Chapter 58: Affects of a Ten Year Old
Sitting on the couch still feeling stunned and overwhelmed at her revelation, Eddie barely registers a knock on the door as Mia crosses the room to answer it "Who is it?" She calls.
"Uncle Danny and Aunt Maria!"
"Oh thank god." Eddie mumbles out as Mia opens the door just in time for Danny and Maria to see Eddie curl up into a ball on the couch and start to silently cry.
"Eddie?" Danny questions in immediate concern as he moves to crouch next to her "Are you okay? Is it the baby?" He questions in a rush.
"I can't do this." Eddie breathes out in a panic. "I can't have this baby. I'm going to make a horrible mother."
"What? No." Danny rejects "Why would you say that? You're going to make a great Mom."
Eddie shakes her head no "No. No I won't. A ten year old..." She adds as she blindly gestures in Mia's direction "…makes a better Mother then I will."
"What?" Danny laughs "Why would you say that?"
"Because I have no clue what I'm doing and… and then she waltzes in her and just… just magically takes control and… and… I suck at this!" Eddie cries in true despair.
Danny slightly cringes then looks up at Mia to see her standing there a bit like a deer caught in headlights at Eddie's breakdown "I…I… um... I just came home and saw she needed help so… so I helped." Mia slowly explains "I…I mean… I'm here every day… I know what my Mom does…" She tries to explain "…so I… I just tried to help."
"See…" Eddie sobs out "…better than meeeeeee!" she whines in despair.
"Okay Eddie, Eddie…" Danny tries to soothe "What you're feeling is natural. Every new parent goes through it. I know I did with the boys." he adds as he looks up at Maria "And Baez, you went through it with Elena right?"
"Of course I did!" Maria agrees "There is a learning curve to parenting. You just need to get a little experience that's all."
"You think?" Eddie hopefully sniffles.
"Absolutely." Maria soothes.
"And you tried to handle three at once." Danny points out "That's like… like taking the Sergeant's exam without even graduating from the academy first. You've never do that right?"
"No." Eddie reluctantly mumbles.
"See so you just need to start small – at the beginning." Danny points out "With only one kid."
"Like you did with me!" Mia chimes in.
Eddie turns to look at the young girl "But you were already older."
"You want to know what I think?" Maria suddenly adds in.
"What?" Eddie mumbles.
"I think I see you babysitting Elena so you get some of that needed experience." Maria decides.
"Oh does that mean a night out on the town?" Danny suggestively quips.
"Mind. Gutter. Out. Reagan." Maria chides.
"What does that mean?" Mia questions.
"Okay so she's not completely grown up yet." Eddie mutters out in relief as her cellphone starts to ring. She pulls it out to see Jamie calling. She immediately hands her phone out to Danny. "You talk to him. I don't want him to hear me upset. He'll freak out, get all over concerned and want to fix it."
"Sure make me the scapegoat." Danny jokingly counters as he takes the phone and hits accept call "Wife Eddie's phone. Big brother Danny speaking how may I help you little bro?"
There is a moment of silence over the line "Do I want to know why you're answering her phone and not her?" Jamie finally and very cautiously queries "Especially with that kind of greeting?"
"It's all good." Danny promises as he offers his sister in law a reassuring smile "So what's up? How's ah… that situation?"
"Well he's black and blue, and has a few broken ribs and a broken wrist." Jamie states "But he's conscious and alert so it could have been worse too."
"Good." Danny accepts.
"I take it you're at Rosa's apartment?" Jamie questions.
"Yes." Danny replies.
"Mia come home yet?" Jamie asks.
"Yup." Danny replies.
"Rosa and Manny talked…" Jamie continues "…and after some back and forth they agreed that Mia should be told what happened."
"Oh." Danny accepts. "You… want me to bring her by?"
"Hang on let me find out." Jamie questions so there is a few moments of silence where all Danny can hear is muffled talking in the background.
"I'm on hold." Danny explains to Eddie, Maria and Mia as they all wait.
"Yeah bring her down." Jamie's voice states a second later.
"Break it to her too or let you do that?" Danny questions.
"Tell her you're bringing her to the hospital – reiterate everyone is fine and that I'll explain more when she gets here."
"Okay, see you soon."
…..
Jamie stands in the hallway of the hospital waiting.
"Uncle Jamie!" Mia urgently calls when she rounds a corner and sees him.
Jamie immediately turns his head and looks over. He lifts his hand and knocks on the hospital room door behind him as Mia comes hurrying towards him "What's going on? Mia demands "All Uncle Danny would tell me is everyone is fine but nobody comes to a hospital when everyone is fine! Where's my Mom?"
"I'm right here." Rosa replies as she slips out of the room and into the hall.
Mia sighs in relief "You're okay."
"I am." Rosa confirms "But um… you're Dad had a little accident."
Mia's eyes go wide in alarm "What?"
"He's okay." Rosa promises "Or he will be but um he's a little black and blue right now and..."
Mia's eyes drift to the room door "Is he in there?"
Rosa nods.
Without saying another word, Mia pushes past her Mom to open the door "DADDY!" She cries in alarm the second she sees him before rushing for the bed.
Rosa sighs "I'll just be in here." She tells Jamie before entering as well and letting the room door close behind her.
Jamie turns his attention away from the door to see his brother standing before him.
"Good times huh?" Danny offers.
"Super fun." Jamie agrees.
"You want to know what else is super fun?" Danny offers "Your wife having a melt down when she realized she couldn't handle a three month old, a one year old and a three year old all by her little lonesome with absolutely no knowledge of their routines."
Jamie cringes "So that's why you answered her phone."
Danny nods. "We talked her down off the ledge and of course I never told you a thing about this but um FYI Maria and I agree that you two should be babysitting Elena so she gets more comfortable handling babies."
"Oh." Jamie notes.
"Yeah oh." Danny confirms "So when she brings that up you agree okay?"
"Understood." Jamie accepts.
"Good husband." Danny compliments before his eyes drift into the hospital room "So was it Munoz?"
"Actually no." Jamie replies.
Danny turns his head to look back at his brother in surprise "Really?"
Jamie nods "Manny tried to stop a fight between two other prisoners but then they both turned on him."
Danny shrugs "Could still be courtesy of Munoz. I put nothing past that guy."
"He's still in solitary." Jamie points out.
"Again, I trust nothing." Danny counters.
"Always skeptical." Jamie tosses at his brother.
"Like you're not?" Danny lobs right back.
Suddenly the door opens and Mia appears "Uncle Jamie, Daddy can't go back to prison. He'll get hurt again. I want you to make sure he doesn't have to go back."
"Mia." Manny calls.
"You put him in there." Mia states as she continues to talk to Jamie ignoring her father "Get him out."
"Mia!" Rosa calls.
"No!" Mia rejects in anger to her Mother but her attention is still on Jamie "It's your fault he's in jail. It's your fault he got hurt. Make it right!" She demands before spinning on her heels and walking back inside the room and as the door slowly shuts Jamie sees the apologetic looks Rosa and Manny are giving him but it doesn't help alleviate the pain he is feeling. The look Mia was giving him as she spoke was like a knife straight through his heart so not sure what else to do, he simply turns and begins walking away.
Having silently stood off to the side watching the entire scene play out, Danny now quickly moves to follow his brother "Jamie!" Danny calls "Come on she didn't mean that."
"Yes she did." Jamie counters as he keeps walking "Because it's the truth. Her father is in prison because of me. I arrested him."
"You were doing your job because he broke the law." Danny counters "That's not on you."
Suddenly Jamie stops walking and turns to look at his brother "Maybe it was Munoz." He decides "Manny shouldn't be in the same prison as Munoz. Maybe I can get him transferred."
"Jamie stop." Danny demands "You know you can't do that."
"Dad can."
"What?" Danny states in surprise "Jamie come on." He repeats "You know you can't ask that."
"Well what am I supposed to do then Danny?" Jamie demands "Huh? Tell me because I don't know how else to fix this."
Danny sighs "Sometimes… sometimes there are just some things you can't fix and I'm sorry Kid, but this very well might be one of them."
Having slipped out of her husband's room, Rosa looks up and down the hall searching "Jamie!" She calls when she spots him as she quickly moves towards the brothers "Jamie I'm sorry…" She apologizes "…she's just upset at seeing her Dad like that, that's all. We know Manny getting beat up isn't your fault and once she's calmed down Mia will realize that too."
"Thanks…" Jamie awkwardly accepts "…but um…when you and Mia are ready to go home, Danny can take you okay?"
A look of alarm crosses Rosa's face "What? Why? Where are you going?"
"I just… I have some work I need to take care of." Jamie deflects and before anyone can say anything else he walks away.
"Just um… let me know when you want to go home." Danny awkwardly tells Rosa as he watches his brother walk away with worry.
…..
Eddie stands just outside Rosa's open apartment door waving "Bye Sammy!" she calls to the toddler.
"Bye Dee!" he calls back as he disappears from view with his Mother.
Smiling, Eddie walks back inside the apartment and closes the door "He's a cute kid." She tells Maria as she watches her pick Elena up out of the playpen.
"Mama." Elena coos as Eddie's cellphone rings.
She pulls it out to see Rosa calling "Hey." She greets.
"Eddie has Jamie come back there yet?" Rosa immediate questions.
"Um no." Eddie replies.
"Has he called or texted you or anything?"
"No…" Eddie slowly replies "Rosa, what's going on?"
Rosa sighs "Mia kind of went off on him – blaming him for Manny getting beaten up. She even told him she wants him to get him out of jail and that it was his fault he was in there in the first place."
Eddie immediately squeezes her eyes shut and groans.
"I know." Rosa sighs "I tried to tell him she didn't really mean that and it was just her fear talking but I don't think he heard that."
"No he didn't." Eddie agrees "Okay leave it with me. I'll find him – oh by the way Sammy and Ben were picked up and Maria is here now so all good!"
"Thank you." Rosa states "Listen I was thinking if you and or Maria want to use my car and bring it to the hospital that way Danny doesn't have to wait around for us."
"I'll let Maria know." Eddie replies before hanging up with Rosa. She sighs and ponders a moment before sending a text to her husband.
Where r u?
She waits…
…and waits… but doesn't get a reply.
"Okay fine, be that way." she mumbles in discontent before sending another text
Can u pick me up? I don't feel well
Almost immediately Eddie gets a reply.
On my way
Eddie smiles in satisfaction "That's better."
…..
Eddie sits on Rosa's couch with her feet up and eyes closed resting when she hears repeated and urgent knocking on the door "Eddie?" Jamie's worried voice sounds "Eddie, open up its me!"
"It's open!" Eddie calls back with a yawn and a stretch.
The door immediately opens and Jamie enters – he makes a beeline for his wife "Are you okay?" he presses in concern as he crouches next to her on the couch "What's wrong?"
Eddie smiles "I'm fine." She reassures him.
Jamie looks confused "You're fine? Your text said you didn't feel well."
"True." Eddie admits "But I only sent the second text after you didn't answer my first one." She explains before a frown appears on her face "Because I talked to Rosa, and she told me what happened so I knew the only way to get you out your own head and come back was to tell you I didn't feel well."
"Jesus Eddie don't do that!" Jamie chides annoyed as he stands and paces a bit "I thought something was wrong!"
"Something is wrong!" Eddie insists "And it's you falling into your old patterns retreating into your head."
"Don't start." Jamie warns.
"Don't start?" Eddie challenges "Jameson Reagan, Mia is a ten year old girl who just found out her father was beaten up in prison. She's scared and looking to lash out. You should actually be happy she chose you as her target. That means she loves you because preteens only lash out at the people they love and feel safe with. I should know…" Eddie boasts "…I've been a preteen girl."
Listening to his wife's ramblings, Jamie's face scrunches up "When did Mia become a preteen girl?"
"Today." Eddie replies "Well I guess not today specifically but today is when I realized it. She's not a little girl anymore and she not a teenager yet – hence the preteen phase."
"Eddie…" Jamie sighs.
"I know it hurt to hear those things from her, I do but she doesn't mean them."
"Yes she does Eddie. You didn't see the look on her face, I did."
"Maybe its time Mia learnt why her father went to prison." Eddie reasons.
Jamie's eyes go wide "What? No!" He adamantly rejects "He's her hero. I don't want to tarnished that for her."
"I'm her hero too." Eddie reminds him "And a part of being a hero is sometimes doing difficult things."
"Eddie it's not our call." Jamie points out.
"You're right it's Manny and Rosa's call and they made it."
"What?" Jamie questions in confusion.
"They are telling Mia why Manny went to prison. She's matured a lot in the last year. She's old enough now to understand and accept what her Dad did."
"And let me guess, tell her was your idea right?" Jamie tosses out annoyed at his wife "Eddie, I can't believe you did that!"
"So I was just supposed to let her blame you?"
"YES!"
"No." Eddie rejects "We get the blame for a lot of stuff as cops but I was not willing to accept this as one of them."
"Damn it Eddie!"
Suddenly Eddie's hand flies to her stomach and she winces slightly "It's fine." She promises the kicking baby "Sometimes Mommy and Daddy fight like this but it's okay we still love each other."
"You okay?" Jamie questions.
Eddie looks up at her husband "Your child doesn't like us fighting."
"Well neither do it." Jamie tosses back.
"Then stop arguing with me and just accept that again, I am right."
"It's not fair that you get to use your pregnancy as an ace in the hole you can pull out at anytime to win you know."
"Absolutely its fair because I'm the one with the swollen feet and the backache and is tired all the time and…"
"Alright fine!" Jamie relents "You win. Of course you win. Happy?"
Eddie smiles "I feel like french fries."
Shaking his head, Jamie moves to help his wife up from the couch "Come on. We can stop on the way home."
"Nope." Eddie rejects as she stands "We can stop on the way back to the hospital."
Jamie heavily sighs "Eddie…"
"Don't even try it." Eddie warns "We are resolving this before the day is out. I'm pregnant. Don't mess with me."
...
