to allow Jay to leave. It was an extremely sunny day, all of them wishing they splurged for a pair of shades. The medic was going through the drug regime and side effects of the medication they'd be using with Will when Hailey realized the gurney was speaking.

"What happened," croaked out of Jay, sounding very frog-like. By the time Hailey realized it was him, she spun around to see him trying to shield his eyes from the sun; a natural response hindered by the soft restraints loosely attached at the wrists.

"Hey sleepy, how are you feeling?" Jay found her voice, looking up at her as she hovered a hand over his face. It was incredible to finally be making eye contact with him, but there was something there that said he wasn't fully back. Call it drugs or trauma or something else entirely, but as excited as she was to see him awake, part of her was upset. Will joined the conversation, Mouse waving from the end of the gurney. The parade of people were stopped now, allowing a moment to communicate.

"I ran yesterday and forgot to stretch all the way and my calf is killing me." That one sucked royally. It was clearly a phantom pain and a bad episode at that. He was still under the impression he had an entire calf, perhaps the only saving grace in things.

"Which one," Hailey pointlessly asked.

"The left," sunk her heart to a new level. She looked to Will for guidance as the unasked for tears started welling up.

"We can give you something for it," Will responded, Jay nodding as another shooting pain worked its' way up his left side. The cluster of people were on the move again, all of them moving before turning to glance at Jay every moment they could. It appeared he was out of things to talk about, just using his time to take in his position in the world. He was clueless as to where he was and why Will and Hailey were there, but the pain all over was preventing him from asking things. Jay was loaded into the plane before Will and Hailey climbed in, each took a seat as the medic got things ready for the intubation for the flight over, standard practice for long flights.

"Okay, I'm about to give you a sedative and paralytic so you'll be sound asleep and relaxed for the trip out there." Will wasn't sure if it was the fact he hadn't opened his eyes in awhile, or he genuinely was scared, but tears were dripping down Jay's face when the pillow was removed from his head. Will reached over and grabbed a hand, gently squeezing as he watched the head be adjusted for the scope.

"Hang in there, Jay. You're going to be fine. I love you." Jay so much as fluttered his eyelids before going limp. Seconds later he was looking exactly how he did yesterday, something no one wanted to see but understood.

"Wait, where's Mouse," Hailey inquired as the plane bobbed down the runway.

"He has to go back for another week or so. He said he'll see us in Florence when he's off."

"But he didn't say anything about it. Didn't say goodbye." Will shrugged.

"That's Mouse for you. He may not do everything according to the book, but he's fine." The plane raced down the runway before everyone felt the levitation into the sky. There was a fly over Dubai before the plane took a sharp turn for the northeast. They were T-minus six hours before surgery. Understandably it was quite the somber flight to Florence.

…

The beginning of the splitting off happened outside the doors to pre-op. Before this point it was Will, Hailey, and Jay along with the flight medic who then transitioned to the doctors and nurses at the hospital. Just like Jay's journey to the place in Dubai, things were a smooth flow off the flight to ambulance to OR without hesitation or his knowledge. The paralytic and sedative were still in his system when they landed, the first drug just starting to wear off as Hailey was told she had to stay goodbye at the pre-op door.

"Why is he shaking," she asked while holding Jay's right hand?

"It's the drugs wearing off. He's regaining sensation and the ability to move. It's common but will go away soon." She had this great farewell speech written in her mind, juggled with the tone or speed at which to say it. But looking at him then, very much out of it not what she knew, all she could do was nod and release. Quite frankly she wanted this stage of things over with. He needed to be awake; talking, yelling, laughing, doing something that was human-like. Right now he was a warm corpse, a project that people on different continents were playing Operation on and she was really beginning to resent it. So whatever had to happen to get the human being side of him back, she was at peace with.

"I'll stay here till you get back," she announced as Will ventured to the other side of the unknown, gray shining doors. He let her know he heard with a wave, continuing the march towards life altering once again. Will made it as far as parking Jay and helping move him from the gurney to another one before losing all energy in a chair. He watched these strange people remove the street clothing and place another hospital gown on Jay. He watched as yet another hospital band and fresh IV lines get switched out all over. He squinted and squirmed as they removed the wrappings from the last surgery and begin to mark where the next one took place. He noted the line of the highest incision and the writing on the right leg reminding the surgeon to keep that one. But perhaps the weirdest part was the epidural insertion. His eyes were glued to Jay's face as they rolled him onto his side and pierced the middle of his back with a thick, sharp needle, designed to provide relieving drugs to his lower half. Will was both perplexed and amazed at Jay's complete lack of response, noting the strength of the sedative from the plane ride. All he could do was sit and stare. There was nothing else for him to do and honestly he was a little scared by now. Someone said something about waiting a couple moments before Jay went back but it all flew past Will. He sat, he waited, he didn't move or speak. No one ever plans to be in a spot like this, so when you are you're absolutely clueless on where to go from there. Will reminded himself that Jay literally just went through this and that he'd get through it again, but it was the level of changes that were throwing him for a guilt trip. Walking, running, driving, working, climbing steps; all these basic things we often take for granted, Jay would have to either completely re-learn to let go of forever.

The doors to the room opened and surgical team announced it was time to go. Solemn was the tone, still was the place as Will rose and met his brother at the final door before the operating room. Will did a final scan, the last snapshot of this stage, before kissing his brother's forehead and relinquishing him into the next. He thought the kiss was fitting, after all they were in Italy. Will stood there till the doors stopped swinging on their hinges, using all hearing power to obtain the next set of doors bursting open. Once he got the cue he rotated 180 degrees and didn't stop walking till Hailey grabbed his arm in the waiting room.

"Hey! So…"

"Yeah, he's in there now." She practically pushed Will into a chair, resting a hand on his back as he bent over in heartbreak. Cue the low roar of thunder in the background.

…

They were definitely not making it to the front of an Italian postcard. Their setting was a picturesque Northern Italy scene. Once the rainstorms came and went, the air went from mild crisp warmth to thick, weighing, humidity riddled fog. It was practically dark by now, the streets peppered with large hordes of tourists and their whiny children or rushing residents trying to maneuver their scooters or Italian made cars through the narrow streets. There was honking, shouting, laughter, and just random gibberish—Italian that neither Will or Hailey understood—drowning out the world. From there let's move to the location. They found a coffee shop, and not just some run of the mill Starbucks at that. It was a plastered, aged for thousands of years hole in a wall with the aroma of coffee beans wafting thick into the street. The building couldn't hold more then eight people, all of which were barking employees, so in the front was an endless supply of green, rod iron and wood tables and chairs. Go to the very middle seating arrangement and there you find Will and Hailey, one is stirring their drink into the speed of a black hole while the other is sipping and sulking in silence. Both look to have seen better days, neither look like they want to be there if their life depended on it. Each one was close, but none of them were speaking. Two pictures of glum in a sea of bright, cheerful, magical things. It was more comedic then anything else.

"Okay, first food that will be asked for. I say it'll be obvious, something so dumb it was intended to be a joke. Maybe pasta, pizza, some kind of bread…Will…..Will!" He so much as looked up from the whirlpool that was his cup, borderline glaring at her.

"You are the one insisted on coming here. I was fine with the cafeteria but you demanded that we get out of there. So let's go, pizza or pasta?" He was awestruck that she was so talkative, a hint of happiness detected in her remarks.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to help us realize that Jay is human. That despite the fact he will only have a portion of his left leg, he's still our person. Tonight or tomorrow morning he's going to wake up, Will. Like how crazy is that?!"

"And be completely mad."

"So what?! Who cares. Yes, he'll be upset. Who wouldn't if they were in his situation? But guess what, he gets to live. We get to bring him home on an airplane in a seat with us. We get to help him make the three story climb to the front door of the apartment. We will be there when he does find the perfect prosthetic and is able to start walking again. Do you realize how incredibly fortunate we are?"

"When did you become so positive," Will remarked after some time, fully appreciative of her upbeat nature.

"Oh, you should know by now this only happens after a large amount of coffee."

"Which you're on right now."

"Oh yeah," echoed through the cup glued to her lips. Will smiled, looking past her at a family of four. They were obviously not from this area, appearing very American and full of family issues. The mother was yelling for the two young boys to stop running around while they screamed, doing the very opposite that she instructed. It was like stepping back in time, dragging Will to a moment that made him chuckle.

"When we were young, like I was five, six maybe and Jay had just turned ten, he begged our parents for a TV in his room. It was at that time when parents started buying multiple TVs and putting them in kids bedrooms or dens or wherever. So one of our childhood friends had gotten one in their room and Jay was beyond jealous, spent about a week's worth of family dinners debating why he needed one and how it would help things. He's been stubborn since the day he was born. Of course my parents never took the bait, didn't even hint that they were going to consider it. So when things didn't go his way he confided in me that he was going to go on a hunger strike until they caved. That plan lasted about three hours. I found him in the kitchen downing a sleeve of Oreos while concluding a TV wasn't that big of a deal after all." Hailey burst out laughing, Will rolling his eyes in memory as he finally took a sip of his coffee. It was cold by now but oh goodness was it good.

"That completely sounds like something he'd do now," she replied while wiping tears away from her eyes.

"I honestly don't know how he eats as much as he does and stays in the shape that he is. So to answer your question, it will be an American twist on pasta: mac and cheese. And I bet on that."

"How much?"

"Five bucks."

"You're on."

"So what else?" Hailey perked her eyebrows up.

"What else will go down between now and when we finally get to head home."

"Oh, he'll ask to leave or about leaving by tomorrow night, the next day at the latest."

"Agreed."

"He'll try to get up but can't and so he'll enlist you to get him around places."

"Are you insisting that I'm a pushover?"

"Hey, you said it not me."

"Okay…ah, here's one. Refusal of pain meds."

"Oh, no way. He's about to wake up to probably the worst pain of his life. Anything sort of breakage or changing of a femur ranks high up there with pain levels. He's stubborn but he's not that bad."

"True." Will felt his phone buzz in his pocket, collecting it with one hand before selecting the incoming text. The message was in all caps and from a five digit number. It was the moment they'd wanted and dreaded for a long time now.

"Speak of the devil, he's done." Will looked up to Hailey who had brought her lips to a point on a corner of her face, eyebrows were raised and face looking as if she'd been inhaling forever. It was finished, now came the aftermath. Hailey took his cup and hers before he could protest, placed them on the counter in the coffee bar before briskly walking back to Will.

"Let's get going before he wakes up." She extended and hand for him to stabilize on and he accepted. In a totally joking, friendly manner, the two walked off with arms linked. They were off to see the wizard about helping their friend eventually find his way back home.

…

When they jokingly coined the 'wizard' term, it was pure speculation. Neither of them had seen the man before, nor had they even heard of him. Down the road they came to learn he was a brilliant plastic surgeon turned trauma amputation expert. His pioneering efforts in the technique and tools used in that field seemed to almost be destined for his success in the new field. He fully understood the human body and all its' intended curvature and design. Furthermore he knew the ideal, or just accepted looks. For him to go from an area of surgery about shaping, design, and appearance into another that hinges on that was basically an automatic fit. Just as in plastics, his work was revered by those that fell under his training and knife skills. Will was forever grateful that the doctors in Dubai knew of this person and had the humility to ship Jay out here. But today, as they watched the man walk through the waiting room doors and greet them with a curt nod, they couldn't help but feel his reputation outreached his stature. Literally the man was small, barely above 5'5. Will wondered if he had to utilize a step ladder to reach the operating table. He was definitely in the latter half of life, the horn rimmed, thick dark glasses and white scruff gave that away. His skin was wrinkled and ashy, years of smoking Will assumed. He was thin yet not muscular, everything about him screamed European. Hailey mentally concluded that he drove a Vespa or Fiat into work every morning and the odds of an ascot hanging up somewhere in his office was high. As the two of them stood to greet him they almost felt rude, acting as giant Americans against the small Italian foe. Will began to speak his gratitude but the man waved his hands, doing his best to tell his guests that he spoke zero english. Out of all the things that could've been his downfall, the language barrier was something they all could overcome.

"Sorry I'm late," the presumed translator spit out. She was rushed, hair catching up to the rest of her. Hailey did a small eye roll as she watched Will's mouth quickly open and shut. The translator looked to be a full-time model, part-time speaker. There was nothing wrong with her in any way. Her hair was perfectly pulled back in a high ponytail. Her skin was flawless and the perfect shade of sun kissed. She wasn't pale nor did she look like something on the Jersey Shore, it was an envious shade. She looked to not have an ounce of fat on her and every muscle was toned and perfectly in line with her rather tall frame. She could've been on the front page of Vogue. The wizard and his assistant were quite the partnership, their American counterparts convinced they'd just walked into an Italian comedy film.

"So you guys are.."

"Brother and friend."

"Ah, great." The wizard began rattling off something in Italian rather fast, the translator smiling and nodding before going on.

"The operation went great. No issues or potential setbacks at this point. As mentioned by the previous hospital and surgeons he's going to be a great candidate for a prosthetic once he gets to that point of the recovery." The wizard went on, stopping her from speaking and resuming her nodding and smiling.

"He says the patient is very fortunate to have had such a developed and strong hamstring and thigh muscles because they are now excellent cushions for the femur and shouldn't give him too much trouble when it comes to balancing and walking." Another pause, another round of smiling and nodding, and the stunning translator went on.

"If there was any issues during the whole procedure it was that they had to remove a little more of the leg then originally thought, but its' probably an inch at the most. He's doing great in recovery and breathing on his own."

"Is he awake?"

"A little. He opened his eyes before the breathing tube was removed but after that he just looked around. He's resting right now."

"Is the epidural working?"

"It's hard to know for sure. Based on the notes given to us from the other hospital, yes. He's not writhing in pain nor has there been a large swing in the blood pressure like before. That could still happen as the body reacts and adjusts to the new changes, but overall he's doing a lot better. But then again he isn't fully awake so we won't know for sure till he is."

"What about a timeline of things?"

"Ideally the doctor would like to see him sitting up in by day three, moving to a chair the next day. Walking won't happen till day six at the earliest and that will only be within the room. He will have to stay here a week to ten days and then a couple more days in the area. But all this hinges on how bad the pain is. That has to be under control before we can move forward with anything. You guys are wanting to bring him back to the states soon right?"

"Yeah. My concern is having him sit on a plane for that long and run the risks of clots or just stiffness."

"Absolutely. We can give him medication for the clots and the other can be remedied with standing or walking around between flights. It's not prescribed that he gets on a plane so soon after but it's not out of the question. Anymore questions?"

"When can he start physical therapy and the prosthetic process?"

"After stitches are removed and swelling goes down. So four to six weeks. Anything else?" Will peeled himself away from the assumed model and towards Hailey, who side stepped in place while shaking her head.

"Excellent! Ready to go see him?" Like that was something that even had to be asked.

A small cliffhanger, but a good one I'd say. So how is everyone doing? I promise the next chapters will have some lighter moments, starting with the fact that Jay will be more awake. Thanks so much for reading!