As I promised, here's another update before the week's over. I had one more scene to write to tie the flashback to the rest of the chapter. But I don't have time so I had to break this chapter in two. And I'm not happy with that!
But I'll be super busy until next Thursday so I had to update NOW.
I will be going out of town for new years and my next update would probably be then. I'm sorry
But anyways, I want to thank all of you who for the reviews! You guys seriously make my day!
And as always, ENJOY!
-FLASHBACK-
She rushed from one room to another, picking up everything she thought she might need. After getting all her things packed, her last stop was Aaron's room and just like she did with her clothes, she just threw the large pile into another empty suitcase. She didn't have time to neatly fold them in, or make a list of things to pack like she always did when they went on a trip.
But this time it was different.
Much, much different…
"It was all happening so fast." She thought. She took a few steps back and looked around the room. At the placing of the jungle themed furniture, at the glowing stars up on the ceiling, the photos of the 3 of them in frames Aaron had made…
Every part in that tiny room meant something to her. Wherever she looked a memory popped in her mind.
She just stood there, staring, trying to find answers in the bright colors of the furniture and the toys lying on the floor.
When did all this happen? Just a few months ago they were a happy family everyone envied. And now…
Now, everything was shattered into a million pieces and Kate no longer had the strength or the energy to put them back together.
So there she was, doing the one thing she knew best, running away.
After a few minutes of standing in the middle of the room, motionless, she finally got herself to start moving again. Opening the tree shaped wardrobe, she took out all of her son's winter clothes and put them inside another suitcase.
She could clearly remember the hours she and her husband spent, trying to draw the plans for this very nursery. To her it was just like yesterday.
They were going to have their first child, a boy, and they wanted everything to be special and perfect. All the furniture in his room were custom-made and was a gift from Tom's parents. The room was quickly filled with all the necessary needs and even more. The only missing thing was their son.
And one morning when they both woke up to a devastating scene, their entire life was ruined. Kate had gone into early labor and lost their firstborn on the same day.
They never went back to being their old selves. Kate kept blaming herself for what happened and Tom shut himself off into his work.
But then Aaron came along, their miracle…
The nursery that hadn't been touched since they lost the baby was finally filled with the beautiful baby scent.
The day of his arrival was the best day for both their lives.
Tom and Kate were childhood friends. They grew up together, side-by-side.
There was nothing in this world that could break them apart. He was always the rock she leaned on, her safe haven.
Whenever there was trouble at home she used to sneak out and go straight into say into the safety of Tom's arms.
He was there when her parents got divorced and when her mother got remarried.
He was there, promising her that he would take her away after every time Wade would abuse her.
He was the only person she trusted in, opened up to and felt safe around.
And all he ever wanted was to get her out of the life she was living.
If it hadn't been for Tom, Kate would grow up to more messed up adulthood. But he picked up her pieces and convinced her to continue to high school.
And after that, he helped her get into college.
He even supported her when she decided become a special needs teacher even though she'd worked so hard to get her law degree.
They got married the day after he graduated from med school. They couldn't wait any longer. On their high school graduation, Tom gave Kate a promise. He promised her that he would create this perfect life for them far away from Ames/Iowa. They would get married and live somewhere warm and have the 9 kids that wanted to have when they were little. But there was only thing he asked from her. He just needed her to wait. Wait until he finished med school and had a proper job before he became a husband.
That's why the decided to have a private ceremony at the City Hall. Didn't need anyone else but themselves to celebrate their love.
Of course Tom's parents, Emma and Robert got really mad at the young couple but they didn't care.
They loved each other and we're starting a life together.
That was all that mattered.
"Where we going mommy?" She heard her little boy ask. She quickly wiped the tears that escape down her cheeks. She didn't realize that she was crying.
She closed the suitcase and zipped it up. Then turned around and knelt next Aaron and smiled.
"Were going on a vacation baby."
The boy jumped around and excitement. "Really?"
She kissed him on the forehead.
"Yeah, really. So why don't you pick up your favorite toys and books and put them in your backpack."
"Okay mommy." He said and started running around the room.
They ended up using another suitcase because Aaron decided that all his toys needed a vacation too. Kate placed everything in the car and went back inside to pack some snacks. She would be on the road for days with her always-hungry boy. She put a few packages dinosaur crackers into his Buzz Lightyear backpack.
"Aaron-asaurus'" she thought. The little boy was obsessed with dinosaurs ever since he understood what they were. And his father always used to call him that. That was one of the many memories the father and son shared.
They would build up a tent in the middle of the living room and go on a dino-safari. Aaron would bring all the stuffed dinosaurs and they would talk about the different types. Their colors, height, eating habits, where they lived... They would spend the entire night dressed up as two explorers and eating junk food. Kate would eventually find them sleeping. Aaron safely lying in his daddy's arms...
Kate smiled at the picture she drew in her mind.
But she stopped herself immediately.
She needed to stop thinking about Tom, remove him from her memories and only focus on herself and Aaron.
That was the only way she could keep the most important person in her life.
She needed to heal.
For herself…
And for Aaron…
-END OF FLASHBACK-
"Jack!" Aaron said and hugged him. Then with a sweet smile on his face, he went outside and looked around for the one person he missed most.
"Come here, Aaron." Jack said and invited the boys inside. "Your mommy couldn't come with me today."
"But why?" The boy whined
"She's resting so she can get better."
"Can't she get better here?"
"She needs the special things we have at the hospital."
"But I missed her. A lot."
"I know you do… And she'll be here soon. We just need to give her a little more time to get better."
The boy nodded but his eyes were still filled with tears. Jack picked him up in his arms and tried to comfort the scared child.
Margo touched Jack's arm and by simply looking into his eyes, she told him that they needed to talk.
"Aaron, why don't you go upstairs and play with your toys for a bit. Jack and I will join you in a sec." She said.
"Okay." He said. Right as he was climbing up the stairs, he turned around to Jack.
"Auntie Margo gave me all your old toys Jack! You had a lot of them!"
"Yeah, I did buddy. And I will come up and play with you as soon as I finish talking with Auntie Margo. Okay?"
"Okay!" he answered and continued running up to his temporary room.
The old woman led the way to the kitchen.
"Where the hell were you Jack? You left me here with a little boy and you haven't even called me to tell me what's been going on!" She yelled at him as silent as she could. The last thing she wanted was Aaron to hear this conversation and was him to build a much stronger wall between them.
"I'm sorry. I couldn't leave her. I just... couldn't."
His mother sighed. "Did you know this woman from somewhere before?"
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?"
"We'll because honey, you are acting very differently about all this. A doctor doesn't usually sleep at the hospital just to be with a patient. A doctor..." She whispered. "Doesn't break the law for a simple patient."
"So I should've just let the social services take him and cause him to loose his mother forever." He snapped. "If it's so hard for you to take care of him for a few days, I can get someone else to-"
"Did I say that?" Margo said in surprise. "Why are you acting like this Jack? I told you that I'd help you. I only want to protect you from getting hurt. Look, I know you Jack. You're my son. I'm aware of the fact that you're acting like the way you did with Sarah. You're still healing from what happened with her. You shouldn't get attached to anyone else right now."
"Mom-"
"I'm not done. Look, I know you're trying to help them. And you feel responsible for them. But please keep in mind that Jack, you can't save everyone. "
Jack decided not to comment on that. He wanted this conversation to be over as soon as possible.
Everyone in his life thought that he was always feeling an exaggerated amount of responsibility towards all his patients. And they took it as their job to warn him that he can't save everyone, just like his dad did when Jack was little.
" Don't choose, Jack, don't decide. You don't want to be a hero. You don't want to try and save everyone because when you fail... you just don't have what it takes"
"I can see that you getting mad at me. Just like you used to when you were little. You're a stubborn man; Jack Shepherd and you never listen to what other people tell you. Just think about what I just told you, okay? I don't want you to get attached to her and this beautiful little boy. They might leave and go far away from here as soon as she wakes up. I don't want you to get hurt."
"Okay, mom."
"Good. So how long will I have my little guest staying?"
"They're keeping Kate in a medically induced coma for a couple of days. Maybe they'll wake her up today. I'm not sure. "
"Okay then, I say we go out for a little bit of shopping. He doesn't have anything to wear and a few new toys might actually cheer him up."
"We don't need to do that. I'm tired anyway. I just want to get a few hours of sleep and go back to the hospital."
Just as he finished his sentence, he felt someone tugging on his pants and looked down to see Aaron.
"I want to show you something." He said and dragged him up the stairs to the guest room he was currently staying in.
The entire room was "decorated" with a child's touch. He had arranged all the toys in a specific place. There were several blankets on the bed and a few on the floor. Also by the bed, there were twin chairs that had two large stuffed bears, neatly placed. On of the bears was actually a birthday gift Jack had got from his father when he was 7. Of course it was a bear that wore surgical scrubs. What else could his father have got him?
"Look! Mommy can come here now. I made this room very special! Just like the hospital. Look..." He said and pulled him towards the bed. "I put 4 blankies here so she can stay warm. And there are two chairs here. Dr. Teddy and his friend are sitting here right now but when mommy comes you and I can sit here and take care of her. All the toys could help make her better!"
"Aaron... This room looks amazing! And I'm sure you mom will love staying when she gets out of the hospital."
"Today?" He asked.
"No. Not today buddy. But soon... Really, really soon."
"But I want her to come! I made the room special! Like the hospital… Like you said… She can come! Bring her here! I want my mommy!" He cried and started punching the toys and kicking the furniture.
Margo rushed to the room while Jack picked the boy up and tried to hold him still and clam him down. But instead, he continued to punch and kick Jack.
He had no idea what to say or how to act around him. In his arms, was a 4-year-old boy who needed his mother more than anything…
"It's okay, Aaron. Jack will bring her here soon. Look, look at the toys honey. You're making them sad too. Don't cry. Please don't cry." Margo tried to soothe him but it didn't work. He started throwing a much bigger fit. He managed to free himself from Jack's arms and started running downstairs and out the back door.
Jack and Margo chased him to the backyard that was covered in snow. They found the in the middle of the snow with his bare feet.
He was running without knowing where to go.
Just running…
So they decided to let him do that and calm himself down. They watched him run around for a good 5 minutes and at the end he slowly walked back to the only two people he knew he was safe around.
He was still silently crying. But the tear soaked face was the only thing left from the screaming boy a few minutes ago.
Margo quickly wrapped him in a warm blanket and took off his wet clothes. Instead, she made him wear one of jacks T-shirts.
They were all sitting in the warm living room, including Ronin. Aaron was sitting on the floor whispering something to the dog while the mother and son glanced at each other, both expecting the other to make the first move to talk with the boy.
"Aaron do you want to talk about what just happened?" Jack finally asked.
He shook his head and continued playing with the dog's soft, golden fur.
Jack looked at his mother to see what else he should do but the old woman was clueless as well.
So finally Jack decided to forget that it ever happened and do something he thought the boy would enjoy.
"So, Aaron. Do you like Christmas?"
His face lit up immediately. "Yes!"
"It's really close, you know. Why don't we go to the mall and get some presents."
"Really? Can we get one for mommy as well?" He asked.
"Of course we can! Anything you want."
"And a Christmas tree! Or else Santa won't come!"
"Okay kiddo, we'll get a Christmas tree as well."
By the end of the day, the two adults were exhausted with a little boy who still was very enthusiastic and energetic about Christmas.
They had gone into every toy store and got loads of toys for Aaron. Some were wrapped to put under the tree and others were to make his days more enjoyable.
Margo had gone crazy with the clothing shopping. That day, she realized how much she missed having kids around.
After the mall they got something to eat and then went to get a Christmas tree. All the ornament the Shepherd family had collected were still in a box in the attic. So the only thing missing was a large Christmas tree to put in the middle of the living room.
After coming home and setting up the tree, they started decorating it immediately. Aaron was so happy with all of this that he didn't stop talking. He talked about his mom, his toys, the stories his mommy told him about Santa, everything.
But just like Margo had noticed in the morning, he wouldn't talk about any of his other family members. Every once in a while he mentioned a grandma and a grandpa but whenever they tried to learn more, he shut himself off.
After dinner they did some more decorating but Aaron fell asleep a few minutes into it so they decided to leave everything to continue the next day.
Jack carried the sleeping child to his room and tucked him in tightly.
Just as he was about to get into his own room and finally get some sleep, his pager went off.
It was Kate.
If you want me to update before the New Year please leave a REVIEW and motivate me!