Unite

"-but there's been no change. Normally we'll have seen a spike in blood pressure or other vitals by this point, but he's remained in the same stabilized condition he was a year ago."

Sam was paying hardly any attention to the words coming out of the doctor's mouth. All that she could do was stare across the hospital room where her husband lay, completely still, on the cold, white bed. He was hooked up to so many machines that Sam couldn't tell which wires were connected where.

He had been like this for almost a full year now.

"-Perhaps now would be a good time to begin going over some other options-"

"Options?" Sam frowned, turning her attention back to the doctor at her side. "What options do I have? You said you've done all you could do for him. You mean there's something else? Well then do it! If it can help Freddie then-"

"I don't think you quite understand what I meant," the doctor said gently.

"Well what did you mean then?" Sam demanded.

The doctor sighed heavily. "Did you and your husband ever discuss what you would want the other to do in a situation like this?"

Sam shook her head. "No," she said coldly. "Somehow him being in a coma for a year never came up in conversation."

"Well," the doctor continued. "When we have patients like Mr. Benson who have been in a coma for this long with no change, we find that sometimes the families of said patients find it either to…end the suffering."
Sam stared at the doctor. "Are you suggesting…you want to take him off of life support?"

"It might be best to consider-"

"No!" Sam said angrily. "How dare you even-Aren't you doctors supposed to be trying to help him? You want to kill him!"

"We're still doing everything we can to help your husband," the doctor replied calmly. "But you need to consider all options."

"It's still a no," Sam spat, leaving the doctors side as she walked over to Freddie's bedside and sat down in the hard hospital chair.

She heard the doctor leave the room, and once she was sure she was alone, Sam's composure dropped. She shut her eyes tightly, wishing more than anything that when she opened them, she'd find herself in her bed at home and realize this was all just some horrible nightmare. She'd look over on the right side of the bed and see Freddie stirring beside her, perfectly healthy and okay.

But when she opened her eyes, she was greeted with the same hospital room, and Freddie was sill motionless.

Almost a year ago to the day, Freddie had been in a terrible car accident on his way home from work. A truck nearly twice the size of his car had missed a red light and had come speeding through an intersection just as Freddie had been passing. The truck had collided with Freddie's car, flipping it over with Freddie helplessly inside of it.

Sam would never forget that phone call…

…..

"Emma, go set the table," Sam said, handing a stack of dishes to her ten-year old daughter. "Dinner's almost ready."
"I set the table yesterday," Emma complained. "Can't Ashton do it?"

"I asked you, now go," Sam said firmly.

"What's for dinner?" fourteen-year old Jason asked, coming into the kitchen.

"Meatloaf," Sam replied, handing him a pitcher of iced tea. "Go put that on the table."

"Is dad home yet?" Ashton asked as her and Tyler entered the kitchen.

"No, I don't know what's taking his nubby butt so long," Sam said, rolling her eyes. "He should've been home ten minutes ago. I swear, if he went out to do something fun while I've been stuck here all day…"

"Can we eat now?" Tyler asked, following Sam into the dining room as Sam placed the large meatloaf on the table.

"No, let's give your dad a few more minutes to get home," Sam said. "But if he's still not here in ten more minutes, we'll start without him. I'm not eating cold meatloaf."

The second she sat down at her seat, she heard her phone ring from the kitchen.

That better be Freddie with a good excuse for being late, Sam thought as she got up to answer. What does he think? That he can just leave me home alone with four kids all day?
But the number flashing on her screen wasn't Freddie's. In fact, Sam didn't even recognize it.

"Hello?" Sam answered, expecting to hear an automated recording trying to sell her something.

"Is this Samantha Benson?" a voice on the other end asked.

And it was at that second, when she heard the seriousness and graveness in the voice, that she knew something was wrong.

"Y-Yes," Sam said. "Who's this?"

"I have you listed here as the emergency contact of Fredward Benson," the voice replied. "Is that correct."

"Yes, he-he's my husband," Sam said, trying to keep her voice down so the four kids in the other room wouldn't hear, but also feeling her heard thudding out of her chest. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Your husband was involved in a very serious car accident," the voice told her. "He was struck by a truck at the intersection of Maple and Freeport. He was just brought here in critical condition and is currently in surgery."

"Oh my God, I-I-" Sam stammered, feeling as though her legs were about to give out. Freddie was hurt…

"Are you able to get to the hospital, Ma'am?" the voice asked, drawing Sam back to reality.
"Yes," Sam said at once. "Yes, I-I'll be right there."

She hung up her phone, her whole body shaking. For a moment she stood there, unsure of whether she could even find the strength to move her limbs.

"Mom, can I have a snack at least?" Jason asked, coming back into the kitchen. "I'm starving and-"

He stopped talking as he caught sight of his mother's face.

"Mom?" Jason said softly.

"Jason," Sam said, her son's voice bringing her back. She quickly grabbed her car keys and purse. "You need to watch your brother and sisters. Call Carly and tell her to come over with you guys. Tell her-Tell her it's an emergency."
"What happened?" Jason asked. "Did-Did something happen?"

"I-I'll call later, I-I just need to go now," Sam told her eldest child.

And with that she raced out of the house.

…..

It had been late into the night that horrible day when Sam received the news that Freddie was in a coma. And at first when she heard, she was relieved, because that meant he was at least alive. But then weeks passed, and Freddie still remained in the same state, and it began to sink in for Sam that Freddie was far from okay.

She heard footsteps behind her, and she turned around to see Jason, Emma, Ashton and Tyler coming into the room.

"We brought you some food from the cafeteria," seven-year old Tyler said, handing his mother a bag of stale chips.

Sam gave him a small smile. "Thanks, sweetie."

The children stared at their father, who, for all they knew, wasn't even aware of their presence in the room.

Sam could see the toll this past year had taken on the kids. Gone were their usual sparks of energy and their carefree smiles. Instead it now seemed that they were now trapped in a permanent state of grief.

Sam had tried to keep things as normal as possible for them, but when your father is lying in a hospital for eleven months, normal can be hard to come by.

"We should get going," Sam said, getting to her feet. "You all have school tomorrow. Oh, and you have that soccer game tomorrow too, Emma. You need to get plenty of sleep tonight."

"Do I have to go?" Emma asked softly.

Sam nodded. "You love soccer, Emma."

Emma didn't reply.

"Your dad wouldn't want you to just quit on your team like that," Sam said gently. "Now come on, say goodbye and let's go home."

The four slowly stepped over to the bed as if they were approaching a fragile child.

Ashton spoke first. "Bye daddy," she whispered. "I'll see you tomorrow. I love you."

Sam could see the tears in her daughter's eyes as she spoke, and it broke her heart.

"Bye, dad," Tyler said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a drawing. "I made this for you in school today. It's me and you playing tag in the backyard like we used to."

He placed the picture on the table next to the bed that was filled with cards and flowers and other gifts people had brought.

Sam wondered how much her youngest child knew about what was going on. Seven was a young age to grasp such a concept…

Emma went next. "Bye dad," Emma said softly. "I'll try to score a goal for you tomorrow. It's-It's weird not having you cheering for me at my games anymore."

Emma had always been the rock of the family; she had inherited Sam's philosophy when it came to showing emotions. Sam could tell Emma was trying as hard as she could not to break down, but it was getting harder every day.

"Bye dad," Jason said, his voice cracking with emotion. "We-We'll come back to see you tomorrow. We all love you and-and want you to come out of this."
Since the accident, Sam had been amazed at how Jason had stepped up to take his father's place in the family during his absence. He had helped Sam out tremendously. He had been looking after his younger siblings a lot lately now that Sam had to go back to work full-time to cover the hospital bills, and he looked after the house as well, and been there for Sam when she felt like she couldn't keep going.

Sam didn't know what she would do without him. She had to remind herself sometimes that he was still only fifteen, and was just a child himself.

"Okay," Sam said. "Start heading down to the lobby. I-I'll meet you guys out there in a second."

As the Benson children filed out of the room, Sam looked sadly down at her husband.

"I know you're fighting real hard, baby," she whispered, taking his limp hand in hers. "But please try to wake up. I-I love you and-and I hate seeing you like this. Please, Freddie. Don't leave us like this. We all need you."

She squeezed his hand gently. "I love you," she said again.

But the beeping of the monitors was the only response she received, and the hand that had once felt so warm in hers felt cold to the touch.

….

"I picked you up some lunch," Carly said the next day, poking her head into Sam's office at work.

"Huh?" Sam said, looking up from the keyboard she was typing away at. She glanced over at the clock and saw that it was late into the afternoon. "Oh, thanks."

Sam had gone back to work as a script editor about six months ago once she realized the part-time work she did as a writer for the station wasn't going to be enough to support the family. She was thankful to have Carly as a co-worker, though, who had covered for her more than once when she needed to leave early to be with Freddie or the kids.

"So," Carly said, sitting down at the empty chair by Sam's desk. "How are things?"
"Fine," Sam shrugged, biting into the turkey sandwich Carly had brought for her. "I should have these edits done within the next hour and then I can start on-"

"I wasn't talking about work," Carly said gently.

Sam sighed, leaning back in her seat. "There's still no change. The kids and I were there for five hours yesterday; we went the second they got out of school. It's still like he doesn't even know we're there."

"I was reading online that there's a lot of evidence that says coma patients are aware of their surroundings," Carly said supportively. "I'm sure he knows you're there and is glad you guys are visiting him. He just can't, well…"

"Wake up," Sam finished heavily.

"Yeah," Carly said softly.

The two women were silent for a moment.

"You know the doctors talked to me yesterday about something," Sam said.

"What about?"

"They said maybe I should consider taking-taking Freddie off of life support," Sam said, the words barely coming out of her mouth. "It's crazy, right? How can they expect me to just let my husband die like that? What kind of doctor would even suggest that? It's totally ridiculous!"
She had expected her best friend to be outraged, just as she was. But instead Carly was silent.

"You-You think I should do it then?" Sam frowned.

"I didn't say that," Carly said quickly. "It's just…Sam, its been a year."

"Really? I didn't know," Sam snapped. "What's your point?"
"Well…you-you just said there hasn't been any change," Carly said. "And it's been the same story for a year. Maybe it would be best if-if-"

"If I kill my husband?" Sam said darkly.

"No!" Carly said at once. "Of course not! But Sam, have-have you thought about what Freddie would want?"
"What do you mean?"

"Do you think Freddie would want to be kept alive like this?" Carly asked softly. "By a bunch of machines? Not able to even open his eyes or move?"
Sam bit her lip, feeling her eyes burn. "I don't know," she whispered honestly. "I-I don't think he'd want to spend his life in a hospital…No, I know he wouldn't. But-But it's only been a year. Is that really long enough to even be considering this? Aren't there people who come out of comas twenty years later, perfectly fine? What if he's only a few more months away from waking up and-and I go and tell the doctors to pull the plug and-and I never get to see him again? What if the kids spend the rest of their life thinking that I killed their father by doing this?"

She was openly crying now, and Carly wrapped her arms around her.

"I don't know what the right thing is for you to do, Sam," Carly said. "I-I'm sorry. I don't think there's an easy answer for this, and it sucks. But-But just know…whatever you decide to do, in the end, Freddie will know you did it because you love him."

…..

Later that day, after Sam had picked up the kids from school and Emma from her soccer game, the family returned to the hospital, as they did every day.

"Why can't he just wake up?" Tyler asked softly as the family walked into Freddie's room.

He had asked that question so many times before…

"He just can't, honey," Sam said, wishing she had a better explanation.

She sat down by Freddie's bedside.

"Hi, Freddie," she said, staring at her husband's sleeping face. His face looked so empty when they weren't filled with his big, brown eyes. "We're here; sorry we're a little later than usual. Emma was the star of her game; she scored three goals and won the game."

She turned to the four kids. "You all need dinner. Here, take my credit card and go get yourself something from the cafeteria?"

"You want anything?" Ashton asked her mother.

Sam shook her head. "I'm not hungry."
"We'll bring you a sandwich," Jason said, patting his mother's shoulder.

When Sam was alone, she picked up Freddie's hand, bringing it up to her lips and planting a small kiss on his knuckles.

"Baby…I hate seeing you like this," she whispered. "I just want things to go back to normal. I don't want to have to spend another night without having you next to me."
She looked up at the monitor above his head. It was still beeping steadily.

"I don't know what to do, Freddie," she said shakily. "I wish there was someway you could tell me. I love you, and I can't stand to see you suffering like this. It breaks my heart every day to see you here in this bed knowing-knowing that I can't help you. I'd give anything to just see you open your eyes. I'd give anything to have you back."

Tears were falling down into Freddie's hand, which Sam was still clutching.

"I'd give anything to hear your voice again," she continued heavily. "Telling me to stop touching one of your stupid Galaxy Wars toys. I'd do anything to see you running around with the kids in the yard again, or to have you almost burn the house down trying to cook some healthy meal or have you obsess over the stupidest things or-or to have you kiss me again.

"I'd do anything, baby. But I just don't know what to do…I just don't know. I'm sorry."

She'd have thought after a year of tears, her eyes would've dried up by this point, but the tears still fell as easily as the day she got the call from the hospital.

"I'm sorry, Freddie," Sam sniffed. "I'm so-"

But then suddenly, she felt a weak squeeze around her hand.

She stopped crying at once and looked down at Freddie's hand in hers. His fingers were slowly bending.

"Freddie?" she whispered, hardly daring to believe what she was seeing and feeling.

But then the monitors, that had beeped so monotonously for a year burst into life, and the lines across the screen began to move.

"Freddie?" Sam said again. "Oh my God...Freddie? Freddie, can you hear me? Freddie! Wake up! Wake up!"

And then

And then, after so many months of being closed, Freddie's eyes began to twitch and slowly, very slowly, they opened.

"Freddie!" Sam gasped, almost knocking the chair over as she jumped to her feet. "Oh my God! Hey! Hey, someone!"
She desperately pressed the call button on the side of her husband's bed.

"Sam…" Freddie mumbled weakly. His voice was raspy and groggy, but Sam didn't care. The moment he uttered her name, nothing else mattered anymore.

"Oh my God!" Sam said, covering her mouth with her hand. Tears were still streaming down her face, but they were a different kind of tears.

They were tears of joy.

"You're awake!"
She threw her arms around him, wanting nothing more than to make up for a years worth of loss contact.

"Sam," Freddie mumbled again, wincing.

"Sorry," Sam said at once, standing up. "I just…I've missed you. I've missed you so much."

"Where…where am-Am I at home?" Freddie said, blinking as the bright hospital lights his cornea for the first time.

"No," Sam said. "No, baby, you're in the hospital. There was an accident…but you're okay now, that's all that matters! You're okay!"

Freddie managed to give his wife a half smirk. "You-Are you crying?"

Sam couldn't help but laugh as she quickly wiped her eyes.

"I can't believe this…" Sam said, not wanting to ever take her eyes off of her husband. "I thought I'd never…Baby, you scared me."

"I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry," Sam said, gripping his hand tightly. She didn't think she'd ever let go.

"Where-Are the kids…they here?" Freddie asked, and Sam could tell how difficult it must be for him to speak after a year of silence.

"Yes, yes they're here," Sam nodded. "Oh, they've missed you so much too. Hang on, I'll call them and tell them to come up-"

"The cafeteria is closed, mom," Ashton said as the four kids suddenly came through the door. "They're cleaning it. Someone apparently puked all over the-Dad!"

The second the kids realized that their father was no longer in a comatose state, their faces all broke out into their first real smiles Sam had seen on them in far too long.

"Dad!" Tyler exclaimed, running at full force towards the bed. "Dad! You're up!"

"You're finally up!" Emma beamed.

"I can't believe it!" Jason grinned.

"Guys, careful!" Sam said as the kids all crowded the bed, hugging their father.

"It's okay," Freddie said.

"Yeah," Sam whispered, still holding tightly to Freddie's hand. "It is now."