AN: I'm not a doctor, so please forgive me if I make medical mistakes. The knowledge I have is from my own experience with hospitals and doctors and of course mother Google!
Stef POV
The two officers come in and we get straight to business. I tell them everything, every single detail that I remember. I even remember the exact bullet count that flew my way and I know how many bullets are left in my gun.
Once they leave, I decide to try and get some rest. But getting two hours of sleep is too much to ask for.
My mind flashes back to the moment, when I see the boy fire a bullet straight into my partners body. Next, my mind flashes back to Amy bleeding out in my arms. I see the boy, who I killed, fall to his knees and grip his chest. The look he gave me, is engraved in my mind. I relive the time in ambulance, when Amy's heart stopped beating.
My eyes fly open and I hear the monitor next to my bed beeping faster and louder. I turn my head to look at it. My heart rate and BP was up. I press my head back in the pillow as I knew it was just a matter of time before a nurse walks in to check on me.
In few seconds the doors to my room open and, just like I predicted, a nurse walks in. The same one, who was here when I first woke up from the anaesthesia. Her name was Kate. It was probably short for Kathrine or Katelyn, or something.
Kate smiles kindly to me as she walks up to the monitor. She presses few buttons on the monitor and then checks my vitals.
"Having trouble sleeping?" Kate asks as she walks around the bed
"You could say that" I say looking up to the ceiling, avoiding her look
"I could give you sedative to help you sleep" She offers when she stops at my left side of the bed to check the wound
"No. I don't want that!" I reply back staring out to the trees outside the window
"Do you need anything - another blanket, different pillow, some water...maybe some food, are you hungry? How is your pain level?"
"What I need…is for my partner to be okay!" Her facial expression softens "But there is nothing you can do about that" The nurse chooses silence as answer. I appreciated, I didn't need a stranger to try and cheer me up.
"Are you and your partner close?" She asks when she is done checking the wounds
"We are. She's the best partner I have ever worked with" I don't have to think about it, it was a no-brainier "Not only that, Amy is a close family friend"
Nurse smile is very genuine "If you need anything, press the blue button"
10 minutes after nurse Kate leaves, Lena walks back with a bag in her hand
"Hi, love" Lena walks in, gives me a quick kiss and then walks to the chair
"Did you get some sleep?" she asks when she places the bag down
"Yes" I lie, there was no reason to worry her about my nightmares
"I got you some clean clothes. I didn't take much, the doctor said you could go home in 2-3 days if you don't catch an infection. Not sure if you can put the shirts on just yet" she pulls out my favorite plaid shirt "but I got it anyway, for when you are discharged" Lena pulls out sweatpants when she puts the shirt back in the bag
"Where is Callie?" I ask before she could continue to tell me what else she got. Lena turns to me, holding pants, socks and underwear in her hands
"Waiting room"
"You left her alone!?" I snap at her
"Stef" She lowers her hands "Do you really think I would leave her alone?"
"No" my head dips down, when I realize Lena would never do that
"She is with Cooper" She explains as she walks up to the bed. Lena moves the blanket away from my lower half and starts to dress me
"Where will she stay tonight?" I ask calmly, hoping to hear the words - with us
"At her home. Cooper will stay with her tonight"
"With Cooper? Cooper is not a parent! Why isn't she going with you?! What were you thinking?" I almost shout it at her
My emotions were all over the place. I couldn't contain it. Because I blamed myself for what happened to Amy - I feel obligated to help Callie. But, because I can't really do anything to help her, I am putting all of it on Lena. I know, Lena didn't deserve that.
Lena looks to me, shocked by my attitude. But she doesn't call me out on it, she reaches for the sweatpants and start to pull them on. I think Lena understood that I was way too emotional right now.
"When Cooper and I discussed it, I was thinking that you were still in surgery and I had no idea if you were going to make it or make me a single parent of 5 and a widow! Back then I didn't know if I could…help her! I didn't know if I could help my own kids!" Lena replied holding her tears in as she pulls socks on my feet
"Lena" I reach for her arm with my right. She takes a small step away from my extend arm, avoiding it. That action hurt me more than anything else before, because I know I caused this. But Lena still put the blanket back around my legs and tucked me in, like a mother tucks in kids.
"Love…Lena…please" I pleaded "Please, look at me" I was still holding my right hand out, reaching for her
When Lena finally turns to look at me, I see how much I hurt her. A tear falls down her cheek as she looks at me "Lena, love…I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm sorry…I know, I have no idea what you went through. I have no idea what it feels like to be in your position. I overreacted, love. I'm sorry"
Finally Lena walked closer. I could finally reach her. I giver her hand a tight squeeze. She sits down on the side of the bed and took my hand between hers, holding it tightly.
"When we were in ambulance, I promised her that I…we would take care of her. It was the last thing I said to her before she lost her consciousness and coded" I had hard time keeping it together
Lena leans closer to me and presses her forehead to my. I close my eyes when she whispers to me "We will take care of her, Stef. We will!"
Callie POV
Over the last few hours, I have come to a conclusion, that people divide into three categories after they receive bad news. One – the criers. Two – the angry people, who start to blame everyone around them. And three – the silent ones.
As I watch and hear another doctor console an elder man, who just lost his wife to heart attack, I start to wonder which one would I be.
When my birth mom died, I certainly fit in the second category. I messed up my room so bad. I was angry at everyone, especially myself. But now - I am not sure. I am not the same girl I was 7 years ago. I think I have gotten much more resistant to bad news. I think, I no longer fit in the second category.
I am too numb to fit in the first group. I think, the foster care has built up my character pretty good. I have learned to hide my feelings, I have learned not to show fear. From few foster parents I have learned that crying was weakness and if you show someone your weakness, they will exploit it even more. Yes, I cried in Lena's shoulder today, but that was just a moment of weakness. I believe, I don't fit in the first category.
I could be the silent one. The numb one. The one who just accepts the bad news and moves on. I'm the one who doesn't deal with stuff, with feelings. I bury it all deep down and pretend that it never happened. Hell, I buried the anger I felt towards Stef and Lena for 6 years! Yes, I could be the silent type.
"Officer Amy Scott?" a doctor said my moms name and pulled me out of my thoughts. Cooper and I both jumped up from our seats. The doctor came closer towards us. I run my suddenly sweaty palms over my jeans.
"I'm doctor McKoy, I operated on Officer Scott," We stay quiet, waiting to hear the news "Amy is alive, but she is still not out of the woods yet. We took her to ICU, where we will keep a close eye on her over the night"
I let out the breath that I was holding in. Cooper puts hand on my shoulder, I turn to him and we share a smile. She's alive. That's all that matters.
"What are her injuries?" Cooper asks as he turns back to Dr. McKoy
"Why don't we head to a more private place to talk" He offers after he looked around the waiting room
I glance around as well, there were so many people inside here – civilians and many officers as well. But there was one person I didn't see – Lena. She said she would be there for me, but she is not here. I needed her, for support.
"If you can follow me, please" the doctor looked directly to me, he gestured out the waiting room
"Where's Lena?" I look to Cooper. He glanced around as well, looking for her.
"Probably with Stef" He said to me and the turned to doctor "We need a minute, we need to find someone-" Cooper explains to him
"Only family members-" the doctor spoke up, looking directly at Cooper. I think he knew that he wasn't family. But I didn't have to think about it twice, I cut him off quickly.
"They are both family!" I say in raised voice, I have never been more serious
"My apologizes…of course, we can wait a minute for your friend" He said very sincerely
"I will go get her" Cooper said, but before he could walk out, Lena ran in, followed by Officer Hernandez. Lena run up to me and grabbed my left hand in hers, we interlocked our fingers.
We took the elevator up to the 3rd floor. The big sign above the doors read – ICU. The hallway was much more lighter, if that was even possible. This wing was also quitter than the first floor. All the rooms had glass walls. We could see inside, see the patients, all the medical equipment.
He took us to a smaller room. We all sat down. I was between Cooper and Lena, the doctor sat opposite us. He pressed his fingers together.
"When Amy was brought here, she was in Hypovolemic shock and she—" He started but I cut him off
"W-what is that? W-what does that mean?" I stutter back confused
"Sorry...when your mom was brought here, she had lost a lot of blood. Because of the severe blood loss, her heart had trouble pumping enough blood back to her body. The first thing we had to do was preform a blood transfusion. We took her to surgery almost immediately" He explains slowly and looked for my nod back, if I understood. When I nodded back he continued, in the same, very slow, calm, gentle manner.
"Once in surgery, I looked for the source of the bleeding and stopped it, as soon as possible. We discovered that the bullet, which penetrated her chest, nicked her Subclavian vein. That was the main source of her blood loss. She was bleeding internally as well. As the bullet traveled further, it punctured her lung and caused a collapsed lung, making it harder for her to breathe."
What scared me the most, was that the doctor didn't sound like he was about to stop talking anytime soon. That made me realize, how serious this is and how hard the recovery will be.
"The bullet stopped at her spine, thankfully, it didn't damage it. But it was very close to nerves so I asked our best neurosurgeon, Dr. Bevin to remove the bullet safely" He stopped briefly and looked between us to see if we still follow his trail of thought
I was just sitting there, staring blankly at him. I don't think I have blinked in the last 30 seconds. My mouth was partly ajar as I kept listing to what extent mom has been injured.
"The bullet that penetrated her leg, went straight through. It didn't hit any bone or nerve. It is just muscle damage. She will need therapy to get back on her feet after the wound heals. Right now she is not awake yet" He shifted lightly in the chair, doctor leaned a bit closer towards us
"It will be a long, hard road, but we believe she will recover" He ended on a more positive note. It sounded like the doctor was done explaining her injuries.
"When will she wake up?" Cooper asks, he didn't sound as confident as he used to
"I can't tell you an exact day. But, when she starts to breathe on her own and –"
"She's not breathing?" I ask desperate
Dr. McKoy glanced to me and said in sadder tone "Right now - no! She is not breathing on her own. The ventilator is breathing for her" Lena's hand that was wrapped around my back, pulled me closer to her side after the news
Doctor detained a small pause before he continued to answer Coopers question "She probably won't wake up for another day or two. It all depends on her, how soon her body regains strength. You have to understand, that her body was put through a lot of stress and it simply needs time to recover."
"Can we see her?" I asked in pleading tone
"Of course" He stood up and gestured out of the room
The doctor took us to room 307. We stood by the room and simply watched Amy for few minutes. Cooper and Lena were both behind me. Lena hasn't let go of my hand ever since she took it in the first floor waiting room.
Mom was connected to bunch of wires and the ventilator. The monitor by her bed side was showing her vitals. A nurse was with her, she hanged up fluid bag and connected it to another tube. The fluid then started to drip down the tube and traveled down the tube to her blood stream.
Mom looked as pale as the sheets she was on. To me it seemed like she was just resting her eyes. It didn't look like she was in pain. To me, mom actually looked peaceful. Maybe she was dreaming about Aaron and Makrus.
"Can I go in?" I ask the doctor, not taking my eyes off mom
"10 minutes" He says back
Lena presses her lips to my temple "We'll be right here" she whispers to me before she lets go of our interlocked fingers. Cooper touches my arm as I walk pass him and smiles at me sadly.
The doctor opens the doors for me and asks the nurse to give 10 minutes to me. She nods back and walks out, leaving me alone in the room with mom.
I walked up to the left side of her bed and looked down to her. Part of me was scared to touch her, she looked so weak and fragile. At first, my fingers linger over the side of the bed, by her left arm.
Besides her chest, that moved up and down as the ventilator pushed air into her lungs, she wasn't moving. Her hands were by her side, palms facing the bed sheet, fingers were slightly bent.
I moved my fingers towards her hand. Her skin was cold to touch, I pulled my hand back at the first contact. But few seconds later I moved my hand back and I squeezed her palm very gently.
"Hi! I'm here, mom..." I say quietly as I continue to look closely to her features
And that's it! My brain stopped working and I had no idea what to say next.
Can she even hear me? If I started to talk to her, would I be talking just to myself?
What can I talk to her about? There is nothing that seems important enough to inform her about.
Do I tell her how scared I am? Knowing her, she probably already knows that.
I reach up to her face and run my fingers softly over her cheek. When my eyes travel all over her body, I notice that something is missing. Two things to be exact. I looked over my shoulder to Lena and Cooper. They stood by the window - watching me.
I think Lena noticed my slight panic first. She uncrossed her arms from her chest and said something to Cooper, his features changed the next second. I let go of moms hand and hurry out of the room.
"What's the matter honey?" Lena asks the second I open the doors
"Her necklace and her bracelet is gone" I said walking pass her to the hallway. I needed to find a nurse or doctor, who could know something.
"The bracelet you got her for birthday and her necklace with her wedding ring?" Cooper asks to be sure
"Yes, they are not on her!" I said hurrying down the hall to the nurse desk, that we passed when we got here. Both - Cooper and Lena - followed my rapid walk down the hall.
"Where is her bracelet and necklace?" I demand an answer from the nurse, who sat behind the desk
"I'm sorry?" She asked, not knowing who I was talking about
"Amy Scott…307" Cooper explained calmly "She had a bracelet, leather bracelet around her left wrist and a necklace with a wedding ring on!"
"I will get her belonging up to you as soon as possible" Nurse replied in the same calm manner
"Why were they taken off!" I shout angrily at her as she picked up the phone to call someone
"Callie, honey…" Lena said trying to get me to calm down. I was on edge. This got me worked up, probably, more than it should have. I guess I was so worried because I know, how much they mean to her, especially the ring "Your mom had surgery. They had to take off all the jewelry. She couldn't have them on if they had to take her to x-ray or any other medical procedure."
"Don't worry, they keep all of her belonging safe!" Cooper added "You should have them back soon"
A nurse stepped out of the elevator 2 minutes later with a plastic bag in her hand. It had all of her belongings, that mom had with her at the time of shooting. I open the bag quickly and take out the bracelet and the necklace.
"She can't have them on in ICU" the nurse behind the desk informed me
I hand the bag to Cooper, for safe keeping, before I examine the two piece of jewelry. Her bracelet looked unharmed. I didn't want to take any chances so I just put it around my own wrist. The small chain and ring wasn't damaged, but both of the objects were covered in blood.
"I will get that. I will clean off the blood" Lena says reaching for it
I allow her to take it and then head back to the room, to have few more minutes with mom. This time I take a seat next to the bed. I pull the chair up to the bed as close as possible.
"I got your ring and bracelet" I tell her, watching how her chest move up and down in a steady pace
"Lena is getting the blood of the ring and necklace. You will have it back, I promise! I put the bracelet around my own wrists" I say glancing down to my left wrist, which now had two almost identical leather bracelet on "Nurse said I couldn't put it back around your wrist"
"Cooper has the other stuff. He is here too. Cooper is really worried about you" I look up to her closed eyes "Lena is here as well. Actually, the whole Adams Foster clan was here. Lena took them home, thou…but don't worry, they are thinking about you as well. Just because they are not here in hospital doesn't mean they don't care" I explain to her, thinking, maybe she would be hurt, knowing they left
"Stef is okay, by the way. At least the doctor said she was going to be all right. I haven't gone to see her" I sight as I know felt slightly guilty "Maybe I should have! She is on the first floor and they have very strict visiting hours. It is over 8 now, so I can't see her today. I will go tomorrow to check on her, I promise"
I take a shaky breath in. Softly, I move my thumb over her palm "I need you to be okay, mom. Please be okay..." I plead to her
"I can't lose you. I don't know if I can take losing another mom. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I want you to motherly smother me with your love for the rest of my life" I say with shaky voice. With a quick hand movement I wipe away the few tears that were slowly falling down my cheek "I can't imagine my life without you, mom"
The doors to the room open. I look over my shoulder and see the nurse stand in the doorway. She gives a soft look, that told me my time was up and that I needed to let her rest and heal.
"I love you" I remind her and kiss her temple