Tony sat up on the couch in the waiting room. It was late at night now and Tony was unable to go to sleep or will himself to drive home. He knew that he really should be with Sadie but he was afraid to leave the hospital. Afraid that if he left something would happen to Jack or Ziva would take a bad turn. Afraid that in either case he wouldn't be able to get back in time. Gibbs had stayed as long as he could but he needed to get back to Amira. Jimmy had to care for Emma and Abby had Sadie that night. Ducky and McGee had said they would come and stay the night with him but neither showed up. Ducky had called and said that he was too tired to drive but McGee just didn't show. Tony knew that Ziva and Jack being sick made him uncomfortable and he was avoiding the hospital at all costs. He understood that his NCIS family had their own lives and families to attend to but he hated being alone and not knowing if his son would be OK or not. He kept telling himself what Gibbs had said that Jack was strong and had strong parents but he still couldn't accept it.
"Tony?" Vance asked.
"Vance? What are you doing here?" Tony asked.
"Just thought I would check in." Vance replied.
"At one in the morning?" Tony questioned.
"Couldn't sleep" Vance admitted.
"Yeah me either." Tony replied.
"How are they?" Vance asked.
"Ziva is doing really well and should be able to come home soon but Jack is he's struggling." Tony explained.
"I am sorry. Do they know anything?" Vance asked.
"Not really" Tony replied.
"I am praying for the little guy." Vance replied.
"We all are." Tony replied.
"Good" Vance replied.
"Gibbs gave him an order not to die this afternoon. Like he did for me when I had the plague years ago." Tony explained.
"Has he changed any since then?" Vance asked.
"No" Tony admitted.
"Well at least he hasn't gotten any worse." Vance offered.
"Yeah there's that." Tony sighed.
"Please try to be positive." Vance begged.
"I am trying." Tony replied.
"When Jackie was about seven months pregnant with Jared she developed preeclampsia. It was bad they had to deliver him in the ambulance. Jackie was sterilized after his birth and barely clung to life for two days. She finally came to and was fine but Jared was in the NICU for three months. He kept getting infections and had pneumonia. That whole time we were sure we were going to lose him. So sure that we looked at tiny coffins and had our priest come to baptize him. We even started preparing Kayla for his death. Just when he was at his worst and we were sure there was no way he would recover. He bounced back and was moved into the step-down unit the next day. When we brought him home a week later they warned us about Cerebral Palsy and other disabilities and said that he would probably be retarded but he is fine. He has some minor learning disabilities but he is healthy, strong, and smart." Vance explained.
"I never knew that." Tony commented.
"I can't usually talk about it. That was the most terrifying time of my life but I wanted to show you that there is hope." Vance explained.
"I have been hearing similar stories since Jack was born but I am still afraid." Tony admitted.
"Well you have support." Vance replied squeezing Tony's shoulders.
Vance left Tony alone again at about three in the morning. After he left Tony tried to go to sleep again. This time he was able to relax but he still couldn't fall asleep. He just lay on the couch and drifted in and out of consciousnesses until morning. At seven in the morning he woke up and went to the cafeteria for breakfast. By the time he was done eating visiting hours had started and he was able to go see Ziva again. When he got to her room. She was sitting up in bed eating her breakfast.
"Morning Tony" Ziva greeted.
"Morning Ziva" Tony replied.
"How was your night?" Ziva asked.
"Rough how was yours?" Tony asked.
"Same" Ziva replied.
"You getting out of here today?" Tony asked.
"After breakfast." Ziva replied.
"Good" Tony replied.
"How is Jack?" Ziva asked.
"Same" Tony replied.
"Oh can we see him before we go?" Ziva asked.
"Are you going to feel up to it?" Tony asked.
"Yes I just have to take it easy." Ziva assured.
"OK, Jack should see his mom." Tony replied.
"I want to hold him." Ziva sniffed.
"Me too... Me too" Tony replied.
Abby had a dentist appointment. So Gibbs was keeping Sadie for the morning. The two of them spent the morning drawing picture for her new brother and talking about why he had to stay in the hospital. Gibbs had kept it simple. Telling her that he was sick and needed the doctors to give him special care so it may be a long time before she could see him. Tony and him had agreed not to mention that Jack could die unless he did or he became too sick to survive. No need to upset her for no real reason.
"I can't wait to meet, Jack." Sadie said.
"Me too" Gibbs replied.
"Will I be able to hold him?" Sadie asked.
"Maybe but that depends what your parents say." Gibbs explained.
"I hope I can." Sadie replied.
"I hope you get to hold him too." Gibbs agreed.
"What does he look like?" Sadie asked.
"He is really tiny but I think he is going to look like you." Gibbs explained.
"That's cool." Sadie replied.
A/N: Sorry for dragging Jack's struggle out so long but I can't decide if I want him to survive or not. New chapter will be up soon. Please review and thanks for reading.