In hindsight, Hailey and Jay should have known Ava would hate storms. Hailey didn't like them because thunder reminded her of slamming. So, Ava likely would have a bad reaction. For two elite detectives, they were surprisingly shocked when Ava started panicking when a massive clap of thunder woke them just after 6:00 AM.
Ava was still in her own bed when the rain started and slept through it, but when a sudden clap of thunder shook the house, it scared her. She shot up in bed and looked around, clutching her bunny. When it thundered again, she screamed and started to breathe fast. She feared she'd get hurt again. It was loud. Loud was bad. Then the power snapped off, making her nightlight and sound machine go away. All she could see was the flashes of lightning before she took off for her sister, hysterical.
"HAIWEY! HAIWEY, HEWP!" She screamed, crashing into their room and into her sister's legs. Hailey lifted Ava up and started swaying, feeling how horribly the toddler was shaking.
"It's okay, I know it's loud. Breathe for me, baby. Just breathe. It's okay," she repeated over and over again. Ava wouldn't calm down, though. Her crying got worse as it kept thundering.
"Ava, come on, babe, I need you to breathe for me. Follow what I do, I'm here. You are safe," Hailey held Ava to her chest and took slow, deep breaths.
"Hail, we should go downstairs. It's bad out there. I'm pulling it up on my phone and there's hail coming and winds of 80 mph and above," Jay whispered, not wanting to scare Ava more than she already was.
"Okay. I need to change her, she's soaked. Where's my phone?" Hailey looked around in the dark, feeling Ava flinch with every clap of thunder. It was constant.
She found her phone and used the flashlight to get back to Ava's room and change her before going downstairs. "Make it stoppp," Ava wailed, growing hysterical again.
"I wish I could, baby. I've got you and I'll keep you safe," Ava shoved her thumb into her mouth, attempting to self soothe, but another massive clap of thunder had her screaming.
"Okay, let's go down to the basement. It may be quieter and we can watch something on my computer. How does that sound?" Ava nodded into Hailey's chest.
"Hot," she sobbed, squirming. Jay could tell Ava was sweating just from the light of his flashlight, so he got her pajama shirt off to try and keep her cool.
"I'll get your computer and some water and come down," he told Hailey and she went downstairs with Ava.
"Shhh, Aves. It's not as loud down here. I know thunder is scary, but I promise it can't hurt you. You're okay, you're safe," Hailey sat down on the couch with Ava on her chest.
It took a few minutes, but Ava slowly realized that it wasn't as loud down there. She started calming down and accepted her water bottle when Jay offered it to her. She could still feel Hailey's hand rubbing her back, which she liked, and she put her thumb in her mouth.
"There we go, Ava girl. Keep breathing with me. Do you want to watch something?" Hailey asked her.
"Doc," she murmured around her thumb, not moving at all.
Jay used Hailey's laptop to find Doc McStuffins, Ava's current favorite show. She focused on the screen, her little body shuddering occasionally with the aftershocks of her sobs. Jay showed Hailey the radar and she cringed. This wasn't the worst of it. They were in for a long day.
With Ava content on her big sister, Jay went back upstairs to get some stuff, including breakfast for the three of them. Because the power was out, he got cereal and fruit, taking them downstairs with bowls, spoons, milk, and napkins. He then turned on the emergency lanterns they had to give them some light before running back upstairs to get Ava some toys and anything she might need in the next few hours.
The little family ate breakfast and the adults kept checking the radar. There was a break in the storm system, but there was a bigger system headed their way within the next hour.
"This is gonna be bad. I hate these storms and clearly Ave hates them, too," Hailey whispered, tearing up.
"We'll be safe down here, babe. It's safe right now, let's go upstairs, let her play for a little bit and keep it as normal as possible without power. Everything will be okay," Jay kissed her and she kissed back then nodded.
"Hey, Aves, let's put your shirt on and go upstairs for a little bit. We can play candy land and sorry," Hailey coaxed her sister to look at her, and Ava sat up and nodded slowly.
"No more scawy?" She asked quietly, looking around and fidgeting.
"Not right now, maybe later though. But we will keep you safe," Hailey reassured her. Ava wiggled in her lap again and whimpered.
"Needa potty," she finally admitted once Jay got her shirt on her.
Hailey took her to go then met Jay upstairs where he had Ava's favorite games set up. "CANY LAN!!!" Ava cheered, running to Jay when she saw what he had out for her. "FANK YOU!" She hugged his legs with her good arm and bounced happily. Her ribs weren't hurting her as much anymore so she was just a little more bouncy and active like a typical toddler.
"You're welcome, Ava girl! Do you want to play?" Jay asked, sitting on the floor beside the little girl.
"Pay, pease!" She beamed at him, her dimples appearing.
Hailey and Jay sat down and played candy land with Ava for almost 45 minutes before switching to sorry for about 20 minutes. Hailey had just won when the wind picked up and the storm sirens started going off, causing everyone to freeze. (AN: I have no idea if there are storm sirens in Chicago, but we have them in Texas.)
"Okay, let's go downstairs. I'll get the game and some snacks," Jay took charge, knowing his wife was scared and Ava was probably about to lose her little mind.
Hailey lifted Ava up and carried her to the basement, feeling her start to shake. "What happening?" Ava asked around her thumb, which she'd just put back into her mouth.
"It's really windy, that noise is telling us that so people who are outside will go inside," Hailey explained, not wanting to scare Ava more than necessary.
Ava nodded and let Hailey put her down. She went over and curled up with her blanket and bunny, blinking away tears. She could tell Hailey was scared, which made her more scared than she already was. Something was wrong.
Jay came down and set up the game again, but Ava had no interest. She simply reached out for him to hold her, so Jay lifted her up and swayed with her.
"What's happening? Some-fin wong," she gave him a serious look then glanced to her sister before she looked back at Jay.
The couple had a silent conversation with their eyes then both sighed. "There's a storm with big wind and thunder coming, kiddo. We came down here to be safe, and we'll probably be here for a while. Everything is going to be okay."
Ava hated thunder and hid her face in Jay's shoulder as her tears started again. Hailey sighed. This wasn't fun. The wind was absolutely brutal, it was now hailing, and the thunder was once more nonstop. She was scared, but she didn't want to show Ava, who spent a good 20 minutes attached to Jay, sobbing around her thumb.
Eventually, Ava reached out for Hailey, who happily took her, and she sat with Jay on the couch, Ava cuddled between them, watching Doc McStuffins, for over an hour until things started to calm down.
"I think this system has calmed down," Jay said, looking at the radar on his phone again. "We can go upstairs, I'll see where the power company is at with getting the power back."
Hailey sighed in relief and grabbed her computer so Ava could keep watching upstairs. They moved out of the basement, Ava looking outside as she rested her head on Hailey's shoulder. She didn't like that it was still raining pretty hard.
"It's okay, baby. We're safe," Hailey had felt her tense up.
Ava nodded against her shoulder and sighed. She was tired and scared and just wanted it to stop.
"No mowe," she whimpered, thumb slipping from her mouth.
"I know, I think it's calming down, Aves. Let's ask Jay," Hailey took Ava over to Jay and set her on the couch beside him.
"Ovew?" She asked, looking up at him with her big blue eyes.
"It's almost over, we should be okay for a little while," He rubbed her back and she sighed.
"No, don't want mowe," she huffed, laying down on the couch and putting her thumb back in her mouth. Her bunny was clutched to her chest.
Hailey looked to Jay with a frown, her eyes filled with worry. He sighed and lifted Ava up, mindful of her remaining injuries as he rested her on his chest.
"C'mere, Hail," Hailey curled into Jay's side and ran her hand through Ava's hair, hoping to soothe her.
"I know it's not fun, kiddo. We'll keep you safe. How about we build a fort?" He suggested.
"Fowt?" Ava looked up at him in confusion. She didn't know what that was.
"That answers that. Time for a fort," Jay smiled. He and Hailey got to work, building a blanket fort that all 3 of them could be in. The house wasn't too hot yet, so it would work for a little while.
Once it was done, Hailey went to get snacks and set up a movie to watch on her computer. Ava loved it, and it kept her distracted from the storms. They spent a few hours in the fort, even letting Ava nap in there once she fell asleep. Despite the bad start to the day, it ended up being pretty good and they got new pictures of and with Ava. The power came back on around 6 PM, much to their relief. They'd resorted to finding the few battery-powered fans they had and sitting close to them while Hailey was just in a sports bra and shorts, Jay didn't have a shirt on, and Ava was only in a pull-up. August in Chicago with no power could be brutal. Their house hit 85 degrees inside.
With the power back on, everyone bathed and put on fresh clothes. Once Ava was down for the night, Hailey and Jay worked on cleaning out the fridge and making a grocery list to replace the few things that went bad. Unfortunately, as soon as they got in bed, it started raining again, and within the hour, a clap of thunder had Ava awake and screaming. Jay went to get her and brought her into their room, passing her to Hailey as she sobbed her little heart out.
It took a while, but Ava finally fell asleep between them, and they went to bed as well. When they woke up in the morning, it was sunny and seemed like nothing had happened the day before. Ava was ecstatic. Hailey and Jay were exhausted.