Jethro slid down the wall of his room. At least Columbia Children's was near a Ronald McDonald House. He didn't think Jack could afford another extended hotel stay and he certainly couldn't pay for his own stay. Even in a cheap hotel. Not after all the work he missed and promising to pay Kelly's first group of NICU bills. He knew that Jack would help him out where he could but he had his own bills with Olivia's birth and Darla's prenatal care. Being over forty she was considered high risk and had to see the doctor twice as much as a younger women. He wasn't going to complain though. He deserved to have to pay every penny of the bill including what the insurance would pay. It was his fault that all of this had happened. If he had made Jenny come home with him instead of going off with her girlfriends. She would still be here and Kelly would just be being born now. Both the woman in his life would have been strong and healthy if it weren't for him. Part of him wished that he hadn't of sent Jack away and refused to allow Darla to come be with him but this was his issue. A challenge that he had to face on his own. He hadn't really lied to his dad though. The only person he truly wanted with him was Jenny. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He didn't even look at it he just pulled it out and tossed it clear across the room. It smashed on the wall. Just like it had that day at the hotel. Except this time it cracked in two pieces. He didn't care at all it was just a stupid piece of technology. Kelly was the only thing that he cared about right now. A few seconds later the land line that sat on the desk rang. His heart dropped, whoever was calling really wanted to talk to him. What if it was the hospital? What if Kelly had taken a bad turn? What if she had... what if she had...had...died?
"Don't you dare take her!" Jethro called out into the darkness.
Knowing that he was too tired to make the drive home but not wanting to cause further issue with Leroy. Jack checked into a cheap hotel for the night. When he was younger he would have gone into Wal*Mart and bought a cheap sleeping bag and tent and found a place to camp. Of course that was before he injured his back and started to have various age related pains. Not to mention that now days he would probably be arrested for being homeless. When he got up to his room, he pulled out his cellphone. So that he could plug it in and saw that he had several missed calls from Darla. He never made calls this late especially in a hotel with thin walls but he didn't want her lying awake thinking he was lying dead or injured somewhere.
"Jackson?"
"Hi Darla, I was just returning your calls."
"Oh I am sorry the baby was crying and then I fell asleep. I guess I blanked on the fact that I had called you."
"It's alright we all have a lot on our minds right now."
"Did you hear anything new on Kelly?"
"Just that she is in the NICU. I took Jethro across the street and got him checked into the Ronald McDonald House."
"Are you sure that he will be OK? Because I can run the store."
"No he insists on staying alone."
"Well if he needs help. I will run the store and you can drive back up to be with him."
"Are you sure you can handle that?"
"Well somebody needs to run the store and Jethro hates me so I shouldn't intrude."
"He doesn't hate you. Truth be told I think his issue is that you have Olivia and she is perfectly healthy while Kelly is having all these problems."
"I never saw it like that but he has always been so weird towards me."
"Leroy loved his mother. More than he ever liked me. She was his everything when she died. He actually begged me not to date. It was five years before I finally started dating and he wanted to kill me. You are the first woman I dated that he didn't run off. Even though you guys don't always see eye to eye. I know that he likes you and that you adore him."
"I know I shouldn't be bringing this up now. I am sorry Jack."
"It's OK we've had a long day. Get some sleep and you will feel better."
"You too"
The sun shone in Jethro's room. He weakly raised his head off of the pillow and squinted at the clock. It was only six in the morning. He had two hours to kill before he could see Kelly. Knowing that sleep had been a futile exercise. He climbed out of bed and made his way down the hall to the common room/dining area. He could smell breakfast cooking in the kitchen. There wasn't even any food ready for the residents yet. At least there was coffee in the pot. He poured himself a cup and took a seat on the couch. Not wanting to feel alone anymore he turned on the TV. All that was on at this hour was the news. For a while he feigned interest in the idiotic fluff videos and entertainment news that broke up the stories about car accidents and early morning fires. When he saw a headline about a little girl who had drowned in a pool he flicked off the news and slammed the remote on the table. He couldn't take this anymore. He finished his coffee and threw the cup hard in the sink. Not caring that he broke the handle off. He stormed across the street to the hospital. He curled up in a ball on the couch in the waiting room. He must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew another parent had shaken him awake and told him that visiting hours had started. He rode the elevator up to the NICU and pushed the call button.
"Who are you here to see?" A nurse asked.
"Kelly Gibbs" Gibbs replied.
"Oh just a minute." The nurse replied buzzing him in.
Before the nurse had a chance to buzz Jethro in there was a high-pitched scream. Jethro could see all hell breaking loose from the little window in the door.
"Code Blue NICU crib 3! Code Blue NICU crib 3!" An automated voice called.
Jethro's heart dropped to the floor and he felt like he was going to be sick. That was Kelly's bed...
A/N: Will they be able to revive Kelly? New chapter will be up soon. Please review and thank for reading.